(Irma's house)
"Are you both literally dumber than you were yesterday?" Naruto asked on top of Irma's roof stopping them from dropping a washing machine off Irma's roof toward the book on the ground "and how did you two morons even get it up here?" he asked knowing Caleb hadn't learned how to increase his strength with chakra
"We're trying to open the book we have to try something" Caleb said in defeat as he dropped down not knowing what else to do
"I tried a low level rasengan and you think dropping a washing machine on it would open it?" Naruto asked incredulously as he tried multiple things to open the book that wouldn't destroy it
"It was Blunk's idea" Caleb said pointing his thumb at the pasling who nodded multiple times
"Oh that makes it so much better" Naruto said sarcastically
"Works on coconuts" Blunk said in defeat
"Ugh what's going on here?" Irma asked as she and the girls just arrived at her house seeing Caleb and Blunk just standing around
"I just stopped dumb and dumber over here from trashing your parents house and yard" Naruto said as he made himself known as the others looked at him in surprise
"How'd you get my washing machine up there?" Irma asked knowing Naruto wouldn't help the two in front of her
"Trade secret" Blunk said laughing like an idiot
(later)
"Thanks Naruto" Irma said glad that he stopped them from breaking the machine and placing it back into its original place
"No prob" Naruto said as it was no problem for someone of his level of strength "ok from now on i'm holding onto the book so these two don't blow up someone's house especially mine" he said glaring at the two not wanting them to damage someone's place beyond repair "also Caleb this is the reason why I don't let you stay at my house" he said as he wanted to remind Caleb of the conversation they had weeks ago
"Hey wait how the hell did you two dunderheads even get inside my house?" Irma asked curious to how they got inside
"Blunk" Caleb said as the pasling somehow acquired the key
Irma started walking toward the small pasling and grabbed him by his legs and shook him till the key to her house fell out, she then threw him outside and blasted him with a torrent of water "you do that again your ass is getting the soap!" she said closing and locking the door
(later at Naruto's house)
"So how was it after you were hit by the horn?" Bee asked as he and Naruto were taking a break from a little sparing
Naruto sighed as he actually took a moment to think about it "It was I don't know" he said voicing his thoughts of confusion of what happened "I was in a place where I saw some of my happy memories with the girls and Caleb and….you" he said surprising the eight-tails jinchuriki who then smiled from how close their bond
"So it trapped you in some kind've genjutsu?" Bee asked curiously as that was one the few things he thought of when he tried waking Naruto up
"Yeah it made a copy of the house and that's not the strangest thing I actually met a darker version of myself well not a darker version I guess" Naruto said as he didn't know how to describe his former duplicate
"Wait you met a darker version of yourself?" Bee asked surprise clear in his voice
"Yeah he was an exact copy of myself the only difference was that his eyes were red and completely black where the white was suppose to be" Naruto said as he didn't seem to notice the tone of surprise in Bee's voice "but in the end I think he found peace as he faded away" he said happy that his darker self found peace
'Yo eight-o you don't think?' Bee asked mentally
'It's not impossible for him to have met his inner self without the waterfall of truth, but the real question is if you wanna continue his training remember different world meaning we don't have access to the tailed beast temple meaning if you take the next step in the training and Naruto fails' the eight-tails explained mentally knowing the end results if he failed and knew what the nine-tails would do if Naruto failed
After a few moments after thinking and considering the risks Bee made a decision "Naruto what you just described was the first part of training to gain control over your tailed beasts chakra" he said surprising Naruto
"You're saying there's a way to control the nine-tails chakra?" Naruto asked remembering the times when he lost control but got flashes when he woke up afterwards, but then remembered something else "wait you had tentacles come out of your body is that a result of the training?" he asked in curiosity
"Yes but that's a result of the bond between both me and eight-tails it allows me to manifest his appenages" Bee said as having extra limbs was extremely helpful " but with this training also comes great risk if you don't succeed and we don't have a place for you to do it safely" he said wanting to be upfront about everything he needed to know
"That's alright I don't think we should do it now anyways" Naruto said surprising Bee a little as Naruto seemed like the type of person to jump at the chance "Besides do I really have to take it? I mean he's given it to me before" he asked not wanting to just take the nine-tails chakra as their relationship had improved dramatically then from what it was before
