Lost One

by Hyperguy

I've walked this world for ages. Watching as history played itself out in front of my eyes. Sometimes, I would play role in its direction, but often I'd stay on the sidelines. Now, a more serious threat threatens to wipe out all of humanity, and I must now play a role in its survival... if there are any humans left to save.

7. Terrore Praeterita

XxXxX-(Intense scene follows)

"Get on your knees!"

I stared back at the man, anger seeping out of every single one of my pores. This man, if anyone could even call him that anymore, held all the cards and there was nothing I could do.

"I said on your knees or they die!" Balling my hands into fists, I dropped to the ground below. "Good… Just what I want to see from the Hokage-to-be." The man said with a sinister smile as I looked at three heavily sedated people laying down on separate operating tables behind the white cloaked man. Blue glowing wires extended out from his fingers to the darkness above, easily spelling doom if I made any wrong move. The figures before me were not real, well… not real as in they weren't here. This was simply a projection from a different place. He would never show his true face…

"Why…?" I asked softly. I knew the man hated me, at least I thought he did, but for what? It was something that I've been trying to learn for some time, but found nothing.

"So you want to know why, for the past two months, that I've made your life a living hell? Why I would go through the careful planning of kidnapping the wife and children of the hero of the shinobi world? Well… the answer is actually quite simple really." The man said as he twitched his ring finger. A blade slowly appeared from the darkness above towards the table on the right, but stopped just as it entered the light. "Because it's art! It's a show that will be remembered by me… and you." His smile broadened as he twitched his middle and pointer finger. Two more blades appeared above the other two occupants.

"You're mad." I responded, only for the man to laugh manically.

"Mad? All artist are mad! Haven't you learned that by now?! But it's a shame, with those beasts being sealed away you can't turn into that demon. It would have made an interesting change to the overall painting." The man responded as he walked to the center table. He caressed his hand over the woman's cheek and chuckled. "Such a wonderful family. You should be very proud of them, but…" The blade above violently shot downwards, piercing her chest and the table below. Blood burst forth, spraying the man and table alike.

"No!" I shot to my feet, but the other two blades moved even closer to the two children on the other two tables.

"Such a beautiful face she made when I told her of my art as well. She tried her best to protect your children from what was to come…" The man sighed affectionately as he recalled what the woman had tried to do. "It only painted an even greater masterpiece! You three must have been very close." The man looked over to me, only to see tears falling from my stunned eyes. He smiled at the scene. "Drama! Emotions! Sadness! It brings tears to my eyes to see such a magnificent performance!" The man exclaimed as he moved around the table. "This is beauty at its finest!"

"…" I could only stare at the body in complete shock. Just like that she was dead. Gone from this world in the blink of an eye, and there was nothing I could have done about it. My wife was…

"And now what of the girl? Barely a few years old and an important part of the painting as well." He grinned once he reached the table on the left. A small child lay on the table, sleeping away all her cares in the world.

"You wouldn't dare…"

"Ah, but I would! Children play important roles in my art that couldn't otherwise be filled! Please, let me demonstrate." The man said as he took a step back, only for the blade to shoot down. I fell to my knees as the blood ran down the silver table, much like the one in the center. "Do you see? It adds an aspect that would normally never be seen, but it's a shame…" The man walked over to the body of the young girl with a slight frown. "A shame that blood doesn't come in more colors. Oh well, an artist must make do with the materials at hand!"

I could only watch in despair as he moved over to his final victim, a young boy with blonde hair much like my own. "Out of either of the children, this one resembles you the most. Ah, the things he said when he learned of the situation they were in. 'My dad will come here and save us! Just you wait and see! He's the hero of the shinobi world!' Such faith that his father would come… only for him to slowly lose that blind faith when two months passed and still no word from his beloved father came."

"I'm going to kill you."

"Of course you are! It is the nature of man to want to kill one another, but didn't you fight to break that cycle of hate? Who would you be if you went against everything you stood for? But, if I were to be the one to break the 'hero' himself, then it would only paint an even greater masterpiece! Yes… let us see if we can make an even more magnificent painting together." The man said with a sinister smile as the final blade plunged into the boy.

"NO!"

XxXxX-(Scene end)

I shot up from the bed, sweat beading across my body as the memories from the dream flashed to the forefront of my mind. Breathing heavily, my eyes quickly danced across the dark room, looking for any abnormalities that may have occurred during my restless slumber. Nothing seemed out of place, so my mind began to settle as my head hit the pillow behind me. 'That dream… it felt so real…' Shaking my head, I stood from the bed and moved to the small wooden table that sat in the corner of the room.

Looking over to the second double bed in the dark room, I could see Annie's chest rise and fall, sleeping soundly to the rhythm of her own heartbeat. Why did I save her from the clutches of the military? Yes, it was part of the mission to gain cooperation with the Grays, but that didn't mean saving her was the best option. I could have just as easily killed her instead and thus freeing me from having to look over my shoulder, but something stopped me from doing so.

"Bad dream?" A voice said from across the table. My eyes looked over to the dark figure that has continually plagued my sanity. I knew that nobody could see her, and knowing that she was just a figment of my imagination has helped me keep whatever sanity I had left. Even still…

"You could say that…" I responded to the white and crimson eyed shade. The dark figure sat down in one of the open chairs across from me, sighing as she did so.

"What was it about?"

"I don't know. It's just a dream anyway."

"True…" The shade leaned back into the chair, her two eyes staying focused on me. "But it doesn't sound like 'just a dream'. It really shook you, Naruto-kun."

Memories from my past were beginning to come back to me, albeit slowly, but returning nonetheless. Was this dream one of the many memories that happened in the past? I looked to the shade across the table with a mixture of confusion and sadness. "I saw the death of three people. People that I once called family… I think. It hurts to try and remember their names, or anything about them for that matter."

"That's great news! Maybe one day you'll remember everything from your past!"

"Maybe. Normally these memories don't hurt as much. Why do these memories bring so much pain?"

"Well… you were the jinchuuriki of the Kyuubi. So it would only make sense that the memories that are returning are going to hit close to home." The shade deducted. I've been keeping in contact with the little fox from time to time. He's been bored, but it looked as if he was working on something so lately I've decided to leave the fox to his own devices.

"Naruto…?" I looked over to the side, only to see Annie slowly waking up. "Were you talking to somebody?" My eyes glanced back over to where the shade once sat, only for the seat to be empty.

"Just thinking out loud. Sleep well?" I replied as Annie sat up in her bed and looked to the window. The morning sky was a dark gray, but the sun still rested under the horizon. Annie didn't respond as she plopped her head back onto her pillow. The sound of distant thunder could be heard, meaning rain was soon to come along with it.

Once Annie agreed to come along with me, we quickly moved down to the farming village that we saw atop the tree we were perched on the night before and rented a room in the local tavern. The room and food was cheap, which was a good thing since the only money I had left was from what was given to me earlier by the Pious family. It should last us until we made it to the Gray's base, but if push came to shove then I'd find us some money.

Chuckling at the laziness that she showed, I stood up and moved towards the door while placing my cloak over my body with the hood down. After doing this I placed my gray backpack onto my back. "Tired?"

"Yesterday was a long day. I wasn't expecting to be attacked by the entire Survey Corps while inside the city." Annie said as she rolled over to face me. Her jacket and boots were off, but otherwise everything else remained on. "Going somewhere?"

"Thought I'd go take a look around the village before we leave. Want to come along?"

"Hmm…" Annie rolled back over and looked to the ceiling in thought. "Sure." After placing the missing articles of clothing onto her body, Annie followed me out into the main commune room. It was empty, save for an elderly woman sweeping the uneven wooden floor.

