A/N: EDIT: Lengthened a certain fight scene AND added Salem's reaction to said fight because everyone asked.
Hope you like it. That said, please read this author's note, Would You Kindly?
First, this is basically TWO-chapters-in-one. That's right. TWO! I didn't want to shortchange you guys and gals. That said, we've got a few scene breaks here and time DOES pass in this chapter, so there's your warning.
As ever, any trolls in the comment section are to be ignored at or mocked mercilessly, whichever you prefer. Personally, I tend toward the former. True reviews always drown them out death threats these days anyway. I do so love reading those~!
Reviews, of course. Not the curses and death threats.
Hope you're ready, because this chapter covers a LOT of ground. That's why it took so long to update, rather, why this chapter is so LONG, because we've got a lot of character interactions to write. Salem's adorable to write in this story. Naruto even moreso. By comparison, to the last chapter, the romance here is...well...intense. That's to be expected of course. After all, Naruto and Salem are, quite literally, the last man and woman on Earth -technically Remnant, but still!- at the moment and they're alone at that. And you know what they say, misery loves company.
As ever, I own no references, memes, or themes.
Naruto's memories are returning slowly...
...and once they do...well...
...that's going to be fun.
Case in point:
"You cannot pass."
"And who are you to claim such a thing, mortal?"
"My name is Uzumaki Naruto. I am a shinobi from the Hidden Leaf Village. Host of the Nine-Tailed Fox. Protector of the Innocent. Devourer of Gods. I say again, you shall not pass. Cross that line in the sand at your own peril. But know that if you do...if you take that fateful step forward into my domain...if you even THINK of hurting Salem...
~a standoff.
Kiss of Hope
A man and a woman, together at the end of the world.
Really, it sounded like the beginning of a lost fable; some silly story told around campfires to delight children or serve as cautionary tale to those who wouldn't listen. Salem had never been much for fairy tales, even as a child. She knew her story was unlikely to have a happy ending. She'd learned to stomach that terrible truth long ago, albeit begrudgingly. The best she could hope for was the occasional pleasant dream amidst the sea of neverending nightmares that was her life.
And yet this was real.
Salem knew it to be so when she woke from fevered dreams and found Naruto tending the dying embers of last night's fire. Oh. That was a surprise. Bleary red eyes blinked once, then widened as sudden realization broke with the dawn. He was still here. If he'd heard her scream in her sleep, he made no mention of it. He didn't even seem to be aware that she'd stirred at all.
Nevermind that! He! Was! Still! Here!
Which meant he existed; not as a figment of her imagination, but as a person.
Instead of speaking, Salem contented herself to watch the blond work for a few moments more before she made her wakefulness known to him.
He hadn't laid with her last night; she knew that much, because she found herself fully clothed, if a bit dirty from sleeping on the grass. She wasn't sure what to make of that.
On one hand, the prospect of the chase -of courtship!- actually excited the silly maiden that lingered in her heart. On the other...well, she had an itch she needed to scratch damnit, and she was beginning to wonder if this boy wasn't dense as a brick. No! Thicker!
Well, she'd just have to be blunt enough to break through to him now, wouldn't she?
As she looked on, what remained of last night's dinner was carefully sealed in a strange scroll of some sort. He just sort of...pushed the meat into his scroll and it vanished in a plume of smoke.
Salem regarded the object with thinly veiled interest in the early morning sunlight. Mayhap it was magic of some sort? No, that was unlikely. The God of Darkness -damn him to the void!- had stolen that gift from Remnant, ripping it away from mankind before he destroyed them. She was the only one who still held it due to her immortality. In all likelihood, this likely a relic from Naruto's world. And what a fascinating one it was. She would have to ask him how it worked late.r have
At length Naruto stood, cleaned his hands one final time, and tilted his head.
"You've been staring for the better part of five minutes now." he spoke the words to empty air, back to her. "Something on your mind?"
Salem flushed at having been caught out. "When did you notice?"
"That you were staring holes into my back?" A cheeky grin peeked over his shoulder before he turned to face her. "Ages ago. You're really not subtle."
Wrinkling her nose in mild displeasure, the queen of the Grimm shook her head and sat up. She really wasn't, was she? Ozma was ever the crafty one; always the schemer, ever the planner. The one and only time she had tried such, her glorious crusade ended with the theft of magic and the destruction of the human race. Yeah, she wasn't good with plans.
"There it is again." A finger poked her cheek. "You've got that look about you."
"I have no idea what you mean." she sulked.
"Fair enough. What should we do now?"
A small smile plucked at Salem's lips as she considered his inquiry. Once upon a time, she was the one to ask Ozma such a question. Back then, she had been a prisoner. No longer. Now it was her turn to answer and for the first time in eons, her mind balked at the answers. Ideas. Activities. Countless notions of new things you couldn't do with one person, but two? Two was another matter. In the end, she settled on a familiar answer; a comfortable response hummed between the two of them.
"Whatever we want."
"Hmm." he granted her a grin. "Well, there's a river near here...
Salem arched an eyebrow. "Good sir, surely you're not implying that I smell?"
"Nope." he laughed, a ray of sunshine once more. "I'm implying that I need a bath. Haven't had one in weeks."
Pale cheeks burned bright as she traipsed after him. Truly, it was a strange thing indeed to be courted again. It left her feeling anxious and excited in equal measure. This young man wasn't some mere morsel to be hastily devoured and forgotten. No, he was a full course meal. A succulent feast, the kind that came around once in a lifetime.
This...this was something to savor.
(.0.0.0.)
They found that river in relatively short order.
Not a raging white ford as Salem suspected, but a babbling brook fed by a waterfall; one nestled beneath a rocky outcropping framed by a copse of healthy trees, their green leaves only just beginning to redden with the coming of autumn. It was beautiful to behold, nature in its element, untouched by man or civilization alike. The water looked deep enough to bathe in certainly, if not swim. There was no danger to be had here, and even if there were, she knew no wild animal could possibly fell her, much less her companion.
Salem still regarded the running water with thinly veiled concern.
"Its nice, isn't it?" her companion hummed, sauntering past her. "I found it a few days ago. Leads all the way down to the ocean."
By contrast, Naruto felt no such fear. He stooped by the bank and dipped his hands into the crystal clear liquid with ease, cupping a handful of water within his fingers. From there he thrust his face into the small puddle he'd created and shook his head vigorously to scrub the dirt from his whiskered visage. He didn't even notice her concern until he stood up again.
"Ah, that's the stuff." Blue eyes caught her fear and narrowed moment later. "What's wrong?"
She looked away, poking her fingers together. "I...cannot swim."
A bead of sweat ran down his brow. "Excuse me?"
"I said I can't swim, blast you!"
Salem seethed silently and stamped her right foot in a rare lapse of control. Well, why shouldn't she?! It wasn't as if her adventures with Ozma had ever led her near the water! She didn't even know what an ocean looked like! No wonder she'd never felt the need to cultivate the skill! She'd never known what drowning felt like, but she certainly had no desire to experience it!
She braced herself for the laughter, for a derisive jeer at the very least. It never came.
Naruto's hand came down on her shoulder and gave it a little pat.
"Don't wade in too deep."
Salem grabbed at his wrist but found his fingers instead. "Where are you going?"
"Downstream." he made no effort to tear his arm free. On the contrary, he welcomed the unnatural chill brought on by her hand. "You wanna wash in private, right? Can't do that while I'm here now, can you?" The tips of her ears burned a bright pink and his grin proved telling. "Yup," his smile gleamed at her again. "I thought so. Don't worry, I won't go too far."
Salem didn't much like the idea of him leaving her line of sight, but for decency's sake, she capitulated.
"Be safe." She squeezed his hand.
Naruto's smile faltered for a moment. "Holler if you need me, yeah?"
He tugged his fingers from hers and sauntered away, leaving the exile with her thoughts.
There was no point trying to control him. Something told her that any attempt to reign Naruto in would only lead to chaos and disaster. Salem didn't much mind the former, but she'd endured her fair share of the latter in eons past. Never again. Moreover, she'd been a prisoner herself. She would never force her will on someone she cared for.
Oho? a nasty little voice whispered in the back of her head. It was herself. We care for him now, do we? That's just adorable.
