Many of the campers at Camp Halfblood were woken up to a shout of, "Quit trying to hit me and hit me!" This shout was quickly followed by a meaty thwack. These campers took one look at their alarm clocks and turned back over to sleep. They all recognized the sound of Naruto's voice from all their hours training with him and his clones. If someone wanted to be his personal punching bag at 5 in the morning then that was their business. The campers just hoped that whoever the fool was didn't bleed all over wherever Naruto was training them at and that they would keep the noise level down.
In the amphitheater, Naruto calmly watched as Percy fell to the ground and painfully dragged himself over to one of the dozens of coolers filled with water that littered the amphitheater floor. Percy gripped the edge of the cooler and tipped it over so that the cooler fell and poured all of the water on him. Almost immediately, Percy started to hiss out in pain as numbed nerves healed enough to start sending their messages of utter agony to his brain. It took Percy another two minutes to heal up so that he could get back onto his feet. He then shouted out at Naruto, "Do you know how painful it is to almost have your spine snapped?!"
Naruto casually replied, "Yes I do. In fact, I've had it happen enough times to me that I can tell you by feeling which vertebrae the near snap happened at. This is why having accelerated regeneration can be a curse in training. Now as my master once told me, get your ass over here so that your beat down can continue."
The beat down did continue as Percy was put into several piledrivers, slammed into the ground like Fred Flintstone by Naruto doing a Bamm-Bamm impression, thrown into almost every pillar in the amphitheater, and just generally had the crap kicked out of him. Naruto made things even more difficult for Percy by blasting him by almost too much killing intent for him to handle. The key would being almost. Naruto walked over to Percy and picked up the two teeth that his cousin had spit out during his rough landing. The older halfblood quickly picked Percy up with his free hand and hauled him over to one of the remaining full coolers. Naruto than unceremoniously shoved Percy's head in the water cooler and quickly shoved the collected teeth back in place. His cousin's water enhanced healing took care of the rest.
Once Naruto was sure Percy was heal he lifted the out of the cooler and set him down on the ground next to him. Naruto then smiled at Percy and said, "That was a good training session Percy. You improved quite a lot."
Percy looked up at Naruto in shock and anger. "I improved?! What are you talking about Naruto? All we've done for the past hour is have you beat me black and blue! How has this been training?"
To Percy's shock and surprise, Naruto actually started to laugh. "You have no idea how much you sound just like I did when my master started to train me seriously. Similar circumstances too since like you I needed to get far stronger very quickly to complete an important task." Naruto paused for a second to sit down before he continued. "Like me, you are blessedly cursed with an enhanced regenerative ability Percy."
Faster than Percy could follow, Naruto pulled out a kunai, cut a nasty gash across his arm, and turned his arm so that Percy could see the wound close up before his eyes. Naruto continued to talk once the wound was completely healed. "Enhanced regeneration is a blessing as it allows us to heal far faster or even heal at all from injuries that would incapacitate or cripple others. It is a curse because it makes us feel far more pain that others will have to deal with because they will pass out or even die long before us. Because of your regeneration Percy you, like I was by my master and still do on my own, can be trained in conditions almost exactly like a real battle. Yes, I beat you black and blue. However, you will often find on the battlefield that your enemies are stronger, faster, more skilled, and more experienced than you. Your reflexes and reaction time has noticeably increased from where they were an hour ago by sheer necessity to avoid pain. Your resistance to killing intent has increased dramatically as has your pain tolerance. Over the course of our training you got to practice your hand to hand skills under conditions that count it as actually being battle experience. Finally, constant use of your healing abilities has increased the efficiency of them."
There was a comfortable silence for a minute as the two boys relaxed. Despite Percy's wishes, he couldn't stay upset or angry at Naruto. The older halfblood might have put him through a new level of the Fields of Punishment, but he also kept things at a level that Percy could handle. Percy didn't know how Naruto knew just how far past Percy's limits the younger halfblood could be pushed. Perhaps it was because Naruto had undergone similar training in the past. It also helped that Naruto was completely relaxed and carefree now that he wasn't in training.
