Ninja In Arcadia

by Mumei Mu

There is a new kid on the block...And he can do crazy ninja-like stuff! Jim really can't believe his eyes when he watch the new kid hopping around the goblins while making clones of himself, it's good thing he's a trollhunter or he'll have to check himself into a funny farm. "Awesome-sauce!" Toby grinned up to Jim, "Naruto is a freckin' ninja! What's next? Alien? That'll be cool!"

4. Trollhunter Team

Thank you for the reviews and feedbacks.

Some questions won't be answered to avoid the spoilers and if I miss some questions, sorry!

Most characters might be OOC and there might be some grammar errors but I'm trying my best.

Enjoy the third chapter of NIA!

Disclaimer: I don't own Naruto and Tales of Arcadia or anything mentioned in this story.

---

Chapter 3: Trollhunter Team

---

It was morning when Barbara open Jim's bedroom, "Honey, are…" She looked around confusing at empty room, "Are you here? Jim?"

"Here!" Jim pop up from behind the bed, "Sorry, k…Mom." The brunette reached down to pick the discarded pajama clothes up, "Accidentally threw clothes down there."

"You scared me." Barbara released her breath, "I was worried you'd run off or…"

"Run off?" He waved it off with a chuckle, "Why would I do that? And if I do, where will I go to? Toby's house? Claire's house?" He snapped his fingers, "Oh, your breakfast." He went past the doctor down to the kitchen, "Hope you're okay with toast and eggs today." He whipped them up then give it to Barbara.

"Thank you, Jim." The doctor said before Jim ran past her.

"Gotta go!" Jim rushed into the garage, "Later, k…Mom!"

"Um, bye?" Barbara blinked before she take a bite of her toast with another blink.

Outside, Jim open the garage with bike before he see Claire and Toby with their bikes. "We are late, Jimbo." Claire said sarcastically with hand on her hip.

"Not my fault." Jim rolled his eyes as he biked out with the teenagers before he glance around to make sure the coast is clear, burst in smokes then it clear away to reveal Naruto. "Toby was supposed to do it today but he misplace his glamour mask."

"Not my fault!" Toby groaned as they took the shortcut, "Chompsky was the one who misplace my mask…Which I don't mind because it have sweaty troll stank."

"Guys, we made a deal." Claire reminded them, "Toby cover for him in Arcadia, I handle all his duties in Trollmarket and Naruto do both if something come up."

"Fine." The chubby teenager peddled behind them, "Speaking of which, any word?"

"Come on, Tobes!" She hollered out as she leap over the hill and stick the landing. "It's only been two weeks, and the amulet hasn't called for anyone else. We know he's okay in the Darklands. He'll be back, and with my baby brother."

"I hope so." Toby wobbled on his bike, "I don't know how much longer I can deal with this stank." He kept grumbling about the smell all the way to the Trollmarket and they enter Blinky's room to hear him talking a bit to Aaarrrgghh's statue.

"No, you're right. That can't work." Blinky sighed wearily, "A shadow staff cannot cross into the Darklands. So, the question remains." He erased the wall then resume his writing, "How does one open a bridge to save the trollhunter when one need a trollhunter to open said bridge? The quandary is confounding. Think, Blinkous, think!"

"Any luck, Blink?" Claire asked to catch his attention and to inform him of their arrival.

"Per usual, I'm never short on plans, but a working one?" The six-eyes troll turned his head to them, "No." He smack his shaking head, "I must say, it is most frustrating to find oneself without any options. What about you, Tobias?" He glanced to the said human as he poke his head inside the fetch ring, "Any fortune with the fetch?"

"I've been sticking my head through this thing everywhere in Arcadia." Toby put the fetch down, "All I see is endless Darklands. No Jim. But I have been leaving Nougat Nummies to let him know we haven't given up…" He tossed a nougat bar through the fetch, "And to provide a boost of nourishment."

"Wait, won't that alert Gunmar and his goons?" Naruto asked.

"…I think the chance of this happening is very slim." The chubby teenager muttered before he sighed, "That is hopeless, isn't it?"

"As my brother Dictatious used to say…" Blinky put his upper hand on Toby's shoulder before he speak something in Trollish.

"Even the word 'hopeless'…" Claire translated.

"Isn't void of hope." The six-eyes troll finished with a grin, "Glad to see you still know your Trollish. Which is precisely why we mustn't give up in helping master Jim. Our adventures have already taken one friend from us. We will not lost another one. The answer to saving Jim is in here somewhere."

"…Oh no, please don't tell me…" The ninja groaned.

"Time to hit the books." The girl with blue streak shot him a playful smirk and the blonde groaned with slumped shoulders.

---

"No. Nope. Nah. None." Naruto boringly flipped the pages with his chin on his another hand, "Not this one…"

"Hey, what the heck?" Toby held up a stick with gem, "Who turned my warhammer into a backscratcher?"

"Not me." The ninja replied offhandedly.

"After witnessing your troubles handling it, I sought to stabilize its unpredictability and make it, as you might say…" Blinky take the stick from the chubby teenager before he twirl it as it transform to its original form, "Fun-size."

"Whaaaaaaaaaaaat?" The chubby teenager took his weapon in awe before he start to play with its' new ability, "Pocket hammer. Fun-size. Awesome-size! Fun-size. Awesome-size! Fun-size! Awesome-size!" All of sudden, they hear a blowing horn in distance, "Holy horns, what's that?" He fall back on his rear.

"Is it for meeting or we're under attack?" Naruto closed the book and the group leaves the room to join a crowd before they see the leaders walk through the murmuring crowd.

"Whoa!" Toby realized some troll leaders, "All the troll heavyweights are here." He noticed a familiar troll, "Hey! Wise Wumpa lady!"

"Who summoned the tribunal, Vendel?" Blinky approached the elder troll who was in the very behind.

"The tribunal summoned themselves." Vendel replied, "Word of the trollhunter's stupidity to enter the Darklands has spread like plague. And now, they're calling for the destruction of Killahead Bridge."

"But if they destroy the bridge, Jim won't be able to get out." Claire gasped.

"I'm well aware of that, and I'm trying to prevent it." The elder walked to join the tribunal, "Let's go Blinkous."

"Here goes our hope." She muttered before the six-eyes troll grab her shoulder.

"We must keep searching." The six-eyes troll said, "Master Jim's time is running out." He ran to join the tribunal and the guards crossed their weapons to prevent anyone else from entering.

"…We're sneaking in, aren't we?" Naruto whispered to them.

"Oh yeah." Claire nodded and the chubby teenager gulped.

---

"I see no reason for your impatience." That was the first thing the teenagers heard when they sneak in through mountain of crystals as Vendel spoke to the tribunal, "He may still be alive. There's been no other trollhunter chosen. Why do we have to move now?"

"We cannot allow the child's folly to endanger all of trollkind." Usurna said.

"Foolish he was to go in alone." Wumpa troll shook her head softly, "Should not have gone at all."

"If Gunmar finds the boy, what's stopping him from getting out?" The skinny female troll asked worriedly.

"Killahead Bridge is locked in the vault." The elder said.

"Like a vault will stop Gunmar." The queen scoffed.

"Tear it down, and let the flesh thing perish in the Darklands." Gatto spoke in form of floating rock-face, "Your toy amulet will choose another."

"Those ungrateful turds!" Toby smashed his fist on the boulder, "We don't have a say about Jim, but volcano guy does?"

"The trollhunter's fate is not yet sealed." Vendel spoke, "The amulet has yet to call another. He may still return to us."

"Captured already he may be, with Gumm-Gumm horde marching for us!" The green troll shook her fist.

"I am astounded at what I'm hearing." Blinky stepped forward with furious expression, "Master Jim's deeds may be brash, yes, but in his short tenure bearing the sacred mantle, the trollhunter slayed Bular the Vicious…Rallied Trollmarket against Angor Rot, uncovered the changelings in our midst, and captured the very bridge you now wish to make his tomb. So many times he has granted our kind mercy, saved us from ourselves. I don't merely ask that we keep the bridge standing. I demand we go in after him!"

"Very moving, Blinkous, but answer me this." Gatto narrowed his eyes, "Who's to say this human isn't a changeling, who went in to free Gunmar himself?"

"I am flabbergasted!" Blinky gasped in anger.

"I see no proof otherwise." The skinny female troll crossed her arms.

"How dare you!" Claire ran out of the hiding spot with others, "You were the ones who said he has to answer every call!"

"He went in to hunt down Gunmar, the one troll the rest of you are too scared to deal with!" Toby pointed at them with a jab.

"And if you're slandering someone on a baseless accusation…" Naruto thrust his index finger at Gatto, "Then answer me this! Why do you kill every single trolls that come in your lair, stockpiling up every powerful weapons and treasures, refuse to give the trollhunter the Killstone, one of stones that can kill Gunmar himself while the other trolls that protect the stones are willing to give, and attempt to murder us all! To me, it feel like you're with Gumm-Gumm and work for Gunmar!"

"…Oh my grod!" Blinky turned around with widened eyes, "That's right…The possibility of him on…"

"Gatto, is he speaking the truth?" Vendel sharply turned to Gatto with other tribunal members, "You killed our people? And attempt to kill the trollhunter, the one that protect the trollkind, and his friends?"

"And what's that about hording powerful weapons?" The skinny female troll narrowed her eyes.

"I-I-I-I…" Gatto stuttered with widened eyes before he turn to the ninja with flaring eyes, "HE LIE! HE LIE!"

"No, he is speaking the truth!" The six-eyes troll shook his top fist up in air, "Explain yourself!"

"I-I…" The floating rock-face paused before his eyes narrowed angrily, "Fine! Fine! I don't give a damn about the trollkind or the world! I wish Gunmar is free to burn the world down so I can have more to eat!"

"Gatto!" The elder banged his staff angrily, "Do you understand the grave of your words?!"

"Yes, I do." Gatto growled, "And like I said, I don't give a damn. I'm leaving! Be forewarned, if you dare to come to my keep, I will have you killed and eaten by me!" In his anger, he decide to bump the troll near him roughly, which happen to be Usurna, and the queen almost lost her balance as she throw a deadly glare at the rock-face as Gatto cancel its connection. The red troll guard looks very flustered before he quickly collect the rocks then run out.

"Okay are you?" The wumpa asked the queen.

"I'm fine, thank you." Usurna replied, trying not to growl as she swear to get revenge on this oafish fool and she hope her master will allow it.

"…We will discuss about Gatto later." Vendel cleared his throat with a disappointing headshake before he look to the tribunal, "Back to the point…"

"First, the intruders need to leave this room now." The queen glared at the humans.

"They deserved to be heard!" Blinky spoke up, "If you're throwing them out, then throw me out!" The tribunal stared at him for few minutes and after that, the six-eyes troll was tossed out with the humans. "Scum of the earth!"

"Jeez, that was rude of them…" Naruto stood up as he dusted himself before he pause for a moment then turn to the six-eyes troll, "Hey, I'm gonna use Gyre for few minutes." He jogged off, "Be right back."

"W-W-Wha?!" The six-eyes troll turned his head to the retreating ninja with the teenagers, "Why do you need Gyre…?"

"My best guess?" Claire gazed to them sideway, "Revenge-prank spree."

"Revenge-prank spree." Toby make a firm nod once.

"…Oh, dear." Blinky muttered to himself.

---

"Woo, that will go down in the history of all the time." Naruto exit the gyre area as he juggled a orange crystal one-handed with a satisfied grin and he head straight to Blinky's room to see if anyone was inside. "I'm back, what did I miss…" Naruto asked Claire, Toby and Blinky until he spot a baby boy in Claire's arms, "…Apparently a lot. Is that your baby brother, Claire, like the real one?"

"Yes." The girl bounced the sleeping baby gently.

"Wait, does that mean Jim is back?" The blonde perked up, only to have it dash when she give him a soft headshake. "Oh…The bridge?"

"…Broken." Blinky sighed sadly.

"…Can we put it back together?" Naruto frowned.

"This is my fault." The six-eyes troll touched Aaarrrgghh's body, "I could've done more."

"We can do more!" Toby slammed the amulet on table, "There has to be a way. There has to be something we haven't thought of." He scratched his head then turned to Claire, "You said it yourself. As long as the amulet doesn't call to anybody else, we know he's okay." The amulet start to floating up with blinking blue light with whispering voices then it spin around, speaking Jim's full name.

"I-It's calling…" Claire uttered before the amulet shoot to stick onto Aaarrrgghh's chest and it spoke in trollish.

"I don't understand." Blinky muttered with light shake as he listened closely to the speaking amulet, "It's not making any sense."

"What's it saying?" Claire asked.

"The troll is the key, the key to the hunter." The six-eyes troll muttered thoughtfully, "The troll is the key, the key to the hunter. Over and over. It must be a glitch."

"Is it broken?" She asked.

"No." The chubby teenager come to an realization, "They're helping us!"

"Who?" Claire blinked.

"The voices in the amulet, the ghost council." Toby grinned.

"Oh, okay." Naruto actually took ten steps backward away from them, "Mm-mmm!"

"Well, what are they trying to say?" She asked.

"The troll is the key, the…" Blinky muttered before he gasp, "Aaarrrgghh is the key!"

"But that's impossible." Claire said, "He's…"

"Gonna get us Jim back!" Toby whooped, "Did you hear that, Claire? Naruto? If we save Aaarrrgghh, we save Jim!"

"Oh, we're going to raise the dead now?" The ninja paused, "Wait, as in alive or ghost?" He glanced at the orange crystal in his hand, "Wonder if there's anything inside that can help us out with."

"Inside?" Both teenagers turned to him with few blinks.

"…Brave Naruto, why do you have a storage crystal…" Blinky paused, "Wait, is that Vendel's?!"

"I sto…Er, borrowed it from gramps so I can use it to steal everything from Gatto." Naruto jiggled the crystal, "Man, it was so easy to do everything when you get clones to go inside his stomach so you don't have to go in and out of his ass…" He paused, "And I just learned that whatever my clones see, hear and experienced will be transfer back to me when they dispel. That was quite a…Experience."

"…Wait, you stole everything from Gatto?" The six-eyes troll dropped his jaw along with the teenagers, "Like all of the treasures he hoarded?!"

"Yup!" The blonde grinned toothily, "And I even blew all of Gatto's gyre entrances up so that'll be the last time we'll see this fat bastard." They stared at him, "What? He just told us that he's with Gunmar and we'll have to be crazy if we let him keep all these stuff and have Gunmar get his hands on them for his army."

"…Let's not tell anyone else about that, beside Vendel." Blinky said stunningly, "…And we need to hide all the treasures within this storage crystal."

"I was thinking the same thing." Naruto grinned widely and the trio just blink owlishly at him, still can't accept the fact that he just singlehandedly robbed Gatto of his hordes and get away with it in short time.

---

"Hmm, let's try ten percent this time." Naruto hummed with cupped chin.

"Got it!" Pixie chirped.

"Draal, you ready?" The blonde turned to the said troll.

"Bring it on, mental magic have no power over me." Draal punched his metal claw confidently.

"Alright, we're starting now." Naruto went through handseals as Pixie merge her magic power into his body while he channel the chakra and he complete the final handseal then stare at the blue troll.

"Haha, your so-called magic has no effect over my mind!" The blue troll laughed boastfully with fists on his hip, puffing his chest up.

"Damn, another failure." The blonde sighed before they hear a voice.

"What are you doing?" They looked over to see Vendel hobbling up to them with a raised eyebrow, "Why are you just standing around in Hero's Forge?"

"Oh, I'm working on genjutsu." Naruto said, "I want to project them from distance without having to send Pixie out and put her at risk." The elder stroked his beard questioningly, "You see, I have a theory about the perks of familiar, mostly on the mixing energies. If Pixie give me enough, maybe my chakra can reach out into someone's mind and make them seeing things whatever I want them to see, kinda like one do when they get a pixie in their head, but it will feel more real to the victims."

"Mm, interesting." Vendel hummed.

"Yeah, but the problem is finding the right amount." The blonde scratched his head, the pixie sit on his shoulder.

"Up to what amount have you tried?" The elder asked.

"Ten percent." The teenager replied.

"Try twenty percent, it may work." Vendel stroked his beard.

"Okay, we'll try it." Naruto flashed through the handseals then look at Draal.

"…Huh?" Draal take a couple sidesteps to his right as he look at the ground then up, "Did you just create a tree from ground…" He suddenly swing his arms around with scream, "OH GROD! THE TREE ARE ALIVE! WHAT SORCERY IS THIS?! TELL YOUR TREE TO STOP GRABBING ME WITH THE BRANCHES! GET IT AWAY! GET IT AWAY!"

"Alright, it works!" The blonde cheered with the pixie.

"Well done, boy." Vendel chuckled.

"Thanks, gramp!" Naruto grinned widely.

"One question…" The elder gestured to the screaming troll as his limbs stiffened as if he have been bind, "How long will it last for?"

"Oh, right, forget about that." The blonde crossed his fingers with a flaring chakra, "Kai!"

"O-Oh! Oh!" Draal slumped down on ground on his knees with heavy pant before he clenched his fist in air, "Curse the mind sorcery! I shall train myself more!"

---

When Naruto walk into Blinky's room, he raise his eyebrow slightly when he see Toby stomping on some glowing bugs as they explode in light. "If the cure for Aaarrrgghh lies with the Janus Order, it may as well lie with your…" Blinky glanced to Toby, "Easter Bunny."

'Janus Order?' Naruto blinked, look like he have to ask the chubby teenager for a quick recap later.

"Hey, what was all that talk about finding hope when things are hopeless?" Toby patted the troll, "We'll find a way."

"Find a way to what, exactly?" They turned to see Vendel entering.

"We were just tidying up!" The six-eyes troll quickly block the table with nervous chuckle, "This place is a disaster, per usual."

