XxXxX
'W-what is this power?!' Pixis thought as a crimson wind began to swirl around the cloaked man standing in front of him. The grin that was plastered on his face was feral and menacing, and a feeling that a massive weight had suddenly appeared over every inch of his body. Pixis lifted his arm to cover his eyes from the dust that blew against him. 'What are you?!'
The weight that pressed against his being was slowly becoming unbearable. Sweat began to form around his brow when his two body guards jumped next to him. Pixis looked to his flanks to see Rico and Ian in a defensive posture, but the pressure was taking its toll on them as well.
Just as Pixis was about to collapse, Naruto disappeared from his spot in front of them. Gone in the blink of an eye. Taking in a deep breath, Pixis wiped away the sweat from his forehead.
"Sir?" Rico asked, concern and confusion laced in her voice. The commander of the southern Garrison forces sighed and grabbed his bottle from his coat.
"Don't ask. We've got a job to do just like he does." Pixis replied before taking a large gulp from his flask. "And whatever you do, do not let a single soldier past the middle mark on the walls."
"Yes sir! But if I may ask, why's that?" Ian asked with a salute.
"Because whatever Naruto's about to do out there should not be seen as of yet. We don't want a panicked mob in our mists now do we?" Pixis asked when suddenly the ground shook as a massive explosion rocked the foundations of the wall.
"No sir!" Rico and Ian replied with a concerned expressions.
"Good, now get to it."
XxXxX
I ran down the side of the wall, crimson chakra flowing behind me. My chains following close behind as my eyes caught the sight of a titan nearing the opening of the destroyed gate. Pushing myself off of the wall, I sped towards the top of the unaware titan. Chakra began to spin in my hand as I neared the lumbering beast.
"Rasengan!" The red ball smashed into the top of its head, creating a massive explosion and pressure wave. A large plume of smoke flowed from the impact of the Rasengan and the titan.
Seconds rolled by before I walked out of the smoke, chains being dragged behind me. The smoke cleared by a gust of wind, showing a dead titan laying on the ground in front of the gate. A sea of titans met my eyes as images of my first contact with them appeared in my head.
'I've got a goal this time. Kill as many as possible until Pixis finds a way to close the gate.' I thought as I poured chakra into both of my hands. Quickly the red formed in my hands, but a pain rippled throughout my body. The sudden influx of chakra was stretching my chakra coils, adding a strain that wasn't originally there. The same happened when I called upon Chomei, but this pain hurt so much more than that time.
That time.
So much time has passed since then that my mind had begun to forget about the complete slaughter of those around me. Millions… no billions… where killed or eaten right before my eyes.
I shrugged off those dreadful memories as my chakra had finally formed in my hands. Two spinning red orbs sat in each of my hands. Wind swirled around each of the orbs as the sea of titans grew closer.
"Futon: Rasenshuriken!"
XxXxX
"In the Trainees Squad #34, our team, Tomas Wagner, Nack Teaz, Millius Zermusky, Mina Caroline, and Eren Yeager… the aforementioned five bravely fell in the line of duty…" Armin said between sobs. A Naruto clone sat on top of the roof behind Armin, listening to the sad report that Armin gave to Mikasa once she arrived.
Naruto frowned at the news as he looked out over the roofs of Trost. 'To think that he died in the first battle with the titans.' The clone listened as Mikasa gave her harsh words to the other troops. 'Shocking them into action? Although she sounds dead inside…'
The clone moved over and sat on the edge of the roof as Mikasa charged off towards the HQ with the others in tow. He sighed and rubbed the back of his head in annoyance. 'She's going to get herself killed by the way she's moving.'
So the clone silently followed the group of Trainees towards the HQ. Killing any wayward titan that approached them from the rear with his hooks. Just as the clone landed onto the top of a roof, Mikasa ran out of gas, slamming into the top of one of the buildings before falling into a street away from the group. The clone frowned before jumping over and landing onto a building overlooking Mikasa.
She was downtrodden and looked as if all life had left her. As if her very purpose in this world had been stripped from her existence. Mikasa then began lifting one of her broken blades towards her throat.
The clone lifted a brow from beneath the veil of his hood in question. 'Suicide? That won't solve anything…' Just as the thought ran through his head a titan appeared in front of her then another behind her. Slowly the two titans began walking towards her, but something was off about the titan behind Mikasa.
"I won't give up! Not now! Not when I have to preserve your memory!" Mikasa suddenly shouted as the Asian girl held out her broken blade in front of her.
A soft chuckle escaped the clone's lips as a new fire appeared in her eyes, but Naruto's eyes again landed on the long haired titan behind her. Its eyes were staring directly at the other titan, as if it didn't even register that Mikasa was there. Also, the clone couldn't shake the feeling of familiarity when looking at its face.
'I could save her, but I think…' Just as the clone thought this, the titan behind Mikasa charged forth, aiming its fist at the other titan. 'Interesting, a titan attacking another titan.'
Out of the corner of Naruto's eyes he caught a glimpse of Armin swooping down and picking up Mikasa from the street. The two landed onto the same building as Naruto, about twenty yards away.
"Mikasa, you fell off because you ran out of gas, right?!" Armin shouted, but his look or eagerness dissipated when he heard the sound of metal clanking against the tiled rooftop. The two looked over and saw a black cloaked figure walking towards them. "N-Naruto?"
The clone stopped in front of them and nodded his head in confirmation.
"What are you doing here?" Armin asked as Mikasa stared at me with a new sense of purpose and meaning. "I thought all civilians had been evacuated?"
"Making sure your top of the class doesn't get herself killed." Naruto replied as he began reeling in one of the hooks towards him. Once it was by his side, the cloaked man began spinning it around at his side.
"But how did you-?" Armin began to say, but stopped when Connie landed next to them.
"Hey guys! We need to get moving! There are two fifteen meter classes in front of us!" Connie exclaimed.
"I wouldn't worry about that." Mikasa said as Armin fiddled with her equipment without her realizing it.
"What are you talking about?! Of course I'm going to worry!" Connie exclaimed.
"Watch." I said to the young boy. Connie looked at me with a confused expression before looking at the two titans. He must have just noticed that Naruto had been standing there.
The long haired titan then plowed its fist into the opposing titan, sending its head flying towards the group standing on the building nearby.
"Watch out!" Connie shouted as he moved to get out of the way, but then a black blur shot past them. Naruto now stood in front of the group of Trainees, his hooks and chains glowing a bright blue while he rapidly spun them by his side. Wind was whirling around him, blowing his cloak about before the head was right in front of him. Naruto shot his hooks upwards, slicing the head in two and sending the pieces of the head to the streets on either side of them.
The chains quickly stopped glowing blue before landing by his side once again. Naruto looked over his shoulder at the awestricken Trainees. "Are you all okay?"
This seemed to snap them out of their stupor as Mikasa and Armin stood from their seated position.
"Y-Yeah. We're fine." Armin replied.
"What was that?" Mikasa asked.
"I would suggest saving the questions for later. For now we need to get everyone to the HQ." Naruto said.
"He's right, there's no time for questions. We need to get to the HQ and fast! The others have already moved on ahead!" Connie exclaimed.
"But I'm out of gas, how am I supposed to get to HQ without any gas?" Mikasa asked.
