Happy new week everyone. I'm proud of myself for presenting this new chapter still on the weekly update.
First thing I wanna say, is that I am not overly educated on what certain time frames have certain weapons, so if things seem like it shouldn't be in this type of era, just go with the flow. I like certain things in history, and I write what I like, right? :D
I certainly hope that some are enjoying this tale, I know its not all fluff and love and explicit scenes, but meh, it's what I like and I think there are some that will enjoy it to. So kudos to those who have left comments and kudos, they are much appreciated. :D
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The deep rumbling echoed through the darkness, causing dust to vibrate off the ceiling, small pebbles to bounce on their rocky ledges before falling to the ground below. Thundering snorts were next heard, causing small rodents to scurry about in fear, ducking into any crack or crevice they could find to escape the deafening sound waves that were washing through the darkness.
Thumping on the ground caused the gravel and sandy floor to tremble, making ripples in the sandy areas. With each thunderous beat, a low sounding huff followed. Around the entrance that led to the outside, the falling of dust was seen with each wave that erupted from within the mouth of the cave. There was no moon, no light shone upon the rocky entrance and an owl quickly took flight into the night from a high branch of an old withered tree.
Claws stepped out of the mouth of the cave, digging deeply into the dirt floor when the body of the dragon emerged. Its clawed feet moved into the darkness, freeing the large scaled body from the darkness of the cave. Massive leather wings stretched out into the night, and the body shook rapidly, causing dust and debris to fly about the area. Jaws stretched open, revealing rows of teeth as the beast yawned out and its chest rumbled out a growl. The chasm walls that the beast emerged into littered dust and dirt from the boisterous soundwaves that echoed and rattled the rock face.
The giant head of the dragon shook briefly, its scales making a clicking noise that reiterated throughout the darkness. Large almond shaped eyes blinked and looked up into the starlit sky, wings ruffled slightly and stretched out. The dragon's front legs pawed at the earthy ground until its legs bent slightly. Its wings flew down suddenly and fast, legs jumped up in time with the beat of the large leather wings. The sounds of air catching beneath the wings with push, the dragon began to lift into the air towards the stars. Tucking its legs beneath the chest, the wings beat faster giving more rise to the giant beast, it's spiked tail caught the edge of the chasm, creating a tear in the rock wall but it didn't slow the assent of the great beast in the slightest as it took to the air.
==intermission==
Sasuke lifted his head, his eyes shimmering from the tears that fell and he looked about the cave. Nothing had changed, the various debris scattered about the area, his small torch slowly becoming embers as it began to burn out what was left. Taking some deep breaths to calm the ache in his chest from the realization of what became of his long time friend, he felt the slow rising of anger blooming in his chest. Anger was easier to deal with in his experience. Something to be able to grasp, fueling the flames of heated rage was much easier to accept than despair.
Moving to his feet, he shoved the small piece of fabric into his pocket and grabbed the dying torch. Images ran through his mind of Naruto's smiling face, sunshine personality and vibrant being, as he recalled him oh those years ago. He clenched his teeth when visions of fear, pain and blood overtook the blond, dying and calling out to those who didn't hear him. A roar echoed through his visions, the roar of a huge beast he heard that night, it was coming down on the small boy who cried out in agony and fright. His body shook with building rage while the visions slammed through his mind, but he stopped and whipped his head towards the narrow and dark passage that led out.
The sound of a beast was not in his mind, it was outside! The same sound he heard all those years ago, ripping through the moonless night and through his body like waves. Goosebumps rose all through his skin when the sound resounded through the passageway and past Sasuke's ears. 'It's out there! The beast!' Sasuke's heart thudded hard in his chest and he grabbed another small branch, holding it next to the dying torch to feed the flames. Once that was completed, he ran towards the entrance of the cave, his thoughts full of wrath towards the beast that had taken away the vibrant sunshine of his youth. His Naruto.