"No." Salem hissed the word, fist balling at her sides. "No, no, no. We are not going through this again!"
She'd endured the whole "talking to yourself" phase long ago. That had been a particularly bleak moment in her life. When one lived in isolate for hundreds of years one inevitably became a little mad. The doubt, the fear, the insecurity...it had driven her to a dark place. But she'd emerged from that pit. She wasn't about to slide down that slope go back if she could help it.
"And all this for a boy who cooked you dinner and held your hand."
"We've done...other things." she grit her teeth as laughter answered her.
"Yes, yes, pre-marital handholding and hugging. How crude! How shameless! Such a dirty girl!"
"Silence!"
Red eyes strayed back to the waterfall. She'd not had a proper wash in at least a century. She'd never felt the need. She had not cared to.
Still...perhaps a distraction was for the best after all.
Dark robes fell in a puddle at her bare feet and she stepped over them. Salem pulled the pins from her hair then laid those near her slippers as well, thereby freeing her pale tresses to glimmer in the morning light. Loose waves of ashen hair tumbled down her shoulders as she straightened, concealing her shapely rear while she walked to the water's edge. Hmm. It might be best to consider cutting it. Any longer and she might trip.
"Or you could keep it." the voice chimed unhelpfully. "Perhaps he likes girls with long hair. Who can say? Ozma certainly did."
Salem flinched, but dipped a toe into the water and found it warm, almost pleasantly so. Still, she dithered.
She wasn't about to jump in like some uncouth-
"Banzai!"
A might shout and a splash downriver told Salem that Naruto held no such reservations.
Such a boy. Still, his lack of restraint emboldened her. With one arm folded before her bare breasts for the sake of modesty, the Queen of the Grimm waded into the shallows. It felt...rather nice, all things considered. She couldn't remember the last time she'd let her hair down fully and allowed herself to bask in a simple pleasure such as this.
With a final tentative look back to where Naruto had gone, she began to scrub her arms.
(.0.0.0.)
"Don't you want to remember?"
There it was. That voice again. So familiar. Like a long lost friend he hadn't seen in ages. So nostalgic. So known. So unknown. Naruto frowned as he dunked his head underwater. There was a pleasing moment of sweet, blissful nothingness before he came up for air again. That brief second of silence allowed him to better center himself, master his thoughts and shove down the brief moment of panic he always felt when he spoke to him.
"Kurama, right?" he called out into the silence as he shook himself like a wet dog. "Is that you?"
"No, I'm freakin' Mary Poppins. Of course its me!"
An awkward pause followed as his words rang loudly in his head.
"Hey, no need to be rude." the blond pursed his lips. "Was there something you needed?"
"I...no, I'm sorry." he felt the fox sigh within his psyche. "Its not your fault. None of this is your fault. I'm just irritated. You should've remembered everything by now."
Naruto wrinkled his nose and gazed back at his reflection in the water's surface.
It felt like him. Looked like him. But it wasn't him. Or was it? His head and heart felt disconnected. He felt like a stranger wearing another man's skin. This young man moved as he moved and copied his every gesture, but he couldn't quite equate it with himself. No. Not yet. The thought galled him more
"I want to recall what happened to me," he admitted after a moment's pause. "I just can't. Its like there's a block there." one hand lashed out, splashing against the water to shatter the face staring back at him. Droplets sprayed everywhere. "Things trickle through every now again, but I can't make myself remember." It didn't last. Never did. Soon enough the image reformed, and he was left starting at himself once more.
"I've already told you all I know." the fox sulked.
That was the crux of the matter, wasn't it? When he'd first landed here, he'd been terrified by the concept of a voice in his head. Kurama had proven himself real time and again since then. Moreover, the words he spoke felt true, not like some distant story he couldn't remember. As if he'd been there. Lived it. If that wasn't reason enough to trust him, he didn't know what was. If nothing else, Kurama certainly wasn't an enemy.
"And I appreciate it." he soothed. "Thanks to you, I remember my name and how to fight...
"You're welcome!"
...but it still doesn't feel like me." the blond barreled on. "Frankly, its a lot to take in. You said I ate a god? How does someone devour a deity?"
"With a lot of anger and great determination." Kurama chuffed, but it soudned false even to his ears. "There wasn't any choice at the time, remember?" he must've sensed his confusion or recalled his amnesia, because once again, he retold the tale. "Sasuke lost his arm. Kakashi and Sakura were down for the count, and you? You were badly wounded. You latched onto Kaguya when she stabbed you, yet instead of dying, you ripped her chakra away from her." a shudder passed through their mental link. "I've never see you that angry before."
"Kurama?"
"You just...drained her dry, body and soul." The old fox continued to mumble to himself. "Like drinking a person through a straw. There wasn't anything left of her afterward. I'm don't know how you did it. Not even sure I want to know."
A strange sensation plucked at Naruto's heart as he splashed water onto his face. It might have been concern. "You alright?"
"Not really, but thanks for asking. I'm here. You're here. That's what matters."
"But you don't know how we got here." it wasn't a question.
"I do not." his partner-Ally? Friend?-sounded almost sheepish to admit the truth there. "Everything went black after that. And no, because I know you're about to ask, I don't know what all that power could do to you. I only remember as much as you do on that front. We woke up in this wasteland together, spent weeks wandering...
"Until we met Salem." Naruto concluded with a roll of the eyes. "I know. My memory isn't that bad."
"Everything should come back eventually. It has to."
"What if it doesn't?" he whispered.
"It will." a snarl greeted him. "Speaking of right and wrong, that Salem woman you've befriended? She isn't normal. She's broken. You'd do well to be wary of her."
Aaaand there went all the concern; every drop of empathy froze into stubborn defiance. Oh, he knew Salem was hiding something, but he also knew better than to pry where he wasn't wanted. He'd seen her step out of that fire unharmed. Whatever secrets she held were her own; she could reveal them at her own leisure or keep them locked away forever. He didn't much mind. He had a secret of his own, after all. Calling her out while concealing Kurama from her? That would make him even more of a hypocrite.
"Then she's like me." Naruto set his jaw in a mulish line. "If she's as broken as you claim, then I'll just have to build her back up again, won't I?"
"Do you care for her?"
His face turned red as he recalled the events of last night. They hadn't done anything untoward. They'd sat, held hands and talked about their lives until they fell asleep. Well, he'd done most of the talking. Salem had just listened until the end. The little that she'd told him though...well, if someone were to tell him she was evil at this very moment, he'd stand up and punch 'em in the mouth.
"Yeah." the admission surprised him when it came. "I do care about her."
A man with hardly any memories to his name and a woman left alone to die. They really did make an odd pair.
Kurama agreed with that assessment. "Heh."
"What?" the blond scowled. "Why're ya laughin' at me?!"
A fresh peal of laughter greeted him. "Even with your memories gone, you're still you for the most part. That's a relief."
"Course I'm me." he sulked, spinning in the water to face the shore once more. "Sometimes you get kicked when you're down. Sometimes you gotta kick back even if thaaaaaat is a big wolf."
He trailed off numbly as he came face to face with a massive Grimm.
It was an absolute monster even for one of its kind, standing well over ten feet tall on all fours. He imagined it would be yet taller still, if it stood on its hind legs. Ghastly red eyes regarded him behind a mask of polished white bone as it lurked at the water's edge, mighty claws digging into the loamy soil while it tried to make sense of him. Naruto couldn't bring himself to move and so the beast moved for him, nose snuffling as it leaned across the shallows to inspect him. But no slavering wolf was this. It didn't attack. Something held it back.
"Whoa there, girl." Naruto stood slowly and raised his hands, water dripping from his shoulders. "Let's not do anything rash, eh? I'm not in the mood for a fight."
Scarlet orbs stared back at him intently.
"I'm...just gonna get dressed now, alright?" he kept one hand up as he reached for his breeches. "Sit. Stay."
The beast made no move attack him as he donned them. He wasn't sure if that was a good thing. This thing almost seemed...intelligent.
