Disclaimer: Not owning Naruto or World of Warcraft is a tragedy! A travesty! But…for whom? I'll leave you to ponder that question in detail.
Here's the next installment of The Legend of Uzumaki Naruto!
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The Plaguelands were nothing like they had ever seen. They appeared at first a forest, not unlike the dark pines of before, but bereft of needles, and covered in a vile, pulsating fungus; around them were spotted, green and brown mushrooms as big as dinner tables, which twitched and shook their spores at every movement near them. The ground was covered in awful brown grass, which seemed perpetually damp and slick beneath their feet. An awful yellow-brown fog covered every inch of the landscape, making anything not several meters from them invisible. Where the air touched their skin, it was damp and hot, and even through the masks the smell was beyond foul. It made their eyes burn as they walked, and breathing was arduous and distasteful. There was a road through this awful, plagued wood—winding and bent and lined with the same vile mushrooms, which grew perpetually larger as they walked. The terrain was hilly and winding. They passed at one point the edge of a lake, turned black by the Plague, lined with putrid fungi that shuddered with their presence. The animals they saw were few—three squirrels and a deer—which were obviously infected; their bodies were rotten and their movement slow and unnatural. They heard no evidence of birds, but heard other sounds—distant moans and hisses that came from all directions. They were plagued (thankfully not literally) for two nights by these sounds, making sleep difficult for the humans of their group. They avoided two farmsteads in their path, briefly catching sight of them, and seeing masses of movement, as well as putrid red smoke rising from one. Fen told them it was a farm called Dalson's Tears, and that the smoke was synthesized Plague created by the Scourge and placed there to fight against the patrolling Crusaders. The other one was nearest to a bridge that needed to be crossed, which they did quickly and silently, keeping wary eyes on the single building and its barren field.
Beyond the forest was a vast plain, viler than the forest. The trees grew sparse, replaced by gigantic mushrooms, with thick oak-like stalks and expansive heads that rained an almost constant dusting of spores. Thankfully, with no wind, the spores were not spread, and merely settled in large piles at the feet of these disgusting trees. Their smell was overpowering and exhausting. The ground became bare, but retained its softness and slickness. This was called Blight, by Fen—the physical effects of the Plague on the landscape.
But perhaps most distressing was in the distance they saw shambling figures, half covered in the thick fog. The moans grew louder here, and the sight of these figures, never drawing closer but never leaving their sight, was frightening. Fen and Myrdraxxis were used to it, and paid them no mind; Hisari never wavered from their chosen path, her eyes continually forward; Sai seemed the most intrigued, glancing all about him every day, and at night painting pictures of what he had seen; Yamato looked constantly wary, and never smiled; Naruto constantly frowned, and seemed always on edge—the figures bothered him and racked his nerves—he was never one to be calm in such a situation. He contemplated several times seeking out the distant forms and attacking them, but realized it would just cause them problems. Fen explained what they were, though it had been obvious before—victims of the Plague, shambling without purpose, seeking only flesh to consume or brutalize. But their lingering, ceaseless presence was the worst of all, even though it was Naruto who was most affected. He did not like waiting.
They came to a ruined tower at one point, completely deserted, though with evidence that something had been there. The carcasses of animals, buzzing with flies, lay scattered around it, ravaged almost beyond recognition. Beyond that was more forest, where some of the trees were half-formed into mushrooms, sickly and pulsating, and the brown sky grew darker and darker. Their traveling slowed, especially when Fen told them of a town up ahead, which they would need to skirt; called Corrin's Crossing, the town was full to the brim of Scourge and had become a sort of outpost for them. "They're mindless," said Fen, "but they still follow orders. All of them are directly under control of the Lich King, it is said, though the reality is more likely that Kel'Thuzad controls them."
"Who?" Yamato asked.
"A lich—an undead sorcerer—who lives somewhere near Stratholme, responsible for most of the Scourge in this area. We won't be going anywhere near him, hopefully, though at some point he'll have to be dealt with. He's one of the Lich King's generals. But for now I'd like to get to Tyr's Hand. It'll take three more days, by skirting the town."
Fen led them through an expansive forest, where the ground was as littered with bones as it was twigs and fungi. Animal carcasses, fresh and old, lay in savage death every few feet, some completely bone, covered in black and brown mold, others in blood tatters, strewn about over a few feet, and still fresh. "Avoid the flies," Fen told them, "they likely carry Plague as well."
Here the shambling Scourge were not visible, but their presence was continually made known by the moans, and the snapping of bones and twigs—which at night, always brought Naruto out of his light, restless sleep. He never could go back to sleep after that, a trait he unusually shared with Hisari, with whom he would have to share the long nights with. Neither of them spoke to each other, for even though Naruto knew what she was, he could not find himself to like or even sympathize with her. He had learned this in a talk with Fen, when they had stayed briefly in the Bulwark before entering the Plaguelands.
