And we're back! Welcome to Twilight Key, Chapter 39!
When I said it was obvious, I meant that the fact that Happy called it a castle, and yet Naruto didn't see any resemblance to a castle was a big clue. This is a world that I have been planning on doing for a long time. It was also suggested a couple of times in reviews.
So I decided to be inconsistent. If the situation/world calls for it, then I will use honorifics. Otherwise, I won't. There are a couple of worlds (Including this one) where I can't really imagine certain relationships between characters without honorifics…This is because I'm one of those people who doesn't like watching the English dubbed version of anime. This choice might be annoying to some people, but whatever.
I don't feel as if the second part of the chapter is as good as the first half. I had a lot of trouble writing it…
Kairitrion Cerulean: I went and looked, but I didn't find the mistake you were talking about…There could also be mistakes in this chapter. I'm tired. :P
redlox2: Honestly, I forget his age too sometimes, but I think it works. As for what Naruto noticed… :P
The Sith'ari: Harem? I haven't entertained that idea much. One girl is what I will probably be going with.
prototype gear: The japanimarica thing made me laugh, so thanks for that. That's how a lot of my chapters are. I feel as if I can improve them, but people still say they were great…I guess the public has low standards? I'm calling bullshit on that rap thing.
ImagineBreaker7: Lucy was choice #2, but I didn't use her for other reasons.
Stick Figure man: Nothing solid, but I'm entertaining the thought.
Risengaku: Maybe you're right, maybe you're wrong. Nox's master could be one of them, or not be one of them. Only I know for sure. "Geezer" applies to both. I've never touched Kingdom Hearts X, so I wouldn't know. Keyblade armor would be over the top right then! I just showed the glider! I dint forget that she was a ninja! It's just something I want to put in later.
Vasto-Lorde26: Thanks, welcome aboard! Many of the world's already selected are anime worlds, so yeah. As for Aqua being the pairing, she is one of the top contenders. And Yen Sid's tower… :P
HeartlessNobody13: …That must be the longest review to date. Holy crap. I'm not going to comment on your guesses for who else is going to show up, so yeah. :P I really want to put Ichigo in, but the problem is that the Bleach world has been lost for about 6 years now in this story, so I can't exactly put any humans in without aging them…Which I would rather avoid doing for reasons. As for the RWBY thing, I keep leading people on with that on purpose, so no worries. Who knows? It could be a world I've chosen. Well I know, but I'm not saying. :P And thanks! I dunno if I would say that writing is my passion, but I can't deny that I enjoy it.
Anyways, on with the story!
I don't own Naruto, Kingdom Hearts or anything else. I'm just a broke college student...
Normal Talking: "Insert witty remark here."
Normal Thinking: 'Insert witty remark here.'
Biju/Deity Talking: "Insert witty remark here."
Biju/Deity Thinking:'Insert witty remark here.'
Scene Change: Insert Place Here
Jutsu/Magic/Technique: Insert Jutsu Here
Gummi Ship
"I just…I don't see it."
"No, no! It's there! Try tilting your head!"
"…Still nothing."
"Squint your left eye a bit while opening your right one more!"
Naruto frowned. "I'm not doing that, Happy." He shook his head. "No matter how many times I look at it, that just doesn't look like a castle to me."
"I don't know…" Gray mused. "It kind of does look like a castle a bit." He held up his hands in surrender at Naruto's incredulous look. "I'm not saying it's a conventional castle, but I can sort of see what Happy's talking about." Naruto sighed at this.
"You're all crazy" He muttered. "The computer is picking up various environments in that world, so how is it a castle?" He glanced over to Natsu, who was staring at the world in front of them intensely. "I'm guessing you agree with them?" No response. "Nats-?" Naruto was cut off when Natsu suddenly grinned widely.
"I got it! It is a castle, but it also has an outdoors on the inside!" Natsu said excitedly.
Naruto looked at him dubiously. "So…You're saying that it is a castle…But the castle has something that is -by definition- meant to be outside? Isn't that a paradox? Why would it be a castle then?"
"It just is!"
Gray shrugged. "Who knows? This is a different world, so different rules may apply. Let's just get down there. That would be the best way to find out for sure."
"…Sure…" But even if it was a castle, why would it look like that? Naruto started to look for a place to land, but he soon came upon a problem. "Um…Where exactly should we land?"
"In the world." Natsu rolled his eyes. "Duh."
"No. I mean, in which part?" Naruto pointed to the world. "That thing is huge, so where do we land?"
"Oh…"
"That's a good question…" Gray said quietly. "Do you think it would be best to land in the middle?"
"No at the top!" Happy insisted. "That way we could see everything!"
"We wouldn't be able to see everything with that design…"
"Oh, then lets…" Naruto tuned out the conversation and focused on the world.
'Where do we land…? It might be best to do it where we can find people to talk to…' His eyes roved over the world. 'But where would that be?'
Ba-Bump.
Naruto's body jerked abruptly, gaining the attention of the others. 'What was tha-?'
Ba-Bump. There it was again.
Naruto's eyes glazed over. 'This feeling…' Something in that world was reacting to his presence. Unnoticed to Naruto himself, he began to direct the gummi ship to a certain part of the world. 'I need…to go there…'
A hand waving in front of his face snapped him out of the trance. "W-What?" Turning, he was met with the concerned faces of the others. "Sorry, what was that?"
Gray frowned slightly. "We should be asking you that. Out of nowhere, you jumped in place before directing the ship to the world." He glanced back to the world. "Did you decide on a place to land?"
"Uh, sort of…" Naruto frowned. "I…Something in this world is calling out to me…"
"What do you mean?" Happy asked curiously, but was given a shake of the head in return.
"I…I'm not really sure." Naruto admitted. "It's just that something in that world wants me to reach it…I was able to feel it from here."
"Should we be worried?" Gray asked seriously.
Thinking about the feeling for a moment, Naruto shook his head. "No…I don't think it's anything bad…Whatever it was, it resonated with my heart. I was momentarily able to feel its…emotions?" Was that the best way to describe it? "I felt…worry…loneliness…fear…But after it resonated with me, I felt relief, joy, trust, and…a sense of familiarity." He gained a determined look. "I don't know what it is, but I'm going to find out." He directed the ship towards the world.
Black eyes looked up to the sky and the owner frowned slightly when he spotted something streak across it and land nearby. 'What…?' The sound of metal clashing against metal pulled the owner back into the here and now. 'Don't get distracted!' He scolded himself. Getting distracted here meant death! The owner of the black eyes tightened the grip on his sword and raised it up. A moment later, the sword began to give off a bright light.
"Switch!"
