"The fuck? I thought you said this place had been burned down?" frowned Barret.
"Yeah, what is going on?" frowned Yuffie.
Red and Aeris kept silent but looked at Tifa and Naruto. The two in question were looking upon the sight with confused and suspicious looks. There in front of the group stood Nibelheim. It looked exactly like it did five years ago. "I don't understand. I remember the entire town being burned to the ground. Right Naruto-kun?" said Tifa so confused.
Naruto narrowed his eyes. He walked towards the inn. The others followed behind him not liking the look in his eyes. Walking into the inn, Naruto walked up the counter. "Hello sir, how may I help you?" smiled the man.
"How long have you lived here?" asked Naruto.
"Me? I have lived here for all my life-" the man never finished when Naruto grabbed him by the throat and tossed him in to the far wall just as the others entered. Tifa and Aeris gasped in shock as Naruto brought his foot down upon the man's leg and a loud crack filled the air. The man started to scream in pain as he clutched his broken leg. "The fuck you doing man?" yelled Barret pointing his gun at Naruto.
In a blink of an eye Naruto had his ninjato at the man's neck. The tip dug deep enough to draw a drop of blood. The innkeeper started to sweat in fear momentarily forgetting his pain. "How long have you lived here?" asked Naruto again.
"Five years! Five years!" yelled the man.
"Five years? I remember the town being burnt to the ground. What happened?" demanded Naruto. The others stood down. Barret lowered his arm finally understanding what Naruto was doing.
The man started to pant heavily. He gulped nervously as the tip dug further into his skin. "I am an employee of Shinra. We all are! After the town burned down to the ground they immediately rebuilt the town and the Mako Reactor. Something about covering up some incident that occurred. I don't know any more then that. Please don't kill me," begged the man crying heavily.
Naruto sheathed his blade. A kick to the man's temple knocked him out cold. Aeris kneeled down next to the man and started to heal his broken leg. "That was scary," gulped Yuffie hiding behind Barret.
"I can't believe they went through such great lengths to hide what had happened here. Is Shinra really so desperate to cover up what happened with Sephiroth?" said Red with a shake of his head.
"He was the pride of Shinra. Many people joined Shinra in hopes of becoming a great hero like Sephiroth. If the public were to learn that the greatest hero in the world had gone rogue and is now the world's greatest enemy. People would lose faith in Shinra," explained Naruto.
"Sons of bitches. Just when I thought they couldn't sink any lower," scowled Barret.
Tifa noticed a confused look in Naruto's eyes. "What is it Naruto-kun?"
"He said that they rebuilt the town and the Mako Reactor. Sephiroth had burned the village to the ground claiming them to be traitors. But why would he destroy the Mako Reactor?" It didn't make sense. Sephiroth wouldn't waste time destroying a Mako Reactor. Had it been destroyed when the two of them fought? That was a possibility. He would need to think further on the matter.
Naruto moved Aeris out of the way and slapped the man awake. The man woke up groaning. His eyes widened in fear as he found Naruto kneeling down in front of him with a cold look. "After Shinra rebuilt the town. Did they do anything else?"
The man gulped. "I don't know." Naruto narrowed his eyes. "I-I remember Professor Hojo coming here for a short while. He stayed in the Shinra Mansion the entire time but didn't stay long. Also, there was a body they found outside the destroyed Mako Reactor. Some member of SOLDIER but the person was dead. Hojo seemed really upset by that."
"Arigato." A fist to the face sent the man back into blackness. Aeris had a sad look in her eyes. That member of SOLDIER had to be Zack. Naruto looked at Aeris. She gave him a small smile before leaving the inn wanting to be alone for a bit. Tifa left to go talk with Aeris and comfort her. "So this whole town is filled with Shinra? That gives me a bad feeling," said Barret looking around paranoid.
"I am inclined to agree. Staying here wouldn't be wise," said Red.
"The four of us are going to check out that mansion. We may be able to find some clues there," said Naruto.