"Need I remind you, after the yesterday's incident, the tribunal has you four on my strict probation." Vendel said, "Out with it!"

"Just…" Toby muttered, "Looking for a miracle to save my wingman." They glanced to Aaarrrgghh's body.

"So, you aren't meddling with the tribunal's edict to bury Killahead Bridge where no troll nor mortal can ever find?" The elder said.

"Wait, what?" Naruto widened his eyes.

"They're moving the bridge?" Blinky gasped.

"No, but we need…" The chubby teenager stuttered until someone cut him off.

"To move on without Jim." Claire appeared, "Don't worry, Vendel. We've accepted the Tribunal's decision." She nudged Blinky.

"Wait, we have?" Toby gasped before both Naruto and Blinky nudged him from both sides, "We have, we have!"

"I wish it were different, but, to go against the Elder Word, is to court treason, war." Vendel exhaled with his index finger up.

"Jim put more than himself in danger by going into the Darklands." She turned her head to the team, "We all have to live with the consequences."

"Very well." The elder walked out, "Tidy away."

"Great Gizmodius, they're taking the bridge!" The six-eyes troll moaned, "How will we rescue master Jim now?"

"Don't worry, I saw this coming." Claire smirked, "I had Notenrique stow away in one of the crates when the pieces were shipped. That way, I'll have an emotional anchor."

"That's smart." Naruto whistled.

"An emotional anchor for us to shadow jump in, to get the pieces back!" Toby hopped with beaming grin, "Oh my gosh! We're gonna steal a bridge! Magic bridge heist!"

"Come on, T.P., we gotta get to class." She rolled her eyes amusingly.

"T.P.?" The chubby teenager blinked.

"Toby pie." Claire walked away with snickering blonde.

"I don't like it." Toby cringed, "Mm-mm."

"Don't fight it." She teased.

"Yeah, I like this nickname." Naruto chuckled and the chubby teenager pouted at their backs, following them out to their school.

---

"Attention, students and faculty." Uhl spoke through the PA system, "The 'Save Jim' bake sale was a massive success. Together, we will find a cure for this rare and sudden disease. That is all. Thank you."

"Donate to stop the disease!" Eli cried as he waved the can to the students, "We gotta cure Jim, guys! We can do…" Someone smack his can down, the coins spill out as the outcast cried out.

"Donate, my butt!" Steve scoffed at the nerd as Eli collect the money before he stomp away.

Not far from the bully, Naruto lean closer to Claire with a whisper. "Seriously, I don't know how the hell we managed to pull this one off."

"Ditto." Claire agreed.

"And I'm surprised that no one call his mom to confirm it." He muttered lowly.

"I know." She nodded, she also can't believe that they are getting away with this bullshit excuse just like that. They walk and immediately notice that Steve was harassing Toby. "Ugh, not again…Let…"

"I get this one." Naruto gave her a light pat on shoulder before he run toward the bully, "DYNAAAAAAAAMIC!"

"Wha…?" Steve turned to the shout quizzically.

"ENTRRRRRRRRRRRRY!" Toby dropped his jaw as Naruto kick the bully squarely in face with a flying kick, sending the bully tumbling backward and his teeth fall out again. Naruto land on his feet then look down to his friend, "T.P., you alright?"

"Yeah, and don't call me T.P." The chubby teenager groaned.

"Why you…" The bully get up with a glare.

"Steve, go back to the eighties, where bullies belong." Claire hollered to the glaring bully, "Besides, no one cares about your stupid grudge."

"What?!" Steve growled, "Everybody knows the crown belong to me! It was rigged!"

"No, we don't!" A random girl hollered, "Get over it, crybaby!"

"Shut up!" The bully spun on the student body, "Who said that?! Listen, I interneted some things. And there's never been a single case of Jim Lake disease, like, ev…" A leg shot up to his groin from behind, "EEEEEEEEEEER!" The bully dropped down in curled-up ball and everyone look up to Naruto, who was standing behind the bully.

"…Just to be clear." Naruto looked around with his hands up, "No one saw anything and if anyone asked, we tell them that this asshole just walks into the bike rack over there."

"Get it."

"Gotcha."

"Oh, saw nothing here." The students carried on and couple guys dragged the whining bully away.

"…Huh, thought I was gonna get in trouble there for a second." Naruto blinked owlishly, he thought that someone was going to rat him out right there.

"You okay?" Claire asked the chubby teenager as he get up.

"I hate that guy." Toby huffed at Steve's direction, "I wish I could punch him in his perfectly-chiseled face."

"Just do it." The blonde joined them.

"No, he's not worth it, Tobes." She shook her head lightly with small eyeroll, "Did you bring Jim's homework?"

"Yeah." The chubby teenager reached inside his backpack, "It's right here." He scream out as a glowing bugs jump out before he stomped all over them, "Oh, no!" He killed the last one before he sigh out, "Guess I missed a scorch beetle." He picked up a burned paper, "Here's Jim's homework. Might want to double-check the work there."

"Boy, I wonder what excuse you will come up with for this one." Naruto muttered.

"It's Notenrique!" Claire gasped after she checked her phone, "The bridge pieces!" She bring it up to her ear, "Where are you?"

"I got no clue where on Earth I am, but come and get me!" Notenrique spoke as the teenagers listened in.

"Hold tight." She ran off with the boys, "We have to find a secluded spot."

"What about school?" Toby asked.

"What about Jim?" Claire retorted.

"Yeah, fuck school!" Naruto grinned, at least he can ditch school once in a while thank to his clones and if any cops catch him, he'll tell them that he's homeschooled. Neither of them notice that Steve was following them from distance.

---

The teenagers walk down the hill in woods at night before Claire turn her head to Toby, who was checking inside the fetch ring, "Still no sign of Jim?"

"Nothing but barren Darklands." Toby shook his head, "And I'm running out of Nougat Nummies."

"You think this place is good enough?" Naruto asked.

"For a magic bridge?" The chubby teenager hummed, "This far out, we could hide a few dead bodies." They chuckled.

"All right, let's do this quick." Claire pulled her staff out, "Making portals is exhausting, and I don't know how many I've got in me." She shot a portal with a whip of her staff.

"Wow, you're turning pro with that magic shadow stick." Toby said.

"Well, it's powered by emotions." She shrugged, "Getting the guy I like out of the Darklands? Plenty of emotion." The boys were about to go in until she stop them, "What are you doing?"

"Help?" The blonde raised his eyebrow.

"Yeah, helping." The chubby teenager nodded.

"I have no idea where we are." Claire said, "I need you two here to be my emotional anchor."

"But what are we supposed to do?" Toby asked.

"Get ready to catch." She leaped into the portal.

"Fine." The chubby teenager sighed.

"…I hope it's not large enough to squash us." Naruto scratched his head and the chubby teenager paled at the mental picture. Suddenly, a crate slipped out and the chubby teenager yelp out as it presses down on him before the blonde lift it off him.

"A little warning next time?" Toby glared at the portal before it vanish, "Oh, no!"

"Don't worry." The blonde calmed him down before he can freak out, "I'm pretty sure Claire and Notenrique are okay, maybe taking a little break on her side since the shadow staff take toll on her the longer the portal stay up."

"You sure?" The chubby teenager looked to his friend worriedly.

"Yeah, maybe she's going to move the portal around on her side to make it easy for them to dump the crates on us…" Naruto paused then looked up to the sky as Toby follow his line of sight out of curiosity, "Hopefully not above us…"

"…O-Oh, good point." Toby sweated nervously, "I-I-I'll keep one eye out for portals above us…" The portal pop up again, "Oh! Here it come!" The boys start to catching the crates and some pieces one after one for who know how long.

"Hey, you cool if I take a leak break?" The blonde asked him, putting a crate on top of another crates.

"Yeah, go ahead." The chubby teenager nodded, "I'll give you a holler if something come up."

"Get it." Naruto jogged deeper into the woods for privacy. After finished his business, he came back to see Toby rear his fist back at Steve. 'How did he find us?' He wonder when did this guy show up and the blonde was about to make his appearance but a large portal form above them as seawater pour out down in flood.

"Wha…?" Steve widened his eyes in shock.

"You know what?" Toby grunted, "Claire's right. You're not worth it." He glanced up then smirk at the bully, "Steve, have you ever heard of the expression, head up?"

"What?" The bully uttered before a small crate smash down onto his head, knocking him out in process.

"Ha!" The chubby teenager grinned.

"Yeah, ha, that'll be a fun story to tell the kids in future." Naruto walked up to the chubby teenager's side with a chuckle before he nudge the bully's twitching leg, "Still alive, good." He noticed Toby's stare, "What? Someone gotta check."

"Ah!" They heard Claire hollered to them with coughs as she pointed to Notenrique, "Guys, he's not breathing!"

"Oh, no!" Toby immediately ran over with Naruto, "Oh, no! Notenrique!" The chubby teenager swiftly peform CPR until the little changeling lean forward with sputtering, coughing some waters out. "Oh, it worked!" He cheered.

"Good job, buddy!" Naruto patted the chubby teenager's back.

"I told you, I can't swim." Notenrique moaned in Claire's arms before he offer Toby a fist bump, which he return.

"Claire!" The chubby teenager turned to the said girl happily, "You got all the pieces! We did it! We stole an entire freaking bridge!"

"Yeah." Claire get up with Naruto's help as she panted heavy, "Don't let Jim ever say we never did anything for him."

"Thank you." Notenrique nodded, "You did good back there, kid. What emotion did you use to get us out of that tin can?"

"Fear." She answered, "I was afraid…I lost you."

"I'm the king of the ocean." Steve moaned in his sleep.

"What are we gonna do about him?" Claire asked.

"Let's dump him in…" Naruto snapped his fingers few time, "Um, the square park?"

"Oh, the center park." Toby snapped his fingers as the blonde nodded, "That's perfect! And I'll call a cop on him so they can write it off as one of crazy sleepwalking episodes."

"…Will it work?" The blonde raised his eyebrow before he lift his hand up in front of the chubby teenager's face as soon as Toby open his mouth, "Wait. Don't answer that one."

---

In Darklands, Jim don't expect his cell neighbor to be Zelda Nomura out of all trolls, neither somewhat get along, despite her sarcasm and few taunts in between. "…By any chances, do you know Naruto?" Zelda suddenly asked out of blue, "If so, how is he?"

"Um, yes, and he's fine." Jim replied, "He still think you're at some archaeological site."

"Mm, that's good." The purple changeling sighed, she don't know how long it will take until her son decide to try contact her then report her missing and she'd hate to think what her son will go through.

"…Um, hey, does he know…?" The trollhunter muttered.

"That I'm a changeling?" Zelda looked up to the rocky ceiling, "That he's adopted? No and no. He doesn't know."

"Oh." Jim paused, "Um…Why?"

"Why what?" She grunted.

"Why are you raising Naruto?" He asked, "I mean, he's a human…What make you decide to take him in? Is it for a cover?"

"I don't know why I did it in first place." Zelda said, "When I found him as a newborn baby in dumpster, I just took him home with me and somehow he grow on me…Before I know it, I love him like my own child. The cover story was far from my thought."

"…Wait, he's a dumpster baby?!" Jim widened his eyes in horror, "Who would do that? Why?"

"I don't know who and why they do that." She sneered at whoever did the deeds, "But one thing I know is that if I ever find the culprits behind that, I'll slice them in pieces and feed them to…" She mumbled something in trollish, "Anyway, let's not talk about that anymore for now."

"Um, okay." He muttered, taking the info in and the prisoners just sit in silence in their cells.

---

"Oh! Oh, no. Oh, no." Blinky peek through the binocular inside a car at night as a police officer tossed a litter inside the trashcan, "Nope, not him."

"We've been on stakeout forever." Claire leaned forward, "Do we even know who we're looking for?"

"I bet not a single clue." Naruto said from the backseat, earn a strange look from the girl as she don't know where to correct him on.

"It appears Strickler corresponded with a German named Otto Scaarbach." The troll said.

"That's his name?" Notenrique pop up behind the driver's headrest, "Might as well call him Mr. Evil Man." The trolls chuckled, "How do you even know he's gonna be here?"

"I interneted him." Blinky replied.

"Interneted." The small changeling snickered.

"You mean, Googled?" Naruto tilted his head.

"Silence, you impudent runt!" The six-eyes troll looked to the changeling, "I interneted him as Strickler, asking to meet."

"Oh, you mean messaged, right?" The blonde said, never notice a facepalm from Claire.

"But when he discovers he's been stood up, he'll lead us back to the Janus Order." Blinky said smugly.

"If anyone's hungry, I got peanut brittle, popcorn, marshmallow goop, and sixteen flavors of bubble gum." Toby said in the back.

"We get it, Tobes." Claire rolled her eyes lightly as the chubby teenager ate some of foods, "You got your braces off."

"Oh, did you notice?" The smiling chubby teenager flashed his teeth proudly and she just scoffed until she notice someone in distance.

"I think I see Mr. Evil Man!" She gasped.

"Ah, aha!" Blinky bring his binocular up to watch a man in shady outfit peeking around.

"That's gotta be him!" Notenrique pointed.

"Slip out quietly." The six-eyes troll shushed him, "One false move and we might spook him."

"Right, follow him back to the Janus Order." Toby reached to the door, "Piece of cake. Let's go!" He suddenly fall out on sidewalk with loud thud and clattering gumballs as Otto glanced around with narrowed eyes, "Sorry." He barely get up before he slip on gumball with a yelp and Otto quickly retreat.

"We can't lose him!" Claire looked to the team, "You drive, Blink. Naruto, stay with him. Toby and I'll follow on foot." She hopped out.

"Driving!" Blinky drove the car with revving engine, "What a pleasure!"

"…Have you wrote your will yet?" Notenrique turned to Naruto nervously.

"Nah, I'll tuck and roll out when he's gonna crash." Naruto's left hand hover over the door handle. The car speed past Otto as Blinky laughed like a madman, "Um…Do you realize we just missed Mr. Evil Man?"

"I don't think he care about it right now!" The little changeling clings on the seat.

"New plan." Claire's voice spoke through the walkie-talkie, "Capture him and we'll make him talk."

"You hear her?" The blonde asked the laughing troll, "I guess not."

"T.P.'s down." Claire spoke again, "But I've got Otto heading into the alley between Meadowlark and Main."

"We're on Main." Blinky spoke as he turned around the corner, "Heading into the alley. Let's box him in." The car screeched into the alley with few back-and-forth brakes.

"Gotcha, Mr. Evil Man!" Naruto see Claire jump out behind the dumpster to point her staff at a stranger, "What?" She looked sheepish and embarrassed as the stranger ran off and she walk back to the car. "Where'd he go? We had him." She leaned back on the car with crossed arms, "Oh. This was our one shot."

"You think there's a secret path somewhere around here?" Naruto suggested and the girl just shrug her shoulders unsurely.

"I think I broke my jaw!" Toby showed up with painful groan.

"GREAT GORGUS!" The six-eyes troll recoiled from the sight of the chubby boy's teeth.

"Did we lose him?" The chubby teenager moaned, "He's gone?"

"And, I fear, so have our chances of finding the Janus Order, and with them, the antidote for Aaarrrgghh." Blinky looked down.

"…So it's a bust, like Toby's jaw, for now?" The ninja scratched his head.

"Yea…" Claire paused before everyone turn to the moaning chubby teenager, "…Toby, do you want us to call your dentist right now or…?"

"I'll call him later…" Toby hobbled away with moans, "Nana's gonna be mad."

"Poor fella." Naruto muttered under his breath.

---

"Poor fella." The blonde repeated his comment from last night as he stare at Toby's head-brace gear in math class, "Yikes." He focus on his work for a while until he look up with everyone when Toby start to acting weird, dancing as if there is a music playing.

"Mr. Domzalski!" Janeth narrowed her eyes at the said student, If you must cause a disruption, then go disrupt the principal!"

"Sorry, my bad!" Toby raced out.

"Now back to the problem…" The teacher turned to the blackboard as the students resume their note taking, "After change the X to ten, you…"

---

"…So Toby's new brace can pick up the radio fr…" Naruto snapped his fingers few times as the team stand on top of the roof of the school, "Waves and one of them happen to belong to Janus Order?"

"Yes." Claire nodded.

"…What the fuck?" The blonde deadpanned, what's the odd of this chance?

"Anything yet?" She asked the troll, who was holding a earpiece to Toby's brace with some fidgets.

"Ooh." Blinky gasped, "Wait. Thirty-five. Eleven. Janus Initiative." He gasped, "Great Gronka Morka! Tobias, I believe your headgear is picking up the secret transmissions of the Janus Order!"

"Awesome-sauce!" Toby muttered.

"Where two faces meet." Claire repeated the message.

"It could be a secret combination." Blinky said.

"Or location." Naruto said.

"Or lead us to a passage in a book." She said.

"It's coordinates!" Toby muttered.

"Or an unbreakable cipher." The troll said.

"Or be a lottery ticket." Claire said.

"Or coordinates!" The chubby teenager said.

"I don't think they're lottery numbers, Claire." Blinky hummed.

"Oh, for Pete's sake, they're coordinates that lead to someplace here in Arcadia!" Toby pushed them away with waving arms.

"Called it!" The ninja smirked.

---

"Omni Reach?" Naruto read the signboard of a building out loud.

"The coordinates lead to this precise location." Blinky said.

"Travel agency?" Claire tilted her head thoughtfully before she rattle the door, "These places still exist? Ugh, it's locked."

"Locks are me specialty." Notenrique crackled his hands before he suddenly threw the brick through the door then open it.

"Keep quiet." The six-eyes troll whispered as they sneak inside.

"I think it's too late for that." Naruto deadpanned, surely, someone would hear the breaking glasses within the range. Toby start to hum out loud to a tune before everyone shush him.

