A/N: Alright ladies and gentlemen, good news and bad news. Good news first. I'm on the mend. Even better, My grandmother's all but recovered from congestive heart failure and I managed to sell my old house, though all that money went to more bills. Ugh. Anywho, I've finished moving my things and am now a proud resident of East Berlin, Pennsylvania! Alas, I'm still jobless, and the bills are piling up because of my health. Fun, right?
Anywho, I managed to put this up here at points between job hunting. It's been great, guys. Loving the feedback. Really. I'm hanging tough though, despite everything life is throwing at me. Despite all that's happening, I don't intend to abandon this or my other works! Though I would greatly be appreciative of a Co-Writer or two at this point! On another note, there was a discrepancy mentioned with Oriana's age, but that's only because the events of this story are progressing more rapidly than in the original. Additionally, a typo; I had meant to say that Ori is presently twelve, not nine. But in regards to the age difference, there you go. Naruto's prescence has lit a fire under Saren's behind, so to speak.
You'll soon see what I mean...ALSO! Warning! Naruto is a little...unhinged in this chapter thanks to Saren's actions. Its not going to be a constant thing, just an indication of how the stress of leadership is getting to him. You may even see a few familiar quotes in this...Also. Glossing over Therum here, folks. You'll soon see why...
"Stumble over the truth all you like. Just be sure to pick it up on your way."
~?
Spiders, Guns, Lasers, Galore!
"SPIDERS SPIDERS SPIIIIIIIIIDERS!"
Tali's terrified squeal ripped through the compound, followed by the angry bark of her shotgun.
Needless to say, Peak Fifteen was not proving itself accommodating.
At.
All.
"Kill all the spiders!" Tali ranted, firing wildly! "Kill them all! KILL THEM WITH FIRE!"
"Oh lord, I can't even...its too much!" Naruto was physically shaking as he fought to hold the laughter in while he broke a Rachni's neck like a twig. His shoulders violently convulsed, despite his best efforts otherwise as he rode the limp body to the ground. In hindsight, the reason for his mirth was quite obvious, especially obvious. Considering they had a screaming quarian on deck, shooting at anything that even remotely resembled a creature of the many-legged persuasion.
Why, you ask?
Because Tali hated spiders.
As someone who'd never left the flotilla until only a few weeks ago, one would think she wouldn't know of them. Apparently, this was not the case. The poor girl was so bloody terrified of them that she'd opened fire the moment she laid eye on the first bug. Liara, alas, wasn't a very capable shot-relying more on her powerful biotics to overturn the creatures whilst Shepard snapped off debilitating shots with her sniper rifle. Jack seemed to be enjoying herself more than anyone else; ripping great chunks of masonry free from the walls and floor, then hurling them at the enemy like giant stone missiles.
It would've been a sound strategy, if there weren't so many of the little buggers.
Now, this.
"Nope, nope, nope!" Naruto cackled, vaulting over a rachni with an ease born from years of rigorous training. "Too slow!" His left leg scythed out as he arched past, cracking into the bug's chitinous head and snapping it violently the side. Then his hands found its antennae. Still in motion the blond pulled, using his momentum and a generous helping of gravity toppling the giant bug onto its side. Once there, his blade flashed out, neatly bifurcating the beast in a single sweep.
"That's twelve!" He barked, beaming as he stood atop his kill. "How about you?" How he managed to look attractive while soaked in rachni guts, Miranda would never understand.
"Thirteen!" Jack called back, cackling madly. "You'll have to better than that, dumbass! You're waaaaaaaaaaaay too slow!"
"We'll see about that!" Growling, the blond dove back into the fray. "I'll get more points if I fix the computer!"
"Like hell you will!" Another rachni found itself flattened, "I'll double my score by then!"
Miranda resisted the urge to reach over and strangle them both for their antics.
"Now is not the time for games, you two!" Apparently, this was.
"Sorry cheerleader, can't hear ya!"
Miranda groaned. "Why me...
She told herself she wasn't jealous...even though she'd only managed to kill five of the buggers. Nope. Not at all. It wasn't that she was a sore loser. Not even a little bit.
"Did you fix that blasted computer, yet?!" Shepard hollered at Naruto, struggling to make herself heard over the raging gunfire. Another explosion of fiery chitin and blood answered that question. Moments later, a spiky head of singed hair poked out of the shaft.