The nine-tails who was listening to the entire conversation wanting to prepare himself for whatever Naruto was doing as he had felt Naruto's true self disappear and when he heard Naruto say what he said he was surprised that Naruto wouldn't try to get more chakra immediately and wanted to find an alternative root to achieving it, he remained silent wanting to hear the rest
Bee smiled at Naruto's response ' you've already made a great first step Naruto' he thought not wanting to tell Naruto what he was doing was the right way to go since that would either diminish or weaken what Naruto might achieve
(later in the city)
"So what do you want to do Will?" Naruto said asked as he and Will hadn't decided on a date and were just driving around
"I don't know what are you in the mood for" Will asked as she was really just up for anything as she enjoyed Naruto's company as he made her feel special doing the most simplest of things
"Well we could-" Naruto stopped himself as he saw Alchemy and Caleb walking down the sidewalk "go on a double date" he said wanting to make sure Caleb wasn't fucking up royally
"With who?" Will asked unaware of anyone they both knew who were in a relationship, Naruto grabbed her chin and directed her face at Caleb and Alchemy "oh sure" she said seeing no problem
Naruto pulled up to them along the sidewalk "hey you guys need a lift?" he offered them
(later)
"So whose idea was it to go to an aquarium?" Naruto asked never knowing either of the two to have an appreciation for fish life
"Oh it was mine I saw it in a newspaper" Caleb said which was true even though he didn't read the paper whatsoever as he only saw an ad from said paper as Yan Lin read it
Naruto was a little surprised but accepted it "so what do you guys wanna see?" he asked wanting to see the different species as due to his sage status he loved animals and respected and embraced nature
"Oh let's go see the sharks" Alchemy said as she and Will dashed over to see the magnificent yet deadly creature
Naruto and Caleb followed right behind their overzealous girlfriend's seeing a few distinct types of sharks
"Man I can't believe how fat these things are" Caleb said seeing a shark that was literally the size of three of him put together while also unknowingly catching the attention of a rather aggressive shark known as the bull shark "I mean they might be a pretty decent meal" he said pissing of the shark as he began tapping on the glass
"Caleb you should stop" Naruto said sensing the shark's aggressive and predatory nature rise
"Naruto you shouldn't be so worried their just dumb fish" Caleb said making the shark enraged, while also making a certain hybrid shark man in Meridian to sneeze
'Fucking idiot' Naruto thought channeling some sage chakra hoping his power would calm the shark down which luckily it did 'if it weren't for all these people i'd kill him or better yet let the shark finish the job' he thought glad that he came with Caleb otherwise he either be dead or pissing of other sea creatures
"So you ready to see some other fish?" Caleb said walking away
Naruto sighed and followed but stopped and notice they were missing their date's 'the hell they go' he thought looking around
(women's restroom)
"So Will have you or the other's heard from Elyon?" Alchemy asked missing her friend and was a little worried for her
Will momentarily tensed cause the situation around Elyon was incredibly complicated seeing how she was currently safe but how long that lasted was unknown to her and the others, but still she had to reassure Alchemy "she's fine she sent Cornelia a postcard" she said as it was simple and believable
"Oh that's great hope she's alright" Alchemy said in relief glad that her friend was ok
"Yeah" Will said as she thought of how dangerous Elyon had become and worried about what Phobos has said to her especially about Naruto being Elyon's fiance that made Will's blood boil that Elyon was basically saying that Naruto belonged with her and she wasn't going to let him be taken from her so easily
(later)
"Oh come on" Will said in annoyance as she saw the three people she never wanted to see
"You want some fish c'mon come get it" Uriah said leaning over the edge of the railing holding a fish high above the penguins so it was out of their reach "stupid birds" he said as he laughed with his two sidekicks
The group of four glared at the teen who would sink as low as to bully hungry animals
Naruto tapped Caleb's shoulder and signaled for him to follow as they got some fish from a bucket they went up to Uriah who was unaware of their arrival and slipped some fish into his pockets then pushed him over the railing into the water
"Hey what's the big idea?" Uriah was saying till he got pecked by a penguin "leave me alone you dumb bird!" he said till some more penguins went up to him and started pecking him "hey stop! help! help!" he screamed as he swam away trying to get away from the semi aquatic birds who wanted the fish in his pants
Naruto and Caleb laughed as they high fived each other proud of what they did to the obnoxious teen
"That was great Caleb" Alchemy said hugging Caleb excitingly
'Looks like he might've found his girl' Naruto thought as he saw the small smirk appear on Caleb's face and the saw something that really caught his interest 'dolphin's' he thought seeing a sign
(later at Naruto's house)
Will was enjoying herself immensely as she was eating some chicken Naruto made her which was pretty good ever since his cooking skills greatly improved from the cookbook Hay Lin gave him, but that wasn't the best part as she got to watch Naruto and Caleb go at it in a full on spar
