A/N: Heyo boio's. Time to continue this big barrel of fun. Final arc is approaching, but we still have this one to finish.
Time for chapter 38
Enjoy!
Konohamaru gritted his teeth as he ran through the streets of Konoha. It was dark, cold, and the air was buzzing with unresolved tension. After being evacuated from the arena, the academy student had opted to return to his home for shelter from the impending conflict to come. After nearly an hour of monotonous cowardice, Konohamaru snapped and exited his dwelling. He had immediately regretted his decision, as the feeling of dread permeating the now-empty streets of Konoha was overwhelming. Against his better judgement, he had chosen to journey to the tension's source.
Eventually, Konohamaru caught sight of what he had been searching for. A cloud of smoke was billowing up from a building, and sounds of a fracas could be heard from within the obstruction. The academy student froze in his tracks and stared up at the smoke with bated breath as he awaited signs of life. His patience was rewarded a moment later when a redish-orange blur was launched off of the rooftop and down into the the street below. The impact of the entity's collision with the ground created a small crater in the asphalt and sent a tremor through the ground.
'What in the-' Konohamaru thought to himself as the airborne dust cleared away to reveal the sufferer of the fall. Much to his surprise, he recognized the figure that had risen to his feet.
'Naruto…' he mouthed as his friend and mentor silently glared up at the rooftop from which he had been thrown. Deciding to err on the side of caution, Konohamaru retreated into an alleyway to observe the events that were about to unfold. The moment he had fully made his way between the two buildings, Naruto leapt into the air and intercepted his apparent foe, who was airborne over his head. The two combatants clashed together mid-air and sent sparks flying in all directions. The force of the collision sent them both flying backwards to the ground. Once they had both regained their footing, they engaged once more.
It was then that Konohamaru was able to decipher the identity of Naruto's blade-wielding opponent.
'No way...it can't be. Orochimaru, the Snake Sanin. Why is he here? Why is Naruto fighting him?' he wondered to himself frantically as his elder friend traded strikes with the pale man.
'Naruto is glowing. It almost looks like a red suit or something. There's so much going on that I don't understand' Konohamaru thought to himself. Despite his lack of contextual understanding of the situation at hand, one thing was clear to the young ninja-to-be. Naruto was not fighting to win, but to survive. Each and every time the blonde made any headway in an exchange or managed to connect with a strike from long range, he was badly wobbled by the return fire, or was cut open by Orochimaru's blade.
Case and point, the very next trade of blows resulted in Naruto being dropped to his knees by a punch to the left side of his head and subsequently impaled by his foe's sword through the stomach. Konohamaru suppressed the urge to scream out in horror as the Jinchuuriki struggled to a standing position. To the shock and great relief of Konohamaru, Naruto clenched his jaw, yanked Orochimaru forward by the hand he was wielding his blade with, and ran him face-first into a fully committed overhand that snapped the Sanin's head back and forced him to release the sword from his grasp.
The blonde used the momentary lull in his adversary's assault to remove the blade from his stomach spit blood out of his mouth as his wound healed. The speed with which Naruto's seemingly fatal injury healed elicited a wide-eyed stare from Konohamaru, who's awestruck confusion was magnifying by the minute. Before he could even begin to form an explanation in his mind, Naruto and Orochimaru jumped up onto the rooftops and began to fight once more.
The young boy snapped back to attention and changed his position to better view the now-overhead war being waged.
'Come on, Boss. Snap him in half'
Orochimaru grinned sadistically as he doubled Naruto over with a knee to the ribs. The fight had been more difficult than initially anticipated, but still nowhere near as daunting as a man-to-man confrontation with the Third Hokage would have been, and the Jinchuuriki's body appeared to be failing him more and more as the battle wore on. As the blonde sunk to his knees in agony, the pale man seized him by the back of his shirt and ripped him off the ground.
"I'm genuinely impressed that you've managed to not only survive as long as you have, but also land a fair few blows. I actually have a bruise or two" he mocked. He then tossed him backwards to the edge of the rooftop. Orochimaru then weaved a sequence of hand seals and shifted his gaze towards a nearby alleyway. Staring up at the pale man from the ground below was a young boy, no older than eight years. Orochimaru was instantly struck with an idea.
'I missed you with this jutsu once before, but I have a strong feeling that I won't this time' he thought to himself. The Sanin then reared his head back.
"Fire Style: Fireball Jutsu!" he yelled as he launched a sphere of searing chakra directly at the young boy. Naruto, who had managed to rise to his feet during the Sanin's sign-weaving, immediately tore his glare away from Orochimaru and turned it toward the destination of the fireball. A split second later, he launched himself from the edge of the rooftop and into the literal and figurative line of fire.
Fortunately for the young boy down below, the Jinchuuriki was still spry enough to cover the necessary distance to intercept the Jutsu with his body, but unfortunately for Naruto, he was far too drained to erect any sort of defense for himself. Due to this exhaustion, he absorbed the full, burning brunt of the superheated chakra with the front of his person. The force of the jutsu sent him flying towards the boy, who wore a look of shock and terror. Just before Naruto could collide with him, the blonde regained his bearings and twisted mid-air to change his trajectory to avoid landing on him.
Thankfully, the adjustment bore fruit and prevented the boy from being injured by sending Naruto crashing to the ground just to the left of him. The Jinchuuriki slid across the asphalt painfully for roughly ten feet before coming to a stop in a smoldering heap. After several tense moments of motionlessness, Naruto staggered to his feet and stumbled badly, having to use the wall of the alleyway to keep himself from collapsing once more. Several agonizing steps later, he turned to the boy whom he had just saved.