"She's a Sin'dorei," he had said. "Or blood elf in your language, the last remnants of a race very closely linked to the night elves, or Kal'dorei. It'd take a bit to explain her history in detail, so I'll just tell you the outline, as I know that, like me, you hate history lectures." At Naruto's smile of agreement, he went on. "Basically, when the Well of Eternity blew up, a bunch of the High Elves, those who followed Queen Azshara, and who didn't plunge into the deep, and left the night elves, coming over here, and creating a kingdom called Quel'Thalas. They created, though I'm not sure how, something called the Sunwell—which turned out to be a mistake, in the end. The Sunwell provided them with incredible chakra regeneration rates, through some sort of strange energy it radiated. They lived like this for a time, the Sunwell transforming them into pale-skinned beings, like that pretty piece of flesh we have to baby-sit. During the Third War, Prince Arthas, the guy responsible for most of what happened in the Plaguelands, attacked their city and destroyed it, forcing them to flee even further north; most of them died, but some survived and they called themselves the blood elves as a result—to honor their fallen brethren. After that, they started rebuilding, and eventually were able to take back their lands—Quel'Thalas, from the Scourge; that was about ten years ago. I'm told that Lady Sylvie has been in contact with them for some time, but they haven't revealed themselves until now, as they had things to do, like rebuilding, and curbing the Scourge problem they have. Since Lady Sylvie was once a high elf, they have a good record with her, and so naturally they'd ally, though it took a bit of time, and still they hardly trust us, due to our affliction. I guarantee that there is going to be an uproar when Sylvanas introduces them."
"Why?" Naruto had asked.
"Well, she's a perfect example—she despises humans, mostly because they propagate the Plague, and she's pretty much intolerant of everyone else, save maybe the orcs. She'll especially disapprove of the night elves, and you can bet they'll despise her and her kind, or at least regard them with enough distrust to make this alliance weaken a bit. The worst part is not that, though; it's their 'disease'." He noted Naruto's puzzled look, and nodded. "It's not a disease, per say. It's an addiction. For thousands of years their kind have been exposed to this Sunwell, which while now destroyed, has not ceased to affect them—their bodies are now infused with this energy, and it appears to be genetic, or else they've found another way of synthesizing it—either way, it has disastrous effects on their psyche."
"So that's like what happened to you guys. Everyone should be able to understand, don't you think?"
"It's a bit like us, but still way different. Our bodies are affected by the Plague, but once we come to ourselves, our original personalities return, though a bit warped by the trauma. But they aren't affected at all in body—it's all in their mind. They need to use this power, and it, as time goes on, slowly distorts their minds, making them boastful, arrogant, and self-absorbed; and they can't help it. This power makes them feel strong, invincible; it's an addiction. It makes them incredibly dangerous as well, for both enemies and allies—it gives them a rush, and so they use it often. They can keep their original personality, but only if their will is strong enough. Otherwise, they become a lot like her. We haven't seen much of what she can do; only that she's pretty skilled, despite being so young. But you can guarantee that you'll have to stay out of her way in a fight. Just don't piss her off, okay? Try and be friends with her, even—you may be able to work the magic you used on Sylvie."
She was pretty, but her awful scowl and maddened green eyes reminded him uncomfortably of Sasuke—which was another problem he found himself constantly afflicted with. When he managed to sink into an uneasy sleep, he found his dreams plagued by images of Sasuke. "Have you forgotten me?" or "Idiot, you'll never bring me back at the rate you're going," they continually drawled. They would inevitably awake him, and then the evil sounds of the forest would keep him so. He grew sullen and quiet, and only through the efforts of Fen would he be able to smile, and then, only briefly.
But not all was bad. He had enjoyed seeing Maya again, and how she was getting on. She had since become a member of the Argent Dawn, and had found her true reason for joining—to ensure that nothing like what she experienced happened to anyone else. She had elaborated on the difficulty of getting in—the intense training sessions and brutal tests—but in the end, felt glad that she was. She belonged somewhere again. But her cheery face was quite distant now, in the blanket of evil fog that constantly surrounded them.
Yamato observed the change silently. He knew that Naruto was bothered by the situation they were in—for he himself was not much better. This place more than anything terrified him; it was so hostile, yet they had encountering nothing so far that posed them direct threat. It was different from what they had been told at the Bulwark. An officer named Garush—an aged man with plenty of strength left in him, who had fought the Scourge for years, and who knew all about the area.
"What you seek may not even be in Stratholme," he had told them. "There are several Scarlet outposts in the Plaguelands, not including that damned city. The others include Hearthglen, in the northwestern Plaguelands, and Tyr's Hand, in the southeastern. Stratholme is the main headquarters, but far cry from the safest place to keep such an important item. And you're giving them far too little credit—they are zealous, but they aren't stupid. In the arts of war, their leaders rival ours."
"What would be the most likely? It would cost far too much time to check all three."
"Tyr's Hand, I'd say," he had said, stroking the slight grey beard he had. "Untouched by the Plague, and never been conquered once. It's a bastion of their faith, and would be incredibly difficult to enter, especially with the witch there."
"Witch?" Yamato asked.
"Crusader who calls herself The Scarlet Oracle. We don't know much more than that, only that she's incredibly powerful and influential. But she's not the half of it. That place is diseased in its own way. More monstrous acts take place there daily than every country on this continent. They are all mad, except the initiates," he glanced at Maya when he said this. "So I suspect some sort of brainwashing. I've known good men who joined the Crusade. This place has two plagues, I think you'll find. One that decays the flesh, and the other the soul."