Shinra Mansion
Barret grumbled as he walked through the mansion. This place gave him the fucking creeps. He kicked down a door and entered a room full of dust and cobwebs. "Fucking waste of time." Barret walked over to a table and took a look at some of the papers. Nothing. The sound of something moving across the ground made Barret spin around and he started to fire his gun.
When he stopped he carefully walked over to see what he had shot. There lying on the ground dead was a raccoon. "Stupid son of a bitch. Should have known better then to sneak up on me." Barret turned around and gave a girlish scream as he almost ran into Naruto. Naruto stood there looking at him with a hint of curiosity. The man quickly calmed down and spoke with a deep voice trying to play off that scream. "The fucking you doing? You want to end up dead like that coon?"
"I heard gun fire. I assumed you were in trouble," said Naruto.
"Even if I was I can handle myself. Don't need some blondie running to my rescue," grunted Barret. To emphasize his point he punched the wall and smirked. Naruto frowned as he walked up to the wall. Raising his hand, he knocked on it and heard a hollow sound. "The fuck you doing now?"
Naruto held out his right hand. A Rasengan formed in it and Barret raised an eyebrow. Naruto slammed the Rasengan into the wall. The wall exploded and Barret raised his arms to protect his face from the dust and debris. Barret lowered his arms to see Naruto standing in a large hole. "Shit. What do you think is down there?" asked Barret coming up besides Naruto.
A long winding stairwell led to a hidden basement beneath the mansion. "You go get the others while I check it out." Naruto didn't wait for Barret to answer as he leapt off the edge and fell straight down. Barret grumbled as he ran off looking for the others. Naruto hit the ground in a crouch. He stood up and looked straight down the hallway to see a door at the end of it. This looked like a place Orochimaru would use to do forbidden experiments.
As Naruto walked towards the door at the end of the hall, he sensed another presence down here. It held a very unique chakra signature. Very…chaotic. Naruto turned to see a second door a few feet away from the first. The presence was behind that door. He grabbed the knob, and with a hard yank completely broke it off. The door easily slid open and Naruto walked in to see a bunch of coffins. A curious look appeared in his eyes as he saw the coffin in the middle of the room shaking. Naruto lifted the lid off to see a man inside. Or what he thought to be a man. The man's eyes snapped open and he sat up. "Who are you?"
"Uzumaki Naruto. You?"
"Why do you disturb my slumber?"
"Looking for any clues I can find to help my hunt for Sephiroth." This seemed to spark the man's interest as he stood up. He looked down upon Naruto. "You know of Sephiroth?" asked the man.
Naruto gave him an emotionless look that the man returned. "Your name. I don't trade knowledge with people I don't know."
"Vincent Valentine."
"Sephiroth is trying to destroy the world and I wish to stop him. Do you know where I might be able to find him?"
Vincent's eyes narrowed, "why would Sephiroth betray Shinra?"
Naruto gave Vincent a blank look. Vincent relented to Naruto's gaze, "I have been sleeping to repent for my sins. I am afraid that I do not know where you can find him."
A nod came from Naruto and he began to tell Vincent the story of what happened in Nibelheim five years ago. Vincent seemed to grow more gloomy with each passing word. Naruto finished his story to see a dark look in Vincent's eyes. "I see. Sephiroth must have discovered the secrets of this place. More sins have been added onto me. My nightmares shall grow." Vincent was about to go back into his coffin, but Naruto stopped him.
"Tell me what you know." It wasn't a request or question. Naruto had a look in his eyes that said he wouldn't be leaving until he had what he wanted.
Vincent relented. "Tell me do you know Lucrecia?"
"No."
"She was the mother of Sephiroth. The one to give birth to him."
"Wait a fucking moment. I thought that Jenova bitch was his mother. And who the fuck are you?" yelled Barret entering the room followed by Yuffie and Red.
Vincent glanced at the three before looking at Naruto who nodded to show they were with him. "That is not completely true, just a theory. But the woman who gave birth to him was Lucrecia. Beautiful Lucrecia."
"Human experiment," said Naruto.