"I tried kicking it already," Naruto cried, ducking! "What more do you want me to do?!"
"Must I do everything?!"
"Yes, please!" The blond chirruped happily. "You're the best, Miri!"
Kill him. In that moment, Miranda swore she was going to kill her boyfriend once this was over. Once she pried some answers out of him. Scrambling out of cover she tucked and rolled, coming up beside the baffled boy that held her heart. He shot her a winning smile and scooted over to make room for her. Then the little bastard dared to kiss her on the cheek.
"Good luck."
"I won't need it," she muttered, glowering at him. "Cover me."
Naruto snapped off a silly salute. "Don't worry! A won't let a single shot strike your beautiful ass!"
Miri's glower deepened, an aura of malcontent leaking from her like a cracked sieve.
"You do realize you said that aloud."
"...uhm, no I didn't?" He tried.
"Just forget it."
Clamoring down into the shaft, she soon found herself face to face with the system that had confounded her beloved so. In hindsight, it made sense. Naruto was horrid when it came to anything resembling a puzzle; he much rather preferred to smash his way through obstacles than find a way around them. It mainly consisted of pressing X, Y, and B to line up the power grid in the middle. What was this, some kind of game? Frowning, she tried pressing a few buttons.
"Please reset." came the automated reply.
"Bloody hell." she muttered, trying again, this time with more care. The system made a sound eerily similar to that of someone blowing a raspberry.
"Please reset."
"Come on you little-
"Reset."
An eye twitched. Three steps later, and the system defaulted again.
"Aaaargh!"
In the end, frustration took hold and she simply slapped a healthy dose omni-gel on it. Thank god for small miracles.
With a sputtering start the computer core whirled to life, revealing the holographic form of a young woman.
"This system is assigned to respond to the name Mira. May I ask your name?"
Miranda froze, realizing she didn't have any credentials to report. "Erm...status report?"
"User alert, main reactor off line, landlines offline, passenger trams, offline. Report complete. Will there be anything else?"
She didn't wait for the VI to finish; instead she slapped the button for the platform.
"There." she sighed, wiping her dirty hands on a wall. "Mission accompli-
No sooner had she done so than more alien shrieks greeted her.
"Here they come again!" Shepard cried!
"Alright, round two!"
"I'm still winning!"
"Oh, Goddess...
"SPIDERS!"
From there the mission as it t'were, degenerated into the kind of frenzied firefight Miranda absolutely despised; the sort that involved ducking, hiding, crouching and trying not to be eaten by the enemy. She ducked and scrambled and fought with everything she had, her own considerable talents Ordinarily she herself would have found such slaughter cathartic herself, but for two things.
First, these were rachni. You couldn't squash them with anything short of a machine gun, intensive use of biotics, or a rasengan. They'd already had to expend massive amounts of ammunition just to put the last swarm down beforehand. Second...
...Naruto was still hiding something from her.
From the moment they'd picked him up in the frozen wastes, he'd been eerily silent on the matter -and the identity- of his attacker. Ask him anything else and he was fine, but mention that, and he clammed up straight away. Now, Miri had known him for some time, and she knew at once that something was amiss. The only question was, wha-
"RASENSHURIKEN!"
Naruto's roar was her only warning before the world erupted.
Cold fury burned the compound white, a searing light digging into her retinas. A terrible shrieking overpowered all her other senses, and she could no longer tell whether it was the technique or the swarm itself keening in pain. But whatever it was, Miri couldn't bear to look at it any longer. Squeezing her eyes shut, she ducked into cover and waited, helplessly as the rapidly expanding sphere tore everything apart.
When the storm finally extinguished itself, then, and only then did she dare to peek out of cover.
The room lay in ruins.
Somewhere in the wreckage, she heard Liara groan.
"What in the world...
Portions of the walls were simply gone, exposing the room to the polar chill of the planet. Blackened corpses lay scattered about, torn to shreds by the intense vacuum, others simply atomized outright. And there, at the center of it all, Uzumaki Naruto stood, coughing quietly and dusting himself off. The silence was deafening. Miranda didn't need to glance at Shepard to know her face probably mirrored her own-a look of sheer stupefied disbelief marred her ephemeral features.
"Oh man, I think I might've overdone it!"
"Holy shit." Jack gulped. "Remind me to stay on your good side, boss."
"So noted. Now, where is...
Tali was soon spotted quivering behind a crate, reduced to a mewling mess over so many arachnids. Poor thing was a mess.