He'd seen Grimm before, even fought a few of the mindless beasts a time or two when he had no other choice. Some he'd slain. Others he drove away. Some returned. Others did not. From what he'd seen thus far, you had to be wary of the clever Grimm. The longer these creatures lived, the wiser -and larger!- they became. This one looked like it could snap a grown man in half with a single bite. Not a threat to him by any means, but he'd rather not fight unless he had to.
"So...we good?" he hazarded a guess, stepping to the right.
The beast turned its head to follow him and he beheld the cracks in its mask; rather, a series of spiderweb fractures etched around what passed for its right eye. That looked familiar. He'd seen those somewhere before, hadn't he? In the back of his shattered mind, a recent memory stirred.
Clenched knuckles barreled into the beast's face, snapping its gaping maw to aside before those fangs could find him.
Its body crashed to the floor with a startled yelp. Lacking the strength to rise, it snarled weakly.
"Stay." he stabbed a finger at it. "You're not strong enough to beat me."
Blazing red eyes glowered balefully at him as he walked away.
Naruto blinked and reality snapped back.
"Waitaminute." his fist smacked into an open palm. "I know you! You're that damn dog from before!"
His voice seemed to reactivate the Grimm; for no sooner did he shout than it bulled forward. Naruto tensed, but no attack came. Instead it rammed its snout into his chest. He felt its entire body inhale deeply, seeking his scent like some giant dog. When it began to lick him, he laughed and tried to ward it off with his hands. "Whoa, hey! Blech!" he sputtered as that rough tongue dragged across the length of his face. "Down, girl! Down!" Much to his dismay, the wolf only made a chuffing sound and redoubled its efforts.
Large paws pushed him down and knocked him back into the water again. He thrashed upright, coughing and hacking.
"Stay!" he stabbed a finger at it. Incredibly, the beast obeyed.
"It probably smells Salem on you."
"Huh?" Naruto blinked. "What does she have to do with this?"
"You really have no idea, do you? Well, I'm not opening that can of worms."
As if summoned by that very thought, they heard her shriek somewhere a ways ahead of them.
Naruto blew out a long suffering sigh and loped in that direction. Much to his chagrin, the wolf followed him.
(.0.0.0.)
"No, no, no!" Salem wailed! "Get away!"
What was this thing?!
The Queen of the Grimm flailed backward, sparks skittering from her fingertips as she fought off her attacker. Hmm. In hindsight, perhaps "fought" was too strong of a word. Regardless, her power availed her naught. For all her might and magic, the damned thing refused to let go of her. Worse, she couldn't shock the blasted creature, because that would mean electrocuting herself. She had no desire to maim her body just to pry it loose either. Not that she could!
"Cease at once!" she glared bloody red daggers at it. "I you don't, I swear I will make sushi out of you and your descendants!"
If it was at all fazed by her threats, the octopus didn't care. Ghastly red thing only clung on tighter to her limb. Really! What was it even doing here?! This wasn't the ocean! Had it crawled upstream or something? Even as she debated that, a lone eye rolled up to regard her curiously, and Salem felt something gibber helplessly deep inside her. Squishy! Slimy! Nope! All the nope! Definitely nope! All her fire and fury quivered in the face of an unsightly horror such as this. She couldn't even bring herself to touch it.
So she flailed her arm again, to no avail. The creature inched upward toward her shoulder.
Salem absolutely hissed. "Let! Go! Now!"
"Don't worry. I've got you."
Strong hands reached over her shoulders, grasped the ghastly creature by the head, and pried the grasping suckers off her arm. A familiar scent flooded her nose as she stepped back into a broad chest. Her hands flailed again, but this time for a different reason altogether. She knew who was standing behind her. She didn't even have to look.
"The hell's this guy doing here, anyway?" Naruto regarded the cephalopod in his grasp with narrowed eyes. "This ain't saltwater. That said...
The tentacled creature quailed in his grasp.
...weren't you being a little grabby?"
"Why, I think he was!" Salem's smile was just a touch saccharine. "Be a dear and hold him still, would you?"
"Sure thing." Naruto held his arm out.
Salem snapped his fingers, conjuring a sphere of fire to her right hand.
Beneath her smoldering gaze and faced with such a flame, the octopus all but wilted. In all fairness, it lacked the means to communicate and thus couldn't shout to convey the terror it was feeling in that moment. Salem suspected she knew what it was thinking. Had it the strength to do so, she believed it would be raising his many arms in surrender. She could just imagine its voice now:
"Mercy, m'lady?"
Her lips twitched. "No."
Her hand scythed down and it was gone.
"Well, that's done." Naruto sighed, considering the charred remnants of the poor creature. "Glad I could help."
"My hero." Salem snarked.
"Hey, it worked, didn't it?" he smirked back.
She turned to face him with a smile and accidentally bumped up against, bare hip brushing his. Naruto's smile vanished as he was viciously reminded of her lack of clothing. With a fresh flush of heat, Salem remembered as well. For a moment she experienced a strange girlish desire to slap him for seeing her naked. She suppressed it ruthlessly, choking it down before it could manifest further. Why do such a thing? They were both adults here. Besides, he'd come to her rescue in her moment of weakness She knew he had no ill intentions.
If anything, the ill intentions were hers.
Red orbs blinked up at him through damp lashes. Blue eyes flitted down to her full lips.
Something stirred in the air and Salem's heart began to pound wildly in her ears, drowning everything else out. She could hear nothing more; not the birds in the sky above, not the gentle rush of the water, not even her own shallow breathing. Thoughts of dark pleasure burned in her veins, wild and intent. She could do nothing to calm them; her blood was well and truly up. Her tongue flitted out, licking her lips.
Naruto saw it and stiffened.
On a certain level Salem was aware how she must look in this moment. Just as she knew the effect she must have on him. Pale strands of damp hair concealing her breasts, one hand held between her legs to preserve her modesty. She was equally aware of him too; all lean corded muscle, body still damp from his dip in the river. Her eyes drifted lower...oh. Oh my. Good gods, you could grind meat on those-gah! Bad girl! Control yourself!
Her instincts were not so easily quelled.
Now, a voice hissed in the back of her mind. Take him! This is your moment! Do it! Do it now! He won't be here forever!
And there it was. The ugly truth. Salem didn't want to admit it, but she didn't long for a simple lay anymore. Rather, she did, but she didn't want things to end there. She wanted something that would last. But she couldn't have that now, could she? The gods had seen to such matters. Damn them. She could either have a pleasant memory, or none at all. Something snapped. Belatedly, she realized it wasn't her mind, but the very last thread of self control she'd been clinging onto all these years. He could die tomorrow for all she knew. Perish, the same way Ozma had.
"I'm sick of this." too late, she realized she'd spoken the words aloud, because his eyes widened.
"Sick of what?" Naruto asked.
"Everything!" despair burst out of her in a snarl as she glared up at him. "Of this curse! Of being the lonely girl in the lonely tower! Of living a lonely life!" Here at last her arms moved, as she hung her head, hands balling into pale fists at her sides. "I'm tired of being being alone." She stepped into him. "Of so very many things." Her eyes snapped back to him again, burning with flames. "I almost wish I'd never met you."
"Eh?" that got a startled blink from him. "Wait, you're cursed-
No, no, no! No interruptions! She was ranting!
"Hush! I was miserable before I met you!" Salem's finger pressed against his lips, muffling his words. "I had all but given up hope! You gave it back to me! You!" that same digit stabbed against his skull now, seeking the brain matter behind it. "You made me feel this way! This is all your fault!"
He could have challenged her, could've shouted her down in any number of ways. She saw it in his eyes. He chose not to.
She adored him for that. Oh gods. She wanted him. Was she truly that desperate? It hadn't even been twenty four hours! What the devil was wrong with her?! She knew the answer, of course. She simply didn't want to admit it. He was like her. The outcast. The forgotten. The exile. If that didn't make him a kindred spirit, she didn't what could. He was literally the last man on earth; even if he weren't, he'd stretched out his hand to her in her darkest hour and pulled her into the light. That meant something, damnit!
Pale hands grabbed Naruto by the shoulders, pulling him close.
"I'll be frank." her words were the fiercest whisper now, heard by him alone. "I'm sick of dancing around this. I want to kiss you-no, I am going to knock you down and make sweet, sweet love to you if you don't speak up in the next three seconds." she gave him a shove before folding both arms before her bare bosom. "This is your one and only chance to walk away."