His breath heavy in his chest, Sasuke stepped out into the moonless night, his eyes looking about, trying to catch a glimpse of anything that may not be friendly, but there was nothing. With no moon, everything was encased in shadow and damn near impossible to tell what was what or where. He strained his ears, listening to the night, only hearing the sounds of small insects and the slight rustle of dried leaves in the trees. His head whipped suddenly behind him to find his trustworthy steed who nudged his shoulder. Sasuke allowed himself to breathe out a breath of relief as he stroked the steed's muzzle. His steed had obviously gotten impatient waiting for his master to return where he was left waiting. The horse snorted out suddenly and looked up at the starlit sky, his ears perked forward and eyes wide. Sasuke stepped to the side and looked up to the stars. "You hear something?" he whispered, his pupils skimming the pitch black sky. A huff of air was the response to his question.
Straining his ears, Sasuke heard the sound of something cutting through the air over his head. The silhouette of a massive dark figure flew over, blocking out the light of the stars for a brief moment, but there was no mistaking the sound and the size. The sound of the mass cutting through the air whistled gently and Sasuke followed the colossal sized shadow to determine which way it was going. Looking at the stars' alignment, he knows which direction the beast is flying and he clicks his teeth, calling his horse over. "Come, we must follow it," Sasuke whispers out hurriedly when he mounts his steed.
==intermission==
"Your majesty," a servant knight bowed deeply in the sitting quarters. A fire was blazing in the nearby fireplace and the elderly redheaded queen was standing near the window, staring out across the land. She looked at the small fires lit around the grounds, several guards preparing for a battle. "We are ready your majesty." The guard spoke quickly while in his bow.
Kushina hummed out a response, "and the people?"
"All moved to the safe caves your majesty," the guard responded.
"Very well." She turned to look at the man, a sad smile on her face. "Have you prepared the trebuchet this time? Is it ready?" She pinched her lips together tight, determined to put on a serious face.
"Yes your majesty. We have tested it on several occasions, we should be able to subdue the dragon enough to finally put an end to it!" The knight stood tall and pounded a fist to his chest, a look of determination on his face.
Kushina clasped her hands together, nodded her head firmly. "Make it so, and may the gods be on our side this time." She turned to look out across the lands again as the knight clicked his heels together, bowed and left the room. She looked up into the starlit sky, seeing no moon, and she knew that tonight was the night it would come. Again and again, it would come to her struggling kingdom, for what she did not know, but after a decade of casting carnage, despair, loss and hopelessness and it was only just recently had her staff been able to put together a possible pattern. It wasn't much, but at least she could prepare, get her people to safety, have her knights at the ready with anything possible to try and stop it. Moving out of the room, she went to her own quarters to prepare herself for the evening.
Slipping into her quarters, she went to her wardrobe and pulled out a fully dressed armor made specifically for her. Dropping her queen attire onto the floor, leaving her light undergarments on, she slipped her chainmail top over her head, being certain to not catch the threads of her light shirt beneath. Pulling her hair tight, she quickly braided her thick locks together, tying it securely and letting it fall on her back. She pushed her arms through her thick breathable sweater that would keep her warm beneath the heavy armor, which she then buckled up around her bosom. She pulled up her knee high thick leather boots before stepping into her thick metal armoured skirt that fell just at her knees. She latched the hooks beneath her armoured corset and tightened the leather belt around her waist. She grabbed a metal helmet that had chainmail that flowed down all around the back of her head and fell to her shoulders. "This time it will be different," she said to the empty room with a firm nod and voice. Grabbing a smaller sword and securing it on her armor, she made her way out of the room to meet up with the small army set up outside.
Kushina stepped out into the yard, seeing several small fires lit around the area. Men were moving about, stacking rocks, wood and ropes. They all bowed to her as she strode past, making her way to the trebuchet that was hopefully in a good position. She walked around the large wooden contraption, checking the ropes and thick chains that were prepped and ready to fire.
"Your majesty," a tall broad shouldered man with gray hair called out as he bowed. "I do wish you would take cover with your people. You need to remain safe."