"Thank you for the room." I said as Annie and I walked by.

"My pleasure dearie. You and your sister can come back any time." We looked at one another for a moment before nodding our heads in unison.

"We will. Take care." I replied as we exited the building and onto the single dirt road that ran through the center of town. It was still slightly dark out, with such ominous dark clouds hanging overhead, but we had enough light to manage our way around. "First thing we need to do is either find you a backpack of some sort, or a large enough cloak to cover everything to your knees." Annie looked to me in confusion, making me sigh. "Wearing your 3D maneuver gear everywhere is going to raise a lot of eyebrows. We need to be able to hide your weapons if we want to stay unnoticed by the military."

"Oh…"

"So, which would you prefer? A jacket and a backpack, or a cloak large enough to hide your weapons?" The blonde girl put some thought into it as we slowly made our way down the dirt street. As she thought I saw a larger woman standing outside of what looked to be a clothing shop. She had curly brown hair and wired glasses.

"You there! The girl with the blonde hair!" The woman shouted as she quickly made her way towards us. "I see you're part of the military. You wouldn't happen to need some accessories to go along with your uniform, would you?" I internally chuckled at the woman's drive to sell her products. Soldiers would often move through farming villages and towns to transport cargo or personnel from place to place. As they moved through these towns villagers would attempt to sell them merchandise to make some extra money. It's a well-known fact that putting anything extra onto your uniform is strictly prohibited unless ordered by a superior officer, and if a soldier was caught with something extra then they were required to take it off, but this situation is much different.

"We have everything you can think of, and made with some of the best materials in the entire kingdom! Would you like to take a look?" The woman pressed.

"I, uh…" Annie took a nervous step backwards from the energetic woman. She must not like being around people that were so pushy and loud, but this could be a good opportunity for us.

"She would love to take a look at your wares." I said as I slipped some money into her pocket. Annie looked to me as if I were crazy, but I only nudged her shoulder towards the larger woman. "We have a long trip ahead of us and if this fine lady is willing to give you the best deals in the area then maybe we can make a deal."

"A fine idea! Come along dearie. Let me show you everything we have in stock!" The woman exclaimed in glee as she pulled Annie into her shop, all along Annie giving me a look that promised payback. Chuckling at her expense, I looked up into the darkened sky above. As if on que, rain began to fall. Distant thunder rumbled as I placed my hood over my head just as the rain began to get heavy. The rain never bothered me much. If anything it helped me clear my head of everything that was going on around me. Including the pain from my past…

Looking around, I saw a small cemetery across the street from the shop. A small black fence surrounded the graves and a black gate barely hung on to the hinges that held it up. Moving towards the gate, I counted about seven graves, all military, laying within the confines of the fence. The cemetery was mismanaged, with tall grass and weeds coming up to my knees. Puddles of water pooled themselves here and there as I read each of the tombstones, but it was the last grave, in the corner of the cemetery that made me stop. Laying on top of the grass in front of the tombstone was an old dog with golden fur. She had her head propped on top of her front paws with her eyes closed, as if to simply bask in the presence of the one that laid beneath her. The rain fell down, turning her once golden fur into a dark orange. I knew what had happened, but it didn't make it any easier in my eyes. Walking over until I was standing next to the dog, I read off the name of the soldier that was buried beneath. Survey Corps…

Lifting my arm above the dog so that part of my cloak was above her body, the golden glanced up to me for a moment before resting her head back down onto her wet forearms. I didn't move, and nothing needed to be translated between us. She had lost someone dear to her, and if shielding her from the rain helped ease her conscious, if just a small insurmountable bit, then it would be worth it.

We stayed like this for a while, my arm simply acting as a temporary shelter for the poor animal. It must have been fifteen minutes later when I noticed that she was no longer breathing, but I remained like this still. Shielding the once beautiful dog from the harshness of the weather.

"You know, not all humans wanted to fight." I said to the new visitor to the cemetery. "Some of us just want to go home to our friends and family. To the place where we could feel safe and secure."

"…" Annie stared at the scene in front of her with that emotionless face, but I could feel the sadness underneath. A vortex of emotions swirled inside her in a way that she has never felt before.

She was wearing a dark green cloak that went down to her ankles with a hood that covered her head from the rain. The cloak was large enough to cover her 3D maneuver gear as well. Without another word Annie left the cemetery, but I remained by the deceased dogs side. It wasn't right to leave her like this, so I began forming hand seals.

"Katon: Kakō Totsuzen." The dog beneath me burst into flames before quickly burning away, bones and all. The ashes slowly sunk into the mud below, just how I imagined the old girl would have wanted. "Go, protect your friend in the afterlife just as you did in this one." With that I turned and left the cemetery.

XxXxX

"This doesn't make any sense…" Irvin said as he looked to each of the people in the room. A rectangle table sat at the center of the room, with a few of chairs being occupied by people. Levi was looking out the window behind Irvin while everyone looked lost. The others that were in the room with the two was Armin, Hange, and Petra. "The Angel of Death attacked you and captured Annie? I thought he was staying with the Pious family right now?" He looked over to Petra, who was standing by the door, but her hair was covering her face. She looked… dead? Angry? Sad? A mixture of all three? His question was directed to her, but it was clear to everyone in the room that she was having an internal conflict with herself right now.

"Yes, Erik was supposed to be overseeing his protection when Darius sent Petra back to us. So either he let him go freely, or Naruto escaped, which wouldn't be too hard if everyone thought you couldn't move properly." Hange said as she leaned back into her chair. "Setting aside the fact that he's actually walking again, and the fact that he can breathe fire, why would he attack us? I thought we were on the same side?"

"I thought so too, but I guess we were wrong." Irvin said as he sat down in his chair at the head of the table. "How are Eren and Mikasa doing, Armin?"

"They're fine. Just need some rest after what happened." Armin said as he returned to his thoughts.

"It doesn't make any sense…" The four people in the room looked over to the where Petra was standing. "All that time I spent with him… was it all a lie? Did he fake the entire thing?" Everyone stared at her in silence. She was the one that had spent the most time with the mysterious man, and when she returned she looked both sad that she had to leave him and happy with the time they had spent together. "He may have been quiet and distant, but… he was so nice on the inside. It was like he actually cared for those around him."

"I don't think that it was a lie, Petra." Armin said, his gaze fixated on the table in front of him. The woman looked over at Armin, along with everyone else in the room.

"What do you mean?" Irvin asked.

"Everything he's done up until this point has only helped humanity, right?" Armin said, making his commander nod. "Why would he suddenly just change his ways and support the enemy? There has to be a deeper meaning to his actions."

"Any ideas?" Irvin asked.

"..." Armin continued looking at the table as he racked his brain for any ideas. The boy wanted so desperately to believe that Naruto was not an enemy, but what if he was? The commander sighed as he stroked his hand through his hair. Why was being the man in charge so difficult sometimes?

"Did the committee have anything to say?" Hange asked after another extended period of silence. The only noise coming from the soft patter of rain against the window and the rumble of distant thunder.

"Plenty." Irvin answered. "But at least we showed them the threat that these titan shifters posed. In the end that was one of the main purposes of our operation."

"What are we going to do now?" Levi asked, his eyes still staring out the window. "The men are all preparing to move towards the supposed breach in the southern wall. Can we really afford to send men to give chase to Naruto and the female titan?"

"If we're going to go after them…" Everyone looked to Petra as she spoke. "Then I better be on the team that goes."

"As much as I would love to send a team after them, if the breach in the southern wall is true then we have a larger problem on our hands." Irvin said.