With that said, Salem forced herself to stepped back and give him a chance to retreat.
Please don't take it. The voice came back with a vengeance, crying the tears she refused to shed. I don't want to be alone anymore. It hurts. Make it stop. Please. Don't push me away...
"Well?" she awaited his judgement fretfully. "Make your choice."
Naruto hung his head. "Well, when you put it like that...
Still the silence stretched on, seconds spiraling endlessly into oblivion. Salem tapped her fingers against her crossed arms, trying to still the frantic beating of her heart. She'd thrown the impetus of change into his hands now; whatever decision the wayward warrior made would be his own. Without warning he scratched the back of his head and raised his gaze to show her a rueful smile. For all her sorcery, she couldn't tell what it meant. That terrified her. Not for the first time, she wondered when -how?!- she'd allowed herself to come undone.
...I think I already have."
Her smile cracked.
"You have...?"
"To be fair," his smile turned a touch sheepish, "I know next to nothing about romance." Oh. Her heart turned to stone and fractured all at once; dozens of tiny cracks etched itself into is hardened surface. "If its a partner you're looking for, I'm not sure I'd be a very good one." Fine. This was fine. She could be an adult about this. She wouldn't fall to pieces because the only person to understand her had FORSAKEN HER-
"However."
All those tiny cracks mended themselves in an instant.
Salem's head whipped around and she tried in vain to hide the brief ember of hope that sprang to life in her eyes.
"If you're happy with a broken someone like me," Naruto coughed into a fist, "I'm willing to try."
Salem needed no further provocation than that. Those words sealed her fate.
Broken? What was wrong with being broken? She was broken too.
She stepped in and pressed her mouth to his.
(.0.0.0.)
Naruto's world went white.
There could be no other word for it.
One moment he was gazing a nearly crying Salem; in the next, her face lit up and she stepped into his arms. With a single vicious whisper, she stepped in and molded her mouth against his. In that moment, a single word passed between the two of them. He wasn't the one to speak it.
"Mine."
Her lips were soft against his, tasting faintly of berries and hidden secrets. Infinitely yielding, yet firm all the same.
Salem was a beautiful woman. And at the end of the day, he was but a man. She was attractive to be sure, there could be no denying that, but it wasn't her beauty that drew him in. Not even her tears. Her words did all that and more. Perhaps had he possessed the full breadth of his memories, he might have reacted differently. Might have panicked like a boy. Now? He was almost grateful he still had a few screws loose.
He couldn't fight off the urge to keep her close.
Tan arms wrapped around her pale waist and drew her close. Not enough to hurt or otherwise crush, just to hold her. His gesture emboldened the Queen of the Grimm more than he expected; she made a noise of delight, flung her arms around his neck and leaned in fully, angling her head to deepen the chaste kiss. When she pulled away to breathe he chased her, mouth crashing against hers. Red eyes flew wide open. This time the sound she offered reminded him of some dark beast, ancient and hungry.
Somewhere in the back of his mind, Kurama scoffed, rolling his eyes. "Nope. Not dealing with this. Wake me with its over."
A familiar wolf howled in the distance and Salem pulled away with a long suffering sigh.
"Made a friend have you?" Her lips glistened wetly, eyes burning dark with lust. "Should I be jealous?"
"Eh? Of a giant Beowolf following me around like a lost puppy?" he chuckled. "Nah, you reeeaaally shouldn't."
"Hmm." she pressed her head against his chest. "There are things I should tell you...but not now. How was that kiss?"
Wonderful? Heart-stopping? Amazing? Incredible? Naruto didn't have enough words to describe it. He'd never been kissed before and no, he couldn't recall that incident. Anyone who said otherwise was spreading vicious lies and propaganda. She'd ignited emotions in him he didn't even know he had. He wasn't sure if this was love or just lust. Regardless, he wanted to explore more of it with her.
"I'm not sure." he lied horribly. "Can I have another?"
Salem hummed and leaned in again.
"As many as you want."
(.0.0.0.)
For all the gaps in his memory, Naruto did his best to keep Salem entertained.
He didn't leave her side. Not once. If anything he proved himself good company, quick to fill awkward silence with conversation, always ready with an easy laugh and a quick smile. Their courtship was a slow thing, almost tentative really.
But as one year bled into two, followed by three, then four, and finally five, Salem began to notice things.
She could see him aging. Soon, he wasn't a boy anymore but a young man in his early twenties. And he aged well. Really, he did! But he still aged. Fear began to creep over her. How much longer would he last? Fifty more years? Sixty? Seventy, if she was lucky? Naruto swore up and down that he would last far longer than that thanks to his genes, but still the fear persisted. It bedeviled her to no end. It ate away at her from the inside, plaguing her every thought. She knew his time was limited.
And this...what they had was wonderful. She couldn't bear to give it up
She'd almost forgotten what it was like to be alone. He found a dozen different ways to entertain her everyday, and she learned something new at least once a week. It was a good life. Simple. Pure. When he looked at her he saw not a monster, but a woman. She loved him for that.
Oh, gods. She loved him.
Her feelings for Ozma -what they'd had together- would always be a part of her, but she didn't want to go back to her lonely vigil. Not now. Perhaps not ever. But time was a cruel foe. What fate could not take from her, it sought to undo through more insidious means. There was nothing she could do to stop it.
Immortal she may well be, and immune to the ravages of time, but Naruto was not
One day he would die. One day, he would leave her alone. And when that day came, she knew she would shatter.
Sure enough, it came to a head. It took years, but Salem's emotions reached a boiling point all the same through no fault of her own.
In hindsight, she wasn't sure what compelled her to bring him to the Grimmlands. Was it a whim on her part? An accident, perhaps? Salem did not believe in fate, and she loathed the idea of destiny. She'd meant to show him where she had been changed. And she had. She did. She told him the truth. She told him everything, laid her every sin bare to him. Of her loss, of her curse. She held nothing back. All this she did, expecting anger and fear, derision and scorn.
When he accepted her wholeheartedly, she broke.
"You can't be real."
Naruto looked away from the pool of darkness with a frown as she backed away from him. "How so?"
"I wiped out the human race!" she flung up her arms. "Yet you'd forgive me for that?! How?! Why?! I'm irredeemable!"
His blond brow rose. "Did you intend to get those people killed?"
She faltered. "No...but still...
"Do you regret it?"
A wince. "Yes."
"You made a mistake." Naruto stepped forward and took her hands in his. "Yes, it was a very big mistake, and it changed a lot of things, but that's life." his fingers squeezed hers, tan threading between pale. "Nobody's perfect. We all fall down. We all screw up." she whimpered and he pressed his forehead to hers. "Its in the getting back up again, what we do afterwards, that defines who we are." blue eyes bored into hers. "You want to be a good person, Salem. You just never had the chance."
"And what do you want from me?!" the words burst from her in a shout.
"I already told you. Nothing. The question you need to ask yourself, is this." he flicked her forehead. "What do you want? Are you happy?"
"No!" Harsh, bitter tears stung her eyes. "You won't live forever! You're only human! You'll die, sooner or later!"
"Salem, I don't even have any gray hairs yet." he tugged a stray strand of blond loose from his scalp. "See? Not a single one." when her expression didn't waver, he blew out a sigh. "I don't know what you want me to say here. I'm probably gonna live to be a hundred at least. Maybe even longer."
Any other day, she would have believed him. Now?
"But you won't live forever!" She laughed hysterically. Her fears had her now, throttling all logic, all reason, every semblance of sense. "You'll leave or you'll die and I'll be alone! Say you won't!" he looked away and it was good as damning him. "You may be strong, but you're not immortal!" pale hands rose to cup her head as her eyes watered. "You'll pass on and and I can't...!"
Here at last her voice broke and she doubled over, clutching at herself. "No...its too much...I can't...I can't be alone again...
"You know what?" Naruto considered her words. His nose wrinkled. Then he stood. "You're right. I will die."
Salem frowned when he pulled his fingers from hers. It hurt her more than words.
Blue eyes strayed to the pool of darkness only yards away.
"Funny thing, though. I think I see a way to fix that."