"What the hell are you doing out in the streets, Konohamaru? You know better. There's no reason for you to be here. You'll be killed" he berated him through ragged breaths. Konohamaru struggled to find his voice for a second or two.
"I-I didn't want to just sit around. I'm not a coward!" he exclaimed once he regained his ability to speak. The Jinchuuriki sighed and shook his head as he straightened his posture as best he could despite his injuries and failing stamina.
"There's a difference between brave and stupid, kid. You being here is definitely the second one. Now go home. You'll get your chance to be brave, but not today" he ordered as he forcibly rekindled the red cloak of chakra surrounding his body, which had been badly dimmed by the flaming jutsu he had withstood just moments before. Konohamaru instinctively stepped back as the intensity of his mentor's chakra pierced his senses.
"And how is what you're doing any less stupid?! You can't beat that guy! There's no way!" he countered desperately as Naruto plodded his way back towards Orochimaru, who was patiently waiting atop a building directly in front of the alleyway. Konohamaru's words initially elicited no reaction, but eventually, the blonde glanced back over his shoulder at him.
"Sometimes...you don't fight to win. You fight to protect. To defend the place you call home and the people that you consider family. There's more to life than coming out on top. I would know. Now please, run away. I don't want you to see this" he said solemnly as he turned his attention to the pale man above. A moment later, he leapt into the air to the sound of Konohamaru yelling his name.
The cry fell on deaf ears as the blonde collided with Orochimaru at the edge of the rooftop, forcing him backwards several feet and giving Naruto the space to plant his feet and pursue him further. Using his new footing as a push-off, the Jinchuuriki burst forward and threw a right handed punch at the left side of Orochimaru's jaw. Before it could connect, the Sanin caught his wrist and tried to pull him forward. Fortunately for the genin, his feet were solidly rooted in the ground, snuffing out any chance of his balance being compromised.
Instead of wasting energy and struggling against this issue, Orochimaru opted to throw his own right hand at Naruto's head. In a moment of clever mimicry, the Jinchuuriki caught the Sanin's wrist in identical fashion, leaving both combatants armless momentarily. Naruto shoved his head forward and slammed his skull into Orochimaru's, resulting in the pale man taking a step back. With their arms still occupied, they began to strain against one another to gain ground.
"Let's see just how far those seemingly endless reserves of chakra stretch, shall we?" Orochimaru sneered as his body began to glow with chakra. His physicality immediately became significantly more imposing, forcing Naruto to match his output of energy. The blonde's chakra cloak then gained a second layer of flame-like energy that flared and pulsated in retaliation to the flow of the Sanin's own chakra. The foundation of the building they stood atop soon began to tremble and crack under the immense pressure of the battle being waged on it's roof.
Within mere seconds, the space around Naruto and Orochimaru became engulfed in a storm of swirling chakra. The producers of the energy then released one another from their grips and initiated an exchange of blows in the eye of the hurricane of chakra. The Sanin swung a hooking punch at the side of Naruto's head the moment they separated, prompting the genin to pull his head down and to his left in order to avoid it. As Orochimaru attempted to follow his skull with another punch, he was caught absolutely flush with an overhand punch to the left side of his jaw, which Naruto's dramatic pull to the opposite side had provided momentum for.
The punch took the Sanin off of his feet and sent him crashing to the ground ten feet away. Despite desiring to do so, Naruto found himself unable to strike his downed foe further. Overexertion had exacted a heavy toll, and Naruto's body was beginning to ignore his commands. As Orochimaru rose to his feet, the chakra swirling around him and the blonde dissipated, leaving a silent night and a rooftop as their setting.
"Unlike before, I have no snappy remarks. Brilliant work, Naruto. You outmaneuvered a Sanin in close quarters. Be proud of that accomplishment. From the looks of you, It may be your last" the pale man said as he assessed his clearly-fading adversary. Naruto, to Orochimaru's surprise, chuckled a bit and let out a heavy sigh.
'I've got one shot left in me. I hate to ask, but...could you give me just a little more? If I'm going to die tonight, I want to make our last push count' he tiredly asked of the demon who had been silently watching his vessel struggle. In a surprisingly un-antagonistic tone, the fox responded.
'Before I give you what you need, I'd like to say that you've impressed me. I considered you to be something of a coward throughout your life, but you've proven me woefully wrong. It may require your demise, but your people will see their foolishness. Tonight you stand as their final beacon of light, literally and figuratively. As long as it may have taken, you've risen' the demon said with an approving nod that was only known to Naruto. A final surge of burning chakra then lit up the cold night once more.
'Give him hell, Naruto'
At those words, the fox's presence retreated back into the Jinchuuriki's mind, leaving him to complete the fruitless task he had set himself to. A humorous grin, identical to the thousands he had worn before, slowly crept across his face as he focused the demonic chakra into a spiraling sphere. Unlike his previous false pleasantries, however, this smile was genuine.
'You all loved to make fun of my dreams, but the joke is on you guys now. See you assholes at my funeral' he joked to himself as he prepared himself to attack. With that last fitting thought, Naruto crashed forward to perform the final chorus of his beautiful swan song.
A song of minor key
A/N: I KNOW I KNOW. It's short. I've been having some issues lately, but I also feel like adding any more to this chapter would ruin the mood. Hope you all enjoyed it despite the long wait.
See you next chapter! Read and Review!