After another minute of relaxation Naruto stood up. His face shifted back to drill sergeant from Tartarus. "Up on your feet Percy. We've had enough of a break and we've got almost 40 minutes until breakfast is ready to be served. Until then we can work on your endurance by running around Camp. Now get up as I expect us to get in at least 5 laps around Camp before breakfast starts."
Cordelia looked at the other nine cabin counselors that were assembled in the Big House keeping a friendly smile on her face. Her friendliness was only as real as her mother's beauty. That is to say, it didn't exist at all in reality and was only an illusion used by a vain and vindictive woman to get her own way. She was the last of the old guard among the councilors. Everyone assembled in the room besides Zoe, Chris, and Mr. D's brats had become counselors this year. Of course, none of her fellow senior counselors were her friends. The new counselors were too young for her normal incentives to work and the gender ratio was less skewed than it had been. What made things worse for Cordelia was that the council had expanded making it harder for her have any sort of influence on the counselors' decisions.
In a deceptively sweet voice Cordelia said, "Thank you everyone for agreeing to me with me at this time."
She was immediately cut off by Percy who said, "Hey we're missing Naruto. If this is supposed to be a counselors meeting than he needs to be here since he's the councilor for Cabin 2!"
The other councilors noticed this and started to comment on it. Cordelia quickly moved to take control of the conversation by saying. "I know that Naruto is not here, but that is because the rules say he cannot be here because he is the subject of this debate. That's why I scheduled this meeting while he and Lady Artemis are having their date."
Zoe almost instantly tightened her gripe on the arms of her chair. The Lieutenant of the Hunt and consequently the Counselor of Cabin 8 wanted to beat up the Jezebel for the implications she was giving with her tone. You could technically call a private walk around the lake a few times a date, but Cordelia was trying to imply that things were a lot less innocent than they were. Zoe was not about to take any insult to her lady's honor lying down. Especially not an insult from a harlot who she had once caught pleasuring one of the former counselors as a favor for a vote. However, Nothing Cordelia said could be challenged without making a bigger issue so Zoe was force to stomach the scarlet woman's attacks. In a hostile tone Zoe replied, "And just what do thee wish to speak about which concerns Naruto?"
Cordelia twirled a lock of her like her mother did to look innocent. "For over a year Naruto has been teaching all of us about Ninshu. A know from a few fellow campers who have left Camp that Naruto even has a small side business tutoring older halfbloods on how to use Ninshu. He's been a full fledge teacher to all of us instead of merely being an assistant instructor for younger campers. I think that we should ask Chiron and Mr. D to give Naruto the rank and privileges of being an instructor here at Camp since he is carrying out the duties and responsibilities of one."
Several counselors started to chat with each other over the idea. Annabeth was not one those councilors. She was instead hard at work trying to figure out what Cordelia was after. It was no secret to her that Cordelia despised Naruto. It made no logical sense for Cordelia to propose something beneficial to Naruto given her feelings to Naruto. That meant that there had to be something in this proposal that wouldn't be as great for Naruto as it appeared to be. Just what could Cordelia be plaining to attack Naruto?
Annabeth's eyes widened in shock as she realized what Cordelia was plaining. Instructors taught classes, but they didn't go to them. The also couldn't join camper activities like capture the flag. Everyone knew that Annabeth was planning on getting Naruto's ban lifted as soon as the minimum time passed in two weeks. Tartarus, Naruto might even be kicked off of the counselor's council since it was for camp counselors and as an instructor Naruto might not qualify as a counselor. Annabeth narrowed her eyes at Cordelia and saw the smirk in the bitch's eye. Cordelia wanted to isolate Naruto from as much of Camp Halfblood as she could for petty revenge.
Desperate to help Naruto Annabeth blurted out, "Wait everyone! I think we're going about this all wrong. Naruto has been teaching everyone about ninshu instead of just a few of us like assistant instructors normally done. However, that doesn't mean we need to insist that he become a full instructor at Camp. Naruto hasn't complained about his situation in the least and he hasn't expressed any interest in becoming a full instructor. Besides, there is nothing in the Camp rules that say that a camper can be made an instructor."