"Don't worry about that. I put all of my gas into your tank and replaced all of your blades with my own. You should be able to make it to the HQ from here." Armin said, but there was a sad smile adorning his features. "It's the least I can do."
"But what about you? How will you get to the HQ?" Connie asked.
Armin sighed deeply and looked down at the remaining blade in his hand. "I'll be fine, just get to the HQ." Mikasa then walked over and grabbed Armin's blade and threw it over the edge of the building. "W-What are you doing?!"
"We are not leaving you behind. I won't let another person close to me die." Mikasa said with determination. Naruto grinned slightly at the scene, but suddenly the ground beneath them began to shake as a loud explosion pierced their ears.
"What was that?!" Connie exclaimed. The clone looked south towards the gate. Where one could see a bright light shining up from over the top of the wall. A breeze pressed against them as soon afterwards another explosion, equal in strength, erupted from the other side of the wall. Shaking the ground a second time with equal force.
'It seems like the boss has made it outside.' The clone thought before turning towards the group. They all looked confused and terrified at what was going on. For all they knew it was another attack on the wall by the Colossal Titan. "It's best if we keep our focus on the objective at hand and get to the HQ."
The group looked skeptical, but nodded their heads as they stood up. Armin looked over at the renegade titan when an idea appeared in his head. "Look guys, I know this may sound crazy, but what if we use that titan to get to the HQ?"
"Use a titan… for help? That sounds crazy! But…" Connie said as he watched the abnormal titan make its way over to the nearest traditional titan.
"It's the only chance we've got." Mikasa said. Naruto watched as the abnormal titan began to destroy another titan at the end of the next street over.
Naruto's eyes narrowed slightly as a thought came to his mind. The clones eyes met with the titans, and said titan seemed to pause for a moment before continuing on.
"But what about this guy? He doesn't have any 3D maneuver gear. How will he keep up?" Connie asked.
"Don't worry about me. I'll follow you two while taking care of Armin." Naruto said as he began wrapping up his chains around his arms. 'I need to conserve chakra if I don't want to disappear. Helping these trainees takes top priority for now.'
"Again, how? You don't-."
"I said don't worry about me. I'll take care of Armin. You two clear a path for that titan to get to HQ." Naruto replied with a voice that said 'don't test my patience'. Mikasa frowned at the thought of a stranger taking care of Armin, but mentally conceded that it was the only option at hand.
"Fine, but don't you dare drop him or I'll kill you myself." Connie said as he pulled out his two blades, Mikasa following suit a few seconds later. With one last look from the Asian girl, Connie and Mikasa jumped away to begin their mission.
"You have some very protective friends." Naruto said once Mikasa and Connie were out of earshot.
"I don't know why... Eren was killed saving my life. Why would they still even like me after something like that?" Armin asked, looking up into the veil of Naruto's hood. The cloaked man sighed and looked towards the south. A massive red light appeared behind the wall, washing a strange warmth over the city.
"Armin… Eren died protecting you. He valued your life higher than his own." Naruto said as he placed a hand onto Armin's shoulder. "If you were in the same position, wouldn't you have done the same thing as Eren?"
The blonde looked down at the top of the building for a moment. 'He's right… I would have done the exact same thing without a second thought.'
"Now." Naruto said, breaking his train of thought. "Let's get going before we fall too far behind."
"Right." Armin replied, a new sense of conviction overcoming him.
XxXxX
'This power.' I swept past five titans, a few seconds later their necks exploded in spray of crimson blood. 'It feels so… familiar.'
Landing onto the back of a titan, I dug my crimson soaked blades into the back of its neck, killing it instantly. The titan fell forward as two clones appeared next to me, running towards two other titans approaching at my flanks. The two clones jumped towards their chests and erupted in a massive explosion, sending body parts flying in all directions. "Bunshin Daibakuha."
I straightened my back and looked around me. Standing in the center of the field outside the walls, a sea of titans approached me from all sides. Sighing, a clone was created behind me with its back to mine. We began going through similar hand signs as the titans encroached onto us.
"Just as persistent as before." I said softly as my clone and I finished our replicated hand signs at the same time. "Katon: Gōka Mekkyaku!"
A massive wave of fire erupted from our mouths, flowing over the titans as they mindlessly walked into the searing hot flames. We continued to spray fire into the titans until I noticed that some of them had begun to push through the flames. The clone and I stopped the jutsu simultaneously and once the smoke had cleared a field of charred and mangled bodies remained within the range of our jutsu. A soft pop could be heard behind me, notifying me that my clone had used all of its chakra.
'I feel like I've seen that jutsu used by someone…' I thought as I saw some of the titans that had managed to push through the fire come close to me. Disappearing from where I stood by applying the red chakra to my legs, the seven burnt and mangled titans dropped to the ground after the top portions of their bodies exploded one after the other. Some of the titans that had fallen to the ground from the fire jutsu had begun to restore parts of their body.
I landed at my original location before an image drove itself into my mind. Drilling itself to my foremost thought.
A man had just been blown across the top of some sand from a wind jutsu. He had long black hair and red samurai armor. He picked himself up off the ground and brushed himself off before running through some hand seals. "Katon: Gōka Mekkyaku!" The sea of fire engulfed the horizon as fifteen to twenty men lined up to fire a water jutsu to oppose the one man. The wind that was created from the colliding forces of fire and water could have been a jutsu all its own.
Frowning, I formed a cross hand sign. "Kage Bushin." Ten clones appeared around me before dashing into the regenerating titans that lay in the burnt terrain. Beyond them more titans could be seen moving towards my position. Some walking, others sprinting, but they would eventually come.
They always did.
The chakra inside my body continued to expand and make room for itself, but the process was becoming less and less painful. My body was adjusting to the constant stream of outpouring chakra from the seal within my body.
Looking down at my body, I could see the red wisps of chakra pouring out from every pore of my body. Excess chakra that was released from the seal that could not be contained within my ever expanding chakra system. The chakra, it seems, was eager to absorb itself into my body.
Memories entered my mind from a destroyed clone that had completed its work in killing off any stragglers. 'It seems they have begun walking over their dead. What mindless creatures.' Lightning began to sparkle from my hands as another clone popped away behind me. 'But they do seem rather eager today.'
The lightning ran down my chains and into my hooks that lay on the grass behind me. Disappearing from my position inside the devastated geography, I reappeared inside the center of a group of four titans. Spinning rapidly, the hooks cut deeply into the skin of the titans, electrocuting them and sending them to the ground. The lightning continued to course through their bodies as I held up a single sign in front of me.
"Raiton: Zōki Haretsu." The titans around me began to shake violently before becoming unmoving. Every organ in their body ruptured until their heads exploded from the pressure inside their bodies. Going through the motions I sliced off a chunk from the back of their necks before moving on to the next titan.
XxXxX
'I'm running low on chakra. At this rate…' The clone carrying Armin hopped from one building to another. Following behind the two Trainees as they moved the abnormal titan towards the now swamped HQ. Titans could be seen crawling all over the building, signifying that there was still a holdout of soldiers left inside. 'I only have enough chakra for three to four jutsu left before I dispel. Conservational fighting is my best tactic at this point, but this constant running is beginning to wear into my chakra reserves as well.'
