This story was heavily inspired by "Kunoichi Amongst Heroes" by Katsura369 from the name, story set-up and summary. Expect this first chapter to also heavily reference that.
This story was done for fun as an expansion of the Ben x Sakura one-shot I did on December 2021.
Shout-out to SilverWolf1130 for helping me to co-write the first chapter. This wouldn't have been possible without his help.
Disclaimer: I do not own Ben 10 or Naruto in any way. They were both created by Man of Action and Masashi Kishimoto respectively and are owned by Cartoon Network and Shonen Jump respectively.
Enjoy!
Chapter 1:A Fated Encounter
It is said that the existence of death is paramount to the importance of life. And though those words are undisputably facts, it can also be argued that death itself lacks meaning unless the life lost was one well lived.
And for a certain Kunoichi of the Hidden Leaf Village, that couldn't be any more true.
For the longest time,Sakura Haruno had but one desire; to be of assistance to those whom she cared deeply for. To stand as an equal at the sides of those who had stood by her both through the best and worst moments of her life.
To stand with them together as one team.
And despite facing perhaps the tragic event in her existence alongside many of her colleagues; The Fourth Great Ninja War, that once fleeting dream had begun to seem like a reality.
Reunited with her beloved Sasuke Uchiha, The Last of his Clan,alongside her dearest friend, the number one knucklehead of the Hidden Leaf Village, Naruto Uzumaki, the core members of Team 7 stood tall and strong in the face of their greatest adversary yet.
Kaguya Otsutsuki.
Their newly reforged alliance in order to oppose what could only be described as a God seemed to have achieved their goal,as after a hard-fought battle,a decisive blow to the top of Kaguya's head from Sakura would shatter one of her horns, and grant an opening for both Naruto and Sasuke to attempt to seal Kaguya by landing the same striking pose as Sakura.
Victory had seemed certain, but unbeknownst to them,it came with a grave price.
An act of desperation from Kaguya caused the white haired woman to stab Sakura clean through the chest with her hair, seemingly sealing her fate.
Far too stunned to fully comprehend what had happened to her, and immobilzed from making any sudden movements, Sakura's eyes became heavy, struggling to keep themselves open. Her hearing had also been impacted as a result, unable to make out a sound from her surroundings, only distortions.
Her eyes fell on the face of a smirking of Kaguya, and then looks of horror and distress on the faces of Naruto and Sasuke.
In what seemed to be her final moments, Sakura only had one thought circulating prevalently through her mind.
'Is this... the end?'
'Am I... going to...die here?'
In that moment of uncertainty, darkness had completely clouded her world,her eyes, and her body limp as it and her soul eagerly awaited death's embrace.
Across the interstice of life and the afterlife, Sakura's very being would be filled with overflowing memories of her life; all the way from her birth to this fated moment.
Like a member of the audience watching a play unfold, Sakura would watch on as the play that was her life unfolded in front of her eyes. As she began to recount the events that made her who she was today for what was supposedly the very last time, Sakura would feel an emotion that would garner uncertainty from many if they were under such circumstances.
Contentment.
For though they were instances in her life she wished had played out differently, and things she wished she had done differently, feelings relative to everyone, Sakura's overall disposition was one of contentment, and for one simple reason.
The bonds she made,the growth she experienced, the love she felt,all in spite of the cruel Shinobi world that she and many others had come to begrudgingly accept as their world. All of these things and more not only helped to bring light to what could have easily been a world covered by darkness, but also granted her feelings of validation of her existence.
That her life bore meaning.
And so,as her soul began to slip from her body, despite her dissapointment at her demise,she took comfort in the fact that her "Will of Fire" would be left behind in the hearts of her companion, and that their goal would be achieved.
But as Sakura expected to stare at the dark depths of the abyss, what was in front of her was instead a bright blue swirl similar to a tear in reality. This unexpected phenomenon between space and time brought feelings of confusion, uncertainty and fear to Sakura.
In an unexpected turn of events, the blue swirl cast on Sakura an even brighter light on her soul that would take hold of it. The most unexpected part of it however was that instead of illiciting feelings of distress and panic,Sakura felt a strange wave of calm and comfort from the otherwise alien presence.
