*channels inner Pyrrha* Hello again!
I'm speechless at how well received this idea has been. I gave this a shot on an impulse – like ALL my stories – but I didn't think I'd do so well with a series that I had only recently finished watching.
Thank you all very much for your support, everyone! I'll try my best to keep this story entertaining and enjoyable!
Disclaimer: pain17ification owns nothing from these two incredible series!
Sackcloth and Ashes
Chapter Two: Welcome to Remnant
"So," began an orange haired man dressed in a white coat with a black bowler hat and cane, "this was what you four left me all alone for?" His visible black eye looked down at the pair of blue eyes that belonged to the crippled blonde. Turning his attention to Cinder, he smirked and added, "He don't look like much."
"Neither do you, at first glance," she smoothly replied, smirking at his deflated ego. "Besides," she stepped up to Naruto from her position behind him, placing a soft hand on his shoulder, "I have no doubt that Mr. Uzumaki will be a very welcome addition to our team. Now, if you will follow me, Naruto, I'll show you to a spare room. It will be yours for the foreseeable future."
"Right…" he replied in a soft tone as he trailed behind her.
Calling back to the others, Cinder ordered, "Find our newest partner some decent clothes, please. We can't have him walking around in rags."
Emerald took initiative and replied, "I'll see what I can find in town, ma'am," before she made her way for the exit of their current base; a foreclosed and abandoned hotel in the city of Vale.
Neo stopped her just before she made it to the door before handing her a slip of paper. As Emerald looked it over, she saw two spelled out colors as well as an accurate drawing of both the red spiral on Naruto's destroyed jacket and the symbol on his headband. The colors written down were orange and black, so it gave Emerald a better idea of what to get the Uzumaki.
"Thanks, Neo," the minty greenette drawled out with an eye-roll as she left the hotel.
Neo only smirked before walking off to find her newest source of interest. She was in such a good mood that she almost skipped down the old hallways.
"I apologize for all of the dust and any other potential damages to the room," Cinder began, opening the door for her newest partner, "but I'm sure you understand that there's only so much we could do for this place while staying under the radar."
"It's fine," he replied, stepping into the room and giving it a onceover. "I've stayed in worse places."
"Have you?" she queried, honestly somewhat surprised. "I figured you were the type to live in, and I mean no offense, a rather average home. Where did you stay for most of your life?"
Pocketing his headband, he moved to the windows and tore off the ruined curtains before opening the windows. "I lived in an old apartment in the poorer part of my home village. It wasn't much, but it was still home." Turning to her, he requested, "Close the door for a moment while I clear out the dust. Also, you might want to go outside so you don't get hit by any of it."
Curious about what he planned to do, she complied, but stayed inside of the room. "A little dirt never hurt anyone," she commented.
Shrugging, he closed his eyes and focused his chakra, mixing wind nature into it before he manipulated the energy with his left hand. Within the manipulation, he had the wind from outside the window sweep in and create a small vacuum that took in all of the dust before it flew outside in a twisting manner; almost like a drill of wind. Once outside, the drill dispersed and let the dust get carried off in the outside breeze while Naruto brushed off any lingering dirt on his destroyed clothes.
Cinder did the same, though she held a smirk at the impressive use of wind. "I never thought that you would have a Semblance that used the wind."
Raising a brow at her, he asked a question that, once again, caught her by surprise. "What's a Semblance?"
When Emerald returned with her backpack stuffed with clothes, she was curious to see Cinder and Naruto sitting across from one another with only a coffee table between them. Moving closer, she saw that the table had a book that was open to a diagram of a genderless body with highlights on their core.
"…is the basis of Aura and Semblances," she heard Cinder finish saying. "Do you understand so far?"
He crossed what he could of his arms, eyes closed thoughtfully. "Sort of… Although, it sounds like this Aura acts as an incomplete version of chakra while a person's Semblance makes up the missing parts."
The new word caught Emerald's interest, as well as Cinder's. "You mentioned that word a couple of times during my impromptu lesson. What exactly is chakra, Naruto?"
He was about to answer before he turned to Emerald. "You can listen too, if you want. Actually," he held up his only hand and made a half ram seal, producing a burst of smoke that revealed a perfect copy of him, "go get the others. I'd rather only say this once."