Cordelia quickly moved to counter Annabeth's arguments. "True, but you have for gotten to consider a few things yourself Annabeth. First, Naruto is a relatively modest person even with his exuberance at times. It probably hasn't crossed his mind to ask for the position. Second and most importantly, there is nothing in the Camp rules that say a camper cannot be made an instructor. We're in a new situation here since Naruto has introduced a completely new area for us to learn from. That's why we should ask Chiron and Mr. D to give Naruto the rank and privileges of being an instructor. We are just asking them to recognize Naruto's efforts here at Camp after all."
Castor, Zoe, and Chris quickly caught on to what Cordelia was trying to pull and they started to voice their opposition to the plan. None of them could come right out and say what Cordelia was trying to do as they all knew that such a move would be a political blunder. However, the fact that Naruto's friends were speaking so vehemently against the move gave the others pause. The four counselors were able to slowly strip away support for Cordelia's plain until it was call to a vote and soundly defeated. Cordelia was able to act like a gracious loser, but she failed to hide the rage in her eyes.
While Cordelia's attempt at revenge was being defeated, Naruto and Artemis were enjoying a quiet walk around the camp lake. Naruto was wearing his Camp Halfblood t-shirt, cargo jeans loaded with various weapons, and Birkenstocks on his feet. Artemis was dressed like a cowgirl in her silver flannel button shirt, denim jeans, and silver leather cowboy boots. The couple was currently on the far side of the lake well away from everyone else at Camp. Their nearest companions were two hunters who were a respectful distance away from the near side of the lake. While the hunters knew that Artemis could handle herself and that Naruto was a respectful young man, they still wanted to be there if their lady should need their aid. Their presence also had the bonus of keeping the other campers from thinking of interfering with Naruto and Artemis.
Currently, the young couple was talking about Naruto's training with Percy. In a half teasing half serious manner Artemis said, "You know Naruto; I can let you borrow a few of my wolves to help the boy with his speed training. Tying a pair of bloody steaks around his legs would provide enough motivation for my wolves to give him a great workout."
Naruto let out a chuckle at that and replied, "I'll have to think about that one Artemis. I just figured the fact that he can't outrun a tree would be proper motivation to get faster. However, if I do go forward with that idea I want to test it out first by myself. My training regime for Percy is brutal because of the improvements he needs to make and the severe time constraints he's under, but I will only train him with exercises I've completed as well."
Artemis nodded her head in agreement as she was the same with training her hunters. She walked a couple of feet away from the lake and then sat down with one leg stretched out. Naruto quickly laid down with his head resting in his hands by Artemis's left and his feet sticking out so that the two of them formed an L-shape. The next few minutes passed in silence as the young couple simply enjoyed the fine summer day in peace. Eventually Artemis broke the silence by asking Naruto a question. "Naruto, would you rather be here at Camp Halfblood or back in Konoha?"
Naruto quickly replied without even thinking, "Konoha."
While Artemis somewhat expected Naruto's answer, she did still preferred Delos even after all of the places she'd been to over the centuries, she wasn't expecting such a quick and firm response. Artemis turned her head to look at Naruto and asked, "Why is that Naruto? It's surprising for you to be so sure of your answer given how long you've been away from Konoha and everything you've learned about here in America. Usually, mortals and halfbloods in your position will need to think about that question for a little bit."
The goddess was surprised when Naruto chuckled. Once Naruto stopped chuckling he answered Artemis. "The saying that there is no place like home might be corny, but it is very true. Before I came to Earth I had several long term missions that took me away from Konoha. I even had a three year training mission that took me to several different countries. On those trips and during my time here I've seen many very impressive sights and done some amazing things. However, I've never seen anything that would make me want to leave Konoha. I hope you can come to Konoha one day Artemis because it is a truly wondrous place. In the spring and summer the village is filled with the scent of wild flowers from the surrounding wood. You can see something absolutely breathtaking in the fall as all of the leaves change. If you ever get the chance Artemis you have to look out on Konoha from the Hokage monument at sunset during the fall. Every year I'm in Konoha at that time I do my best to see that scene as much as possible and it is inspiring every time."
