Disclaimer: "The end is near! Repent your sins! I don't own Naruto or World of Warcraft!"

"Shut up ya bum!"

Here's the next installment of The Legend of Uzumaki Naruto!

Everything in is Orcish unless otherwise noted.

Extra Disclaimer: I don't own the trademark "Leroy Jenkins" battle cry, or anything resembling it.

Naruto dropped a dried animal skin at Thrall's feet, before slumping to the ground, exhausted. The Warchief, raised an eyebrow, then bent down and picked up the piece of skin, noticing the writing on it. He read the contents over, and then nodded at Naruto.

"You did well," he said smiling a little.

Naruto muttered something unintelligible, then looked up at the orc almost pleadingly.

­"Bed now?" the exhausted boy asked. The blonde had returned to the city only a few minutes ago, and it was late enough that any normal person would be long lost in the land of dreams. The city was silent, which was strange for Orgrimmar, as one would never expect a city like it to sleep.

Thrall nodded, turning away from Naruto and walking back towards his own chambers in the back of Grommash Hold.

"Yes, you have earned it. But tomorrow you will continue your training, and I might have another mission for you," Thrall said.

Naruto groaned.

When Thrall had departed, Naruto made his way sleepily to his own room. When he reached it, he shucked off the dirt-caked clothes and boots he was wearing, letting them drop to the ground with loud clangs and clunks as their numerous contents crashed against the floor. Then he dropped right into his bed, and hoped to fall asleep as quickly as he could.

Unfortunately, his brain was still buzzing with so much information, so many images from the past few weeks that he found it hard to drift off to the lands of nod.

It had been a exhausting few weeks, for sure.

After the success of his first mission, Naruto had returned to Orgrimmar bearing the massive hide of the Korikagus upon his back, reveling in his first completed mission. The people of the Crossroads had been surprisingly good-willed to him, and after seeing that he had accomplished a feat of strength and daring that no one else had, felt that it was necessary to praise him.

Sergra Darkthorn had retracted the words she had said to him when they first met, which was surprising for Naruto. The woman obviously had an enormous amount of pride, so it must have been difficult for her to take back words that she had meant with all her heart. She was still wary of him, he guessed, but it felt good that the orcs were completely blinded by their prejudice to humans.

After resting for the night, Naruto had found the body of the creature already skinned and cut up into pieces. Sergra had urged him to take the hide with him back to Orgrimmar, seeing as it was his prize, and therefore now belonged to him. The butcher had even given Naruto some slabs of the creature's meat to take back as well, commenting on how tasty it was.

Naruto had to agree, even though he wasn't the biggest fan of grilled meat, it was sweeter than the kodo meat he had had in his ramen back in Stormwind, and very filling. He had promised the butcher to give it to the inn in Orgrimmar, considering the orc was paying him several silver to do it.

He had left soon after, with over a dozen pounds of meat and the Korikagus' hide rolled up on his back.

His trek back to Orgrimmar had been more or less the same, but he had noticed (rather happily) that the guards at the tower and at the entrance into Orgrimmar had scowled at him. They had ignored him, of course, but Naruto considered it a step up from being outright hated.

Thrall had been pleased with Naruto's efforts, but it because Naruto's mission had gone so well, it had prompted the Warchief to consider giving him more.

And so he had.

The next week was filled completely to the brim with things for Naruto to do. He would still train almost everyday under Thrall, who was still trying to perfect his use of the Earth style. He explained that it took more than simple reinforcement of chakra to bring out the full potential of the Earth style, as it required the user to be physically fit as well as controlled. So he began to subject Naruto to a painful training exercise that involved battering Naruto with various blunt objects for several hours, letting his body constantly heal itself and build up natural resistance to the attacks.

Even while he was doing that, however, he began to teach Naruto what he had been waiting to learn since he had become the Warchief's apprentice.

Jutsu.

Seeing as how Naruto was training in the Earth Style, Thrall felt that it was prudent to teach him various Earth element jutsu. Though he had been taught Shinjuu Zanshu no jutsu, Jiraiya hadn't taught Naruto anymore than that, instead focusing on the ones he knew better, Fire and Water jutsu.

Thrall however, said that Earth jutsu were some of the most effective of the Shaman's trade. After seeing him use one to lift a rock the size of his throne room up, Naruto was completely convinced.

But training was not the only thing that Naruto did during those weeks. Thrall began to send Naruto on missions every time the boy wasn't training (and even sometimes when he was). Many of them weren't even out of the city, too, but some took him back to the Barrens, searching for a plant to take, a person to speak too, or a creature to destroy. Others took him further into the region called Durotar, where Orgrimmar was. He went to a small encampment at the end of a very treacherous canyon called Razor Hill, where he had been assigned to fight and destroy a creature that he had disliked ever since he had met one.

A goblin.

Flashback:

Naruto crept through the winding canyons of a place called Thunder Ridge. He had entered it in a rather unconventional way, simply by adhering himself to the canyon walls, rather than go through the sloping entrance which lay near a ruined house at the far end of the canyon.

It was named as such for the dozens of massive, armored lizards that roamed its depths. They were an off-white color, and about as big as the Korikagus that Naruto had faced on his first mission. However, their backs were covered in long, plated spikes; they had curved horns on their noses and the ends of their tails were covered in wicked, sharp spikes.

But, seeing as they had the name "Thunder Lizard" led Naruto to believe that they had a trait that wasn't apparent from simply looking at them.

He was right.

Upon first sighting them, he had nearly screamed in terror when one launched a bolt of lightning from its mouth, hitting another in the side. Hugging the wall in alarm, Naruto watched as the one that had been hit simply shrugged it off, seemingly unharmed by the blast.