With Naruto and the Others
"It really doesn't look like a castle from here." Naruto pointed out while staring pointedly at the terrain around them. They had landed the gummi ship in the middle of a small clearing at the base of a mountain. A second mountain was off in the distance.
"But…" Happy couldn't understand it. It had definitely looked like a castle! "I was sure it was a castle…"
"Hey, don't worry about it, buddy. It may still be one!" Natsu reassured. "Let's just go find someone and ask!"
"We can't do that, moron." Gray said while taking a look around. "That would be saying that we aren't really from this world."
"Exactly." Naruto walked over to a small panel on the side of the gummi ship and began to press a few buttons. "That is supposed to be a secret, remember?" He took a step back as the gummi ship vanished from view. "There, now the ship won't be found…" He surveyed the area again and sighed. "But where do we go from here?"
"Eh? What do you mean?"
"He means that now that we are here, what do we do?" Gray told the flying cat. "This world looked to be pretty big…Do we start looking for the keyhole? Ask around to see if there has been anything strange going on? Try finding the source of that thing Naruto felt? We need to plan a bit."
"Oh…Well Natsu already ran off to find some people to talk to."
Naruto and Gray's heads snapped around to stare at the cat. "He what?!" They shouted. Frantically looking around, they saw that the fire dragon slayer was indeed gone.
"Why didn't you say anything?!"
Happy shrugged at Gray's question. "I didn't think it was a big deal."
"Where did he go?!"
"I dunno. I only noticed he wasn't here, not the direction he left in."
"Damn it!" Why couldn't that idiot just stay in place?! "Come on, we better go find him." Naruto said before running towards the indicated direction.
"This is just like Traverse Town…" Gray muttered as he followed Naruto. "Next time he does that, say something!" Gray shouted at the cat.
"Aye~"
With Natsu
"Hm…" Natsu came to a stop and took in his surroundings. "Now then…Where can I find people?" He muttered. It had seemed like a good idea at the time, but maybe just running off in a random direction isn't the best way to find people that you don't even know for sure are there? Now he was standing in the middle of a forest with no clue on where he was or where he was going. "What should I do…?"
Suddenly, the sound of metal clashing against metal attracted Natsu's attention. "A fight?" He muttered. Having nothing to lose, he went to investigate.
"Hya!" Natsu's eyes widened in surprise at the scene he came across. Standing back to back was a pair of teenagers, but that wasn't the surprising part. What was surprising was that the two of them were surrounded by these…humanoid lizard things.
Standing in a ring surrounding the two teens were some kind of monsters that resembled some sort of reptile, and yet were smart enough to wield swords and shields. A few of them even had helmets on! The monsters were watching the humans warily, as if waiting for the right moment to attack.
That moment came a second later.
As if acting on some unseen signal, the monsters all raised their blades at the same time. Natsu blinked when their swords started to glow with a golden light, but his curiosity was wiped away when the lizards then proceeded to charge the teens.
"Oh no you do-" Natsu's words died on his lips when the teens moved in sync with one another and dodged every attack sent their way, even going so far as to retaliating with their own swords as they did. "Whoa…" They were good!
The black haired boy moved out of the way of a slash from one of the lizards and stabbed the lizard in the back, while the chestnut color haired girl moved at extreme speeds to weave her way through the enemy. She was moving so fast that Natsu was barely able to see her attacks!
Seeing that the two of them were obviously in full control of the situation, Natsu decided instead to just sit back and observe…Who was he kidding? With a wide grin, Natsu charged into the fight.
The black haired boy parried a sword from the Lizardman Lord in front of him, forcing it to stumble back. Using the position his sword ended up in, the teen started to prepare his next attack. Just as every other time he desired it, his sword began to give off a bright glow. Tightening his grip, the black haired boy began to let his body glow into the familiar motio-
"Banzai!"
'What?!' Out of nowhere, a person with pink hair got in between the teen and the Lizardman and punched the monster in the face. The teen's first reaction was that someone else with pink hair that he knew had just joined in, but that was soon overridden by the fact that the teen's sword was about to cut into the person!
Acting quickly, the teen attempted to halt his body's motions, but it was too late. Gritting his teeth, he instead turned his body to the side slightly. The black haired boy let out an internal sigh of relief when he was successful in doing so, causing his attack to miss the newcomer. Crisis averted, the teen turned to glare and shout at the pink haired teen, but another Lizardman Lord attacking drew demanded his immediate attention. "Are you an idiot?!" He shouted.
"Hey! You nearly hit me!" The pink haired teen yelled back.
The black haired teen adopted an agitated look, even as he further cut down the enemies. "That's because you got in the way! What were you thinking jumping in the way of a «Sword Skill» like that?!" He wasn't even in their party!
"A what?!"
"…What do you mean 'a what'?!" Everyone knew about «Sword Skills». That was an absolute fact. And even if this guy somehow didn't know about them, he wouldn't have been able to get close to the front lines. Getting to this point without «Sword Skills» wouldn't be possible. Black eyes widened. 'Wait, didn't he…?' When the pink haired teen got in the way, he did it by…punching the monster.
Risking a glance over his shoulder, the black haired teen felt his jaw drop when he saw flames coating the pink haired teen's fists. 'That's impossibl-'
"Pay attention!" His head snapped back around just in time to side step the blade that was about to decapitate him. "We can worry about his lack of knowledge after we get out of this!" The chestnut haired girl reprimanded.
Shaking his head to clear his thoughts, the black haired teen crouched and raised his blade. "Right…" He said quietly. As directed, his sword started to give off a glow. 'Only a few more left…' He leapt forward.
A Few Minutes Later
Natsu grinned and put his hands behind his head. "Man, that was fun!" He looked over to the other two. "You two are pretty tough!"
The girl smiled hesitantly at him. "Thanks…We appreciate the help."
"Ah, it's no big deal! Don't worry abou-Whoa!" Natsu was interrupted when the girl's companion suddenly pointed a black blade at Natsu's throat.
The girl gasped. "What are you doing?!"
The one holding the offending sword glared at Natsu suspiciously. "Didn't you see it? This guy was fighting the monsters with his fists…With his flaming fists." The girl's eyes widened. "That isn't normal. We have no idea who he is and he just approached us in the middle of a dungeon. We have no reason to trust him." Although clearly conflicted, she slowly nodded in agreement. Glaring harder, the black clad teen spoke up. "So? Who are you and how did you do that?"
"What's your problem?!" Natsu growled. "I just helped you out!"
"And it's appreciated. That doesn't mean we have to lower our guards though." Came the calm response. "Now are you going to tell us, or do we have to take you to the «Black Iron Palace» for questioning?"
