Disclaimer: I don't own Naruto or Percy Jackson and the Olympians.
Reading Son of the Earthshaker
V
"I'll take over," Piper said. She was curious of what was to come next in the story, and eager to personally find out for herself.
Naruto ran his fingers over the trident on his arm, an action he used often to sooth his nerves.
"We all have our quirks." Poseidon nodded nodded.
He was crouched at the edge of the camp's gates, waiting for his chosen squad to join him. His thoughts drifted to Abigail, wondering why she hadn't given him more explicit instructions on how to retain Scaevola's Dagger. Knowing the story well, Naruto hoped he didn't have to plunge his hand into fire or cut it off.
"Yes…that psycho." Annabeth commented dryly.
"It was devotion to the cause." Jason frowned.
"No, it's lopping off your hand. Crazy."
Dionysus nodded. "Annabelle's not that far off the mark. Kid was a nut."
Edward's hand looked cool, but he really wasn't that into it.
"Praetor!" The guard across from him snapped to attention and Naruto followed suit. Tim, his eye black and his left cheek still swollen,
Ares grunted and Frank smirked a little.
approached them and stopped in front of Naruto. His dark eyes peered into Naruto's green with a large amount of withheld hostility in them.
"And this is why Frank is the only nice son of war I know." Percy rolled his eyes. "They're all so full of hate. Why not move on."
"Because hate means fighting, Jackson. Duh." Ares drawled as if the boy were stupid.
"Legionnaire Uzumaki," he said. "You are tasked with recovering Scaevola's Dagger, the weapon lost by a member of the Fifth led by Michael Varus.
All we know is that Varus shamed the Legion and failed in his endeavor. He was said to have gone north in search of some answers. I would advise you to follow his tracks, but do not follow his lead."
"Yes, Praetor." Naruto nodded. The shame of Varus was a story every member of the Fifth learned very quickly. Naruto didn't plan on following the deceased Preator's lead.
"We got dumped on a lot for that." Hazel sighed.
"Oh yeah." Frank nodded.
"Big time." Jason agreed.
Tim turned to leave, but stopped and looked back. "And Uzumaki?"
Naruto didn't even blink at the threatening tone. "Yes, sir?"
Tim narrowed his eyes. "Do not return without the Dagger."
"Free to do whatever till then." Percy grinned.
"I don't plan to," Naruto said. "Sir!"
Tim nodded and walked off. Naruto and the guard both relaxed.
"What a grouchy bear."
Naruto jumped with his fist pulled back. He relaxed when he saw the giggling blonde with starry golden eyes. Naruto put his hand on his chest and relaxed. He scowled at the girl. "Misaki, don't sneak up on me like that!"
"Such a stalker." Artemis said. She rubbed her chin. "If trained right, she might make for a good Hunter."
"Never!" Aphrodite cried out and glared at the goddess of the hunt.
Misaki just tapped his nose, her playful smile on her face. "But Naruto, where's the fun if I don't?"
"Giving me a heart attack is fun, good to know," Naruto said dryly.
"That hat did it to me all the time." Percy pouted at his grinning girlfriend.
"Jay-Jay rubbed off on you," Misaki said with a pout.
"I do not lack humor." Jason frowned.
Naruto frowned, thinking of his friend that was still unconscious from the day before. He punched just a tad bit too hard and was afraid that he had accidentally knocked the Golden Boy into a coma.
"Wow, he took you to school!"
"Leo, whose side are you on?"
"The one with blond hair?"
"...Ha, ha, ha. Very funny." Jason clapped sarcastically.
"I try." Leo grinned back at him.
Naruto hoped that wasn't the case and that Jason was just out for a day or two.
"Smacked him down like a bitch."
"Ares," Hera glared at her son for mocking her Champion.
Misaki saw his frown and decided to change topics. "So...where's our third? Or did they call in sick?"
"You wish." Zack chuckled as he walked up to join them. Strapped to a crisscrossing belt were two small pouches with short arrows and over his chest was a weapon Naruto blinked at.
"Is that one of the Vulcan Crossbows?" he asked.
Hephaestus grinned. He and his Roman self did good work.
"Yep." The one-eyed son of Fortuna grinned and pulled the ballista inspired weapon from his back. The crossbow was made from steel and the front of it was designed to look like a shrieking eagle.
"Oooh," Frank said with a gleam of interest and desire in his eyes.
"Meh, bows are cooler." Apollo shrugged. He and Artemis shared a quick, godly speed high-five.
Zack pulled a bolt from his pouch and loaded it into the crossbow's line; the Imperial Gold tip gleamed in the sunlight. He took aim and fired at a tree on the other side of the Little Tiber.
"Perfect waste of an imperial gold bolt." Reyna shook her head.
"Well, salesmen have to make use of one example to prove their worth." Hermes interjected.
Zack rested the bow against his shoulder, looking like a strange mix of a pirate and a hunter; only he was wearing jeans and a purple shirt. "Cost me a bit of my winnings at cards, but I think it was worth it."