The clone nodded and walked off, and Naruto turned to the two women only to see their eyes focused on his retreating duplicate. "You…can replicate yourself?" asked Cinder after a brief pause.
"Yes," he answered simply, having to get used to how chakra seemed to be an unfounded source of power in this place he was now in. "I'll explain more when the others get here."
Cinder nodded at this and reached for her cup of warm tea while Emerald took a seat beside her. After a few minutes, the others arrived after Naruto's clone, and he had to fight his slight amusement at their surprise. He didn't want to show happiness when he knew he should be more worried about the others back home.
While Roman and Mercury stood behind the two-person couch that the women occupied, Neo decided to sit on the other couch next to the blonde, her eyes both taking a pink color of interest. Seeing that everyone was paying attention – though Roman had to be shut up by Cinder making a veiled threat – Naruto took that as his cue to begin.
"Chakra is a life energy that everyone back in my home is able to use. And I mean life in the purest sense," he stressed, making sure they understood. "It's as crucial to us as oxygen and nutrients, and it's made up of two halves that work together; a physical side and a spiritual side. From what I was taught, the physical side comes from our body – from the nerves and muscles to cells – while the spiritual side comes from our mind. Both sides can become stronger through specific training methods; such as exercise for physical and studying for mental. Some people have a higher side than the other, but that doesn't stop them from being able to use chakra."
"So," cut in Emerald with crossed arms, "that copy you made used chakra?"
"Yes. That was a jutsu, a technique that is made through a specific use of chakra. Chakra, from what I've witnessed throughout my life, has a near limitless amount of uses; from controlling the elements," Roman looked interested, "to becoming invisible," Emerald rose a brow, "to increasing physical strength," Mercury perked up, "to creating illusions," Neo smirked, "and even something as cruel as raising the dead."
Cinder's eyes gave a brief glow of interest at this; though she noted the disgust Naruto had on his face, as well as the haunted look in his eyes. "You've faced those risen dead, haven't you?" she asked, earning a solemn nod from the blonde man.
"Yes… It's not something I like to remember, so please just drop it."
"Of course," she assured in a soft tone, mentally smirking. 'For now, Naruto. But don't think I'll forget that little feature.'
"Alright, so you use this chakra instead of Aura," Roman summed up, air quoting chakra. "What makes it so different?"
Emerald then added, "You mentioned how Aura was like an incomplete chakra. What did you mean by that?"
Naruto nodded at their combined question, not surprised they asked it. "From what Cinder told me, Aura deals with physical concerns such as healing, defense, and stamina. Meanwhile, a person's Semblance relates to their soul; or spirit. So, based on that…"
Seeing as he let it hang, Mercury answered, "Aura acts as the physical half of your chakra while our Semblances make the spiritual half." Naruto nodded once. "Do you think we could combine them together to replicate your chakra?"
Cinder showed the most interest at that question, though she was disappointed at the unsure expression Naruto bore. "I can't say. I don't know how you all personally use your Aura, or even what your Semblances are. Since the Semblance of a person is a representation of their soul, it might be possible for a few people to replicate chakra; but I doubt it. Chakra is something you're born with; and even back home, the creation of artificial chakra was really rare."
'Damn,' mentally cursed Cinder, annoyed at such a power being out of her reach. She blinked at that thought before smirking. 'Although, perhaps it's not fully out of my reach,' she mused while turning to Naruto. "Anything else you could tell us about your chakra?"
"Other than the fact that I can't sense anyone in this city who could use it, or that my own chakra is unique in and of itself?" he asked in an almost deadpanned tone. "No, that's pretty much it. Anything else would be unimportant since none of you can use it."
Mentally though, he was frowning at the strange feeling coming from Cinder. It felt like an incredibly diluted and weak chakra core; one that didn't even truly belong to her. It was almost…
'…as if she was a Jinchūriki,' he mused, storing that thought away for later.
"That's a shame. I'm curious as to how I'd fare with that kind of power," she mused almost wistfully.
This earned her a frown from Naruto, much to her continued interest. "Power isn't everything," he shot down with a knowing undertone. "Someone with insane power will only be seen as such; never allowed to live in peace because of those who crave that very power for themselves."