Natsu wasn't sure what that place was, but he recognized the threatening tone. Scowling, he ignited his fists and tensed his body, making the two teens tense as well. "Oh yeah? I'd like to see you try, jackas-"
"Natsu!" All eyes turned to the tree line, where three familiar figures ran out. "There you are!" Naruto said, but he came up short when he saw the scene. "…And you have company…"
Gray sighed and began to prepare himself for a fight. "What the hell did you do now, flame brain?"
"I didn't do anything!" Natsu bit out. "I just helped them out in a fight and this was the thanks I got!"
Naruto eyed the two teens. "I don't know what your reason is for the hostility, but I'm sure we can resolve this without resorting to a fight…" He said slowly. "I would appreciate it if you would remove your sword from my friend's throat."
The black haired teen frowned harder and reevaluated the situation. "I will do so, but I don't want any of you to leave my field of view."
"That's fine." With a nod, the sword was pulled back, but not put away. Now that he didn't have a sword aimed at him, Natsu moved to the others.
"This is why we can't leave you alone." Gray drawled. Natsu would have argued back, but Naruto's glare made him realize that he may have messed up.
"Ahahaha…Sorry about that…" Natsu then grinned. "But hey, I did what I wanted to do. I found people we can talk to!" He said triumphantly while pointing at the two teens.
"And why do you want to talk to us?" The black haired teen asked, still heavily suspicious.
The crimson blond considered the question. "We…aren't from around here." He allowed.
The girl frowned slightly. "What does that mean?" She asked. "Are you from one of the lower floors?"
"Um…" Naruto wasn't sure how to answer that one, but he was soon given a way out, surprisingly by the black haired teen.
"No, I wouldn't say that…" He started. "Judging by their clothes and looks, I would say that they are from the higher floors. If I had to guess, you guys are from the ninety-fifth floor or somewhere around there, right?"
Naruto smiled, relief seeping into him. "Wow, I'm impressed you were able to figure that out so easily. Yeah, we're from the ninety-fourth floor."
Dead silence.
It took a moment, but Naruto soon had a feeling that he said something wrong. This feeling was also felt by Natsu, Gray, and Happy. Slowly, a smirk pulled across the black haired teen's face while his companion's face gained a look of shock.
"The ninety-fourth floor?" The teen repeated. "That's interesting…Especially given how the highest floor unlocked right now is the seventy-fifth floor." He shook his head. "If you're going to lie, then make sure you can't be found out by such a simple fact." The girl began to ready her weapon, but the boy's next words stopped her. "Forget it."
She blinked at him in confusion. "What? Why?"
The black haired teen shook his head with a small smile. "If they were PKers, then they would not have been found out so easily." He sheathed his sword on his back. "I only realized a minute ago, but there is a possible explanation for how the pink hair guy was able to use flames while he punched."
"There is?"
"Yep." His smirk grew. "These guys must be NPCs…albeit higher quality ones" The girl's eyes widened. "In fact, they could very well be the flag for that unidentifiable event that popped up the other day." His smirk turned into a full grin. "And we just happened to find them first. Lucky~"
The girl rolled her eyes and sheathed her rapier. "You and your rare items."
"Hey, I'm still a «Beater». We're meant to be greedy."
The girl glared at him. "Don't say that!" He took a step back and nodded quickly.
"He's whipped." Happy said cheerfully, earning himself a glare from the black haired teen.
"I am not whipped!" It was then that he realized just what he was speaking to. "…A flying and talking cat?"
"Aye! I'm Happy!"
The black haired teen just stared. "…Right. I'm not going to look too deeply into that character design…"
Happy blinked and tilted his head. "Huh? What does that mean?"
"Uh, don't worry about it." The boy looked over to his companion. "What do you think?"
"I think we should see what their quest is!" Unnoticed to them, Naruto frowned.
'They keep talking as if we are here for a specific reason that would grant them something…' Deciding to try and figure out what was going on, he spoke up. "Sorry to interrupt…" The two of them turned to him. "But who are you? And why do you think that we have something for you?"
The black haired teen smiled over to the girl. "This could be the last chance to back out. Are you ready to start the quest now?" She nodded excitedly. "All right then…" He turned back to Naruto. "It's nice to meet you. My name is Kirito."
Kirito was a slightly effeminate looking teen with neat black hair and eyes. A single glance at the boy's attire made one question if he was overly attached to the color black. Not only were his pants, belt, boots, fingerless gloves, and V-neck shirt black, but the trench coat he had on was also black. The only things that weren't black on him were the silver linings his clothes had and his a few plates he had for protection. However, what drew Naruto's attention the most were the two swords strapped to Kirito's back. One -the one that had been pointed at Natsu- was a pitch black blade with a black hilt, but all that could be seen of the other was an aqua-colored hilt.
'Two?'
Continuing the introductions, Kirito gestured to the girl, who waved. "This is Asuna."
Asuna had long, orange-brownish chestnut hair and hazel eyes. In contrast to Kirito's darker color scheme, Asuna wore brighter clothes such as a sleeveless white top with red lining and a coattail, a red skirt, white shoes, and detached white sleeves. A lot of her clothes had red as a secondary color and sported some kind of emblem that slightly resembled a red cross. Attached at her hip was a red sheath holding her rapier. Completing the outfit was a necklace that resembled a crystalline water droplet.
Naruto smiled. "Hey there. I'm Naruto. The others are Gray, Happy, and Natsu…I apologize for any trouble that he caused, it is sometimes hard to make him behave."
"Hey!" Asuna giggled at the interaction while Kirito just waved off the apology.
"It was nothing, really." Kirito dismissed. "We were just being overly paranoid." Black eyes drifted to Natsu. "Although I am curious about what it was he was doing to fight…"
Natsu grinned. "Just some magic." He declared before Naruto or Gray could stop him. His words brought wide eyed looks to Kirito and Asuna.
"Magic?" Asuna repeated. "In SAO?" She asked in shock.
"In what?" Gray looked over to Naruto, Natsu, and Happy, but got shrugs. "Sorry, we don't know what that is." Asuna blushed while Kirito rolled his eyes.
"Oh, right…" Asuna said quietly. "Um…Can all of you do magic?"
'Well, that cat is already out of the bag…' Naruto nodded tiredly. "Yes, we can."
"Magic?" Kirito muttered. "That is supposed to be impossible in this game…" He looked over to Asuna. "You think that it is a skill unique to them as NPCs?"
"It could be…" Asuna agreed. "I can't imagine a player getting something like that as a skill, so it probably isn't the event reward."
"Yeah, that's most likely true…" Black eyes moved back to the newcomers. "Sorry if I'm being intrusive, but is there a reason that you have come here?"
Now how to reply? Naruto frowned slightly. "We…We're looking for something." He said slowly.