"Not bad. Reload must take some time, though," Naruto said.
"I only need one clear shot and a good position to shoot from," Zack said.
"True," Apollo nodded. "But reload speed is important, too."
"Indeed." His twin nodded. It was why she didn't like crossbows. They, along with guns, took all the fun out of a hunt.
He holstered his crossbow and crossed his arms. "Are we ready to go or what?"
Naruto nodded and turned to the open doors. He led his two companions out and stopped to acknowledge Terminus. "We set out for Scaevola's Dagger."
"Take heed, Legionnaires, the Olympians are restless. Dangers long since forgotten are popping up now more than ever," Terminus said. "Return successfully or don't bother at all. Aut vincere aut mori."
"Conquer or die." The three nodded to him after they recited the camp's motto in English.
"So warm and fuzzy," Thalia said with a frown.
"Motivating, though," Jason said.
"That's not funny."
"I beg to differ."
Terminus nodded back and then looked forward, to the woods. They crossed the Little Tiber and left to the tunnel where they would hitch a ride to cross through most of California.
They left the heart of the Golden State by taxi. Naruto attributed it to Mercury smiling upon them and thanked the god for the safe passage.
"I try." Hermes smirked.
Then he cursed Venus under his breath for making Misaki so clingy when she slept.
Aphrodite giggled. "Oh I take no offense at all."
"Hm..." Jason looked at Piper thoughtfully.
"What?" she asked.
"Nothing." Jason smiled. That certainly explained a few things.
As if the back seat of the cab wasn't crowded enough by the three of them alone, Zack being nearly full grown while Naruto was a bit broader than his fellow eleven year olds at camp. And while she might say otherwise, Misaki was not adorably portable.
"Nonsense! Just look at her!" Aphrodite giggled again.
She took up half his seat and left a huge gap between herself and Zack.
Naruto groaned as the cabbie drove over a bump; it made him hit his head on the window. He was doing everything in his power not to whack his head on Misaki's, who had claimed his shoulder as her pillow. Misaki's head lightly bounced against his arm and grumbled as she snuggled deeper against him.
"That is adorable." Hazel said. "Misaki is a cute girl."
"I really want to see the meeting between her and I." Piper mumbled.
Naruto glared at the back of the driver's head.
"Hey, we paid you to get us to the north border, not go over potholes at every turn," Naruto said.
"Not his fault," Hermes said, "Blame the poor road work. I tell you, kills me most of the time."
"You wanted to get north, right? This is the fastest way," the man said. Naruto looked at the driver's ID on the back of the seat. The man's face was impish and reminded Naruto of the fauns that would laze about Camp Jupiter due to his sideburns and curly hair.
Reyna grumbled under her breath. Typical fauns, such lazy things.
His name was, oddly enough, Jason. Jason P. Garrick.
"Garrick!" Hermes beamed.
"I can't thank you enough, Mr. Garrick," Naruto said. He shifted his now numb shoulder and Misaki grumbled, wrapping her arms around his tightly. "I mean, driving us for six hours already..."
"Hey, as long as the money is good, I'll take you as far as you need to go. Just don't tell my boss, okay?" Garrick grinned into the mirror.
"He so has to be mine." Hermes grinned.
Naruto vaguely felt that the grin was familiar but brushed it off. "Yeah. So, how far into Oregon can you take us?"
"I've got a sister that works as a park ranger at Crater Lake," Garrick said. "Won't be cheap though."
"Who made that one again?" Hades asked as the gods shrugged.
Naruto shuffled his left arm into his pocket as best he could, Misaki was really good at keeping him in place, and dug around for a moment. He pulled out a golden coin that looked like Julius.
"A dollar coin? I don't think that'll cut it kid," Garrick said. Naruto grinned.
"It's from Ancient Rome. The market value is about fifty thousand Euros."
"Yes, throw around prices like that. Good way to get shot." Ares snickered, getting a glare from his sea uncle.
Garrick pulled over to a curb with a screech. He got out of his seat and opened the back door. His hand was held out expectantly and there was a gleam in his eye.
"Someone's a greedy old man." Leo commented.
"If you're lying, I'll have the three of you in juvie faster than you can say 'money'," he said. Naruto put the coin in his hand and Garrick began turning it over this way and that. He finally brought it up to his mouth and bit down on it. Garrick pulled it away and pocketed the coin. "Very well! I'm a man of my word. To Crater Park it is!"
"Miner forty-niner.." Apollo sung until Artemis stopped him with a smack on the arm.
"Are we there?" Zack asked as he woke up from Garrick's enthusiasm.
"No," Naruto said as the cab started to drive again. He tried to get comfortable, but Misaki was making it difficult. "Hey, can you wake her up? I'm losing feeling in my arm."
"That's not the only thing I bet he's feeling." Percy snickered.