He had gone on to describe the general layout of the Plaguelands to Yamato while the others talked. Then after a small meal, they had left with Maya and Garush' wishes of luck and health.
For they were sorely needed. It was not so much the place, either, but the creatures that inhabited it. Though they saw almost nothing of them, the thought that any moment the shadows that lingered just out of their reach could leap out at them and use nothing more than basic savagery to tear them all to pieces was chilling; but the fact that they didn't was even more so.
"Why don't they attack us?" he whispered to Fen, after a day's travel through the forest. They had arrived near the banks of a lake filled with water, clouded black and green by Blight, but stayed a fair distance from it, as according to Fen, it was not uninhabited. "Could we have been discovered?"
"No," rumbled Myrdraxxis, standing at the edge of the wood. "As strong as he is, that lich has no way of locating us, unless someone informed him of our presence. Scourge cannot think, unless they are granted base intelligence, and those that have it are undoubtedly serving a much higher purpose than the ghouls that wander these lands. Elf, why don't you explain?"
Hisari scowled, glancing over at the rogue whose attention remained fixed on the lake. "I ward them off using a power of mine. Useful, is it not?"
"I'd rather they just up and attacked us," mumbled Naruto. "It'd be easier to fight them that way, and I wouldn't feel so goddamn creeped out all the time. And why didn't you just say that before?"
"This is a stealth mission," said Yamato, with a sigh. "As irritating as they are, it is good that she has done it. But I agree with Naruto; it would have been better for you to have said something—we are at the moment, a team."
Hisari sniffed. "I despise you. I cannot call any whom I despise a teammate."
"What the hell is your problem, anyways?" Naruto snapped. "All you've done since you've been with us is bitch about men and humans. What do you have against us, anyways?"
"Men are vile," she said, with narrowed, intensely glowing eyes. "And humans are wicked, pathetic little beings. The lot of you are like diseased cockroaches that can't be stamped out. You are weak, spiteful and offer nothing redeeming for your faults. What can I like about such things?"
"Shut up," Naruto said in two distinctive growls. He had launched himself to his feet, standing on the balls of his toes like a wild animal with raised hackles.
"Biting words are all you can use. Sad, isn't it?"
"Shut up, how can somebody as stupid and weak as you say anything about that?"
Hisari flashed to her feet, her eyes alive with frightening, frenzied hate. "How dare yo—"
"Shut up, both of you," said Yamato, suddenly cold. Naruto quieted, though he still glared at Hisari. Hisari rounded on Yamato, ready to continue her tirade, but Yamato was ignoring her.
"Are we close?"
"About a half a day more," muttered Fen. "There's a Scarlet camp around here, somewhere. We should keep to the trees, and go around the north side of the lake. Once we get to Tyr's Hand, we're gonna need a plan. I've never actually seen more of it than the walls. It's immensely difficult to enter, judging by the fact that no Scourge have been able to break into it since the Plaguelands have existed."
Yamato nodded, "Fine." They quickly left, moving away from the lake. The blighted sky grew darker as they went, a marked change in atmosphere. They then spotted an amazing sight—a massive wall, stretching hundreds of feet into the air, shrouded in the veil of night, which did not continue much past it, as if suffocated by the poison of the plague. The wall shined brightly, as if formed of moonlight, perfect among the rotten forms of the Plaguelands. Even the light of the moon was visible, casting down only on the little plot of land, called Tyr's Hand.
"This is it. Getting past is another story," said Fen.
Naruto craned his neck up. "We could go up using chakra. But there're probably guys up top, right?"
"Most definitely," said Yamato, frowning. He turned to look at everyone. "Okay. Here's what is going to happen."
"Such an commanding tone, human. Do you expect to order me?"
"Yes," Yamato said, suddenly harsh. "Despite your allegiance, you are a part of my team. While I don't know what orders Sylvanas-sama gave you otherwise, it would be in your best interests to follow what I say, because as it stands, you are not only a hindrance to the success of this mission, but your skills are hardly oriented towards stealth. This is not a mission to destroy the Scarlet Crusade, regardless of what you were told. This is a retrieval mission—we are to enter Tyr's Hand and remove all evidence of that portal-machine. I would like to do it with no casualties on my part, and as few on theirs as possible—I don't want to be seen. For a shinobi team, this is entirely possible; I recognize that you are not shinobi, but I expect you to cooperate, as it is in the best interests of your kind as well." He quickly turned away before Hisari could think of a response, and addressed the others. "Myrdraxxis-san, Naruto tells me your skills lie in stealth."
The rogue nodded.
"Then you'll accompany me and Sai. Naruto, you will remain with Fen-san and Hisari-san at the top of the wall, and offer us aid. Do you still have the ear piece I gave you?"
Naruto nodded, tapping his weapon's pouch. He wasn't happy with the decision, however. "Why can't I go? I'm pretty good at stealth."
"That isn't the issue," said Yamato. "You've been restless for the past few days, and you've got a very short temper at the moment. You don't have the mindset. So you'll stay on the wall, and offer support—I'll alert you guys to whatever is happening, and if we should need aid, I'll tell you. You'll know where to come." He turned his swift brown eyes to everyone else. "Is that clear to everyone?"
