Hey, my peeps, this is salem52 signing in. As promised, here is the second chapter of "Only the Strong Survive." I should have established this earlier.
"Standard speech"
"Standard thinking/dream sequence"
"Colossal speech"
"Colossal thinking"
Jutsu (Jutsu name)
Okay, that's out of the way. As I am a student I might be a little hassled for time. Fear not, I will update as often as I can. But as they say, don't count your chickens before they are hatched (Irrelevant quote of the day #2). Now without further ado, I present to you
Only the Strong Survive
Naruto woke up; his head was swimming with questions.
"What happened? I remembered defeating Danzo's lackeys, and then…he sent those damned suicide Shinobi. They all had those thrice-damned Ura Shishō Fūinjutsu (Reverse Four Symbols Sealing Technique*) seals on them. I remember Danzo detonating them around me, and then everything went black. I remember that man in the forest, and…now I'm in bed?" Naruto tried to get up, but found himself restrained by numerous belts. He looked around and found that he was in a large tent of some kind. Naruto looked at the belts restraining him and saw that they were made of simple leather. He smirked. Leather may be able to restrain a normal human, but to a Shinobi of Naruto's status and skill, they were about as effective as tissue paper. With a small surge of chakra, Naruto broke free from his bindings, Naruto closed his eyes and searched for any chakra signatures around the tent. There were multiple genin-level signatures around the vicinity of the tent. While most were mulling around, two signatures were heading towards his tent.
Naruto looked toward the entrance of the large tent and saw that there was about a two foot space between the entrance and the "wall" of the tent, plenty of space to hide in wait for them to come in. Naruto crept up to the corner and, with a few quick hand signs, he uttered the name of his Jutsu Meisaigakure no Jutsu (Hiding with camouflage technique), the light morphed and distorted around Naruto until the only thing detectable about him was the slight air distortion around his position. Naruto then cast a genjutsu that made it look as though everything was as it was supposed to be with an illusionary Naruto strapped to the bed. He unsealed a kunai from a seal on his left wrist, and waited.
It wasn't long before the two chakra signatures Naruto had sensed were at the entrance of the tent. The first to come in was the man he had seen in the forest. He was limping heavily. The second was a man with an air of command around him that demanded respect. The man stood at six foot two inches tall, two inches taller than Naruto. He had blonde hair split down the left side of his head and icy blue eyes that could pierce into your soul. He wore what seemed to be a military uniform with green cape that had two intertwining wings, one blue one white.
Naruto listened to the conversation between the two men who were obviously not Shinobi. The genjutsu Naruto had cast was a low-level one, designed only for a few seconds of time before detection to give you an edge in an ambush. But as they hadn't discovered his genjutsu yet, he saw no need to disrupt a perfect Intel gathering situation.
"So, this is the man?" said the blonde haired man, looking down at the illusionary Naruto.
"Hai, commander Erwin," said the man from the forest.
"You say you found him in the forest, and with no 3D-manuever gear or belts of any kind, not even a weapon? It's miraculous a person could survive any amount of time in the forest under those circumstances," said the now-identified commander Erwin.
"Hai, commander Erwin. After the explosion I fell to the ground and broke my ankle, I was about to shoot my flair gun to have my squad regroup on my position, when he comes stumbling out from behind a tree. After a moment or two I shot the flair gun, and then started crawling over on my knees to see if he needed help. But…then he goes and looks at me and I felt my blood freeze. His eyes were…unnatural sir," said the man from the forest, clearly disturbed by what he had seen.
"Red, you said," responded Erwin.
"Hai, sir they were red, but it was something more. In truth sir, no offense meant, but they reminded me of your eyes sir," said the man from the forest.
"No offense taken. Please continue Hideki-san," replied Erwin.
"Well after that, not much else happened. He just, collapsed. My squad found me, and they took us, the man and myself, back to the horses, and we rode back to camp," said Hideki
"And what of the Titan?" queried Erwin.
"Well, the explosion that knocked me down also knocked down the Titan, and one of the squads behind me took out the Titan while it was down," replied Hideki.
"Hideki-san, why did you deem it necessary to bind this man?" asked Erwin.
"Ahh, well, you never know, the man could be delirious for all we know. I just did it as a precaution. An-" Hideki was cut off when he felt a blade at his neck.
"Well, should there be a next time, remember that it will take a lot more than some belts to hold me down," said Naruto.
The world around them melted away to reveal the bed empty, and Naruto holding a knife to Hideki's neck.
Hideki stiffened when he realized he was at mortal risk.
"I suggest not moving Hideki-san, lest you wish to be four litres of blood short. Now commander Erwin-san, I ask what nation I am currently in, as I'm pretty sure this not Hi no Kuni. Answer quickly; the life of your subordinate depends on it," said Naruto.