After letting his heartbeat slow down, Naruto had slipped past them before they could see or smell him, having a whole new appreciation for what it meant to be a ninja.

After nearly an hour of expertly avoiding any encounters with the Thunder Lizards, as well as their larger, greener cousins, the Thunder Hides, Naruto caught a familiar scent. It was orc, but strangely there was the scent of burning pitch mixed into the smell, but not overlaying. In addition, he caught the scent of a creature he had been desperately avoiding since he had arrived on Kalimdor.

A goblin.

Joy of joys…he thought menacingly. He had known that the person he had been sent to dispose of, Fizzle Darkstorm was a goblin, but the fact that he could now smell it made it all the more real. He'd have to deal with another goblin.

But then again, this one probably wasn't going to try and swindle him, but instead kill him.

It wasn't that he hated all goblins, either. He just had yet to meet one that was actually pleasant to speak to, and didn't have a greedy shine in its eye. He hadn't heard of one either, as even Mekkatorque had had something bad to say about the little creatures. For now, Naruto decided that he'd continued to stay on his toes around the creatures, but he wouldn't pass judgment on them just yet.

Fizzle was something Thrall had called a "Warlock", or a person whose power came from the world of the demons. They could use a special type of summoning technique that allowed them to make pacts with demons, or even simply inherit their powers and abilities.

Or, as Kyuubi liked to say, THEY ARE SIMPLY FOOLS WHO BELIEVE THEY HAVE SOME POWER OVER DEMONS. THE ONLY ONES THAT WOULD EVEN LET THEM MAKE PACTS ARE THE WEAKER ONES.

Whether this was true or not, Naruto didn't know. He did know, however, that Fizzle was supposedly a member of the Burning Blade, a former clan of orcs whose violence savagery was legendary. While most of the remaining Burning Blade served Thrall, a section still was loyal to the monstrous force known as the Burning Legion- the cult that was responsible for the creation of the Scourge and numerous other maladies that now plagued the world. The Burning Legion had been almost utterly destroyed in the last war, their leader, Archimonde, was obliterated by Night Elves upon the ancient World Tree of the Elves, and the Burning Legion crept back into the darkness from whence it came.

But, as interesting as that little history lesson was, Naruto was still hung up on the fact that he'd have to deal with another psychotic little money grubber, which this time would probably steal his money after it had killed him.

He slunk through the small cracks in the canyon wall, moving as swiftly as he could without sacrificing stealth. It wasn't long before, after following the sent of burning orcs, that he reached a small gap in the wall where he could here sounds.

Not wanting to expose himself just yet, he lowered the goggles perched on his forehead, and activated the X-ray feature, as Mekkatorque had taught him.

Immediately his vision was glossed over with an orange sheen, and the wall in front of him seemed to disappear. He had used it several times before he had left the gnomes, so it wasn't new to him. Focusing his chakra again, the wall began to melt away, and he saw exactly what he wanted to.

Through the small gap in the wall, Naruto could see a round clearing in the rock, completely natural looking, with large outcroppings above that obscured the series of tents and fires, that lay below, from the shining sun. Some were talking in low tones, others feasting on a variety of meats and guzzling down skins filled with a purplish liquid that Naruto suspected was wine. While most were male, there were three females that he could see. They didn't look so different from other orcs, either, save for the fact that they looked much more unkempt and savage than the orcs of Orgrimmar.

Others were standing near the entrance to their tents, clutching their swords and smirking at each other. Some of the ones sitting down carried staves, and were dressed in dark robes, while the others were just in short leather tunics, pants and boots.

In the center, standing next to a small campfire, however, was Naruto's target.

It set Naruto's teeth on edge just looking at the conniving little thing. He was no different from the goblins on the zeppelin. This time, however, Naruto knew that he wouldn't have to deal with him for long.

After all, if he, and all the orcs present, were part of the group that put the world in the state that it was currently in, then he wouldn't be able to feel bad about killing him.

Turning off the goggles, Naruto readied himself. At this point, there were two things he could do. He could be himself, and charge in, totally unprepared, and fight tooth and nail until he had killed the goblin, before leaving in the same fashion as he had come.

The second, of course, was to be himself in that he would do something totally unpredictable.

But then again, sometimes the most unpredictable ways are the simplest, and easiest to see.

He dashed through the entrance into the Burning Blade camp, and upon reaching the end, flashed through a set of the new seals that he had learned- deer, bat, wolf and then kodo.

He then thrust his hand against the side of the wall, shouting, "Doton: Tsuchidageki (Earth Shock)!"

An impulse of chakra, lightening fast, erupted from his hand, spreading out into the canyon wall. The entire wall shook and cracked apart, causing the outcroppings above to begin falling down. The orcs, caught completely by surprise, cried out as the rocks smashed down on top of them, crushing the life from their bodies. Naruto flinched at their cries slightly, but steeled himself.

Some avoided the rocks, however, and rushed him, drawing their swords and looking menacing. Unfortunately one of those that had survived was Fizzle Darkstorm himself.

The little goblin dusted himself off, looking murderous.

"So Thrall has finally sent the pet human, eh? How dare you! You will soon wish that you hadn't-"he was cut off by Naruto's impetuous laugh.

"Shut up, ya' ugly little swindler. I've got a lot of payback to dish out on you, considering the last time I met one of you freaks, you tricked me out of half my money! So just shut up and die!" Naruto bellowed, before he charged as well.

The first orc swiped at Naruto's face with his sword, grinning wildly. The blonde immediately concentrated his chakra outwards, forming the basis of the Earth style, the Kongou or the Diamond Skin. It was the same technique that Naruto had used against the Korikagus, but after several more days of training, coupled with Naruto's insane rate of growth, had strengthened it considerably. It wasn't perfect, but it was certainly enough to stop the dull, rusty blade of the Burning Blade cultist that was currently attempting to slice his head off.