And just as it completely enveloped her being, the rays of light would become even brighter, almost blinding.
It is often debated the validity of coincidences. Whether they are just random occurrences,or occurrences predetermined by fate.
For a certain Omnitrix Hero,he was currently somewhere in the middle of both spectrums.
Allied with his new Revonnahgander partner,Rook Blonko,the two stood in front of an adversary familiar to Ben but new to Rook.
Dr Animo.
Their current encounter with the mad scientist was one orchestrated by Ben as he believed Animo to be responsible for the series of several mutant like creatures attacking him over the past few days.
An accusation that though Animo did deny, didn't eliminate him from being a threat as he still bore sinister motives of world domination; one where he would rule supreme as the "Ant King" over all the mutated ants on Earth.
In a bid to prevent them from thwarting his schemes,Dr Animo ordered a group of his mutant ants to attack Ben, causing him to transform into his Appolplexian form; Rath.
"Cosmic Drop!" Shouted Rath as he brought down both fists on the body of a giant, mutated ant.
"Incursean Ambassador!" Shouted Rath as he landed a cross punch across the face of another.
"Sirius Butt-Kicking!" Shouted Rath as he landed a upwards kick on the backside of one. Rath would land on the ground as he looked at his defeated opponents.
"That all you got,Dr Animo?! Because Rath's just getting..." The Appolplexian would cut himself off due to his ears suddenly perking up. A loud sound akin to space itself distorting could be heard by everyone causing Animo,Rath and Rook who was several feet away from the two on a different section of the giant anthill to look at the ceiling.
There,they would see a giant blue portal briefly materialize above them before an individual would fall through it, causing it to dissappear instantly.
With a gasp of shock,Rath would jump high into the air and grab the falling individual from mid-air bridal style. Upon landing on the ground with the individual safely in his arms, Rath's eyes would widen in shock upon getting a closer look.
It was none other than an unconscious Sakura Haruno, with cuts and bruises across her face and clothes. Sakura's face and hair in particular seemed to have entraced Rath,as it was where his gaze was placed on.
"Ben!" Shouted Rook from afar, causing Rath to come out of his stupor and look at his alien partner.
"Are you alright? Who was that just now?" Asked Rook. Animo had briefly seized his assault as he too was curious about the identity of the individual.
"Yeah, I'm fine." Said Rath as his eyes fell back on Sakura.
"As for the girl,Rath doesn't know who she is." A groan would escape Sakura's lips as she began to stir slightly.
"She's waking up." Sakura's would briefly struggle to open, slowly but surely taking in her surroundings. But the moment they fell on Rath, her eyes were wide open.
An awkward silence would briefly stand between the two as a result.
"Uh...hi!" Said Rath with a sheepish grin.
"Aahhh!" Shouted Sakura before upper-cutting Rath in the jaw, sending the Appolplexian flying high into the air, much to his astonishment, and to the disbelief of Rook and Animo.
"Unghhh!" Grunted Rath in pain as he landed on his back with a heavy thud.
"Ben!" Shouted a distressed Rook as he began to run towards his downed ally with the "Thermite Powe Core" in hand.
"Uggh" Groaned Rath as he sat up while rubbing the right side of his head with his hand.
"Let me tell you something,pink haired girl who just sucker punched Rath! Rath was trying to save you!"
"I don't know what you are, but you'd best stay away from me!" Warned Sakura in a mixture of conviction of fear.
"Ben. Are you unharmed?" Asked the concerned Revonnahgander,as he now stood beside his partner.
"That attack just now looked quite devastating." A growl would escape Rath's lips as a result of Rook's words.
"Let me tell you something,new alien partner that I'm begrudgingly beginning to like,in spite of myself!" Snapped Rath as he got up.
"Rath was..." A loud beeping sound from the Omnitrix symbol on his chest would cut Rath off, before a blinding green light would engulf, reverting Rath back to Ben.
"Not now!" Groaned Ben in annoyance. Sakura was utterly star-struck by Ben suddenly reverting to his human form.