"No," hissed Hisari, having managed to recover herself since Yamato's reprimand, clearly furious at the insult. "If you—" She choked, and began to thrash furiously, as a long, wooden creeper rose from the ground, wrapping around her neck and arms, responding to Yamato's chakra. The man was clearly at his patience's end. He walked straight up to the blood elf, staring directly into her shocked and furious eyes.
"I don't care about your prejudices. I don't care if you hate me, either. I just care about this mission succeeding. I do want to have it messed up by your intolerance. Put it aside, and complete this mission, or I will kill you right here. Now, I don't care what happens as a result—but you will perform your function on this mission. Do you understand?"
Hisari snarled, and continued to struggle. Her eyes burned so passionately that it seemed she would not give in. Yamato stared back. Fen watched a little nervously, glancing between the captive blood elf and Yamato.
"Let her go, Yamato-taichou," Naruto muttered. "She's not gonna give in. I'll make sure she doesn't do anything." The boy looked at Yamato rather calmly. "Besides, she can't help it much."
Yamato frowned. He stared back for a moment, wondering what the boy was talking about. He glanced back at Hisari, who still struggled in vain and fury. Her eyes were wide and the veins within them glowed an intense green; her mouth was twisted into a ferocious, ugly snarl; she had not stopped her struggle for a second, like a prisoner driven mad and forgetting the futility of escaping. Had she been able to, she would have certainly attacked him by now.
He walked forwards, grabbed her by the jaw, and then forced something into her open mouth. She tried to spit it out, but he pinched her nose and forced her jaw shut. She struggled for a bit longer, her eyes growing even wider, but was unable to do much else but swallow, which was exceedingly painful. Then he pulled back, and made a hand seal before him.
"I'm going to release you. But before I do, I'll tell you what I just gave to you. It's a seed. At any moment, I could make it grow, inside your stomach, into a plant roughly six times the size of your torso; you would die. I can sense wherever you go with it, and can make it grow from any distance. I promise at the end of this mission, when we depart, hopefully forever, I will destroy it. But until then, this is incentive to cooperate." He took a breath, and the creepers released. Hisari looked for a second like she might still attack, but Yamato did not give way to his position; it'd take but a second for him to gather the chakra necessary to activate the seed; and though jaded by the unnatural energy that flowed through her body, she was not stupid, and he would not lie. Her body quivered with fury, but she did nothing but glare at him.
"Good," Yamato said, relaxing. "We'll start soon. Everyone get a little rest; I'll check out our position." And with that he vanished in swirling, white smoke.
Naruto glanced uneasily at Hisari. The elf neither said nor did anything. Sai, however, broke the silence with a chuckle.
"How strange!" the boy then sat down, taking out a small black book as well as one of his brushes, and a little dish of ink, which he began to paint with, a smile framing his face. The others regarded him, confused, and finally Naruto asked him, gruffly:
"What is?"
"That man," Sai said. "Such a strange person he is. Kind one moment, but brutal the next. Perhaps he is a better shinobi than I expected. He doesn't let his emotions control him."
Naruto narrowed his eyes at the boy, who just continued to paint and smile. "You're the strange one. What I can't figure out is, why the hell are you even here?"
"I told you. Danzou-sama wanted me to go. The Hokage suspects him of treason. How foolish, he has done nothing of the sort. But currently, I am here to help you! You sorely need it, Naruto-san. I may not be Uchiha Sasuke, but I am quite skilled. I shall ensure this mission is a success, so that you might be able to find Sasuke-san that much sooner."
Yamato returned not a moment later, distracting everyone from Naruto's faltered scowl. The man looked pleased, and he addressed everyone once again. "Here's what's going to happen…"
The plan was executed flawlessly. Yamato could not have planned it better. He and his team defeated eight of the twenty-four odd Crusaders patrolling this side of the wall, and not one managed to even scream. Sai smothered two of them in inky veils, while Myrdraxxis dealt with four more with nothing more than his blades and natural swiftness. Their throats were cut before they managed to utter more than a sound, spilling blood darker than their tunics onto the perfect white stone. Yamato himself eliminate the last two, quickly and soundlessly skewering their hearts with spears of wood; and with that, the three of them leapt from the wall, sailing more than a hundred feet below, into a patch of trees that lay on the outskirts of the town.
Perfect, Yamato thought. He glanced at his companions; the Forsaken Myrdraxxis, dressed all in black, glanced briefly at him with his sickening yellow eyes, before nodding forwards; Sai did not even look at him. The passed through the forest swiftly, reaching the edge of the town with ease.
From the wall, it had appeared vast—dozens of houses and buildings that stretched over the trees, made of white stone and possessing blood-red tiled roofs, lighted by only the moon. Three buildings shined the brightest among them—at the top of a small hill, at the very back of the town, where the mountains rose up in a wall to shelter it, he had seen a three large buildings, each resembling a church. Two of them were humble, simply designed buildings, or at least compared to the last—a vast, stark white cathedral that resembled the Church of Light, in Stormwind. While taking Garush's warnings to heart—that the Scarlet Crusade was not stupid—he guessed that due to practicality, the portal would be created in one of those three buildings.