She had to give him that one. She herself craved his power, as well as her power. "Well, I believe that's enough talk of different energies for the time being. I need to look over some things for our current and potential operations." Standing up, she started to leave the room, placing her hand on Naruto's shoulder to gently brush her fingers against him. "I look forward to more opportunities to speak with you, Mr. Uzumaki. I find myself more and more interested in what made you into the man you are now."
He didn't look at her as she spoke, instead having an unfocused gaze as memories involuntarily moved to the forefront of his thoughts. She saw this and smirked, enjoying how she could cause an effect on him with her rather simple comments. She was going to enjoy seeing just how much she could influence his thoughts.
After she left, Roman took his leave as well, not even bothering to give the others a form of farewell. He had heists to plan, and he needed men to do it. And every person who walked the underground knew where to get cheap grunts. He chuckled as he made his way to his personal ride in the hotel's garage. 'Wonder how good ol' Junior's doing…'
Mercury was next to leave. "I need to do some maintenance," he said as he made a face at his legs. "We still have extra oil in stock, right Emerald?"
She rolled her red eyes at him, annoyed at the unnecessary inquiry. "We should have plenty for at least a few days' worth, considering that we restocked just this week," Emerald answered pointedly, earning a look of irritation from the gray haired young man. "You probably also forgot that Mistress had me make sure that I left a spare can next to your tools for you."
Irritated further by how she made him feel like a fool, he left for a different part of the hotel building. He needed something to quell his annoyance.
"Well, I have my own tasks to take care of; so I'll just leave these here for you," Emerald continued, pulling out a large bag from her backpack and setting it in front of Naruto. "If you don't like them, then do your own shopping," she almost snarked, but kept her tone civil. This man was of great interest to her Mistress, after all. "And if you want to have something specific put on them, there's a clothing shop downtown that does personalized stitching for a cost."
Naruto only nodded in thanks, ignoring her rather rude speech since he was still trying to stop his onslaught of memories. He was left alone with the shortest member of Cinder's team, and she was content to just sit on the couch with him in silence. Sure, she wanted to talk to him; but she knew he was too preoccupied with his own thoughts for the moment. Neo was a patient girl, so she could wait for her chance.
After a few moments, the blonde man got his thoughts in order and took note of his remaining company. "…Neo, right?" he asked unsurely, earning a nod in confirmation. "You don't talk much, do you?" A head shake. "Can you talk?" A smirk, which made him sigh. "I'll take that as a yes. Anyway, I'm going to see what my new clothes will look like."
Grabbing the bag, he stood up and made for his room, only to feel a presence following him. Turning around, he looked down to see Neo smirking up at him, both eyes that pink color that he associated with "intrigue" or "interest". From what he had observed, she had three eye colorations, and that meant a total of six different combinations; or "moods" as he liked to believe. And from what he had seen, when both of her eyes were pink, it meant that she was interested in something.
In this case, it seemed to be himself that Neo was interested in.
"You don't plan to follow me all the way to my room, do you?" he asked, earning a vague shrug from her. "Listen…I appreciate you keeping me company, but I need some time alone. I'll…talk to you when I've had enough time. Will that work for you?"
She frowned, both eyes turning to a brown color as she blinked. Still frowning, she held out her left hand and gestured to it with her eyes. Catching her meaning, he sighed again and looped the bag on his crippled arm before shaking her hand, showing that they had struck an "accord".
Satisfied, Neo returned her eyes to their natural brown/pink combination before she walked off. Where she was going was anyone's guess, and the last Uzumaki didn't feel like make any guesses about it. Instead, he headed for his room and closed the door to give himself some much needed privacy. He set the bag down on his bed before pulling out the clothes Emerald had gotten for him on Cinder's orders.
To his curiosity, he saw that the clothes were orange and black and that Emerald had even gotten him some armor-padded sandals like the damaged ones he currently wore. Figuring that she just got him clothes based on the colors of his ruined ones, he chose not to dwell on it anymore and just got dressed. It was difficult with the loss of his dominant hand, but he remedied that by having golden chakra form a crude hand shape to assist him.
He was somewhat relieved that he still held the Six Paths Senjutsu that his Sun Mark had bestowed upon him. This meant that he had incredibly powerful chakra to call upon, as well as his Truth Seeker Orbs. However, he made no plans to use those abilities unless the situation was dire enough for their presence.
Though, helping him get dressed was an exception.