"Scour the room." Blinky ordered, "Look here, here, here and here. This place might hold a clue to the location of the Janus Order." They start to look around, scanning everything for any clues as Toby have Claire checked the location through the fetch ring. They jumped up lightly when they hear the phone rang.

"Someone gonna pick that up?" Notenrique asked and the six-eyes troll went up to answer the phone.

"Uh, salutations." The six-eyes troll said.

"Welcome to Omni Reach Travel." A female voice spoke, "Where would you like to go?"

"Where two faces meet?" Claire answered and there was a dial tone before the floor start to rumble and it move down, reveal to be some kind of secret elevator.

"What are we gonna do?" Toby freaked out, "We gotta get outta here!"

"It's too late to turn back now." Blinky shook his head, "We must face what's before us with courage and, beyond all else, a warrior's dignity." Toby screams out in fear when the picture of Gunmar show up on the wall until they reach the door and it lift up.

"Welcome to the Janus Order." The female voice spoke and the corridor light up as the chubby boy screamed again.

"Quiet!" Notenrique hopped onto his shoulder then covered the screaming teenager's mouth.

"The Janus Order." The six-eyes troll cupped his chin, "This must be one of their bases of operations. By Gorgus, we were seeking a trail of breadcrumbs and wandered straight into the baker's oven!"

"I got a bad feelin' about this." The little changeling muttered as they walk out into the hallway.

"We will have to improvise." Blinky said, "The antidote must be in this building. We're in the den of spies, so try to walk lightly. Now fan out. Find the antidote and try not to get killed."

"I'm going with Blinky and Notenrique." Naruto informed the teenagers and they give him a thumb-up as the ninja went with the trolls since they both are not much a fighter. The trio tiptoe around as they keep their eyes out for any changelings and Blinky turn around the corner before the ninja hear a grunt, causing him to jump out behind to see…Dozen changelings holding Blinky and one of them have knife close to Blinky's neck as the ninja froze with rapid blinks. One of the changelings point to a secret camera, barely noticeable, on ceiling as if he was answering Naruto's unasked question.

"Code red." The tall changeling spoke quickly into her walkie-talkie as the changelings grabbed Naruto, "Code red. Intruders in the Janus Order. Intruders in the Janus Order."

'Man, I'm never going to live it down if there are any real ninjas and they found that I have been caught right away.' Naruto sweatdropped to himself as the changelings drag them to a certain room, the ninja's brain run miles to figure out how to get them out of a very tight spot.

---

The captive trio was soon joined by Claire and Toby as the chubby teenager woke up. "No!" Toby cried, "They're gonna torture us, aren't they?"

"Maybe." Naruto grunted, wiggling his fingers around as he tried to escape from the ropes.

"Good thing I have four hands." Blinky said, "Almost. Almost!" He struggled until the chair topple him forward on his face with a grunt. "Almost." They hear some squeaking wheels of a cart.

"My deepest apologies." Otto appeared with an old fashioned record player on cart before he right Blinky up, "You must understand our irrational fears when discovering intruders crashing our private party." He turn Toby around on chair as he waggled his finger to them, "You did not get an invitation."

"Oh, come on, man, I ain't with them." Notenrique whined, "I was playin' both sides. You can untie me. We're on the same s…"

"Silence!" The changeling shushed the small changeling, "You have an abnormally large mouth for such a tiny changeling. Do not doubt my intelligence, imp!" He appeared in front of Notenrigue with waggling finger in face, "We never expected much from you."

"You're not like the others, are you?" Claire narrowed her eyes, "You changed into NotEnrique."

"Yes." Otto smirked as he transformed into the stranger from alleyway, "I am a changeling polymorph. I can take the form of anyone." He transformed back, "One of the perks of being the Grand Commandant."

"Anyone?" Naruto blinked, "Boy, that would be so awkward if you change into a baby and someone decide to have a diaper change…Or into a famous porn star and be recognized by…"

"I don't care who you are!" The girl with blue streak gritted her teeth as she unknowingly cut the ninja's joke off when Otto pick a screwdriver up from a table, "You can torture us all you want! We're not talking!"

"I'll talk!" Toby wailed, "Don't listen to her! I have loose lips! I'm a chatty-fatty!" The team stared at him, "Don't judge! I'm the one in the torture chair!"

"So much noise." The polymorph changeling hummed, "Now, let us discuss what we should do with you." He turned to turn the player's handle around.

"Dude, I said I'll talk!" The chubby teenager wailed, "Stop being creepy with your record player!"

"Really?" The ninja deadpanned at the wailing chubby teenager.

"Oh, really?!" Toby glared at him, "You would do the same thing in my spot if they have ghosts here."

"…True." Naruto said after a short pause and the polymorph changeling shush them.

"Oh." Otto uttered as he walked away from the record player to the chubby teenager and examine the tool in his hand.

"Ah!" Toby laughed nervously.

"A change in plans." The polymorph changeling putted the tool down then turned to them with hands behind his back, "The Janus Order would like to propose a trade."

"A trade for what, Mr. Evil Man?" Blinky narrowed his eyes.

"The antidote for Creeper's Sun." Otto took a book from one of his agents then open it, "Correct me if I'm wrong, but your stone friend, Aaarrrgghh, needs this."

"What's the catch?" Claire frowned.

"Such the clever one." The polymorph changeling chortled, "For the life of your friend, we wish only Vendel's walking staff."

"But his staff is sacred, forged from the center of our Heartstone." The six-eyes troll gasped.

"And therefore exceptionally rare." Otto replied, "Aaarrrgghh's life for the staff. Consider it a one-time offer."

"We'll consider!" Toby wailed when the polymorph pick up a tool with many gears, "I've already been to the dentist! I can't take it anymore!" He screamed out when Otto grab his brace headgear with some movements of his tool.

"Torture?" Otto hummed with raised eyebrow as he held a headgear up, "This is just to take your headgear off. We can't have you listening in on our secrets anymore, can we?"

"Thank you." The crying chubby teenager exhausted heavily and the team was released outside safely.

"…We're fucked, aren't we?" Naruto asked.

"Language." Blinky said before he rub his forehead, "Oh dear. How can we take Vendel's staff?"

"L-L-Leave it to me!" Toby wiped tears off, "I get a plan! Let me do it!" The team decide to give him this one.

---

The next night at canal, the team stand under the bridge with Vendel's staff, that was stolen by Toby under disguise. "Dealing business with these vile agents..." Blinky looked upset by that as he held the staff to his chest, "I dearly hope we are doing the right thing."

"Anything to get Aaarrrgghh back." Toby replied.

"Brace yourselves." Claire said to them as the cars show up in fog before they stop in front of the team, "Looks like the creep patrol is here."

"Follow my lead." The chubby teenager moved in front of the team as Otto step out of his car and Naruto can see some goblins inside. "I've seen enough spy flicks to know how a handoff works. It's a precise ritual of nuance and power. Not another step, wiener schnitzel! That's far enough!" The polymorph changeling stopped few yards away from the team, "Now, throw us the antidote, and we'll throw you the staff!"

"Are you serious?" Otto stared bewildered at him.

"Deadly." Toby replied and the changeling sighed with a headshake as he reach inside his coat then hold a letter out. The chubby teenager nod to him and the polymorph threw the letter, only to have it drift down to his feet and the changeling pick it up, repeating the actions few times.

"Now what, Agent Toby?" Claire deadpanned and Naruto just snickered in amusement at the sight of Otto's comedic attempts.

"Um, okay, fine!" The chubby teenager huffed, "Let's meet in the middle, but no funny business! Hands where I can see 'em!" The polymorph changeling let another sigh out as they meet in the middle.

"Enough theatrics." The polymorph changeling said annoyingly, "Do the exchange now!" They traded the items but both party start to wrestle with each other as they refuse to release their items, "Would you let go?" Otto yanked the staff from Blinky as Toby take the letter before he examine the staff with a smirk, "Yes. This will do quite nicely."

"Twig of Worm's Root, ounce of silver..." Toby muttered the list out loud, "This isn't an antidote! It's a shopping list!"

"It is the ingredients to the antidote." Otto walked away with a gloat, "Boil these in oil until it burns, and that will bring your friend back. Pleasure doing business with you." He tried to open the door but the goblins laughed at him because they locked it, "Fragwa, open the door." He sighed again as the door open before he get in, "Auf Wiedersehen!"

"We did the right thing." Claire muttered as the cars retreat into the fog, "Right, guys?"

"Desperate time, desperate measures." Blinky muttered, "Now, we must concern ourselves with some shopping." He took the list, "Hmm…Where might we find the tears of one untouched by love's first kiss?" Everyone turned their heads to the chubby teenager.

"What?" Toby uttered, "I've been kissed. Many times."

"Your nana doesn't count." The girl with blue streak spoke.

"Oh." Toby's shoulders slumped before he jump up to pointing at Naruto, "What about him? I bet he never kissed before."

"I have kissed before once by my crush in middle school." Naruto winced and the chubby teenager groaned.

"What?" Claire raised her eyebrow at his wince as Toby and Blinky focus on the list, walking a bit away from them.

"It was accident and she punched my face then refuse to speak to me again." The ninja shrugged his shoulders.

"Oh, that suck." She winced.

"Yup, but it's good thing that I got over it a bit later because she turn out to be a…" Naruto waved his hand as he tried to find the words, "Um…What's the word in English…Ah, mean bitch and cheater. The reason why she has best grades and popularly in school are because of bribes from parents, spreading rumors about other students and other things."

"Wow, what a bitch." Claire whistled before she turn to him as they walk to the rest of their team, "Is that why you don't want to get in relationship with anyone?"

"Nah, that's not why." He shook his head with a little shrug, "I'm just waiting for the right person. You know what I mean?"

"Yeah, I get it." She nodded in understanding, She also wait for the right person and it turn out to be Jim. Although, she wonder what kind of girl would catch her friend's eyes.

---

In Hero's Forge, the team was gathering around the boiling cauldron as Draal stand on lookout. "Ugh, slimy." Toby shivered as he dropped a snake-like body inside, "Slimy, gross." Claire dump a rotting milk carton inside with a gag, "Ew, gross! I'm gonna wash my hands!" After many ingredients and a quick wash, "I think that's almost all of it." He punched his face few times before Naruto suddenly punch him in stomach out of blue, "Oh, that hurt." Toby's tears fall into the boiling cauldron.

"Sorry, T.P." Naruto patted the crying boy's back, "You'll end up giving yourself black eye and bloody nose and we don't have time for it."

"I get it…" The chubby teenager sniffled.

"And lastly, a fragment of Heartstone." Blinky tossed a piece in and the cauldron explode in blue smokes that nearly take up the whole of Hero's Forge before the smokes suck back inside the cauldron with a pop.

"It's working!" Claire gasped but...

"I don't get it." Toby glanced up and down between Aaarrrgghh's body and cauldron, "What happened?"

"Nothing." She shook her head sadly, "It…It didn't work."

"I…" Blinky hanged his head, "I thought for certain..."

"No!" The chubby teenager cried on Aaarrrgghh's statue, "No, come on, we did everything right! Come on, after all that we did, it has to work."

"Unless…" Claire's eyes widened, "The list was bogus! How could we have been so stupid?"

"Look like I'm going to see Mr. Evil Man and give him few things." Naruto scowled.

"The amulet told us we could bring him back." Toby sniffled, "He has to come back. I even did the tear thing." Everyone looked down and before they know it, Aaarrrgghh slowly come back to live as the stone fade away. Toby start to cheer loudly with laughter and everyone turn around to see the brute with hands on his temples.

"Aaarrrgghh…" The girl with blue streak uttered.

"Deya's grace be upon us." The six-eyes troll gasped as they get close to the brute and Aaarrrggh's eyes snapped open to reveal purple pupils with black orbs before he give out a loud roar with glowing purple lines.

"You are making too much…" Draal ran toward the group before Aaarrrgghh swipe the cauldron up in air, hitting the blue troll in head as he crash into the ground.

"Aaarrrgghh, calm yourself!" Blinky shouted.

"Stop!" Claire shouted as she tried to calm the wild brute, "Wait! Aaarrrgghh!"

"He's disoriented." The six-eyes troll shouted after Aaarrrgghh knocked them down, "Quiet him before he alerts all of Trollmarket!"

"Easy said than done!" Naruto jumped on Aaarrrgghh with his clones but he was tossed away as the clones vanish in smokes as soon as Aaarrrgghh roll forward, crushing some clones under his weight.

"Whoa, Aaarrrgghh!" Toby waved his hands as Aaarrrgghh jumped in front of him, "Easy, easy! It's me, your wingman!" Aaarrrgghh pause at the smiling boy before he smash the door over the yelping boy with heavy pants as the brute's eyes restore to normal.

"Wingman." Aaarrrgghh smiled.

"Ah!" The chubby boy hugged the brute with a cheer, "He's back! Oh, I knew he'd be back!"

"I see it, I don't believe it." The blue troll patted the brute's shoulder.

"We missed you, you big brute!" Claire hugged the brute.

"Yeah." Naruto gave Aaarrrgghh a fist bump with a nod, "You missed out a lot of things.

"I had all but assumed I would never see you again, old friend." Blinky hugged his longtime friend happily.

"How did I…?" Aaarrrgghh looked around, "Where's Jim?"

"He, uh, went to the Darklands so that no one else would get hurt." The girl with blue streak replied.

"Must get Jim!" The brute growled.

"Oh, yes, so you do know how to save him." Blinky said to the giant's confusion, "The amulet proclaimed that you are the key to the hunter. So, tell us, what must we do?"

"Um…" Aaarrrgghh scratched his head before the soothscryer rise from ground.

"Aarghaumont." The voice spoke from the relic with glowing blue lights within its mouth.

"What is…?" The brute uttered.

"The amulet and the Fates that guide it have called to you." Blinky said, "To what purpose, only you can discover, my dear old friend." Aaarrrgghh put his fist inside and he vanish inside the mouth.

"Oh, thank kami that they don't call for group meeting." Naruto breathed out, he really don't want to meet the ghosts.

"How long do you think it'll take?" The chubby teenager asked. As soon as he asked a question, Aaarrrgghh teleport in front of them with closed eyes.

"Aaarrrgghh, what did you see?" Claire asked.

"Did you meet the spooky troll ghosts?" Toby asked before they gasp as the brute open his eyes to reveal glowing blue eyes.

"He did convene with us." Aaarrrgghh spoke but it wasn't his voice, "But I am not Aarghaumont."

"Kanjigar the Courageous." Blinky gasped.

"Wait!" Toby dropped his jaw, "What?!"

"Aaaaaaaaaand I'm out!" Naruto quickly spun around on his heels and he tried to flee but the six-eyes troll grabbed him, holding him in place under some struggles. "No, no, no, no!" The ninja screamed out with river of tears down his face, "No, no, no! I don't do the ghosts shit! Let me go, letmego, letmego!"

"At ease, Blinkous." The possessed troll approached the six-eyes troll to put hand on his shoulder as the screaming ninja struggle harder, "Yes, it is I."

"PLEASE DON'T CURSE ME!" The ninja wailed.

"It is you…" Draal muttered, "Father."

"Well met" Kanjigar was about to greet him the usual way but the blue troll suddenly hug him before the possessed troll hug back, "My son."

"But how?" The blue troll break the hug apart as the teenagers held onto the screaming ninja so Blinky can approach the possessed troll, "What has happened to Aaarrrgghh?"

"Your friend is here with me." Kanjigar said, "Aaarrrgghh walked the line between life and death, so he alone could become a vessel for me to aid you."

"Whoa, whoa, whoa!" Toby waved his hands, "Hey there, troll-tergeist! Give me my wingman back!"

"W-W-Why do we have to raise the dead?" Naruto sobbed, "Why?"

"It's okay, Naruto, it's okay." Claire rubbed his back gently, "This ghost won't hurt you, he's a good ghost…"

"We're gonna lost our souls!" The ninja shivered before he start to chant prayer in his native tongue and the girl roll her eyes lightly, still rubbing the ninja's back to calm him down.

"At ease, Tobias Domzalski." The possessed troll replied, "I will only stay until my work is done."

"But excuse me, Lord Sir Kanjig-Aaarrrgghh …" Claire can't help but to back away a bit with Naruto when the possessed troll appear in front of them, "What exactly are you here to do?"

"I thought you knew." Kanjigar answered, "Only a Trollhunter can open the Killahead Bridge." They turned around when they heard the gate open with some creaks.

"There they are!" A troll shouted before he run in with other troll.

"I knew it!" Vendel shouted as two more trolls run in, "Detain them! Find the staff!" Draal and Kanjigar trade a look with each other before Draal charge to the trolls near the gate in rolling ball and the possessed troll turn to the trolls near the elder troll.

"For the glory of Merlin, Daylight is mine to command!" The possessed troll summoned the blade of trollhunter.

"Aaarrrgghh?" The elder troll gasped in shock, "What dark powers have you meddled with?" The Hero's Forge course raise when the blue troll threw a troll into the lever, turning the machine on.

"Toby!" Claire shouted as the said boy held onto the edge with kicking legs.

"No!" Toby was about to fall into the whirring gears but he was immediately rescued by the possessed troll and they meet up with the team at the entrance.

"We have little time." Kanjigar said, "This will take us to Bone's Alley."

"But, father…" Draal said as the team head out hurriedly.

"Follow me, son." The possessed troll turned to him, "We are together at last." The team sneak around until they see two trolls guarding Blinky's room and the possessed troll climb up the wall to drop on the guards, immediately knock them out then drag their bodies to hide them. The possessed troll beckoned the team over after checked the coast.

"Kanjigar's creeping spider!" Blinky whispered excitingly as the team run into his room, "A signature move!"

"This guy's a legend." Toby said in awe.