He quickly related these facts to the other two. Myrdraxxis, with a solemn nod, agreed. They quickly took off, staying on the very edge of the town, nearest the mountains. Yamato glanced back once, towards the wall. He heard nothing, and hoped that the others had completed their duties. He didn't think they'd be caught, but even if they were, Naruto would be able to hold them long enough for the mission to be completed. He had Kakashi's word on that.
So with that final look, he turned forwards again, his eyes narrowed, his face set and stern.
"We'll split up," said Yamato, when they reached their destination, about ten minutes later. "One to each building. I'll take the biggest, the cathedral; Sai, take the one on the left, and Myrdraxxis-san, would you take the one on the right?"
They both only nodded, and acted on his order immediately. Sai leapt atop the roof of his building, vanishing among its many towers. Myrdraxxis vanished altogether where he stood, concealing himself in the shadow as all members of his profession did. Yamato took the last church, bounding towards it and then around to the side, where he peered up at the shimmering white stone. He heard nothing from within. He leapt to the nearest roof, and went progressively higher; he suspected wherever the plans were, they would be in a secure room, which usually meant on the highest floor or the lowest. The highest was easier to reach, so he went towards it with swift, silent bounds, reaching a small, dark window on the steeple near the back of the cathedral. The steeple stretched as high, it seemed, as the wall, and he could see the entire town laid about before him, enrobed in moonlight. It looked peaceful and harmless, and he almost could not imagination that this place was the object of so much fear.
After listening intently against the rippled, ornate window, and hearing nothing, Yamato unlatched it and slid quietly. The room was large, furnished in gold and scarlet colors, and built as if for a queen with particularly lavish tastes. The bed was enormous and covered in red silk sheets, with incredible woodwork depicting lions and gryphons and other beasts curling about the legs and sides and headboard. The tables were made of white marble sculpted by a master crafter—so ornate that they would look out of place even in the Hokage's office. The walls were dressed with wall hangings, all of golden crosses or shining red hammers surrounded by flames.
Not here, then, he decided. This was obviously a bedroom—likely for the leader of this place. Whoever they were, they were not there, and hadn't been for some time. The bed was perfectly undisturbed, and a thin layer of dust covered the sill of the window he perched on. He moved across the room, pressing his ear against the door, and then went through, hearing nothing.
He crept down the long, spiraling staircase. It circled the length of the large tower, and he could see all the way to the bottom. Upon reaching it, he heard sounds, making him tense. There were two doors. He crept up beside one, and listened through the sleek, polished wood.
He heard singing.
It was loud and rich, but hardly went past the door. He had never heard music like it—the voices, men and women, blended together into a powerful and soul-lifting chant in a language he didn't understand, accompanied by a deep, vibrating instrument that he couldn't identify. He pulled away, frowning. That left that room inaccessible for now. He went to the other door, and heard nothing within. He slowly opened it, finding it nothing more than a small storage closet, containing food, barrels of water, cleaning supplies and a number of other essentials to make the place fit for human habitation.
He cursed. This place, he reasoned, looked nothing more than just a place of worship. Would they have it here? The one room he couldn't check, which was the largest, was full of Crusaders no doubt. That meant he'd need to wait, or find another way of entering; henge could easily disguise him, but if they were in the middle of something, they might suspect him.
He decided to go back. He returned to the large upstairs bedroom, and went outside, bounding down to the roof of the largest section, which was in front and shaped like half of a square. He could feel the strange instrument beneath his feet, and just hear the singing. He began to move towards the side, hoping to peek through one of the small windows that lined the wall just below the roof, and just above the large, serlian stained glass windows.
"Wait."
Yamato spun so quickly that it seemed impossible, drawing a kunai as he did, and almost threw it too, had he not spotted Sai's expressionless face, a few yards away.
Yamato released his breath, frowning. "What is it?"
"I've found something, in my building. This is just a clone," Sai said, pointing. "I thought it best to get you."
"What have you found?"
"Evidence of a portal, or so I assume," the clone said.
Yamato nodded, standing up. "Okay," he said. He made some hand seals, causing long tendrils of wood to emerge from his body, winding and weaving together to form a vaguely human shape, which soon evolved into a perfect likeness of himself.
'Moku Bunshin no jutsu'
"Let's go then," Yamato said, waving to Sai's clone. He directed his clone to continue observation. It didn't take them long to get across to the other church, which was a lot smaller than the cathedral. It was only as big as a quarter of the largest section of the cathedral, and was made of white stone with red roofing. Sai led him around towards the back, scaling the wall to reach a small window in the back. The clone directed him through it, which led into a darkened stairwell. Down the stairs, and then another, the clone led him directly back to Sai's real body, which lay crouched in the shadows of the cellar, near a door.
"What is it?" Yamato whispered.
Sai smiled, and pointed to the keyhole. "There."
Yamato played his eye to the keyhole, seeing just through it a giant metal structure, with several Crusaders hovering around it. He saw brief flashes of light, and heard the Crusaders speaking amongst themselves, and to someone else in the room that Yamato couldn't see.