Commander Erwin froze, this question was a confusing one but he decided to answer as bluntly as possible.
"We are no nation, or rather, we're one conglomeration of many nations. Does this answer your question?" placated Erwin.
"Unfortunately it does not. What do you mean no nation?" queried Naruto
"Several hundred years ago, humanity thrived until beings known as Titans started appearing, devouring humans until they became nearly extinct. When I say no nation, I mean that we are all that's left from the multitudes of nations that came before us. We are the remnants of those nations. So can we justifiably be called a nation or are we all nations?" said Erwin. Erwin was concerned for his man's life, but he didn't believe Hideki was in any danger at the moment.
"Assailant-san, may I ask what your name is?" asked Erwin.
"Naruto, Uzumaki Naruto," replied Naruto. He was curious. As this world obviously wasn't his own, or at least not his version, he needed information, and this man was willing to give it to him, at least while the life of one of his men was on the line.
"Well Naruto-san, why do you have one of my men at knife point?" asked Erwin in a placating voice.
"In the words of your subordinate here, 'it was a precaution.' I don't know if you are a friend or a foe, and in this world, you can never be too cautious," replied Naruto.
"Well Naruto, I give you my word that we are friends, and that neither I nor men will attack you should you let Hideki go unharmed. Right Hideki?" Hideki nodded fast, but stopped very quickly when he nicked his neck on the blade.
"Do we have an accord?" said Erwin. Naruto looked deep into Erwin's eyes before deciding to consult an old friend.
"Hey, Kurama, what do you think?" asked Naruto.
"He's clean, his pulse is steady, so unless this guy is able to lie to a god of trickery, he's telling the truth," said Kurama.
Naruto removed the blade from Hideki's neck, and allowed Hideki to leave his grasp.
Erwin smiled.
"I'll take that as a yes." He said.
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Naruto was walking next to Erwin. They had been walking in silence for a while now. They were about half a mile out from the camp. It had been about three days since Naruto had been found by Hideki. Naruto had discovered that he had been asleep for a whole day - a long time by his standards because even the most grievous of wounds were healed in minutes due to his chemically-induced healing factor. During the two days following his awakening, Naruto had learnt many things about this new world.
The man standing next to him, Erwin, was a man to be respected. Commanding the Recon Corps in its entirety, the future of humanity could well be in his hands. He valued each and every one of his troops lives, but … he would not hesitate to sacrifice those lives if he believed it was in the greater good of humanity's cause. Despite all this each of his troops followed him with an undying loyalty that is seldom seen within an organized military group.
Naruto had also learnt about the history of humanity in this world, and it was a gruesome tale. Several hundred years ago creatures known as Titans started to appear and decimated the human race. Not so long after their first appearances, humanity was close to extinction. As a last effort against the Titans, humans had built three massive walls enclosing an area roughly seven hundred and twenty kilometres. And for one hundred years now, peace had reigned inside of the walls.
To combat Titans, humans developed devices called 3D-manuever gear. The device is basically two separately-spinning axes connected to a lightweight, reinforced iron wire with a hook-like appendage on the end. The wires are propelled by two compressed gas canisters which are installed near the waist, the controls of which are a reinforced body belt and two handles. The purpose of the belt is to control one's self while in midair. The handles control the extraction and retraction of the hooked wires. Blades made of ultra-hard steel are the only weapons currently available which have the ability to cut into the extremely hard flesh of Titans.
In Naruto's opinion, Titans were the nearest thing to a perfect predator in this world. Titans possess a regenerative ability to rival his own. And, while not particularly smart, Titans make up for it in overwhelming size and number. Apparently there are specific Titans, known as aberrants, which are completely unpredictable and generally much more deadly due to this unpredictable nature. Erwin stopped walking. Naruto walked a few paces ahead before turning around.
"You said there was something you wished to speak to me about?" said Naruto.
"Hai, Naruto-san, I wish for you to join the scouting corps," replied Erwin.
"Why do you wish for me to join the Recon?" queried Naruto. He knew he was capable, but he wanted to hear Erwin's reasons.
"Besides the obvious fact that you are powerful, more powerful than anything in this world, I wish to see if you could train the next generation, to help humanity," said Erwin.
"And you expect me to help you out of the 'good' of my heart, right? Why should I help you? This is your humanity, not mine. If I help you, it won't be out of any form of duty to my race. I expect compensation," replied Naruto.
Erwin frowned. This was not what he wanted, but it wasn't totally unexpected. Humanity is fueled by many things, greed being one of them.
"What do you want?" asked Erwin.
"Resources, and refuge. In my world I have a similar post as you. I command a small army of incredibly powerful Shinobi. But unfortunately the country in which we reside in is very small, and has few resources. If I help you, I want natural resources and a place to send the citizens of my country," stated Naruto.
"How many citizens would you be sending? We can only support so many," replied Erwin.