"Hurry!" Kanjigar barked as he grabbed objects and Chompsky, who was shocked and happy to see the brute but end up become mad when the brute grabbed him like a object, "Claire Nunez, I require a portal to Killahead Bridge. Quickly."

"Killahead." Claire summoned a portal.

"Quick, everyone through!" Kanjigar shouted after tossed everything inside and they was about to go in but an arrow hit her staff, sending it through the portal.

"Fudgeknuckle!" Claire cussed as they turned to see a red troll with crossbow and it look like he regret it greatly when the possessed troll walk up to him, beating him up right away.

"We'll take the gyre." The possessed troll ordered over the groaning troll and everyone raced out.

"Kanjigar, why don't you simply talk with Vendel and the Tribunal?" Blinky asked as soon as they enter the gyre room, "Surely one of Trollmarket's greatest champions could persuade…"

"Talking requires time, Blinkous, something we do not have." Kanjigar cut him off as everyone board the ride, "Things are dire. If we do not act now, James Lake, Jr. will die." He start the gyre up then take off in a tunnel at high speed.

"But Killahead's in the woods." The six-eyes troll said, "There's no gyre station there."

"We don't need one." Kanjigar causally replied before he command the gyre ride to shot up through the ceiling with screaming passengers.

---

In the woods, Chompsky chattered angrily at the bridge with balled-up fists until he scream out when the earth explode near him and the gyre shot up into the sky then land with a hard crash.

"Oh, dear." Blinky moaned as everyone stumble out of the gyre, "We are officially fugitives from Trollmarket."

"Forget what they think." Kanjigar walked past the gaping six-eyes troll, "We must concentrate on what we do. We have all that we need."

"And then some." Claire found her staff as she pick a book up.

"Okay, how does this crazy crime spree help us save Jimbo, exactly?" Toby panted before he glance to Naruto, who have a foaming mouth with glossed eyes. 'Guess his phobia of ghosts is this bad.' He winced, there's nothing you can do about true fear.

"Friends, I have seen the impossible." The possessed troll collected the items off the ground, "A vision of you saving James Lakes, Jr. But to do so, you must follow the path I lay before you."

"We've done the impossible before." The girl expanded her staff with a flair, "We can handle it."

"I have my war hammer!" Toby pulled his weapon out, "It's hungry to smash."

"Pleasedon'tpossessme, pleasedon'tpossessme." Naruto chanted, kunais mysteriously appear in his trembling hands as he hold them in defensive stance toward the possessed troll.

"No, no weapons." Kanjigar shook his head softly while sweatdropped at the scared ninja, "In my plan, you will need nothing else but the knowledge and tools I will give you." He held his hands out to them.

"Aw, man!" Toby whined as he and Claire gave their weapons to the brute, beside Naruto who refuse and it look like the brute don't mind it.

"What possible chance do we stand if we are unarmed?" Blinky asked.

"Each of you will be charged with a task." The possessed troll spoke, "You must follow them to the letter if there is any hope of survival. Claire Nunez, take this." He handed her some kind of crankshaft gear, "In the Darklands, it will aid you in a key moment."

"Um…" Claire blinked, "Thank you?"

"Blinkous, take this flare crystal." Kanjigar gave the said troll a crystal on stick, "Its blinding light will save your life."

"My life?" Blinky jolted up with widened eyes, "Could I get some specificity on that statement?"

"Tobias Domzalski." Kanjigar turned to the said human as the six-eyes troll stretch his upper left hand out to him weakly.

"Ooh, ooh, me, me, me!" Toby bounced, "What do I get? What do I get?"

"You must ensure that your team only brings back James Lake, Jr." The possessed troll said, "No one else."

"Okay, got it." The chubby teenager scratched his chin unsurely with index finger, "Just Jim. Guess I got good advice."

"Father, what is my task?" Draal asked with ax.

"I know you wish to go into battle, but I need you and Naruto here." Kanjigar pushed his son's ax down.

"I can help." The blue troll said.

"And you shall." The possessed troll replied, "Of all of you, your responsibility is greatest. You keep watch so that Gunmar does not escape. If your friends do not come back, you must make a choice."

"To destroy the bridge?" Draal said.

"If you must." Kanjigar said.

"I understand." The blue troll nodded before they press their foreheads together.

"W-W-Why do I…" Naruto gulped as the possessed troll turned to him, "S-Stay here?"

"It's a two-troll job." The possessed troll spoke, "You'll never know if someone will come out on the other side of the bridge." That and if everything failed, the trolls need a warrior in the daylight but he won't say it out loud.

"G-G-G-Get it…" The ninja gave a shaky thumb-up.

"Now, then, you all have your orders!" Kanjigar looked to the team.

"Wait!" Claire raised her hand up, "This is all happening so fast. We don't even know our way around the Darklands."

"But your gnome, who survived it, does." The possessed troll looked ahead to the said creature, "He will be a guide…And more." The gnome shook his head rapidly with hands up, "Jim's time is short. I sense Gunmar readying to destroy him." The creature crossed his arms with shaking head.

"I'll handle it, guys." Toby kneel down to the creature with clasped hands, "Chompsky, I promise, if you find Jim, I'll buy you the Sally-Go-Back moon base." Chompsky hum thoughtfully before the chubby teenager turned to the team, "So, everybody pitch in. Those things are pricey." Kanjigar push him aside then tap the amulet on the chest, causing the bridge pieces to glow blue before they come together to form Killahead Bridge.

"What is the plan, Kanjigar?" Blinky asked nervously, "I have naught but a flare and more questions than answers."

"I cannot reveal more, for to know your future is to risk dooming it." Kanjigar put his hand on the nervous troll's shoulder, "Trust in yourselves and me, and all will be clear soon enough."

"Um…" The six-eyes troll have a lot of doubts.

"Don't worry!" Toby patted Blinky's back, "With super Trollhunter Kanjig-Aaarrrgghh by our side, two for one, boom! We can't lose!"

"I'm afraid I will not be joining you into the Darklands." The possessed troll shouldered the ropes as both chubby teenager and troll gasped before Kanjigar climb upon the top of the bridge, "After I open the bridge, I must use the last of my power here to keep it open."

"Wait, you're leaving?" The girl with blue streak widened her eyes.

"You will need Aaarrrgghh, not I." Kanjigar said, "He will make his own way."

"Oh dear." Blinky gulped, "Is that another one of your riddles?"

"One revolution of the amulet's arm is all the time I can grant you before the bridge closes!" Kanjigar took the amulet off his chest, "Best of luck, Trollhunters!" He smashed the amulet into the headgear of the bridge, channeling all of his powers into the bridge to activate the portal and he separate from the brute troll as the ghost kept his eyes closed. To this day, Naruto will always denied that he give out a loudest high-pitched scream at the sight of a real ghost, neither did he faint.

"Save Jim." Aaarrrgghh gave the ghost a nod before he leap off the bridge to join the team.

"Remember what you must do, my son!" Kanjigar's ghost looked down to his son and Draal gave him a firm nod, causing the ghost to smile before he vanish in form of will-o-wisp and enter the amulet.

"This whole thing is nuts." Claire glanced around nervously, "Are we really doing this?"

"Uh, I think we are, but I was only half-listening, and he was talking really fast." Toby muttered as Chompsky crawl up onto his shoulder, "I don't really know what we're supposed to be doing!"

"Worry not!" Blinky said, "Worry not! We'll get through this as we always do, together."

"Draal, Naruto, we'll be back soon." She turned to the duo, "Keep the door open, will ya?" They gave her nods.

"For Jim!" Everyone pumped their fists up before the team charge into the portal.

"Bring back our Trollhunter, my friends." Draal said softly.

"Which side do you want to watch?" Naruto calmed himself down after seeing that the ghost is gone, "Front or back?"

"I'll guard the front." The blue troll tapped the ax on his metal claw and the ninja gave him a thumb-up before the blonde walk behind the bridge, keeping his eyes out for any non-teammates. They have been watching the bridge in silence for who know how long until…

"Hurry, friends." Draal said worriedly, "Your time is slipping away." Few minutes, "Come on! Where are you, fools?"

"Relax, big blue!" The ninja hollered from his side, "I'm pretty sure they're okay and might be on their way back."

"If you say so…" The blue troll sighed, "Not everyone are optimistic like you."

"Ha, someone have to be." Naruto chuckled before something come out on his side and they were bunch of white goblins, "WHOA!" He quickly killed few wild goblins with his kunai and couple jutsu but the rest escape into the forest, "DRAAL, I'M GOING AFTER THE GOBLINS!"

"GO!" Draal shouted with a sharp nod, "I'LL STAY HERE AND WATCH!" The ninja quickly give a chase after the wild goblins and he manage to get every single one within thirty minutes, thank to his kage bunshins, then the blonde quickly run back to the bridge. When he reach the bridge, he suddenly dive for cover when a gyre suddenly flew out from the portal, destroying the bridge in process. "Wha…?" Naruto get closer to the gyre with his weapons drawn until he see the team come out of the gyre and Jim roll onto his back. "Seriously?" He deadpanned to himself, "Why do I keep missing out on the good stuffs?" At least he wiped these goblins out.

"Whew!" Jim exhaled before he laugh happily at the sight over him.

"Hi." Draal greeted Zelda as she limped out and he offer her his arm, which she take, then he help her to the rock so she can take a seat. Her eyes snapped widened when she saw her son approaching the team.

"I know one thing for certain." Blinky hugged Toby tighter with heavy pant, "I hope to never see the likes of that bridge ever again." They hear Aaarrrgghh shattered a large piece of bridge to pebbles with a hard punch.

"Awesome sauce!" Toby cheered as the team get in a group hug.

"Master Jim!" The six-eyes troll smiled.

"Jim!" The chubby teenager grinned as Draal patted the brute's shoulder happily, "You're home!"

"It's so, so good to see you guys!" Jim laughed, "You…"

"Oh, I want to ask something…" Naruto raised his eyebrow as he jabbed his thumb to his mother, "Why did my kaa-san come out from Darklands?" There was a prolong pause until…

"You know?!" Zelda widened her eyes before she sharply turn to the trollhunter team with a hiss, "Did you tell him?!"

"No, no, no!" The trollhunter waved his hands with headshake before he turn to his teammates, "Did you?" They also shake their heads before he turn back to Naruto, "Who told you?"

"No one." The ninja scratched his head, "I know my kaa-san's a changeling since I was…" He tried to recall something, "Six or seven?"

"HOW?!" The purple changeling hissed in shock.

"Well, I woke up late at night because I want to get water and on the way to kitchen, I saw you transformed outside in backyard before you went somewhere away." Naruto rubbed his chin with a hum, "Then I went back to my bed with glass of water."

"…T-T-Then why don't you say anything?" Zelda asked bewilderedly.

"I thought you know that I know?" The ninja raised his eyebrow again, "I mean, you sometime passed out in this form in your bed when I came home from school or when I have a nightmare and went to sleep with you at night." Everyone stare at him bewilderedly, "I mean, where do I get my power and fighting skill from?"

'Okay, he don't know he's adopted so that's good thing.' The changeling released her breath, "…Come here." She held her arms out to her son and he get in her arms as they hug each other, "I miss you so much, my baby boy."

"Same here, kaa-san." Naruto squeezed his hug before he look up to her, "So…Why were you in Darklands?"

"I'll tell you later." Zelda replied.

"…Naruto's mother is this woman?" Draal lowered his head to whisper to the teenagers with widened eyes and their response was a nod. "Oh."

"Thank you, little Gynt." The changeling looked to the trollhunter, "I have to hand it to you, you were right."

"About what?" Jim asked.

"Hope." Zelda said, "Friends." She stroked her son's hair, "Family."

"I believe this belongs to you, Master Jim." Blinky gave Jim the amulet and it flew onto his chest, turning Jim's black-and-red armor back to normal.

"Feels good to have this back." Jim sighed happily and the six-eyes troll chuckled softly before the trollhunter climb up on a large boulder to soak everything in.

"I missed you." Claire joined him with a hug before they share a tender kiss on lips.

"Whoa." Toby gasped.

"Mm-mm." Aaarrrgghh grunted as he covered the chubby teenager's eyes, "Private." He covered his own eyes, only to peek through his fingers.

"Ugh!" Draal shivered, "A savage custom."

"Absolutely." Zelda agreed, covering her son's eyes. Her son is not ready for this kind of thing.

"I missed you too." The trollhunter whispered.

"You've also missed a few showers." The girl with blue streak smirked.

"Let's get rid of this bridge once and for all." Blinky carried a piece of bridge.

"Ha!" Toby laughed, "Just wait until Trollmarket gets a load of Jim and Aaarrrgghh!" He gasped, "Oh, no! The Tribunal! They're gonna go crazy town banana pants when they find out what we've been up to!"

"Frankly, who cares?" Blinky waved it off, "We have our Trollhunter back."

---

Zelda inhale deeply when she enter her house in her human form with her son behind her, "I miss this feeling."

"What kind of feeling?" Naruto asked.

"Security, safe…" She looked around before she turn to him, "Home." She hug her son tightly with a relived sigh as she rest her head on top of her son's head before she slowly creak her eye open, "…There's a pixie in living room…" The said creature was carrying few cherries by stems.

"Hi!" Pixie greeted them cheerily, "How did it go?"

"It went great!" The teenager grinned at her, "We got everyone back safety and sound." He turned to his bewildered mother, "She's my familiar."

"…We are going to talk about it later." Zelda exhaled heavily and tiredly as she realized that she have missed out on a lot of things during her time in Darklands, "I'm going to my bed and take a very, very long sleep."

"Ok, kaa-san." Naruto gave her one more hug, "Welcome home, I'm glad you're back."

"Me too, Naruto, me too." She kissed her son's forehead before she walk upstairs to her bedroom and the blonde turn to the pixie.

"Midnight snacks?" He gestured to the cherries.

"Midnight snacks!" Pixie chirped, "Oh, and you have to charge your phone. It died in middle of movie."

"Will do." Naruto also head up to his room with his familiar in tow, chuckling lightly.

---

"Have you talked to him about it?" Toby whispered to Claire and Naruto as they rode their bikes the next day behind Jim, who was soaking everything in.

"No, it has to come from you." Claire glanced to him sideway, "Why haven't you talked to him yet?"

"I believe I did say 'not it'." Naruto raised his hands up.

"He just got out of the Darklands." Toby said, "He needs time to recover."

"Whoo!" Jim pulled a wheelie with his hands up in air, "Check this ou…" He nearly crash.

"Seems fine to me." The girl with blue streak commented.

"Come on, slowpokes, let's take the old shortcut!" The trollhunter spun his bike around to grin at them and the teenagers brake to stop.

"Well, uh, since you've been gone, Claire found a faster way." The chubby teenager said.

"Psssh!" Jim raised his eyebrow, "Come on. Faster than the canals?" The teenagers smirk at each other.

---

"Whoo-hoo!" The brunette said as they jumped through the portal near school, "You're right. You have gotten good at that." He hear the school bell rung, "Good 'ol Arcadia Oaks High! I wonder what we'll learn today."

"He's clearly not fine." Toby gasped in horror, "Who in their right mind looks forward to school?"

"Nerds, jocks…" Naruto answered, "Oh, and people who have crushes on each other. Am I right, T.P.?" The chubby teenager stuttered, "You and Darci, how it's going?"

"Yeah, how's it going?" Claire joined the tease.

"L-Let's go!" The chubby teenager peddled away and the teenagers laughed together as they join the best friends to put their bikes away then head inside the school.

"I mean, have you seen how tight Hank's jeans are?" Mary gushed to her friend before she gasp when Jim walk in and the student body start to cheer for him.

"What the...?" Jim looked around bewilderedly and in pure confusion.

"Jim!" Eli raced up to hug him, "You're back! Oh! You're alive!"

"Back?" The brunette turned his head to his friends with widened eyes, "They know?"

"They know you're the first person to be officially cured from the incurable Jim Lake Disease." Toby spoke.

"Yeah." Naruto whispered to himself, "I still don't know how we still get away with this one." It earn him a quick elbow from Claire.

"Oh." Jim uttered.

"Jim, you're a walking medical mystery." Claire said

"What?" A random boy grinned with headshake.

"Uh…" The brunette awkwardly patted Eli's back.

"Yep, could still be contagious." The chubby teenager separated them, "Move along, Eli."

"Bye, Jim!" The outcast waved to Jim as he wiped hands on Toby's sweater to his shock before he ran off to the restroom, "Gonna wash my hands now."

"T.P. covered for you while you were gone, but…" The girl with blue streak chuckled.

"T.P.?" Jim blinked.

"Oh, duh!" Claire gestured to the frowning chubby teenager as Naruto snickered, "Toby Pie. Guess you missed that one, too."

"Mm…" Toby grunted as he opened his backpack, "You missed a lot, dude! Naruto and I had to pretend to be you. I had to eat your mom's spaghetti carbonara. More like cardboard-nara. You owe us!" He gave his best friend the textbooks back, "You also missed two weeks of homework. Don't hate us."

"I honestly think her spaghetti carbonara was pretty good." Naruto looked at him.

"Dude…" The chubby teenager gave him a funny look, "I almost broke my teeth eating it! And it have no taste!"

"Everything have taste when you put salt and ketchup on it." The blonde shrugged his shoulders.

"You are so weird, you know that?" Toby muttered and the blonde just shrug his shoulders again.

"Hate you?" The brunette hugged his books to his friends' horror, "Are you kidding? I love homework! Hm, let's see. I have Spanish, social studies…" He groaned at the last book, "Ugh, algebra!"

"Look who's back!" Steve shoulder-tackled him then shaking him by shoulders, "Did I hear you say you love homework? There's something fishy going on in this lake."

"I even missed you." Jim gave him a side-hug to the bully's confusion, "The 'ol Palchuck."

"What?" The bully looked at him funnily.