"With all due respect sir." Petra said, making the man look at her in question. Petra has never gone against direct orders, especially from Irvin. "If we let them wander about inside the walls then they could cause even more problems down the line. Dealing with them now, before they can regroup, is the best option at the moment sir."

"Do you have a plan then?" Irvin asked.

"Let me lead a small team, maybe just three or four of us, to track them down." Petra said.

"And do you believe that you can take them? This is the Angel of Death and Female Titan we're talking about here." Hange questioned.

"Of course not, but if we can find them then we should be able to keep them under surveillance long enough until reinforcements can arrive." Petra explained.

"But what if reinforcements never come?" Levi asked. Petra looked at her commanding officer in question. "If the southern wall is truly breached like we believe it to be then everyone, including you, will be needed on the frontlines. You're one of the most experienced soldiers we have, and that experience will be needed on the battlefield. Not chasing a man that may or may not pose a threat later down the line."

"Unfortunately I'm going to have to agree with Levi. All our resources are going to have to be funneled towards the possible breach." Irvin said before shaking his head as something else came to mind. "What a horrible time for this happen. The Garrison just started a massive operation against a Gray stronghold as well. They're going to be split between dealing with this new titan threat while also fighting the Gray's inside the walls." Petra was shaking when her plan was shut down by her superiors. Without another word she left the room. Armin watched as she left with clenched teeth. He wanted to say something to calm his fellow soldier, but he needed to be sure before trying to make an excuse for what Naruto did.

"Think she'll be okay? She became fairly close to Naruto during her stay with the guy." Hange said.

"Petra will be fine. She's a soldier and one my best. She'll follow orders, no matter how much she hates them." Levi stated.

"I'll trust your insight then, Levi. For now we have other matters to attend to." Irvin stated.

XxXxX

"So that's what you can do while in titan form." I commented as I stared up at the blonde titan. The rain continued to fall heavily down upon us, but we were covered by a thick layer of tree limbs. We had entered a swamp, and just off the beaten path there was a small clearing in which was deemed safe enough to rest. We had silently traveled towards the Southeast part of the kingdom, towards a town named Essen. There I would meet my contact and move onto the area where the information was being safeguarded. Before moving on, however, I wanted to see what Annie could do. To see the extent of her power so I could correctly gauge how she would be in battle.

To put it plainly, I was impressed.

While in titan form Annie's speed could nearly match my own. This was due to the increase in muscle mass while in her titan form. Her defense was also incredible because of her ability to harden any part of her body at will, but a nimble and knowledgeable fighter could slip past her defenses.

Annie released her titan form and fell to the wet ground below. The carcass of the titan fell backwards into the swamp and subsequently steamed up into the air. "This is all I know how to do."

"But you have amazing control, which is a stark improvement when compared to Eren." Annie looked down towards ground when he heard his name.

"I lost against him though."

"You lost against him, and the entire Survey Corps. A group of humans that have more experience fighting titans than nearly any other group." I stated as I placed a hand onto her shoulder. She looked up to me with appreciation in her eyes. "You did well for what was placed in front of you."

"Thanks." Annie responded as I removed my hand and walked to the edge of the water.

"Now, it's only fair that I reveal some of my secrets to you." Annie watched as I walked out onto the water without falling in.

"Uh…"

"Call it magic if you want, but for now you should know that I can walk on water, run up objects, and jump very high." I stated before turning towards the shocked girl. "But the real thing I wanted to show you was this." Running through some hand signs, I ended with a tiger seal and breathed in deeply. "Katon: Gōkakyū no Jutsu!" A massive fireball appeared in front of me before shooting off into the swamp beyond. Turning towards my companion, Annie looked shocked.

"H-How? I know I saw you use some lightning thing before, but to create fire from nothing…" Annie said with wide eyes. "Is it really magic?"

Shrugging my shoulders, I walked back over to the murky ground so I wouldn't need to stand on the water. "It would just be easier to call it magic." Annie gave me a strange look, making me chuckle. "If I were to explain everything then we'd be here for a very long time and I don't want to be stuck in this rain any longer than I have to."

"…" Annie looked to the ground for a moment, making me look at her in curiosity.

"Anything on your mind?"

"Why are you trusting me?" Annie asked. "I could turn on you at any moment."

"The same reason you're trusting me. We still don't know if we can completely trust each other." Annie was still unconvinced, making me sigh. "Look, I know you're still trying to figure your life out. You were brainwashed and lost all your memories of your past. It's not the most pleasant thing in the world, but I'm not here to judge you. If you want to talk then just say so, otherwise I'll let you keep to yourself."

"Thanks…" Annie responded with a slight smile.

"Not a problem. Now lets get moving. We're nearly at the rendezvous point."

"Who are we meeting up with, and why all the way out in the south east swamps?"

"We're meeting up with a contact of the Gray's who will help us get the information that they hold. As to why we're meeting all the way out here… I'm just as clueless as you are." I said as we began moving down the muddy path. The rain had let up somewhat, but a drizzle still fell from the skies.

"Hmm…"

"Don't trust them?"

"No, and neither should you."

"I don't, but they all can't be that bad."

"What do you mean?"

"They did point me towards you when the Scouts were capturing you." Annie's eyes widened at my words.

"So the Grays…?"

"In a way, saved your life. Yes." Annie quieted down, making me softly chuckle at her realization. She may not trust humans, but maybe she'll treat some of the Grays slightly better than the rest.

For another hour we walked quietly down the path that weaved through the swamplands. Every now and again we would pass a person who looked at us like we were some alien from a far off land. These people must not be used to visitors due to their location near the wall and swampland surroundings.

Finally reaching our destination at the heart of the swamps, a small town emerged from the thick low hanging trees and endless insect infested water. The buildings looked extremely old when compared to every other town that I've traveled through. Wooden planks from the water logged trees around the town made up the walls for most of the buildings. Some of the buildings were two storied, but most consisted of only a single floor. Lights shown from the windows of the various buildings as we walked down the wet dirt road that made up this town's 'main street'.

"This place is disgusting." Annie stated. There wasn't anyone out and about because of the rain that had fallen before, but one thing I've noticed was the lack of military presence while we were traveling here.

"It does seem a little run down, but I doubt these people care. I'm sure they have more important things to worry about." I replied as we stopped in front of one of the few two story buildings. On the other side of the door I could hear loud laughter and the stomping of feet.

"What could that be?"

I grinned as I opened the door. The thick stench of alcohol and tobacco smoke attacked our noses. Music from a band on a small stage complimented the loud laughter and dancing from nearly everyone in the room. Every table near the dance floor was packed with people drinking and smoking. "Drinking of course." Annie gave me an annoyed look, making me chuckle. A small bar with six seats rested on the opposite side of the room with a cute younger lady standing behind it. One of the seats near the wall was taken by a man with a gray coat. A rifle leaned against the wall next to him with a gray fedora hanging off the top. "Follow me." I said as I closed the door behind us and walked towards the bar, Annie staying close behind me. After walking passed a few people, each of who gave us strange looks, I sat next to the man at the bar.

"What'll ya have?" The barkeep asked with a very obvious accent.

"Get em' the house whisky." The man next to me said, his voice deep and rough around the edges. The girl nodded her head before leaving us. Annie remained standing behind me with an expressionless face. "Welp, I'm glad ya found your way here angel boy. Essen aint the most hospitable place for outsiders like yourself." It was the same man that decided against killing that night.

"I got that feeling when we first entered the swamp." I responded as he took sip of his liquor. "The people here are very independent."