Looking over his shoulder Naruto could see Armin looking beneath them in amazement.
"How are you jumping like this?! This is amazing!" Armin said as Naruto carried Armin on his back.
"I thought I told you, save the questions for later. Getting out of Trost is our top priority at this juncture." Naruto replied, a hint of irritation on his voice. The blonde looked slightly stunned, but regained his serious expression. Still… the boy was extremely curious as to what was going on and who could blame him?
"We're about to enter the HQ, get ready." Naruto said with an even tone. The clone could feel Armin's arms tighten around his neck as he went to jump towards the window that Mikasa had broken through.
Kicking off of a nearby building, the two flew over two titans before the clone nimbly landed on the floor of a room. A dozen or so soldiers stood inside the room, but none of them heard the two enter as they were watching two titans get smashed by the abnormal titan. Putting Armin down, Mikasa and Connie looked over at us, relief apparent in their eyes.
"Glad to see you two make it. When you two didn't arrive shortly after us I feared the worst." Connie said as he slapped Armin on the back. The blonde was pushed forward from the sudden motion.
"Y-yeah. Sorry about that. Naruto and I just had a little talk is all." Armin replied while rubbing the back of his head. Mikasa frowned when she heard this, but declined to say anything.
"Whatever! Your plan worked like a charm! Mikasa and I already told everyone about the titan that's attacking all the others outside. So long as it's here then we should be safe inside the HQ." Connie said with a massive smile on his face. Then the room turned to the clone who was looking out the window that they had plunged through just moments before.
"Who's he?" Jean asked.
"He doesn't look like a soldier to me." Reiner commented. "Hey, who are you and why were you not evacuated with the civilians?"
Naruto remained quiet as he observed Reiner. 'This feeling… I've felt it before when I was near Eren and Annie.'
"Hey! Answer me!" Reiner demanded.
"He's a friend!" Armin exclaimed, quickly moving next to the cloaked man. "Naruto carried me all the way here on his back." Looking up beneath my dark veil, he smiled softly. "He saved my life from being eaten by the titans outside."
"Naruto, is it? Then why didn't he say that himself?" Jean asked.
"There's a problem with his throat at the moment. It restricts his speech and makes him violently cough if he talks too much." Armin explained. The group of soldiers seemed to accept his answer except for Reiner, but the tall soldier remained quiet for the time being.
"Welcome to our little slice of hell then, Naruto, but we aren't out of the woods yet. There are titans downstairs that are currently blocking us from getting any more gas." Jean explained before turning to the others to erect a plan to recapture the basement.
'So that's the problem.' The clone thought as he began walking away. 'I can take these out before dispelling.'
Naruto exited the room and began walking down the hallway when a voice made itself known to the mantled man. "Naruto? Where are you going?" Looking over his shoulder, he could see Annie staring back at him with eyes that reflected both boredom and curiosity.
"Going to have a look around." The clone responded.
"… Is that so? Mind if I tag along?" Annie asked as she fully removed herself from behind the door she was peering out of.
"If you wish."
Walking away, Naruto could hear the footsteps of Annie quicken before she was walking by his side. The two remained quiet as they walked around the HQ, moving ever closer to the basement. "What about the others? Won't you be included in their plan to secure the basement?"
"They'll tell me the plan when we return." Annie said as the two stopped in front of an elevator.
"Is this the elevator that leads down to the basement?"
"Yeah."
"I see." Naruto sighed and looked over at the blonde girl standing next to him. She was neither scared nor worried about anything that was going on around her. "Why did you want to follow me?"
Annie thought for a moment, thinking deeply before shaking her head, a slight grin appearing on her face. "I'm not entirely sure myself. I just kind of felt like it I guess."
In truth, Annie has never taken an interest in anyone before. Everyone around her was just a faceless person that meant nothing in her eyes, but Naruto… The man standing next to her felt like a shadow that she aspired to be. A strong obstacle that Annie needed to overcome to be the very thing that she, along with her father, wanted her to become, but was there anything else? Was this just a one sided affair where Annie saw Naruto as a rival while he saw her as nothing more than a pest that was in the way? Or is there something else between them besides the feeling of competition? She has only talked to the man once before, but they exchanged their thoughts through their fists. In that quick spar Annie learned a lot about how the mysterious man, but he was withholding a lot of strength. Each punch and kick made it seem like he was trying to not hurt her.
"Annie? Are you okay?" Naruto asked, shaking her from her thoughts.
"Yes, I'm fine. We should head back to the others. We've wasted enough time as it is." Annie replied before quickly turning and walking away. The blonde continued to walk in the direction in which they came until she heard an audible tick of a gate closing. Annie turned to see Naruto pressing the button for the elevator to descend into the basement.
"What are you doing?!" Annie exclaimed as she ran to the edge of the elevator, but it was already too low for her to do anything. Naruto didn't respond as the elevator disappeared into the darkness below.
Shocked, Annie stared at where Naruto had just been before turning and running in the opposite direction. 'What the hell is he thinking?! He's going to die down there!' Bursting through the doors, the blonde girl looked at the stunned looks of everyone inside the room.
"Annie? What's the matter?" Jean asked. This was the first time they had seen her terrified like this.
"Naruto went into the basement by himself!" Annie said after she had slightly composed herself. The room went silent.
"Wait, what?! He's going to die if he goes down there alone!" Armin shouted as he quickly stood.
"I know. I'm going to save him." Annie said as she grabbed a container that was half full of gas and left the room.
"Wait! Annie!" Reiner shouted, but the blonde girl was gone. "Shit we got to stop her."
But just as Reiner was about to grab another canister, Mikasa grabbed the one he was reaching for and dashed through the door. The floor beneath them rumbled somewhat as Mikasa disappeared through the door.
The Asian girl quickly caught up to Annie as she made her way down the stairs. "Decided to come with me?"
Mikasa looked at her fellow soldier and nodded her head. "He may be mysterious, but he did save Armin's life. The least I can do is save his. Besides," Mikasa said with a now confused expression, "It's unlike you to go out of your way for anything. Especially another person."
"Yeah… I know." Annie replied as the two stopped in front of the door leading into the basement.
"Ready?" Mikasa asked. Annie nodded before the two burst through the door and into the dark basement, but when their eyes landed on the scene before them, they were awe struck.
Standing at the center of the room, surrounded by dead titans and blood up to his ankles, stood Naruto. Two chains lay in the pool of blood next to him as said blood was steaming up into the air, along with the bodies of the deceased titans. Turning his body, Naruto was now facing the completely stunned Trainees with an expressionless face, but after a few seconds of staring, Naruto suddenly burst into a cloud of smoke.
"W-what was that?" Mikasa asked as the two girls walked through the steaming blood and corpses towards where Naruto had been standing, but there was nothing there.
"Where did Naruto go?" Annie asked. The two looked around, but there was nothing. How could someone just disappear in a puff of smoke like that?
"We're here to he…" Connie shouted as he burst through the door, but came to a stop when he saw the dead titans laying on the ground. "Help."
Several others came through the door, but were also stunned by the scene. "Did you two…?" Reiner asked.
"No, it wasn't us." Annie said as she examined the handy work of their cloaked friend.
"Then what happened? And where's Naruto?" Connie asked.