"Wh-wh-who are you?! Wh-wh-what are you?!" Asked Sakura as she took a step back, growing even more distressed with every passing second.
"Huh? You don't know who I am?" Said Ben in surprise.
"I'm pretty sure I'd know about a guy who can turn into some kind of tiger-man." Said Sakura snarkily, causing Ben's eyes to briefly widen in surprise.
"Listen,I understand you're confused, and scared even. Falling through that portal then ending up here must be a lot to take in." Began Ben with a tone of understanding, suprising Sakura in the process.
"But I want you to know that we're not going to hurt you. We just want to..." Ben would cut himself off, his eyes widening in the process.
"Get down!" Shouted Ben, causing Sakura to look back. With a scream, Sakura would instinctively fall on her knees with her hands clenching her head as a group of mutant ants would jump past her from above towards Ben and Rook.
One of them would tackle Rook to the ground and the others would begin to swarm around Ben, causing him to activate the Omnitrix and slam down the dial. The ants would begin to dog-pile Ben once the blinding green light engulfed him once more.
Sakura would watch on with horror as they all covered him. But at that moment, the light would illuminate brightly for a brief moment, before all of them would be sent back by a great explosive force.
"Wooohooo!"
Jumping high into the air with delight before landing on the ground in a superhero pose was Ben's new Orthopterran form; Crashhopper.
Sakura could be seen visibly gawking once more at Ben's alien form, unable to utter a word due to shock.
"Woah! New Alien. Cool! I wonder what I can do." Shouted Crashhopper with excitement.
"It doesn't matter what You do!" Began Animo, drawing Crashhopper and Sakura's attention to him as they watched him start to don an Ant-like Exo-Suit.
"For now you face the fury of..." Animo would then don a helmet with Ant-like googles on his head.
"...The Ant King!" Shouted Animo as he raised his now four arms triumphantly.
"Ant King? You might want to work on that name." Said Crashhopper with a smile.
With his lower arms,Animo would end a torrent of flames towards Crashhopper, causing him to jump high into the air to dodge, but also crashing through the rocky walls with his head in the process.
With a groan, Crashhopper would struggle to and eventually succeed in removing his head from the hole created.
"As for my name,how about Crashhopper?!" Said Crashhopper before jumping towards a pillar on Animo's giant machine,then jumping towards the mad scientist, headbutting him across the chest in the process and sending him flying back. Before Animo could get back up, Crashhopper would jump towards Animo once again, causing both of to crash through the computer terminal.
Rook would manage to get the better of his opponent by dodging an attack from it, and jumping on it's head, knocking it out. Upon looking at the top of Animo's machine,Rook would grab the"Thermite Power Core" once again, and use his grappling hook from his Proto-Tool to ascend to the top floor.
'Just what is going on here?' Thought Sakura as she continued to watch the battle between Crashhopper and Animo.
'Where am i? Who are these people? Why are they fighting?' Crashhopper would manage to tackle a fleeing Animo to the ground, before jumping atop a pillar on Animo's machine as he watched his downed foe struggle to get up.
"Had enough Animo? Cause I'm having...a blast!" Said Crashhopper with glee.
"Ben!" Shouted Rook from high above Animo's machine, walking backwards as an army of Ants began to surround him.
"Do you... have a moment?" Asked Rook,his nervousness growing.
With narrowed eyes, Crashhopper would jump high into the air, before jumping off the ceiling above Rook in order to land beside him.
"I could set this Power Core to detonate!" Began Rook.
"Great plan!" Said Crashhopper as he stood in front of Rook with a battle stance.
"It will destroy the anthill... the ants...us... and several populated areas!" Both Sakura and Crashhopper's eyes would widen as a result of Rook's words.
"Bad plan!" Said Crashhopper in a slightly panicked tone.
"What if i adjust the Power Core frequency to atomize just the ants?!" Asked Rook.
"Better Plan!" Said Crashhopper with a grin of approval. Suddenly,an elevator door would open in front of them, with Animo walking out from it.
"Curse you,Ben Tennyson! Curse you and your meddling ways!" Lamented Animo.
"See? Told you he talks like that!" Said Crashhopper as he looked back at Rook.