"You could say that. People round here don't much enjoy the company of some fancy noble or high strung military folk. Essen's been known for standing up to the big man, and since this swamp is out of the way and not worth much in terms of crops they tend to leave us alone." The man then looked over his shoulder towards Annie before returning his gaze to the back of the bar. "Looks like you completed your mission just like what was asked of ya."

"I try my best." I responded as a glass of brown liquid was placed in front of me. Taking a sip of the liquor, it burned its way down my throat in a satisfactory manner.

"And you even kept her alive. Bold move mister angel. She trustworthy?"

"About as trustworthy as you are." The man erupted into laughter at my response. Annie looked confused, but also clearly appreciated my comment.

"Wise words if I ever heard any!" It was now that I saw a revolver strapped to his belt. Mostly concealed by his coat however. The weapon was certainly beautiful and looked different from the weapons that the military used. Custom made like his rifle perhaps? "The name's James, and this is my birthplace." He held out his hand, which I firmly grasped and shook.

"Naruto."

"Oh I know all 'bout you. Part of the mission and all." James replied before another sip of whisky slipped down his throat. "So, what made ya want to work with the Grays anyway? Thought you were gonna be the noble's personal bitch or somethin."

"Didn't take to having a leash too much. Decided to get out of that situation as fast as I could."

"And keep fightin the titans? Thought you were gonna find a little place to settle down."

"I will after the titans are gone."

"Guess we all have to fight em' in our own way." I raised my glass towards him.

"Truer words have never been spoken." He grinned and we toasted our drinks. After a few moments of just listening to the band play and people dance, I decided to press our conversation. "So I've heard that the Grays have some information on the titans that may be of use to me."

"Oh yeah, it's at the base just east of here. On the edge of the swamp leading towards Trost, but I'm gonna have to warn ya the stuff you'll find is all sorts of crazy." When I gave him a strange look, James could only laugh. "You'll see when we get there. I've been ordered to escort ya so you two better get comfortable with me for little while." James finished off his whisky and placed the glass near the edge of the table where it was quickly refilled by the barkeep. He looked over at Annie and sighed before looking back to his glass. "Sit down girl. Aint nobody gonna attack ya here."

Annie glared at the back of James head for a moment before looking to me. I shrugged and motioned to the stool next to me. "Fine." Annie whispered to herself. The blonde sat down in the stool and remained quiet.

"Not much of a talker, is she?" James commented.

"I can relate somewhat. I'm not much of a talker either."

"True, but there be a difference between quiet and paranoid."

"We are being hunted down by the military."

"Join the club, but that don't stop me from goin to the bar and having a few drinks."

"Can't argue that logic." I took another large sip of the whisky. In truth I didn't really feel like arguing with the man, at least not here. "Is your leader stationed at the base we're going to?"

"Should be, but ya never know with her. She tends to like to leave when something happens."

"When are we going to leave?"

James looked down at his glass, then turned towards the window. "Could leave now. I can see your little pet don't like this place too much." Annie sent a glare at James that could freeze any human on earth, except James was far from your average person. He laughed at the look he was given and drank the rest of his alcohol, with me following closely behind. "Anyways, if we leave now we could make it to the base before sunset." James stood from his seat, with Annie and I following his lead. He placed his hat onto his head and slung his rifle around his shoulders. It was now, as he was brandishing his 3D Maneuver Gear, that I could fully take in just how… normal he looked. He wasn't a big muscle guy, or extremely small. Just… normal, except for his eyes. I could tell that he was a hunter just by the way he looked around the room. He had brown hair with a beard and mustache. James had the tanned skin of someone who was outdoors all day, and blue eyes much like Annie's and my own. If I had to guess his age then maybe late twenties, early thirties.

"Sounds good. Lets get moving." The three of us moved towards the door, but then I realized I had to pay for my drink. Before I could say anything, however, James yelled something to the bar tender.

"Put his on my tab!"

"When you gonna pay that off?! It's startin to pile up again!"

"Yeah, yeah I'll get to it after I get done with a mission or somethin!"

"You better!"

James opened the door allowing us to exit the old musty bar and out into the cloudy weather. The rain had stopped falling from the heavens, but decided to leave its gray clouds behind. The man rubbed the back of his head as he closed the door. "Sisters. Can't live with em', can't live without em'."

"It's around… two in the afternoon? Do you think we can make it out of the swamp by then?" I questioned.

"I take it y'all walked here?" I nodded my head in the affirmative. "Well I took the liberty of gettin us a few horses, but I only got two." James looked to Annie before shrugging. "Your pet's gonna have to ride with you."

"I'm going to kill you." Annie said with an angry voice, making James laugh loudly.

"Sure you are girly. Follow me to the stables." James said as he walked away. Annie was fuming under her hood.

"Can I kill him?" Annie whispered.

"I heard that!" James replied over his shoulder from down the street.

"Then stop being an ass! And I have a name! It's Annie!" Annie replied as she followed after him. I chuckled at the scene. James may be loose mouthed, but he was certainly entertaining if nothing else.

XxXxX

"Have I ever told you how much I hated the swamps?" Annie voiced to nobody in particular. We were coming close to the edge of the swamps, meaning the base must be fast approaching. The gray clouds still lingered above, making the afternoon sky darker than normal. The horses were currently being fed by James as we took our final break before arriving at the base nearly five minutes away.

"Calm down flower girl. We gettin close to the base." James said, making her clench her hands.

"I'm going to kill him." Annie said to herself. I placed a hand onto her shoulder, calming the hybrid from any more dangerous thoughts. "I liked it more when it was just us."

"But we really didn't talk that much." I replied as I removed my hand from her shoulder.

"I know, but at least you respect me as a person. Not some… pet." Annie looked to James who was busy caring for the horses.

"You know he's only joking."

"It's still annoying." Annie sighed before turning to me with eyes that I've rarely seen from her. They looked… soft? "He'll be leaving when we get what we need from them, right?"

"Should be. Once they give me what I've earned then we'll be on our way."

"Good, because he's-."

"Angel boy, get over here!" James shouted by the horses. Annie looked even more annoyed, but James sounded serious. Walking over to the mercenary, I furrowed my brows when the two horses came galloping by back towards Essen. He was kneeling down with his hand lightly touching the ground below. We stood next to him for a moment before he stood up straight with his rifle in his hands. "We're gonna walk the rest of the way."

"And the reason?" I asked.

"There's rubblin in the ground. Rubblin only artillery makes." James said as he began walking down the narrow path.

"Artillery? You mean those cannons the military uses up on the walls?"

"Yup, cept' we don't have many of those, and especially out here in the swamps. Which means…"

"The military is attacking your base." I said in annoyance. Of all the times for the military to attack the Grays, why now?

"Ya, I find it strange too. Why with the supposed breach and all." James said.

"Breach?" Annie questioned.

"Yeah. You don't know about it? Figured you'd be in on the loop with you being a hybrid." Annie looked away in anger as she thought of the implications that this could have.

"No… I don't know anything about another breach. I never knew anything…" Annie said, anger flowing through her body as she remember her position within their group. Just a pawn in someone's big game of chess.

"That's a damn shame. Could have used some insider information on those folks." It was now that the distant rumble of explosions could be heard. The swamp had slowly transitioned into low hanging trees and tall grass as high as our knees. The path that we once followed disappeared into said tall grass, meaning we were completely reliant on James to guide us to the Gray's base. "You best put your problems on hold for now flower girl. Those military guys could be-." Just as the words left his mouth four people swooped down in front of us. It was Garrison troops wielding pistols that looked completely different from James.