"Oh? What are you looking for?" Asuna asked curiously, but when she didn't get a response, she backtracked. "Sorry, I guess it isn't really any of our business…Sorry for being rude." Great, what was the trigger for the next part of the quest?
"No, you're fine. We just…"
The same question that Asuna was thinking was running through Kirito's head. Tuning out the conversation, the black swordsman quickly ran over the facts again. 'Okay, just think about it. What do we know? They 'aren't from around here'. They can use magic. They are looking for something, but don't want to say what…Was there some other clue? Something that they didn't say, but instead did? Or is there some other thing that happened recently…?' His eyes widened. "Are you looking for whatever it was that fell out of the sky on this floor the other day?" His question cut them all off.
Tilting his head slightly in confusion, Naruto spoke up. "I'm sorry?"
"The other day, a…meteorite or something crashed on this floor. People have been trying to check it out, but these new monsters started to spawn around the area." Many people had given up in favor of focusing on finding the boss room, but there were still some that wanted to go and find the meteorite.
Naruto's eyes widened. "These…monsters. Can you describe them?" Gray quickly caught on to what Naruto was getting at.
After a moment of hesitation, Asuna nodded. "Sure, but it is kind of hard to. There are a bunch of different kinds out there. I've seen ones that look like knights, ones that looked like animals, even one that looked like a small dragon."
Kirito hummed in agreement. "The troubling thing is that these new monsters seemed to have…combined with some of the normal ones. There are normal monsters that now have characteristics of the new ones." He crossed his arms. "But they all have some common traits. They all have yellow eyes, many seem to have claws, and there is also this…emblem that a lot of them have. It kind of looks like a heart with thorns on the bottom."
While this confirmed Naruto and Gray's thoughts, Natsu finally grasped the situation. "Oh! Those sound like heartless!"
The black swordsman frowned slightly. "Heartless? What are those?"
Happy smiled widely. "They're hearts!"
"…What?" Kirito blinked. "Then how are they heartless?"
"Because of the way that they behave." Gray sighed. "Don't worry about it. Just know that they are called heartless. So I'm guessing that the heartless have been popping up all over the place?"
"No." Asuna's simple answer surprised them.
"Wait, what?" Naruto wasn't sure that there hadn't been some sort of misunderstanding. "Did you just say that they haven't been appearing all over?"
"No, they haven't." Kirito responded, not getting what the problem was. "They have just been showing up around the place that the meteorite crashed in."
Naruto frowned. "That…isn't normal." When the heartless appeared in a world, they appeared everywhere, not just one location. "You said they are gathering around the area that the meteorite crashed in?" A nod. 'What the hell could be so important that they would focus solely on it?' Normally, he would have guessed that it was the keyhole, but that didn't explain the meteorite.
Kirito immediately jumped on that thread. "What do you mean?"
"I mean that the heartless don't normally concentrate in one place. I'm guessing that the meteorite has something to do with it…"
"Hey Naruto, what about that other thing?" Happy asked, gaining a confused look from Naruto. "You know, that thing that made you all weird for a bit?" The cat paused. "Well, you know…Weirder than normal."
Happy's words earned a glare from Naruto, but it faded when he realized what Happy was talking about. "Oh yeah…"
Natsu scratched his head. "You think that the thing that Naruto's feeling is making the heartless act like that?"
Asuna glanced to Kirito, who shook his head with a slight frown. "Sorry, but we're not sure that we understand." The Fairy Tail members and Naruto blinked as if just remembering that they weren't alone. "What are you talking about?"
"Um…" Naruto crossed his arms and tried to think of what to say. "As we approached this area, something…called out to me. That's the best way that I can put it. I have no idea what it was, but I felt the pull come from this relative area."
Kirito cupped his chin as he thought. "Hmm…Something called out to you?" By the way it sounded, this event was going to have a plot revolving around this group. Most likely, the quest involved finding out what the thing that called out to Naruto was, and it was probably the meteorite. Which meant…
A smile slowly made its way onto Kirito's face. "How about this…Why don't we all go and try to make it to the meteorite together?" Understanding what Kirito was thinking, Asuna nodded with a smile.
"That sounds like a great idea!" However, while the two of them were enthusiastic about the idea, Naruto looked unsure.
"I don't know if that's a good idea…"
"But why not?" Kirito was furiously thinking over the conversation in his head. Had they missed a flag at some point?
"It's just…" Naruto looked to the others for help, but they also seemed to be at a loss for a reason. "You guys would be in danger."
'That was the wrong thing to say…' A wave of dread washed through Kirito, who nervously looked at Asuna through the corner of his eyes. Just as he had anticipated, the rapier user lowered her head a bit at that, causing her hair to shadow her eyes.
"We would be in danger?" She asked quietly.
Not noticing the danger he was putting himself in, Gray nodded. "Yeah. This doesn't concern you guys, so why should you put yourself in danger like that? And, we already work well together as a team, so adding two more people might slow us down a bit…"
In a flash, Asuna was in front of Gray with her rapier out and pointed at his throat. The ice mage stilled with wide eyes as Naruto, Happy, and Natsu all gaped at the sight. "I'm sorry..." Asuna's eyes sent chills down their spines. "Did you say something about us only being a burden?"
"N-No! Never!"
"Good, that's what I thought." A menacing aura surrounded the girl. "Then there is no problem with us coming along, right?"
"No objections from me! Glad to have you!"
"Oh, that's so nice of you~" Hazel eyes slowly turned to the other three. "And how about you? Are you alright with us joining you? We wouldn't want to slow you down..."
Nervous sweat poured down the sides of Naruto's face. "N-Nah. On second thought, it would be a great idea for you to join us." He bowed formally. "Please come with us-ttebayo!" Natsu and Happy joined his action and bowed.
"Aye!"
Asuna smirked and sheathed her rapier. "Well, if you insist~" She looked to Kirito, who stiffened. "Are you ready to help them, Kirito-kun?"
"Y-Yeah. I'm ready whenever." Kirito nervously replied before pointing. "We should probably head out soon to save us much daylight as possible. The meteorite crashed at the peak of that mountain." Asuna nodded cheerfully.
"Okay, then let's go!" Humming, she turned and began to make her way towards the mountain.
Once she was a few feet away, Gray's entire body sagged in relief. "Holy crap..." He mumbled. "Why does that keep happening?"
"Scary..." Happy said quietly.
Natsu glanced over to Kirito. "She sounded both nice and terrifying at the same time." He shivered. "I had flashbacks again."
Naruto nodded. "She reminds me of Kaa-san..." This admission brought a surprised look to Kirito's face. "Let's just get moving."
Shaking off his surprise and filing this new piece of information for later consideration, Kirito spoke up. "Right. If we get moving now, then we will be able to reach the base of the mountain by sunset. We should only run into normal monsters on the way there, but we can start expecting...heartless once we get close. Getting to the peak should also take us the entirety of tomorrow, and that's if we don't run into too much trouble along the way."