Naruto and Caleb were both using actual swords Naruto with a chakra metal katana and Caleb with his chakra metal sword
"You ready to give up Caleb?" Naruto asked tauntingly as they clashed
"Why would I give up when I'm winning?" Caleb said as this was something he knew he had a shot at beating Naruto at due to his long use with a sword
Naruto smirked as he released one of his hands from the katana and channeled some lightning chakra into it creating a duplicate katana made entirely of lightning 'thank you Sasuke' he thought remembering how his best friend could manipulate lightning chakra to such an advanced degree
Caleb and Will were taken by surprise when they saw the sword of lightning appear out of nowhere
Naruto took advantage of Caleb's shock and struck his hand making him lose his grip on his sword then swiped his his leg making him fall to the ground as Naruto pointed the real sword inches from his neck "do you yield?" he asked with a smirk on his face
Caleb simply nodded making Naruto make the lightning sword dissipate letting him now use his free hand to help Caleb up
"That was so cool! what was that?" Will asked in excitement
"That will be the fruit of your labour in your training" Naruto said seeing they needed some clarification "the training you guys do with your elements is so you can learn how to use them, channel them, and finally wield them" he said as they looked to be in awe
"When do we start?" they both asked eagerly
"Hold on you guys need to take a breather" Naruto said as he could understand their eagerness "some of you have already gotten started Irma, Hay Lin, and Cornelia" he said making them both angry
"How come they got to start already?" Will asked a little pissed of that her boyfriend was holding out on her
"It's because elements like your lightning and Taranee's fire are harder to manipulate and can have dire consequences like creating an explosion or frying your nervous system" Naruto said as those were only a few things he could think of "but the others elements have no actual form and can be manipulated with little to no risk like water and earth as it can take almost any form" he said hoping they'd understand
Will accepted the explanation although begrudgingly as she would be a hypocrite if she said anything against the dangers since Naruto was worried for her as she was when she found out the risks of him teleporting
"But listen your control is getting better you'll be able to do stuff like this as soon as you have good enough control" Naruto said knowing how dangerous a technique could be without proper control as he had learned that his rasenshuriken when used by him and two clones each doing a separate job in either adding wind chakra or making it take form by channeling that chakra into him severed his chakra coils, now with him being able to form with one clone it increased its destructive power and did less damage to his chakra coils and he suspected if he truly mastered it there would be next to no damage
More would have been said if Naruto's phone didn't go off "hello" he said answering the call
'Naruto you, Will, and Caleb have to meet us by the river asap!' Irma said before hanging up
"Who was it?" Caleb asked curiously
"Irma she needs us to meet her by the river" Naruto said knowing Irma wasn't playing around
(later down by the river)
Everyone was shocked by what the pasling had just said no talked or even dared to breath with how serious the words that came out of Blunk's mouth
"What did you just say?" Caleb said in a dangerously low tone making everyone there tense up "what did you fucking say Blunk?!" he yelled angrily ready to choke the pasling
"Calm down Caleb!" Naruto said as he restrained him
"Blunk pass message from skinny green man" Blunk said hiding behind the girls
"Aldarn" both Caleb and Naruto said as Aldarn was the only person they knew that fit that description
"Caleb I know you're angry and you have every reason to be but hear Blunk out" Naruto said knowing that Caleb was going through denial as he went through it when his master died
(a few minutes later)
Caleb was sitting down by the river in deep thought processing what blunk had just told them he didn't know what to feel or how to respond to the news of his father still being alive
"Is he going to be okay?" Hay Lin said in a whisper hoping someone would answer
"I don't know" Naruto said as he would be right where Caleb is if he was told there was a chance one of his parents were alive
"I need to find him" Caleb said getting off the ground
"And we're coming with" Naruto said as the others nodded in agreement "And before you say something like we're not coming I think you're forgetting how stubborn your friends can be" he said with a smile as he knew how important this was to Caleb so he'd back his play
Caleb smiled feeling incredibly lucky for the friends he had "alright let's go!" he said walking away
As they walked Will and him lagged behind "you know there's no guarantee that we'll be able to free him?" Will said knowing it would be hard to enter a well guarded mine and would be severely limited seeing as the mine was underwater and if any of them let out an attack that was to strong they could flood it and everyone there would drown