Zack looked at Misaki blearily and poked her in the shoulder. Misaki groaned and hid her face in Naruto's arm.
"Aww," Aphrodite cooed. "She's so cute!"
"Why can't you be the cuddly?" Percy teased Annabeth, who gave him a pouty glare.
"Be thankful for what you get."
Zack looked back at Naruto and shrugged. He adjusted himself in his seat and leaned against the window. "Wake me when we get wherever we're going."
"What? Wait, no, Zack, I want to sleep too! Dude, come on!"
They arrived at Crater Lake National Park three hours later. Eventually Naruto did fall asleep, but his was more akin to a nap than a good rest. His arm was numb from the shoulder down and his legs were like noodles...and not the good kind!
"No ramen," Hazel sighed sadly.
Naruto needed a second before he could get out of the taxi.
"Mm, that felt really good!" Misaki said as she stretched her arms above her head once she was out of the cab. She turned to Naruto with a smile on her face. "How'd you sleep, Naruto?"
Percy glanced at Annabeth, she would so ask something like that if that happened to them.
"What?"
"Nothing!"
Naruto was torn between lying and glaring at Misaki. Not wanting to lie to a friend and just too tired at the moment to really glare at her, he decided on an indifferent answer. "Okay, I guess."
"I had the best pillow," Misaki said. Naruto felt his cheeks heat up and looked at the sky, trying to forget that statement and what it implied. Stupid hormones.
"Poor guy." Frank snickered.
"I hit my head against the window a lot." Naruto glared at the innocently whistling Garrick, who was looking over his new coin.
"Do you need a kiss to make it better?" Misaki asked.
His cheeks darkened. "Why do you have to make it weird, Misaki?"
"There's that denseness." Annabeth looked amused.
"Misaki's got her work cut out for her," Thalia snickered.
Misaki pouted. "It's not weird, it's a perfectly good question."
"Oui!" Aphrodite nodded in agreement eagerly.
"A very good question," Zack said. He grinned while Naruto glared at him. "What? It is."
"If you're all done flirting with each other, let's go see if my sister is here," Garrick said. The group glared at him for various reasons but followed nonetheless. They walked down the dirt trail to a small wooden building that had a sign at the end of the path: Crater Lake National Park Ranger Station. Above the doors were two others: Visitor Information and Book Store. Garrick walked up to the door and knocked on it.
The door opened and a woman with impish features similar to Garrick's walked out.
"Another?" the thief god grinned impishly.
Her hair was not curly, and it wasn't dark. It was actually rather straight and pulled back into a ponytail under a hat. She was dressed in brown and tan ranger clothing, with a badge pinned to her chest. The woman had the same blue eyes as Garrick, glancing at him as he held the coin up. Her eyes widened and she looked past him at the group, staring at their shirts.
"She's in the know." Hazel said.
"Some legionaries leave. Not exactly unheard of." Reyna commented.
"Still, talk about a chance meeting."
"Hey Joan! I brought some friends of yours. Got any coffee? I've been driving for hours." Garrick walked past her into the ranger outpost like he owned the place.
"Peter..." Joan turned and stormed in after him. She turned back to the kids with a scowl on her face. "Well? Come in, then."
"That's not very nice manners to your guests, Joan."
"Shut it, Peter."
"Dad wouldn't be pleased."
"Well, yeah, I'm God of Travelers. You have to give hospitable behavior," Hermes said with a wag of his finger.
"Since when have I ever pleased him?"
"Daddy issues?" Thalia snorted. "From a grown woman? Wow."
"Funny, since you're never going to grow up."
"Shut it, di Angelo."
"Uh, excuse me?" Naruto cut in to the siblings' bickering. "We just need to cut through. We're on a, uh..."
"Church mission." Naruto and Misaki looked at Zack and he shrugged. "Technically, we are."
"Kid ain't lying." Apollo snickered, it was a good cover.
"Save the lies," Joan said, taking her hat off and hanging it on a rack. "I know you're from Camp Jupiter."
Hazel smirked, "Called it."
"How?" Naruto asked. "I thought the Mist covered our shirts?"
"Not for monsters. I wondered why a cabbie agreed to take us to the border without any questions!" Zack reached over his shoulder and grabbed his crossbow. Naruto clenched his fists and Misaki pulled her dagger out.
"Kill the old people!" Nico cried out.
"Please don't. I have enough work as it is," Hades said dryly.
"Whoa! Hey! I'm just a cabbie!" Garrick held his hands up. "I swear it on my mother's grave!"
"Put them away," Joan said. She took a seat behind her desk and opened a drawer. She pulled out a flask and undid the cap. Joan took a drink from the flask. She replaced the cap and rolled the sleeve of her shirt up, revealing a familiar set of letters and above it was a caduceus. Three bars were under the letters SPQR.
"Knew she was mine!" Hermes grinned.
"Why only three lines?" Reyna asked.
Her question caused Hermes to frown.