"The best way to protect my people is to be on the front line to ensure the beast is slayed Kakashi," Kushina huffed out while pulling on the chains, checking their strength.
"But your majesty, we have enough men -" Kakashi responded while he stood back up.
"Enough. Are we ready?" Kushina dismissed the man.
"Aye, your majesty. We should be able to detain the beast with this. Providing we can get a good shot." Kakashi nodded and looked up at the trebuchet.
A howl broke through the night, causing Kushina and Kakashi to look into the night sky. "It comes," Kushina whispered.
"At the ready!" Kakashi yelled across the yard at the other guards. Yells of the same echoed across as each group of knights called out to each other to prepare.
"May the gods be in our favour tonight," Kushina whispered while securing her helmet on her head.
The large dragon drifted over the area, the sound of its wings were the only sounds heard in the moonless sky. It seemed to be quiet as it checked out the area around the Uzumaki kingdom. Kushina managed to catch a glimpse of the winged beast, her lips pinched tight while squinting her eyes to see it. The lights from the fires managed to cause a reflection of the scales of the beast, and she could see that it always appears bigger than she anticipated.
"Prepare the catapults!" she hollered out, her eyes not leaving the beast twisting through the sky. 'What is it doing?' Normally it would have landed by now, smashing through walls, houses and whatever else was in its way and shooting fire in all directions. "Be on the ready!" she yelled out again. The dragon turned in the distance and flew back in their direction. "FIRE!" Kushina yelled out, pointing out to where the dragon was flying towards them.
Crashing sounds of wood and rope echoed through the air as the catapults popped their lit balls of fire, huge rocks soaked with oil to keep them alight as they flew through the air. Several catapults released their load in a unison so the dragon shouldn't be able to avoid them easily and the hope was at least one of the flaming boulder balls would hit its mark. And though the dragon twisted through the air, it couldn't dodge them all and it released a loud roar as a boulder collided with one of its wings, causing the beast to spin about in the air.
"YES! HURRY! Fire the trebuchet on my mark!" Kushina yelled again, fisting her hand in the air and holding it.
Men yelled all around the yard as they prepared the spent catapults with fresh boulders, lighting them on fire. Cries of the dragon began to echo through the air as it tried to get air beneath its wings again. "Keep an eye out! Hurry with the rock! Protect the queen!" The voices overlapped through the area but Kushina kept her stance, her fist high in the air and she watched the dragon struggle in the air. More boulders were launched to attempt to hit the dragon while it was flustered and succeeded as another flaming rock knocked the dragon in its large head.
"NOW!" Kushina shrieked out.
"FIRE!" Kakashi bellowed out who was a few yards behind her. Kakashi looked at the men around the trebuchet who released the hold.
The trebuchet released with a whoosh, sending the chains flipping high into the air, slicing through the air with just a slight whistle. Kushina's eyes followed the chains with her eyes until the darkness swallowed the reflection and she strained her ears.
"Keep firing!" Kakashi hollered out over to the other guards. "Keep firing until it's on the ground dead!"
Flaming balls of light flew through the air, one after each other towards the sounds of the dragon who struggled to keep flight. Explosions of light and sparks flew through the air when flaming stones hit the target. Roars of howls reiterated with each blow, the dragon whipped its head and wings about before a blow of fire burst from its mouth.
"It's falling!" Kushina called out, watching the flames spiral downwards while the dragon began to fall to the earth. "Charge!" Kushina held out her sword, pointing it out towards where the dragon was falling. "Be ready for anything!" She began to run, the guards flanking her closely, protecting and supporting their queen.