"Naruto killed these titans, but as to where he's gone..." Mikasa said as she pulled down on her red muffler somewhat. "We don't know. He disappeared in a puff of smoke when we walked through the door."
"Disappeared in a puff of smoke?! What the hell are you two talking about?" Jean asked in confusion.
"I wouldn't have believed it if I hadn't seen it myself either, but Mikasa is telling the truth." Annie said, still looking around the large room. 'Is he…?'
"To be able to kill seven titans by himself. That's insane." Reiner commented.
"It doesn't matter, the room is clear for now. Let's fill up and get the hell out of here!" Jean said, getting nods from everyone else.
XxXxX
A headless titan fell to the ground in front of me, but as I yanked my hook out from the back of its neck a massive hand descended down upon me. I jumped away from the attack just as it smashed into its fellow titan.
Moving through hand signs as I jumped backwards, I held out my hands in front of me once I was done. "Fūton: Kazekiri no Jutsu!" A gust of wind flew past me as blades of air formed in front of the beasts. The blades cut through the titan all over its body, but lethally on the back of its neck. The offending titan, along with two others standing on its other side, fell to the ground, dead.
Landing on the ground, a titan standing behind me plowed me into the ground, only for smoke to erupt from underneath its fist. Appearing behind it, my hook dug into the back of its neck, killing it instantly.
'I wonder how long Pixis is going to take?' I thought after landing onto the charred grass. Looking around me, I noticed the nearest titan was a little ways away, but then memories flooded into my mind. 'So Eren was killed… at least one of my remaining clones had managed to help out the other Trainees.'
Seeing ten or so titans come closer I again ran through hand signs before slamming my hand into the ground. "Raiton: Eriapāji." Lightning began arcing from my hand before, quick as lightning, it shot out in all directions, ripping up the ground as it danced to the nearest titans. The titans that had once been rushing me fell to the ground, steam coming from their charred bodies.
'But that abnormal titan. It feels like…' Two clones appeared next to me and rushed the downed titans. I shook my head as I looked around me. 'At least these titans never made it inside the city.' But more came as another massive wave of titans appeared to the south of my position.
"Always eager to rush to your deaths." I said as red chakra began to swirl around my body. The air around me began to heat up as, if one looked very closely, my body began to twitch ever so slightly. "Using this technique will probably hurt due to the lack of conditioning, but I suppose I should go help Pixis come up with a plan if he's taking this long. This should give us at least fifteen to twenty minutes at most before more arrive."
The sea of titans grew ever closer as chakra began to flow around me in a mesmerizing dance. Although it would normally be invisible to the naked eye the red chakra allowed it to be visible to everyone. Swiftly applying lightning chakra in one hand, and wind chakra in the other, I weaved them together in front of me. The two differentiating chakra fused together and burst into my body at a blinding speed. "Jinton: Akuma no Iki." (1)
And then, in the blink of an eye, the sea of titans exploded in blood.
XxXxX
Pixis stood motionless as he watched the massive horde of titans simply explode in blood. How could someone be so powerful? To kill over fifty titans in an instant could only be done by the will of a god!
"H-H-H-." Pixis dropped his flask on the ground as the blood rained down onto the ground. Some of the blood began to pool into the bottom of two massive craters made by the explosions at the beginning of the fight.
"I see you haven't made much progress in figuring out a plan to retake Trost." A familiar voice said from behind Pixis. The stunned commander nearly fell off the wall in surprise.
"What in the world are you?!" Pixis exclaimed.
"A relic of the past." I said between pants. The crimson chakra that had flowed around me was no longer visible to the Southern Garrison Commander as the last jutsu used up a large portion of my reserves. Not only did it use a massive amount of chakra, but it put an incredibly high amount of strain on the body. 'It also seems that, like Chomie, a large portion of the chakra being released from the seal is returning to make sure it doesn't break. Their chakra is the only thing holding it together and the nine tails is playing a large in that.'
The amount of pressure that had been flowing off of me from before had vanished and Pixis was having a much easier time breathing, but after watching my display of power, the bald man took a few steps back.
I watched as Pixis took several steps back and sighed. "There isn't much use in taking a few steps back like that. If I wanted to kill you then I would have done it long before you even registered I was here." Pixis stopped his motion and looked at my eyes. My hood was down and I had purposely recalled the demonic chakra from my eyes to make them the same blue as before. "I'm still the same chess playing man as before and I'll continue to work in humanities favor. You can count on that."
Pixis stared into my eyes for a couple of moments before kneeling down and picking up his flask from the ground. After taking a massive gulp of alcohol, Pixis nodded his head before walking over to the edge of the wall that faced the city. "You're crazy, you know that right?"
"Am I?" I replied as I stood next to the aged commander. We looked out over city that had hundreds of titans walking through it. "My last attack should give us about twenty minute's tops of breathing room before more arrive."
"Can you do whatever you just did again? Except this time inside the city?" Pixis asked. I looked down at my body and frowned. While my chakra was being rapidly replenished, my muscles were a different story.
"No. I can fight traditionally inside the city, but that specific move, or anything of the same scope, won't be an option for a while." I replied as we began walking across the top of the wall towards the northern end. "Did you find a way to close the hole?"
"I have some ideas, but actually executing them seems impossible at the moment. Tell me, do have a 'move' that could close the wall?" Pixis asked.
"No, all of my abilities are made with two purposes in mind."
"And those would be?"
"Killing and destroying."
"Well neither of those will help in closing the walls."
"Indeed they won't."
We approached a line of soldiers that were standing guard at about the halfway point on the wall. Quickly placing the hood back over my head, the men saluted Pixis as we passed. "Sir! We heard some rather loud explosions to the south of Trost. If I may ask-." One of the soldiers began to say, but Pixis waved him off.
"You may not, now stand guard until I give the order not to." Pixis said sternly. The soldier saluted and nodded his head.
Once we were out of earshot I looked at Pixis questionably. "I ordered for nobody to go beyond the halfway mark so that whatever you did out there would remain a secret for as long as possible."
"A good idea, but people will learn eventually."
"True, but for now we don't need to start a panic amongst the men."
We were walking along the northern portion of the wall when we heard the loud bang of an artillery cannon.
"Hmm… I wonder what that was about?" Pixis wondered aloud as we approached the cannon that fired the shell. It was pointing inwards towards the corner of the wall. The soldiers that stood next to the cannon began reloading when we stopped behind them. "Now why fire a cannon in that direction?"
The soldiers all turned around and saluted Pixis in unison. "Sir! It was by request of second in command Kitts that we aim it inwards!" The lead gunner said.
"Why would that man ever want to do something like that?" Pixis asked.
"Because of the soldier known as Eren Yeager, sir!" The soldier said, gaining my immediate attention. "It seems that the boy can turn into a titan!"
Pixis and I looked at one another in confusion before looking over at the scene below. Smoke covered the area and one could see something massive underneath. "I suggest we go down there and see what exactly is happening. People tend to do unwarranted things when they are afraid."
"Agreed. Do not fire another shell unless I give the direct order to do so. Naruto." Pixis said, gaining my attention. "Would you be so kind as to accompany me?"
"Of course." I replied as we walked onto a wooden elevator that sat behind the cannon. We took it down to the bottom to the wall and walked into the city. Soldiers lingered about talking to one another as to what was going to happen next. Moving through them was easy as the majority moved out of the way when they saw Pixis.