"Hai. That was my sin. I let the one I loved, respected the most, face the worse."
"Your punishment is too sleep? That's weird," blinked Yuffie. Vincent didn't say anything to that comment.
"Let me sleep," said Vincent climbing back into his coffin.
"Weird guy," frowned Barret. Yuffie nodded in agreement. Naruto glanced at the coffin one more time before leaving the room. The group headed into the other room to find hundreds of books. Barret and Yuffie groaned at the sight. If Naruto asked them to read the books they were going to make a run for it.
"I don't believe this will help us find Sephiroth," stated Red.
Naruto nodded, "I agree. But that doesn't mean we should leave this here for anyone else to find. I will make sure to get rid of this while you all head back out. Go check on Aeris and Tifa."
"Don't take too long. I am getting sick of this damn place," grumbled Barret.
"Me too. No good materia here," nodded Yuffie. Naruto formed a set of three hand seals and began to concentrate deeply. Out of the ground rose five clones made of earth. If he still had the Kyuubi in him he would have created a bunch of Kage Bunshin to read all the books. But he would just have to make do with this. "Sort and seal the books up in storage scrolls. Then meet back up with me when done." The clones nodded and Naruto formed a hand seal disappearing in a swirl of leaves.
Mount Nibelheim
Aeris glanced at Naruto before staring at the fire. He had a black book in his hands that he had been reading since they made camp. She didn't know what was in the book, but it seemed to spark a great deal of interest in Naruto. However, that isn't why she kept looking at him. Her thoughts were on what happened earlier, when he had just ruthlessly harmed that man. Just for a bit of information. Granted that information told them a lot, but still. Naruto shouldn't have acted so cruel. She glanced at him and flushed a bit as she saw him staring at her curiously. "Is there something you wish to talk to me about?" asked Naruto closing the book. He had a eidetic memory so didn't need to mark his page.
"It's nothing." Naruto continued to look at her. Aeris shifted uncomfortably. "Was it really necessary to go to such lengths to obtain that knowledge from that innkeeper?"
Naruto tilted his head, "pain is the best way to make someone talk. Fear of more pain is an even better method."
"I realize that. Especially after today," said Aeris mumbling that last part. "Still. What you did was cruel and you did it to an innocent man. Just because he works for Shinra doesn't make him evil."
"I agree," Naruto turned to look at Tifa. Barret and Yuffie were fast asleep and Red had decided to stay out of the conversation. "If there is one thing that I learned from the elders in Cosmo Canyon it is that all life is precious. Seeing you treat that man like that, I felt like you were the bad guy," whispered Aeris.
He looked at Tifa to see that she had a look that said she thought the same thing. For the first time, Naruto felt guilty over his actions. If there were any people in this world that he didn't want to see him as a bad guy or monster it was them. "Gomen." Tifa and Aeris saw the apologetic look in Naruto's eyes. "I'll try to refrain from such actions in the future," said Naruto meeting both women's eyes.
"Arigato Naruto-kun," smiled Aeris. Tifa beamed as well. Naruto felt much better knowing that they had forgiven him. A smile almost appeared behind his mask but he sensed something.
He narrowed his eyes and suddenly stood up turning to look in the direction of Nibelheim. Both women tensed knowing that when Naruto did that it meant someone or something was close by.
Out of the darkness, a tall man with a red cape and a gauntlet for a hand walked towards them. Naruto put his hand down. Aeris and Tifa relaxed a bit but were still curious to know who this man is. "You are going after Sephiroth," spoke the man.
"Hai," answered Naruto.
"Are you chasing after Hojo as well?"
"The one who helped create Sephiroth?" Vincent nodded. "No, but if he created Sephiroth then we will no doubt cross his path," said Naruto. A contemplative look appeared in Vincent's eyes. "I would like to join your group. Being a former member of the Turks I may be of some use to you," said Vincent.
Naruto nodded, "you are welcome to join." A grateful nod came from Vincent as he took a seat next to Naruto. Aeris and Tifa looked at Naruto and Vincent then looked at each other. Taking one last look at the two men, the two women giggled. The two men in question gave them identical blank looks. That was too much, the two women started to laugh heavily waking up Barret who started to let loose a series of curses.