"I'm the most popular, but you didn't hear that from me." Darci said to her friend on the other side as Toby turned to her, "Fever of 104! I mean, do germs not know how fabulous I am?"

"Ugh!" Steve backed away from Jim, "Get your germs off me!"

"Uh, I'll let you two catch up." The chubby teenager jogged away, "It's time for some unfinished business."

"Want to bet he'll be too forward enough that Darci tell him to take it slow?" Naruto turned to Claire.

"I'm not going to bet against you, not after you won so many things from guys that betted with you." Claire rolled her eyes, she still can't believe Naruto's unnatural luck and she lost counts of his wins. "And beside, I already told you that the other day."

"Can't blame me for trying." The blonde shrugged his shoulders, "One day I will get a chance of using your sweet staff once."

"No." She deadpanned, "Knowing you, you'll perhaps take us somewhere far away and cause some chaos or go to Gatto and beat his goons up."

"Actually, I want to go back to Japan and pig out on ramen with your guys' money." Naruto said.

"…Naruto, I don't think we can pay it with US currency." Claire said and the bell rang.

"Things are all back to the way they were." Jim walked up to the sobbing chubby teenager with his friends, "Ha! It's like I never left!"

"Yep, back to square one." Toby moaned sadly, "How great for us."

---

"Home is the same, school is the same, Trollmarket is the same." Jim walked through the Trollmarket with his friends until he noticed a Kubera troll, "Except for that guy. What's that guy doing here?"

"Stinking, horrible traitor!" Blinky's voice shouted in a distance and the teenagers quickly ran into his room. "Another one." The six-eyes troll threw some books into the fire, "Ugh! Away with you!"

"Blinky?" Toby gasped with couple teenagers.

"What are you doing?" Claire cried.

"You love your books!" The chubby teenager shouted, "This isn't like you!"

"Alright!" Naruto ran over to help the six-eyes troll as he tossed some books into the fire with mad laughter.

"Not my books!" Blinky gave the blonde few more books so he can throw them in, "I'm destroying anything that bear my traitorous brother's name. Full of lies! My Gumm-Gumm brother cannot be trusted and neither can these!"

"Blink!" The trollhunter quickly take the books out of the fire, "But they've been useful before, so they can be useful again!"

"Naruto, stop helping Blinky!" Claire narrowed her eyes at the said teenager stoically.

"Can I just burn one more book, please?" The blonde held a thick book over the roaring fire.

"Naruto."

"Awww…"

"Aren't you gonna stop him, wingman?" Toby looked to the brute troll but the giant just sniffled him, "Uh, what's with Aaarrrgghh?"

"Leave him." The six-eyes troll kept tossing few more books in, "Ever since he's returned from death, his sense of smell has been curiously heightened. He's been sniffing everything for hours."

"Mm…" Aaarrrgghh inhaled, "You had Italian. Carbonara."

"Yeah, like, three days ago." The chubby teenager looked impressed.

"Meh, needed more garlic." The brute troll grunted before they turned their heads to see Jim putting the fire out with bucket of water, "Talk to Jim yet?"

"He says he hasn't found the right time." Claire crossed her arms.

"It's not just me, right?" Toby defended, "Ever since he got back, he's been acting super weird."

"Pfft, he's still same Jim." Naruto waved it off, "Just too happy, I guess."

"Hey, guys, you know what we need?" Jim turned to his team, "A calling! I'm sure there's been tons of stuff piling up for us to take care of now that I'm back. Uh, a cursed box? Or a loose monster troll, huh?"

"Actually, Claire, Naruto and I kinda took care of that stuff while you were gone." The chubby teenager said.

"Mostly me and my clones." The blonde said, "And boy! Bagdwella is so fucking lazy."

"Oh, okay." The trollhunter blinked, "What about some training? It'd be good for us to get back in the Forge and... You know?"

"Um, it's in repair because Naruto kinda went crazy with his jutsu and new moves." Toby said to the gaped trollhunter.

"Not my fault that everything is old as fuck." Naruto held his hands up.

"Dude, you somehow create a dragon head from earth and have it fired boulders at these swinging blades!" The chubby teenager said, "You shattered them!"

"And nearly decapitate few Kubera trolls in process." Claire added.

"Pfft, these jerks deserve it." The blonde crossed his arms.

"I smell Usurna." Aaarrrgghh spoke up.

"Oh, dear." Blinky sharply turned around to see two Kubera guards entered before Usurna walk in.

"You…" Vendel got stuck when his new staff latched on the top of doorway,"Oh!" He yank it free with a grunt.

"So… it's true." Usurna looked at Jim, "The human Trollhunter has returned from his frolic in the Darklands."

"The human Trollhunter humbly apologizes and throws himself at the mercy of the Troll Tribunal." The six-eyes troll spoke politely.

"Tribunal?" Jim raised his eyebrow, received a nudge from the six-eyes troll.

"The Tribunal has already voted on your fate." The queen narrowed her eyes.

"And, by the barest of margins, has ruled to drop all charges, so long as you cooperate from this moment forth." The elder said and the team sighed in relief.

"Your rash choice to save once child put all of Trollmarket at risk." Usurna frowned, "If any evil had been unleashed unto this world, the blood would have been on your hands." She walked to the exit before she turned to the team, "Are you sure nothing followed you on your return?"

"Draal never left his post guarding the bridge." Blinky replied before he glance to the team, who all nodded at same time.

"Hmm." The queen hummed as she leave with her guards, "Very well, then."

"Are the Krubera really staying permanently?" The six-eyes troll asked the elder.

"Usurna feels their presence is required in light of my questionable judgement." Vendel muttered before his staff get stuck on a hanging crystal lamp, "Speaking of such, have you made any progress in tracking down the culprit who stole my staff?"

"We will not rest until we bring them to justice." Blinky said with shifty eyes.

"Yes, of course. I'm sure whoever took it had good reason and will return it as soon as possible." Vendel finally free his staff, "I've put my neck out far enough for you ungrateful fools. Any further, and she'll be sure to lop my head right off."

"Thank you, Vendel." Jim smiled sheepishly, "It's good to see you, too."

"Yes, well, if you want to thank me, go look into the goblin mess that one of our trolls discovered on a salvage run." The elder said.

"Goblin mess?" Toby blinked.

"There appears to be some droppings in a dumpster behind the Arcadia Cinema." Vendel replied.

"Goblins?" Claire said, "We haven't seen any of those in months. Not after Naruto's massacre."

"Oh, my gosh!" Jim grinned, "Is this a call? Like, a good ol' trollhunting mission?" He paused before he turn to her, "Naruto's what?"

"Oh, I found a large nest of goblins few days after you went into Darklands." Naruto said, "So I took care of it."

"…So much blood…" Toby shivered, "All over us…And why in holy did you use Corncob prank on this poor goblin?!"

"He was badmouthing my kaa-san." The blonde huffed with crossed arms before he paused, "…I think? It's so hard to understand what they are saying."

"Just go." Vendel deadpanned with a huff, his staff got hooked up in his horn.

---

"All right, coast is clear." Jim scanned the surrounding at night near Arcadia Cinema in alleyway, "Nothing like a simple mission to get our mojo back, huh?"

"Did you just say mojo?" Claire gave him a strange look as the team look around.

"Um..." The trollhunter looked away sheepishly.

"Huh, smell poop." Aaarrrgghh looked up behind the dumpster.

"Ew!" The girl with blue streak gagged as the brute took something from the trash then ate it, "Double ew."

"Aaarrrgghh, what is it?" Blinky asked.

"Mm, cat!" The giant troll tasted some items before he smell something with narrowed eyes, "No. Blood goblin."

"It cannot be." The six-eyes troll gasped with widened eyes.

"Blood goblins?" Toby furrowed his brows, "Are those the green ones or the blue ones?"

"Contrary to their name, blood goblins are white." Blinky replied.

"But they can't be here!" Claire said, "The only place you can find white goblins is…"

"The Darklands." Jim finished.

"No, wait!" The chubby teenager looked at them, "We destroyed the bridge!"

"And I killed these goblins that came out!" Naruto said as the trollhunter sat on the crate with heavy sigh, "There shouldn't be any survivors."

"Well, Draal left his post to save us." She said before her eyes snapped widened, "You don't think, in that time…"

"If they got out, what if Gunmar got…" The trollhunter looked up alertly.

"No. No, no." Blinky waved his hands, "We would know if he got out. Death would be on every doorstep, Arcadia turned to ash. We would know. These are just a few goblins. A few ferocious, insatiable, bloodthirsty goblins." Aaarrrgghh burped behind him.

"Jim, there's something we've been meaning to ask you." Toby said.

"Toby." Claire held his arm before she turned to Jim, "If these little poopers are in Arcadia, how do we find them?"

"We don't find them, they find us." Jim replied, "Once they're on your scent, you can't shake 'em. They're gonna be after me."

"But you weren't the only one in there." The chubby teenager pointed out. "Nomura was with you."

"Didn't Nomura skipped town as soon as we got out." Claire asked.

"No, kaa-san's at home." The blonde corrected her, "We don't have to worry about her because she can take care of herself."

"Mm, you do have a point there." She muttered.

"Well, then why aren't they here?" Toby asked.

"Because someone else was in there, too." Jim realized and the team suddenly remembered that Chompsky had been in Darklands too.

---

"Shh!" Toby shushed the teenagers as they sneak into his house from the backdoor in kitchen and he notice his grandma. "Nana!"

"Oh, Toby Pie!" Nana turned to him with plates as the trolls sneak past the window, "I thought you kids were upstairs playing. There was an awful lot of noise."

"Uh…" The chubby teenager blinked, "The goblins are here? Uh, I mean…" He chuckled nervously, "I must have left my music on."

"Goblins Are Here?" The elder woman turned around with a headshake, "Oh, that's a horrible band name. I don't understand what you kids listen to these days." She never noticed that the teenager went up to her grandson's room.

"Chompsky?" Jim called out as they looked at some mess in Toby's room.

"No, not Chompsky!" Toby quickly looked inside the dollhouse until he see Jim picking a red hat up, "Chompsky?"

"Poor gnome." Aaarrrgghh shook his head softly.

"It was supposed to be a simple mission." The sighing trollhunter gave the hat to his best friend.

"There's no such thing as a simple mission." Claire sighed heavy and Jim sit down.

"The little guy survives the Darklands, then goes out like this?" Toby sniffled, "Nothing's been right since..." He looked down, "Since..."

"Huh?" Jim turned to him.

"Why did you go into the Darklands without us?" The chubby teenager asked angrily.

"Wait, what?" The trollhunter blinked rapidly.

"We found the amulet together, we trained together, we killed Angor Rot together!" Toby cried, "And then you just left us."

"Wait, is this how you all feel?" Jim stood up.

"You promised we'd get my brother, together." Claire frowned with crossed arms.

"You promised me an ass-kicking fight." Naruto grunted, "And you know what? I did nothing jackshit! All goblins and no chance for me to use my jutsu."

"After everything we'd been through, you said it was Trollhunters, not Trollhunter." Blinky added.

"Yeah." Aaarrrgghh grunted.

"Gunmar wanted revenge for killing his son." The trollhunter explained himself, "The amulet chose me to protect you."

"We protect each other!" She said firmly.

"When I saw Aaarrrgghh die…" Jim sighed, "I-I couldn't bear losing any more of you. I just wish everything could go back to the way things were, when everything was... normal. Yeah, the Darklands was a failure. I went in alone so you wouldn't have to. But classic Jim, you guys have to rescue me anyway. Some hero I am."

"The amulet made you a trollhunter." Blinky approached him from behind with gnome hat in one of his hands, "You made yourself a hero."

"But Chompsky didn't deserve this. He may have been small, but he had a big..." The trollhunter cupped the hat in his hands before Aaarrrgghh smelled the hat, "You mind? I was trying to give a eulogy."

"By Gorgus, he's picked up their scent!" The six-eyes troll gasped.

"The goblins?" Claire asked.

"Gnome." Aaarrrgghh replied.

"Chompsky's alive?" Toby squealed, "What are we waiting for? Let's go find him!"

"And kill some goblins while we're at it." Naruto smirked before he pause as the team leave the house, "Am I a goblin slayer?"

"What?" She raised her eyebrow at him oddly.

"Ah, nothing." The blonde waved it off, "Just something from a manga I picked up a while ago…Which I barely get past the first volume before kaa-san took it away and threat to ground me for weeks…And I agree with her right there."

"Ooookay…" Claire muttered, "Toby's right, you are so weird."

"Take one to know one." Naruto smirked.

---

The team follow Aaarrrgghh as he track the scent down to a warehouse then stopped. "They're inside." Jim whispered as they go up to the door and Toby jiggle it quietly, it was locked. The giant step up, attempting to pry the metal grate off the top.

"Hush!" Blinky stopped him with a whisper, "We must be silent, lest we alert them."

"Oh." Aaarrrgghh grunted quietly.

"Um." Claire gestured to her shadow staff after the team noticed that Jim was trying to climb up the wall.

"Let me guess." The trollhunter sighed flatly, "Shortcut?" The smirking girl summon a portal and the team hopped through into the warehouse. They quietly sneak through the building and the chubby teenager peek inside a random crate out of curiosity.

"We're in a fireworks warehouse?" Toby beamed, "So cool!" He turned his head with a grin before he drop it as he stare at Naruto blatantly stealing the fireworks.

"What?" Naruto kept taking the fireworks into his backpack that he bought with him, "I have a new idea for my pranks and I need a lot of firework. A lot of goodies!"

"I'm actually afraid of you now." The chubby teenager said, "Have you ever consider that you must be pyro?"

"What give you this idea?" The blonde said.

"Toby, Naruto, focus." Claire hissed to them, "We're here to save Chompsky. And, Naruto, put them back!"

"Make me!" Naruto stick his tongue out to her.

"You're right." Toby closed the crate quietly, "But we're coming back here later."

"Oh yeah, I want to get my hand on a biggest firework." The blonde snickered wickedly and the team start moving again until they reach a certain area as two goblins turning Chompsky around on a pole over the fire. The goblins lick their mouths with smacks and one of them teased the gnome by making kissy face at a female action figure.

"Huh." Jim whispered, "Looks like there's two of 'em. I'll flank right, you take left."

"There should be more, shouldn't there?" Toby asked before a goblin suddenly jumped on six-eyes troll's head from the stacking crates.

"Off me, you fowl beast!" Blinky stumbled out with a scream, catching the other goblins' attention and they lunge at the team.

"For the doom of Gunmar…" The trollhunter pulled his amulet out.

"Wrong one!" Toby wrestled with his warhammer, "Ahh!" Near him, couple goblins attempted to jump on the ninja but he swat them away like flies then pull his daggers out.

"Oops, little rusty." Jim apologized, "For the glory of Merlin, Daylight is mine to command!"

"Come here, you two!" Naruto leaped at the goblins, "I'm gonna take my frustrations out on you!" The goblins screamed for their short lives.

"Aah!" Claire yelped out as a goblin tried to snatch the staff from her hand, only to jump up in air when the trollhunter shot a blue energy toward the creature.

"Foul, vile thing!" Blinky smacked the goblin on his face with a yelp as the trollhunter race toward the gnome.

"Oh, no." Jim stopped his blade when a goblin pick the pole up with whimpering gnome, brandished it around like a sword. The goblin accidently send a ember flying from makeshift campfire into a random crate, setting it on fire.

"Oh, boy!" Toby screamed, "Fireworks fire! Do we put it out? Or do we see what happens? Do we put it out? Do we put it out? Or should we see what happens? Uh…"

"Oh, hm…" Aaarrrgghh blew hard to see if he can put the fire out but it only make it spread farther, "See what happens."

"Oh!" The chubby teenager threw a firework on it as it went off, "Cool! Terrible, but cool."

"Is that what they call irony?" Naruto punted a screaming goblin into the fire to watch it burn.

"Seriously, you must have some issues." Toby witness his action with a deadpan staring.

"Stand back!" Claire held the fire extinguisher but it only hissed with a small puff of smoke, "Ugh! Useless!" She used it to clubbed a leaping gobin into a crate, "Or not."

"Behold!" Toby laughed on top of the crate as the fireworks went off, "Our dreams and nightmares are uniting!" Suddenly, a goblin jumped on his head and he start to panicking. "Get it off! Get it off!"

"I got him!" Naruto untied the gnome after the pole slip out of the goblin's grip into a burning crate.

"Poor little guy." Claire said as the gnome ran to grab the female action figure in bride carry, "You must be terrified."

"Oh." Chomsky kissed it, "Ow! Hot! Let's go."

"Get it off!" The chubby teenager smacked the creature, "Get it off! Ahh! Get it off!" The brute troll grabbed it then smacking it around before Toby finished it off with a smash of his warhammer, splattering goblin's blood over his sweater. "Ew! It died on me."

"Meh, just another Thursday." Naruto shrugged, not bothered about the blood of goblins all over his clothing.

"Circle of life." Aaarrrgghh nodded.

"We gotta get outta here!" The girl with blue streak hollered.

"Master Jim, quickly!" Blinky called out to the said teenager as he faced the goblin , "We saved the gnome! We must get out of here!" They were about to get him until the burning crates toppled over, blocking the path and their sights.

"Jim?" Claire shouted, "Jim! Where are you?"

"Master Jim!" Blinky hollered before the trollhunter ran toward them with coughs.

"Come on!" Jim shouted and the girl conjure portal on floor.

"Aha!" Blinky hopped inside with the rest of the team "Avant!" The portal take them outside far away from the burning warehouse.

"Fireworks." The girl with blue streak watch the fireworks, "So much nicer from a distance, huh?"

"Yeah." Naruto held a very large firework tube, nearly outsize him, and the girl whip her head to him with rapid blinks.

"N-N-Naruto, where the hell did you get this thing?!" Claire stuttered, "I swear you don't have it with you!"