"I know there's a possibility but there is also a possibility that we'll free him and everyone else we always need to have hope and never give in to fear or failure is all but guaranteed" Naruto said as he truly believed this as he always tried his best and didn't believe he'd ever fail not with someone else's life on the line
(later at the lake)
"What's wrong Corny nervous?" Irma said as chuckling a little as she saw that her friend looked a little uneasy "don't worry you can't sink you have two perfectly good flotation devices right there" she said pointing at Cornelia's massive bust
"S-Shut it Irma!" Cornelia said angrily
'Is she ok?' Naruto thought as he noticed that her breathing was a little fast and she seemed to be sweating profusely 'is she having a panic attack?' he thought wondering what was setting her off "hey you guys I need to talk to Cornelia for a second we'll be right back" he said walking a good distance away from the others
"What did you need to talk to me about?" Cornelia asked a little calmer now
"Cornelia you look ready to pass out what's wrong?" Naruto asked wanting her to be upfront with him
"It's just-it's just remember when I almost drowned?" Cornelia said as her breathing picked up slightly
"Yeah" Naruto said then quickly realised "you're afraid of the water" he said as Cornelia merely nodded
"I don't remember much from what happened but just the thought of going underwater and not coming back up scares me and I hate feeling this way" Cornelia said as she grabbed both her shoulders in fear
Naruto walked up to her and wrapped her in a hug "Cornelia it's ok to be afraid it doesn't make you weaker or any less than you already are and I know it can be difficult to overcome but you'll have all of us right beside you and when were together there's never a reason to be afraid because we have our friends by our side" he said releasing her from the hug seeing she had a smile and some tears roll down her face
Cornelia felt a tremendous wait be lift off her shoulders for when he said that and then gave him a hug
Naruto just smiled happy he could ease his friends nerves then wiped the tears she had on her face "now c'mon let's go" he said pulling her by her hand back towards the others
'You loveable idiot' Cornelia thought falling for him all over again
(later in Meridian)
"Holy shit this beats the aquarium" Naruto said from inside the bubble they were all in looking at Meridian's local aquatic wildlife seeing fish the size of a summon
"You bet" Will said amazed by how big and exotic some of the fish were
Naruto seem to notice that Cornelia was hyperventilating even just a little and grabbed her hand to reassure her that he was there for her "It's okay" he whispered to her which went unnoticed by everyone except Irma
'The hell did they talk about?' Irma thought surprised that Naruto was holding Cornelia's hand 'did she make a move?' she thought curiously
'God I hope this CRA idea works out' Cornelia thought in desperation 'he's the perfect man I honestly can't see myself with anyone else' she thought dreamily
As the bubble moved a giant fish swam right past them not even acknowledging their presence
"Me and my dad threw back fish bigger than that" Caleb said trying to ease the tension
"Quick vote who thinks he's full of it?" Irma asked and Immediately everyone but Caleb raised their hand
They all remained silent as the bubble reached the surface not making a sound as they didn't know if there were any guards around
Caleb grew impatient and was about to step out the bubble when Hay Lin pulled him back, she put a finger to her mouth to signify everyone to be quiet as she put her head through the bubble and listened "I hear a lot of men talking" she said as she came back inside the bubble
"An ambush" Taranee said thinking logically and strategically
"Or a star trek convention" Irma said trying to ease the tense and serious situation
"How'd they know we be here?" Caleb asked to no one in particular
"Had to be Elyon she's been able to open portals whenever she wants" Naruto said as that put a damper on things if they couldn't go through portals on the chance they'd be traps "and from the looks of it they are expecting us to rescue your dad" he said knowing things got way harder
"Ugh jeez what else can she do were seriously screwed if we don't get an edge soon" Will said as they were practically outgunned and outnumbered whenever they fought Phobos and even with their training they couldn't hope to take on Phobos with all that he had and win
"We already do have an edge all of you" Naruto said gaining their attention "all of you have fought and trained hard not giving into your fears or worries because that's who you are you stare at a challenge and you all don't hesitate to push past it your training is a result of that in my world not many people could have progressed as fast as all of you or accomplish what you've done so don't give in to self doubt you're all better than that" he said riding everyone of any negative thoughts
"How will we get in the mine though?" Caleb said as a henge wouldn't be an option seeing as they wouldn't be able to mask the girls voices and his father would have a very difficult time believing it was really his son
"We can go through these giant metal tubes" Will suggested as that seemed like their best bet
Everyone nodded in agreement and were about to carry out the plan if not didn't stop them