Mt. Nibel Mako Reactor
"They must have rebuilt this very well. It looks exactly the same," said Tifa.
"Shinra is very efficient. At least when it comes to hiding things," said Vincent knowingly.
Naruto walked around the Reactor taking a close look at it. Vincent was right. Shinra had built an exact replica of the Mako Reactor. There was absolutely no way to tell this was a copy unless one knew about Jenova being inside the first one that was not in this second one. He kneeled down touching the soil but that had been replanted as well. No signs of Mako infection at all. He stood back up and walked back over to the others. "Nothing," he said.
"Hmm. Do we head back to Nibelheim?" asked Aeris.
"No. Past these mountains is another town. It is possible we can find information there," said Naruto.
The group of four continued to make their trek through the mountain. It may have been five years, but Naruto and Tifa still knew there way through the mountain. Tifa seemed to be the better guide as she took them into a cave that would take them right through the mountain instead of around it. "Have to be careful. A powerful monster, lives in here. The town used to call it the Materia Keeper. It supposedly lives near the Mako mines," warned Tifa.
"Does it really exist?" asked Aeris curiously.
"Don't know," shrugged Tifa. "No one who has seen it has ever come back alive."
"How did the rumor get started? If no one who sees it lives, then how did the rumor start," pointed out Naruto. Tifa couldn't answer that and Aeris giggled.
Vincent looked ahead, "it seems we will be the first to see it and live. It is blocking our path." The group looked ahead to see a sixteen foot tall green scorpion blocking the exit out of the cave. Worse yet, the scorpion looked right in there direction.
It started to charge right towards them. Vincent pulled out his gun and started to fire at the scorpion. It's scales were stronger then stone and most of the bullets bounced off harmlessly. A few managed to chip the scales. Vincent dived out of the way as it tried to spear him through with its pincers.
Tifa charged forward while it focused on Vincent. No longer did she wear a pair of brown gloves, but black gloves with built in steel knuckles. She jumped up and punched the Materia Keeper right in its face. The blow was so powerful that the large scorpion stumbled a bit. Tifa was about to follow through, but it recovered faster then she expected. It spun with great speed and swatted her aside as if she were a tiny fly. She flipped in mid-air and landed on her feet in a crouch. A look of pain appeared in her eyes as she fell to a knee. That felt like getting hit by a piece of iron.
Naruto gathered up his magic and started to fire a barrage of fire spells at the monster. The fire spells all gather around the monster before Naruto brought his hand up and closed his fist. All the fire started to converge, swallowing the scorpion up in a large ball of fire. The ball of fire continued to grow and grow until it exploded. "That should do it," smiled Aeris.
"No. It's still alive," said Naruto. The scorpion charged forward without an ounce of damage. Naruto drew his blade and parried its pincer as it tried to kill him. It moved at jounin level speeds and Naruto couldn't find an opening with all those legs attacking him at such speeds. He was pushed back against the far wall as Vincent tried to draw its attention with his gunfire, but the Materia Keeper ignored Vincent. It raised its pincer and stabbed Naruto right through the heart. "Naruto-kun/Naruto!" yelled Aeris and Tifa.
A look of pain appeared in Naruto's eyes before he turned into a pile of mud. The real Naruto fell down from above and stabbed the monster right in its back. It started to thrash around wildly and Naruto jumped off but left his ninjato embedded in its back. "No fire spells, it seems to absorb them," said Naruto landing on the ground and drawing his second ninjato.
Aeris cast several ice spells but they did minor damage. Materia Keeper started to gather magic. Naruto and Tifa were charging towards it when the monster unleashed a powerful magic attack. Naruto kicked Tifa away just in time. A large golden pyramid engulfed Naruto trapping him inside. Then just as Naruto started to form hand seals, the pyramid started to electrocute him. A lightning attack so powerful that Tifa and Aeris could only watch in horror as Naruto's image completely disappeared as lightning struck him from every inch of the pyramid. The pyramid exploded after thirty seconds and there was Naruto standing, breathing heavily with both arms raised. He had managed to switch his Elemental Materia and attach it to his Lightning materia right before the bolts of lightning struck him. That had saved his life, but he had still taken a good deal of damage. He was unable to dodge in time as Materia Keeper charged forward and swatted Naruto aside as it did to Tifa earlier.