"Got it." They moved to catch up with Asuna.
Neither Asuna nor Kirito ever noticed the lack of a quest initiation popup.
A Little Later
The group of six made their way through the forest. The four off-worlders tried to hide it, but both Kirito and Asuna noticed that they were extremely interested in their surroundings. Eventually, Natsu spoke up.
"Hey, Kirito..." He began.
"Yes?"
Natsu pointed to something off in the distance. "...What is that?" Kirito followed the finger and frowned when he saw what the thing was.
"The tower?" Kirito's clarification caught Asuna's full attention. Natsu was actually asking about part of SAO's core features?
"Yeah?"
Kirito tilted his head as he considered the question. "That's the «labyrinth» of this floor. Most of the clearers are there."
Gray glanced over to him. "You mentioned similar terms before. What did you mean?"
"I meant..." These NPCs were seriously asking about that? If he wasn't here, then he would have had a lot of trouble believing it. "How do you not know? Everyone knows about it." Even the NPCs in cities did!
Naruto gained an uncomfortable expression. "Like I said, we aren't from around here." He shrugged. "So yeah, we have no clue what you mean by those things." It seemed that Kirito had come up with his own explanation as to why they wouldn't know, so be they would roll with that.
"...Okay..." Kirito scratched the back of his head. "How best to explain this...Do you at least know that we're are in «Aincrad»?" He got four blank looks. "You're kidding."
"Nope."
"Sorry."
"Nu-uh."
"Aye!"
"But…But that doesn't make any sense!" Kirito said in disbelief. All the NPCs were at least aware of the name of the game's setting and the floor they were on! His eyes widened in realization. "The meteorite fell from the sky…So it isn't from «Aincrad»." He adopted a conflicted look, as if he was debating something. "Are you guys…not from this…" How the hell was he supposed to word this?
"From this world?" Happy supplied helpfully, not noticing the startled looks he got from Naruto and Gray. "Aye! We just got to this world!" Asuna's eyes were the size of dinner plates at this.
Kirito's expression was an interesting mixture of disbelief, comprehension, denial, and confusion. "So that was some kind of space craft that I saw earlier." Naruto looked to him in surprise.
"W-Wait, you saw our entry to this world?"
"Yeah. I wasn't sure what it was at the time and I had other things to worry about, but I saw it. I seriously thought that my mind was playing tricks on me." The black swordsman sighed. "This event is starting to get weird compared to the normal stuff…" He paused. "So, I guess that really does mean you don't know anything about this… 'world' then…" That term was bizarre to use.
Natsu rolled his eyes. "That's what we've been saying." He grinned. "You're not too smart, are you?"
Kirito's eye twitched as Asuna giggled. "How the hell was I supposed to come to such a conclusion?" Kirito said under his breath. This was an event with no warnings or information given. Even Argo didn't know anything! "Okay then…How to explain?" He crossed his arms. Was there something specific they needed to say? He wasn't sure how it would play into the quest, but it could
"Um…How about starting with «Aincrad» itself?" Asuna suggested helpfully. "This entire…world, I guess, is known as «Aincrad». Another name people use is SAO, but that one could be considered incorrect in some cases." She couldn't exactly explain that none of this -including themselves- were real.
"«Aincrad»." Naruto repeated. "Alright…And what was that you mentioned about clearers and floors earlier? I can imagine what you meant by floors, but why are only the first seventy-five unlocked?"
"To explain that, you need to know that there are one-hundred floors in total." Kirito started. "Each floor has its own environment, with some of them differing extremely, and they all have a dungeon with a labyrinth. The ultimate goal of everyone in «Aincrad» is to reach the top floor and conquer that final labyrinth."
"So why don't you?" Natsu asked bluntly.
"Because of the monsters on each floor, right?" Naruto guessed. "You mentioned them before." Asuna nodded with a smile.
"Exactly. Each dungeon has monsters infesting it, with the monsters on each floor increasing in difficulty as you ascend the floors. To get to the next floor of «Aincrad», you must find the boss room at the top floor of the labyrinth and defeat it."
Naruto sweat dropped. 'It almost sounds like some sort of game…' "And so everyone tries to find the boss room then?"
"«Aincrad» currently has a population of a little more than six-thousand." Kirito's demeanor turned somber. "There used to be more, but not anymore." None of them asked him to elaborate on that. "The entirety of the population all started on the first floor, and we have been making our way up to the top ever since. The people who are constantly fighting on the newest floors are known as the clearers. Out of the six-thousand people here, we only number a few hundred."
"We?" Happy echoed.
Kirito smirked. "Yep. Asuna and I are two of the strongest people out there. We have been on the front lines -the newest floors- since the beginning. If one of us isn't the strongest person in «Aincrad», then we are at least definitely in the top five." Asuna smiled at his bravado.
"It's true. And while we aren't too sure if we are the strongest overall, I'm at least the strongest girl."
Gray whistled. "Impressive." He complimented. "And what do you get when you beat the top floor?" The moods of Kirito and Asuna immediately plummeted again. "Uh…"
"…We get our freedom." Asuna said quietly.
A feeling of dread was starting to pool in Naruto's stomach. "What does that mean?"
"It…It just means that we can finally leave this place." Kirito said. How could they explain the concept of reality to a bunch of NPCs?
His words stopped the ones who didn't know about it cold. "What?" Naruto asked, unsure if he had heard it correctly.
Asuna looked away. "We have been stuck in «Aincrad» for a long time now…The two-year anniversary is actually in a couple of days."
Kirito closed his eyes. "The creator of SAO said that the only way to escape is to clear the hundredth floor, therefore completing SAO." Natsu's teeth clenched in anger at this new information. "…A lot of people have died here."
They were thrown into a stretched period of silence, but it was soon broken by Kirito. "We should keep moving if we want to make camp by sunset." He said. None of them had even realized that they had stopped walking.
"Right…" Naruto said quietly. One person had condemned ten-thousand people to this place? 'So it really is a game…Just a sick, twisted one…'
Noticing the mood, Asuna spoke up. "Come on, let's not talk about that!" She put on an uneasy smile. "Let's just focus on the here and now! If we keep up this pace, we should be able to reach the mountain in a couple of hours. We really are lucky to not have come across any monsters yet!"
Naruto and Kirito's eyes widened. 'She didn't jus-' At the same time, they opened their mouths to stop her.
"No!"
"Don't say-!" But it was too late.
No sooner did the last syllable leave Asuna's mouth than a group of the same lizard monsters from before appeared around them from blue pillars of light. Instantly, the group was on guard at the sight of the confrontation.