"Three hundred and twenty thousand." Said Naruto.
Erwin's breath hitched."Three hundred and twenty thousand! That's nearly a third of the human population. How many people are in his world?" wondered Erwin.
"We would be hard pressed to support that many people. Unless they farmed, they would starve within a year," said Erwin.
"Do not worry about food. We have that in abundance. They can farm for themselves. You can keep your food. The resources that we need are wood and metal. Amegakure is abundant in fish and stone. But resources like wood and metal are scarce." Said Naruto.
"So if we provide you with wood and metal, as well as refuge for your civilians, you'll fight for us and train the next generation?" asked Erwin.
"Yes, but know who I choose to train will be my decision, not yours, not the military's, but my own," replied Naruto.
"That is acceptable. And you know, if this is some elaborate sham, this deal is void. Clear?" said Erwin.
"Erwin-san what are you risking here? If it is some elaborate sham then my people don't exist and your resources are safe. And yes, we're clear. "
Erwin looked up at the sky; the sun had gone down a long time ago leaving the moon to bathe the land in its silver light.
"Night has come Naruto-san. Tomorrow you'll be returning to wall Maria with Mr. Hideki, but for now good night," said Erwin. With that their discussion ended and both headed silently back to the encampment. Each had their own thoughts on their mind.
"This world could very well be the thing we need to win the war. By moving the civilians here we can focus wholeheartedly on the war, plus with the extra resources we can have a stockpile should we be besieged, and…" Naruto's mind was racing a million miles a minute.
"Whoa there kit, one thing at a time. We don't even know if we can get back to our world, find a way back here, and then think about the war," said Kurama. Naruto calmed himself.
"You're right, we can think about this once we reach wall Maria. For now let's rest." Naruto walked the rest of the way back to his tent in mental and vocal silence.
"What an interesting person you are Naruto-san, I look forward to working with you," Erwin thought as he walked back to his tent. When he came inside he found a very peculiar folder on his futon. Erwin went to it directly and picked it up.
"Hmm, dangerous person, five foot three inches, black hair, real name, unknown, known alias, Levi, this man evaded military police numerous times using 3D-manuever gear of unknown origin, his whereabouts are currently unknown and it is advised to alert authorities upon recognition of this man. Approach with caution. Interesting, not many people outside of the military know how to use maneuver gear, let alone to this extent. I'll have my contacts in Sina ask around about this one." With this thought in mind, Erwin put down the folder and went to sleep.
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"Mikasa, your hair's gotten…longer."
"See you later, Eren"
"What?"
"Eren!"
"What Mikasa? You're standing right there. Why are yelling?"
"Eren!"
"Waa" Eren was woken abruptly from his reverie. He looked up to see his adopted sister, Mikasa, looking down on him. Mikasa and he were both ten years old. Eren stood slightly taller than Mikasa at four foot eleven, where Mikasa stood at four foot nine. Mikasa had shoulder-length black hair, with a single bang hanging down the center of her face. Her eyes were a very deceptive, shimmering gold that could be mistaken for many colors. Eren had short dark brown hair that naturally split down the middle. His eyes were a deep teal green. It was obvious that the two weren't related, Eren's features were more Germanic, while Mikasa was of an Asian persuasion.
"You were sleeping again," said Mikasa, offering a hand to Eren to help him up.
"I was only dozing," retorted Eren.
"Eren, you were crying," responded Mikasa. Eren put his hand up to his face and felt the salty liquid known as tears on his cheeks.
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"Not a word Mikasa. No one needs to know I was crying," said Eren to Mikasa. They were both travelling under the grand gate connecting the district of Shiganshina to wall Maria. Both Eren and Mikasa were carrying large bundles of sticks for the fire that they would use for dinner. Eren had just spoken when a hand found its way onto Eren's head. The owner of the hand spoke.
"Oh and why was my little man crying? Did Mikasa get mad at you?" Eren looked up at the owner of the hand to reveal a young* blonde man; he was about five feet nine inches tall, with short-cropped blonde hair. He wore the uniform of the wall garrison, the branch of military tasked with watching over the outer walls. He had a heavy blush.
"I…I wasn't crying," cried out Eren indignantly.
"Mikasa was he crying?" inquired blonde man.
"Yes," responded Mikasa.
"Mikasa, how could you? I told you not to tell anyone!" cried out Eren once more.
"I never agreed," replied Mikasa.
"Aha, so my little man was crying. Ok spill it, why were you crying?" yelled out the blonde man.
"Nii-san, your breath reeks of alcohol," said Eren in hopes of changing the subject. Eren then looked over the blonde man's shoulder to see a group of similarly-dressed men drinking various alcoholic drinks.
"Huh." The blonde man turned around to follow Eren's gaze. "Oh yeah, me and the boys were havin' a couple of drinks," replied the blonde man.