"Wait wait girls we need to do something first about your wings" Naruto said as he noticed the girls wings seemed to 'grow' ever since their recent 'change'
"What about them?" Hay Lin said as she had noticed the change in her wings but paid no mind to them as they allowed her to fly longer
"Their to big for all of us to fly through the tube" Taranee said realising their wingspan wouldn't allow any of them to fly through the tube
"Well how do we get in then" Caleb asked impatiently as he desperately wanted to free his father
"Hey babe got any ideas" Irma asked thinking he might know a way to solve their current predicament
"I can probably use a henge but there is something I want you girls to try first" Naruto said wanting to test an idea
"Whatever it is we're game" Cornelia said completely trusting Naruto
"I want you all to try and focus your power through your wings and see if you can make them smaller like they were before" Naruto said as it would be pretty handy for them to be able to change their wings sizes as if they were smaller they'd have more maneuverability and if they were bigger they could fly longer distances
The girls did what he asked and focused their power through their wings and to everyone's surprise they returned to their original size
"Cool at least we have more options" Taranee said knowing the advantages of having both big and small wings
"Well said" Naruto said always impressed by Taranee's deduction skills
"Yeah that's great let's get moving" Caleb said wanting to go rescue his dad
Everyone gave him a pass on his rudeness since this was his dad who he thought was dead for years
Taranee made a door sized opening by using her fire to cut through the metal while Hay Lin used her wind to hold up the cut off metal as they all entered through the opening as Taranee melted the cut off metal back
"You got this Caleb" Naruto said as Caleb place his feet on the metal
"Yeah" Caleb said hoping his practice in learning how to walk on water and walls was put to good use as his control was still iffy
"Hey Naruto how long till we learn that?" Irma asked as they slowly descended down the pipe thinking it was still cool
"You guys probably can already since you can do elemental chakra manipulation so this wouldn't be any harder" Naruto said thinking that their control would be good enough
"Trust me it's harder than it looks" Cornelia said as she still remembered her climb up the castle
"Wait you've done it already how?" Naruto asked both curious and surprised by what she said
"Well when I went all awol and went to Meridian I used chakra to climb up the castle" Cornelia said surprising Naruto greatly
'Cornelia's chakra control isn't the best and she was able to climb up the castle' Naruto thought impressed by what she had accomplished then chuckled a little "look at you using something you hadn't even learned and used it so successfully you made it to the top of a castle hard to believe this was done by someone who claim themself to be the 'weak link'" he said remembering that moment well enough
Cornelia blushes from his praise and had a small smile
"Shh were here" Caleb said as they reached the bottom of the tube and hid behind a mining cart
"Jeez look at them all" Cornelia said horrified by the thought of so many people slaving away in these mines shackled to one another
"There has to be over a couple dozen people here" Taranee said as they only saw the people entering the mine not knowing how many were actually inside
'This place is ending today' Naruto thought angrily squeezing the mining cart so hard he actually crushed the metal on the spot he squeezed in shear rage
"We need to find my father" Caleb said looking at each person carefully
"Small problem we don't know what he looks like and there are a lot of people in this crap mine" Naruto said as he sensed a lot inside and coming in
Caleb would've given a description but it would've been hard as he hadn't seen his father in a decade so giving them a description was pointless till he had an idea, he transformed into the his father from the last time he ever saw him and when he did he merely looked like an older version of himself "this is what my father looked liked last time I saw him we need to look for someone who looks kinda like this" he said transforming back
"His hair might've grown and even have a beard" Naruto said as Caleb had told him when he lost his father and a lot can change in the amount of time his father was here
"How do we sneak past them" Hay Lin asked as there was a lot of guards here
"We use these" Will said looking inside the mining cart they hid behind and saw that it had prison rags and helmets
(later)
Julian had been in these mines for a decade never causing any trouble working to the very bone for the kingdom he wished he could be rebelling against for freedom and a better future for his son, but as time went by when he started working in the soul crushing mines he started to fall into despair losing faith and later on became a broken man
As julian walked through the mines his hope was momentarily reignited after so many years as he saw the person who he wanted to see more than anything in the world….his son
Caleb saw a man and immediately knew it was his father as he could feel it in his bones so he raised his finger to his lips so he would know to remain silent