Salem grabbed at him. "DON'T YOU DARE!"
Naruto did dare. He dove forward.
Splash.
(.0.0.0.)
It didn't hurt.
Naruto blinked, squinting against the murky waters, to no avail. He saw only shadows.
From what Salem had told him, there should be terrible, terrible pain.
Yet he felt none of that. Not a thing.
Oh. Wait. There it was.
(.0.0.0.)
There!
Salem jolted back with a yelp as a clenched fist burst through the surface of the pool mere inches from her face. Her heart skipped a beat before she realized who it belonged to. Naruto's arm flailed blindly for a moment before latching onto the lip of the crater. Another hand emerged from the muck, grasping for purchase. She balked at it for a brief moment, not quite comprehending what was happening. Then her arms moved of their own accord and she reached out to grasp his hand. Firm fingers found hers and with a mighty heave, pulled him free.
"Oomph!"
Naruto didn't simply climb out of the pool. He crashed headlong into Salem, sending them both sprawling
Red met red and she knew he was changed.
Blue eyes had bled scarlet and black, his once healthy skin now reduced to a sickly grey shade. Veins of crimson crept through his whiskered cheeks, lending them those marks an almost eerie hue. As if the corruption had
"Well. That wasn't so bad, was it?" He grinned. "Now we match."
It took everything she had not to burst into tears. He'd corrupted himself for her. Thrown himself into a literal pool of evil, just to lengthen his life. It looked to have worked, too. The Grimm were eternal, after all. It wasn't a curse by any means, but his triumphant smile said he'd at least managed to achieve his goal. Still she had to know. She must know.
"How do you feel?"
"Energetic?" he tilted his head and bounced once on his feet. "Feel like I could run a marathon."
"That's all?" she blinked, a worm of confusion burrowing into her breast. "No violent impulses? None whatsoever?"
"Well." His eyes flashed and she shivered as a spark of desire shot through them. "I want to violently kiss you. Does that count?"
He delivered a bruising kiss to her lips before she could protest. Salem yielded to him with a moan, realized what he was doing, and wrested herself back. He reeled her back in like a fish, hands coiling loosely around her waist. Sharp teeth nibbled the nape of her neck, planting delicate kisses against her pale flesh. Her eyes burned scarlet all over again, threatening to shatter her control...and the bastard pulled away.
"How's that for an answer?"
Her face turned crimson. "Naruto!"
"What?!" he sulked, but there was an impish smile tugging at his pale cheeks. "Just being honest. Hmm." he squinted, eyes narrowing to think slits. "Wait a second. I think I can...ah! There we go!" As she looked on, tan skin replaced the ghastly pallor of his flesh. Color came flooding back into his cheeks. Silver hair burned a bright blond once more. Literally. But that shouldn't be possible. If he could revert to how he'd been before, did that not mean the same was possible for her...?
She asked as much. "How did you...?"
"Dunno." he shrugged again. "Just felt natural. Like flipping a switch, y'know?"
"Naruto," Salem swallowed, "You're on fire."
"Aw, thanks! Love you too!"
"No, really." she pointed a pale finger at his still-smoldering hair. "Fire. You hair is burning."
"Eh?" Blue eyes swung upward. His eybrows shot into his hairline, even now shimmering with faint golden flames. "Huh." a hand pushed through them and came away unburnt. "Neat. Well, that's a side effect. Not a bad one, though..."
Just like that, he banished the last of her fears into the abyss. To think, she'd actually doubted him. She should've known better. What had he said to her, once? Fuck fate and damn destiny? Yes, that sounded rather apt right about now. Laughter tumbled from her lips, long and loud. She couldn't hold it back. She didn't even want to try. So she settled for the next best thing.
She burst into tears and tackled Naruto.
"Hey!" He laughed. "Was it something I said?"
Salem silenced him with her lips and her hips alike.
(.0.0.0.)
"Aaaand that's the final plank!"
Naruto leaned back, tucked the hammer into his belt, and surveyed his work. It was crude, shoddy at best, but he didn't mind. Even in his first life he'd never been the best craftsman. The patch-job would hold until the roof started to leak again. He was sure it would, a few years down the line. Also fine. He'd patch that too. A carpenter he would never be, but he knew how to use a hammer.
"There we go." he grunted, pushing himself to his feet. "That should fix the leak."
Wiping a bead of sweat from his brow, he leaped off the roof in a graceful arc. From there he landed nimbly in the grass on bent knee and shoved himself upright once more. His joints protested the sudden movement with a jolt of pain. He ignored them as he always did.
"Showoff." Kurama uttered a jaw popping yawn. "Was there really and need for that many backflips?"
Maybe he was. Then again, he had good reason to be. After decades of wandering, he'd finally convinced Salem to settled down. Well, in as much as someone like her could settle down. Theirs was a homely little cottage in the woods, nothing more. Simple, even. Simple was good. Naruto liked simple. Even if humanity returned one day, they'd think twice before hunting in Grimm infested woods. And if they didn't...well. He still had the staff for good reason.
Sauntering up the steps, he spied a hulking dark shape lurking near the porch. Not on it, not anymore. She'd grown far too big for that.
A massive head rose from giant paws to regard him with baleful red eyes.
"Don't worry, Luna." he cooed at the Beowolf. "Its only me."
The dread wolf huffed once and laid her muzzle down, content to return to her slumber. Naruto took a moment to marvel at her. Really, she just kept growing. She was almost double the size she'd been when they'd first met, with no signs of slowing down. Just how big was she going to get? Eh. Not his concern.
Shrugging, he swung the door open and strode inside, grinning from ear to ear.
"Hey, Salem!" He called. "I fixed the...roof."
His words trailed off as he saw the love of his life. She wasn't in any shape to answer; though he supposed that one was her fault, not his. He found her sprawled gracelessly on the couch near the hearth, fast asleep. She did not toss. She did not turn; didn't make a sound save for her own even breathing. She was still and at peace with the world. He couldn't remember ever seeing her like this. She'd woken up screaming more than once before, and he'd always had to rock her back to sleep. Yet now...
Naruto's jaw clicked open.
"Well, I'll be damned." he whispered. "No nightmares...
Tiptoeing forward, careful not to be heard, he reached out and pulled a nearby cover over her. She muttered something in her sleep and rolled over, bundling up among the thick fabric. It was so adorable, so utterly out of character for her, that he nearly laughed. But he knew that would wake her. And he couldn't bear to do such. Instead he unbent enough to pat her head.
Her pale hand clutched at him before he could pull away, proving grabby in her sleep. "Please don't go...
He smiled. "I'm not going anywhere, sweetheart."
She didn't seem to hear. "Don't leave...
A strange feeling bubbled up in his chest. It felt like dread. Why? They were safe. They were happy. Nothing could hurt them. Stamping it down, the blond squeezed her hand until she released his. For a moment he found himself tempted to carry her to bed, but thought better of it. Salem looked too comfortable where she was and he didn't want to risk rousing her.
An almighty thunderclap rattled the world, causing Naruto to round on the sound. "What in blazes?"
Beneath him, Salem didn't wake. Good. She needed her rest. With a final look and lingering kiss on her forehead, Naruto went to investigate. Tugging his coat off the rack once more, the whiskered warrior snatched up his staff and trudged outside. A sudden impulse told him to lock the door behind him and so he did. It seemed like a flimsy gesture, but it helped to even out his pulse.
He had a bad feeling about this.
High above the clouds swirled ominously; that once clear blue sky growing darker with each passing moment. The wind began to pick up, creaking through the trees. A low peal of thunder reverberated overhead, and he squinted in its direction, eyes narrowing in search of the source. Luna stirred behind him, hackles up. The very earth shook as she rose up and padded forward. A low growl rattled his ears.
"Calm down." he sighed. "There's nothing out here. Its just thunder-
A bolt of light shot toward the house.
Naruto came about and raised his staff to intercept. Pain crackled up his arm as every muscle in his body locked down, but he grit his teeth against it and swatted it into the earth, tearing a deep furrow against the soil. It kept going, carving a terrible scar into the dirt. He paid the earthen wound no mind. His attentions was already elsewhere.
"That's enough of that!" He barked up at the clouds. "Whoever you are, I can sense you up there! Get down here!"