The dragon flailed its wings about, trying to gain air but failing quickly. It roared out in agony as it spiraled about the air and was slammed with several flaming boulders. Though it tried to keep itself in the air, when its body was hit with cold heavy steel that wrapped around its body, immediately entrapping it, the dragon could no longer attempt to stay in the air. Gravity pulled it hard to the ground, it was unable to avoid the flying burning stones and howled out with flames leaving its throat as it slammed into the ground. The dragon's massive head whipped about slamming into the ground over and over, its spikes ripping up the dirt. It howled out and blew out spurts of liquid flames that poured all over the ground, swallowing and burning all the foliage it came into contact with. It arched and flipped about, trying to free its massive leather wings that were twisted and stuck, its spiked tail slamming into the ground that sent vibrations with each slam.
Sasuke urged his steed faster as he saw the flames sparking in the sky, the echoes of the roars flowing through the air. 'It looks as though the dragon has been hit!' Sasuke thought with excitement. 'The kingdom may have finally managed to get the beast down to the ground!' With his heart racing with excitement, the thought of finally bringing an end to the dragon that had purged the land for so long, he leaned forward into his horse's neck and called out in breaths for his horse to go faster.
He was still a ways away, but he could see the shimmering of the beast's flames reflecting shadows off its body as he drew closer. He could see the torches of the guards and knights racing towards the fallen dragon. 'Faster…faster,' he chanted to himself. As the dragon continued to wail out roars and shots of liquid fire, he could see that it had managed to get onto its feet. It continued to turn and thrash about, trying to free itself from whatever was binding it and causing it not to be able to fly. Sasuke could hear the cries of the knights and guards getting closer to the beast and he could only imagine the excitement of the men hoping to finally slay the creature.
Sasuke's breath hitched when he got close enough to see how massive the dragon was. He could feel the heat blasts with each roar that was released and they were so packed with power his hair rustled like he was standing at the ocean's edge in the wind. Leaping off his horse, he sprinted towards the dragon who was still wailing loudly and thrashing about trying to get free, and grasped the handle of his blade. He felt the heated desire to bring down this beast now that it was on the ground, allowing the anger to boil up within him remembering what he had found in the cave of his beloved friend. He released a long war cry, unsheathing his katana and pushing his legs faster towards the beast.
Sasuke didn't hear anything else as he managed to leap into the air, his katana held above his head and he let out a cry of anguish and anger. He brought his blade down swiftly and hard, towards the scaled body of the dragon, and clenched the handle of his blade hard, anticipating that the skin would be thick and tough. His outcry was cut short when his blade only scraped along the scales and left a line of sparks along its path. The sudden shift of pressure had Sasuke losing his footing and his body twisted out of control, Sasuke's chest releasing a surprised gasp at the sudden change. "What the fu–" he managed to gasp out and his body slammed into the ground. The air was suddenly taken out of his body and he grunted out in pain when his chest collided with the earth. The dragon continued to thrash and didn't even seem to notice that it was attacked and Sasuke barely managed to roll out of the way of its massive clawed feet.
When he stopped rolling, Sasuke quickly got to his feet, ready to get out of the way in case the dragon discovered him and began to attack. Breathing heavily, he readied himself, his dark eyes taking in the scene. The dragon continued to twist and turn about, flames erupting from its snout, cries of deep roars echoing through the air. Sasuke could see that it appeared that the dragon was trapped in a visage of chains around its body. The chains weren't lasting though and now Sasuke realized that his blade appeared to have no effect on the scaled body, he quickly thought about his next move. 'Every creature must have a weak point,' he thought. Thinking about his research, he tried to think about everything that he managed to get recorded in his book. He bit his bottom lip, keeping his body at the ready in case the dragon decided to attack and grumbled at the result of his thoughts. He couldn't think of anything. He didn't know if it was because of the moment or if there really was nothing.
The cries from the kingdom's guards and knights broke him of his thoughts as he saw a small group running full force towards the dragon. His eyes widened at seeing the Queen within the group, her sword held high and tufts of her fiery red hair peeking out from under a helmet. Sasuke was stuck between being appalled at seeing her on the front line to high feelings of pride of a Queen that would take the front line for her people. He quickly shook his head and ran towards the Queen. "Stop! Your majesty! It's not safe!" Sasuke side stepped and jumped around shots of flames and as the dragon's claws and body swung about. Sasuke grabbed Kushina's arm that fledged her sword, holding her back as the guards and knights continued forward.