"What the hell?!" Gray eyed the ring of monsters. "These are some freaky geckos."
With a sigh, Kirito shot a sidelong glare at Asuna. "You would think that the 'strongest girl' would know not to jinx things. You're not new at this, Asuna!"
Asuna had a sheepish expression before playfully sticking out her tongue. "Sorry, I didn't think about what I was saying." She pulled out her rapier and brandished it briefly. "Well, it's not like we are in trouble or anything…" She was sure that they could take the monsters out.
"That's not the point…" Naruto said with an eye roll. "It would have been better to not have to face them at all."
Despite the danger, Natsu grinned excitedly and punched his fists together, creating sparks. "Whatever! This is way better anyways!"
Reluctantly, Gray allowed a smirk to form on his lips. "I hate to agree with Natsu, but I wouldn't mind a little workout right about now…" His smirk turned into a grin. "This will do nicely."
"Aye! You can do it!" Happy was safely floating in the air high above their heads. "I believe in you!"
Listening to the words of their companions, Naruto and Kirito sighed in unison. Blinking in surprise, they turned to each other with small smiles. Shrugging, Naruto spoke up. "Well, maybe it was a little boring just walking there…"
"And I wouldn't mind getting some more loot…" Kirito smirked and pulled out his black sword. "Oh well, might as well make the most of it."
"I guess so." Naruto held out a hand and summoned his keyblade. The sudden appearance of the strange looking sword made Kirito and Asuna do double takes. "So, who wants to start?"
It was a no-brainer, really. "I got this!" Directly following Naruto's question, Natsu leapt at the nearest monster with a flaming fist. "Fire Dragon's Iron Fist!" The surprise attack from the fire dragon slayer proved to be enough to kill the monster, as it shattered into blue shards that faded into the air. The death of one of their brethren spurred the other monsters into attacking. The rest of the group found themselves dodging swords sent their way by the monsters.
"Don't let them get behind you!" Kirito ordered. "Always have someone watching your back! And watch out for «Sword Skills»!" He paused as he remembered who he was talking to. "If their sword starts glowing, be ready to either evade or block!"
"Got it!" Naruto sidestepped a sword that came at him in a downward slash and retaliated with a stab of his own. Much to his surprise, the monster actually titled its body out of the way. Jumping back to avoid the next attack, Naruto called out. "They're smart enough to dodge?!"
"Yeah!" Asuna answered amidst a flurry of strikes from her rapier. "They are some of the smarter monsters, so you can't just expect them to take the hit when they are anticipating one! Some can even block!"
'Great…' Frowning, Naruto came up with a plan. "Then I'll need to do better than that…" He raised a hand towards the monster. "Fire!" The moment the giant lizard jumped out of the way, Naruto was upon it with a smirk. He didn't have time to watch it shatter as another monster was already in its place with an attack streaking at him.
Off to the side in his own battle, Kirito considered the attack he just saw out of the corner of his eye. 'That was definitely some kind of magic spell, but it didn't look too powerful…' He risked a glance at Naruto and Gray. 'Like before, Natsu is using fire based attacks, but Gray is using ice attacks.' Sparks flew as he intercepted a sword aimed at his throat. Pulling himself out of his thoughts, Kirito glared. 'Stop getting distracted, idiot. Think about it later.' Jumping back, Kirito raised his sword into a stance that has grown familiar to him over the years.
'Right now, just get to the mountain!'
Base of the Mountain (Later)
Kirito glanced up to the sky before checking his HUD for the time. "We should start thinking about setting up camp now." The group had made it to the base of the mountain safely, but they had been attacked frequently along the way. Luckily, the biggest issue came from Natsu and Happy aggroing a group of monsters…By calling them names.
"That's a good idea." Asuna agreed. "I don't want to be caught out here in the middle of the night."
"Sure." Naruto glanced up to the mountain. Ahead of them was a trail that led up the mountain. The mountain was placed in the center of the forest, towering above the trees until the peak was near the level of the clouds. It was so high up that Naruto could see snow near the top.
Ba-Bump.
Naruto's eyes widened. 'That feeling again.' It was stronger than it was before. Naruto actually felt a small invisible tug pull him towards the mountain.
Ba-Bump. '…el…'
"Hello? Who's there?" Naruto's sudden call made the others turn to him in confusion.
"Naruto?" Gray asked hesitantly. "Who are you talking to?" He was promptly ignored by the crimson blond, who was staring solely towards the mountain peak. "Hey, Naru-" Gray took a step towards him, but he was cut off by an arm clothed in black shooting in front of him. "Why are you stop-"
"Shh." Kirito raised a finger to his lips and shushed the ice mage, all the while never looking away from Naruto. Gray scowled, but relented.
Naruto scanned the mountain for something out of the ordinary, but didn't spot anything.
Ba-Bump. 'Pl…ti…ou…'
"I can't hear you." Naruto said out loud. "What are you saying?"
Ba-Bump. '…ger…urry…' The voice sounded as if it was coming through a heavy filter.
"'…urry'?" Naruto muttered, realization dawning a moment later. "Hurry." He whispered. Naruto had been able to feel the emotions of whatever it was that time as well, but the worry and fear had skyrocketed compared to what it was before.
"Did you feel it again?" Kirito's sudden question made Naruto jolt a little. Turning, he blinked in confusion. "That feeling you mentioned…Did you feel it again?" Kirito clarified.
Shakily, nodding his head, Naruto's eyes moved back to the mountain. "Yeah…I did. It was stronger this time, and I even heard a faint voice…"
"It was telling you to hurry?"
Naruto slowly nodded. "Yeah…It was. I think that whatever is calling out to me is in trouble, so it won't last much longer…It's scared."
"What else did it say?" The others were silent as they listened to Kirito's questions.
"It was all broken up and distant. I was only really able to make out 'hurry'." Naruto answered.
Kirito cupped his chin in thought. "'Hurry'?" He mused. "I'm guessing that it probably was referring to the heartless and how they are approaching the meteorite; So it wanted you to hurry." He sighed. "No matter how pressing it is, it would be suicidal for us to try scaling the mountain at night. We will have to wait for daybreak."
Natsu scowled. "How come? I'm sure we'll be fine."
"Because the monsters increase in numbers at night." Asuna told him. "Not only that, but we will also be facing heartless on that mountain. It would be foolish of us to get overconfident and walk to our deaths."
Naruto frowned, but agreed. "I hate to admit it, but that is probably for the best. They know this place the best, and if they say that it is too dangerous, then we should take their word for it." It took a surprising amount of effort for Naruto to tear his eyes away from the mountain to face the others. "So where are we setting up camp?"