A swirl of golden mist answered him and quite suddenly, he stood before a god.
"Guard the house, girl." Naruto strode forward to meet him.
He still shot a quick thought inward. "Kurama?"
"Hmm?" his partner stirred.
"You with me?"
"Always."
"Good." he gulped, gazing up at the luminescent being. "Because something tells me I'm gonna need you in a second...
(.0.0.0.)
The God of Light returned to Remnant on a whim.
It wasn't anger that heralded his arrival, nor guilt, but something else altogether. Curiosity, some might call it. Perhaps even boredom on his part. He sensed that the Lonely Girl in the Tower still existed, but that she had yet to repent for her sins. His intent had been to simply peer in on her, to see why she still clung to her stubborn tenacity.
Then he saw the house and all that changed.
She wanted to have a life here, did she? Unacceptable. Her immortality was a curse, not a blessing. She was not meant to live out the rest of her days in peace. Her existence was meant to be bitter and brief, allowing her to reflect upon her mistakes before she returned to the cycle of life and death.
In a rare fit of pique, he flung a bolt of lightning at the house, only to find it blocked. Curious.
"That's enough of that!" Someone barked up at the clouds. "Whoever you are, I can sense you up there! Get down here!"
A voice called to him below, and he decided to indulge his curiosity. Had his brother missed some of the mortals after all? He'd been in a right state when he laid waste to this world; perhaps he'd not been as thorough as he believed himself to be?
How wrong he was.
When he drifted down to grace the mortal with his splendor, te knew at once that this one did not hail from this world. His body burned with an inner fire, one the god could not recognize. Not magic, but something else. Strange. It almost felt as if another pair of eyes were gazing back at him through those ice blue orbs.
"And who are you?" he asked.
"Someone who wants to keep her safe." came the grunt. "That about sums it up."
A disbelieving noise rose in the god's throat. It might have been laughter. He wasn't sure. "You...protect her?"
What nonsense was this? Salem's exile was no exile at all if she had someone to share it with. What good was such a punishment? Nay, it was not a punishment at all! How could she possibly be allowed to learn from her mistakes? He'd thought to return the barest vestiges of humanity to the world once she fell in despair and repented, but this? This was simply unacceptable.
Life would indeed return to this world one day, but not like this.
This...this would not do. Not at all.
"You have been deceived, mortal." Truth was his greatest weapon, even after all these years the God of Light wielded it like a sword. "She is responsible for the destruction of this world. It is by her hand that humanity perished so long ago. Do you think her a victim in this? I assure you, she is not. She is the cause of the devastation you see."
"And?"
The God of Light blinked. "Pardon?"
"What of it?" the mortal shrugged. "We've all got skeletons in our closet; we all make mistakes. She clearly regrets hers. So what if she's immortal?" another shrug followed the first. "I'll still be there for her. She can't die, you say?" a third shrug. "I'll do something about that, too. Unlike you, I keep my promises."
That...stung a little more than it should. The God of Light blinked again and tried another avenue of attack.
"You are an aberration. You should not be here." Of course, he expected the mortal to bow and thank him for his most generous offer. "I would send you back to your world."
He did not receive it. "Nope."
A pause. "No...?"
"My home IS here now, your godliness. And keep your voice down." the whiskered warrior flicked a hand at him for silence. "You're going to wake Salem. She finally fell asleep, and she's not having a nightmare for once. Do you have any idea how many years that took?!"
Nightmares? The God of Light inclined his head to regard the humble cottage behind the blond. If the girl from the lonely tower was still suffering after all this time, then that implied she felt guilt for her actions. Perhaps he should simply return her to the cycle of life and death. With her gone, this...anomaly would have no reason to dwell in this world any longer. That would be best for all parties, certainly-
"Ah, ah, ah!" A staff slapped his chest, forcing him to halt midstride. "You'll be leaving her alone."
The God of Light drew back with a silent scowl his face could not show. Such impudence. "You would defy your god?"
"Funny thing, that." Naruto's smile was just the wrong shade of vicious. "You're not my god. Never have been, never will be. Deal with it."
"What is a mortal to a god?"
Said mortal lifted his chin. "What is a god to a nonbeliever?"
In a whirl of radiance, the God of Light changed his shape once more. His body gained mass and form where there had been none before, golden coils of scaled light unfolding in a heartbeat. Light burst from very pore of his being as his jaws lengthened, the horns upon his head growing wicked and sharp. Within moment, he ceased to resemble a human at all and became a best unparalleled. Great golden whiskers hung from a maw filled with terrible teeth, teeth that parted now to speak.
"Do you believe now?" he asked.
"No." the young man deadpanned. "Oh, look. A dragon. Is that supposed to scare me?"
"Listen to me very carefully." said dragon reared back, coils writhing and twisting like some hideous snake. "I will only say this once. Do not mistake wielding some semblance of my brother's power for our true might. Immortality or not, I am still a God. And you?" a peal of almighty thunder echoed through the skies above, resonating with his words. "You are a tin man in a lightning storm."
"Allow me to offer a rebuttal." Naruto raised his staff. "I'm not a tin man. I'm a lightning rod. Let your storm it come."
"I do not wish to kill you." Such recklessness. Such temerity. Truly, the arrogance of these mortals knew no bounds. "Let me through. This is your final warning."
The staff came down.
"You cannot pass." he declared.
"And who are you to claim such a thing, mortal?"
"My name is Uzumaki Naruto." said mortal stood fast beneath the weight of his gaze. "I am a shinobi from the Hidden Leaf Village. Host of the Nine-Tailed Fox. Protector of the Innocent. Devourer of Gods." he seemed almost ashamed to admit that last part. "I say again, you shall not pass. Cross that line in the sand at your own peril." a lone finger rose to accuse him. "But know that if you do...if you take that fateful step forward into my domain...if you even THINK of hurting Salem...
His staff struck the earth, splintering it in a single strike.
...YOU'RE GONNA REGRET IT."
The God of Light twitched. Enough of this. He'd given this fool countless chances to step aside, even offered to return him to his rightful place. Yet he continued to defy him and so too did his patience grow thin. He would remove this impudent pup, then return Lonely Girl to the cycle of life and death once more. All would be made well. This farce would never bear repeating. He and his brother would return to this world and remake it as it was meant to be...and they would never suffer such rebellion again.
"As you wish." his head bowed. "I will end your life painlessly."
A vicious crack howled through the air as a bolt of lighting lanced from heaven to earth faster than the naked eye could comprehend. There was no warning beyond that; nay, even that noise alone was more illusion than any real afterthought. It was a swift, singular strike, the wrath of a mighty deity made manifest in but a single breath. Blue eyes rose to meet it. Death came with a thundercalp.
And someone shouted back!
"You! Shall not! PASS!"
Naruto caught it.
Rather than dodge or evade or even block like any sane mortal would, the blond planted his feet, cast his staff aside, and took it head on. Bare feet bit into the dirt as he skidded back nine paces, sparks skittering across his form. A single grunt of pain was all he gave. Nothing more. Nothing less. Azure orbs narrowed up, framing a wild grin within. In a single seamless movement he stomped down, swept his arms low in a sweeping stance across the lower part of his torso, pressed two fingers together and...
The God of Light stiffened. A pang of dread overtook him. No. Surely not.
...HA!"
BA-KRANG!
A sharp bark of triumphantly manic laughter burst into the air as the mortal flung the god's own lightning back in his face. Caught wholly unawares, the God of Light tried to evade, but it was too late. For his folly, he took his own blast dead in the chest. It bore a terrible hole through his serpentine form and smote him from the skies as surely as a falling star.
To his credit, the startled god tried to right himself.
He tried to recover his lost momentum.
Tried to do anything other than fall.
He did not succeed.
What he did was topple out of the sky squawking a startled crow, hitting every single branch on the way down. The trees were a cruel mistress. The ground, a harsh taskmaster. It showed him no mercy. And the mortal? Hold just a moment. Where had the mortal gone? He'd been standing there only a second before...wait.
A kick slammed into his mighty skull, sending his world spinning.
Nevermind. He'd found the mortal.