We arrived behind the line soldiers to hear Armin giving a valiant speech in defense of his friend. The steam that covered the ground had cleared and Kitts was holding his hand up in the air like he was going to fire another shot, but Pixis and I both knew that it would never happen unless he ordered it to be so.
"How about we end this little drama here and now, shall we?" Pixis said as he moved next to Kitts. I stood next to Pixis with an emotionless visage about me. I watched as the half titan crumpled to the ground behind Armin.
'So it's true. Eren can turn into a titan. I had my suspicions before, but now…' I thought as I looked at the young soldier. He looked composed, but scared and lost. 'I bet he didn't even know he could do this before now.'
Armin and Mikasa stared at me in disbelief. "Naruto? How did you…?" Mikasa began to say, but was cut off by Pixis.
"I think I would like to have a little chat with these three. You take care of the reinforcements Kitts."
"But what about the Outsider? Surely he should-." Kitts began to say.
"Take care of the reinforcements Kitts. I'll handle things here." Pixis said once again, but this time there was a dangerous edge to it.
"As you wish commander." Kitts said before walking away.
"Everyone! You are dismissed!" Pixis ordered. The soldiers that had once surrounded Eren, Mikasa, and Armin began to move away from the trio. "Ever since you showed up things just keep getting weirder and weirder today."
I chuckled softly at Pixis's words before following him down to meet the three stunned soldiers.
"Please, if you would follow me." Pixis said before turning and walking away. Eren was helped up by Mikasa, but said Asian girl and Armin looked at me for a second before following Pixis. Sighing deeply I turned and began to follow the others, but out of the corner of my eye I could see three people that I recognized standing atop a nearby building. They, too, were staring at me with what could only be identified as confusion and surprise.
XxXxX
"You disappeared in a puff of smoke." Mikasa said as she jabbed her finger into my chest. Pixis was standing off to the side talking to Armin and Eren about was going on while I was lending a spare ear to the description of Eren's ordeal.
"Did I?" I replied with a blank expression. The veil of my hood covering the top portion of my face. When would I be allowed to show my face in public? This was getting extremely annoying…
"Annie and I both saw you disappear surrounded by dead titans in the basement of the HQ." Mikasa said with a little more assertiveness. "How did you manage to escape the city without 3D maneuver gear, and how did you kill those titans by yourself?"
"Do you really expect me to tell you?" Mikasa looked slightly shocked at my answer, but remained calm. She must have known this was how I was going to answer. "If I wouldn't tell Eren then why would you expect me to tell you my secrets?"
'That's true, but three of those titans bodies were blown apart. Like some sort of explosive had ripped their necks from their bodies.' Mikasa thought as she began to grit her teeth together.
"Naruto. I think we've come up with a plan." Pixis said.
"Okay, lets hear it." I replied as Mikasa and I walked over to the other group.
'Furthermore, Pixis seems to be keeping Naruto close at all times. What kind of VIP is he?' Mikasa asked herself.
"Armin here thinks that, with Eren's titan strength, we could move that boulder there," Pixis said as he pointed towards a massive rock somewhat near the blown open gate, "all the way over to the hole in the wall."
I looked over at Armin, who seemed to shuffle under my gaze, then over at Eren. He still looked confused and lost, but he did have the power to close that gate. Something I did not possess.
"Are you sure you can do this Eren?" I asked. "Can you control your titan powers in order to get the job done?"
The young soldier stayed quiet for a while. Looking down at his knees as he mulled over the thought in his head. Pixis then took a step forward.
"It's not that you can't be sure, but it's something you have to do." Pixis then said. "The Armored Titan could show up at any moment and if we don't close that hole now then we risk losing everything." The elder commander then kneeled down in front of Eren so they were face to face. "So let me repeat Naruto's question. Can you do this?"
With a new sense of devotion and determination, Eren stood and nodded his head. "I'll get that gate closed. No matter what!"
I smirked while Pixis smiled.
"Good, now we just need to calm the troops. Eren, follow me." Pixis said as he walked over to the edge of the wall.
"Yes sir!" Eren said as he followed Pixis.
XxXxX
'Why has only one memory returned since I released the bijuu's chakra?' I thought as I looked out across the top of the city. Currently I was sitting on the edge of the wall with one leg dangling over the side and the other propped onto the corner. Twenty minutes has already passed and the titans had begun entering the city once more, but I was delighted to hear that my efforts had saved many lives.
"Many soldiers were able to retreat with little to no resistance thanks to you. Your efforts saved countless lives, and for that I thank you." Pixis said with a firm handshake.
"So this is going to be where I enter." A voice said from behind me.
"Yeah." I replied as Eren took a seat next to me. "Nervous?"
"I'll get it done." Eren replied as he stared at the giant rock. I didn't reply, and the young soldier seemed to get the 'You aren't telling me the truth' feeling. "Okay, yes I'm nervous. Yes I'm scared. This whole damn operation is riding on the belief that I can activate and control this 'titan power' that they have so nicely dubbed it." Eren then fell back onto the ground, staring up into the sky. "A power that I don't even know I can control. What if something goes wrong? What if I lose control when I turn into a titan like before?"
"…" I continued to listen to the young soldier vent his concerns as I continued to watch over the city.
"Before, it all seemed like a dream. Like I was just angry and wanted to take my rage out on the things that force us to hide behind these walls." Eren said as he reached his hand out towards the sky. "Life would so much easier if I was just a cloud in the sky. Watching the world below from the safety of the clouds."
An image of a black haired man then shot itself into my head. Like a picture suddenly was imprinted to the forefront of my thoughts. He was wearing a green vest and had a cigarette hanging from his lips. His black hair was tied into a pony tail on the back of his head. He was laying on the grass as he stared up into the clouds above. Two words were inscribed on the bottom of the photograph, 'How Troublesome'.
"Well somebody has to be the one in your shoes." I replied.
"What do you mean?"
"If it wasn't you then it would be someone else. Maybe someone who is less capable and holds less conviction." I then laid back along with Eren, my hood falling off my head. "I'm just glad it's you is all I'm saying."
Eren smiled before putting his arm down. "I've got a question."
"Hmm...?"
"Why are you not scared?"
"What would I be afraid of?"
"Being eaten by those things."
I chuckled at his choice of words. "Remember you're one of those things now too."
"Hey! Just because I can turn into a titan doesn't make me one!" Eren exclaimed in mock anger.
"Heh, I suppose you're right, but the reason I'm not scared…" I said as I pushed myself to a sitting position once again. "Is because I've been fighting them for such a long time. I guess I've just grown accustomed to a world full of titans."
"Accustomed? What are you ta-." Eren began to say as my eyes veered to the side to see someone walking up to us.
"That, my friend, is classified information." Pixis said as Eren quickly stood and saluted his commander. Said commander walked up to me and placed my hood over my head and patted me on the shoulder, gaining a confused glance from Eren, but a disgruntled sigh from me. "You'll be able to take it off once this is all over. Bear with it for now."
"Sorry sir! I didn't realize that it was classified!" Eren exclaimed. I sighed and lifted my body up to a standing position as well.