"So that was him" Naruto said as he saw the surprised look on the man's face
"Yeah" Caleb said a little happy to see his father after so many years but also extremely angry that he's been here all these years and looked very malnourished
"I'll see what I can do so you two aren't interrupted" Naruto said as he knew how important it was for Caleb to talk to his dad
(later)
"Rock slide" a guard yelled as he and some other guards started clearing out the rocks not seeing a prisoner slip by and the guard to transform as he was out of the other guards sights he burst into a cloud of smoke revealing Naruto
"You can come out" Naruto said as he told the girls to hide behind the corner
"I can't believe that worked" Irma said surprised as she only saw these kinda things only worked in movies
"Yeah well lets hope it continues to work Cornelia I might need you to make a controlled rock slide can you do it" Naruto asked as he didn't want to test his luck with so many people in these mines
"I'll do better than that" Cornelia said making the ground shake as she made more rocks fall
The guards moved away thinking that this path was unstable and as they backed up they saw someone talking to the person they were told to watch closely and went up to the person
"Oh crap he's been made guys we gotta bail" Naruto said as they needed to fight now
"No we stand and fight" Will said as she and the others got ready then proceeded to zap them
Cornelia just snapped her fingers and used the rubble and pressed them against the wall
Taranee then burned their weapons making the guards drop them which Irma then blasted with water as they suddenly evaporated
Hay Lin saw reinforcements coming and used dealy precision with her wind blades slicing all their weapons into pieces
'Holy shit!' Naruto thought as the girls single handedly handled the guards in seconds 'maybe their ready for the next step in their training and maybe….something else' he thought thinking of something that would make the girls considerably far more formidable
"Ugh guys?" Cornelia said as she saw guards coming from both ends
"Crap" Naruto said knowing he would have to gamble as he didn't know how to navigate the mines "Cornelia seal up that, Irma flood the other end, Hay Lin you and Taranee protect Caleb and his dad, and Will you and me will provide cover fire" he said as the girls carried out his instructions
They got down the tunnel but stopped as they heard rumbling
"What's that?" Hay Lin asked nervously a little scared of what the rumbling ment
"They didn't" Naruto thought out loud having an idea of what the rumbling was "everyone start running!" he said as he and the others started running as water soon started flooding the mine
"Irma can't you do something? you're the guardian of water!" Will asked yelling as she said it as the rumbling was so loud
"Oh duh yeah I can" Irma said stopping dead in her tracks as she held her hands up stopping the water as if there was an invisible barrier in front of it
"Hold it up as long you can" Will said as they needed to by time for a plan
"We're so screwed" Cornelia said angrily
"Hate to say it but she's right" Taranee said as she knew if the water was released then the mines would flood killing everyone
"There has to be something we can do" Hay Lin said in desperation hoping for a way to solve this
"Caleb does your dad know a way we can get out of here?" Naruto asked hoping that in his long time of being a prisoner his dad knew a way out
"There isn't one they opened the floodgates meaning we have to get to the main shaft" Julian said knowing that there was no other way out
"How are we gonna get there? the way we came is blocked off by water and we can't take the long way around" Caleb said knowing Irma couldn't hold up all the water pressure at bay forever "and to add insult to injury you guys can't fly in these low tunnels" he said knowing their chances of escape were slim to none
"I have a plan" Naruto said getting all their attention "everyone get inside that mining cart" he said pointing to a cart a few feet away from them "Irma just hold that for a few more seconds" he said as he could she the strain she was going through to hold it back, he made three shadow clones to assist her
"So what's the plan?" Hay Lin asked as she and the others were inside the cart
"In a sec" Naruto said as he got behind the cart "Irma get inside the damn cart!" he said in urgency
Irma made a straight dash toward the cart leaving the clones to deal with the water
'I hope they last' Naruto said as he knew his control with water was decent but not enough to stop a whole lake 'and I hope this works' he thought running to Will
"Naruto what ar-" Will was saying till Naruto smashed his lips against Will's surprising her making her forget that they were even in danger as she gave in to the comfort his kiss gave her
"Good luck" Naruto said unleashing a small almighty push sending the cart away at a great speed
"Naruto!" Will yelled as she knew that he had to find a way to get to them quick or he would….die
'Yep she's gonna kill me' Naruto thought plainly if he didn't escape this 'and seriously I really can't believe that worked' he thought knowing that he had been lucky by pulling off small almighty pushes in the past but that was as far as he's got as he had been busy training the girls and hadn't been able to make any progress in the technique in a while