"Sasuke! What are you doing!" Kushina screamed out over the cries of the men and the roars of the dragon. She pulled her arm from Sasuke roughly, her eyes blazing in anger at the younger man.
"I can't let you put your life at risk!" Sasuke snapped back at Kushina. "You need to be alive for your people! Your kingdom!"
"I am doing what I can FOR my people!" Kushina snarled back and pointed at the swarm of men and dragon. "My kingdom needs to be rid of THAT! And I will assist in any way possible! YOU of all people, will not stop me!" Her eyes burned with determination, her lips pinched tight into a frown and her shoulders raised up and down with each heavy breath. Behind her the fight was continuing on, with flames shooting up and about, causing flashes of light to reflect off the knights and guards armor. The scene almost looked glorious, and Sasuke's chest heated with pride as his eyes roved over the sight. "You're either with me, or stay out of the way," Kushina hissed out. She turned quickly and began to run towards the battle.
Sasuke clenched his teeth together and drew in a deep breath. He gripped the handle on his katata hard and charged forward, catching up to the queen quickly. "Your majesty, I have news I need you to hear," Sasuke breathed out. "I–I've found…"
"Tell me afterwards Sasuke!" Kushina snapped out quickly while raising her sword. "Concentrate on the NOW! CHAAARRRRGGGG!" she howled out as she leaped high into the air, sword held over her head. Her sword clanged down onto the thigh of the dragon, creating a scratching noise and flashes of sparks as the metal didn't penetrate the thick scales. Kushina screamed out in frustration as she flew her sword with long swishes, clanging against the thigh of the beast over and over again. Her growls of anger huffed out with each attack, her frustration apparent with each unsuccessful hit on the scales. She jumped back and flipped over the large tail as it swooshed towards her and the dragon snarled out into the night air. The yells from the guards and knights continued to echo into the night with each sword and arrow they released towards the beast.
Sasuke ran swiftly up to the beast, leaping over the rushing tail and legs, planning to get to Kushina's side to assist and at least protect her. She continued to dodge the dragon's limbs and tail as well, and attempted to stab and slice at the dragon's body. "Your majesty, we need to find a weakness!" Sasuke yelled out and slid up to Kushina, slicing through the air blocking flying chains that were hanging off the dragon's body. "Where–" Sasuke swung out his katana again, "did these–" he dodged the tail by jumping to the side, "chains come from on it?" he finished out breathlessly as he again swiped at the air. The chains that clung to the dragon swung through the air when the dragon twisted quickly, snapping it's teeth at the various men surrounding it.
"We managed to bring it down with the trebuchet but–" she breathed out a yell when she swung her sword up, slicing at the tail that swooshed over her head. "It's managing to break free! I don't know how much longer we can keep it on the ground!" She called out again when she jumped to the side, swinging her sword towards the jaws that tried to snap at her. "Come on men! We need to find a weakness or something before it gets free!" Kushina called out as she lunged towards the dragon once more, her sword swinging about her head.
Sasuke continued to cover Kushina, making sure the tail, legs, chains and wingtips didn't hit her. His sword flashed through the air with ease, but Sasuke was scanning his eyes all over the dragon's body, trying to see any sign of weakness. It was quite difficult to do, for one it was night with no moon, the dragon moved about with speed and agility one would never guess a dragon would have and finally, trying to protect Kushina and himself was challenging.
"Sasuke! Stop worrying over me so much!" Kushina yelled out between blows of her sword that twanged against the hard scales. "I need you to watch for a weakness! Anywhere!" she called out while ducking from talons that swiped through the air.