"I do not understand this! Why must General Abbendis make us work with these vile creatures?" said one.
"Because they are the only ones who might help us in our goal," hissed another, sounding just as displeased as the first. "And Lady Demetria has ordered it, and she is the Voice of His Holiness. We must taint our hands and minds with this knowledge as long as she wills it."
"Fine!" the first snapped. "We will yet continue. How does this work?"
"We must continue constructing the frame. That is most important, and will take more time than the rest. Make the beasts talk, to tell us of our progress."
"With pleasure."
Yamato leaned away, as the screams began. He looked at Sai, his face cold.
"It seems they need help making it. They have a hostage."
"What is your order?" Sai said, smiling.
Yamato stood, and slowly drew a kunai from his side, staring at the door.
"Eliminate them. Leave one alive, so that we can get information out of him."
Yamato kicked the door in, hurtling a kunai at the Crusader who stood beside the metal structure. The man turned, eyes widening in surprise, just as the knife struck him in the neck, making him fall back with a gurgle. Yamato's eyes swept the room. Seven more Crusaders occupied it, all at the far wall; one in the midst of brutalizing a pair of gnomes chained to it. Sai swept in after him, holding a small rectangle of paper, which he tossed into the air. The black ink, in the form of a pair of wolves, leapt off the paper, growing until its depictions were life-sized. The wolves, now as big as small horses, barked and snarled, leaping at the Scarlet Crusaders who remained.
They scattered, drawing their weapons with trained grace to prepare with the new threat. Two went towards Yamato, and another towards Sai, while the rest occupied their time dealing with the monstrous wolves. The four surrounded the two wolves, their blades biting at their ink-formed bodies, spraying black 'blood' across the dirty stone floor. The wolves, in turn, slashed and bit and snarled at their opponents, who were remarkably quick in avoiding, though not always. One of them tripped over the chains binding the gnomes, allowing a wolf to get close and bite off his head. Blood burst forth from the wound, and the wolf reared back, crimson spreading through the clear gaps in its torso, where the head was now visible, floating between the creature's brush-stroked body, sickeningly mangled. The other wolf managed to latch onto a Crusader's arm, biting it clean through, before another struck at its neck with his sword, severing it, and causing the entire wolf to dissolve into ink. The other wolf quickly fell, and the remaining Crusaders attacked Sai, while the other hung back to stop his wound from bleeding.
Sai moved with fluid grace to avoid the first Crusader who attacked him, leaping under or over each strike made, an emotionless smile on his face. He wetted his brush as he dodged, and flicked its contents into the air, spraying the Crusader with ink—except the ink, before it struck him, became hardened and shaped by Sai's chakra and became as sharp as needles, which impaled the Crusader's face, and killed him in an explosion of blood. One of the other two Crusaders hung back, making hand seals, while the other charged at Sai with an axe.
That was when Sai saw his face, noting that he had never seen it before. It looked like hate, but it seemed so much more than that. It was not quite like the picture in his book, so he was hesitant to label it as hate. He did this even while conjuring another ink-animal, a large bird sporting long talons, which rocketed at the attacking man and rent him across the eyes. But even then the man did not stop his attack, and flailed his axe wildly about, destroying the ink bird, and then rushing in Sai's general direction. Meanwhile, the other finished his sealing, opened his mouth, and let forth a gale of yellow-gold fire at the boy.
'Divine Fire'
Sai leapt to the side of the flames, which came in a single mass, blasting apart on the wall behind him to cover the latter half of the room for a few moments, before extinguishing. He lashed out with his brush again, this time only a single tendril of ink flew off; and though the Crusader tried to dodge, it wrapped around his upper torso, constricting an arm as well. Sai then wrenched the brush back, sending a sliver of chakra through the rope of ink, making it sharp. The man's upper body was split apart, and he perished with wide, surprised eyes, which were soon lost in the pool of blood that formed around his body.
Yamato observed the results with a wrinkled nose. "Good job," he said, reluctantly. He stood over the corpses of his own opponents, both having been impaled through the heart with wooden spears. He turned back to the last of the men, who stood in the back, still fumbling to stop the bleeding. But he was not fearful; his face was twisted into such violent hate that his fumbling came solely from his eagerness to fight. Disgusted, Yamato summoned some thick, wooden tendrils, which wrapped around the man's torso and pulled him to his knees.
Both Yamato and Sai approached him, making him snarl in fury and curse at them.
"Shut up," Yamato said. "That thing is a portal, right?" he pointed to the metal structure, which resembled a horseshoe, though incomplete.
"I shall not talk," the man hissed, with a sneer.
Though no interrogator, Yamato thought himself intimidating. "You will, I'll make sure of that. Who is Lady Demetria?"
The man grinned horribly. "She is His Voice. She hath willed us to create that monstrosity, and so we must obey, for she knows the Light, and speaks for it. It will bring us closer to the destruction of those monsters."
"The Scourge?"
"None else! And who are thee, infidel? Thou art their servant, I see, for only they would seek to destroy the sanctity of this place." He spat at Yamato's feet. "Disgusting wretch, how could thee taint thine soul thus? What did they promise thee? Riches, power? Thou must know that they can offer nothing but sin. Thee may yet save thineself."