"Got the details hammered out?" I asked. 'I suppose it's only right to keep things under wraps until after the end of this battle. We barely managed to calm down the troops after Eren stirred them up, but Pixis did do a marvelous job in flipping the situation to work in his favor. That man truly is a great commander.'
"We do, and we've got two choices that lay before us." Pixis responded. "Either I send down an elite squad of men, which includes Mikasa, to escort Eren, or we send Naruto."
"Permission to speak sir." Eren said.
"Go ahead."
"Why would Naruto go by himself? Why not send both?"
Pixis grinned as he looked at me. "Naruto is very capable, and has done several acts of heroism that could never be accomplished by even my most elite men. The reason he would go by himself is because his techniques are strictly classified and will remain so until further notice."
'I'm sure that's not the only reason… there's something that he's not telling us.'
"Now, the reason I bring up two choices is on the premise of your comfort."
"My comfort?" Eren asked.
"This whole operation is riding on the fact that you can turn into a titan and move that rock. If having either Mikasa and the team, or Naruto, improves these odds then we should take it. The choice is up to you."
Sighing, Eren took a few steps away from us to mull over his options. Once he was out of earshot, Pixis turned to me. "Are you feeling up to it? After your fight outside the walls you seem…winded. Can you properly escort Eren if he chooses you?"
My body had long since replenished its chakra due to the outpouring of chakra from the seal, but my physical performance was another question. I could still fight, but using Jinton based jutsu was not advisable. While I may have the chakra to cast it many times over, my body can simply not take the pressure of such a high speed jutsu when used multiple times over.
Ever since I began running from the titans my physic has changed to cardio and long distance running. Quick sudden bursts of speed at that level would require me to retrain my body and obtain the resistance necessary to use it more than just a single time before feeling the repercussions. 'If I'm going to be fighting the titans more often than it looks like I'm going to have to train my body for combat after hundreds of years of running.'
"I'll be able to cover him. Don't worry." I replied. Eren then walked up to us with his eyes set on me.
"I'd like Naruto to escort me."
"Oh really? I thought for sure you'd like your childhood friend to be there with you." Pixis said.
"I agree. Are you sure you wouldn't want Mikasa there with you?" I pressed. I had only met him a few days before, why would he choose me over someone he has known his entire life?
"No, I would rather have Naruto escort me." Eren said with a curt attitude. Did something happen between the two?
"If that is your decision then I will respect it. You two are to deploy when we give the signal on the north western part of the wall." Pixis said.
"What's the signal?" Eren asked.
"A green flare will be fired, so be prepared." Pixis said before turning to me. "Naruto, may I have a word?" Nodding my head, I followed Pixis a few feet away. With our backs to the young soldier he handed me a flare gun with four different colored flares. "Take this and use it when the time comes. Fire the green one if the operation is a success. Fire the red one if you are aborting early. Fire the yellow one if there has been a delay, but the operation is still going to be continued. And finally, fire the purple one if everything has gone terribly wrong and aborting is impossible." But when Pixis handed me the purple flare he looked extremely grim. "I know that these titans will have a hard time killing you, but the purple flare should be used primarily if something goes wrong with him and you aren't able to recover Eren from the battlefield. We still don't know anything about his titan power and how it works, so be careful. Losing either of you would be detrimental to humanities ability to combat the titans."
"Understood. We'll get it done." I said as I took the flare gun and its holster and wrapped it around my waist. "Look, I know that I've been very mysterious about my powers and everything…"
Pixis raised his hand up to stop me. "Look, I don't need any explanations at this point. We've got enough to worry about. Just close that hole and then you can tell me over a cold beer. Maybe that will help me understand this crazy day."
"Heh, we'll see." I responded, but then took the gray backpack off of my back and handed it to him. "Watch over this for me while I'm down there, and please, don't let anyone open it." Pixis took the backpack and slung it over his shoulder.
"Will do. Nobody will touch this other than me. You have my promise as a man." Pixis said before turning and walking away. "Watch for the green flare! See you on the other side!" Pixis said over his shoulder.
Walking back over to Eren I could see him staring out at the crowd of soldiers that had formed on the opposite end of the city. "So now we wait?"
"Yeah. I say we got about another half hour before that flare gets fired." I said, looking at the young soldier next to me. "So what's the real reason you chose me over the elite squad?"
Eren rubbed the back of his head as he looked up at me sheepishly. "To be honest, one reason is because I wanted to see you in action." But then his expression turned serious. "And I wanted to prove that I didn't need to be babysat by her."
"By 'her' you mean Mikasa?" I asked.
"Yeah, she constantly feels that she needs to watch over me like I'm some sort of child."
"Can you blame her? You were killed during the early phases of the battle."
"But this has been going on long before we joined the military. I'm like some lost puppy that needs protection at all times!"
"She does hold a very protective attitude towards you."
"You see what I mean then?!"
"Of course, it wouldn't hurt her to tone down her protective nature, but you must also realize that it's her way of conveying her feelings."
"What do you mean?"
"Based on the way she talks and treats people that aren't close to her, Mikasa must have lost someone very close to her when she was younger. Protecting those close to her, by any means that she sees fit, must be her way of expressing how much she cares about you."
Eren remained quiet after those words left my mouth. Did he never truly think of why Mikasa was the way she was? But then again, I'm pretty sure almost everyone his age doesn't think everything through before taking action. Out of the corner of my eye I saw a trail of green smoke fly up into the air.
"That was much faster than I thought." I commented before turning to Eren. "Ready?"
Taking a deep breath, Eren nodded his head. "Ready."
"Then follow my lead." I said before jumping off the edge of the wall and into Trost.
XxXxX
Pixis walked across the top of the wall, a gray backpack on his back, when a green flare sprung up from the clump of soldiers on the far side of the wall. 'They finished earlier than expected.' Men could be seen dangling from the side of the wall as titans desperately tried to snatch them. Half way to the large group of soldiers was the elite team that would have been deployed if Eren so deemed it.
As he approached them Mikasa was the first to approach and salute. "When will we be deployed sir?"
"You, as well as everyone else, are to return to the main battle group until further notice." Pixis said, earning salutes from his three most experienced soldiers, but a frown from Mikasa.
"Is the operation on hold?"
"No. An alternative course of action has been taken. Now return to the main battle group."
The other soldiers followed behind Pixis, but Mikasa looked confused at her commanders' words.
'Alternative? What alternative is he talking about?' Mikasa thought as she looked in the direction where they should have been deploying. The distance was great, so she was unable to see if Eren was still there or not, but Mikasa could feel that something was off.
Catching up to the group just as they made it to Armin and several other soldiers, Mikasa stepped in front of Pixis and saluted him. "Sir, if I may ask, what is this alternative plan?" Armin looked at Mikasa with confusion before turning to Pixis.
"Alternative plan? What alternative plan?"
The elder commander furrowed his brow at the bold action of the female soldier. 'I knew she's protective of Eren, if the situation earlier with Kitts was any indication, but this is truly something else.'
"That information is classified to the Commander and Private Yeager. You are overstepping you boundaries Trainee. Stand down." Rico said with authority, not especially liking the way Mikasa was blatantly disregarding their superior's orders. Even if she was slightly frustrated at not knowing what was going on.
But Mikasa stood her ground. Still holding her salute, she pressed her question. "Sir! I must insist, what is this alternative course of action?"