"Majesty!" Sasuke cried out when the dragon's massive head turned towards Kushina. Its jaws were opening wide and it appeared to be starting to release a fireball. Sasuke twisted towards the queen who's back was at the beast's head and leaped high, his katana poised to strike straight down into the giant muzzle of teeth. Kushina managed to look behind her and she stumbled when the muzzle opened wide, a deafening snarl and glowing heat ball began to form in the beast's throat. "Look OUT!" Sasuke screamed as he brought down his sword, throwing all his weight behind the blade and pointing to the immense jaws.
Sasuke felt satisfaction when he felt his blade slip into the heated flesh of the dragon's muzzle. The beast's head fell to the ground quickly with Sasuke's weight and the sword pierced through its nose. He clenched his teeth, gripping his katana tightly, but before he could take a breath, the dragon whipped its mighty head up from the ground and Sasuke found himself slipping off the scaled muzzle.
"SASUKE!"
He heard Kushina cry out but his fingers still managed to squeeze the handle of his katana when the dragon roared out in what could be described as deafening agony and lashed its head about. Sasuke could feel the gravity force trying to pull him away from the dragon's muzzle, but he held fast, kicking his feet about so they didn't end up between the powerful jaws.
"LET GO! SASUKE!" Kushina screamed out again while trying to swipe her iron sword at the dragon's legs and neck.
With a powerful crack, the tail thumped on the ground and swooped across the land at all the soldiers, knocking them meters away as it roared out and fire spewed from it's mouth. Sasuke felt his fingers giving out and struggled to get his bottom half of body onto the top of the large muzzle. 'If I let go, I don't know where I will land,' he quickly thought to himself. As the dragon continued to flip its head about, it's feet clawed at him in desperation and its tail continued to thrash. He could barely hear Kushina yelling at him, but he almost had his legs up on the muzzle before one solid thrash had his fingers slipping off his katana.
He felt his body twisting through the air, his eyes frantically looking about as he tried to get a heading on which way was the ground. But with no light other than the flames left behind by the dragon, the fall was over suddenly when his chest hit something solid, pushing all the breath out of him and a painful crack was felt on the side of his head. He felt himself slipping against the unknown entity that stopped his fall until his body was forced to move another direction and his limbs became trapped in something that gripped him tight. Struggling to get his vision and see through the pain, Sasuke desperately tried to find his ground, to move his limbs, but found himself being flipped about again and the invisible force holding his limbs and body was solid. The pain ripped through his body while he was repeatedly slammed again and again against the unknown solid obstacle, his limbs still trapped. He tried to cry out, but his breath was stolen at every forced blow and his body would no longer respond. 'Wha–' he found himself thinking. With every push and pull, his body screamed out in agony. 'I can't….I can't… need to…' he struggled, but the heavy darkness was pushing on his mind so hard, he couldn't fight it and the last thing he heard was Kushina crying out demands somewhere in the distance.
"Hurry! Stop it! We can't let it–" Kushina bellowed out in the darkness at the men that were still standing. She cried out as she charged the beast again, pushing her sword through the night but stumbled forward when her sword hit nothing. "NO NO NO!" she cried out, struggling to get to her feet, lunging towards the beast once again. A gail force wind pushed her back and again she cried out as she tried to stay on her feet, but the force winds managed to force her to the ground on her back.
The deafening roar of the beast rang through the night when it took flight into the air. It's leather wings finally free from the binding chains and it roared out as it made its way into the darkness. With each wave of its wings, lifting the dragon higher into the air, the wind gusts pushed the men back further.
Kushina scrambled to her feet, attempting to run after the retreating dragon, but she was no match for it when it was airborne. She fell to her knees, ripped her helmet off and screamed out in frustration, "SASUKE!" Tears of frustration and sorrow ran down her cheeks as her mind replayed the scene of Sasuke's body, twisted and lifeless, trapped in the chains that were still wrapped around the dragon's body when it flew off into the night.
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Well, I certainly hope that this tale is entertaining enough to keep watch on. Fist pumps to those who have left a comment, showing me how you feel about this particular story. It is appreciated :)