"Spiders, spiders, spiders, stupid bosh'tets! Can't get me here, won't hurt me, no no no no...
"There, there," Naruto patted her head, "They're dead. You can stop hiding behind Shepard, now. The big bad bugs are gone."
That got the little quarian's attention faster than a newly refurbished paladium core. "What did you just say?"
"Um...that you were very brave and we wouldn't be here without your outstanding skills?" he tried.
If looks could kill, the reborn blond would have been a pile of molten goo on the floor.
"I have a shotgun." she warned, hoisting her gun.
Naruto grinned and wiggled two fingers.
"I have chakra."
Jack whistled.
"Hot."
Shepard sighed.
"Move out."
(Meanwhile...)
"Baka!"
Hanabi hissed softly in her seat as she slapped another healthy coating of medigel onto her stomach with one hand, and struggled to wrap her arm with the other. The burn there was slow in healing, and though the rest of her wounds had mended, she was still in pain from this wound. It ached, throbbing in agony.
So was her heart.
The very idea that Naruto might still exist, that young boy one she'd fought hadn't been a pale ghost of him was..unpleasant. It brought up unpleasant feelings, feelings she'd long since buried. Like digging up a corpse, with all the mold and rot and foul things. Feelings that made her feel weak. Excited.
Almost insane with glee.
A chim beeped on her wrist, signalling a call from the Illusive Man. Ordinarily, she would've answered immediately.
But here and now?
She ignored it.
"Naruto."
What was he doing now, she wondered?
(Back with Naruto...)
The shot came from nowhere.
One moment they'd stepped through the door to the hot labs, the next, a pistol barked and a round found flesh. Liara reeled and her world reeled with her, numbness overtaking her.
It didn't make any sense.
They'd made all the repairs, fought off the Rachni, and now, for it to end like this?
Liara doubled over, still holding her stomach, cringing slightly. She hadn't expected the gun, least of all Benezia. Hadn't thought her mother would actually shoot her. Certainly she had lost her way, but to actually fire upon her, it boggled the mind, simply defied belief in her psyche. So did Naruto's sudden and unexpected arrival from seemingly nowhere. One moment he hadn't been there, and the next he had. It spat in the face of all logic. She watched him stand slowly, his eyes traveling to her. Then her mother. Back again. His lips pursed in a thin line as he bent towards her.
An Omnitool flashed.
Moments later, the cooling sensation of Medigel coursed across her stomach.
She murmured her thanks, but something in the blond's eyes told her he hand't heard it. He rose again, his eyes locking on the gun totting asari standing above them on the catwalk.
"I'm guessing you're Benezia." his words ended in a frown.
"Have you ever faced an Asari Commando Unit before, Phantom?" Benezia asked gravely. "Few humans have."
"I might know a thing or two about that." Naruto hissed.
Shepard blanched.
"You're injured. You can't face her in your cond-
Naruto's only response was a physical one. The air crackled with chakra, not just his own, but that of his former tenant, an eerie mixture of scarlet and onyx. a threat, Shepard knew at once, Naruto wrapped in tendrils that ebbed and pulse dangerously. They looked like snakes, writhing and ready to strike. Shepard winced, lifting her hands in defeat, letting him walk away. He stepped up past Liara's limp form then past Kaiden, then, finally, Wrex, his eyes straying slightly as he took in their haggard forms. His head inclined softly.
"She's mine," he hissed.
"Your strength is irrelevant." Beneza sniffed, frowning at the human as he stalked up the steps. Her eyes flitted to the exhausted forms of Jack and Miranda. "Your presence here changes nothing. You will not win this confrontation, no matter who you bring into the equation-
She never saw the shockwave coming until it was far too late. One moment the blond was standing before her- the next, his fist slammed into the deck and all hell broke loose. Asari Commando and Geth flew apart like leaves scattered on the wind, torn from the catwalks and dashed angrily onto the ground below. Another flick and they found themselves ground to a gory mass on the walls. Still Naruto came on, eyes white hot and filled with tempered fury.
"No one touches my girls and lives to tell about it."
A small part of Benezia, the tiny bit of her mind that she'd sealed away, rejoiced as she saw the murder-the release!-lurking in those eyes. The other, larger half dismayed. She lashed out in the same instant that he did her; biotics and chakra colliding violently to warp the walls around them.