"I said to stand down-!" Rico began to shout, but Pixis placed a hand on her shoulder.
"Now, now, no need to shout." Pixis said calmly, making Rico straighten her glasses and nod. "You must be extremely protective of that young man. To go so far as to defy the orders of a superior and ask for classified information." Now face to face, the elder commander frowned at the revelation of her loyalty. "This alternative plan has a much higher probability of succeeding than our original plan. So, if you wish for the safety of your friend then I suggest you fall in line because if you go to him now then you're only going to hurt his chances of survival. Do I make myself clear?"
After a moment of pause, Mikasa began to grind her teeth together and frustration. "Sir, yes sir!"
"Good, now return to the main battle group. The only thing we can do now is wait."
XxXxX
"I can't believe you can run down walls!" Eren shouted in excitement as I ran across a line of roofs. "How in the world can someone do that?"
I remained quiet, letting his mind wonder on the marvels of what he has seen. 'He's not like Pixis who saw my abilities and very quickly began to see if they could be applied to the battle, but it must be noted that Eren doesn't hold the wisdom that comes with old age as well.' "Stray titan at our eleven."
Eren looked over and saw the stray titan. Grinning, he began to pull out his swords. "I can take care of-."
"Leave it. We've got a mission to complete."
"But-."
"Killing a single titan won't have an impact on the outcome of this battle. Keep moving." Frowning, Eren followed me until we stopped on top of the building overlooking the massive boulder. "Okay, do your thing."
Breathing in deeply, Eren brought his thumb up to his mouth before jumping off the side of the building. In a burst of steam, the titan killing machine from before exploded onto the street.
'So this what happens when he turns into a titan.' I thought as he stood up, his head level with my body and back facing me. 'From my clone's memories, he was driven completely off of rage. Let's hope he can learn to control this new power in such a short amount of time.'
Eren turned to me and stood stock still. Staring at me as if he had been caught doing something he wasn't supposed to. "Eren?" As if on que, the young soldier let out of a loud roar, making me take a step away from him. Before I knew it Eren sent a punch towards where I stood, but the only thing his fist caught was the top of the building. Landing a short distance away, I corrected myself and looked at where the heated titan as he pulled his arm out of the building. "As expected. You can't think properly while in that state, and you let your emotions control your thoughts. Losing all logical reasoning."
As quickly as he could, Eren swiped his arm across the top of the roof, destroying everything in his path. "Fūton: Kuikkusuraisu." With a quick swipe of my arm, a single blade of wind burst out from in front of me. The blade connected with Eren's arm, slicing straight through the appendage at the elbow and sending the lifeless limb flying past me. Screaming in a mix of agony and annoyance, the raging titan took a step back towards the boulder.
"You know Eren, I had faith in you. Faith that you could control this power. It seems my faith was misplaced." Only a roar was given to me in response. The shout shook the ground and vibrated the windows in the building around us until they cracked. Fire began to wrap itself around my hand until it was glowing brightly. "It seems my words aren't getting to you..." Shooting forward, I jumped towards the hulking beast that was Eren, but he saw it coming and moved to swipe me out of the way with his arm that had not been cut off. The back of his hand connected, but almost immediately my clone popped away in a puff of smoke.
"Time to wake up and remember what you're fighting for. Kanton: Moeru Tenohira!"
Now on the back of Eren, I shoved my blazing hand into the back of his neck.
XxXxX
"It seems that there has been a problem with the mission." Pixis said as he watched a yellow flare fly up into the air. "Hopefully it's nothing more than a temporary delay." The elder commander watched as some of the titans near the wall turned and began making their way in the direction of the yellow flare. 'I can only hope Naruto doesn't destroy most of the city before the mission's end.'
"Did you hear that roar? Something's going on over there and it's not good!" Armin stated in worry.
"Do you think it would be wise to send reinforcements?" Rico asked.
"You would only jeopardize the mission if a team were sent in to assist. No, we shall wait and see if anything else comes up." Pixis said as he crossed his arms, content with continuing to watch as the yellow line of smoke in the air blew away.
Rico's eyes narrowed slightly at this and turned to the city as well. 'Whatever Pixis came up with must be better than the plan that was hatched earlier. To risk possibly our only way of retaking Trost… how much faith has he put into that cloaked figure? I felt his power, whatever that was, but is he trustworthy?'
XxXxX
"Useless… Useless… Useless…"Eren sat in an empty room, surrounded by his father, mother, and Mikasa as he repeated these words over and over again to himself. "I obtain the power to make a difference and I can't even control it! Why is it so hard to control?!"
"You were never meant to be a soldier honey." Eren's mother said as she patted him on the back with a large smile. "This life just isn't for you."
"Why not just join the Military Police where it's safe?" Mikasa chimed in while his father remained silent. "Only the best are given the option to join them."
"But how would I make a difference against the titans if I'm a part of the Military Police? They are the furthest away from the fight!" Eren asked the people that surrounded him.
"Because you're not a soldier. You were meant for great things, but a soldier was not one of them." His mother said.
"Maybe you're right… maybe I'm going about this all wrong." Eren said as he fell to his knees.
"So that's it? You're just going to give up?" A new voice suddenly said from the corners of the room.
"Naruto?" The wall in front of Eren sudden exploded in a burst of flames, sending debris and embers flying past the rooms' four occupants. A bright light was shining behind him, making him just a silhouette to everyone looking at him. "What are you doing here?"
"We've got a mission to complete and you sitting in this room isn't helping to accomplish it." Naruto said as he walked fully into the room. "You were so full of fire before. Was it all just an act? Did you ever truly believe you could complete it?"
"I-."
"Because if not then then you just gave everyone out there false hope. Every soldier up on that wall believed that you were their saving grace. Even Armin and Mikasa." Naruto said. "Tell me, Yeager, did you lie to us when you said you could do this?"
"N-No! I didn't lie! I can do this! Everyone has put their trust in me! I won't back down now!" Eren said as he stood up. Naruto grinned slightly before stepping to the side, indicating Eren to step through hole that was made in the wall. "I won't… no, I can't fail now."
XxXxX
I sat on the edge of the building across from the massive boulder that Eren was now sitting against. Watching as the titan seemed to be having an internal struggle over something with a charred hole in the back of his neck, which had slowly healed. 'I wonder if my little talk got to him?' Memories suddenly filled my head as one of my clones burst away from being destroyed by a titan. 'Best hurry up or we may be swarmed. Pixis can't stall them forever.' Several more of my clones popped away after being destroyed by the approaching titans.
Almost immediately Eren's eyes shot open with a glow of green beaming at its brims. A loud roar escaped his mouth, vibrating the roof beneath me, but I continued to watch Eren carefully. Slowly standing, Eren stared at me for a moment before turning and grabbing a hold of the massive rock. With all his might, the titan shifter picked up the boulder until it was above his head. His green glowing eyes seemed to glance at me for a moment before looking forward once again.
"Looks like you finally found your wits. Fine, let's get moving."