When he finished putting on his new clothes, he had to say that he approved of Emerald's picks. He had on his mesh undershirt as usual, but over it he wore an orange, zip-down sweatshirt that was both comfortable and durable with three black stripes each on his sleeves and waistline. He wore all black pants with the pant legs tucked into his new sandals that were equally black and stopped at his shins. He rolled up the right sleeve so that the end of his arm stub was just barely seen. Coming from a life that thrived on battle and conflict (much to his dismay), he knew that the loose sleeve would be a hindrance to him. (1)
"Not bad," he murmured before sitting on his bed and looking at his ruined clothes that had his Hidden Leaf Headband neatly folded on top of them. He held a look of shame as he stared at the proud symbol of his home; a symbol that he couldn't bear to look at anymore. His failure still weighed heavily on his heart, as well as the anger at Sasuke for finally succeeding in severing the bond that Naruto held with him.
Never before had Naruto felt so betrayed. He had done everything he could to try and help Sasuke stop going down the path of revenge and hatred; but Sasuke denied every attempt and even tried to kill him. And it wasn't just a one-time attempt at murder; it was several! The first two (possibly three) were when they were both still children. The next attempt was when they reunited as young adults at Orochimaru's hideout, and Naruto didn't even try to stop him that time. The next was in the Land of Iron, after Sasuke had made himself a criminal against the Five Kage of the Elemental Nations; right after Naruto had stopped him from trying to kill Sakura!
When they reunited during the war, Naruto truly believed that Sasuke had finally turned around; even though he was upset at the Uchiha claiming to take the position of Hokage. It was thanks to Sasuke – as well as a great hit from Sakura on Kaguya – that the Mother of Chakra was able to be sealed away again. Things were starting to really look up for Naruto.
But, then Sasuke had to ruin it once again by choosing a hatred, vengeful path; one that he claimed would be a "revolution" for the Shinobi World as a whole. Naruto knew he had to stop Sasuke, not just for his incredibly selfish plan; but to save the people who were still trapped within their "perfect" dreams and forced to act as nutrients for the Shinju Tree.
After everything he had done, it had all been spurned and practically spit upon by Sasuke during their final battle. And now, because of Sasuke's foolish desire and hatred, Naruto had been unable to get him to help free the others and was now stuck in an unknown place; forced to become a partner with a woman who held obvious ulterior motives.
Sighing in frustration, he laid on the comforter of his bed, staring at the ceiling as tears formed in his eyes. These tears held regret… They held pain… They held anger… But most of all, they held resentment. This resentment wasn't for Sasuke, however; it was for himself. He resented how he couldn't work the nerve to strike a more crucial blow on Sasuke on multiple occasions. He could have done so in almost all of their fights; but he didn't.
And now…he was paying for that weak nerve…and it was torture on his damaged heart.
It was a couple of days later that Naruto found himself alone at the hotel building with Mercury. Cinder wanted him to have a sort of "grace period" to get adjusted with his new home before she had him take on any jobs or assignments.
So, Naruto decided to just use the time to think some more about his situation. Mercury had moved his tools into the empty room he was in and was working on something unknown to the Uzumaki; not that he wanted to know anyway.
Cinder had given Mercury orders to keep an eye on Naruto, as well as try to get him talking. He honestly didn't want to, not seeing the point in dealing with the whiskered blonde, but Cinder could be very persuasive when she wanted to be.
Too bad for Merc that her persuasions weren't of the pleasurable sort.
"So…" the silver-haired man began, wondering how he would talk with the guy that only Cinder and (ironically) Neo could get to actually speak, "how are you liking the idea of working with us so far?"
He wanted to scowl when he saw that Naruto had stonewalled him, the newbie's gaze fixed somberly on a uniquely designed trench knife, with the blade made to be worn akin to a brass knuckle. The edge had a sharpened zigzag "tooth" over each knuckle, and a blade coming out of one end. It was something that the others had seen Neo get made for him at one of the many weapon shops of Vale City.