"Er, what about work?" inquired Eren.
"Oh, today we man the gates," said the blonde man with obvious pride in his voice.
"But…you're drunk," said Eren with disbelief in his voice. The blonde man deflated a little bit.
"Well, we have to stay here all day, and eventually we get hungry and thirsty. It just happens that alcohol is our drink of choice," responded the blonde man.
"But when the situation calls for it, how do you expect to fight inebriated," asked Eren, his voice quickly becoming angry.
"Um…what situation?" asked the blonde man.
"Ahh, I can't believe this! When 'they' come through the wall, and into the city," yelled out Eren, anger and disbelief lacing his voice.
"Ahh, don't yell like that, you make my head hurt." Said the blonde man holding his head. One of the other soldiers came up next the blonde man and put his hand on his shoulder. He then looked down at Eren and proceeded to speak.
"When 'they' break through the walls we'll deal with it. But you see it hasn't happened in over a hundred years. And just so you know, on duty, we sometimes get to patrol the top of the wall. When we take a look over the side 'they' barely make it over one-fifth of the height of the wall. No Titan has been seen as of yet that was big enough to go over, or through this wall. So with that in mind I don't think the Titans will ever be able to get over the wall. I can't believe those Recon Corps, going outside of the wall. It's like they get a kick out of warfare. Now come on, Hannes-san we need to get back to the gate." Hannes sighed, but proceeded to walk back to his post. The soldier next to him turned around, but stopped when he felt a hand on sleeve.
"What?" said the unknown soldier. Hannes turned around to listen to what Eren had to say.
"If we can't go over the walls, even if we have enough food and land to live, to live a life cramped inside them is no different than living like cattle in a pen," said Eren. Hannes was wide-eyed from Eren's little speech, then after a moment he chuckled. He turned around once more and started to walk back to his post. He looked over his shoulder at Eren and started to speak.
"Eren, I'll visit the house tonight for dinner. We can speak more on the subject at the house. OK? See ya later," Hannes said over his shoulder.
"I'll let Mom know," Eren said back. Eren resumed his trek back to his house. Hannes joined his compatriots in watching the gate.
"That's an interesting one you have their Hannes-san," said the soldier that had brought Hannes back to their group. Hannes stared down into his drink.
"Yea, he is truly one in a million," replied Hannes. He stayed there for several moments before sitting up very fast, his eyes wide in surprise.
"What is it Hannes-san?" asked the unnamed soldier.
"Eren can't really be thinking about the Recon Corps can he?" said Hannes to himself more than anybody.
Meanwhile Eren and Mikasa are walking down the main street of Shiganshina.
"Mikasa, I can't believe you told Hannes-nii that I was crying," complained Eren.
"Eren," said Mikasa, completely disregarding his previous statement.
"What Mikasa?" replied Eren, a little annoyed that Mikasa had just blown him off like that.
"Don't join the Recon Corps," said Mikasa in a very serious voice.
"What, are you gonna make fun of them too?!" yelled out Eren.
"It's not that I'm making fun of them, it's just that I want to see y-" her voice was cut off by the massive 'Gong' of a bell.
"The scouting legion returns! Come on Mikasa let's go see them," said Eren. Elated, he grabbed Mikasa by the hand and led her through the crowds of onlookers to try to find a place suitable for watching the scouting legion go by. The crowd was astonished by the overall amount of troops returning this time around. Usually only a squad of thirty or so would make it back from outside the walls, but this time nearly the whole squad of fifty had made it back.
"Wow! So many have returned! Mikasa come up and have a look, I don't think I've ever seen this many coming back," exclaimed Eren. The excitement of the crowd grew to a peak when an unusual person was seen follow the last of the troops. This man was about six feet tall, he had spiky blonde hair reaching down to his mid-back, an odd metal head band adorned his head, and he was wearing a black cloak with red clouds. The lower part of this man's face was concealed by the high collar of his cloak. But one thing that was seen clearly by everyone was a pair of deep, almost crimson, red eyes, the pupil of the eye was shaped like a straight shuriken encircled by three ellipses. Each person who saw these eyes shuddered. These eyes looked as if they stared straight into your soul. Each person felt as if their soul was being judged, as if all their imperfections, all their vices, were laid bare for the world to see.
Eren looked straight at the man and felt his blood run cold. This man was powerful, more powerful than Eren could ever imagine, and he was staring directly at him. The moment passed quickly enough, and the platoon moved around the corner of the street, and out of view. As Eren was walking away from the main street, he overheard some of the merchants speaking.