And with that we were off, albeit slowly. I wasn't even running. Just walking next to him on the roofs that lined the street he happened to be walking down. A titan walked out in front of us, but I quickly moved to counter the new threat. "Rasengan." The red ball in my hand was quickly formed as I began my sprint towards the titan. Said titan attempted to grab me, outstretching its hand in a way that I have found all too familiar. Using the hook in the opposite hand, I spun my body, making the weapon spin until it hit its arm on its side. Quickly jumping off the roof of the building, I flew between the legs of the titan by using the embedded hook as a pivot. Now behind the titan I used my other hook to pull me closer before slamming the ball of chakra into the back of its neck.
The explosion sent me flying down the street, but I landed on my feet. The dead titan fell to the side and into a building with its head and neck missing from its body. Eren trudged through the smoke made from the blast and stood in front of me. If he was surprised by what just happened then he didn't show it. The boulder was extremely heavy and it looked like it was taking a lot of concentration just to keep it on his shoulders. I saw another titan falling to the ground behind Eren with a clone standing on top of the building next to it. 'Not too many of them from what I can tell, if we keep moving at this pace we should be there in a couple of minutes.'
Pushing forward, I jumped onto the corner of the building that extended out into the plaza. 'Twelve titans? A reasonable number, but in order to get that rock to the gate all of them must be killed quickly.' I sighed as I looked over my shoulder at Eren, who moved forward at a steady pace. 'My few remaining clones should be able to stop any titan from approaching him from the rear for the time being, or at least distract them long enough to complete the mission. Which leaves me with ones in front of me.' My muscles still ache from the earlier jutsu, but using a more destructive jutsu would cause collateral damage to Trost.
Sighing, I began to form seals in my hand until lightning and wind swirled around me. Mixing together until my body looked to be twitching ever so slightly. "Jinton: Borutosāji."
Time began to slow down as I jumped from the building and into the courtyard. Every step felt like I had run a mile, but everything around me looked to be moving at a snail's pace. My lungs quickly began to burn as I approached the first titan, but the lightning around me made it easy for me to dispose of it. I swept past the titan, wind slicing around the neck along with lightning arcing over the same areas. As soon as the elemental chakra left my body it slowed down to the same speed as everything else. By the time I reached the seventh titan my breathing was becoming rasp and sweat was slowly falling down my face.
With one last deep breath, I pushed forward. Quickly passing the remaining five titans before coming to a sliding halt in front of the broken gate, I looked over my shoulder as the jutsu began to wear away. I watched as the wind and lightning began to slowly speed up faster than the world around the titans. Finally connecting with their targets, the blades of wind and the bolts of lightning shot straight through their bodies, from various angles, killing all twelve of them instantly.
At the mouth of plaza stood Eren, watching as the titans fell to the ground in a quick fashion. 'While not as fast, or as powerful, as the Akuma no Iki, this should be enough to get the job done.' When the titans were killed, Eren began his march towards the hole in the wall. Eager to remove the heavy burden that was bearing down on his body.
A pain suddenly shot through my body. Coursing through every muscle like a searing hot pole had replaced my all of my bones in my arms, legs, and chest. It would seem that the bijuu's chakra was having a hard time keeping up with my body as healing was slow and tedious. Looking forward I saw three more titans walking into the tunnel on the other side of the wall.
'One… final… push…' Moving through the hand signs, I stopped on the Tora sign before breathing in deeply. "Katon: Gōkakyū no Jutsu." A massive fire ball engulfed the tunnel, setting everything inside ablaze from the superheated flames that escaped my mouth.
A man stood at the edge of a forest and a vast plains. The man had black hair and red eyes with a slashed forehead protector. A black cloak with red clouds hid his body from the world, but just by looking at him one could feel the power rolling off of in droves.
Mist covered the area as another man, silver haired with a single red eye, threw three kunai at the cloaked man. Said man easily dodged the weapons while forming seals in front of him.
"Katon: Gōkakyū no Jutsu!" The silver haired man was quickly engulfed in the fireball before exploding in a massive eruption that shook the area and cleared the air of the lingering mist.
Feeling the rumble of Eren's steps behind me, I relinquished the fire escaping my lips and jumped backwards between his legs just as the boulder landed onto the ground where I once stood. Sealing the gateway and stopping the flow of titans into Trost.
My eyesight was beginning to become hazy and my movements strained, but there was one last thing that needed to be done. Pulling out the flare gun, I loaded the green canister into the weapon and fired it up into the air. The seven odd clones that were fighting on our rear popped away to remove what little strain that could be alleviated. I smiled as one particular memory flooded into my head along with the rest, but I moved it to the back of my mind for the time being.
A loud THUMP could be heard as Eren, still in titan form, fell forwards onto the boulder. Sighing, I began crawling up the back of the titan until coming to its neck. Reeling in my hook until it was in my hand, the digging process began until I saw his back. A black mark could be seen on the back of his shirt from where my fire jutsu had hit him. "Come on hero. Let's get you out of there." Pulling him out of the body proved to be harder than it looked, but slowly I began making headway.
Now fully removed from the titan, I sat Eren down on the crook of his titans' neck, propping him up so I could sit myself. I looked out over the courtyard, and saw the decaying bodies of the titans steaming up into the air. More titans were making their way towards us, but my body refused to move another inch. Several hundred years without the proper conditioning and maintenance will do that as the needed training is required to use Jinton based jutsu more frequently in a shorter period of time.
The steam beneath us from Eren's decaying titan body was beginning to heat our backs and obscure my vision. Throwing Eren's arm over my shoulder, I jumped down from to the ground and found two titans entering the plaza.
Grinding my teeth together, I lifted my free hand that wasn't holding Eren up in front of me to form a hand seal, but almost immediately I lost all feeling to my arm. 'I suppose I couldn't expect anything more. The bijuu's chakra is trying its best to heal my body, but I'm pretty sure I've ripped and tore more than a few of my muscles. I'm surprised that I'm still standing…'
The titans grew closer with every passing second, but just as they were upon us two shadows swiped past them. A second passed before the two titans fell to the ground with chunks removed from their necks.
"You two actually did it!" A voice exclaimed from behind us. I turned and looked up to see two soldiers hanging from the wall. Mikasa and a silver haired women. "You retook Trost!"
'I suppose we did.' I thought as the feeling in one of my legs gave away. Eren and I fell to the ground as a crumpled mess. "Mikasa, please take Eren."
She didn't need to be told twice as she quickly made to his side and picked him up. The silver haired women then jumped down and threw my arm over her shoulder. "What's wrong?"
"I've lost all feeling in my left arm and right leg." I said as she shot her cables into the wall above. "I'm afraid that I won't be of much help for a little while."
The silver haired women chuckled softly before slowly walking up the side of the wall and away from the titans that had just entered the plaza. "You've done more than enough for not being a soldier. Once we make it to the top of the wall, take a well-deserved rest and let us handle the rest."
Smiling, I nodded weakly before looking up into the blue sky above. 'Life would be so much easier if we were just clouds in sky.'
XxXxX
1: So I did some research and realized that there are two different nature jutsu that share the same Rōmaji Jinton. There is the Particle Release, which is used by Tsuchikage, and the Swift Release, which is used by Hiruko. If it's not already obvious, I'm using the Swift Release here in this story, but as to how Naruto came about such a power… well, you'll have to wait and see because there are some abilities that Naruto has yet to reveal. ;)
On a side note, Happy New Year everyone! I hope everyone had a fantastic holiday!