"You're a Legionnaire!" Naruto gaped in surprise, lowering his fists. Misaki lowered her dagger and Zack put his crossbow away.
"If we're showing off tattoos, I guess I should show mine, too." Garrick chuckled and rolled his own sleeve up. The same markings were on his arm; only he had ten lines instead of three.
"He graduated it seems." Jason commented but narrowed his eyes, "But why a cabbie?"
"Why not?" Hermes asked his half-brother. "Traveler god's kid. Good luck. Duh."
"Oh."
Naruto let it sink in before he glared at Garrick. "You knew we were on a quest?"
"I figured." Garrick rolled his sleeve back down and turned around to make some coffee. "When you're told to make a stop outside of the tunnel to camp, you pretty much prepare to drive a few legionnaires around. So what're your cohorts? I was a member of the Third, myself."
"Fifth," Naruto and Zack said proudly.
Those of the Fifth cheered.
"Second," Misaki said, smiling pleasantly.
Garrick whistled. "Two members of the Fifth...wow...they let you go on quests after what Varus did?"
Jason's jaw tightened, Frank groaned and Hazel frowned.
Naruto and Zack glared at him along with Joan.
"Shut up, Peter." The park ranger took another sip from her flask. "So what fool quest are you doing?"
"Someone's bitter." Hades said.
"Pot meet kettle." Zeus commented, getting a glare from his eldest brother.
Naruto shared a look with Zack and Misaki before he looked back at Joan. "We're looking for Scaevola's Dagger. We know the Legionnaire that had it went on the quest with Varus."
Joan scowled. "You might as well turn around and go home. No one is bringing that dagger back."
"This just got interesting." Ares grinned.
"How do you know?" Misaki asked.
"Because I was on that quest, too," Joan said.
The Romans gained a sad look.
"But according to the report, Varus said there were no survivors!" Zack clenched his fists tightly.
"We failed in our quest, which we volunteered for." Joan took another sip of her flask. She scowled. "Aut vincere aut mori."
"You didn't come back..." Naruto frowned. That was basically the same as being declared dead.
"I know the feeling," Hazel frowned, Frank gave her a half-hug.
"Why would I want to?" Joan asked. Garrick went over to her side and put his hand on her shoulder. She shrugged it off and glared at him. "Don't! I'm over it."
"Clearly." Leo nodded.
"Yeah, obviously," Garrick said. He rolled his eyes and went to the coffee machine, opening the mini fridge tucked underneath it. "Would you guys like anything?"
"I'll take some black," Zack said. He plopped down into a chair and yawned while he rubbed at his eye patch.
"Just some milk if you have it," Misaki said.
"Milk is good for you." Aphrodite nodded.
"She's a big girl now." Piper sang with a giggle.
She wandered over to pictures on the wall and scrutinized them. Probably looking over the clothes they wore.
"Water," Naruto said. A bottle of water flew his way from where Garrick was and the light gleamed off of his bracer. Joan dropped her flask with a gasp of shock. The three from Camp Jupiter looked at her curiously, but she continued to stare at the bracers on Naruto's wrist.
"Y-You...You're a...a..." Joan looked like she couldn't fathom it.
Naruto watched her face carefully as he held his wrist up. "Yes. I'm the son of Neptune."
"More bashing on my Roman line?" Poseidon scowled. Percy joined him.
"Ha! I knew he wouldn't hold true to the pact! Alan so owes me fifty bucks," Garrick said. "Jupiter wouldn't keep it my ass! It was his idea!"
Zeus coughed a little and Poseidon looked a little sheepish.
"Actually, funny story..." Zack told the two former legionnaires about Jason and they gaped. Zack laughed at their reactions.
"A son of Jupiter and a son of Neptune." Joan tossed her flask into the garbage.
"Too much booze." Percy snickered.
"Nonsense." Dionysus waved off. "You can never have too much."
"...D, they can die if they drink too much. They're half mortal," Apollo pointed out.
"...Oh, that's horrid."
Garrick pestered Zack for more information; eager to know what gossip he could spread among the small community outside of New Rome.
"Naruto, come here." Misaki waved Naruto over. He joined her and she pointed at a picture. In the photograph was a girl that looked like a younger Joan; she had her arms around a boy with black hair and brown eyes while they sat in front of a lake. Both of them had Camp Jupiter shirts on. Joan had a sword on her hip whereas on the boy's belt was a sheathed dagger. "Look at the title. 'Summer 1981: Crater Lake'."
"...That's why she didn't go back," Naruto said. In the picture, Joan didn't look that much older than him, maybe a year or two tops.
"Oh that's so beautiful." Aphrodite sighed.
"Mom, her boyfriend died." Piper said.
"So, utterly, heart-wrenchingly, tragically beautiful."
"...I'm related to that. Be afraid, Jason. Be afraid." Piper groaned as she rested her head on her boyfriend's shoulder while he chuckled.
"That's so tragic," Misaki said, covering her mouth as her eyes watered.