'Why the hell is she so interested in this guy? Okay, so the way the Grimm treated him back at Mountain Glenn was weird, and that chakra stuff he used and told us about was admittedly interesting…but what the hell is going on through that girl's head to be doing stuff for this sorry sack?' Taking a breath to compose himself once more, he tried again to get the blonde talking. "Hey, listen… I get it; you don't wanna talk," Mercury said, continuing the one-sided conversation. From the forlorn expression the blond wore, his mind was yet again on those that he'd been unable to protect. "You know, you can trust the boss. Cinder helped me get back on my feet," he then pulled up his pants part-way up his thighs, "literally."
Naruto finally removed his gaze from the trench knife in his hand and looked over at Mercury. His brow rose at what he saw; fully functional prosthetic legs that preformed as well as the original biological versions. While it was interesting, it also explained why Mercury always wore pants and why he never took his shoes off; as well as the recurring comments on maintenance, oil, and tools the guy regularly made.
Seeing he had their newest member's attention, Mercury also removed the armor he wore over his arms, exposing what appeared to be oddly-shaped scars on the outer sides and backs of both of his arms. He didn't like showing these or his legs to other people, but it wasn't like this guy wouldn't eventually learn about them since they'd be working together. And considering the blonde's own obvious maiming, it wasn't like he'd be unable to understand why things like this were touchy subjects.
Naruto looked at the state of Mercury's body. 'So…Cinder has helped others like me before, then. I'm not surprised that she goes for the broken and downtrodden, the ones that life spat on…'
Still, that had earned her a few points in his book, considering that he knew what it was like to need help but not receive any. The woman may have had ulterior motives, but as the saying goes: Nothing in life is free. Everything has its price.
Naruto nodded at the gray haired, lackadaisical young man that almost reminded him Kakashi-sensei. Cinder had helped put him together again, and she tried giving him the means to maintain some form of a regular life. Mercury might have felt the two of them were somewhat similar, which would help them form some kind of mutual understanding.
His eyes drifted to his own stub, his mind drifting again as he wondered what he was going to do.
"Look," continued Mercury, "I know it's hard when you're at the shittiest end of the stick; but unless you figure out how to pick yourself up and find a way to move forward, things will never change. You'll stay stuck in the same place and rot to death. You can still try doing something with your life, and maybe find a way to reach your goals. But that can't happen unless you choose to do it, right?"
That succeeded in snapping Naruto out of his thoughts and he knew that Mercury wasn't wrong. He still had to get home and make things right. He couldn't afford to rot or stay still.
With that thought once again reestablished in his mind, the Uzumaki looked at Mercury and nodded. "…Thanks," he said simply.
All Mercury did was nod in return before resuming his work. As far as he cared, he got Naruto to speak, so he didn't feel the need to keep up the conversation.
The others found the two in a comfortable silence upon their return, and Cinder gave Mercury a satisfied smirk at that.
"Come on, kid," Roman tried once again, enjoying how the silent blonde made no attempts to shut him up or push him away. As a man who enjoyed being in the spotlight, he always welcomed an audience; even one who was such a downer. "How about another demonstration, eh? I wanna see what you're capable of!"
"…"
Naruto only gave him a dull look in response. Why should he show his abilities when there wasn't any real point? And besides, Cinder was the one who offered him a spot in this little group; not the man with hair shaded his favorite color.
"You know, I doubt the little lady who thinks she's in charge will know what to use you for if you don't show her a little something," Roman attempted again.
"…"
Okay, now Roman was starting to get irritated. Sure, he could handle a silent audience; but one that blatantly ignored him, while looking right at him?! That was where he drew the line!
So, he moved away from the blonde under the guise of giving up. He even turned around and took a few steps away from the Uzumaki, making it seem like he was heading back up from the practically empty garage beneath the hotel. When he looked back slightly over his shoulder, he saw Naruto heading for the opposite set of stairs and smirked.
Turning around, he raised his cane and had the end pommel flip its cover, showing a targeting crosshair at the end of the barrel of his revealed firearm. "Try ignoring this, Whisker Boy!" he yelled out before attempting to squeeze the trigger.
The key word being attempting.
Before he could comprehend what had happened, he found himself off of the ground, pinned to the wall, and a hand around his neck. Shocked, he was about to struggle before he caught sight of dull blue eyes staring at him almost apathetically.
"…Don't try that again."
That simple order was said in such a calm tone that it ironically brought a chill down the older man's spine. He was then unceremoniously dropped to the ground on his ass before his mind rebooted and he saw that Naruto was already at the foot of the stairs…on the other side of the garage over one hundred feet away.