As a result, the blade ricocheted off Naruto's face, causing the boy absolutely no damage at all. He broke the technique, and slammed his fist into the orc's face, knocking him backwards. He then drew Magni's Pride from its place on his back, and drove it into the orc's chest, killing him swiftly.

He conjured a clone to deal with the next orc, whom had appeared from behind, attempting to drive his long blade into Naruto's back. Naruto's clone appeared from thin air, grabbing the blade, and then smashing its foot into the cultist's face, launching him away. At the same time, Naruto drew a kunai, and threw it directly at the impish Fizzle, who had backed away towards the wall, glaring acidly at the fight.

Yelping in surprise, the goblin dodged the attack, before he began to form seals with his small hands at a rate that was slightly surprising to the blonde shinobi.

Fizzle bellowed, "Multiple Shadow Bolt!" It caused his hands to glow a deep purplish black with a poisonous green mixed in. Then the warlock swept his hand across the air in front of him, causing multiply spheres of black to shoot towards Naruto. As they neared him, Naruto could see that they were not spheres at all, but rather miniature skulls, their mouths open and laughing.

Not wanting to risk the effects of getting hit by one, he dodged under them, and then sprang at the goblin, who was already readying another jutsu.

This time, Fizzle cried, after savagely biting his thumb, "Summon: Imp!" Naruto stopped in surprise as the goblin then slammed his hand into the ground, causing a bright purplish light to erupt from the ground. Then, in a puff of purple smoke, the summon appeared in all its glory.

It had thin, bony limbs; a long snake-like tail; two bat-like wings protruding from its back; pointed, Goblish ears; and two luminous yellow eyes.

However, the fact that it shorter than Fizzle himself completely eliminated the threatening features that the creature possessed.

Naruto sweat-dropped.

"I'm supposed to fight that little pipsqueak…?" he muttered, his face twitching.

The imp apparently heard Naruto, and growled in anger,

"Little snot! You dare talk to the great Kablesh like that? I'll teach you a lesson!"The imp then raised a hand, and without forming anything resembling a seal, shot a ball of fire about the size of Naruto's head at the blonde.

Yelping in surprise, Naruto leapt to the side, avoiding the blast. Kablesh however, had already begun throwing others, grinning in a fashion much like the one that had summoned him was.

Stupid demon! How can he use jutsu without seals?

IT IS OBVIOUS, BRAT. HE DOES IT BECAUSE HE IS A DEMON. DO YOU THINK I HAD TIME TO MAKE SEALS WHEN ANNIHILATING YOUR VILLAGE?

Growling in anger, the blonde flashed through some seals.

"Katon: Goukakyuu no jutsu!" he shouted. A massive ball of fire erupted from his mouth, causing both Fizzle and Kablesh to pale slightly.

"Ha! Mine's bigger than yours!" Naruto said, smirking.

Fizzle yelped and leapt out of the way, while Kablesh did something fundamentally less intelligent. He began to throw balls of his own fire into the incoming blast, hoping to redirect it, or at least disperse it.

Play with fire, you get burned, right?

Kablesh screamed in agony as the fireball consumed him; it carried his scorched body through the air until it impacted the wall of the canyon, engulfing the area around it in flames.

Fizzle got up, shaken and furious, and began formed the seals for Shadow Bolts again. Naruto ducked beneath the bolts, and then flashed through more seals.

He struck the ground with his fist, crying out, "Doton: Jibeta Kasui (Ground Spike)!"

The earth beneath Fizzle suddenly grew soft, like sand. It grasped his feet, negating his ability to move.

Then, it erupted upwards, forming, a long, brutally sharp spike, which promptly impaled the horrible goblin. Gurgling in horror, Fizzle twitched for a few seconds, before his body grew still and silent.

Naruto flinched at the look on Fizzle's face, and the cruel manner in which he had killed him.

I'm a ninja…Killing's just part of the job, he thought to himself. He shook it off, looked around for any signs of survivors, and then finding none, went to retrieve the goblin's claw.

End Flashback

After completing that mission, Naruto had been sent on a few more, none that went outside Durotar. He delivered messages to people in Razor Hill and a small valley called the Valley of Trials, where a small encampment of orcs trained new recruits for the Horde.

But soon Thrall began to send Naruto on missions that he could not complete himself. As such, the Warchief began to force Naruto to work with other orcs, and on occasion whole groups of them. For the few first time, Naruto hadn't gotten along with them very well. He would constantly argue with the leader of the group, or if he was with only one, them.

But Naruto believed he had more of a right to, because they didn't exactly try to get along with him either.

But that changed.

Slowly, ever so slowly, the arguments got less and less frequent, to the point where he could work alongside the orcs with relative ease. There wasn't much camaraderie between him and the others, but they functioned, as a group should.

Of course, that didn't exactly guarantee success on the missions…

Flashback:

"What are we doing in this creepy place again? Spelunking?" Naruto griped, crossing his arms over his chest and glaring at the head orc, Golbarn.

"Your mouth is annoying, so shut it. We are here simply to gather a collection of hides from the Deviates that live in this place. Then we will leave. Is that too hard to grasp, human?" the heavy-set, red-haired, dark-green skinned orc returned, glaring at the blonde.

Naruto raised an eyebrow.

"Deviates?" he asked.