"Where is the dagger?" Naruto asked, interrupting Zack. He agreed with Misaki, but now he had a lead and he fully intended to follow it through. The two former legionnaires looked at him and he pressed on. "The Dagger of Scaevola, where is it?"
"...Even for you it's suicide," Joan said.
"Ha! We're made to survive suicide!" Percy grinned.
Annabeth smacked him, "That's not something to gloat about!"
"But I do it, like, all the time." The son of the sea pouted.
"Don't remind me," Annabeth groaned.
"Maybe..." Garrick came over with a glass of milk and a mug for Zack. The two took the offered drinks with gratitude and he turned to his sister. "He is the son of the sea god."
"It won't matter!" Joan slammed her hands on her desk and stood up. "I had to run away while Wally died stalling it!"
"This one sounds nasty." Frank muttered.
"Was that who the boy was?" Misaki asked while Naruto and Zack shared a concerned look.
Joan scowled at her, but Misaki kept a pleasant smile on her face while she drank her milk. "Yes...That was Wally Bronson. He was a legacy of Bellona."
Reyna's heart clenched at that, terrible, just terrible. What kind of monster was it?
"I'm sorry for your loss," Misaki said. She set her half-empty glass on the table and looked Joan in the eye. "Can you tell us how he died?"
Joan swallowed. "He was killed by the Cetus."
"Whoops." Poseidon said, looking sheepish.
"...The Cetus? The thing that laid waste to Aethiopia after Cassiopeia insulted Neptune?" Zack asked. His eye bulged out of his head.
"The Nereids." Poseidon corrected.
"You just wanted to look good in front of fifty hot water nymphs, dad."
"Percy!" Poseidon held his heart, clearly stunned at the truthful words of his demigod son while his family laughed.
Naruto looked at his friend with the question written on his face. Neptune sent a monster after a whole country because of one woman's insult?
"The Nereids were insulted, it reflects on me if I let it go." Poseidon huffed.
"And again, fifty hot water nymphs."
"...You're not one to talk, Zeus."
"Yes," Joan said. Tears brimmed her eyes and she buried her hands in her face. "I saw him get eaten."
"That's horrible." Hazel whispered, moving closer to Frank. All the couples bunched together.
Leo frowned and folded his arms over his chest. He missed Calypso.
Nico idly thought of Will.
Reyna frowned, wondering about her love life.
Thalia just tossed a piece of popcorn in her mouth, completely disinterested.
"Where is it?" Misaki asked.
"The Columbia River," Joan said. "Off the coast of Lois Island...We didn't even bury him a grave...I never got to say goodbye..."
"I think it's time you get on with your quest," Garrick said as Joan buried her face in her hands. He had a frown on his face and Naruto knew that there would be no arguing over it. They got up and thanked Garrick for the ride and the drinks. Naruto stopped at the door, turning back to look at the two.
"I, uh...I won't tell. You know, that you're...she's..."
Reyna pursed her lips. "I'm unsure how to properly call that one."
"Then don't bother with it." Piper suggested.
"Thank you," Garrick said, his arm wrapped over Joan's shoulders in a hug.
Naruto left feeling that he might have overstayed his welcome. He stepped into the cold Oregon air and shivered lightly. Zack and Misaki looked at him and he sighed.
"So...now where do we go?" Naruto asked them.
"I snagged a map before we left and I found this brochure," Zack said, holding a green pamphlet out to Naruto.
Naruto took it from him and opened it up. He gave Zack a confused look. "Horseback tours?"
"And the equine for the win again." The sea god smirked.
"Olives."
"…Damn you." Poseidon glared at his rival.
"Why not?" Zack shrugged. "You're the son of Neptune. God of the sea and horses, maybe you're a horse whisperer or something."
"He is." Percy nodded, it was weird at first for him too.
"Yeah, maybe...This would be so much easier if we could drive," Naruto said. He sighed and gave the map back to Zack. "You lead, we'll follow. I suck at reading maps."
"That's why you're not getting promoted anytime soon." Zack chuckled. Naruto grumbled to himself while Misaki patted his shoulder reassuringly.
"Support your man, Misaki!" Aphrodite cheered.
He opened the map and turned right. "This way."
A few hours passed since they left the ranger station and they had stopped to rest. The three legionnaires set up camp halfway around Crater Lake. Naruto was gathering firewood when he heard the first growl. He brushed it off and knocked another dead tree down, silently thanking his father for bestowing him with his gift of strength.
Poseidon smirked, "Anytime."
Neptune was a complicated subject for Naruto. He was one of the three brothers, alongside Jupiter Maximus (or the Transformer Wannabe as Naruto recently started to call him)
Everyone snickered at that, even Jason, and Zeus turned an interesting shade of purple.
"Transformer Wannabe..." Zeus repeated sourly.
"Bastard in disguise."
Zeus glared daggers at Hades, who smirked back at him while Poseidon openly laughed.
and Pluto, so Naruto respected Neptune's strength and status as a god. That was concrete, even if it got him some flak in the cohort.