Vincent who had hid waiting for the perfect moment, landed on its back and started to fire off a series of shots. Materia Keeper screeched in pain and thrashed wildly. The former Turk flipped off the back floated right above it's head. He pulled the trigger and blew out one of its eyes before landing on the ground. It spun around rapidly and one of its back legs sent Vincent flying into the cavern wall.
Tifa came in and appeared right in front of the monster. She jumped up and delivered a series of jabs to its face before finished it with an uppercut. Energy started to surround her and she jumped up, her left foot landed on the monster's head. Her right foot came up surrounded by energy and delivered a powerful hit to its jaw, that actually lifted it an inch off the ground, she completed her graceful backflip and landed lightly onto the ground. Her eyes had a hard look in them. She then did a sweeping kick that created water using her energy and hit it in the jaw. Materia Keeper fell to the ground stunned. Tifa panted heavily, and fell to a knee wincing in pain.
Its skin had to be almost as hard as steel. Kicking it had really hurt her leg. Materia Keeper stood up and looked down at Tifa. It raised its pincer prepared to kill her, but never got the chance when the air grew very cold making it focus elsewhere. Tifa shivered and turned to look at Aeris who had started to gather a large amount of magic. The temperature continued to drop and Tifa quickly ran away as the air around Materia Keeper started to freeze. Aeris narrowed her eyes and slammed her staff into the ground.
Ice bloomed out of the ground like a flower. Materia Keeper roared in pain as several spikes of ice pierced through its legs. The ice continued to grow until it had Materia Keeper completely trapped against the cavern wall. Aeris fell to a knee panting heavily. Vincent walked over to her and helped her up. She gave him a grateful look.
A roar came from the scorpion as it tried to break free. It looked like it would too until a golden pyramid appeared around it. Tifa, Aeris, and Vincent all turned to look at Naruto who had a hard look in his eyes. Magic/chakra/energy, whatever you wanted to call it swirled around him. Materia Keeper tried to break free, but it was futile. Naruto clenched both fists. Just like with what happened to him, lightning struck the monster from every single angle. It was dead before the attacked ended.
Naruto walked over to the group a look of concern in his eyes. "You ok?"
"Hai," smiled Aeris. She closed her eyes and focused her magic. Raising her hand, she cast cure on everyone. Vincent nodded gratefully. "Arigato," smiled Tifa. Naruto nodded in gratitude as well. He then headed over to the dead monster to grab his ninjato that was still embedded in its back.
"Let's go," said Naruto sheathing his blade.
Tifa and Aeris groaned. They looked at Naruto and Vincent who walked ahead of them not in the least bit tired from what had just occurred. "Why do all the handsome ones-" started Aeris.
"Have to be so annoying," finished Tifa. "You coming?" asked Naruto. Both women shared a look before sighing.
Rocket Town
Tifa and Aeris immediately ran towards the inn upon reaching the town. Both women refused to go any further without first taking a nice shower and lying down for a bit in a comfy bed. Naruto scratched the back of his head not really understanding why they gave him that glare. Had he done something wrong? All he had suggested is that they move on after finding out whether or not Sephiroth or Shinra stopped by here or not. Shrugging his shoulders he decided to go look at the shops to see if they had any materia. Vincent had stayed behind to help make sure the other group made it safely through Mount Nibel.
Naruto walked forward a bit before stopping. His eyes stared at the long metal contraption that leaned at angle. It had be as tall as a building yet it wasn't one. He frowned wondering what that things is. "Never seen a rocket before have you?" Naruto turned to see a short old man smiling at him. "That right there is the Shinra 26. It is how this town got its name."