Rubbing his neck, he groaned and cracked it to get the kinks out before giving an annoyed huff. "Kids today… Always so melodramatic…"
Emerald looked at the blond who kept staring dejectedly at the dented-up headband. From the looks of him, the guy had barely slept at all throughout the past few days. She frowned at this since he was only worsening his own condition; which also made his usefulness to Cinder drop by the day.
'Geez, this guy is just oozing depression…'
As much as she disliked cheery and friendly, it would suit the amputee to buck up. She couldn't believe she was thinking this, but she knew that he needed to smile, laugh, and learn to enjoy being able to live a little!
Still though, his need to rebuild a reason to want to live wasn't easy. She knew that from when she had to steal to live before Mistress Cinder recruited her for her useful abilities. She'd lived in a city, day to day without a guarantee of enough food; always resorting to stealing to get by. While she wouldn't ever admit it (and if anyone suggested she did, then she'd put a bullet in them) she empathized with the downtrodden people of Remnant. She couldn't really help it when she remembered the days before her Mistress had come into her life. Thanks to that, she understood a bit where the one-armed newbie was coming from.
And it Pissed. Her. Off!
"You know…you could stare at that thing until you've died, rotted, and your bones have turned to dust. Nothing's gonna change unless you snap out of this damn funk of yours," she snapped at him, only for him to stonewall her. "I know you heard me!" the girl growled angrily.
"…"
Again, he ignored her.
"God! No wonder you had to go groveling to that Sasuke guy to play the hero!" She and the others had been given an explanation for why Naruto was in a funk by Cinder a couple days ago. So she knew what she was about to say would get to him. "If all you're good for is being depressing, then the ones you failed needed someone that could actually rise to the occasion and get the job done; you know that?!"
Emerald felt a tug at the corners of her mouth twitch as his shoulders tensed. Aha! She finally got a reaction out of him. Now to keep pressing on that one sensitive spot until he got too ticked off to stay depressed.
"So you trusted the wrong guy… So what?! Get over it! Were you the one that was stupid enough to make that backstabber a part of having to play the role of savior? How was that your fault?"
He actually turned to glare at her by this point.
"Look…you're in a bad way right now, I get it. But are you just gonna piss and moan while drowning in your useless self-pity or you gonna get off your ass and actually do something, ya damn cripple?!" Emerald demanded.
"…Shut up," he said in a cold tone, one that made her actually have to repress a shiver.
"Not until you get out of this damn pity party you've thrown for yourself!" she fired back, standing over him as he sat on one of the couches.
"You don't know anything," he stated, eyes as chilling as a snowstorm. "Don't go running your mouth about something you don't understand."
She glared at him heatedly at that. "You think I don't understand how it feels to lose someone?!"
"I didn't just lose my loved ones," he cut off, catching her by surprise as he looked back down at his headband. "I failed them when they needed me most... I wasn't strong enough to help them and my weakness was the reason they are gone…"
"You gave up pretty quickly then since you aren't even attempting to try and get back to save them!" she snarked, but immediately regretted it when a dense pressure covered the room they were in.
Hair shadowing his eyes, Naruto gave the greenette no warning when golden flickers of energy sprouted from his arm stub, taking shape and forming a man-sized claw that rushed at Emerald, slamming her into the wall. The force of the impact shook the hotel base and had the others rush into the room to see what was happening. To their surprise, and Cinder's interest, they saw golden aura practically pouring out of the blonde man while his chilling blue eyes bored into Emerald's terrified red ones.
The golden claw closed around the young woman, trapping her before bringing her closer to the Uzumaki while her legs were dragged against the old carpeted floors of the building. Slowly, she got face-to-face with him, and she felt herself similar to an ant staring up at a giant.
"…You don't know when to keep your mouth shut," he almost growled at her. "You think I won't try and get back to them? Why do you think I took Cinder's offer?" Carelessly, the chakra arm tossed her to the side, causing her to grunt at the impact she made with the opposite wall. "Until I know for sure that it's a pointless effort, I won't stop searching for a way back to the people I love. And a word of warning: disrespect my feelings for them again…and you won't be able to even regret it," he declared in a straight tone before he brushed past the others.