Taking a moment to think, Kirito pointed to the side. "According to what I've heard, there is a «Safe Area» about half a mile to the east of here. Because no monsters can get in there, we can camp there." The others nodded. With a plan in mind, the group began walking.
Before he got too far, Naruto took one last glance at the mountain.
'Just a little bit longer…I'll be there soon.' He tried to convey his thoughts to whatever it was that was reaching out to him.
Ba-Bump
A small smile formed on Naruto's face when he felt the newest emotion.
Safe Zone (Later)
Naruto sat by the campfire while the others slept. The campsite they had set up was in the middle of a clearing in the forest, so it had been easy to find wood. It was a nice, cloudless night, so they were able to see the mountain from there. Not feeling tired, Naruto sat with his back against a tree and gazed at the mountain.
"Can't sleep?" Naruto glanced to the side as Kirito took a seat next to him. The black haired teen had taken off his combat gear and was now wearing a simple pair of black pants and a long-sleeve shirt. It had been interesting to see the way that he and Asuna took things out and put them away.
With a shrug, Naruto returned his eyes to the mountain. "Not really. I just don't feel tired."
Kirito nodded. "I see…" He followed Naruto's gaze to the mountain. "…Can I ask you something?"
"…Go ahead."
Black eyes looked back to Naruto. "…Why do you feel such an extreme need to help whatever is calling out to you?" Naruto's eyes widened and met the black pair. "You don't know what it is, why it is calling you, or what it will do once you get there. So…why?"
"I…" Naruto sighed and shook his head. "I'm still not too sure…But I just know I need to get there." He said confidently. "When it first reached out to me, I was…overwhelmed by the emotions it held. It was just full of loneliness, worry, anxiousness…fear. I just had to do something." A small smile formed on his lips. "But when my…heart resonated with it, all those emotions were just washed away. They were replaced with relief, joy, and trust." He closed his eyes. "Whatever is calling out to me, it trusts me enough to save it."
"But what about just before? You said it was scared?"
Naruto hummed in agreement. "I did, yeah. But just before we left the trail leading up the mountain, I tried starting a connection myself…It worked. Just like last time, the fear was washed away and replaced with a sense of comfort and trust."
"I see…" Kirito took a moment to observe Naruto. "Why don't you get some rest, Naruto? If you're going to help whatever is calling out to you, then it would be best to be rested." Did NPCs even need sleep?
"…Yeah, sure." Standing up, Naruto stretched his arms. "I'll do that. Goodnight." Maybe he could talk to Hikari and Yami about it?"
"Night."
Mountain Trail (The Next Morning)
Naruto had an irritated frown on his face as he stared up the trail. Despite his intentions, he had been unable to enter the Station of Awakening in his sleep, which is something that has never happened before.
Next to him, Natsu bounced up and down with a grin. "So now we can finally get to the top of the mountain?"
Kirito smiled in amusement. "Yes, we can. Getting to the top should take us most of the day, so the sooner we get moving, the better."
"What kind of trouble can we expect?" Gray asked curiously.
"The monsters we have been facing used to spawn near the lower parts of the mountain, but the heartless overtook them." Asuna answered. "Now, there are these heartless versions of the monsters that were already there along with what I can only guess are the heartless themselves…"
"Sounds about right." Naruto agreed. "You said the lower half of the mountain? Why not the upper?"
"We…We don't know what spawns near the top. Not anymore." Kirito admitted. "No one has been able to make it near the peak of the mountain since the heartless started showing up. It used to be that only bigger versions of the monsters around here spawned, but we can't say for sure now."
"So you're saying that you're as clueless as we are?" Happy asked innocently. "Why don't you just say that, idiot?"
Kirito twitched. "I didn't say that because it's not what I meant." He said with a glare at the cat, but it turned to Asuna upon hearing her stifled giggles. "Anyways, let's get moving." He began walking towards the trail.
Later
"N-Natsu. It's c-cold!" Happy shivered against the cold wind as he sat on Natsu's head. The rocky terrain of the mountain had been replaced a few hours back for the new, colder surroundings. The five humans were trekking through snow and ice as they climbed the mountain.
Naruto nodded in agreement while rubbing his exposed arms. "I've never hated the fact that this jacket is short-sleeved until now…" After spending the majority of the day hiking and fighting off heartless, the peak was finally close by. "How much further did you say?"
Kirito shrugged. "Not too long. The summit will probably come into sight within a few minutes." Naruto shot him a dirty look.
"Why is it that you don't look cold? You look like you're somehow as warm as always." The bastard was acting like they were in pleasant weather! Asuna had also put on an extra layer of clothing!
"You're just not trying hard enough."
"The hell does that mean-ttebayo?! How will trying stop me from being cold?!"
"It just will. Look, it works for me."
Natsu nodded. "Yeah, Naruto. I mean, look at me. You don't see me being cold, do you?"
"I don't want to hear anything from the walking fireplace!"
"I don't know what your problem is, Nar-"
"The same goes for the human ice cube! And put a damn shirt on! Do you want Asuna-san to slap you again?!" Kami, what was with these people? It seemed as if he and Asuna were the only normal ones!
Deciding to take pity on him, Asuna swiped two fingers through the air in front of her. Responding to the command, a blue menu popped up with a soft chime. After scrolling through some things, she found whatever it was that she was looking for. "Here we are…" With the press of a button, a white jacket with red lining appeared in her arms. "Here, Naruto-kun. Use this."
Nodding gratefully, Naruto put on the jacket. "Thanks, Asuna-san." He sighed in relief when the cold was immediately subdued. "That's much better."
"…Completely overreacting." Kirito quickly averted his eyes to avoid Naruto's glare, but the smirk gave Kirito's thoughts away.
"Hmph, jerk." Kirito grinned wryly at Naruto's muttering.
"Hey, is that the summit?!" All eyes turned towards the front at Happy's excited exclamation. The trail they were walking on was starting to level out. As they got closer and closer to the summit, the greater the sense of déjà vu got within Kirito.
'Mountain…Snow…Summit…There are even some crystals. Where have I seen this?' But no matter how much he tried, he couldn't remember.
When the path reached the summit, they took a look around. Because of the altitude, the bottom of the next floor was extremely close. The ground of the summit was covered in an enormous amount of huge crystal pillars that stood out of a thick layer of snow. The crystals created a boundary for the path, which went over a small hill.
"Yes, this is it." Asuna said. "Right now, we're as high as we can be on this floor. The bottom of the next floor is practically within touching distance…"
Ba-Bump.
Naruto's eyes widened. 'Again.' Not wasting another moment, he broke out into a run towards the hill.
"Naruto!"
"Where are you going?!"
Kirito watched him silently before speaking up. "Let's follow him." Without bothering to hear the replies, Kirito ran after Naruto.
Ba-Bump.