"I grabbed it at the last minute." The smirking ninja stroked it lovely as if it's his own child, "That will be the grand prank I'll ever pull." He snickered wickedly.

"Again, you have issues." Toby stared at him bewilderedly with some concern.

"Hey." Jim called to his team as they turned to see Chompsky proposing to the action figure with ring. The happy gnome slip the ring on its leg then kiss the toy with passion.

"I'm not sure it's official, but it's sweet." Blinky clasped his hands as everyone clapped.

"Looks like some good came out of the Darklands, after all." The trollhunter smiled.

"Yeah, you dingus!" Claire elbowed him with a smile, "My brother is back because of you. Some great came out of it. We don't wanna go back and change that."

"That's true." Jim turned to the boys, "We okay, Naruto, T.P.?"

"Yeah, you still owe me one." Naruto shrugged his shoulders.

"Whoo!" Toby nodded, "We awesome-sauce." His expression become deadpan, "Although, I hate that T.P.'s catching on."

"So, we shall not return to the past, but shall we return to Trollmarket?" The six-eyes troll looked down at the dancing gnome with toy, "I feel uncomfortable feeding the gnome's delusions."

"Yeah, this is getting real awkward." The chubby teenager admitted.

"Yeah." Aaarrrgghh agreed.

"Um, not really." The ninja looked to them, "I mean, there's a guy in my country that married a video game character and I suspect he's not the only one."

"Oh, yeah!" Jim turned to Claire, "You know a shortcut."

"Actually, let's walk this time. It's a nice night." She put her arm around the brunette's arm as the team walk away from the firework show.

---

Jim walks out of the Hero's Forge the next day, rolling his sore shoulder before he notice the teenagers approached him. "Hey, Jim." Claire greeted, "How was training?"

"Oh, you know." Jim replied, "Stone, magic, trolls..."

"You wouldn't by chance want to come to my parents' barbacoa?" Claire cleared her throat nervously.

"Barbecue?" The trollhunter smiled, "Like, hot dogs? Sure."

"My mom throws this neighborhood thing with the teachers union to drum up support for her re-election." She sighed, "It's such a drag. It's cool if you don't wanna. NotEnrique will be gone. It'll just be me there. But…"

"I said I'd love to." Jim put his hands on her shoulders.

"You'll do it?" Claire squealed with a small hop as she gave him a kiss on cheek before she jog off after gave Naruto a high-five, "Thank you so much! It starts at noon. I'll tell them you're coming. Don't be late."

"Aw, snap, Jimbo." Toby appeared at the brunette's side as the trollhunter looked at her dreamily, "Do you know what this means? You're officially meeting the parents. You're being vetted."

"Vetted?" The brunette blinked as the boys walked out into the Trollmarket.

"Answer me this…" The chubby teenager asked, "Has she ever called you her boyfriend?"

"Uh, not that I can remember." Jim glanced over his shoulder.

"I think she did once." Naruto rubbed his chin, "Did she?"

"That's because her parents hate you, ding-a-ling. Remember?" Toby looked to his best friend.

"I try to forget." Jim groaned.

"And now, you have a second chance to make a first impression." The chubby teenager grinned, "'Cause if you win her parents over…"

"I can be her boyfriend." The trollhunter perked up.

"Think of it this way, screw this up, and her parents will never let you see her again." Toby grinned and Naruto was about to say something before Jim's amulet lit up, launching the trollhunter tumbling into a barrel without any warning. "Holy schnikies! What was that?"

"I don't know." Jim grunted out as Naruto helped him out, "The Amulet's been on the fritz all morning."

"Take it off." The chubby teenager eyed the amulet worriedly, "It's glowing again. You better put that bad boy away." The trollhunter took his amulet off, "Well, I gotta train. Catch you on the flip side." He looked to Naruto, "You coming?"

"Nah, I'm taking today off." Naruto shook his head, "I promise kaa-san I'll spend a day with her, unwinding and all. She need it.

"Gotcha." Toby nodded, "Bye." He walked away.

"See you later." The blonde waved to Jim before he left.

---

'How in the world did kaa-san find a channel that show boardwalk shows?' Naruto watched the show on television with his mother as they snuggled up in their own comfort blankets with their own bowl of ramen and Pixie was eating a cherry on table. 'And who the fuck decide to make a boardwalk show channel?!'

"It's not better than seeing it in person but I'll take it." Zelda sighed blissfully, "I really miss that."

"Yeah." He chuckled lightly, "After that, can we rent a movie?"

"No, my favorite play is coming on next." The changeling smirked at her groaning son, "And I don't care if we have seen it 'five hundred' time, we're watching it."

"Kaaaaaa-san." Naruto whined before he feel his phone vibrate and he check it to see a text but it was all gibberish. He shrugs his shoulder and put it back.

"Who was it?" Zelda asked her son curiously.

"Jim, but I think it's a butt dial." He replied.

"…Butt dial's still a thing?" She raised her eyebrow at him before she shrug her shoulders, "Ah, whatever. The best part is coming up."

"I find Macbeth to be so confusing." Pixie munched on her cherry, "And boring. Where's the action? I wanna see some pow and bam!"

"Hush, you gnat." Zelda shushed the little creature. Little did Naruto know is that Jim was dealing with his own emotions…Literally in form of clones.

---

"Here it is." Lawrence patted a flour bag as the class listen to him, "For the next twenty-four hours, this is your baby." He placed each bags on desks.

"Are we gonna learn how babies are made?" Mary gasped excitingly.

"At the flour mill, apparently." The coach scoffed, "Your assignment is simple. You will name it. You will care for it. You will never let it out of your sight. Look who you are seated beside. That is your partner. If it comes back in one piece, you pass. If it doesn't…You fail."

"Sweet!" Mary looked to Naruto, who was sitting beside her. "Look like we're partners." She leaned toward him with her chin on her fist.

"Yeah." Naruto chuckled lightly as he glanced at his other classmates, it turn out that Jim have paired up with Claire and Toby with Darci.

"Piece of cake." Toby chuckled.

"It's not cake!" Lawrence shouted, "Don't eat it, Domzalski!" The class laughed, "So you cheaters don't turn in a fake, personalize your babies to begin the joy of parenting."

"What do you want to put on?" The blonde asked his partner as he take the colored markers out.

"She should have freckles." The black-haired girl moved the desk closer to his desk.

"She?" Naruto blinked as she drew freckles on the sack.

"Yeah, our baby is a girl." Mary said, "That okay with you?"

"Yeah." He shrugged his shoulders before Steve entered hurriedly with nervous expression and on the way to his desk, the bully accidently bump into Toby with some stumble, causing the chubby teenager to stab his bag with marker.

"Oh." Toby stared at the sack with widened eyes and his gaze snap up to his girlfriend as she stared at him with dropped jaw.

"Sorry I'm, um…" Steve sat down in his desk, "Late, coach. Things got a little weird."

"It's about to get weirder." Lawrence crossed his arms, "You're raising a baby with Pepperjack."

"What?!" Both Steve and Eli gasped.

"Poor Eli." Naruto shook his head at the outcast's luck as he work on the sack with Mary, "How long do you think they'll last?"

"A hour at best." Mary replied before she notice Claire flirting with Jim then the black-haired girl turned to Darci with gag gesture playfully, "Blech!"

"And done." The blonde spin the sack around to her, it has a simple smiling face with freckles, rosy cheeks and plain 'long hair'. "What do you think?"

"Perfect!" She nodded approvingly.

---

"I think our baby looks good as a priate." Toby snapped a picture of Darci with their sack, they were sitting in a diner place with Claire, Naruto and Mary. He made some faces at the sack while Darci bounce it with a giggle.

"…Is that weird?" Naruto leaned closer to whisper to Mary and Claire.

"Ye…" Mary uttered before the waitress appeared.

"No outside food!" The waitress narrowed her eyes.

"This is our son, Sir Isaac Gluten!" The chubby teenager pulled his girlfriend up against his side and the waitress walked away with a scoff.

"…Should have say it's baby project." The black-haired girl rolled her eyes.

"Did you hear?" Darci leaned forward, "Logan and Tammy already killed theirs."

"No!" Mary gasped.

"They gave Dwight D. Eisenflour a bath, and he turned into mush." The black girl rubbed her sack.

"That's horrible!" Claire shook her head, "Why didn't I think of that name?"

"…Why is name pun so important?" The blonde whispered to his partner, "I mean, our sack's name is Rio. Simple."

"Not everyone are lazy like us." Mary whispered back.

"You and Jim are gonna breeze this." Darci said, "You're already the perfect couple." They noticed that Jim have pulled up on his scooter then walk to the door with a wave before he race back to grab the sack. That make Claire concern.

"Ooh!" Jim took the cup from Claire as he plop the sack on table, "Milkshakes."

"Jim!" The girl with colorful hairclips hissed, "Are you crazy? You let her ride on that without a helmet?"

"Her?" The brunette picked the sack up to look over it, "I think you mean him. I've been calling him Jimmy Lake, Jr. Jr. Great ring to it."

"Her name is Petunia." Claire snatched the sack from him, "Because she's a flour. Get it? Like flower?"

"Perfect couple, huh?" Naruto whispered to the black girl as Toby shook his head at them disappointingly.

"Okay, maybe it's not the best name." The girl with blue streak muttered.

"Do you mind if we take Sir Isaac, Petunia and Rio to a rock show tonight?" Toby turned to his girlfriend.

"A rock concert?" Darci crossed her arms, "Is that really appropriate?"

"No, a rock show at the museum." The chubby teenager corrected her, "It's an exhibit of gems and minerals." He picked his backpack up, "As Jim knows, I've had my own collection since I was eight, and I'm hoping to finally get it appraised by the experts." He take a smooth shiny rock, "Look, little guy, here's anthracite, obsidian, and, oh, this is from Bular…" Jim slurp his straw hard enough to make it squeak, "Um…I mean, Bular-ium-ite." He put his backpack away, "Yeah, that is a rock."

"We are not taking our kid to a stupid rock show." Mary turned to her partner, "If you're going tonight, I'm watching her and take a lot of selfies."

"Sure." Naruto shrugged his shoulders.

"Well, a rock show sounds kinda cool." The black girl muttered, "Sounds fun." She answered her phone, "Shoot. Of course. The stupid hacky-sack team made it to semi-finals. I gotta mascot the match tonight."

"That's okay." Toby picked the sack up, "I can watch him." He yelp out as he trip over his backpack and threw the sack up in air before it land on him to Darci's mixed of horror and relief. "Got him!"

"Yeah, no." Darci get out of the booth, "Maybe I can fit him into my mole suit."

"I promise, nothing bad is going to happen to our little one." The chubby teenager held his right hand up.

"Toby, I need to pass." The black girl pleaded.

"Don't worry." Toby replied, "I will not let you and Sir Isaac down." Darci nervously glance at her friends, who gave her a shrug.

"How long do you think they'll last for?" Mary whispered to her partner.

"Who know?" The blonde shrugged his shoulders.

---

"It's okay." Jim said to Claire as they walked with Toby and Naruto, the former pulling a red wagon with two sacks inside. "Doesn't mean we're gonna fail as flour parents."

"Isn't it kind of crazy to think…" Claire picked a rock up from sidewalk, "We might be parents someday?" It earn a flabbergasted look from her boyfriend, "Not like that. I'm just saying, have you ever thought about what it'd be like, raising a teenager? All I know is, I won't be like mine. My mom can't even remember my birthday without checking her schedule first." She threw the rock with a frustrating grunt.

"Well, closest thing to a dad I ever had turned out to be a changeling." The brunette said, "And then he tired to kill me."

"What about Blinky?" Naruto asked behind them, "I mean, you two give off a father-son vibe to me."

"Right." She agreed and the trollhunter blinked rapidly then open his mouth to say something…

"Comin' through!" Toby skated past them on the wagon and his friends chuckled at his antic.

"At least we have parents." Jim said softly after few moments.

"What about you, T.P.?" Claire asked as they caught up with the said teenager, "Do you remember your mom and dad?"

"Only the stuff Nana tells me." The chubby teenager took a selfies with his sack.

"You know, when Tobes was two, they won the state lottery." The brunette said.

"For real?" She looked surprised.

"How much was it at this time?" Naruto asked.

"They didn't win bazillions, but it was enough." Toby pulled the wagon again, "To celebrate, they went on a cruise together around the world." He paused, "There was a storm, and…" He sighed sadly, "They never made it back."

"I'm so sorry." Claire looked guilty as the blonde put his hand on the chubby teenager's shoulder with a little squeeze, "I didn't mean to…"

"It's okay." The chubby teenager replied, "My nana says they're always watching over me. Sometimes, when good things happen, I like to think it's because of them."

"Come on, I'll walk you home." Jim said and they never noticed that they just walked past a figure in coat and hat.

"You don't need to, Mr. Macho." She teased as it start to get dark.

"I'm doing it for Petunia." The smirking brunette replied before he wave to Toby, "See you tomorrow, Naruto, Tobes. Don't eat the baby."

"Don't bake yours." Toby joked back as he walked together with Naruto. They walk in silence for a bit until the chubby teenager speaks up, "Hey, I gotta ask. Who do you see as your dad figure?"

"Um, it's hard to say." Naruto hummed, "My kaa-san really don't date anyone in my whole life so there's not really a lot of people that I can seen as tou-san…The closest thing to it is Vendel but he's more like a gramps, you know?"

"Oh." The chubby teenager nodded slightly before they hear some snarling and they stop to look around.

"If it's goblins again, I'm seriously going to losing my mind." The blonde muttered to himself, he want to fight someone new that can take more than one hit. There was a growling.

"Claire? Jim?" Toby gulped frighteningly.

"Come on, T.P." Naruto walked again with the chubby teenager, "It look like they're not going to attack us. Must be some wild animal."

"Hopefully." The scared chubby teenager gulped and he glance over his shoulder to see a figure under the streetlight. The sight cause his voice to die in middle of his throat with high-pitched whimpering as he tried to get Naruto's attention few times with grabbing hand. After a minute, he pull his warhammer out with a battle cry and Naruto turn around to see nothing but empty space then he look at the chubby teenager with a raised eyebrow.

"What's the matter?" The blonde asked.

"Um…" Toby was about to say something as he turned around to face the blonde before he see the figure behind him and the chubby teenager suddenly shriek loudly.

"Wha?" Naruto jumped by his sudden scream then turn around to see…Some kind of blob person? Before he can react, the creature suddenly shove him aside and Toby attempt to swing his hammer at it but it slither down right behind him, grabbing his backpack. At same time, Jim and Claire appeared.

"I'll grab him!" Claire quickly rescue the chubby teenager.

"What are you?" Jim demanded and the creature turn around. "Oh, man, you are ugly!" The creature turned to charge at the chubby teenager again, only to receive a rasengan to face and its head splatter apart.

"That's it?!" Naruto canceled his technique with a groan, only to blink when the creature reform its head. "Oh, sweet!"

"NOT SWEET!" Toby yelped and the trollhunter sliced the creature's hand off, only to have it return to its original place.

"Oh, boy." The trollhunter muttered.

"Get out of the way, I'm gonna bust a jutsu!" Naruto flashed through handseals as the creature swiftly move to grab Toby's backpack then dive inside to eat something.

"Wait!" Claire stopped the ninja, "It wasn't trying to hurt T.P. It only wanted what's in your bag."

"…No kill?" The blonde halt his handseals with a groan, he was so close to test his water jutsu out on it.

"My rock collection?" Toby hugged his sack with confusing expression.

"What is that thing?" Jim asked.

"Blob-man?" Naruto shrugged, "…Or Blob-woman?"

"Something that doesn't belong in Arcadia." Claire replied.

"I dunno, what if it does." The ninja added.

"Let's get it to Trollmarket." She said, "Blinky will know what to do." Before she can summon a portal, a car drove toward them and the team quickly put their weapons away, armor in Jim's case, then move to sidewalk. As the car speed by them, the team can see Steve and Eli inside and they swear they look so shocked and frightened by something.

"…You think they saw anything?" The chubby teenager asked as soon as the van disappeared from their sight.

"No?" Naruto shrugged before they turn around to see that the creature have disappeared into the manhole, only to snatch the hat under the lid in a blink.

"Well, that happened." Jim muttered before he turned to his team, "Is everyone okay?"

"Besides our kids needing therapy, I think they'll live." Toby scoffed lightly.

"We need Blinky." Claire muttered.

---

The teenagers walk down the stairs into Jim's basement and they hear Blinky's voice. "Next time, I get to be the wizard." The trolls chuckled at him.

"Blinky!" Jim called out.

"Ah!" Blinky turned away from dragon and dungeon game, "Master Jim."

"Tobes was just attacked near his house by something!" The trollhunter spoke quickly.

"It was like sludge, but smart." Claire said.

"Smart sludge?" The six-eyes troll widened his eyes, "I'm concerned about this smart sludge, but more alarmed you're stockpiling flours. Are you expecting a shortage?"

"No, it's my baby!" Jim cradled the sack, "It's for a health class. About babies."

"Ah!" Blinky said, "So, that's why they always refer to it as a bun in the oven."

"No, this smart sludge, it was slime." The girl with blue streak said.

"More like blob." Naruto commented.

"Ate my rock collection." Toby added, causing the trolls to gasped.

"Uh-oh." Aaarrrgghh whispered.

"Happen to have troll remains amongst your collection?" Blinky questioned.

"Yeah, a piece of Bular." The chubby teenager confirmed, "Why?"

"Oh…" The six-eyes troll glanced to Draal.

"Uh…" Draal turned to the giant troll.

"Oooh." The brute looked at his fellow trolls.

"Stop with the looks!" Jim spoke, "You always do that when you're hiding something."

"Sounds like a gruesome to me." Draal sighed.

"What's a gruesome?" Claire asked with a raised eyebrow.