At first, the God of Light didn't sense the coming danger at all; indeed, he couldn't even begin to comprehend the very concept of such. Danger? What could possibly hurt him beyond his own power? He would heal quickly from this, and not make such a mistake again. For all his claims to power, the mortal could not kill him. He knew this. He'd simply made a mistake. That was all.
"Foolishness." he growled. "A miracle can only occur once-
That opinion changed when said mortal flashed into existence directly before his right iris. For a fleeing moment, the God of Light glimpsed a terrifying visage boring into his own. Only then did he realize his peril. Too close! Far too close! All of his instincts -the very fiber of his being!- howled at him to move, yet fear, actual fear, paralyzed him. He couldn't move.
"If a miracle only happens once," the cheeky mortal leered at him, "Then whaddya call it the second time?"
Anger broke through the fear and the mighty dragon sought to to rear back and use his jaws against this sudden threat, only for a gleaming golden hand to grasp one of his long whiskers. A swift tug yanked him back to the ground, stunning him once more. The mortal stamped down on his snout, pinning him in place before he could thrash his way to safety. A strange, keening shriek filled the air and for the life of him, the God of Light couldn't place its origin. Hold on. Now he saw a light...?
"Walk towards it."
Naruto rammed the Rasenshuriken through his right eye and for the first time since he'd come to be, the God of Light cried out in pain. The sheer force of the jutsu crunched against his skull, obliterating one of his horns and eviscerating his lower jaw as it bore him down into the ground. A thousand tiny blades tore at his scaled visage, ripping and tearing like countless hungry mouths eager for blood. Make it stop, make it stop, make it stop! There was no thought, no rhyme, no reason, only endless torment. He couldn't move, couldn't think, couldn't breathe.
Trying to push it away with his claws only made it worse; for the attack tore at them as well, dragging them into the vortex of despair with merciless intent.
Quite suddenly, it was over, leaving the God of Light trapped in a crater of his own making.
A deity reduced to a quivering wreck upon the forest floor, wishing for death.
Death would be a mercy compared to this.
Writhing in pain, the fallen god could do naught but revert to his true humanoid form and try to recover, left wasted and gasping for air as his wounds struggled to heal. He was eternal. Everlasting. An attack such as this would not kill him. That wasn't to say it didn't hurt however. It did. Immeasurably so. Agony filled every cell of light that made up his body. That attack was made for the sole purpose of taking lives. There could be no other cause for such a destructive thing.
"Owww!" An angry hiss greeted him and he dared to look up to see his tormentor waving a ruined arm. "That hurts! 'Suppose that's what I get for letting my temper get the better of me and not throwing the damn thing...
As he looked on, the man's ravaged right arm began to heal, fresh pink skin overtaking scarred tissue. Within moments the injury ceased to be in its entirety.
"Impossible." he rasped. "How can...what are you?!"
"I told you. I devour gods." slim shoulders rose and fell in a shrug as he flexed his restored fingers. "As to that little trick with the lightning, well." the mortal gave him a wink. "What can I say? A few decades gives a man time to practice. I may not quite have the "almighty cosmic power" bit down yet, but I'm getting there."
The God of Light tried to rise. A booted foot stomped down again, trapping his skull where it lay.
"Ah, ah, ah!" the mortal -Naruto!- tsked at him, waving one finger. "You're not going anywhere. Lets have a chat."
Unseen eyes narrowed. "We...have nothing to speak of."
"I think we do." those slitted eyes narrowed to vicious slits. "Lift the curse from Salem."
"No."
"I wasn't asking." a fresh Rasenshuriken snarled to life in the blond's palm. "Lift it. Now."
"You misunderstand. I cannot." It was the truth, after all. What need had he to lie? The truth would bring this impudent mortal more pain than any falsehood. "She was cursed by both my brother and I together, and only through our power together may the curse be lifted. No amount of pain can make me perform and act that is beyond me."
"You have a brother?" Red eyes blinked in surprise. "Call him, then! I'll knock some sense into him, too!"
The God of Light knew he could. He could send out a call to his younger sibling at this very moment. Summon him here, to this world once more. It was the right bequeathed him as Eldest. But that would mean giving in to this mortal. Granting him what he wanted. Doing his bidding. It would mean they were wrong to curse that woman in the first place. That wretched little witch who dared to trick them. He had thought to return her to the cycle of life and death, but now? After the beating he'd taken? He felt no such charity.
No. He refused. This arrogant oaf deserved to be miserable.
He would not call his brother here; because if he lost to this mortal, the God of Darkness might yet be swayed.
"My brother is not so foolish as you might think. He will have seen our fight and will stay away." He relished the look of despair that flashed across the blond's face before he mastered himself. "Salem must understand the importance of life and death. Only then will she be released."
"Release?!" Naruto kicked him. "She already does, you twit! Can't you see that?!"
"She does not." The God of Light sneered. "She never will."
The sphere slowly guttered out in the mortal's palm.
"Then I'll find a way to lift the curse myself."
Foolishness, again! "You cannot."
"Funny. They told me I couldn't be a shinobi." Wild eyes locked on him, burning with cold intent. "They told me I couldn't beat a goddess, either. I did both of those things. Why not break a curse and go three for three?"
Such arrogance.
"I cannot die. I am eternal."
"Maybe so." a blond brow rose. "But right now? You're weaker than you've ever been. Haven't you noticed?"
The God of Light turned his attention inward. His injuries had been slow to heal; even now he hadn't fully recovered from that last attack. His might and majesty were still very much present, yet now that he knew what to look for, he noticed it. Everything felt...dimmer somehow. As though someone had cast a shadow over his very being. Surely that technique couldn't have damaged him this much...?!
"No." the word was a hiss.
"Yup." Naruto smacked his lips with a resounding pop. "The Rasensuriken is a nasty piece of work, isn't it. My jutsu was made to target the cells of whomever it hits. Guess gods have those too. How long will it take you to recover from this? Years? Decades? Centuries?"
A wordless snarl greeted him.
"What's wrong? Cat got your tongue?"
"You are unwise...TO LOWER YOUR DEFENSES!"
Fury consumed the God of Light as he bucked the blond's boot away and transformed in a second swirl of holy radiance. For a moment, the mortal reared back in surprise, blue eyes bulging. In that moment, draconic jaws closing around him with a terrible crunch. It was a brutal end for a brutal warrior.
Content in his victory, the God of Light turned to regard Salem's cottage and the lone Beowolf guarding it-
Thump.
He stilled.
Thump. Thump.
This wasn't possible.
Thump. Thump. Thump.
That fool couldn't possibly be...?!
The God of Light felt his teeth crack a heartbeat later as a pair of giant hands forced themselves between his incisors. Something impossibly large pushed his mouth open, inch by agonizing inch, wrenching bone and sinew in twine. A low growl rose in his ears. It did not belong to him. With each passing moment it grew louder, and so too did his strength wane. No, no, no! This could not be! It mustn't be!
"Insipid mortal!" he cried, panic overtaking him. "Why won't you die?!"
He exhaled in a mighty torrent of death, bathing the fool hiding in his mouth with napalm. It wasn't enough. His jaws continued to part. Fire burst from his maw to set the very trees alight. The pain did not abate. Still he roared. It only grew worse. Still he spat flame and fury, thrashing against the forest floor. Yet his torment did not end. Why?!
"Because I made a promise."
Something latched onto his tongue, and the fire within cut off in a gurgle as golden hands locked around the offending tissue. The God of Light had mere moments to comprehend his peril, to actually consider begging for mercy. He never had the chance to give voice those words; for his foe tore it free from his maw. By then, he was too busy roaring to offer anything resembling speech. One final blow broke his jaw, and then he was free, alighting upon the ruined soil below.
"You know," he reached up, pulling a towering tooth free from his shoulder. "I was trying to be nice." a baleful red eye regarded him as he cast it aside . "Clearly, kindness is wasted on you."
Now it was the blond's turn to change.
Naruto didn't simply gain height. Even in his agony, the God of Light recognized that. Because he became something else entirely. Rather, something else rose around him to carry him with it, flinging him into the air as a body grew around him. For a moment, just a moment, the wounded deity glimpsed a mighty golden kitsune looming over him. Fresh. Healthy. Utterly unhurt...unlike himself.