The orc nodded. "A species of reptile that lives within these caverns. They're cannibalistic creatures, as there isn't enough food down here for them to sustain their large numbers. They generally feed off other species of deviates, but occasionally do their own if food is particularly scarce. Their hides also make good armor, and the Warchief knows that the leatherworkers are running low on them. Due to the danger that this place possesses, he generally sends a group to collect them. The creatures are quite resistant to damage, hence why he wants their hides. The lower levels are also pray to a cult of druids called the Druids of the Fang. However, we agree ignore them, so they ignore us. They don't cause much problems for us nowadays, as their leaders were killed years ago, and they are only a shadow of their former selves." He said calmly.

Naruto nodded a little at the information, realizing that he hadn't paid much attention during the briefing. He had just been excited to see a part of the Barrens which he never seen before, the Wailing Caverns.

Thrall had assigned Naruto to the group that typically went to harvest the hides, which consisted of Golbarn, the leader, along with three other orcs, Morgak, Elmoy, and Torgok. They were strong fighters, apparently, and used to exploring the caverns.

Golbarn was a commanding and strict orc, whose demand for order within the group clashed with Naruto's unruliness. From the start, they had found themselves at odds with each other. With Golbarn almost constantly demanding Naruto's attention, while the blonde almost constantly ignoring Golbarn's orders in favor of doing what he though was better, it must have made for a very amusing sight to behold.

With Morgak, Elmoy and Torgok almost constantly snickering, it was not hard to see that.

They were creeping down through a small path in the walls of the rocks, where at the end a large group of deviates supposedly dwelled. Golbarn had mentioned that they went to that place every time, and the harvest was the best there.

They stopped just near the entrance, allowing Naruto to see inside. The boy blinked in wonder at the sight.

Large and small, purple and blue, sitting and walking, a huge crowd of reptilian beasts lay beyond, filling the cavern almost to the brim. They were all standing atop a ledge that looked down on the cavern, which was vaguely circular, with a large pool in the middle.

The deviates themselves varied in size and shape considerably. There were the long, snake-like ones that hovered on wings above the ground. In the small pool, he could see others swimming around, with long necks and flippers. And then there were the large, bipedal, blue and purple ones, that bore a shocking resemblance to the velociraptors Naruto had seen in picture books as a child. They even had the curved, hooked claw on the end of their feet, long straight tails, and elongated heads, mouths filled with dozens of sharp teeth.

"Those are raptors," he muttered to himself. His inner child was acting up, remembering the days he had dreamed of having a dinosaur for a pet, now realizing that he could make it possible.

"Yes, but they are considerably more ferocious than the ones that prowl the Barrens. Now, sit still, we need to plan out how we are going to approach this," Golbarn muttered, turning to the other three.

Naruto huffed in anger at being ignored, but leaned to listen in anyways.

"Morgak, seeing as how you are the best with a bow, will stay back here, and launch arrows at them. Elmoy and Torgok will come with the boy and I to fight them directly. There are many of them, however, while they are vicious, they scare easily, so if we take enough of them down, the rest will take off. After that, we will see where we are in terms of numbers. If we're short, I'll take the boy and hunt down some more," he muttered, then shot a glare back at Naruto, who scowled back at him.


Golbarn continued, "Now, before we get started, I want everyone to make sure that you are prepared to do this. Unlike last time, we cannot afford to be hasty in any decisions, so we must approach this in the best, most organized way possible. Morgak will begin, using his bow to startle them, and then Torgok will move in to clear out the initial set. I will follow, then Elmoy, then the boy, and we will-"

Suddenly, Elmoy, who had been sitting on the ground as he listened to Golbarn's orders, jumped up.

"Alright, lets do this! EEEEEELLLLLLLLMMMMOOOYYY! MMMMEEENNNNKKKKINNSS!" With that, the orc drew his axe and rushed into the cavern, bellowing his name again and again.

Naruto gaped, his jaw touching the slimy, damp ground.

"D-did…he j-just…"the boy asked, looking in astonishment up at Golbarn, who had buried his face in his hands, muttering something under his breath.

Morgak groaned.

"What the hell is wrong with that bastard! He does this every time! Was he dropped on his head as a child, or what?" the orc growled, readying his bow as he did.

"He saw some dumbass human do the same thing back during a battle. Apparently he thought it was cool, and started duplicating it," Golbarn muttered, drawing his sword.

"Alright, change of plans, just kill anything that moves…including Elmoy."

"Agreed." Two orcs and one boy muttered in unison.

End Flashback

He smiled a little at the memory. Somehow they had all managed to survive and get back, albeit a little worse for wear.

But moreover, Naruto had managed, somehow, to strike up a tentative friendship with the members of the group. He and Golbarn still argued every chance they got, but Naruto found himself enjoying it. The others had warmed up to Naruto's presence after seeing how he had handled Elmoy's charge, and though it was far from the camaraderie that he had had with the gnomes or the dwarves, Naruto was glad that he was finally making something that at least resembled friends.

Thrall was pleased that Naruto had formed such a bond with some of his people, and told Naruto as much during one of their training sessions. As such, the Warchief began pairing Naruto off with them more often, rather than just other random orcs that Thrall employed.

And slowly, things changed.

After he came back from missions, and was dead tired and incredibly hungry, Naruto found that restaurants no longer refused him service. They weren't pleased that he ate there, but they did nothing to stop him from entering and ordering something to eat.

He became quickly attached to one particular restaurant, called Sarjak's, which sold (to Naruto's immense delight) a dish called "Gorran'ya Loon'des", which was apparently Orcish for "Most Excellent Noodles".

The dish resembled ramen in taste, texture, and appearance, and was as good as the ramen at Ichiraku's and the noodles at Stormwind's Noodles. The owner of the shop, an older orc named Sarjak, who had a bushy beard and small, grey eyes, had initially been as cold as the others towards him. However, as Naruto started stopping there after and sometimes before missions, Sarjak slowly eased up on the boy, even engaging him in small talk at points.