Even now, Naruto could recall those scenes in his mind in perfect clarity. His homeland was called the Land of Fire because of how it looked in autumn. Large swaths of the country were filled with forests. When the leaves changed color in the fall the forests made it look like the land was on fire. This name was further reinforced by the fact that the people of his home country were usually known as a friendly and respectful people. Naruto's childhood was the great exception to this rule. Sure there had been some very uncomfortable parallels between his early childhood and the forsaken child he had read about in The Ones Who Walk Away from Omelas, but Naruto had overcome that. Having his existence ignored except for some drunken taunts by almost everyone in the village had been agonizing as a child. Even now those memories still hurt and they would probably be painful to Naruto for the rest of his life.
Now that he was older, Naruto was able to forgive his fellow villagers for their actions against him even if he could never forget them. That Tobi slimeball's attack on Konoha with the Kyuubi had been something straight out of a kaiju movie. To make matters worse, Konoha never had to deal with bijuu attacks like the other major villages since his clan had done such a good job keeping the Kyuubi sealed away. Between the deaths, raw property destruction, the Kyuubi's aura of terror, and the suddenness of the attack it was only natural for humans to want something to blame for all of the grief they had from the attack. It was logical that people would direct their grief and rage at him as a scapegoat since he held the source of their pain and he was an orphan who seemingly appeared out of nowhere. That didn't make it right or acceptable for so many to treat Naruto as they did when he was child.
The halfblood turned his head so that he could look up at Artemis. Even with as bad as his childhood was, Naruto wouldn't trade it at all so that he wouldn't risk his life becoming any different. He had made dozens if not hundreds of friends since he was that little six year old crying by the orphanage dumpster one rainy morning because none of the kids in the orphanage wanted to play with him. The pain of being alone and miserable had allowed Naruto to reach out to others in similar pains and help to pull them into the light. He had proven to everyone in Konoha that he was not what they had first thought he was and had grown to become one of Konoha's heroes. However, the most important thing to Naruto about his life was that he had received the gift of being able to talk to his parents and hear from them just how much they loved him. That alone was worth more to Naruto than a Mount Olympus sized mound of gold.
A small smile appeared on Artemis's lips as she heard Naruto talk about Konoha. When Artemis saw him look up at her the smile on her face grew slightly bigger. She quickly got him talking more about his home village and his friends that lived there. Naruto's memory of Konoha even after five years allowed him to vividly describe the village enough for Artemis to easily visualize it in her head. He didn't boast about Konoha and instead told the honest truth about his home village. In a likewise manner, when Naruto talked about his friends he mention their flaws as well as their virtues without exaggerating or minimizing either set of traits. It was a rare and special kind of honesty that allowed to look at the truth about things around them and to be able to speak it. There was a positive tint to what Naruto was saying, but that was simply because of his personality.
Eight days after Cordelia tried to get her revenge on Naruto, Camp Halfbood got an extremely unexpected set of lunchtime visitors. One of the Dryads who was carrying extra cuts of briskets from the kitchen turned and spotted the camp's new guests. Her eyes widened in shock and then she blurted out in trepidation, "Moirai!" Everyone in hearing range whipped their heads around and started to tremble. Others who hadn't heard the cry soon noticed everyone staring and turned to see what was happening. Soon, hushed whispers about the Fates being in camp filled it with dread.
Only Naruto was unafraid of the trio and they were walking straight towards him. He was also the only one who saw Clotho, Lachesis, and Atropos in the form of young women instead of old hags. Everyone in Camp was rooted where they were as the Fates walked towards Naruto. Only when the trio passed a table did the occupants of said table rediscover the ability to breathe. In this regard, the Olympians were just the same as the nature spirits and the halfbloods. Just the fact that the Fates did not appear to want them caused people to relax a tad.