"To think, so many returned this time," exclaimed one merchant, to another
" 'Bout time, I mean seriously, I thought all my tax dollars were only being used to fatten 'them' up with our troops. Why couldn't the Recon Corps just stay within the walls so our money could be spent elsewhere?" replied another merchant. This merchant was particularly fat, and was the owner of one of the major exporting firms in Shiganshina. His words angered Eren because he was treating the Recon Corps as if it was an unnecessary branch of the military, and wasn't even worth the money spent on it. Eren grabbed a long, hard stick from the bundle on his back, and whacked the merchant on the back of the head as hard as he could.
"Ow! What the hell was that?" The merchant turned around to see Eren being dragged away by Mikasa.
"Hey ya little brat! Get back here!" yelled the merchant. But as he started to pursue them he tripped over his feet and landed on his face. When he looked up, neither Eren nor Mikasa was seen. The merchant got up and stormed off somewhere to wash away the dirt that had gotten on his cloths. A few blocks away Eren was seen being thrown against the wall of an alley.
"Hey, Mikasa, isn't that enough?! Look! You've scattered all the sticks on the ground," complained Eren.
"Do you still plan on joining the Recon corps?" inquired Mikasa, once again disregarding what Eren had said.
"Of course! Didn't you see all the troops that returned today? Humanity is making a comeback against 'them'!" replied Eren enthusiastically.
"Eren they weren't surprised so many troops had died. They were surprised at how many troops were alive. Eren, if you join the Recon Corps, you're expected to die," Mikasa sighed.
Eren quieted down after that, but he had a determination in his eye that would not go away with a few harsh words. Eren sighed as well and started to pick up the scattered sticks.
"Come on Mikasa, help me pick up the sticks. We're late as it is. Mom will start to worry if we're not home soon," said Eren.
Mikasa dropped the subject for the moment and helped Eren collect the sticks. After all the sticks had been picked up they resumed their trek home in silence.
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"Kaa-san (mother), we're home!" yelled out Eren as he and Mikasa entered their house. Eren and Mikasa emptied their bundles of sticks into some crates near the fire place for when they were needed.
"Eren, Mikasa, you're late," said a woman near the sink of the kitchen. The house that Eren had entered was a small two story, the bottom floor being the living area and kitchen, while the upstairs was bedrooms. The woman turned around. In her early thirties, she shared striking facial features with Eren and was most likely his mother. There was another person in the room as well. Sitting at a table near the kitchen was a man with dark brown hair parted down the middle of his head. Eren sat down next to him and the man looked at Eren. They both shared the same eyes.
"Why were you late son?" inquired the man.
"Eh, it's a long story. Oh, Kaa-san, Hannes-nii said he would be stopping by for dinner," said Eren to the woman near the sink, who was now identified to be his mother.
"Oh, that's nice. I'll make sure to prepare another plate," replied his mother. Mikasa sat down next to Eren. Everyone stayed in relative silence, until the man sitting next to Eren got up and started to put on his coat.
"Tou-san (father), are you leaving?" inquired Eren.
"Yes, some people out of district were reported to have symptoms similar to those of the 'sickness'. I'm taking a boat over to give them a checkup and see if it actually is the 'sickness'," replied Eren's father. Mikasa sighed, before speaking.
"Eren said … he wants to join the Recon Corps," Mikasa said, giving Eren a slightly apologetic look. His father stopped what he was doing and his mother became very rigid.
"Mi-Mikasa! I told you to keep quiet about that!" yelled out Eren, hurt that Mikasa would betray him like that. His mother rushed over to him and grabbed him by the shoulders.
"Eren! How could you think such a stupid thing?! Out of all the people who go past the wall, do you know how many have died?" cried out his mother in agonized fear.
"Yes, yes I do!" replied Eren determination in his voice.
"Eren, why would you want to go outside?" queried his mother in desperation.
"I want to know what goes on outside! I don't want to live my life as a fool, ignorant of the outside world. If no one wants to pick up where those who died left off, all of the people who laid down their lives for humanity would have done so in vain," Eren broke out of his mom's grasp, and backed away from her. Eren's father watched all of this in silent contemplation.
"I see," said Eren's father, "The ship will be leaving soon, I better not miss it."
"Wait! Grisha, stay and talk some sense into Eren p-," Carla was cut off by Grisha.
"Carla, when someone puts their mind to something, there is no such thing as talking them down." Grisha pulled a key out of his pocket and held it up for Eren to see.
"Eren," said Grisha.
"Yes, Tou-san?" replied Eren.
"You know that part of the basement I always keep locked up?" queried Grisha.
"Yea," replied Eren once again.
"When I get back…I'll show it to you," Said Grisha putting the key back into his pocket.
"Really!" shouted Eren.
"Yes. Goodbye now. I will see all of you when I get back," said Grisha donning a hat and traveling cloak. They all waved him goodbye until he was out of view. His mother stopped waving and looked down at Eren.
"Eren," said his mother.
"What," replied Eren aprehensively.