However, when it came to Neptune as a father, Naruto was conflicted in his feelings. Sure, Neptune was one of the Olympians, but he was a longtime enemy of Rome, dating back to the destruction of Troy. He sunk Roman ships more than any other and even one of his legacies had been rumored to cause an earthquake in San Francisco back in the early 1900s.
Frank frowned at that, it wasn't true. He felt sorry for Naruto taking the flak for that. It wasn't right.
That being said, Neptune was his father, the male that provided the necessary key within his mother to make him a possibility.
"You know. Sex."
"Apollo!" Artemis scowled as her twin grinned.
"It's true~! And, considering Ninja-Waifu's appearance, I don't blame him."
"Pig."
"I love to be a ham!"
Naruto didn't even think to ask his mother how she had met Neptune; he was just elated to know who she was.
Jason had a bitter look on his face and Thalia outright scowled.
Naruto wanted to know why she had been chosen, why he had been born with a huge burden, cursed to be hated. Naruto wanted to meet Neptune, to get some clear answers.
Poseidon frowned, hoping his other met the boy soon.
He wanted to know if he was just an antithesis to Jason, if he was a spur of the moment accident or a result of something else.
"Something else," the sea god assured, something wonderful.
"Focus," Naruto said. He looked back at the downed tree and bowed his head. "Thank you Faunus, for the supplied tree."
Hermes broke into a sad smile.
The minor gods were something that interested Naruto, and he respected them perhaps more than he did the Olympians, and thanked them whenever he could (or remembered to). All that hard work to keep the world in working order and only twelve were recognized? It was certainly unfair in Naruto's opinion, but on the other hand, that was how the military worked.
"Pretty much." Reyna commented in agreement.
That was how the wild worked. You fight or you die.
Look out.
Naruto frowned wondering who said that and turned around. He felt immense pain in his jaw and crumpled to the ground.
"Sucker punch!" Ares cheered.
Naruto rolled out of the way as a large brown elbow landed in the dirt where he once stood. Attached to the elbow was a furry body, like a bear's. Only this "bear" was walking upright like a human and was wearing Levis.
"It's them!" Percy exclaimed, Annabeth glared at the picture.
"Damn, missed. Don't want to cut you. You got all that juicy flesh." The bear-man growled. "Oreius!"
Naruto ducked under the charging pounce of another bear-man and he stumbled back, tripping over the tree he had moments ago knocked down.
"Moron," Ares scowled.
He landed with a grunt and scrambled quickly back to his feet, facing the two monsters with his fists up. The tridents on his wrists shone and the bracers unfolded into his two gauntlets of Imperial Gold. Naruto glared at them, all the way to their eyes that were seven feet from the ground.
"Shiny..." the bear-man that had spoken before said.
"Oooh." Leo said, "Me want shiny."
"Easy, Leo." Piper giggled.
The other, Oreius, stared along with his brother at the gauntlets.
"Yeah, shiny. Mind telling me who you guys are and why you guys attacked me?" Naruto asked with a glare.
"You're food. We're hungry."
"I would have never thought." Percy gasped mockingly.
"Glad we sorted this out," Naruto said. He fell to his back when Oreius leapt at him again. Naruto drove his feet into Oreius' stomach and tossed him back into the brush. He rolled out of the throw and hopped back to his feet with his fists up. "Can I get a name?"
"Agrius!" Agrius said with a swing of his massive paw-like fist. Naruto blocked it with a stumble.
"You're strong, but I'm stronger," Naruto said. He brought his other fist back and cracked Agrius across the face. The bear-man was sent to the ground hard.
"Yeah!" Jason grinned.
"He's going to be feeling that," Percy smirked, "Wait, this is before our Sea of Monster's quest, right?"
"Yep." Annabeth nodded and her eyes widened, "Oh, they might mention him!"
Percy nodded, "Exactly."
Naruto turned and caught Oreius' fists with his hands. They struggled for a moment but Naruto started to tighten his grip and twist Oreius' hands. Oreius grunted and slowly dropped to his knees.
"Kneel! Kneel before Zod!" Apollo ordered.
"I hate that movie." Zeus grumbled.
"Ah, right." Apollo cleared his throat and then pointed at the ground. "Kneel! Kneel before Zeus!"
Zeus glared at his Sun-driving son. Who knew Apollo could be such a smart-ass?
"Let him go!" Agrius tackled Naruto from the side. The bear-man growled at him and kept the son of Neptune pinned to the ground. "Other people near. Smell them on you! Where?!"
"I'd rather die," Naruto said.
"Then die!" Agrius reared his head back and opened his mouth.
"Oreius, your brother stole your meal! Get it back!"
"Misaki with the Charmspeak for the win," Piper grinned.
Agrius turned and snarled at the new voice. He yelped when his brother suddenly tackled him off of Naruto. Naruto scrambled to his feet while the two bears fought. A hand grabbed his arm and pulled him along.