But that was only one of a compound of things.

In the streets, passing orcs no longer went out of their way to knock into him. He no longer received the cold glares or disgusted glances. The people of Orgrimmar began to accept Naruto's presence, and of how great an asset he was to the Horde.

Just like home, he had thought, smiling at little.

It felt great. It felt amazing that after all the hard work he had done, people were finally recognizing him for being more than a nuisance. He knew that he had slowly achieved the same status in Konoha through his actions in the Chuunin Exam, the retrieval of Tsunade, and the attempted retrieval of Sasuke.

But Naruto's thoughts slowly became less and less coherent as he drifted off to sleep. His final conscious thoughts were of Sakura and Kira, and the promises he had made to both of them.

"You've got to be kidding me…" Naruto moaned, looking with absolute dread as he stared down the slope of a hill, towards a small clustering of houses near the shoreline.

Golbarn snorted, "I'm not a big fan either, brat, but we don't have a choice," he said, starting down the slope.

Naruto stared after him, but followed anyways; hefting the heavy load he was carrying up from where it had slipped off during their walk. This was definitely not his idea of a good mission.

It wasn't that the mission was hard or anything, as it was only a simple delivery mission, but the place that they were delivering to was another story.

Ratchet.

Or, as Naruto liked to think of it, "The Green Hell".

Though it was the first time Naruto had been there, its reputation was somewhat notorious. There was also the fact that almost its entire population (4200) was comprised of goblins.

Naruto shuddered just thinking about it.

Four thousand and two hundred ways to have my money taken, he thought, sweat dropping.

Golbarn seemed to share his sentiments, too. Never was there a time when a goblin gave something out at a normal price. They were notorious swindlers among all the races, not just humans.

Though the goblins had supposedly been allies of the Horde at one point or another, after the Horde was defeated during one of the Great Wars, the goblins retreated, and took a neutral stance in the last Great War. They sold weapons (highly dangerous to both the opponent and the user), and helped build new technologies for both sides.

They also apparently had a fierce rivalry with the gnomes, to the point where they had actively competed against the little men to show off their technologies. Naruto had heard talk of a racing track far to the south of the Barrens, in a place called the Thousand Needles, where goblins and gnomes continually built and rebuilt racing devices to prove to one another that they are the better engineers.

From what he had also heard, the goblins' racing machines generally exploded before the race was over, and the gnomes always left theirs unfinished, moving on to another project before it was completed.

How can two types of people be so alike…and still so different? He thought. It applied not only to the goblins and the gnomes, but also to the orcs and the humans.

Maybe it's like what Iruka-sensei used to say…Likes repel or something? Opposite attract? Something like that, I suppose.

"Keep up, brat! I want to get out of this place as fast as possible. It limits their chances to try and hook you onto their products," grunted Golbarn, glaring at Naruto.

They had just entered Ratchet proper, which reminded Naruto slightly of the Wave country, except all its denizens were a head shorter than him, and poisonous green.

In front of them were a series of buildings with signs hanging just above the doorways, advertising what they sold primarily. In front of them, long tables had been set up, displaying many goods of different sorts, with goblin merchants standing out in front, calling to the various passerby of the wares they sold.

Naruto also noticed that Golbarn wasn't the only orc in the city, as he saw many walking down the streets, either avoiding getting too close to the little money-grubbers, or listening intently to the merchant's explanation of what they had.

Poor guys…he thought, wincing as he heard one of the goblins rattle off a series of prices at a rate that no human could hope to manage, further confusing the hapless orcs that they had enthralled.

"Be on your guard, brat. They move in quickly, and before you know it, they've got you…"Golbarn muttered, looking around suspiciously.

Naruto quickened his place slightly, so that he now stood slightly in front of Golbarn.

Big mistake.

Out of nowhere, a greenish blur suddenly flashed out in front of him, causing him to immediately stop, nearly falling over as he did. He looked down, and saw a brilliant pair of white, pointed teeth set inside the grinning mouth of a goblin that wore purplish robes and a turban.

"Why hello, my dear possible customer! May in interest you in quite possibly the finest bags that you will ever find on this sun-baked rock?" the goblin simpered, smiling broadly at him.

Naruto took a few steps back, blinking rapidly.

"Wha- uhm…I think I'm fine…really," he said, rubbing the back of his head, and slowly backing away.

The goblin's smile didn't falter for a second as he said, "Come now, my friend! I am simply asking you to take a look! There is no obligation whatsoever, of course, but I do believe that you will never find a better price for these one-of-a-kind kodo hide bags! What harm is there is looking, honored customer?"

Naruto blinked rapidly, trying to find a way out of it. He looked over at Golbarn, who was shaking his head rapidly and pointing ahead. He looked back at the goblin, who was still smiling pleasantly, and Naruto began to feel oddly at ease with the smile.

"Erm…I guess one look won't hurt…"he said, smiling a little.

The merchant smiled even more brightly. Golbarn groaned.

"Geez, sorry! I couldn't help it! He was just so…friendly! How could I say no?" Naruto griped as they both left the goblin's shop, nearly two-dozen silvers lighter and Naruto carrying a kodo hide backpack and weapons pouch. The boy was looking sheepish and annoyed that he had been so naïve.

"Easily, you start by saying "n" and then "o" that spells "no", so it isn't that hard!" growled Golbarn.

They crested a hill, still griping, before Golbarn stopped and pointed to their destination.

"There," he said, "That's the Ratchet division of the Goblin Engineering Guild. That's where we are delivering our package."

Naruto nodded, and they continued towards it. They stopped briefly outside to check with the two guards that stood on either side of the door, whispering to each other. They stopped whispering to speak with Golbarn, but resumed after they had entered, and Naruto could swear he heard the words "stinky human" uttered by one.