"Feeders of the dead." Blinky answered, "At the first signs of war, they gather to await the carnage. After the bloodshed, gruesome would devour the troll remains left on the battlefield. They are the carrion of trolls."

"There haven't been any battles in Arcadia." Toby said, "Why is there a gruesome here now?"

"Because Gunmar could be out." The trollhunter muttered.

"I told you, master Jim, that's impossible." The six-eyes troll gasped in horror.

"Maybe it's just passing through?" Naruto suggested and the six-eyes troll nodded eagerly.

"First the blood goblins, and now this?" Toby said.

"How do we know for sure?" The teenager girl turned to the trolls.

"The odds are beyond miniscule, but we can investigate later." Blinky waggled his index finger, "Currently, we have a gruesome that must be dealt with."

"But how do we find it?" Jim asked.

"What if my rock collection was just an appetizer?" The chubby teenager pulled the flyer out of his pocket then hand it to them, "He could be going for the main course. Look! The rock show at the museum! The jewel of the collection is some large piece that I swore looked like some troll arm." That makes the six-eyes troll to examine the photo up close under the light, "A guy found it outside of town last week!"

"Great Gorgus!" Blinky cried in alert, "That is a troll arm! Who could be so careless to lose an arm?"

"Yeah, make me wonder whose arm is that?" Naruto hummed.

"Not mine." Draal tried to look innocent with darting eyes.

"…Is it…" The blonde turned to the blue troll.

"Not mine." The blue troll repeated and the ninja just stare.

"Then we're gonna be there tonight to make our stand." The trollhunter take the flyer, putting it on table. "There's gonna be people at the museum, people that can't see this thing. We have to stop it."

"Then I know just the thing to get rid of it." The six-eyes troll said.

"Jim, I'm home!" Barbara announced upstairs.

"I'll be right up!" Jim shouted back, "Just working on my assignment! Don't come down!" Aaarrrgghh hear something outside and he peek out the little window with quizzical expression.

"What's up, big fella?" Naruto noticed his action.

"Don't know." Aaarrrgghh shook his head slightly, "Wind."

---

The team hide behind the bushes as they watched the people entering the museum for the rock show and the trolls sneak up to their side. "Blink, did you go to RotGut's?" Jim asked.

"Did I ever!" Blinky reached inside his bag, "Feast your eyes on this!" He pulled out…

"A piece of rock?" Naruto arched his eyebrow, "I'm sorry, what?"

"Yeah, a rock?" Toby agreed dumbfounded.

"Not a rock." The six-eyes troll replied, "Dwarkstone."

"Dorkstone?" The trollhunter arched his eyebrow slightly.

"I think it's darkstone." The ninja turned to him.

"Dwarkstone." Blinky corrected them.

"Dorkstone." Claire muttered.

"Close enough." Aaarrrgghh nodded.

"Dwarkstone is incredibly rare, highly volatile, and the only guaranteed way to expel a gruesome." The six-eyes troll explained.

"All I'm hearing is dorkstone." The chubby teenager shrugged his shoulders.

"However you pronounce it, how does it work?" The teenager girl gestured to the rock.

"A firm shake will activate it, but once it begins glowing…" Blinky gave it to Jim with a serious face, "Run."

"Goes kaboom." The brute troll spread his arms out.

"Ooh, let me…" Naruto's eyes lit up.

"Naruto, no." Claire rammed her elbow into his side.

"Now, very delicately tuck it away and make sure it counts." The six-eyes troll said as the trollhunter carefully put it away, "We only have one."

"Come on." Toby pumped his fists with a chuckle, "Let's go rock this rock show!" The teenagers walk out into the museum, "Dude, is your mom around here?"

"Nah, kaa-san's on vacation." The blonde replied, "She want to take it easy and relax until then."

"Ah." The chubby teenager hummed.

"You see that paragenetic series last time?" A random man asked someone else.

"I did." A woman replied, "They had a whole section on metamorphic rocks."

"That should be easy." Claire looked around as Toby laughed in glee, "There's only six people here."

"I know." Toby patted her back, "Crazy turnout." He took his phone out to take a selfie with his sack.

"Okay, let's fan out and find this thing." Jim said before they hear voice behind them and they turn around.

"There you are, T.P.!" Darci greeted.

"Oh, hey, Darce!" The chubby teenager squeaked, "What are you doing here?"

"Well, the footbag tourney ended." The black girl took the sack from him, "I thought I'd join you and little Sir Isaac."

"Oh, better put him to bed right now." Toby glanced nervously at his team as they gesture him to do something to get her out of here, "Looks tuckered. Go home with mommy."

"Really?" Darci patted the sack, "Well, I thought we'd stay and check out the show with you." She nuzzled it, "Spend some quality family time." She never noticed her boyfriend glance to his shrugging friends.

"Then allow me introduce you to the wonderful world of quartz." The chubby teenager offered his arm and she take it as they walk away.

"…I'll take the north wing." Jim turned to others.

"I'll cover upstairs." Naruto jabbed his thumb up at the second floor and the brunette nodded to him.

"You check the south." The trollhunter said to his girlfriend.

"Got it." Claire said before they split up.

The blonde reach the second floor right away and the first thing he did was looking over the rail, his eyes scanned the ground floor. 'Man, is black hat and coat in fashion?' There were several people in said outfit and it make him wonder why they're wearing it indoor? Naruto looked around until his eyebrow raised when he see Eli and Steve sneaking around in matching black shirt and helmet with some war paints under their eyes. "Um, okay?" Naruto glanced around before he make a call and Claire was first to answer it. "Anything?"

"Nothing at the moment." Claire's voice replied, "Hold on, call you back."

"Ok." Naruto put his phone away as he see the girl running across the floor to somewhere out of his sight. Maybe she heard or see something? Suddenly, the alarm went off and the blonde was about to look around but…

"Move out." The security guard grab his shoulders as soon as the blonde tried to go in different direction and the ninja have no choice but to go along with it. He immediately regroup with Toby and Darci outside.

"Where's Claire?" Darci asked.

"I don't know." Naruto shrugged.

"Ditto." Toby glanced around, "We should go." He pulled his walkie-talkie out with a nervous grin as he walk out of their earshot and the teenagers stand there quietly.

"So…" The black girl turned to him while bouncing the sack, "How's the baby?"

"Fine, she's with Mary." The blonde took his phone out to show her the recent selfie of her with their sack and it look like it have been taken few seconds ago. "She's crazy with selfies, huh?"

"Oh, you don't know the half of it." She scoffed amusingly and Toby walk toward them with straight back.

"Darci, there's no good way to say this, so…" The chubby teenager muttered nervously before he suddenly snatch the sack from her, accidently knocking her back into Naruto and he ran inside.

"HELP!" Darci swiftly stood up, "MY BABY!" She tried to get inside with Naruto but the guard block their way.

"I'm sorry, I can't let you go in there." The guard said with spreading arms, "Big emergency." He closed the doors, locking it.

'How did he not notice T.P. entering?' Naruto stared at the guard's back with a deadpan expression then look at the fuming girl next to him and he silently pray for Toby's safety from her wrath. He would have go inside but he decide to stick around outside in case if this Gruesome manage to sneak out. The blonde secretly create clones to cover the area out of sight and he stay with the fuming girl, he don't have to wait any longer when his friends come out. He went up to Jim as Claire approached Darci and Toby with their sack. "Did you get it?"

"Yeah." Jim whispered, "Turned out the flour kill the gruesome." He glanced at his best friend, "But the weird thing is that Toby used his baby and it just turn up in one piece as if it hasn't been opened in first place."

"Huh, weird." The blonde blinked owlishly.

"Yeah, how did I find him on the floor inside?" Claire approached them with Toby as Darci leave with the sack and smile. Toby look up to the starry sky with a smile.

"…No, it can't be." The trollhunter looked to his friends.

"Should be." Naruto replied.

"There has to be another side to this." She said.

"Then how do you explain?" Toby turned to them, "I told you, when good things happen…"

"Gotta be a logical explanation." Claire said as they walked across the street.

"Let's chalk it up to, 'it's been a weird day', huh?" Jim said.

"Since when do we have a non-weird day?" The blonde asked him.

"Um…" The trollhunter have no comment.

---

Lawrence stared at his class annoyingly with crossed arms, "Only two babies survived?" He gripped his head then gestured to Sir Isaac and Rio on his desk, "It was a bag of flour! And no one could keep it alive for twenty-four hours?!"

"I'm sorry." Eli lifted his index finger up, "My mom threw it away 'cause I'm allergic to gluten. She wrote a note to explain."

The coach crumbled the said paper, "You all fail, except for Scott, Domzalski, Wong and Nomura. Congratulations. You're competent enough to just barely pass this assignment. I weep for your offspring and pray I'm retired by the time they reach high school." The bell ring to end the period and the students start to leave.

"Wow, I can't believe we passed it." Mary picked her backpack up.

"Yeah, all we have to do is just put it somewhere safe." Naruto chuckled as they leave the class.

"Gotta ask again, wanna go on a date?" She smirked.

"Again, nah." He waved it off with a chuckle, he's not really interesting in dating and relationship for now.

"Ugh, one of these days, you will say yes." Mary punched his arm lightly, "One of these days." It wasn't her first time asking Naruto out and it won't be the last time.

---

Late at night, Naruto witness the police and Karl caught the team near the teacher's truck from the distance with the two trolls and a bag of squirming gnomes. "Boy, that was close one." Naruto tossed the burlap sack over his shoulder, "They almost caught you two." He was thankful for his ninja training and moved faster when the police car speed toward them after the team caught the joyriding gnomes, the teenagers weren't lucky.

"I'll say." Blinky looked worried, "Will they be okay?"

"Yeah, I'm pretty sure they'll be fine since Uhl's going to throw them into detention on Saturday." The blonde said after straining his ears to listen, "Come on, we need to get the gnomes back before the fuzz decide to check the surrounding."

"Yes, back." Aaarrrgghh agreed and they sneak off to Trollmarket quietly.

---

On Saturday, Naruto was completely bored out of his mind as he flipped through the channels. Usually, he would go to Trollmarket for some training but he decide to take a day off since the team are in detention right now and it almost make him wish that he was in detention with them. His mother was out for some shopping and catching up with her co-workers. Pixie? Just buzzing around in his room, collecting things for her little home or playing games, his familiar is sure addicted to video games lately. "Well, at least it's relaxing today." He muttered as he watch a old action movie.

---

After a quick text to meet up at Trollmarket, Naruto was listening to his friends' recap of the day as they walk down the crystal stairs. "Draal's under control?" Naruto's eyes widened, "How can we break him out of it?"

"I don't know." Jim was upset.

"We can save him, right, Jimbo?" Toby glanced over his shoulder.

"You tell me." The trollhunter said, "You saw him. You were in the hall." His best friend looked puzzled, "That wasn't you in the mole mascot costume?"

"What?" The chubby teenager blinked.

"Then who?" Jim wondered.

"Steve!" Claire gasped in realization, "He disappeared from class."

"Steve saw Jim?" Toby blinked.

"Wait, does that mean he saw Draal and everything?" Naruto asked, "If that's the case, why don't he say anything…Or even freak out?"

"Are you telling me that…" The chubby teenager panted, "That Steve knows?" The kubera guards stomped up to them with spear out.

"For the glory of Merlin, Daylight is mine to command!" The trollhunter summoned his armor and his team draw their weapons.

"Under the authority of Trollmarket, James Lake Jr., you are under arrest for the release of Gunmar, breaking your sacred oath, and treason against trollkind." Usurna showed up and the guards grabbed the trollhunter by his arms, dragging him away as the teenagers exchange looks with each other.

---

Naruto have been thinking hard since Jim's arrest and he barely listen to everything or notice anything else around him for hours, even during the trail when Toby act as Jim's 'lawyer' and him as co-lawyer with Aaarrrgghh, this part take a lot of discussion from the tribunal that end with votes, while Claire search for some evidence. Something don't make sense to him, how do Usurna know everything? Only the team know and he's very certain that neither one of his teammates spill the beans. It feel like there's something missing…'Wait…' Naruto looked up before he call out to Toby with a whisper, "Hey, T.P., can you ask Usurna to bring out the accuser?"

"Wha?" Toby tilted his head closer to him, "Why?"

"Just do it, I want to test a theory of mine." Naruto whispered and the chubby teenager glanced to his best friend as he gave him a nod.

"Ok, um…" The chubby teenager turned to face the tribunal, "If you allow me to, I would like Queen Usurna to bring the accuser out for questions!" The tribunal looked surprised by his request.

"No." Usurna spoke curtly with a snobbish tone and the blonde thought she answered too fast on this one.

"Oh, ok…" Toby muttered before the blonde lean to whisper something into his ear, "Uh, I don't know about that…But…Well…" He gasped, "You won't dare! Ok, ok!" He turned back to the tribunal with a clearing throat, "I would like to turn it over to my partner, Naruto, so he can speak in my place."

"You can't hand it over to so…" The queen said before the blonde cut her off.

"There are some issues that I found with this case." Naruto stood up with narrowed eyes, "If you claim that we are involved and tried to cover something major up, there is no way an outsider can know that. Not to mention the fact that the accuser somehow know a certain fact that WE don't confirm until very recent."

"Explain." Vendel spoke up before the queen make a attempt to stop him.

"Let me ask you something." Naruto looked to the elder, "Did you know that blood goblins were out causing some havoc until we took care of it?"

"No, I don't." The elder shook his head.

"That's right, if we know about that then the team would keep it to themselves and tell no one…" He nodded, "What about the claim that Draal leave his post at the bridge?"

"Not until someone told me that."

"Then may I ask you who told you that?" Naruto glanced at the tribunal.

"Queen Usurna…" Vendel looked to the said troll, "She told me that someone told her that and she have evidence."

"Have you ever met this accuser she was speaking of?" He asked, "Anyone else that are part of tribunal beside Queen Usurna?"

"That's enough, enough!" Usurna don't like where it's going in this direction as the members seem to consider something, "You are making a mock of…"

"I want to point out that if it's true, I'm absolutely sure that no one in Trollhunter team will never tell anyone else until we take care of the problem ourselves and at this time, we DON'T have evidences to confirm that Gunmar have escaped because he was in hiding." Naruto ignored the frustrated queen, "But all of sudden, we get a accuser who seem to know everything that went on! Which lead me to question that…What if this accuser work for Gunmar and come forward with that in order to turn you against the trollhunter, the only one who can kill Gunmar!"

"WHOA!" Toby gasped, "Plot twist!"

"I demand this accuser to come out here and give us the proof!" The blonde stomped his foot, "If this troll refuse to, then we have a reason to believe that the accuser is Gunmar's agent!"

"ENOUGH!" Usurna smash her fist on rock angrily before any members of tribunal, "This trial is about…"

"Lady, you're not in charge here!" Naruto jabbed his finger at her, "The tribunal are! Until you are the leader of this tribunal?!"

"The boy has point." The skinny female troll turned her head to her fellow members, "We can speak for ourselves and cast votes to summon the accuser."

"No!" The queen knocked the rock again, "Because of this human trollhunter, Gunmar escape the Killahead bridge in this wood and have Janus Order hide him! We must punish the trollhunter for his crimes for freeing Gunmar and damning the trollkind to…"

"Wait, what did you say?!" The ninja caught something, "Did you said 'this woods'? Janus Order?!" He frowned, "We never said we took and hide the bridge in woods." He turned his head to his teammates and they shook their heads, signaling that they have told no one about this fact. "And for Janus Order…" He turned back to the queen with narrowed eyes, "We never confirm its existence to anyone else because everyone believe it to be myth…But how do you know that Janus Order is hiding Gunmar…SOMETHING that we don't know until you just told us now?" Usurna's eyes widened slightly at her slip, "How do you know that? Is it from the accuser?" Something crazy occur to him and it bring some dread feeling inside him. "…Or is there no accuser in first place?" Everyone gasped at his accusation, "Is that why you refuse to have us meet the accuser?!"

"Queen Usurna?" The skinny troll uttered.

"I-I'll summon the accuser." Usurna resisted to gritted her teeth, "I'm calling recess until then…" The members nodded to her before they leave and Naruto narrowed his eyes with a frown.

"Wow, Naruto, that was so awesome!" Toby hopped up and down, "You sure did it way better than me…Although, you need to work on your lawyer skill. I had little hard time following you but that's okay, English's not your first language."

"Yeah." Aaarrrgghh nodded with awe.

"Yeah, I think you just saved me there." Jim nodded, the thoughts of those possibilities wasn't this far from his head but the ninja just throw it out there. He blink as Naruto use a single kage bunshin and send him out. "Naruto, why did you create a clone?"

"I'm having him following Usurna." Naruto turned to them with a frown, "Something don't feel right today…Better safe than sorry and all."

"Gut feeling?" The trollhunter asked and the ninja nodded his head.

"We're gonna check with Blinky and Claire to see if they find something for us to use for the trial." Toby spoke up, "You okay with being on your own?"

"Yeah, I can take care of myself if something happen." Jim nodded, "I'll hang out here." He make a joke to light it up a bit and his team shake their heads at him before they left.

---

"We have evidence!" Claire rushed to them.

"We have proof of a conspiracy!" Blinky hollered, "We…"

"Have to wait." Aaarrrgghh said.

"The tribunal have to bring the accuser out." Toby grinned, "You should have seen it. Naruto kept arguing and ignore Queen Usurna while hurling everything at them. It was little confusing at first but he drive it to point."

"Oh?" She blinked, "Then we should go and find Vendel then…"

"FUCK!" Naruto suddenly leap up on his feet with widened eyes before he race toward a certain direction with chakra-enhanced jumps.

"Wha…?!" The chubby teenager was startled along with his team, "What happened?"

"I don't know…" The six-eyes troll suddenly have some dread stirring within his stomach, "Um, I think it'll be better if we go see master Jim now."