"Halt! You are now entering a warzone!" One of the soldiers shouted with pistols drawn. Annie was about to burst into action, but halted her actions when she saw me motion for her to calm herself. "Please turn around and… wait. Are you…?" He must have noticed James garments and was slowly piecing the information together. What was probably throwing them off was the inclusion of Annie and myself being with him.

"Now hold up there fellas. We were only passin through. You wouldn't mind if we just-." James said as he raised his hands up in fake surrender.

"You're a captain for the Grays! What are you doing here with these two?" The man shouted as they all pointed their weapons at us.

"This aint gonna end well is, is it?" When James didn't get a response, he sighed and slowly lowered his hand towards his revolver. "Guess not." They stayed like this for what felt like several minutes. The four men simply pointing their weapons at James, and said Gray hovering his hand over his sidearm. "Sorry fellas, but we've got some place to be." In the blink of an eye James had taken his weapon from its holster and fired four bullets. The four soldiers dropped to the ground with a bullet hole in each of their heads. The speed of which he did all of those actions was… astounding. Even Annie looked amazed. "We best keep movin. That was probably just a scoutin party for our rear defenses." He said as he twirled his revolver around his finger before sliding it back into his holster. So a quick shot and a sniper…

"Lead the way." I responded. James nodded and we were once again walking through the tall grass after he loaded four golden canisters into his weapon.

"Where is this base of yours? It has to be close." Annie commented, but James grinned as he had us all stop in what appeared to be a small clearing. The explosions were loud, very loud, and the crackling of gunfire could be heard now as well. A different type of war was being fought here within the walls.

"Hold your horses little missy. We aint gonna show up through the main entrance. If we done do that then every soldier would be shootin at us and unlike you two I aint got no way to go all freako." James said as he knelt down and opened a wooden hatch in the ground which was hidden by the tall grass. "Follow my lead. My friends are gonna be on edge with all the fighten goin on." James then hopped into the hole. I looked to Annie who shrugged, but I could tell that she did not want to go down into a place where she couldn't turn into a titan. Placing a reassuring hand onto her shoulder, I followed James into the hatch with Annie close behind, shutting the hatch once she was in. It was completely dark at the bottom, but the tunnel was large enough for two fully grown men to walk pass one another without bumping into each other. A distant oil fueled lamp could be seen at the end of the tunnel with a thick wooden door sitting next to it. Wooden cross beams held up the dirt from caving in, but the wood looked old and decayed. "Y'all comin?" James was already half way to the door.

Walking after the swamp boy, we made it to the door in short fashion. The rumble of artillery was shaking the dirt above, making me worry about a potential cave in. James knocked on the door as hard as he could. "They never really check this door much." James commented as he waited for someone to answer. After what felt like an eternity someone finally answered back.

"Password?!" A voice yelled back.

"Password? I aint got no password Chuck! Just open the damn door!" James responded in annoyance.

"Well I can't let you in without a password!" Chuck responded.

"You know damn well that they change those things every other day! How am I suppose to remember something so long?!" James shouted. Annie and I looked at one another in confusion. This exchange was… strange.

"Well you best not have any military with you or we're screwed!" Chuck said as he unlocked and opened the door. The man on the other side wore a Gray uniform much like James, but without the red marks on his hat and coat. He had 3D maneuver gear with two pistols much like the military had before. I guess nobody else has the weapons that James custom made himself. He must even make the bullets himself as well.

"If the military captured me then you know damn well that I would have gone down fighten." James said as he smacked the back of Chuck's head while we walked in.

"And who are these two?" Chuck asked as he closed door behind us. The inside of the room was smaller than I would have expected. It only had room for a single wooden chair, but three hallways split off from the small room. A single lantern hung from center of the ceiling, giving light to an otherwise dark room.

"Our guest, now get back to watchin or I'll report you to the commander myself." James said as he walked down the center hallway with Annie and I close behind. We wormed our way through the labyrinth of six foot tunnels. Every now and again we would see several other people running by to separate parts of the base, none of them sparing even a glance towards us. Why were these people still here? What was so important? "We're comin up on the main mission room. Boss lady will fill you in from there." We walked into a room that was about ten feet high. It looked like any military headquarters, with plenty of people running around in panic and one calm looking individual standing over a round table in the center of the room. We walked up to the table to see a map of the area on top of the table with gray and brown figurines on top. The brown figurines outnumbered the gray ones three to one…

"Brought em' here just like you asked Boss Lady." James said as we approached the woman that looked over the map. She was about my height with red hair that reached down to her midsection. Her uniform was gray with black markings on them instead of red, but her hat sat off to the side to show her purple eyes.

The 'boss lady', as James keeps calling her, glanced over to us then back to the map below. "I see. Good job James." She stated simply as she continued staring back at the map for a moment. We stood like this for a few more seconds before she turned towards us with piercing eyes. She's tough… that much couldn't be understated. "My name is Lara and I'm the Commander of the Grays." Lara said as she held out a hand, which I accepted firmly. "And you must be the Angel of Death. A pleasure to meet you Mr. Uzumaki." I nodded my head at her comment. She's done her homework. Lara then looked to Annie, her eyes narrowing. "And you must be the hybrid that's killed so many people?" Annie didn't respond, instead hiding her gaze beneath her hood much like myself. The leader of the Grays then returned her gaze to me. "I see you decided to keep her alive. A strange decision, and a bad one if I do think so myself, but it was yours to choose."

"I fulfilled my end of the bargain, now it's your turn." I said.

"Straight to business. If you say so Mr. Uzumaki, but we have problem." Lara said as she returned her gaze to the map below. "The Garrison is pressing us hard and if they keep this up the perimeter will fall."

"And why does this concern me at all?" It was mean, heartless even, but I only came for the information on the titans. What became of this base, or the Grays after my business with them was done, had little to do with me.

"I figured you'd say that, but the information you seek isn't a file, or thing I can give you. It's a place."

"What do you mean? I was told that your spies knew something about the titans from the military. Not a place."

"Really? I'm not sure about any of that. The place in question I'll have to explain more in detail later, but if this base falls…"

"…" Lara was conning me into helping her defend this base. To fight the very people that I wanted to help, but if this place really could help me learn the origins of the titans and if it was here… "Fine, I'll help. What do you need of me?"

"Good. This attack is being led by Rico Brzenska." Lara said as she pointed to the map. A broad line could be seen with brown artillery figures being fixed outside the edge of the swamp in the center of a massive plains. A single star sat behind the artillery figures, showing where their headquarters was located. "From here she coordinates her men and dictates where the artillery will fire. We are being pressed from two sides and are slowly losing ground because of how accurate the artillery is. If one of the lines falls then we will be completely surrounded." The front looked like a horse shoe, and if one line breaks then the house of cards collapses. How they were holding on for this long was a miracle. "And if that happens then I'll lose a third of my troops within these walls. Something I cannot afford." I stared at the star for a moment, contemplating who exactly it represented. "I've heard of your crazy magical powers, but if you can force them to retreat or call a ceasefire then that would suffice. Make them stop their advance so you can have time to see what's down there yourself. Once then we'll be able to pull out and destroy the base afterwards."

"Is it really that big?" I questioned. It was now that I realized that the reason Lara was having her men fight so hard to defend this base was hold up their end of the bargain. To give me this very chance to see what was hidden below.

"Not sure, but whatever's down there…" A chill ran up Lara's spine at the thought. "We're going to have to bury it once you're done so nobody else can see it."

"And how do you know this is connected to the titans?"

"Because when you go into that place you feel like you're surrounded by titans. I don't know how to explain it, but you certainly know how that feels. When a titan is near something in you feels… off." Lara explained, but I could tell she was off put by her experience. "Also, there was things down there that… I don't know…"

"I know that feeling all too well."