(with the others)
"We have to go back!" Will said not wanting to leave Naruto behind
"Are you out of your mind? if we go back we will die!" Caleb said not wanting to risk other people's lives if he knew Naruto could handle it
"We'll all die if we don't start free the prisoner's and come up with a plan!" Julian said not willing to waste what little time they had
The guardians didn't even argue as they knew time was of the essence as they cut chains and freed prisoners
"There's to much water coming through we're trapped" Caleb said seeing no other ways out
"I can't open a hole the lake water will come in faster" Corelia said knowing they were directly under the lake
"We need something air tight we could get inside" Will said having an idea
"The guards room!" a prisoner said pointing at the wooden tower
Everyone went straight towards the guards room not wanting to sink and drown
As they made it inside and just as Caleb closed the door knocking was heard outside which were the sound of guards
"They're people too weird creature people anyway" Hay Lin said not wanting to let anyone to die if she could save them
"Let them in" Will said hoping Naruto was out there with them
Irma raised her hands stopping the water from entering as Caleb opened the door for the guards while the water seemed to only reach their knees
"Thank you" a guard said as he and a few others came inside
"All your weapons outside!" Julian yelled angrily not trusting the guards who could easily turn on them the moment they were safe
"Was there anyone else outside?" Will asked the guards desperately
"No one" a guard said truthfully
"He'll be fine" Irma said wanting to believe her own words
They all suddenly heard a large boom sound and saw more water start to build
"Close and seal the door!" Will yelled closing her eyes
"But Will" Taranee said knowing that would mean Naruto would be sealed out
"Do it!" Will yelled even louder as she felt like something was clenching her heart
Taranee did as she was told and sealed the door
There was a moment of silence no one dared to even speak
'He has to be ok there's no way something like this could bring him down' Will said as she wrapped her arms around herself and dropped to the ground as some tears rolled down her face
"Naruto" Caleb mumbled under his breath his respect for Naruto reaching new heights as he made the nobelist of sacrifices by buying them time to get everyone to safety 'you will not be forgotten my friend' he thought sadly
Everyone was interrupted from what they were doing when suddenly a bright yellow flash suddenly appeared in the room to reveal a soaking wet Naruto and a dozen wet guards
Naruto looked at the others who had a look of shock on their faces and just smirked "how do you guys like my new and improved flying raijin?" he said as he was now able to use four out of the five seals
"Naruto!" Will yelled tackling him to the ground in a very strong hug
"Hey" Naruto said hugging her back
Will was so relieved to see that he was here and alright but then realized something that he said "oh my god you used the flying raijin again" she yelled getting up and pulled him up along with her "how are you feeling" she asked remembering what happened to him last time
"I'm fine Will" Naruto said smiling at his girlfriend while wiping away her tears
"But how?" Will asked confused to how he wasn't a bloody mess
"Like I said earlier this is the new and improved flying raijin I placed it on you when we….ya know" Naruto said as he and Will blushed a little "plus I no longer suffer torn muscles" he said happily till he fell on one knee "but I do seem to get a little dizzy" he said feeling a little disoriented but then heard a sudden creaking "now can we get out of here? I seriously don't think this thing can stand all this water pressure" he said not to keen on the idea of drowning
"You got it" Cornelia said glad Naruto was ok as she place her hands on the ground separating the wooden beams from the tower making the building begin to rise
"We're gonna float to the surface all the air in here will make us rise up" Taranee said waiting for them to reach the surface
"Thank you for saving us" a guard said walking up to Naruto
"We may be enemies but that can change if all this fighting were to stop" Naruto said still on the quest for the answer for peace
The guards all looked at each other contemplating his words and their meaning
The tower made it to the surface making everyone relieved that they were out of danger
"Now let's go kick some ass!" Naruto said raising his hand up and blew up the roof as he and the others took to the sky seeing Cedric and a whole battalion of soldiers and charged them
The girls took on the guards using minimal force trying not to severely injure them
Naruto was face to face with Cedric and noticed something upon his arrival "I see you met my brother" he said noticing new scars and some burns
'Brother?' Cedric thought in surprise as the only common trait between them was that they were blond "does your brother also have your ''unique' power?" he asked curiously wanting information that the prince would reward him for
Naruto got very serious as he didn't need Bee to become a target for Phobos "that's none of your business" he said charging at Cedric with a kunai