"I will destroy you." she declared.
"No, you won't."
Uncertainty plucked at the strings of her heart, creating a melody of fear.
Impossible.
"Mere words cannot-
"BENEZIA!"
That was the only thought she had time for before Naruto pounced upon her, a violently rotating rasengan sheathing itself inside her stomach.
The result was nothing short of explosive.
Chakra met flesh and the latter yielded with a keening shriek.
Organs tore themselves free from their housings, a spray of blue blood jetting from the circular wound. Even as she reeled, the renegade was upon her, a shot slamming into her unprotected shoulder.
Another blow, and then his hand was around her throat, crushingly tight, the tips of his fingers digging into the sensitive folds at the back of her neck, lifting her clean off her feet. She froze, breath caught in her chest, not daring to move lest he do more damage there. Her wide eyes locked onto his wild red ones. Then there was only pain. She fought, lashing out with a furious warp. That proved a mistake. The fist came down on her head with a faintly metallic crunch-once, twice, three times. Each blow jarred his hand, sent pain shooting up his arm.
But a lot less pain shot up Benezia's.
It might have been the blood loss, but she barely felt the beating. It all felt so fuzzy, as though she were observing everything from outside herself. As if this weren't truly happening to her. Perhaps it wasn't. Perhaps it was all a fever dream brought on by the gaping wound in her stomach. She was dying she realized; this human was beating her to death. Her mouth worked wordlessly, blue blood bursting from her lips. But with death came release, sweet, blessed release as she came back to herself, if only for a moment.
Darkness awaited her.
"No light...they always...said...there would be light...
She collapsed then, her body folding like a wet paper bag. Strong arms found her, lowering her to the rail.
Then, and only then, did the blood rage leave Naruto.
It was like a veil had been torn from his eyes; he was suddenly intensely aware of what he'd done. Off the blood on his hands. He was no stranger to death but the savagery of what he'd done, of the act he had wrought stunned him into silence. And even then, he couldn't bring himself to feel any regret. Somehow, that frightened him most of all. He'd had Benezia by the head, forcing her down to the decks, beating on her, slaughtering her...
"You killed her."
His head whipped around at the sudden accusation. Liara.
"She left me no choice." he began...
The asari barely heard him. Everything was growing faint. Dim. Black. Her vision blurred and dimmed as the voices around her intensified. Knees struck the deck. Her body must've collapsed, because she was suddenly looking up at everyone. Her body was going into shock, the sheer realization overwhelming her utterly.
Naruto turned his head towards their last piece of business.
Deep within her tank, the Rachni Queen shrieked, begging him for clemency.
"Free us..."
(Hours later...)
"Liara hates you now, you know."
Naruto barely looked up from his mission report at the sound of Jack's voice. She stood there, silhouetted in the door, looking at him. For a moment all he could hear was the gentle thrum of the Normandy's engines, of his own memories as he gazed down at the datapad in his hand. Of the blood still on his hands, staining them scarlet. Would the next mission be any different? Would there be more innocent blood on his hands? Virmire promised to be as simple in and out mission on the surface, and yet.
He averted his gaze.
"I'm sure she does." he muttered. "I killed her mother and picked through her brain for the information we needed. Definitely not paragon." Miranda wasn't speaking to him, either. That only made him feel worse.
"Para-what?"
...nevermind."
"Renegade for life, much." she laughed, swatting him on the arm. Then, she dared to lean into him. Yeow! Naruto jolted upright.
"Jack," His voice rose, low with warning. "Now isn't the time."
She paused in her pacing of his cabin, giving him a glare filled with fire. "Then when will be the time, huh? After Virmire? After Saren? Maybe I don't want to keep this bottled up that long, huh?"
"You're kidding me, right?" he maintained his incredulity. "We're about to hit the planet, and you spring this on me?"
"I can't help it, alright?" a hand rose to pinch at the brow of her nose, stifling in its aggravation. "I've tried ignoring you, pushing you away...nothing works! You were there for me at my lowest point, through all those damn highs, all the violence, everything! You're always there, and now I've got thoughts of you crawling in my head like little godamn bugs! And now, this shit! What the hell am I supposed to to with that? I can't just shut off these fucking emotions! Tell me what to do!" The look he saw in her eyes wasn't one of desire, it was planitive. Pleading. "Help me."