"Nice timing," he said. "Thanks Misaki."
Misaki smiled at him. "Anytime cutie."
"Anytime, cutie." Annabeth told Percy with a sly look. Percy grinned back at her.
"How'd you know their names?" Naruto asked.
"Every child and legacy of Venus knows those two," Misaki said.
"I didn't." Piper admitted with a pout.
She looked like she ate something sour, which was a look Naruto had only seen on her face once. He silently pitied the poor legionnaire that was still doing all of her chores for her because he got yellow lemonade for her instead of pink lemonade. Misaki stopped when they were behind a large tree and looked back at where they left the two bear men. "Agrius and Oreius. They're from before Rome, very, very old monsters. Their mother, Polyphonte, insulted Venus by running off to join Diana's group of maidens. Venus made her fall in love with a bear."
Artemis scowled at Aphrodite, who huffed.
"If she had just listened to me, then maybe she wouldn't have done it with a bear."
"Mortals have choices." The huntress told her.
"Perhaps, but I will not be slighted." The lady of doves smiled wickedly.
Piper suddenly shuddered as a cold chill went up her spine.
"Harsh. You can't do that, right?" Naruto asked.
Misaki smiled at him. "I wouldn't make you fall in love with a bear, if that's what you're worried about."
"Way to avoid the questions." Jason said, looking at Piper with a slight worry. He got a glare.
"I won't do that. Heck, I don't even think I can."
"Good."
That didn't answer his question at all, but Naruto decided not to focus on that and looked back to where the twins were. "So how were they beaten before?"
"Mercury was sent to punish them, but Mars stopped him because they were his legacies and they were turned into birds."
Ares scowled at the reminder while Hermes grinned like a loon.
Naruto closed his eyes in frustration. "Great, so we've got to change them into birds."
"Not necessarily," Misaki said. "We just have to keep them separated."
"I can take one out if we do that," Naruto said. "But how are we going to keep them apart?"
"Like this," Misaki said. She stepped out from behind the tree and whistled. The twin sons of Polyphonte turned to the source of the whistle and she blew them a kiss. "Daughter of Venus meat ready and willing to be eaten boys! You just have to catch me first!"
"Well, she does make good bait," Artemis smirked.
"The prettiest kind there is." Aphrodite huffed right back.
With that, Misaki ran off into the woods. Agrius and Oreius untangled from each other and ran after her. Naruto clotheslined Agrius as he ran past.
"Now go for the pin!" Apollo cheered in his WWE shirt.
His blow knocked the older twin to the ground while Oreius continued his pursuit.
"You! You travel with her ilk! You must die," Agrius said as he got to his feet.
"So glad I didn't meet them," Piper said, they seemed annoying.
He tried to tackle Naruto, but the shorter blond caught Agrius by his arms and reared his head back. The son of Neptune stumbled back along with Agrius, both of them rubbing their heads.
"I love that move." Ares grinned.
"That explains so much." Athena said, "No wonder you don't have any brain cells left."
"Hey!"
"Bad idea, bad idea, bad idea," Naruto said to himself. He tried to shake the dazed spots out of his eyes, which cost him as Agrius drove his knee into Naruto's stomach. Naruto doubled over and got hit with a following blow to the back of the head.
"Ouch," Frank winced, he beat up a giant as a bear. He knew that had to hurt.
"Head hurts, hungry and furious," Agrius said. He turned Naruto over onto his back and grabbed him by the hair. "Not going to eat you anymore. Going to beat you to death and feed you to Oreius!"
"That's so much better." Percy rolled his eyes.
Naruto spat in the bear's eye and brought his left fist up to crack Agrius in the jaw. Agrius stumbled back and rubbed at his eye, a growl escaped his mouth. Naruto took advantage of the distraction and swept the abomination onto his back with a low kick. Naruto grabbed the bear-like snout in his right hand and grabbed under Agrius' right arm with his left. He struggled for a second before he successfully lifted Agrius off the ground and launched him into the air.
"Like a rage doll." Thalia smirked, "Nice throwing arm."
"I see Major Leagues for this kid," Apollo grinned.
Naruto then went to a relatively small tree, about three feet in diameter, and took hold of the trunk. He pulled until the roots gave out and ripped the tree from the ground.
"The tree!" Demeter exclaimed in horror.
It was about twenty feet high. Agrius crashed down through branches and landed with a loud boom. Naruto hefted the tree over his shoulder and swung it like a bat just as Agrius started to rise.
Agrius was struck in the right side and was sent for a short fly, taking down a few more trees in the process.
"That a boy, slugger." Poseidon laughed, mirth in his eyes.
Naruto dropped the tree to the side and ran after the monster, intending to finish him off before he could get back to his senses. Naruto found Agrius as the bear-man rose from the ground, a tree on his back leg.
"Little annoying shit. Must be son of Hermes. Must be," Agrius said under his breath.