The room they entered was not completely foreign to Naruto. In fact, it resembled a cross between Mekkatorque's Laboratory and the Library in Ironforge. It was not very big, probably only a couple dozen square feet, and on both sides of the room were large bookcases. The bookcases were stuffed from top to bottom with books, so much so that some had been placed on their sides at the very edge of the shelves. The room had a greenish glow to it, emanating from the strange green fire that burned in a fireplace in a small gap in the bookshelf.

In between the books, there were several circular tables covered in various papers and open books, as well as tools- wrenches, soldering irons, screwdrivers, and the like. At the very end there was a small staircase that led up to a higher point in the room, where more books had been stuffed.

Goblins sat at the tables, fiddling with the tools, writing in the books and on the papers, or reading books that they must have taken off the shelf. Other goblins were climbing on long ladders to reach books far out of their reach, so focused in their searching that they didn't noticed Naruto and Golbarn's arrival.

Save one, that is.

"Ahh, you are Thrall's men, yes? Come here, I suspect you have my parts? Eh?" said an aged goblin that was leaning over the railing at the top of the stairs, watching them. The goblin was wrinkly, his nose crooked and bent, his ears drooping slightly, and a pair of spectacles was perched on the end of his nose. He had no facial hair, but then again, Naruto had never seen a male goblin with hair, period.

Golbarn nodded. "Yes, that's us," he said.

He motioned to Naruto, who nodded, and took off the heavy pack that he had been lugging around. Strapped to his backpack was a large crate with foreign markings on the side that looked vaguely familiar. When he pulled off the straps securing the crate to his backpack, he lifted it off and slammed it on the ground, causing the room to vibrate, and several goblins to look up in annoyance.

"Careful you little urchin! Those are very important! Can't you see it says fragile?" the goblin groused, hobbling down the stairs and glaring at Naruto.

Naruto stuck his tongue out at the goblin, who glared in return, but said nothing else as he came to the crate. He motioned to one of the younger goblins, who came forwards with a crowbar. He pried the top open, and the contents were exposed to the greenish light of the room.

Inside were dozens of gears and random parts, all completely baffling to the blonde, but from the looks of childish glee on the faces of the goblins, they must have been important.

"Finally!" the aged goblin said, snickering, "these will help me complete my new invention! Let's see those fools at the Venture Co. try and beat this!"

Ignoring the goblin's continued cackling, Naruto turned to Golbarn.

"What's the Venture Co.? I think I've heard of it, but why's that old bat going on about it?"

Golbarn opened his mouth to respond, but apparently the old goblin had heard Naruto, and so answered for him.

"They're a bunch of cheating, stealing, lazy slobs, that's what! They not only employ gnomes of all people, but they steal people's ideas!" the goblin roared. He hobbled towards one of the tables, and after a bit of searching came back, clutching a rolled up piece of paper in his hand.

He shoved the paper at Naruto, who unfurled it and looked at the contents.

It was, from what Naruto could tell, a large robot. Unlike the vaguely human ones that he had seen in Gnomeregan, this one resembled the nothing like a human. They were huge and bulky, with massive claws on both sides, a large, rectangular body attached to rolling tank treads. It had a head-like structure where it was apparently operated from, and it seemed to be immensely large, as it had a comparison chart to a goblin.

"My brother invented this! He drew up those plans, and hoped to get into the Venture Company's good graces by building that for them. What do they do? They take the blue prints from him, kill him, and then have a slimy little gnome build it! If it weren't for the fact that the owner of the company makes huge donations to our Guild, I would do something about it!" the goblin ranted, snatching the plans back from Naruto before hobbling away, still muttering.

Naruto sweat dropped.

These guys are crazy… he thought.

Golbarn took this time to clear his throat and look at the goblin squarely in the eye.

"If that is all, then we will collect our payment and leave," he said.

The aged goblin pushed up his spectacles, blinking shrewdly at the orc.

"Payment…yes…yes…of course…payment…"he said evasively, shuffling a little farther away from the fearsome looking orc.

Golbarn groaned, muttering something about goblins under his breath that Naruto didn't quite catch.

The old goblin searched for a few minutes, and then announced, "Eureka!"

He grabbed a large sack of leather from beneath one of the tables, then made his way back towards the only two in the room that weren't goblins. The dropped the sack in front of Naruto, and then opened it, revealing a mountain of copper coins.

"Now let's see, just so you don't fleece me, I will count out how much I owe you myself. Very well…one…two…three…four…"he continued counting, causing Naruto to blink and look at Golbarn, who groaned.

"Isn't he supposed to give us like…ten gold or something?" Naruto asked.

Golbarn just nodded.

"Ah, so you've returned again, Rexxar," Thrall said, smiling.

The massive half-orc grunted, the huge bear by his side making a similar noise. Rexxar sat down on the floor in front of Thrall, which prompted the Warchief to stand and sit by him, as a formality of showing that he considered Rexxar to be his equal.

"What news do you bring, then?" he asked.

Rexxar took a swig from the goblet of wine that had been set out for him, and said huskily, "Much news…and it concerns our former Tauren allies."

Thrall frowned, "They will always be our allies, Rexxar, you know the circumstances that Cairn left under were far better than the ones that Vol'jin and Sylvanas did."

Rexxar nodded absently, stroking the head of his bear companion. The huge bear, Misha, was his constant companion, a spirit bear from the wilds of Kalimdor that Rexxar had befriended long ago.

"Perhaps…but I believe the circumstances were not as they appear. You know that in the years following the Horde's destruction, Cairn has grown distant, and has refused aid of yours on many occasions. I fear that they are fighting a losing battle against an enemy that is too great for one race to stop." Rexxar said.