"What is a rocket?" asked Naruto curiously.
"A rocket is a machine that take a man into space. The famous pilot, Cid Highwind, was going to be the first man in space. Unfortunately, some type of engine malfunction occurred during the launch and he was forced to abort. Shinra decided to cancel the launching of the rocket and well there it stands," said the old man. "Each day it leans a bit further."
The old man smiled, "gomen. It is a hobby of mine staring at the rocket."
"Arigato for the information," nodded Naruto.
"You're welcome. Have a nice day young man," smiled the old man walking off.
Travel to space? That actually sounded…fun. He wondered if it really would have worked had it launched. Naruto planned on coming back to this town. After they had dealt with Sephiroth so that he could take some time to truly study this rocket. With that in mind, he looked for any stores. His eyes landed upon an item shop. He headed towards it but stopped when he caught sight of something interesting. There in the backyard of someone's house was what looked to be some type of airplane. That could be helpful to getting around. Perhaps he should see if it was for sell. Deciding that he had plenty of time to spare, he walked over to the house.
He knocked on the door. It opened to reveal a pretty woman with long brown hair tied back into a ponytail. She wore a plain white shirt and a black skirt that fell past her knees. Over it all she wore a long white coat, something a scientist would wear. "Um hello, do you need something?"
"Gomen for bothering you. I'm Uzumaki Naruto. I was wondering if I could take a closer look at that plane in your yard," said Naruto politely.
"Oh, the Tiny Bronco? Sure. My name is Shera by the way," smiled the woman gesturing for him to enter.
The house had a nice comfy feel to it. Shera led him to the backyard and Naruto bowed once more in gratitude. He started to take a close look at the plane. A bit small. It could only hold two people tops at a time. Looks like he couldn't use it after all or he would have to keep making several trips to pick up the others. Oh well, it had been a good idea at the time. "If you want to use it, you'll have to speak with the Captain. You can find him in the rocket," said Shera adjusting her glasses.
"No thank you. I need something bigger to get around," said Naruto.
"I understand," nodded Shera. She led him back through the house. When they entered, a loud voice filled the air. "Shera! Where the fuck are you?"
Shera quickly ran to the living room as Naruto wondered who that is. He entered the living room to find a blonde haired man smoking a cigarette and yelling at Shera in a very rude manner. "The fuck were you? Get me some damn coffee," demanded the man. The man looked at Naruto. "Who the fuck are you?"
"That is Uzumaki-san. He wanted to take a look at the Tiny Bronco," said Shera.
"What he can't talk? Let him answer the fucking question," yelled the man angrily.
"Gomen Cid," apologized Shera.
Naruto looked at the man, Cid. "So you interested in planes?" grunted Cid.
"Not really. Merely looking for a fast mode of transportation," answered Naruto.
Cid smirked, "I like your style. Used to have the fastest ship in the world until Shinra took it from me. Fucking bastards. But that will all change today. President Rufus is coming. A young president who has dreams. With him in charge, might even get the space program restarted." Naruto kept a calm look. So the president is coming here. Somehow he doubted it is for this space program Cid spoke of.
A knock came at the door. Cid quickly stood up bumping into Shera who spilled a bit of hot coffee on her hand. "Palmer you fat fuck! Is the President here?"
"Yes, he is outside," said a fat man wearing an ugly brown suit.
"The fuck you doing in my way. Fucking fat bastard," yelled Cid knocking Palmer to the ground. Palmer entered the room and saw Shera making some coffee. He immediately requested some. Shera never noticed that Naruto had suddenly disappeared.
Outside, a loud yell filled the air. "The fuck? You came here to ask me to help repair the fucking ship you stole from me?" yelled Cid angrily.
Rufus frowned not liking the man's tone of voice one bit. "I think you forget who helped fund the building of that ship. Since you are the one who designed it, I am sure you can have it fixed in a short amount of time. I am quite in a hurry. I have finally found what Sephiroth is searching for and I merely need a quick way to hunt it down before him."