"Sadly no." Hermes sighed.
Naruto blinked in confusion. "Son of Hermes? You mean Mercury, right?"
Agrius scowled. "Fake gods...Imposters! Stole the lives of my family, the gods did! Beloved father Ares turned us to birds!"
"Uh-huh... 'Before Rome'...You guys are graceus! That explains the weird names," Naruto said.
"Not weird." The gods muttered with frowns.
Agrius spat blood to the side and glared at Naruto. "Kill you dead, boy. Feed you to Oreius."
"Yeah, I don't see that happening." Naruto cracked his knuckles. "Right now your brother is being led on a wild goose chase and-"
"Uh...Cutie? Might want to turn around..."
"Uh-oh." Leo said with a wince.
Naruto paled and slowly did just that. He groaned and palmed himself in the head once he did. Misaki was being held by her neck in Oreius' arm, with an annoyed look plastered on her face.
"Misaki is not amused." Hazel giggled at the face.
"Damsel in distress." Artemis chuckled at the image, irking the love goddess at her words.
"You got caught?!"
"Well I can't run around forever!" Misaki crossed her arms and pouted. "I tripped, sorry for not having night vision. Besides, it seems the other one put mud in his ears. I can't talk him out of holding me."
"Ear plugs, huh?" Leo rubbed his chin, glancing at Piper.
"Oh, ha-ha." She rolled her eyes. Still, that sucked for Misaki.
"Good job, Oreius! Tonight we feast on Aphrodite's daughter!" Agrius grinned and got to his feet. "And the son of...Er...Apollo?"
"I wish!" Apollo groaned, "All my awesome kids come from my Greek side. Got none on the Roman side except Abby!"
"Hardly," Naruto said with a snort. That would make him related to Octavian. That was something Naruto could do without. He clenched his hands back into fists and tensed in preparation to move. "I'm the son of Neptune."
Agrius blinked and a moment of silence passed before his grin widened. "Son of Poseidon!? Lucky day! We feast on Aphrodite's flesh and get back in Zeus' good graces!"
"Such a baby, you broke the law, too." Poseidon rolled his eyes.
"You only did it after I did. For both of them." Zeus pointed out with a smug look.
Poseidon glared at Zeus for that one.
Naruto frowned in confusion. Why would his death put them in Jupiter's good graces? He banished the question from his mind and prepared to act.
"Heads up!"
Naruto, Misaki, Oreius and Agrius looked up. Somewhere in the woods, it sounded like someone was dragging a stick along a picket fence. Bolts lined with golden heads started to fly out of the trees at their feet.
"They're swarming, scatter!" Leo cried out.
"Flee!" Frank joined him.
One hit Oreius in the arm and he dropped Misaki to the ground. Oreius whimpered and ran off into the woods.
"Idiot!" Agrius snarled and ran after him. "Kill you next time, son of Poseidon!"
"No, you try to kill the other son of the sea." Percy corrected.
"Percy, they can't hear you."
"I'm just saying is all." Percy told his girlfriend with a shrug.
Naruto growled and made to run after them but stopped when a final bolt landed in front of him.
"Kill denied." Nico whistled.
He turned and glared at Zack, who landed from where he was in the trees. The older Legionnaire holstered his crossbow onto his back with a small frown on his face. "We don't need to run after them. We've got a quest, remember?"
"So we just let them run off!?" Naruto asked.
"No, please go kill them." Percy said, seriously, it would save them for their Sea of Monsters quest!
Zack shook his head. "We can't afford to get lost. This area is to their advantage. We need to get to the stables."
"It's good to have a leveled headed member on a quest." Annabeth nodded, the boy was smart.
Naruto glared at him for another moment before he sighed. "Yeah, you're right."
"I know I am," Zack said, smiling. He walked over and put a hand on his shoulder. "And I'm glad you think so, too. Listening to advice is what makes you a better commander.
Annabeth gave an amused look to Percy, who sheepishly grinned back.
There's more than one way to skin a bear."
"Indeed." Artemis grinned.
"Maybe if we're lucky they'll run into Diana and her cheerleaders," Misaki said,
"Cheerleader?!" Thalia growled.
"Fitting." Nico grinned, getting a stormy look from his cousin. But the son of Hades just shrugged it off.
dusting her pants off with a pout. "Damn bears got my clothes dirty."
"The fiends!" Aphrodite gasped.
"Woe is us," Naruto said wryly. He chuckled at the puffed cheeks Misaki gained and looked to Zack. "So, oh wise one, which way now?"
"Wise? Please." Athena scoffed.
"That way," Zack said, pointing in the opposite direction that the twin monsters ran. "We're all awake now, we should make the best of it."
"Right, lead on," Naruto said.
"I thought he was leader?" Jason asked.
"The perks of command, telling someone to do it for you." Percy grinned.
"Amen." Reyna smiled as well.
"I want to read next." Annabeth said and Piper handed the book over to her.
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