That relaxation immediately ended when the three Fates each folded their hands and gave Naruto a bow bending from the waist. The bow ended after about a second or so had passed. Everyone in Camp, except for Naruto, were as pale as ghosts when they saw the Fates bow. The Fates never bowed to anyone. Zeus had once tried to get the Fates to submit to him long ago when he first took over. The result had not been pleasant or painless for Zeus at all. That was the day that the Olympians learned that there were things worse than death and that getting stuffed face first into a used chamber pot was the least of these sorts of things that the Fates could force on the gods.
Many campers were starting to wonder if they were about to start bunking with Hades as Naruto got up from the table and returned the bow. Those worries became fears when Naruto said, "It's nice to see you three again. Do you want to sit down and join us for lunch?" Dionysus was starting to wonder if he would be giving up his position as the god of madness soon. Mr. D figured that any guy who was willing to date Artemis and did so had to be at least a little mad to go along with the brass balls the size of Sicily he was carrying. However, inviting the Fates to lunch moved the Camp Director's opinion of Naruto from a little mad to being the conductor of Ozzy's train.
The Fates smiled and then began to speak in their patented way of seamlessly connecting each sentence that one of them said to what another said. "Thank you for the offer Naruto. Unfortunately, we will have to decline your offer. Our time here is short and we will soon have to depart. As you are aware, a threat from beyond Western Civilization as apparently been making its way to the West. It has now reach the West and it is time for you act. This item must be found and given to us so that we can send it back to its proper location. Anyone who touches or sees this item besides you and your chosen companions' risks damnation whether they be mortal or divine."
Suddenly the Camp was filled with an eerie green mist and the Fates began to glow in an otherworldly light. They then spoke as one with their combined voices creating a chilling echo effect. "Heed our words, oh Gibborim of this Age. This prophecy we give to you to help you in this task:
With potential daughter head north, to find one whose blood chooses the slain.
Three clues to find what you seek, among warriors hiding in plain sight shall the first be gain.
Near your entrance to your uncle's house rests the second, while the third is in the city of sin.
By these clues three shall the item be found, and an enemy's dreams left in vain."
The mist then vanished as the Fates finished giving Naruto their prophecy. The Fates bowed again to Naruto and then smiled at him. In their normal manner they smiled and said, "Thank you for taking care of this task for us Naruto. No one else is capable and trustworthy enough to do this. Relax for today as you will have an early morning to start tomorrow." The Fates then faded out of existence like mist in a breeze to the view of everyone in Camp.
Silence reigned over everyone in the Camp for a minute as they tried to comprehend what they had just watched. What exactly was someone supposed to say when the Fates themselves were thanking someone? Mr. D hoped that his father had been paying attention to Camp at this time because then Zeus would probably be out cold from shock. That would allow him the chance to have some much need hard liquor.
An hour later a small meeting was being held in the Big House to give Naruto some advice on his sudden quest. Chiron, Artemis, Zoe, Annabeth, Percy, and Chris were there with Naruto. Mr. D was in the next room doing a keg stand with 100 proof Vodka since Zeus was apparently out in shock and he really needed something to drink in order to deal with this mess. Everyone else in Camp were still trying to wrap their minds around what they had witnessed during lunch. Chiron started the meeting by saying. "Well then Naruto, I think the first question on everyone's mind is just what kind of threat are we facing?"
Naruto quickly thought about the Yata no Kagami and made up his mind. "For your own safety, it is better that you all know as little about this item as you can. I only found out about it because I've developed several contacts that live beyond the influence of Olympus. Those contacts learned from their own sources that this item had gone missing and whoever took it was taking it to the West. However, they didn't know where or when this item would show up here the last time I checked in with them."
Percy blurted out, "Why didn't you mention this to anyone Naruto?" He couldn't figure out why his cousin had kept quiet about something that posed a danger to everyone.