"While I enjoy hearin you two speak about those crazy things down there we have more important matters that need dealin with." James said.

"You're right. James move to the southern flank and support the men stationed there as best you can. Hybrid, I want you to-."

"I don't take orders from you." Annie said, her eyes gleaming with rage. She did not appreciate Lara's earlier comments on how I should have killed her. Lara stared at her with equally as hardened eyes.

"I think it would be best if Annie came with me." I said. Lara sighed and looked to me once more.

"Fine. Do what you can to stop the Garrison's advance. Kill a lot, or destroy their artillery. Do whatever works, just make them stop their attack for at least a couple of hours." Lara clearly didn't like being told off, especially by someone who could be a potential enemy. "If you can do that then that should give us enough time to scuttle the base and remove any wounded from the battlefield."

"We'll get them to stop. Come on Annie." I said as one of the soldiers led us towards the exit that we originally came from. Chuck stood by the door with key in hand.

"Going back out there?" Chuck asked as he unlocked the door and opened the way for us. We walked passed him and into the hallway. "Good luck out there. Lets hope that all those rumors about you two are true." He closed the thick door behind us, leaving us to ourselves once more.

"I don't trust them. They're hiding something." Annie said as we began walking down the tunnel towards the hatch from which we came. If what the map said was correct we just needed to head west for about five minutes towards the front line that hugged the edge of the tree line. From there it's a wide open field towards the artillery battery.

"We all are Annie. You're no different."

"I thought I was hiding things." Annie said with a stern voice as I looked up to the hatch above. The only way up was the use of 3D maneuver gear it would seem. "But you know damn well that everything I thought I was hiding was a lie."

"Then who are your hybrid friends? If everything you thought you knew was a lie then you can tell me at least that." Annie frowned as the words left my mouth. I sighed at her expression before jumping up to the hatch above. "Fine. If you don't wish to tell me then so be it." As I pressed against the hatch, Annie stopped me when two wires connected next to me. The blonde girl flew up to me and stopped very close to my face. There wasn't much room within archway leading up…

"I'll tell you… after we finish our business with the Grays." My expression shouted that I didn't believe her, only making her eyes harden when she spoke next. "I promise you. I'll tell you who they are."

"… Why would you tell me then?"

"Because I… I want to trust you. You're the only one I can even think about trusting now. The only one that will have my back if something happens, and if paying for that trust means betraying the ones that brainwashed me then I would happily oblige." I felt the determination in each of the words that left her mouth. Annie truly wanted me to trust her and vis versa.

"Then if you follow through with your words then I'll trust you with something as well."

"It would only be fair, right?" Annie questioned with a genuine smile adoring her features. I grinned back at her as I shoved the hatch open.

"All too true."

XxXxX

"Commander Rico! I have a report from southern assault force!" A man shouted as he approached the silver haired woman. The senior soldier looked to the man with a curious expression. They were currently standing in a tent behind a line of bunkered artillery and riflemen. Out here, where there are no trees to use 3D Maneuver gear and the combination of artillery and rifles, made it impossible for the Grays to attack them directly. Because of this Rico decided on a wide sweeping attack to surround the base before attacking on all fronts. The bases location also restricted any enemy movement that would hamper her flanking advancing forces by way of counter flanks. This, of course, would mean any frontal attack was impossible as her own troops would be picked off if they advanced towards the tree line.

"And that would be?" Rico asked. So far the operation has been moving along smoothly, albeit slowly due to the area of which the Grays have situated themselves in.

"Progress has slowed due to an increase in casualties from sniper fire. Until they learn the whereabouts of the sniper they are currently halted."

"When they learn of his location then report it back to us. We will hit him with everything we got." The man nodded and left. Rico turned to another man who was looking down at the map while moving pieces around said map. "How is the northern attack force going?"

"Slow… our troops have encountered a river bed here." The man said as he pointed towards the blue river. "It is exposing our troops to rifle fire while also shielding the Grays from artillery fire. It will take some time for us to push them off the other side."

"I see, but they are nearly completely surrounded. About seventy percent of the way." Rico said with a sigh as she looked to the top of the tent.

"Annoyed?" The officer asked.

"We shouldn't be here. There are titans to our rear being handled by Ian and Mitabi… but we should be there fighting them, not here attacking the Grays." Rico said, clear annoyance laced within her voice.

"I know, but if we don't attack them now-."

"If we lose to the titans behind us then this doesn't matter anyway!" Rico exclaimed as she slammed her fist into the table, knocking several pieces over in the process. "I know this wasn't what Commander Pixas wanted, that his hands are tied, but still…"

"Orders are orders." The man stated before another soldier entered the tent, sweat rolling down his face with heavy breathing. "What's the matter soldier?"

"I-It's…" The man went for another breath of air before looking towards the two in shock. "The Angel… he's here…" Rico's eyes widened in shock. Naruto…? He's here? Without another word she exited the tent towards the barricade that her forward troops were using for cover.

"Rico! Wait we need to come up with a…!" She didn't hear another word as she walked passed her artillery until finally reaching her desired destination. Looking out over the plains towards the tree line she spotted who she was looking for on the edge of said tree line.

"Naruto…" Rico said once more to herself than to the men pointing rifles at him from behind the barricade. It was growing dark with each passing moment, and the gray clouds above only meant darker conditions was coming even faster than she would have liked.

The two seemed to stare at one another for what seemed like an eternity as Rico did her best to grasp the situation at hand. Why was Naruto here? Why was he positioned in a defensive manner for the Grays? Why did he… why did he betray us?

"Commander, what do we do?" One of the soldiers holding a rifle asked. The artillery had stopped firing into the forest and was now aiming at the man standing across from them. Rico looked to the soldier who asked the question, and to her surprise his weapon was shaking in his hand. They had all heard the rumors of what the Angel of Death could do, but they never actually saw him in action. Never seen the aftermath of his destructive power. Grant it, Rico has never seen him action to the extent of Pixas, but she's seen the aftermath and what he's done while she was with him. If he attacked them with that level of vigor like he did in Trost then… "Commander?" The Angel began walking towards the barricade at a slow pace, only making the line of soldiers more anxious. "Commander?!"

"Everyone! Ready your weapons and prepare to fire!" The officer from the tent shouted from behind Rico, who looked lost in thought, her hair covering her eyes from view. Naruto continued to walk slowly towards them, seemingly uncaring to the fact that so many weapons were pointed against him. "Steady!"

"Wait…" Rico whispered, but nobody heard her. She knew, deep down, that if they began firing then people were going to die. Her soldiers were going to die.

"Fir-!" The officer shouted, but before he could finish a massive tree flew out of the tree line and smashed into one of the seven artillery pieces. By this time Naruto had begun forming handseals, his eyes still fixated on the silver haired woman.

"Katon: Gōkakyū no Jutsu." Breathing in heavily, the black cloaked figure released a massive fireball towards the barricade. It smashed into the meter high wall, bursting into flames upon contact. Another tree came flying over the angel and into another artillery piece. What came after was chaos. Soldiers began dropping their weapons and running while officers did their best to control the situation. Another fireball collided with the wall, only causing more disarray to ensue, but Rico remained still. The final nail in the coffin was when a titan, the female titan, appeared from the tree line with two trees in each of her hands ready to throw them at whatever target she deemed necessary. Screams and shouts of her appearance, mixed with the Angel of Death's, was just too much.