"I don't have to repent for anything," Yamato said, coldly. "How many plans are there of this?"
The man spat again, and laughed, but said nothing.
"He won't talk," gargled a voice from beside Yamato, making him turn. One of the gnomes had become conscious, and had opened his eye, one of the only recognizable features on his face. "They are too devoted."
"Can you?" Yamato asked, in a lighter tone.
"Not much," the gnome whispered. "They have blueprints in this room, but I doubt they are the only copies. The scribes of the abbey across from this place have likely copied more, and the General might have the original. But so might the Lady he speaks of. She has not yet returned."
"Why are you here?" Yamato asked. "The High Tinker said that nobody had disappeared in Gnomeregan."
"I'm not from there. I lived to the north, in Arathi. I don't know where he's from," he nodded at the gnome beside him. "But he's dead. They captured me when I was coming back from Tarren Mill to trade with the Forsaken, due to this alliance. I'd never been there, and before had never any reason to go. I hated it. They brought me here and told me to help them build whatever was on those plans. I am an engineer, and those plans are easy enough to grasp, so I suppose that's why I was taken, and not someone from Gnomeregan." He then coughed red, which dribbled down his front.
Yamato knelt down by the gnome, reaching into his pouch. He produced a lock pick, and started on the locks, while the gnome laughed feebly. "Don't try it, I'm already dead. I don't want to be saved. Just destroy this place and that machine. Please." He closed his eye again, and shook, making bloody tears to fall from his eyes.
Yamato said nothing, but put away his lock pick. He stood up.
"Where can I find this General?"
"In the basilica between this building and the abbey."
Yamato nodded. "Thank you." He glanced at Sai. "I'll leave this place to you."
Sai smiled. "Are you sure you need no help?"
"I'll be fine," Yamato said.
"And you trust me to take care of this place, in accordance with the mission?"
"I have hardly a choice."
Yamato left the room, and the building, the same way he came. He sped up the slope to the basilica, knowing that stealth would soon not be needed. In any case, he needed to get to this General, whom would doubtlessly know the location of the rest of the plans. Of course, should she be as obstinate as the normal soldier, it would be extraordinarily difficult to find out that information. His best option would be a capture—with that, he would have all the time he needed to crack her. Even so, the gnome's presences showed him that they didn't know how to build the portal, which was good. But of course, who was to say that they didn't have more?
When he reached the building, he went around the side again, and bounded up to the roof, where his clone would be waiting. Or had been, at least. Yamato stopped in the middle of the roof, between a pile of splintered wood, and a figure robed in red.
"Hail, walker-in-the-night." The voice was soft and tempered, filled with a beautiful lilt that seemed musical to Yamato's ears. The man was tall and slim, and covered in red—red hood and mask, red tunic, trousers, boots and gloves. He wore a tabard, red, with a golden hammer on it.
"Yo," Yamato said, tensing. He had not even noticed his disconnection with the clone. This man was good.
"I know thine plan. Thou art from the otherworld? I am glad."
"Are you?" Yamato said, almost casually. "So you expected us to come, instead of the inhabitants of this world?"
"They would come with armies and wage battle. Thou wouldst come with stealth and make mischief. They would use thee more readily than making war, for the young innocent despises bloodshed."
"You know a lot." He didn't have to say what might come next—Are you going to stop me?
"Indeed." The man said, "but shall we dispense with such talk? I can see that thou art ready to battle. As am I."
Yamato said nothing more. He charged the man, drawing a kunai and slashing at his head. The man ducked low, as two daggers, one silver and one gold, appeared in his hands, and he cut through Yamato's green vest with his first movement, and with his second forced Yamato back. He moved with deadly swiftness, his blades little more than pricks of light from the moon, which Yamato barely had time to register. He parried the next strike, cursing when the man's blade destroyed it, and the other came up and would have sliced Yamato's arm off, had he not snatched it back. Yamato recoiled, now defending himself entirely from the man's attacks, which seemed to get faster and faster. The front of Yamato's vest was in tatters within a minute, and he had several light wounds on his face and arms.
He was as fast as he was skilled, then, Yamato thought. He slammed his hands together, causing the shards from his destroyed clone to bind together, becoming a spiky mass of wooden stakes, each about an inch thick. He batted the man's next attack aside, and kicked him in the stomach, and at the same time he focused his chakra and willed the wooden ball to burst, flinging the deadly spears in all directions. The man leapt off the roof, down towards the main entrance, while Yamato used a wooden shield to deflect his own projectiles. He made another seal, and thrust out a dozen wooden spears from his fingertips, all of which the man dodged, as if his body were lighter than air.
He quickly returned to the roof, stopping at the very edge, and then looking at Yamato. Yamato went still as well, despite his breathlessness. Their eyes met—shining blue and earthy brown—and then they once more exploded into action. Yamato threw a dozen shuriken at the man, who cartwheeled to the side and made a few seals, which caused his body to shimmer. He blasted towards Yamato who raised his hands to defend with taijutsu, only to have one be grabbed and the man to swing him to the side, grab his vest, and slam him roughly into the roof, making the tiles crack. The man then stood, and made a seal.