Cedric roared as he also charged at Naruto wanting him to suffer the same pain he had endured, then his eyes landed on the prisoners all of them trying to row the guards tower to land but Cedric was focused on one prisoner 'I may not be able to kill this pest but I can kill the rebel leader's father ending him and making the rebel leader suffer' he thought before diving into the water
Naruto had fought Cedric enough times to know he wouldn't retreat without reason and when he saw the direction he was going in he immediately ran across the water 'damn I won't make it he's faster than me when he's in the water' he thought until he spotted Will at the tower protecting it from arrows that the guards on land were firing 'thank you Will' he thought mentally grateful that she was there as she still had the seal on her body
Cedric had just arrived at the guards tower and was about to strike down the rebel leader's father but was stopped as something incredibly strong collided with him sending him into the water and as he regained his bearings he saw Naruto standing on water 'how is he doing that? and how did he get here before me?' he thought surprised and confused to how this was all happening but saw an opening he just had to take
Naruto was a little disoriented from using the flying raijin that he didn't seem to notice Cedric's tail come up from behind him wapping him up like any snake would it's prey 'crap if I don't get free i'm screwed' he thought feeling Cedric's tail's grip grow tighter by the second
Cedric felt like he had gained a huge advantage having Naruto the way he was
"Drop him!" Hay Lin said as she saw Cedric get Naruto
"Too late guardian!" Cedric said as he dove under the water with Naruto still wrapped up in his tail 'now to make you suffer' he thought not wanting to miss the opportunity as he dived down into the water
Naruto could feel the water pressure getting to him as Cedric dived down deeper and deeper into the seemingly bottomless lake 'crap if I don't get top side i'm dead' he thought knowing the pressure would squeeze out the air inside his lungs, he struggled to get his right hand free and when he did he created a rasengan but he didn't stop there he increased its size increasing it power rotation and speed making a violent whirlpool causing Cedric to spin around it loosening his tail's grip on Naruto
'What is this?!' Cedric thought angrily confused as to what was happening
Naruto wasted no time swimming directly toward the surface needing air "Hay Lin!" he yelled out the moment he reached the surface wanting her to pull him out
Hay Lin flew right toward Naruto and picked him up by his hand and as she flew upward she saw Cedric about to reach the surface and possibly jump up and try to grab Naruto 'oh no you don't!' she thought before feeling a sudden rush of strength taking in some air and then blowing it down on the lake freezing it completely
"Holy shit!" Naruto said both surprised and amazed by Hay Lin's power "since when can you do that?" he asked as they descended to the ground
"I don't know" Hay Lin said amazed and confused to how she froze an entire lake
'Could it be that since Yan Lin was a guardian of air Hay Lin's power is increased' Naruto thought as he had a conversation like this with Yan Lin and besides Hay Lin's seemingly natural control over flying and her element she never quite displayed such power
(in the distance)
'These girls are truly on a path like no other' Xin Lin thought as she had seen another guardian guardian tap into the power of the dragon
(later at Phobos castle)
"You must be truly foolish if you think you'll escape" Phobos said as he and a lot of guards surrounded Naruto in the courtyard
"Nah I just came to threaten you" Naruto said with a smirk
"You should've brought the guardians for that" Phobos said with a smirk knowing he had the boy he had wanted in his grasp
"Trust me you'd be in a worse situation if they did come" Naruto said as he walked up to Phobos "because we don't take to kindly to when someone attacks someone that's close to us and let me tell you something you probably hadn't realized on your little crusade of therony and your little quest to get my power is that I can kill you with the flick of my wrist because if you ever harm someone I care about you'll be done like that" he said only a few feet away from Phobos
'The fool at this distance he's made it that much more easier' Phobos thought suddenly placing his hand on Naruto but noticed something was off 'what is this i'm absorbing his power but I don't feel as much as I did before what is happening?' he thought angrily
"You're probably asking yourself 'what's happening' so i'll tell you" Naruto said with a smile "i'm not really here and oh Caleb's father Julian sends his regards" he said before bursting into a cloud of smoke to only reveal a ball wrapped in paper bombs
(Naruto's house)
Naruto and Will we're currently cuddling up together lying down on his couch watching a movie
Will got a little tired of watching the movie and looked to see Naruto looked to be drifting into unconsciousness but soon noticed he gained a small smile on his face "what are you so happy about?" she asked curiously
Naruto didn't even open his eyes "life's just great" he said kissing the back off his girlfriend's head as he enjoyed the moment where he gets to spend time with his girlfriend and enjoy the fact that Phobos got what was coming to him and probably suffered some severe burns