"The fuck I care about Sephiroth and some damn Ancient Temple. I thought you came here to restart the Space Program," glared Cid.
An amused look appeared in Rufus's eyes. "Why would I waste time on that when the Promised Land is within my grasp? I don't have time to cater to your foolish dreams. You will help repair the Highwind and help me find the Temple of the Ancients," said Rufus. The President of Shinra snapped his fingers. Rude and Reno stepped forward. Reno had a smirk while Rude had that same blank look that he always had. They never got a chance to do anything when gun fire filled the air. Rufus turned around. Elena, a blonde haired woman who worked for the Turks, came running towards the President.
"Sir we need to get you out of here. AVALANCHE has just shown up!" she yelled.
Rufus gained an angry look, "I want them captured or killed immediately."
"Hey, aren't those two part of AVALANCHE as well?" said Rude pointing at two women who just emerged from the local inn.
Reno smirked, "I got dibs on the one with the big chest." Elena scowled at Reno's comment as she drew her gun and started to move the president. Reno made to head towards Tifa and Aeris, but a blonde a blur appeared in front of him and a punch to the face sent him into the ground.
Rude narrowed his eyes behind his sunglasses. Naruto went to reach for his ninjato, but then lowered his hands and settled into a basic taijutsu stance. He promised Tifa and Aeris he would stop taking life if he didn't have to. Rude charged forward at impressive speeds. Naruto tilted his head dodging a right jab before ducking under a left hook. He then made a feint right that Rude fell for. His left hand buried itself in Rude's gut. Naruto ducked down to the ground going to sweep out Rude's legs, but the Turk jumped over it and brought his right fist downward. The ninja rolled backwards as Rude's fist hit the ground where he had just been. Cracks appeared all over the ground.
Naruto leaned back allowing a metal staff to pass harmlessly by his face. "Hope you didn't forget about me," smirked Reno. His staff started to spark with electricity and he started to swing it rapidly at Naruto.
A high kick knocked the staff out of Reno's hand. Naruto slammed his palm into Reno's chest sending him flying backwards before spinning around to deflect a punch from Rude. Rude gasped in pain as Naruto's knee slammed into his chest. A spinning backhand sent Rude to the ground.
A pair of Shinra troops came up behind Naruto and raised their guns. They never got a chance to fire when Cid took them out from behind with his spear. "You got some guts going up against Shinra kid. I don't know whether it is bravery or stupidity," smirked Cid taking a puff from his cigarette.
"They will be coming for you now?" said Naruto glancing to make sure Tifa and Aeris were safe. Both had no problems taking out the Shinra troops that had come after them.
"Meh. I'm sick of this town and I have given up on Shinra. Got nothing better to do. What the hell, I'll join up with you numbskulls," shrugged Cid.
Naruto nodded, "need to get going. More will be coming." Cid nodded and the two ran out of town to catch up with the others.
Nighttime
They had managed to escape the Shinra Troops and Turks, but now they were back where they had began. Rocket Town had been their last hope to find a solid lead but it had fell dead as well. "Now what the fuck do we do?" cursed Barret angrily.
"Shinra has found what Sephiroth is searching for," said Naruto catching everyone's attention. Cid lit a cigarette not really caring at all. "I overheard him speaking with Cid-san about Sephiroth looking for the Temple of Ancients."
"Temple of Ancients?" whispered Aeris.
Naruto nodded. "Shinra knows what Sephiroth is searching for, but not where it is. There is still a chance we can find it before them."
"Should have fucking said that to begin with," said Barret.
"Only one problem. We have no idea where to look," frowned Tifa. A silence fell over the group.
Aeris suddenly got an idea. "Do you think your grandfather would know Nanaki?"
Red gained a contemplative look, "it is possible. He does always seem to know what is going on despite never leaving Cosmo Canyon."
"Then it is settled. We will travel back to Cosmo Canyon," said Naruto.
A groan came from Yuffie. "I don't want to travel back through that mountain." The young ninja pouted cutely. A loud snoring filled the air and they looked to see Cid sound asleep like a baby.