At that moment,Khyber's dog would land behind both of them, growling at Crashhopper in the process.
"Mutant dogs too?! One theme at a time,Animo!" Said Crashhopper as he looked back at the mad scientist with annoyance.
"What?! That's not one of mine." Said Animo before his eyes would widen in surprise upon falling on the dog.
At that moment, the dog would immediately morph into Crashhopper's predator; Mucilator, causing both Crashhopper,Rook and Animo's jaws to drop.
"Ohhhh... But it soon will be!" Shouted Animo menacingly after regaining his composure.
"YOU MUST OBEY ME!" Chanted Dr Animo as he placed his hands on his helmet, causing it to glow a dark pink and for sound waves to emit from it.
"DESTROY BEN TENNYSON!" Animo would stop upon seeing Mucilator running towards him,causing both Rook, Crashhopper and the ants to run away.
Animo would be unable to avoid Mucilator crashing into him, causing Animo's machine to shake violently, and for Sakura to nearly lose her footing.
"What's going on up there?!" Asked Sakura to no one in particular with a tone of worry. A deafening roar from the Mucilator would cause her blood to run cold.
"Whatever it is,it can't be good." Stated Sakura before looking at Animo's machine once more.
"I have to get up there." Sakura would then place her left foot on the body of the machine, concentrating Chakra to the sole of her feet, causing it to stick to the machine. Upon following suit with her right foot, Sakura would then begin to run up the machine.
Crashhopper grit his teeth in frustration as his attacks had no effect on Mucilator. But once the creature turned to look at him, his expression would turn into a smirk right before he jumped towards it. At that moment however,Mucilator would aim it's pink,larva sack towards the oncoming Crashhopper, causing Crashhopper's lower body to sink inside it.
Crashhopper would struggle to break free but to no avail.
"Uh-oh." Said a dismayed Crashhopper as his hands had also sunk into the larva, effectively rendering him immobile.
Watching from afar with a smirk on his face was Khyber.
"Ahhhh, almost done." Said Khyber as he brought out a blunt, silver sword. Mucilator would then lick it's lips, putting Crashhopper even more on edge.
"Rook!" Shouted Crashhopper before letting out a sigh.
"Help me."
Rook would roll to his left to avoid a fire blast from an ant before clearing it's legs with a slide tackle, causing it to fall hard on the ground.
"Gladly,partner." Said Rook as he knelt on his right knee before detaching the Proto-Tool from his shoulder and taking aim with it as it assumed it's blaster form.
"Hold still." Said Rook with a smirk before firing a three-way rope that latched itself around Crashhopper's upper torso. The rope would then reel itself back, pulling out Crashhopper in the process and causing him to land on the ground in front of Rook.
"Thanks." Said Crashhopper with a wave. A loud beeping sound would suddenly echo across the anthill and a bright red light would begin to form atop Animo's machine. Rook would then begin to run away upon noticing Mucilator running towards Crashhopper. But before Crashhopper could jump to avoid the attack, Mucilator would suddenly be sent flying to the right side by a flying punch from Sakura across it's face.
Both Crashhopper and Rook's jaws would drop in shock as a result, and Khyber bore an expression of disbelief.
"Woahh..." Said an awestruck Crashhopper.
"You ok?" Asked Sakura briefly bringing Crashhopper out of his stupor.
"Ye-ye-yeah... Thanks for the save." Stuttered Crashhopper.
"Don't mention it. I'm just hoping i saved the right person." Said Sakura with a weak smile.
"You did." Said Crashhopper with a snicker.
"Alright then. You mind telling me what's going on here?" Asked Sakura.
"Eh, just the typical world domination plot with mutant animals from Animo." Said Crashhopper with a shrug.
"You don't sound the least bit bothered." Observed Sakura.
"Why should I be? It's nothing I can't handle." Said Crashhopper with a cocky grin.
"Oh really? Because it sounded like you were having trouble with that monster over there." Teased Sakura. As if on cue,Mucilator would then begin to get back up, albeit groggily.
"I thought one punch would be enough to put it down." Mused Sakura, slightly confusing Crashhopper.