"It is possible…but what is happening?" Thrall asked calmly, sipping some wine himself.

"The wild plains of Mulgore burn and wilt, the spirits of the earth that once flourished in the Stonetalons now dwindle and die in agony. The unnatural force that plagues them, the greed of earthly beings, is causing their world to crumble. Our aid is needed, but Cairn will not answer it." Rexxar answered.

"That is troubling indeed…then we must give it even if he does not ask. I have someone who can help, I think," Thrall said, finishing the drink.

"You speak of the human, I suspect. His spirit is strong, untamed. He has not submitted to your will yet, has he?" Rexxar said, grinning a little. The grin was horrifying to behold, but Thrall was used to it.

"No, I don't think he will ever. He does not seem to be that type of person. He completes the missions I give him for one reason, and that is either to finally gain my attention for the matter that he originally came here for, or more recently, to gain a better standing with my people. He is achieving both quite admirably. He bows to no one."

"You are correct. Are you not pleased that I spared his life?" Rexxar asked.

"I am very pleased. He is a quick learner, and I believe that he may master the Earth to a point were I can move him onto the Wind, or perhaps the Fire style in only a few short weeks," Thrall returned. The huge orc poured himself and his companion more wine, before Thrall spoke again.

"I have almost forgotten your true reason for being here. What information do you have on Blackhand's Horde?" The final two words were spoken low and menacingly, laced with barely restrained anger.

"Not much…his forces continued to grow, and I believe that he threatens the remaining stability of the Horde. Doubtless, as long as these things remain as they are, your people will grow unsatisfied with your ruling. The Imposter will no doubt use this to his advantage, promising victory and power, things that cannot be given so easily. You must steel yourself. The world is in chaos, and you must take care not to fall pray to it as well. Everything, I believe, will right itself in time."

Thrall sighed, and nodded at his friend's words. There wasn't really anything he could do at this point, so he would heed Rexxar's words, and do what he could to ensure the safety of his people.

"I thank you, Rexxar. These are troubling times, and I can only remain steadfast for so long. When he returns, I will brief him on this mission. The Tauren will once again become our allies, and soon, I hope, the Horde may be repaired to the glory it once was," Thrall said tiredly, smiling at Rexxar.

Rexxar nodded and stood, Misha doing so as well.

"It would be in your best interests to make it even greater than it was previously, my friend, for there will be much darkness before the light of dawn shines through."

The half-orc turned, and lumbered from the room, leaving Thrall to ponder, his blue eyes staring intently after the Champion of the Horde.

The wild plains of Mulgore were certainly a sight to behold.

To a visitor, it was a welcome change to the boiling heat of the Barrens to the east, with a soft, cool breeze ruffling the delicate, green grass that covered the mighty plains. Though trees were almost as scarce as in the Barrens, they were stronger and taller, covered in thick layers of pine needles.

The plains themselves were an endless sea of green that rippled in the wind, dotted occasionally with small lakes or ponds, the water clear and placid. In the ponds a variety of fish swam freely, unbothered by anything in the world above.

The animals too, were a sight to behold. From the elegant plainstriders, to the fierce mountain lions and the huge, lumbering kodo. But that was just the tip of the iceberg of life in the fresh, climatic ecosystem that was Mulgore.

Tucked away in a valley surrounded by huge mountains, it was no wonder that it was so drastically different from the scorched plains that were the Barrens. With a cooling wind blowing down on it almost constantly, the denizens enjoyed very little hot weather, but notoriously cold winters that froze the lakes and covered the area in mounds of snow. It was for that reason that many of the creatures were mammals, possessing thick fur to last the harsh winters, while others went into hibernation deep in the surrounding Stonetalon Mountains.

Mulgore was a place that most could only dream about. A place of peace and rest, where it would seem that one bore no obligations, and could live life to whatever standards wanted.

However…

If one looked closer, to the northern side of the valley, tucked in the rocks and boulders at the foot of the larger mountains, one would find that Mulgore was not so peaceful after all.

"GET MOVING, YOU ANNOYING LITTLE ANTS! WE NEED TO DOUBLE PRODUCTION IN THE NEXT WEEK BEFORE THE BOSS GETS HERE, SO I DON'T WANNA SEE ANY O' YA STOPPING UNTIL I SAY SO!"

Several goblins and a handful of gnolls sped up at the booming of the voice, working harder to do whatever job they were assigned.

A gargantuan shape moved among the scurrying lesser beings, standing entire body lengths taller than any goblin. Its skin was a dull tan color, thick and leathery stretched taught over massive muscular arms and legs. The creature had a huge, egg-shaped head, with a small white horn sticking out from the forehead. Its eyes were small and beady, and its mouth was open and constantly yelling at anything that was unfortunate to get in its path.

"YOU, MOVE FASTER! DO YOU THINK MONEY GROWS ON TREES? AND YOU! KEEP SAWING; WE NEED ALL OF THOSE EYESORE TREES DOWN AND SECTIONED BY TOMORROW! KEEP DIGGING, YOU FOOL! DO YOU THINK THAT YOU WILL FIND IRON JUST SITTING ON THE GRASS? HA!"

The ogre grinned triumphantly at his work. The entire team was working faster than ever, which meant that if all went well, the Boss would be quite impressed when he came to check up on the work site next week.

Grindock the Overseer, after nearly ten years of digging or felling trees, had finally been promoted to a position that he had only dreamed of before.

Head Foreman of the Northern Mulgore and Southern Stonetalon mine and wood factory.

He now ordered rather than followed orders, and it was incredibly invigorating to see the fear in the workers' eyes when he approached. He had built his reputation up to the point where he was sure that if he continued working as he did, the Boss would have no choice but to promote him again, maybe to even an executive of the entire area!