Naruto shook his head in a slightly wistful manner. "Just what should I have said Percy? Oh yeah, I've heard from sources none of you know exist that something incredibly dangerous is being shipped to America, but I have no clue when or where it will show up? I'm sorry, but intelligence gathering does not work like that. It was necessary for me to sit on this until I could get some hard facts or evidence to support my claims. This is especially true given the fact that the item in question is supposed to dangerous to gods as well as mortals and halfbloods. I haven't even been able to find out who is behind this plot which is an extremely important question to answer given the current cold war between Olympus and Atlantis. If I revealed what I knew without answering this question it could have easily made things worse."
Chiron politely coughed and cut into the conversation. "Thank you for your work in intelligence gathering Naruto and I personally agree that you made the right decision for when you made it regarding this situation. However, I think we would all be better served at the present time by focusing on the prophecy given by the Fates so that Naruto can deal with this threat as quickly as possible. The fact that they came to Camp to personally deliver this prophecy shows just how serious this matter is. Now, can anyone think of how this prophecy might be interpreted?"
Artemis immediately spoke up. "I think the part 'with potential daughter head north' is referring to a hunter being one of Naruto's companions on this quest with them heading in northern direction to start the quest off. I view my hunters as my children. Since Naruto has the possibility of helping me complete my wager with Aphrodite that would explain the potential part of the passage." There was a faint hint of gold on Artemis's cheeks as she said these words. Even now, Artemis still wasn't comfortable talking about her need to marry Naruto in public.
Naruto groaned and said, "The second half of the prophecy's first line probably refers to one of my contacts. He's a reasonably good teen and reasonable in a fight. I don't want to on a quest with him and a girl, especially one that is a hunter, because he's lecherous and a massive porn addict. Don't worry Artemis and Zoe, I know how to keep guys like him in line. Threats of castration or of being trapped in the illusion of being gay gang raped work quite well." To the other guys in the meeting's horror, Artemis and Zoe were taking notes.
Continuing on, Naruto explained what he could, "The part about the three clues is a clear as it is vague. There are three things I and my companions will need to find in order to locate the item. However, it doesn't given any clue what these clues might be so we'll have to keep our eyes open. I don't know what the warriors hiding in plain sight is about. However, the part about my uncle's house most likely refers to the cave system I used last year to visit Uncle Hades." Naruto paused for a second when he saw the shocked looks on everyone's faces. He held back another groan and started talking again. "Don't tell me that I'm the only one who visits Uncle Hades on a simple family visit instead of to pester him for a favor? Moving on, the last line means that I'll need to find all three clues in order to find the item. It also says that an enemy's dream will be in vain, but it doesn't specify who the enemy is or what their dream is. With how open that part is I might even end up creating an enemy because my actions on the quest lead to their current dreams for life no longer being feasible."
There was a moment of silence before Chiron spoke. "I think I have a lead on where the first and third clues might be. The Amazons are still around and run the company Amazon to help them function in the mortal world. This would explain the part about 'among warriors hiding in plain sight'. As to the 'city of sin', that one is a bit complicated. There are several cities that are well known for a reputation for a certain vice or vices. Since it is where the third clue is located I am willing to guess that the locations of the first two clues will clarify which city it is. For now, I think that Las Vegas is a reasonable guess since it has a reputation for gambling, drinking, and other even less accepted social vices."
Naruto waited a minute to see if anyone had anything else to add. After the minute of silence had passed he said, "I think we've got a good idea on what I can expect on my quest. I say we relax and double check tomorrow morning before I and my companion head off to see if we've overlooked something. Artemis, could you and Zoe talk with the Hunters and figure out who would be the best companion to join me on this quest?"
Author's Notes: Before anyone asks about Naruto's musings on Tobi and Madara, please remember when Naruto left the Elemental Nations. He does not know about Tobi being Obito. Thanks to his mother, he knows that Tobi was behind the Kyuubi's attack.
As I am still getting requests about a read along story for Hero of Heaven, I have decided to reiterate a point I made in a previous authors note. I give those who want to write such a story my full blessing. I will not look for someone to make this kind of story, but I have no problems if someone wants to write such a story.