"You will not be going. Only a fool would join the Recon Corps," said Carla sternly. Eren turned to her, hurt. He then turned away from her, angry.
"As far as I'm concerned, those who would live at the cost of being cooped in like cattle are ten times as foolish." With that said, Eren ran off.
"Eren!" cried out his mother, but it was of no use. Eren would not hear her at the moment. She sighed and knelt down next to Mikasa who had walked outside to wave goodbye to her step-father.
"Eren has a knack of getting in trouble; watch out for each other won't you," pleaded Carla. Mikasa only nodded in confirmation, before running off in pursuit of Eren.
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Eren and Mikasa were sitting on at the edge of a canal. Beside them sat their best friend Armin Arlert. Armin was the shortest amongst the three. being four foot five inches tall. He had blonde hair that framed his slightly round face. Armin had bright blue eyes, which were partially squeezed shut due to the bruises lining his face. Armin was shy by nature, but he had an incredibly sharp mind.
Eren and Mikasa had found him being beat upon by some local bullies. Being small and shy, Armin was prone to being bullied. The result was extremely low self-confidence. The reason he was being beaten today though was different than usual. He had been speaking about how he thought the outside world would look like when the bullies overheard him. One thing led to another and he ended up being beaten up in an alley.
Talking about the outside world was considered a taboo among this society, where even the smallest notion of wanting to see outside the wall was met with heavy rebuttal. Those who wish to see the outside are called heathens by the wall cult, and are treated as such.
Eren and Mikasa had found him being beat up in an alley, and when Mikasa had arrived, the bullies had fled. After they had gotten Armin cleaned up, they went to the canal to discuss what happened this time.
"So, Armin what happened? Why were you getting beat up?" asked Eren.
"Well I was speaking to my grandfather about how the governor was talking about clearing some of the forests to make room for more farmland. And I suggested that maybe we should start considering expanding. Grandfather hushed me down there, but I guess those bullies heard me, so when I went to get some fruit for grandfather, they ambushed me. They brought me into the alley and started beating me up calling me a 'heathen' for even suggesting expansion. After that you guys came and that's really all I can tell," replied Armin. He sighed and looked down into the canal. Eren looked over to Armin.
"How come you're looked down upon for just wanting to go outside? It's ridiculous," said Eren angrily.
"Well … we have lived behind the walls peacefully for one hundred years. I guess people don't want to screw up and let 'them' in. Also the governor has made it pretty clear that the manifestation of any interest on the outside world should be considered taboo," replied Armin.
"The royalty is just chickening out then, end of story," said Eren.
"You're right, but … is that the only reason?" queried Armin.
"It doesn't matter! It's our lives. We can decide what we wish to do with them," said Eren with conviction in his voice.
"I don't think so. Forget it," Mikasa's voice rang out.
"What?!" cried out Eren's voice.
"It's not happening, so forget about it."
"Hey, that reminds me. What possessed you to tell on me to Mom and Dad!" cried out Eren.
"It is like with Hannes-san, I never agreed to stay silent," replied Mikasa. Everyone was quiet for awhile.
"So … how'd it go?" asked Armin. Eren looked down into the canal and sighed.
"It wasn't exactly cheers and applause," said Eren.
"I can imagine-," Armin was cut off by Eren.
"What! Are you gonna join the crowds and tell me to stop?" yelled out Eren.
"Well, it's dangerous, but I can see where you're coming from. I'm also curious about the people who believe the wall will protect us. The wall may not have broken in one hundred years, but that doesn't mean that it won't break today or tomorrow, but still-," Armin's voice was cut off by a massive, earth-rending explosion.
"What the hell! Was that an earthquake?" cried out Eren. They got up and started running towards the main street of Shiganshina. But as they were getting closer they saw people in the streets staring up at the wall. Buildings on either side of Eren and his group prevented them from stopping and seeing what was going on. But in the air smoke could be seen rising in the direction of the wall.
When they had reached the main street they looked at the wall and their eyes widened in fear. On top of the wall was a massive, red hand grasping the top of the wall.
"I-it can't be the walls like, fif-fity meters high!" cried out one of the people around Eren.
"It's one of 'them'!" thought Eren in terror.
Moments later, a massive head rose out of the smoke coming from the other side of the wall. This head was grotesque. It had no skin to cover it, exposing muscles to the air. Its mouth was comprised of dozens of massive, sharp teeth. Its mouth seemed to be held closed by massive white tendons. Steam ejected out of the side of its mouth. Moments passed with nothing happening, until the massive being lurched forward. Another large earthquake rocked Shiganshina. At the base of wall Maria, was a large hole. Wall Maria had been breached. The Titans were coming.
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Debris rained all around Eren and his friends, as buildings were destroyed, and people were crushed under by the onslaught of wood and stone. Eren and Mikasa froze. All the devastation happening around them had shocked them into unresponsiveness. After a moment, Eren's eyes drifted over to the direction where his house was located. He realized his mother was still in the house. He broke into a sprint as he ran towards his home.