While Mercury moved over to the still shell-shocked Emerald, Cinder's eyes glowed with interest as her gaze followed Naruto's retreating form. 'You have some tricks up your sleeve, Mr. Uzumaki,' she mused with a smirk. 'More and more…I get to see who you truly are.'
"…"
"…"
This was the extent of the current conversation between Naruto and his petite guest. The two were in his room with Neo seated on his bed, legs crossed beneath her frame. He himself was seated in a chair close to his opened window, letting the outside breeze brush coolly against his skin.
In his hand was a book that Cinder had gotten for him during one of her outings. It was a text that dealt with the most updated knowledge on the Creatures of Grimm. From what he had read so far, it was strange to him that the Grimm didn't bother him at all; especially with how depressed and angry he had been for the past week.
He should've been a beacon for them with flashing lights, for goodness sake!
This left him with more questions, and he hoped that he would find them by the book's end. But, he still had company at the present time; company who seemed just fine with sitting silently and smirking at him with her eyes, once again, both being a bright pink.
"Y'know…I'd be willing to answer any questions you might have; provided you, I don't know, speak?" he suggested, brow twitching minutely.
Her smirk grew in amusement before she shifted herself so that her legs were out, and one of them crossed over the other. "…Depressed," she said in a rather soft tone.
He blinked in surprise at her actually speaking. Granted, he never doubted that she could, but she was just so damn quiet all the time! Still, he acknowledged what she had said, nodding once.
"Yes, I am. I thought that should've been obvious by this point?" he asked with a raised brow.
Crossing her arms, she frowned as both eyes turned brown. "Recover."
"It's not that simple," he shot down, shaking his head as he set the book down on the windowsill. "I didn't just get sent away from those I loved; I failed to protect them and free them. I can't just recover from something like that; not when it was my weakness that made me fail."
"Get stronger," she pressed, still frowning at him. "Too weak?" she challenged, trying to get a rise out of him.
"I just might be…" he sighed out, body sagging in his seat. "I don't know how to get stronger from this… I've always had my bonds with them to cherish and protect."
"Still do," she assured, standing up from his bed. She walked over to him and grabbed the bottom of his chin gently, raising his gaze to meet hers while both of her eyes were now a milky white. "Not weak. Strong here," she continued, poking his chest with her free hand. She then poked his head and added, "Think too much."
"…"
He looked thoughtful at her words, unsure of what to do. However, it was that thoughtful expression he made that earned him another poke to the forehead.
"Still thinking. Don't."
"But how can I not…?" he challenged, voice showing further confusion. "How can I not think about what I failed to do?"
She crouched a little, just enough for her standing posture to lower her face to his level. "Not your fault," she said softly, placing her hand on his head just like when she and Cinder first met him. She gave it a reassuring pat as her smirk returned. "You can make it right, Naruto."
His blue orbs couldn't look away from her milky ones. It astounded him how this young woman – he by no means could think of her as a girl; a child – could have such an effect on him. From this brief exchange, he found himself starting to regain that spark he had lost. It wasn't a successful spark that would reignite his Will of Fire; but it was a step in the right direction.
He chuckled softly, eyes closed in resignation to her words. "…Thanks, Neo."
Her smirk softened to a faint smile and she nodded. Satisfied with her own efforts, she grabbed her closed parasol from his bed and headed for the exit. She was stopped from opening the door by his voice.
"Neo?" She turned around to see that he was on his feet and had moved closer to her position. He looked to be on the fence about something, which made her raise a brow to urge him on. Taking a quick breath, he held out his sole fist to her.
This time she was confused. A fist bump? Why would he offer something like that to her? Looking back up at him, she saw he was struggling a little to keep his fist extended to her. Was this really such an important thing to him? Curiosity guiding her, she raised her own left fist and had it meet his fist.
As soon as she did, she found herself completely defenseless at what had happened next.
"You seem to be in higher spirits today, Naruto," noted Cinder as she sat across from the blonde, once again enjoying a warm cup of tea.
Naruto was holding his own cup and paused from taking a drink at her comment. "You really think so?" he asked her, setting the cup down on the coffee table between their respective couches.
"Of course I do. You don't have as much of a depressing air about you anymore. That, and you seem a bit more…relaxed, I suppose would be the proper word. May I ask what caused this progression?"
Shrugging, he gave her an oblivious look. "I wasn't aware I had changed that much."