---

"GRAMPS!" Naruto jumped into a disorganized large room and he looked around frantically until he hears a groan.

"O-Over here…" The blonde turned his head to see Vendel weakly sit up with a groan and he quickly race over to the elder's side, helping him up.

"Are you okay, gramps?" The ninja asked worriedly.

"I'll live…" Vendel groaned in pain, "But you…I saw Usurna…"

"That was the clone." Naruto said, it was really good thing he have a clone following this queen in shadow.

Usurna was summoned for a meeting with the elder and he was asking her some questions to point that she have reveal herself as Gunmar's ally. In this moment, the clone saw her pulling the knife out and was about to stab the elder fatally but he jump in with rasengan. She end up stabbing the clone and caused the rasengan to explode, blasting everything away with a shockwave.

"Where's this bitch at?!" The ninja looked around as soon as he get the elder up on his feet.

"I don't know." The elder replied, "I believe she think I'm dead and flee the…" His eyes widened, "The trial! She's going there! We must hurry…" He stumbled with a painful groan as soon as he tried to take a step forward.

"Gramps, let me help!" Naruto catch him before he help him walking hurriedly.

"I hope we're not too late." Vendel grunted worriedly.

---

By the time they reach the Hero's Forge, they were immediately met with Jim and his team as they sneak out. "Jim, what happened?" Naruto called out to them while supporting the elder.

"Nar…" Jim turned to them with his team before their eyes widened, "Vendel, what happened to you?"

"Usurna." Vendel spat, "She tried to kill me but Naruto saved me."

"What, what?" Blinky gasped in pure shock.

"The bitch work for Gunmar!" The blonde scowled and the team's eyes widened farther.

"Yes, the bitch has confess herself to be Gunmar's ally." The elder nodded, "Where is she?"

"I don't know." Claire shook her head, "But it's too danger right now because Usurna have put herself in charge of Trollmarket. We need to get Vendel out or Usurna will try to have him killed. We're going to Janus Order to find Gunmar and stop him with element of surprise since everyone think Jim's dead right now."

"But where can we hide him in?" Toby asked.

"…My house." Naruto spoke up, "It's safe and my kaa-san's there."

"Got it." The teenager girl pulled her shadow staff out to shot a portal.

"Wait, Gatto's treasures." Vendel grunted, "We can't let Gunmar get his hands on it…"

"You're right, gramps." The blonde quickly create a clone and it ran off before return with the storage crystal within few minutes, tossing it to the original as it dispel. "Come on!" Naruto helped the elder into the portal and the team exchange look with each other then nod.

---

"Here, this place should be good enough for now." Naruto helped the elder sitting down on a metal stool chair in basement since it's still daylight outside. "You alright, gramps?"

"Yes, thank you, my boy." Vendel groaned softly as he looked around in the basement, "How long have it been since I step out of Trollmarket?"

"I'm going up and see if my kaa-san's home." The blonde put the storage crystal on table, "Gotta let her know so she can protect you."

"And you?" The elder asked.

"I'm gonna meet up with Trollhunter team." Naruto replied, "I'm gonna make this bitch pay for it."

"You better." Vendel nodded as he watch the boy rushing upstairs and he look around again with a sigh.

Naruto exit the basement and he look around on the first floor before he find his mother reading some book in living room. "Kaa-san!"

"Naruto?" Zelda looked up to him with a light smile before she drop it when she see serious face on her son, "What's wrong?"

"Something happened." The blonde said and he explained everything that happened today to his mother, minus the plan to ambush Gunmar. "And gramps is downstairs in basement." He pointed to the basement's door, "Can you watch after him and make sure he's fine?"

"Ok." The changeling rubbed the bridge of her nose with a heavy sigh, "We'll talk about that when you get back."

"Thank, kaa-san." Naruto quickly hugged her before he race outside.

"Stay safe." Zelda sighed worriedly, as much as she want to go help him, she wasn't fully recovered. "…Well, gotta introduce myself to the old goat first." She head down to have a little talk with Vendel.

---

Naruto was able to meet up with the team at Janus Order's hideout and they ride down the elevator together. "…Why can't we just portal there in first place?" Naruto asked as the elevator music play, "I mean, aren't we screaming to everyone that we're here by using their elevator?"

"Um…" Jim blinked to him then turned to his girlfriend with a raised eyebrow, "…How come we don't think of that?"

"Um…" Claire blinked before the doors slide open and the team quickly leaps into action with battle cry as they get into their stances…Only to stop at the sight of skeletons and debris everywhere. "Oh, no." Her boyfriend pick up a bizarre skull, "What is this?"

"Maybe it's a Changeling Halloween party?" Toby suggested nervously as they walked down the hallway, "I really hope it's a Halloween party."

"We know you will be weak, Skullcrusher." A man's voice spoke.

"Strickler?" Jim turned to his team.

"Let's split up and cover more ground." Blinky ordered and the team split up right away. Naruto went on his own to checks several large rooms far away on other side and even check the control room. All he see is more skeletons and ruins.

'They call him skullcrushers and yet I see a lot of skulls in one piece.' Naruto glanced at the perfect skulls before he hear some explosive and he quickly ran to the source, reuniting with his team as they face Gunmar.

"Oh, my gosh!" Toby hopped from one foot to other foot, "This is happening!"

"Yeah, so fight!" Claire twirled her staff.

"I will add your bones to my pile." Gunmar roared before a kunai stuck him in forehead and everything was in stunned silent. The surprised team slowly turned their heads to Naruto, who also look surprised with his outstretching hand.

"Um, I thought it'll bounce off in any way…" Naruto admitted, "Talk about antic…"

"Wait!" The teenager girl direct everyone's attention to Gunmar as the evil troll…Transform into Otto?

"What the…?" Jim uttered.

"This isn't Gunmar." Blinky said, "it's…" Otto start to laugh evilly, despite the fact he have dagger sticking out from his forehead.

"Otto." Claire finished.

Gunmar's possessing him." The trollhunter pointed his sword at Otto, "Where are you? Why won't you fight me?"

"I already have what I want." Gunmar spoke through Otto's body before the body glower in orange then explode as the team swiftly takes cover.

"Trollmarket." Jim grimaced, "We never should've left."

---

The team sneaks into Trollmarket as Gunmar's soldiers dragged the screaming trolls by force. "Aha, there he is…" Blinky muttered to himself as he see his blind brother, Dictatious. "Go to my library, I'll meet you there with our guest."

---

"WHOA!" Dictatious cried out as the team hoist him up with chains in Blinky's room, "Ow!"

"How do you like it?" Blinky laughed.

"I don't." The evil twin grunted.

"Not so pleasant, playing the part of a pinata." The laughing good twin said with crossed lower arms, "That's more like it."

"The trollhunter!" Dictatious gasped as soon as he heard Jim's sword clanging against the armor, "You're alive?"

"Yep." Jim smirked smugly.

"But you won't be for long if you don't start talking." Blinky threatened.

"Oh, Blinkous." The evil twin scoffed, "Gunmar has the Heartstone. Once he regains his strength, nothing will rival his power. This is futile, brother."

"The only troll I would call my brother is someone not you, and his name is Vendel." The good twin grabbed the evil twin's head then spun him around rapidly.

"Make it stop!" Dictatious cried out with moans, feeling dizzy right away.

"Whatever you're planning, let the trolls go." Jim stopped Blinky then grabbed Dictatious by his ear, "This is between Gunmar and me."

"Don't you see, boy?" The evil twin replied, "Gunmar's army was lost in the Darklands. It's time for our race to emerge from the shadows and retake the surface…" Toby shoved the book into his mouth, shutting him up.

"That's enough of that." Toby stuffed the evil twin's ears to prevent him from listen into their conversation.

"He's turning Trollmarket into his army?" Claire frowned.

"Does that mean he'll control them like what he did with Draal?" Naruto asked.

"Indeed." Blinky frowned, "His forces grow with every troll he converts. We need to save our friends."

"What's gonna happen to Trollmarket?" The chubby teenager worried, "What's gonna happen to our town?"

"We save as many as we can." Jim said, "We evacuate Trollmarket."

"Yeah, but how do we just get them outta here?" Toby asked.

"With this." The girl with blue streak held her staff out.

"Claire, that is a weapon of dark magic." The six-eyes troll said, "To manifest a portal that large for that duration, why, it will…"

"Kill you." Aaarrrgghh muttered.

"Or worse, corrupt your soul." Blinky said.

"I don't care." Claire shook her head, "I have to try."

"No." The trollhunter grabbed her staff, "You're not risking your life."

"Jim, you risked everything to save my brother because it was right." She said determinedly, "Now it's my turn."

"Wait." Toby spoke up, "We could use the Gyre."

"Tobias is right." Blinky lift his index finger up, "Claire, Naruto, Tobias, man the Gyre station. I'll operate it and get everyone to safety. Aaarrrgghh, master Jim, you have some trolls to liberate."

"What about him?" Naruto jabbed his thumb to the hanging evil troll.

"Leave him there." The six-eyes troll said before he smack his twin around as they leave to their task.

"OH NO, I'M GOING TO THROW UP!" Dictatious cried out as the chain spun him around speedily, "MY LUNCH IS GOING IN WRONG DIRECTION!"

---

The plan process smoothly so far as the team secured the gyre room while Jim search and rescue any trolls he can find. "This way to the Gyre." Claire hollered as soon as the trollhunter bring some trolls to the room, "Move!"

"Don't fight, stay in line!" Naruto tried to calm some scared trolls down.

"Go, get on board." Toby said.

"Take them to the forest." Jim said, "It's secluded and safe." He tossed the six-eyes troll a phone, "Take that."

"Keep them coming." Blinky caught the item, "With only one gyre, it will take many a trip." He took off with the first group of trolls and Naruto keep lookout near the entrance. After few trips, the room become crowded.

"They're piling up here too." The teenager girl spoke to Blinky on phone and there was a pause. "Oh, Steve and Eli is helping us? They have shades? Good! That's great!"

"Look like Steve has earned himself few days off from pranks." The ninja kept one eye on the entrance, "…Wait, did you say Eli?"

"He knows, too?" The chubby teenager blinked owlishly and the teenager girl just shrugs her shoulders. More trolls show up as Blink return with Gyre, "Keep in line! Plenty of room on the Freedom Express." He sighed then gave Jim a thumb-up until he notice something, "Oh, no! Jimbo, it's Draal!" The trollhunter quickly jumped through the doorway and it closed up right before the possessed troll can get in. The wall start to cracking under Draal's barrage and the trolls become nervous and afraid for their lives.

"What are we gonna do now?" Naruto helped both boys up with a frown.

"Aaarrrgghh, seal the door!" Blinky shouted down to his long-time friend and the giant troll quickly approached the wall then cross a red X on it.

"Sealed." Aaarrrgghh grunted.

"What about the others?" Jim asked, "There's still more to save."

"Jim, who's gonna save us?" Toby asked.

"We must keep the gyre moving." The six-eyes troll shouted, "Let's go. Get on board." He drove the gyre, only to hit the wall as it come down to seal the exits. "They sealed the exits!" He get off the board, "It's only a matter of time before they break through and enslave us all."

"Over my dead body." The ninja snorted and Jim draw his sword with a nod.

"We can't fight off an army." Claire said.

"We're sitting ducks." The chubby teenager stepped back nervously with his hammer out.

"Dead ducks." The giant troll uttered.

"Don't worry, I'm basically one-man army with my kage bunshin." Naruto attempted to ease their nerves.

"Yeah, but your army can't even survive one hit." Toby gulped.

"When the wall falls, hold nothing back and leave my brother to me!" Blinky backed away with the team as the wall start to cracking again.

"And this queen bitch to me." The ninja said.

"Mine." Aaarrrgghh grunted, "Together."

"Sure, big fella." Naruto nodded, "Dib on her ugly mug." They hear running footsteps on the boarding steps and they turn around to see Claire get on top with her staff.

"Wait, Claire, what are you doing?" Jim widened his eyes.

"There's another way." Claire said firmly.

"Can't make a portal that big." Blinky shook his head.

"It'll kill you!" Toby waved his hands.

"If we do nothing, we're all dead." She said, "You would do the same. You did do the same."

"I wasn't thinking." The trollhunter shouted, "There's gotta be another way."

"Guys, wall breaking." The giant troll warned them and Jim ran toward his girlfriend.

"Don't do this, kid!" Notenrique shouted at Claire as the girl channel her will into her staff with both hands.

"You saved my brother." She whispered, "Let me save you." She closed her eyes with a sigh as the staff become black, "Tell my parents I love 'em." The pink energy blast out in wave.

"DON'T!" The small changeling cried out as he fling back.

"Claire!" Jim was thrown on his back as the pink energy swirling around the girl in form of tornado and her eyes turn black. She slowly float up as the black veins appear on her skin, "It's killing her!" He get back up on his feet with some struggle under the energy, "Claire!" He ran up to her, "You're not doing this alone!" His hands wrap around her staff.

"Third wheel coming in!" Toby joined in.

"Don't forget me!" Naruto take hold of the staff.

"Right here." Aaarrrgghh touched it.

"Master Jim was correct." Blinky reached out to the staff, "We are stronger together!"

"Count me in, sis!" Notenrique jumped in before the black mist spread out, "Holy shish kebabs!" There was a bright pinkish flash and everyone within the gyre room disappeared right before Gunmar's army break in to find nothing but empty room.

---

Everyone find themselves in forest at night and the muttering trolls start to cheer for their escape. "Claire!" Jim ran over to the said girl in Aaarrrgghh's arms as the trolls stopped their cheers out of worry for one of their heroes. "Claire!" There was a moment of silence until she cough.

"Did we die?" Claire asked, now sporting a white streak.

"Almost." Aaarrrgghh smiled.

"But not ghost, thank kami." Naruto exhaled then shivered at the idea of everyone become ghosts.

"But a life of almost is a life of never." Toby laughed with joy, "We made it!"

"Yeah!" Some turned to see Eli cheered on top of tunnel before he fall down, only to be caught by Steve.

"Thanks, guys." The trollhunter smiled at the unlikely duo, "I owe ya."

"Yeah, you owe us, big time." Steve chuckled.

"Maybe you can start by answering a few thousand questions." The outcast lift his index finger up in air.

"We'll talk, later." Jim said amusingly with hands on his hip.

"Yes!" Eli and Steve fist bumped each other.

"Our home is gone." Blinky sighed sadly, "What will we do now?"

"Let's go see gramps." Naruto said to him, "Maybe he'll know what to do."

"You're right, Naruto." The six-eyes troll nodded, "But first, we need to get everyone shelters."

---

"I see…" Vendel exhaled after Blinky told him everything in Naruto's home, the teenagers were out helping the trolls. "So Trollmarket is gone."

"Yes, and we need your guidance to…" The six-eyes troll said before the elder cut him off.

"I'm sorry, Blinkous, but I'm too old to give anyone guidance anymore now." The elder shook his head softly as the six-eyes troll looked shocked, "I'm not fit to be a leader anymore now."

"Don't be silly, Vendel!" Blinky waved his hands, "You're…"

"Dying." Vendel spoke and the six-eyes troll widened his eyes.

"W-What?" The six-eyes troll was stunned by his comment, "You're…Dying? But…How? Is there anything we can do to help you?!"

"There is nothing you can do about natural." The elder sighed wearily, "I have lived for eons and my aging body can't keep it up as it used to be."

"…How long?" Blinky whispered softly with sad glint in his eyes.

"I don't know." Vendel replied, "Should be few years….A decade or more if I'm lucky." He glanced to the six-eyes troll, "I prefer you to not tell anyone…Not even the humans." The sad troll gave him a nod.

"…But then who will take leadership for everyone?" The six-eyes troll asked after few moments before the elder gave him the staff, "Um, I don't understand?" He looked up to the elder as he stared back at him, "…Wait, you don't mean…"

"They need a leader and you, as they say, fit the bill." The elder put hand on his shoulder, "Blinkous, in a short time, you have done so much for the good of Trollmarket and you have display a great leadership when you evacuated the Trollmarket in face of danger…" He smiled, "I can't think of anyone else but you to replace me as the next leader."

"…I…" Blinky stuttered, "I…I'm very honored but…"

"Don't doubt yourself." Vendel said with a slight shake of his head, "I ensure you with Trollmarket because I know you can do it."

"…Ok, I will look after everyone and try my best to be a good leader to all." He bowed his head slightly with sad expression before he look up to his elder, 'But what will you do now?"

"Mm, I'm going to live the rest of my life out right here." The elder glanced around at Naruto's house, "I had asked Naruto's mother for permission to live here and she grant it." He chuckled lightly, "She know how well the boy view me as a grandpa figure and I have grown fond of him as if he's my own grandson. Can you believe it?"

"I can understand that." Blinky chuckled lightly, it's same situation with him and Jim but in father-son role. He exhaled, "…Can I come visit you and ask you for advice once in a while?"

"Yes, you can." Vendel nodded and they share a short hug. "Good luck, I trust you to do well leading the trolls."

"I will make you proud, Vendel." The six-eyes troll said quietly, "Take care." He slowly exit the house and the smiling elder stare at the door then around the room, start to enjoying the moment of peaceful silence and the beginning of his retirement life.

---

And that end the third chapter of NIA!

And that end the second season. Now onto the final part of Trollhunter and bit of first part of 3Below!

Alright, so much haven't change but Naruto have saved Vendel's life, thank to his gut feeling after calling Usurna out with the 'witness'.

With Trollmarket lost to Gunmar, how will the team act? What will it be like with Vendel living at Naruto's house? Who else will show up? What kind of adventure will it be for our ninja? What will happen next? Let's find out in the next chapter!

Anyway, I think that's all I can say for now. Thank you for your time to read it.

Please leave reviews and feedback here. The flames will be fed to gnomes.