"What exactly do you want from me, Jack?" a rare growl graced his lips as he pushed himself up off the bed, his moment of weakness all but gone. "Me to break up with Miri? To choose between the two of you? I'm not doing that. I can't do that." he turned his back to her. "I won't." Liar. He wanted her. His body ached for her. How many times had he stolen a glance at her when she wasn't looking? Secretly wondered if she was more passionate in bed than she was battle. Jack was fire. Miri was ice. They were two separate halves of him, the idea of living without either of them was...painful. And then there was this strange Hanabi woman.
No. He refused to think about her. She was a stranger. Whatever strange memories he might have of that psychotic attacker.
"Naruto," he felt himself shiver at the rare usage of his name. Jack's voice, usually so rough and determined, suddenly sounded very small. Like she was about to burst into tears. "You, Ori and that damned cheerleader are the closest things I have to friends-no, you're family. My family. You think I want to screw this up? To lose you? I love you guys, godamnit!" her voice finallly cracked at the end, a tiny sob scratching its way up her throat. He forced himself to stare at the wall, to ignore as she continued. "I can't...I just can't...
"We. Can't." he reiterated.
"Yes, we can."
Her lips collided with his.
A/N: And there we go. Events are already spiralling out of control, Saren's causing havoc and Naruto's out for blood after being humiliated as he was. Shepard's had a rude awakening and a bit of redemption all rolled into one neat package after her brush with death, so expect her to become less abrasive as time goes on. She also shares fragments of the vision with Naruto. As to just how that happened...all will be explained in time.
That's right she'll be working with Naruto! The Normandy is his! But what will happen with Cerberus? Will the pairing remain NarutoxMiranda or should Jack eventually be involved?! And what of Hanabi?
You decide, dear readers!
I'm not quite certain as to whether Shepard will remain this fic for the duration of all three games so please tell me what you think about that as well! I am but a humble writer without your input, oh dear reader! Any and all ideas are welcome!
So...in the immortal words Atlas...
...Review, Would You Kindly? And of course, enjoy the preview! DRAMA INBOUND!
(Preview)
"You can't do this."
"They said I couldn't walk on walls, either." Naruto hummed as he slotted another cartridge into the chamber of his rifle, methodically checking the stock before sighting down on the encroaching swarm once more. "Did that." He spun, sniping another Geth before they could reach him and the payload. "They said I couldn't fall in love, and well, I did that, too. I've done a lot of things they said I shouldn't be able to do. If I'm going to go out like this, at least it'll be on my terms."
"You'll die!" Miranda's voice broke in his ear, sobbing.
"Maybe." the spectre shrugged at the response from his headset. "Maybe not. I've never been blown to atoms before. Should be a novel experience." His finger twitched on the trigger, dropping another synthetic with a peerless precision. Then another. And another. And another still. The rifle slagged in his hand, overheated beyond repair. He snatched up Kaiden's pistol and continued to fire.
"Idiot!" Jack screamed! "You can't regenerate from something like that! Get out of there!"
"And I can't let someone die on my watch." came the reply. Miranda refused to listen.
"We can double back! The Normandy-
"There's no time."
Bang.
Scoped and dropped.
"Naruto...
"Don't be like that." he sighed, tugging on his helmet. "It had to be me. Somebody else would've gotten it wrong." Checking the safety he calmly strode over to the bomb, watching as the last few seconds ticked down from ten, a timer counting to his end. To oblivion. Not the way he wanted to go out. He wanted to live. When the counter reached five he flared his shields to full; and felt his skin begin to crackle and burn beneath the intense radiation.
Shots pinged harmlessly off them, ricocheting back towards the oncoming machine marauders.
He'd delayed them long enough.
Then he started running. Within those last three seconds, he'd nearly reached his goal. The voice in his head snarled at him in disbelief.
"How...?"
"Fuck you, that's how."
One last time, he heard Miranda's voice in his ear.
"NARUTO!"
With a defiant roar, he gathered himself up and dove off the pier into the water. Too slow. A wall of fire roared over him, smashing into his spine and smashing him into the sea. Weighted down by his armor he began to sink. Wait. Something was wrong. He couldn't breathe. No air. None. None at all. He was suffocating. Water in his suit! In his mouth! Nose! Lungs!
Crap, gotta get the armor off." he realized, scrambling for the release seals. "Gotta...gotta...oh...shi-
Blackness took him.
WILL HE SURVIVE?! Hope ya liked it! R&R! =D