Eren's movement had returned Mikasa to her senses and she quickly followed. Armin stood there shaking with fear. He collapsed to his knees in despair when he realized the magnitude of the situation he was in right now.
"It's over," thought Armin, "The Titans will come in countless numbers, and Shiganshina will be destroyed!" Armin was interrupted from his thoughts when a pair of hands pulled him up. Hannes was the one that picked up Armin, he was wearing his 3D maneuver gear. Hannes knelt down and looked Armin in the eye.
"Armin!" yelled out Hannes, Armin was still in shock and didn't respond. Hannes started shaking him.
"Armin! Snap out of it! The Titans are coming!" Armin's eyes widened before he started to struggle to get out of Hannes's grasp.
"Armin, stop! Where are Eren and Mikasa? I need to find them!" cried out Hannes, Armin stopped struggling. Armin pointed a shaky finger towards the direction Eren and Mikasa had run to.
"I-I… they went that way. I think they were going home," said Armin shakily.
"Home, Grandfather!" Armin started running towards his home.
"Hannes-san, I need to find Grandfather. Please protect Eren and Mikasa!" yelled out Armin, a moment later he turned the street corner, and out of Hannes's sight. Hannes turned towards Eren's house, and propelled himself onto the roof tops.
"Eren, please be safe until I get there."
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Eren was only a block away from his house; it was just around the corner.
"Mom is safe, I'll just turn this corner and our house will be fine. Yea, she's probably evacuated." These were thoughts of Eren as he desperately ran down the street towards his house. He rounded the corner, and his eyes widened. His house had been crushed under a massive piece of rubble.
"MOM!" screamed out Eren as he ran to his destroyed house. He started frantically clearing the wood from the wreckage in hopes of finding his mother. A moment later, Mikasa appeared beside him and started helping clear away the debris. Eren removed a large piece of thatch to reveal his mother trapped under a large crossbeam.
"MOM! Mikasa come over here and help me." They both grabbed the cross-beam and heaved as hard as they could, but it was of no use. Their little bodies were simply unable to lift such a heavy object. Carla started to cry as she realized what she had to do. She was about to speak when an ear splitting roar let loose. Eren looked out across town and saw multitudes of Titans roaming the streets, eating anyone who came in their path.
"Come on Mikasa we have to lift this off Mom!" yelled Eren. They both tried lifting the crossbeam. It weighed too much, yet they continued to try until Carla's voice stopped them.
"The Titans are in the town aren't they?" queried Eren's mom. Eren and Mikasa opted for silence and continued to try to lift the crossbeam.
"Eren, take Mikasa and run away!" cried out Carla.
"I wanna run away too, so why don't you come out from there, and we can all leave together. I won't abandon you Mom," Eren replied, he and Mikasa tried to lift the crossbeam with renewed vigor, but as the times before, the crossbeam was just too heavy.
"My legs have been crushed under the rubble. Even if you do get me out, I won't be able to flee," said Carla.
"Then I'll carry you on my shoulders!" cried out Eren as he continued to try to lift the crossbeam. Carla had tears in her eyes at what she was about to say.
"Why don't you ever listen to me? You could at least obey my last wish!" yelled out Carla. It was at this moment that a large Titan rounded the corner of the street. The Titan was at least fourteen meters tall. Its body was covered in wiry muscle, and its hands were hanging below its knees. The most terrifying thing about this Titan though, was its mouth. The Titan's mouth extended around nearly the entirety of its face in a demented Glasgow-type grin displaying dozens of small, sharp teeth. Carla's eyes widened in terror as she saw the Titan start walking towards them.
"Get out of here! Both of you, or else we'll all get eaten!" cried out Carla in despair. She knew she could not bear watching her children being eaten alive. If that happened, she would gladly accept death. Her morbid thoughts were interrupted by the sounds of feet hitting the ground. She looked up to see Hannes standing there.
"Hannes-san!" she cried out in joy, "Hannes-san, take the children and leave. Don't fight that thing, you'll die."
Hannes turned to her before looking down, and then he looked at Eren and Mikasa futilely working to lift the crossbeam from Carla's legs.
"Carla, after my family died from the 'sickness', you guys took me in. You were like a mother to me. If I give my life to save you and Eren and Mikasa, I will gladly accept that." With that said, Hannes took his blades and clipped them into the grips of his 3D-manuever gear. Then he charged the smiling Titan.
When Hannes was about ten meters from the Titan he propelled himself into the air using the buildings around him as bases for his hooks. The Titan turned towards him as he was the closest target. When he got the within range of the Titan, it made a lunge for him shooting its arm out in an attempt to grab him. Hannes flipped over the appendage and headed behind the Titan in hopes of getting a clear shot at the back of the monster's neck. But as he made his way around the back of the beast it turned around faster than he had expected, knocking him to the ground.