Rico jumped down from the barricade and began walking towards the one that saved them from a titan invasion. It felt as if time had slowed down for the silver haired Garrison soldier. In front of her was the hero of Trost, the very person she thought would help save humanity from the titans. In front of her was the person she believed gave his strength to give humanity to gain their first victory over the titans. In front of her was the person that betrayed them and saved the Female Titan from the Scouting Corps plans. What this person was, who this person was, and what his goals are, remained a mystery. The elite Garrison soldier thought she knew, at least a sliver, of who Naruto Uzumaki was and what he wanted to accomplish. But now…

She stopped in front of the man she had once protected, her hair still covering her eyes from view. "Hello." One word. It was all that came from his mouth after what he did back in Stohess.

"Traitor." Rico whispered, but the black garbed man remained silent. "If I could kill you right now then I would in a heartbeat." She then looked up into the darkness underneath his hood with such anger that even Pixas would quiver. The mystery of a man remained unfazed by the hatred that his former bodyguard showed, instead deciding to remain silent like always. "I thought you wanted to help humanity. To retake Wall Maria."

"Retaking Wall Maria was never one of my goals." Rico's expression turned from anger, to shock and dismay. "That wall means nothing to me."

"Then what is your goal?! What is your purpose for being here?!" The man frowned at her words before shaking his head.

"In time. For now tell your men to halt their advance. The Grays want a ceasefire."

"And why are you working with them?! They're an enemy to the military just as much as the Female Titan is! None of this makes any sense!"

"Rico…" The soldier looked to the cloaked man in annoyance. "When you were my bodyguard, did you feel that I would turn on humanity?"

"…"

"Did you feel that you would need to kill me because I posed a threat to you or your precious walls?"

"These walls are what keep us alive!"

"True, but while your goal is to retake Wall Maria, mine coincides with yours more than you can ever believe."

"Then what are your goals? What is the purpose of teaming up with the female titan?" By now her men had managed to calm down and were now pointing their weapons at the pair.

"…" Naruto shook his head with a sigh. "Tell your men to halt their advance. The Grays have something I want and if you keep attacking then I will be forced to fight alongside them."

Rico clenched her teeth in annoyance. Whatever his goals are, they still remained a mystery to her. The Female Titan, the Grays, it doesn't make any sense, but he didn't attack her on sight which was strange. Maybe there is something going on behind the scenes? "Fine, I'll call my men off. I'd rather be fighting the titans inside the walls anyway." Naruto furrowed his brow at this, but decided not to pursue that dialogue. Obviously since she's here it means that it's not as bad as it would seem, at least he hoped.

"Tell Pixas hello for me." Naruto said while Rico motioned for her men to lower their weapons.

"If what you say about your goals are true, then I hope you can tell him that yourself on friendlier terms." Rico said over her shoulder.

"I hope so as well…" Naruto muttered as he turned and began walking towards the tree line where Annie stood.

XxXxX

"That went better than expected." Annie said as we walked through the tunnel that we had initially left. It was dark out, and the fighting had stopped for the time being. Whether or not Rico would continue her attack later remained to be seen.

"I was surprised that she didn't attack me on sight." Annie looked at me in confusion. "Rico was one of the three bodyguards assigned to protect me when we were traveling to the capital."

"So you two have history?"

"Somewhat." I said as I banged on the door. "But she seems to still trust me to a degree. Or was scared of what would have happened if I really wanted fight them."

"If shooting fire out of your mouth wasn't already scary enough…" The door opened to reveal James, who held a massive grin on his face.

"Well if it aint the heroes themselves. I figured you'd be comin this way so I decided to come let yall in." James said as he stood aside, allowing us to walk in. "Damn fine work you two did up there. Didn't expect ya to talk em' down like ya did."

"Killing isn't always the answer." I replied as we walked down the tunnel towards where we had initially met Lara.

"Unless it has to be." James stated as he ran his hand over his revolver. How many soldiers did he kill in the last hour or so? One? Ten? Fifty? I'm sure if I asked him then he could tell me the exact amount. The faces they made when he pulled the trigger of his rifle. James may seem like the uncaring type, but I could tell that this was just a façade.

We entered the main room where we originally met Lara, only to see an empty table and a lonely commander. It would seem that most of her men have retreated from the base except for the bare minimum of men needed to hold the doors. The red head turned to us and smiled. "Very well done. The Garrison have halted their attack, giving us time to retreat from the area and lick our wounds." Lara approached me and extended a hand, which I took.

"Not a problem."

"Now onto business. Follow me and I'll show you the entrance of the dungeon." Lara said as the four of us began walking through the labyrinth of tunnels, all leading deeper into the base.

"Dungeon?" Annie questioned. I could tell that she was already extremely nervous about being in such a confined space. Not being able to turn into a titan when she deemed it necessary was very unnerving for the girl.

"Yes, a dungeon. A place that I personally sanctioned off so nobody could enter unless I gave the go ahead." Lara replied as the tunnels were beginning to grow smaller and smaller with each step.

"How did you come upon this place?" I questioned.

"We found this place while we were expanding the base. It was completely by chance that our men found this place."

"And why is it sectioned off from everyone else?" Annie asked.

"I'll let you two learn that for yourself." Lara said. As we walked further down into the ground, I looked over at James and could see a bead of sweat running down his forehead.

"James." I said, making the man look over at me with curious eyes. "Have you been in this place before?"

"Yeah, I have, and I aint wantin to back down there if I can help it." James replied.

"We've only sent one scouting team down there consisting of fifteen men since we found it." Lara explained as she grabbed a lantern off the wall and continued walking. "Of those fifteen men only three came back alive."

"And I take it James was one of those men?" Annie questioned, gaining a nod from the man in question. "Who are the other two people?"

"One of the people killed themselves after about three days of hallucination. The third…" Lara then pointed towards herself. "Is right in front of you." Before we could even see the entrance of the dungeon James's grip on his revolver tightened.

"We're comin up on the place. I can feel it from here." James said. It was true. A strange feeling was washing over us from the end of the tunnel. This feeling… why did it feel so familiar? My head was beginning to pound in pain.

"And here we are. The entrance to the dungeon." Lara said as the four of us stopped in front of what looked to be a hole in the ground. The edges were made of stone, and were cracked with vines growing through them. "Here you may find the answers that you seek."

"How far did you get?" I asked.

"Not too sure, but not very far. All I know is that we came runnin back when things you hear out of a horror story came crawlin out of the dark corners." James said.

"I must warn you that we don't have long. The Garrison can attack at any moment, and when they do we're destroying this place. If you don't want to be trapped down there forever then I suggest you quickly run through the place and leave." Lara warned.

"Then we best leave then." I responded as I looked at Annie, only for her eyes to convey fear. "Annie?"

She shook her head and turned towards me. "I'm ready." My eyes lingered with hers for another moment before nodding my head.

"Good luck down there you two." Lara said.

"Don't go messin around. Find what ya need and get the hell out. Aint no reason for sightseein." James commented.

"Will do. Lets go." I said as Annie and I jumped down into the hole.

XxXxX

The fall didn't take very long. A few seconds if I had to guess the approximate time, but as we fell it felt all intrusive. Like I was falling into the mouth of a titan. I landed onto the uneven cobble stone ground. The only light coming from around twenty lit candles sitting on the ground near an open door and the strange looking vines that protruded out of the cobble stone walls. Taking a step forward, Annie soon landed where I once stood. What Lara said was right… the feeling of being surrounded by titans blanketed me at all times, but there was something else. It was subtle, but something else was definitely down here. Something dark and evil…

"This place feels strange…" Annie commented as she looked around the room. The vines were glowing a very dim shade of red. The blonde girl ran her hand over the vines, but they didn't respond.