"A few more punches should do the trick." Said Sakura as she clasped her right fist with her left hand, much to Crashhopper's surprise.
With a groan,Animo would rise from the rubble caused Mucilator crashing into him, drawing Crashhopper's attention to him.
"Maybe you want have to." Posed Crashhopper with a grin.
"Huh?" Said a confused Sakura before looking at Animo.
"We need to destroy his helmet." Said Crashhopper.
"On it." Said Sakura with a nod before jumping towards the mad scientist.
"Gahh!" Shouted Animo, startled by Sakura's presence. A finger flick to his forehead would not only knock him out cold, but also cause the helmet to shatter instantly.
At that moment,all the ants inside the anthill would unanimously come to a brief halt before the ones above would begin falling down on Mucilator, with many more coming from other corners of the hill.
"Now,Rook!" Shouted Crashhopper. On the highest platform of the machine,Rook would pull a lever on an interface with the Power Core plugged inside the interface, causing a red holographic projection with a series of alien code to appear.
The red light from the high point of the machine would begin to glow even more brightly as it coursed through the entire machine, causing several parts of it to explode rapidly, and for the anthill to begin to cave in.
The ants would begin to let out screeches of pain before exploding simultaneously like bombs going off. A loud beeping sound could be heard from the machine, indicating that it had lost power, and a smoke cloud formed where Mucilator once stood. Once the cloud dispersed,Khyber's dog stood there instead, growling in annoyance before running off.
"Is it over?" Asked Sakura.
"Yeah, it's over." Said Crashhopper with a smile. The Omnitrix would let out it's familiar beeping sound before the green flash of light would engulf Crashhopper, turning him back to Ben, startling Sakura once more. At that moment,Rook would land behind.
"Thanks for the assist back there." Said Ben with a sincere smile.
"Don't... Don't mention it." Said Sakura with a weak smile,as although she regained her composure,her breath suddenly became ragged.
"You sure you're ok?" Asked Ben with a raised eyebrow.
"Yeah I'm... I'm fine. I just need to..." Sakura's eyes would then begin to flutter weakly, struggling to stay open,her body swaying from side to side as she struggled to maintain her footing. The Adrenaline caused by her previous predicament was what kept her awake, but now that the crisis had been averted,her previous fatigue made itself present once more.
"Just need to... get some..." Uttered Sakura with the last of her strength before falling backwards,her eyes firmly shut.
Ben would then fall on his knees and catch her with both hands, preventing her from falling hard on the back of her head.
"She must have been greatly exhausted." Noted Rook.
"Yeah." Said Ben in agreement.
"Her wounds are also quite severe. Most likely as a result of a fierce battle." Both Ben and Rook would notice the several cuts across her face and hands, along with her clothes being drenched in dried up blood and sweat.
"Hmm" Said Ben before gently placing her on the ground.
"We should take her back to HQ. Have her heal her wounds there." Suggested Ben.
"Agreed." Said Rook with a nod.
"Also,i get the feeling that she'll have some questions for us when she wakes up." Suspected Ben.
"I see." Said Rook before turning back.
"I shall bring the Proto-Truk here."
"Good idea" Said Ben in response,his eyes still on Sakura. Despite her wounds,she looked rather peaceful in her sleep, causing Ben to wonder amongst many things just how long it had been since she slept.
And though they were many questions that he wished to ask Sakura such as who she was,or where she came from, there was one question that stood strongly in his mind.
"Just what exactly did you go through?"
TO BE CONTINUED!
That marks the end of the first chapter
Hope you enjoyed reading it as much as i did writing it, if not more.
For those wondering what made me make this story,it came to my mind as a idea that interested me enough to try and explore,as i wrote this chapter a day after i conceived this story
Because of that I can't give you an exact idea of what this story will entail more than I've already said in the summary and this chapter,as you'll have to wait for later chapters to find that out.
Speaking of later chapters, I can't say for certain how frequently this story will be updated, as I'm yet to figure that out, only that it hopefully won't be too long before a chapter drops.
Until future updates drop, I want to thank you once again for the support, and that you should please, have yourselves a good one!