He drooled at the thought.

The work site that he had been assigned was the largest in all of Mulgore. There were several other mines in the area, but his doubled as a mine and a tree felling area. It had been established only three years ago, and because of the convenience that the site offered, as it was close to the Stonetalons, they had dug a tunnel through the mountain, and established a second site on the other side.

Having been part of the dig team, Grindock had obviously been recognized as one of the greater creatures, as the Boss had given him the promotion just after the tunnel had been finished.

He was sure that it didn't have anything to do with the fact that the previous foreman had died in a cave in during the final days of the construction.

He grinned again as he oversaw the work, before plopping down on a massive wooden chair that he had ordered built for himself. He picked up a haunch of meat that lay on a platter on the arm of the chair, and tore into it hungrily.

Ordering people around sure was hard work!

He didn't notice the approach of another until they were right next to the chair, staring up at him with cold, amber eyes.

"You certainly are a natural at doing that, aren't you?" the stranger spoke smoothly.

Grindock glared down at the person, having already recognized the voice.

"OF COURSE I AM! THERE ISN'T ANYONE HERE THAT COULD DO THIS JOB AS WELL AS I!" he boomed, ripping off another chunk of meat.

The stranger raised a disgusted eyebrow.

"Maybe…but the Boss isn't going to be pleased if he sees that you are so…behind." The stranger commented, observing the work with a faux interest.

Grindock snorted.

"YOU DON'T KNOW A THING, FOOL. YOU JOB ISN'T TO TELL ME HOW TO DO MINE, BUT TO KEEP THOSE STUPID COWS FROM DOING ANYTHING ABOUT IT! SO GO BACK TO THAT COWPEN AND MILK, OR WHATEVER YOU BLASTED COWS DO,"

The stranger, said nothing at first, and then turned to leave. As he drifted back into the trees, he spoke once more.

"I was hired to keep you in line, pig. His highness the Trade Prince isn't tolerant of those who disobey their superiors."

"WHEN MY SUPERIOR ARRIVES, I'LL BE SURE TO REMEMBER THAT, COW."

The stranger scoffed, then turned, and disappeared into the remaining shadows of the dwindling number of trees.

Done! YAY! I SO HAPPY!

Sorry again about the pseudo-lateness. This chapter should have either been longer or gotten out quicker, but I found the haziness of the turkey preventing me from doing much on Thursday and Friday.

The next chapter will be out around this time next week, as usual.

Now, for the important stuff.

I hope you guys enjoyed my parody of Leroy Jenkins. For those who don't know what that is, simply go to Google and type in "Leroy Jenkins video" and watch the video that you find. It's fake, but hilarious, and I recommend seeing it, or else the joke isn't as funny.

Now, reviewer answers:

Kaaera- Just wait and see, my friend! Keep reading, and all will be revealed (but not for a long time).

Slimeman- I don't know, Tsunade is strong, I'll grant you that, but in this, using the style that he has, Thrall is strong as well. Maybe he can't cause the massive destruction that Tsunade can, but she can only blow up buildings because she releases her chakra in a sort of shotgun attack at the moment of impact. Thrall is immensely strong, and while he can't cause that much destruction, he can certainly generate as much force as Tsunade to hammer an opponent through a wall. Happy Thanksgiving to you too!

Nantukoprime- Nope, never read Lord of the Clans, but it sounds pretty cool.

Inugami- See Slimeman's answer, that will explain it.

The White Dwarf- I plan for him to do the totems, maybe, but that will come later.

Tatsu- Nice questions, I'll try to answer them as best I can.

I think that this is a very good growth rate. I can't say how to do better, unfortunately, since I myself haven't even reached 60. I have a level 40, but I always create new characters because I get bored with one.

I play a Rogue as my main, level 40 undead.

You got the first one right, but the others are a little iffy.

My, you are the first to even suggest that! Wait and see!

How to explain this without giving away spoilers…well, I don't think I can, but here's a little hint. The Scarlet Crusade isn't so different from the Burning Legion.

As for my email, it's even though I rarely check it.

Well, that seems to be everything, until next time.

General Grievous

Spellbook-

Doton: Tsuchidageki (Earth Shock)- Releases a blast of chakra which can shatter rock easily, and can even break bone. It requires the person to be very close to their target.

Multiple Shadow Bolt- Variant of Shadow Bolt, it fires many bolts of demonic chakra, shaped like skulls, that can damage opponents severely.

Summon: Imp- Summons and demonic imp from the darkest pits of Hell. Requires a blood contract with that particular imp, rather than simply that imp species.

Doton: Jibeta Kasui (Ground Spike)- Makes the earth beneath ones opponent soft, entrapping them, then burst upwards, forming an immensely sharp spike that impales an opponent.

Kongou- The basis of the Earth style, called the Diamond Skin. It makes a person almost impervious to physical damage, and requires an immense constitution as well as fine chakra control. It can be broken, but not very easily.

Bestiary-

Fizzle Darkstorm (Humanoid)- A goblin that is loyal to the Burning Blade, a sect of the Burning Legion. A skilled warlock (demon caster), he fights dirty and has a loud-mouthed imp to fight his battles.

Deviate Stalker, Ravager, Venomwing, Lurker (Beast) (Elite)- Members of a genus of reptile that inhabits the deeper depths of the world, the Deviates are strong and durable. They are somewhat easy to scare, and due to the lack of food in the caves, are largely cannibalistic, feeding off species of Deviates, as well as their own.

Grindock the Overseer (Humanoid)(Elite)(Original)- A ruthless ogre in charge of the Venture Co. mining operations in Northern Mulgore and southern Stonetalon. Not much else is known about him, or his powers.