"Ahhgg" he cried out in pain. He got up off the ground and looked up to see the Titan "smiling" down at him. The titan lunged again, but Hannes managed to dodge out of the way, if just barely. He looked up in time to see another lunge at him. He used his 3D-manuever gear to get away, but while he was in the air the Titan grabbed the cable propelling him away effectively stopping him. The change in tension caused him to dive for the ground. This time snaps were audible as multiple bones broke.
"AAHHHGGG!" he screamed out in pain. He was on his back helpless to resist as the Titan's large hand enclosed around his waist.
Eren stopped trying to lift the crossbeam when he heard Hannes's cry of pain. His eyes widened in horror as he saw the Titan lift Hannes into the air. Hannes looked Eren straight in the eyes.
"Heh, I guess you were right Carla. I am unable to defeat the Titan, but I can try to buy as much time as I can for Eren and Mikasa to run. I'm sorry I couldn't kill the Titan. Eren, my
little brother, I wish I could see you grow up into a fine young man but my time has come. I'm sorry I couldn't have that dinner with you guys."
Hannes looked away. He then used the last of his strength to lift his head up to see the smiling Titan looking him straight in the face. It opened its maw and brought Hannes closer, Hannes looked up at the Titan, and with a mighty heave thrust his blade up into the titans eyes. Hannes misjudged the distance though and only hit the bridge of the Titan's nose. The blade snapped. Hannes went limp, the last of his energy spent in that one attempt to blind the Titan, but ultimately wasted.
The Titan stopped for a moment, before continuing to bring Hannes up to its mouth. Eren could only watch in mute horror as his brother figure was being devoured in front of him. The Titan placed Hannes in its mouth and with a mighty 'crunch' cleaved Hannes in two, letting the bottom half of Hannes fall to the ground in a sickening splat. Eren could see the displacement of the Titan's throat as Hannes was swallowed. The Titan then turned towards Eren, and proceeded to walk towards them.
Eren just stayed still as the Titan came closer and closer. The Titan was standing right over Eren. It reached down to grab him. Eren knew it was over. Eren prepared to turn around and start running when a very distinct, slicing sound was heard. Eren turned back around to see a man dressed in a high-collared black coat with red clouds adorning it. He was also wearing a large straw hat that hid all but his glowing red eyes. The man was carrying a large nodaichi styled blade, with a wave pattern carved into it. He looked down at the Titan's hand, which was dissolving at his feet.
The Titan looked at the stump for a moment before letting out an ear-splitting roar. The man looked up at the Titan, before preparing his sword to strike.
"Be silent," said the man, "Creatures such as you do not deserve the air that you are wasting with your foul breath." The man the blurred for a moment, before reappearing on the other side of the Titan. The titan made a gurgling sound, before, literally, falling apart. The man turned around and started to walk towards Eren. Despite saving him, Eren feared the man. The man walked past Eren, and to the crossbeam. He looked at it for a moment, before he grasped it and with a mighty heave, lifted it off Carla. Eren was frozen with fear and awe. He was broken from his amazement by the man's voice.
"Child, if you value your mother's life, you will pull her out from under this log right now," Eren quickly rushed over to his mother and pulled her out from under the crossbeam. The man let the crossbeam fall back to the ground. He then walked over to Carla and knelt down beside her. With a few quick hand signs he spoke out the name of his Jutsu, Shōsen Jutsu (mystical healing palm technique).
"What are you doing?"asked Eren.
"I'm healing her. Now be quiet," replied the man.
Eren stayed silent and watched as the man healed his mother's legs. After the man did so he stood and started to walk away.
"Wait!" Eren yelled after the man. The man stopped, Eren took that as a sign that he was listening.
"What's your name?" called Eren, wanting to know the name of this mysterious man. The man turned around, and unzipped his collar enough, so that Eren could see his mouth.
"My name…my name is Naruto Uzumaki."
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Well? How was that for a second chapter! Eren's mom survives, and Naruto is a badass. I enjoyed writing this chapter a lot, I also tried to fit in a little bit of action with Hannes. Expect the next chapter by the end of the week(Sunday). I look forward to reading your reviews.
Salem52 signing off.
*The Ura Shishō Fūinjutsu. Was the seal that Danzo used to try to seal sasuke when he realized that he wasn't going to be able to win against sasuke. Now the Jutsu description says that it seals whatever is within the sealing radius into the users dead body, my version is that instead of the users body, it is a pocket dimension.
*In my version, Hannes was fourteen when the plague hit Shiganshina. The plague killed his parents so he was taken in by Eren's family. Despite Hannes's faults, Eren considers him a brother figure and holds him in extremely high esteem.