"…" I approached the vines as well and ran my hand over them, only for the plants to light up somewhat. A chill then ran up my spine as pain protruded into my head. "I don't like this place." Annie only looked at me in curiosity. The room we were currently in was small with only a single door leading into what looked to be another room. A single stick stuck up from the ground with a dark lantern hanging from the end. It didn't look to have the ability to hold oil, that's for sure.

"Neither do I. What are we even looking for down here?" Annie asked as I moved towards the door, running my hand over the lantern as I passed. A strange white flickered to life inside the lantern for just a moment before it returned to darkness. What was this feeling?

"Don't lose yourself to the hunt! We must rid this world of these foul beasts lest they kill us all!" A man exclaimed as twenty men and women walked through the door in front of us. "Remember! Let nothing live! Everything that is tainted must burn!"

"Naruto!" I snapped back to reality and looked to the now hoodless girl. Her eyes were showing worry and… fear? It was then that I realized that the Kyuubi's chakra had seeped into eyes, making them glow underneath my hood. Shaking my head, I released the chakra from my eyes and returned them to their normal blue. "What was that?"

"The demons of my past. Lets get moving." I said as I pressed through the door. Annie stared at my back for a moment before shaking her head and following me. Whatever that was… hopefully it wouldn't be a problem in the future.

I entered the first room only to see a massive tunnel system that went from side to side. It was large enough for even Annie to become a titan and move around freely. Down one end a massive cave in blocked our path, and down the other a thick mist blocked our view from seeing how deep this tunnel goes. A single lit lantern hung from the wall next to the door, but the only light from inside the tunnel was the dim red vines around us. We stood in the doorway for a moment, contemplating what to do next. A soft echo bounced off the walls coming from the thick mist.

"This place is creepy Naruto-kun!" The black shade exclaimed as we walked into the tunnel, but not into the mist. I stepped into a puddle, making me look down. "Ew! Is that blood?!" I bent down and looked at the crimson liquid. It was certainly blood…

"Found a couple of the Grays." Annie said from the caved in part of the tunnel. Two gray coated soldiers was stained across the rock and dirt that made up the 'new' caved in wall. Seven rats the size of large dogs surrounded the two Grays. I sighed and looked up into the air above. The red light was only making this place more ominous. Annie then looked to me in slight worry. "We're going into that mist, aren't we?"

"Don't have much of choice. Stick close to me." I said as I moved towards the mist with Annie at my side. We moved slowly through the mist, trying our best to pick anything out that could pose a threat, but after several minutes of walking a rumble in the ground gave us pause. Like a heavy footstep pressed against the muddy ground, another rumble soon followed after the first.

"It sounds like a…" Annie went to say, but the heavy footsteps were becoming faster.

"Titan." I finished. Just as the words left my mouth a titan, about the height of Annie's titan form, came charging out of the mist towards me. I jumped to the side, narrowly dodging the monsters charge. Looking over at the beast, I could barely see the creature through the mist but I could tell it was very different from a normal titan. Its skin was rotting from his body and he had long dirty silver hair. His right forearm was replaced with a large club while his right was replaced with a massive scythe. Six large spikes were embedded into his back with chains hanging from each of these spikes. On the ends of these chains were hooks similar to my own.

"What's a titan doing down here?" Annie asked to nobody in particular.

"…" I wish I could give her an answer, but I truly didn't know what was going on in this place. Everything felt so familiar, but completely unknown at the same time.

"Wow! That thing looks creepy! Are these the things that you've been playing with Naruto-kun?" The black shade asked as she appeared next to me once more. Before I could respond the beast attacked us, sending its scythe at Annie, who was just barely able to dodge out of the way. His eyes landed on me, and for just a moment eyes of recognition appeared before he continued his assault on my companion. "Hmm… it looks like he knows you. Do you know who, or what, this thing is?"

"No, I don't." I responded as I began releasing my hooks. "And I don't much care."

"Of course you don't. You aren't the same, you know that?" I frowned at her words, but I shook my head.

"Tell that to someone who cares." With that I moved towards the beast, but stopped when a hand was placed onto my shoulder. I looked over to see the crimson and white eyes reflecting… sadness?

"Look at what you've become! Where is the happy Uzumaki that I fell in love with? He would have-!"

"Shut up! Stop talking to me like you know everything! You know nothing!" My eyes turned a bright red from the influence of the kyuubi's chakra flowing into my body.

"I-."

"After everything I've been through. Everything that this god forsaken mission has put me through. Nothing's the same! I have lost everything! My life, my memories, my loved ones. Everything!" I took a step towards the now terrified shade, who took a cautious step backwards. "And here you appear, trying to lecture me on who I used to be. Well let me tell you something about this past me. He is dead! Along with the grief and sorrow that went along with those bonds that he had!" The shade was in shock at the words that left my mouth. "Now leave me be. Disappear back to the part of my madness that actually stays silent." With that I turned and began walking towards the fight between Annie, who had turned into a titan, and the strange weaponized titan, my anger building with each and every step I took towards the fighting pair. Forming hand signs as I walked, chakra continued to build up within my body.

"Jinton: Borutosāji." Just as Annie blocked an attack from the scythe with a hardened forearm, the wind around them shoved Annie backwards. Cuts appeared all over the strange looking titan while lightning spears shot through the beast. In the blink of an eye the creature was on the ground bleeding out from the attack with a cloaked man standing near his head. Annie simply stared at the poor creature in shock, then to the black garbed man. She had heard Naruto, but in her eyes there was nobody else there. Just him... "You know me, don't you?" I asked to the creature, who was slowly regenerating from the attack. The titan's eyes stared into mine, as if confirming my question. This thing knew me, but how? I don't remember what this was, or how an abomination so far underground could ever know who I was. My subconscious, however, was screaming at me to kill this thing, but why? "Then you will die." A clone appeared over the creature, his spinning hooks slicing out the chunk behind his neck. Killing it instantly.

"Naruto…?" I turned to see Annie, now out of her titan shell, looking at me in fear and concern. My eyes were still glowing a bright red with my pupils being slits.

"Remember when I said that I'd reveal some of my secrets once this was all over?" Annie nodded her head ever so cautiously at my words. "When I do, I feel that you will be presented with a choice." I began walking away into the mist, my hooks dragging behind me as I went. "Harden yourself my young companion, because I feel the choices that will present themselves will place a heavy burden on you if you choose to follow them."

Annie could only stare as I disappeared into the mist, leaving her imagination to revel on the words that I spoke. The secrets of this dungeon, however, did not only scare her, but me as well…

Because I knew, in the depths of my decaying mind, that it was no accident that I felt so familiar with this place.

XxXxX

A/N: This chapter… *sigh* this chapter was probably one of the hardest chapters to write out of all of them. It's darker than the other chapters, but the darkness that blankets Naruto's past needed to be shown. The beginning section was actually a lot more graphic, but I toned it down so it wouldn't be… as bad.

I also want everyone to know that this story has been changed from a rating of T to a rating of M. A few of the scenes were rather… dark. Because of this I want to play it safe and bump up the rating. It may be unnecessary, and if enough people comment that it can returned then I'll return it at that time. Until then I don't want this story to be taken down because of this. Let me know if it's safe for T, or if it needs to stay M!

On another note the ending of the latest chapter of Attack on Titan kind of blows this story out of the water. So I'm going to pretend like it never happened and continue on with the train of thought that we were all originally led to believe. Also, I was wondering why Attack on Titan and Shingeki no Kyojin were different sections. Why aren't they all under the same section? I don't know, it confuses me.

I'm sorry for the long wait, and I hope everyone enjoys this chapter of Lost One. I love every one of you, and, as always, thank you for your continued patience.