"Oh." he had a moment to blink up at the behemoth he'd unleashed. "I've blundered."
Yes, the universe agreed wholeheartedly. And now you reap the whirlwind.
His world vanished in a haze of pain.
The monster with many tails knew no mercy; it gripped the God of Light by the horns and smashed his ruined face down into the ground. Broken and bleeding he fought back nevertheless; trying in vain to coil around the creature, to choke the life from it, to no avail. It tore his coils away with callous ease and pinned him, forced him to revert once more.
So too did the boot stomped down on God's skull again, now with ten times the force of before.
And just like that, he found himself face to face with the mortal once more.
"You done now? Nothing left in the tank? Nothing more to say?" his adversary scoffed, grinding an armored heel into the god's visage. "That's alright. I'll do the talking. Now you may be thinking, if I can devour gods, why not take some of your power, too? Surely having that would only help lift the curse, right? His armored boot ground down further, fracturing the god's face. "Well, the answer might surprise you!"
Naruto leaned closer, pressing his forehead to that of the fallen deity.
Lips brushed what passed for the being's ear.
"I already have."
The God of Light balked. Lies, surely. That was impossible. When? How? He would have felt such a thing! But he was already so diminished, weakened by the last blast...he had no way of ascertaining the truth, of knowing whether the Rasenshuriken had truly weakened him this much, or if something was truly stolen from him. Had it been during that brief battle? It couldn't be...could it?"
"Salem may not be strong enough to banish you from this world, but me?" Pearly white teeth flashed at him in a ghastly grin as he leaned back. "After that little dip a few decades ago, I'm stronger than I've ever been. Unfortunately for you, I'm not as nice as I sued to be. And now?" A hand rose, bathed in golden light, fingers splayed. "Memories or not, it doesn't take much to see you for who you are."
The God recoiled, still clutching a ruined limb to his chest. "And what am I?"
"A parasite. I've dealt with those before, too." the mortal continued to talk almost amicably, even as that lone palm began to swirl with eerie light. Could light be black? "Orochimaru. Madara. Kaguya. You may think you're special, but to me?" blue eyes bled red. "You're just a big fish trapped in a small pond." now the other hand rose to cup it, building the blaze in his hand once more. "You don't even realize there's a whole ocean out there, filled with other fish. And there are sharks in deeper waters."
"Is that what you claim to be...?"
"Answer that question yourself." Pearly white teeth flashed in the storm. "You and your brother can send your armies at us." his voice rose as the wind picked up, straining to be heard in the coming darkness. "Send your proxies! Send your servants! Send your followers! I WILL save her!" a manic light burned in his eyes. "But you won't be here to see it! I may not be able to kill you...but I can kick you off this planet!"
Blue eyes flashed into crimson once more as a giant fox reared over him once more.
Naruto's smile turned vicious. "Now get the hell off my lawn."
As the tailed beast bomb burned his world red and banished him from the face of Remnant, so too did the God of Light hear his brother's laughter. It was a deep, throaty sound, one that filled him with shame. Bested by a mortal. He'd never hear the end of this, he just knew it.
There would be vengeance for this slight.
So he swore.
(.0.0.0.)
Naruto watched the last of the God dissolve before his very eyes.
Was this a victory? It felt like a victory. Even now, he half-expected one last ditch attack, some final curse flung at him as he departed. None came, and the skies began to clear. settled it, then. Not only had the God of Light been bested, but they'd weakened him so badly that he'd become incorporeal once more. He wouldn't soon return. Assuming he could at all.
A pleasant feeling burned through his chest as he massaged his wounded shoulder. Damn thing would probably scar. Well worth it.
"He'll be back, you know." Kurama warned. "He strikes me as the sort to hold a grudge."
Naruto stooped down to retrieve his staff. "Come hell or high water, we'll be ready."
They'd have to be. Gods were petty and while he had yet to meet the God of Darkness...well. He didn't much relish the idea of facing two gods at once. It was a fight he was sure he could win, but he wouldn't put it past them to stack the deck in their favor the next time they met. And there would be a next time. There could be no doubt about that. Bastards. They wouldn't catch him unprepared.
"Oh, I'm sure well be prepared." his partner laughed suddenly. "But are you ready for Salem's reaction?
He felt someone drilling a hole into his back. His spine stiffened. "She's right behind me, isn't she?"
"Yup." the fox answered with a smirk. "That'd be her."
"How long has she been watching?"
"Only the last two minutes."
Meaning she saw.
Urk.
Naruto didn't want to turn around. He really, truly didn't; if only because he wasn't sure what he would find there. Shock? Joy? Fear? His legs felt like blocks of lead, but he forced himself to turn even as his mind whirled wildly. Chin up, now. Hold your head high. You haven't done anything wrong here. If anything, she should be happy...right? Uncertainty clawed at him. He came full circle.
Salem was indeed waiting for him when he turned around.
"You...beat...him...?" her voice was barely a whisper.
She balked at him eyes wide, lips forming a small round oval of surprise. Her eyes traveled up to the fading light, then snapped back to him.
She looked like she'd only just woken from her nap; even now he saw her there, standing on the porch- wait, standing no longer. Without warning she darted forward, tearing down the steps in her haste. She absolutely blitzed him and he had half an instant to glimpse a familiar emotion in her eyes before she was on him. Not with anger or fear as he'd expected, but something else altogether. An emotion he recognized all too well. Oh, dear. That looked like...
Salem crashed into him, knocking him back half a pace with the sheer intensity of her tackle.
Her hands clamped down on his face firmly, locking him in place. For a moment her eyes seemed to pulse with living flames, trailing visible tongues of fire at the edges before she could clam herself. Then those pale palms whisked down over his chest and shoulder to inspect his wounds. All the while her mouth worked wordlessly, unable to form the words she so desperately wanted to say. So he said them for her.
"I'm alive." he croaked the words, reaching up to cup her cheek. "I won."
Those four wounds must have unburdened Salem; because red eyes flashed and she made a noise somewhere between a gasp and a sob, tears burning in their black depths. He knew she was too stubborn to let them fall while he could see. When her tongue failed her again, she settled for a less...audible means of communication. Her kiss stole his breath away and left him reeling.
"You wonderful, wonderful man."
"Bwuh? His mind rebooted.
Salem kissed him fiercely.
A/N: Full credit to "Thor" for that storm line. Bloody badass, that.
I'm sure you all recognized a few other references, and they were a bloody pleasure to write.
Right, time for questions and answers! Kurama all but stated that Naruto DEVOURED Kaguya; simply because there was no other option when the seal failed. Is that the reason for his memory loss, why he landed in Remnant, everything? Not saying.
Regardless, if this chapter didn't make it quite obvious, our boy's basically a demigod now, though he has yet to tap until his full potential on that front. Unlike Salem he cannot be cursed. Unlike Ozma, he cannot be broken. He has one goal. One purpose.
Save. Salem.
That's it. Woe to those who get in his way.
Also, by popular vote, their firstborn daughter -if they have one- shall be Wiene. Yes, THAT Wiene from a certain anime. She even resembles Salem in a way with her pale skin and bright eyes. And you know what? I just might name their son Bell. Because why the hell not?
Right then, as ever, Reviews are love, Reviews are Life.
Reviews keep me safe from any and all strife.
So in the immortal words of Atlas...
...review, Would You Kindly?
Every bit helps out!
As ever:
SPOILER! SPOILER! SPOILER!
PLOT DETAILS AHOY!
YE BE WARNED!
(Previews)
"He is the last reason for me to tolerate human life. You will not touch him. You will not harm him. For if you do....your world will burn."
"Luna."
The great wolf perked up.
A finger jabbed forward. "Sic 'em."
As time passed, humanity returned. But gods don't take defeat lightly.
They are spiteful, petty creatures.
Petty indeed.
"Never leave me."
"I want to start a family with you."
"This is all your fault, you know."
"Huh?" Naruto guffawed helplessly. "Me?!"
"Look what you did!" she cried. "Take responsibility!"
"Ozma? Is that really you? How...?"
She didn't see Naruto's smile crack behind her back.
Ozma saw him and his smile did the same, fracturing ever so slightly.
~Nz.