She smirked in amusement, finding his confusion enjoyable. "Can you think of nothing?" she pressed, crossing one of her legs over the other and leaning forward slightly in her seat.
Scratching his head, he hummed in thought. "Nothing comes to mind. Though, I guess I did have a nice talk with Neo earlier."
That interested her. "Truly? And she spoke to you?"
"As much as a near-mute woman would, at any rate," he elaborated. "But still, I appreciated the talk she gave me. It made me feel a bit better, y'know?"
Mentally noting to question Neo about her talk with the interesting blonde before her, Cinder nodded in understanding. "Well, I'm pleased to see that she helped you make such progress with your depression. I can only hope we'll help you make further progress."
"You're starting to sound like a shrink," he commented, surprising her by the amused look he sported; even if it was rather faint.
"Perhaps, but I'd rather not be something so simple." Her amber eyes bored into his blues, and she smirked once more. "I would rather be a more…inspiring person for you; not just someone to help you heal. Truth be told, Naruto, I find myself continuously growing more interested in you. You have such an enigmatic air about you that I can't help but want to discover what lies within those walls you have."
He looked a tad uncomfortable at the almost predatory gleam in her eyes.
"But," she continued, letting the glow in her eyes die down, "I don't want to pressure you into something that would make you insecure around me. I'm a patient woman, Naruto; I can wait for you to find yourself more comfortable around me." She gave a soft chuckle, one that accentuated her natural beauty. "However, that doesn't mean I won't try to make you more comfortable sooner. Yes, I'm patient; but I'm also someone who knows what they want."
He swallowed the lump in his throat. "And uh… What do you want, Cinder?" he asked, just a bit nervous.
Her eyes glowed briefly once again. "I want us to grow closer," she answered, and he found himself stunned at both the simple answer and her sincerity. "That's all."
He blinked at her answer. It was definitely unexpected, but he couldn't find any deception in her voice. "…Really?" he couldn't help but ask, relaxing a bit in his seat.
She mentally grinned at her small victory. "But of course. After all, something about you just draws me in. It could be your unknown origins," she slowly stood up, "your unique gift against the Grimm," she moved towards him, "your chakra compared to our Aura," she stood next to the arm of his couch, placing her hand on his resting arm, "or perhaps it's just you in general. Either way, I can only hope that we'll progress our current standing further, Naruto. I look forward to seeing just how much we'll…influence each other."
With her piece said, she walked off, making sure to have her fingers glide across his arm as she moved away. Out of sight from his eyes, her smirk grew full force and her eyes gleamed excitedly, nearly lighting up the halls with their glow. She had seen the consideration he tried to hide in his eyes. She just had to keep pressing forward, keep offering him a chance to find new reasons to move on while making sure that they centered around her group; and herself especially.
It was inevitable in her eyes. Soon, the enticing man that she had been lucky to meet would fully join her; standing by her side as her plans came into place. And when that day came…
She shivered excitedly, chuckling to herself. 'Welcome to Remnant, Naruto Uzumaki. I hope you enjoy staying here, because sooner or later…you'll be mine,' she mentally promised while Naruto felt a strange shiver go down his spine.
1~ He's in his clothes during his reign as Seventh Hokage in canon (sans the flaming cape he wore)
Damn! That chapter was challenging! It's hard to make a "broken" Naruto have a believable, yet reasonably extended, recovery period; especially when I just want to get through it and get to the good stuff!
What did you guys think of the interactions Naruto had with Cinder's group? Were they up to your standards, or did they seem a bit off? I'd love to get your feedback on this!
Also, I bet you're curious as to what happened when Neo bumped fists with Naruto. Well, you'll just have to be patient, won't ya?! *smug grin*
Cinder's also slowly but surely sinking her claws into Naruto's fragile heart. Will she succeed in turning him to her cause, or will he resist her tempting call? Stay tuned to see!
One last thing before I wrap this up: I was hoping that someone would attempt a Characters Reading Version of this story after I get through at least the third or fourth chapter. If no one feels up to it, then I'd be willing to give it a try; provided that I don't get heckled or flamed mercilessly again for being a quote "narcissist". If you're interested, or you feel I should try it for myself, hit me up via PM! I look forward to hearing from you guys!
Until next time!
~pain17ification~