'It's close!' Naruto was sure of it. Whatever was resonating him was right over this hill. Wham! "The hell?!" Naruto came to a complete and abrupt halt when he suddenly ran into something that felt like an invisible wall. Raising a hand up to rub his nose, Naruto glared. "There isn't anything here…"
"There is, but we just can't see it." Kirito had caught up to Naruto and heard his words. Raising a hand, Kirito moved it forward, but wasn't able to get by a certain point. Instead, his hand laid flat against a surface they couldn't see. "There's an invisible wall here."
"That explains why the heartless haven't been able to reach the summit." Gray said. "But it is also stopping us from reaching it, so how do we get in?"
"I'm…not sure." Kirito said quietly. "There should be an entrance nearby…Or maybe a way to take down the wall? Some kind of key?" Naruto's eyes widened.
"A key…" Acting on that thought, Naruto jumped back a few feet and summoned his keyblade. Seeing this, the others soon caught onto his plan.
"Of course." Kirito whispered. "That will probably do it." He stepped to the side, prompting everyone else to follow his lead. "Give it a shot."
Nodding, Naruto raised his keyblade and pointed it towards the invisible wall.
Ba-Bump.
A moment later, a glowing keyhole appeared in the air above them. Pointing his keyblade at it, Naruto imagined a lock getting unlocked by a key. Just as the last time he did this, a bright beam of light shot out of the keyblade and into the lock. The keyhole flashed, but it wasn't alone. When the keyhole flashed, a golden dome of light momentarily became visible to them, but it and the keyhole soon faded away.
Ba-Bump.
Now with nothing stopping him, Naruto dismissed his keyblade and sprinted the rest of the way up the hill. Unsurprised this time, the rest of the group silently followed. Finally reaching the top of the hill, Naruto looked down the other side of it.
Naruto's breath hitched.
"That's…" Kirito's eyes were wide as he gazed at the object in front of them, but a blurred figure speeding ahead made him curse. "Naruto, wait!"
Ignoring the shout, Naruto sprinted into the clearing, only to skid to a stop in front of the object. "This is…" Naruto didn't even glance at the others as they cautiously walked up to him, each looking at the object as well.
"This is it?" Gray asked. "Why would the heartless be after something like this?"
Ba-Bump.
Slowly, Naruto raised a hand and placed it on the surface of the object. Absently, he was noted that it was surprisingly warm.
In the clearing was a large floating sphere made of light. The light had condensed until it formed a solid, silvery-blue substance that almost looked like a crystal. But while that was surprising, it was what was on the inside that everyone was looking at.
Suspended in the center of the sphere was a girl who looked to be a little older than Naruto. She had dark red hair that only went about to her chin and a pale complexion. The girl had on a white, sleeveless top with a black one underneath which slightly exposed her navel. In addition to this, she also had on purple bike shorts underneath a purple skirt with a blue belt, and shoes that were a mixture of white, blue, and purple. Completing her outfit was a silver bead necklace.
"A girl?" Natsu said in a disappointed tone. "We came here for a girl?" He was hoping for something exciting!
Naruto didn't even bother to respond to Natsu's newest bout of idiocy. "We need to get her out." He said quietly. "Now." Naruto wasn't sure why, but he knew he needed to help this girl.
Kirito looked between Naruto and the girl with a heavy frown. After thinking about it for a moment, he nodded. "She is probably what has been calling out to you, so I agree." After trading glances, the others soon voiced similar thoughts, although Natsu sounded as if he wasn't interested.
Nodding, Naruto closed his eyes. "I'm here…How can I help you?"
Ba-Bump. An image of Naruto and his keyblade flashed through his mind.
"My keyblade?" Doing as instructed, Naruto called his keyblade back out. "I think I need to use my keyblade to unlock it. Stand back." Hearing this, they gave him some room. Once they were out of the way, Naruto took a deep breath. "Here we go…" A determined look appeared on his face.
Jumping back and twirling his keyblade for a moment, Naruto pointed it at the sphere. Unnoticed to Naruto, his eyes glowed with a silvery-blue light as he did this. At the same time, the glow of the sphere intensified, matching his eyes. The front of the sphere started to glow brighter, soon giving way to the shape of heart that clearly stood out on the sphere. Pointing the keyblade directly at the heart, Naruto watched as a beam of light shot out of his keyblade.
Click.
At once, the glow of the sphere got even brighter, forcing everyone to shield their eyes. When the light finally died down, the sphere was gone, leaving the girl floating a few feet above the ground.
Dismissing his keyblade, Naruto ran forward as the girl slowly started to descend. Seeing that the sphere was gone, the rest of the group started walking back over to Naruto.
"So it worked?" Happy asked curiously.
"Looks like it…" Gray said. "But why was she in there?" All eyes were still tracking the girl as her body got closer and closer to the ground. "Any idea, Naruto?"
Coming up to next to the girl, Naruto reached out to catch her body before it reached the ground. "…I don't know…" But now that he was this close, he was sure that he knew this girl from somewhere. The girl's body finally came to a rest in Naruto's arms.
Ba-Bump
His entire world was overtaken by pain.
"AAHHH!"
There we go! All done with Chapter 39!
So? How far into the chapter did you get before you realized what world they went to?
Writing this chapter made me want to strangle Yen Press all over again. Who else was ticked off that they licensed pretty much every light novel so that translations can't be posted online?
Damn it, I need something to refer to Naruto, Gray, Natsu, and Happy as. Maybe a team name or something. It is sometimes kind of inconvenient to indicate them all as a group. Ideas?
What's more important? The action/battles or the story/plot? Because I can tell you right now that one of them can be elongated and/or improved, but it would cost the other. For example, this chapter has around 10k-11k words of story content, and yet I didn't really put in any fights. In my opinion, story/plot is more important.
Care to take a guess as to who the girl is?
Yes, I am (fairly) sure that I know what I'm doing…
Questions? Comments? Concerns? Post a review!
Until next time,
Kog6943
"Did you know? Every Legend was inspired by something."
"And while not all legends may be true…"
"There are those legends that are based on the achievements Of real people."
"Real men and women."
"People who have transcended all others, becoming something…more."
"They become a legend."
"But what qualifies one to legendary status?"
"Is it their heroics? Their strength of heart?"
"Or is it the amount of time The person is remembered?"
"Would it be the diamond jubilee? Perhaps golden? Or even Silver?"
"There exist countless legends of all ages."
"Legends of wizards. Legends of mages. Legends of gladiators. Legends of Shinobi. Legends of warriors."
"To gain the status of 'legend' and have your story told through the generations is simply amazing."
"Most legends are forgotten in time, becoming nothing more than lore and stories told to children."
"…The scary part?"
"Some legends never die."