'Judgment of Might'
All sense and reason was for a moment lost to Yamato, as he felt an enormous weight strike him, pushing him straight through the roof in a roar of light and sound—of shattering stone and his own cry of pain. He then fell, until he landed on his back on the stone floor of the basilica. He could think, but it was immensely hard with the monstrous pain that now assailed all of his body; and he could move, but that too seemed impossible for a time.
But when he finally did move, sitting roughly up, he wished he hadn't; he was now surrounded by no less than a hundred Crusaders, all with the same glare—somewhere between hatred and madness.
"What is this?" a voice spoke. Yamato turned his head, and beheld a beautiful woman with dark brown hair staring with hate-filled eyes at him, no different from the rest.
"An infidel, a spy!" she snarled. "For the Scourge no doubt! He must be destroyed!"
How quickly they perished, these humans.
Hisari glanced about her, at the lifeless forms of the Crusaders, dressed in all their bloody finery. Four bodies lay in her immediate vision, but four more could be found on the opposite sides of the two guard towers that surrounded her. It took little to destroy them, and she had not even needed to lift her blade. But a simple jutsu had done it. She felt the nearly inexhaustible power within her flow and surge through her, granting her an ecstasy nothing else could bring. She felt light, swift, powerful—invincible. With her power, she could do anything.
She glanced half to one side, where the blonde idiot would be. Her eyes narrowed in hate. That brat disgusted her. He had the gall to even assume that she couldn't help it! What did he know? And that man, as well, filled her with even more rage. That disgusting man had touched her, and had even the thought to blackmail her into following his orders. And he was a human, too. That alone filled her with revulsion. Why should she follow the orders of such pigs? She could help it. They had ignited her rage. She hated them with all her might—barking orders to her when they had no right, attacking her, forcing her to comply with her wishes. She had every reason to hate them. Couldn't help it? Of course she could; she willingly hated them, nothing forced her to. And those traitorous Forsaken, letting the humans do what they wished. But that boy, calling her weak, filled her with even more rage. What did he know? She was strong. Beyond all measure. Did that boy have power like her? Of course not. He was simply jealous.
They all were.
Naruto climbed the wall with considerable ease, running up it like he would on solid ground, his feet making only brief, light sounds with each step. He stopped a few yards from the top, and then pressed himself to the wall, projecting similar chakra from his hands and slowly climbing up, until he heard the voices and footsteps of the guards. There were two, who hailed each other when they met.
"Have you seen anything?" one said.
"No," the other said, sighing. "Nothing. Those vile creatures have learned well enough to stay away from our walls. Saddening, isn't it?"
"It is. I hope to be part of General Abbendis' patrols one day. Then I might extinguish them with my own hand. I envy the ones regularly selected. It seems I am not strong enough."
"Then get stronger. We must have all that our bodies are capable of to destroy those rotten demons." The man spat the words furiously, allowing Naruto to picture his face. The boy's lip curled in disgust. He glanced just over the top, quick enough to see how many Crusaders—there were four, two in the middle talking, and two more walking in opposite directions. He released his grip on the wall, falling back, standing perfectly perpendicular to the wall. He made a hand seal, and four clones burst into existence beside him. Without bothering to listen to the rest, he sent them over the wall at their fastest. He followed quickly, leaping to the top of the wall, just as he heard the surprised gasps of his enemies.
For all their fierce hatred, these Crusaders were hardly the most skilled. They barely reacted to Naruto's clone attack, only managing to through up their weapons flimsily to counter the quick, powerful strikes that assailed them. With blinding fast movements, Naruto's clones felled two Crusaders immediately, knocking them unconscious upon the stone ground with two powerful kicks to their jaws. Another tried to fight, while the other attempted to signal an alarm. Neither succeeded. A clone struck down the fighter with a hammer-blow to the head, which made a sickening crack when he struck the ground, his jaw broken and skull fractured. The other Naruto attacked himself, with the remaining clone; the clone kicked him in the jaw, while Naruto struck his side with a few swift punches, making the Crusader crumple with little more than a groan.
He grinned in triumph. He could have easily gone with Yamato and the others. He glanced at his four clones, and then to the left. There was one guard tower between him and the gates. He could just see a pair of Crusaders on the other side, walking slowly towards him. Hissing, he quickly wove a henge around his clones, transforming them into perfect likenesses of his opponents. He jumped back over the wall, as his clones formed pairs and walked in opposite directions.
He managed it. The Crusaders didn't appear to notice, and even greeted his clones when they reached the edge of the wall. He smiled triumphantly, bounding back onto the path and as his clones marched, he dragged the unconscious bodies of the four men and stored them in the tower further from the gate. With that, he settled down to wait.
An hour passed, and he yet remained. He considered briefly trying to find the others, but decided against it. He didn't really want to talk to Hisari anyways. Through the small window in the tower, which pointed away from the Plaguelands, shined moonlight down into the dark room. Moonlight was never his favorite, but after witnessing nothing but murky brown clouds for days, it seemed more beautiful that he could have imagined.
And for some reason, it reminded him of Sasuke.
Sasuke had at some point faded to the back of his mind, a distant memory of something that he needed desperately to accomplish, but still had time. So much had happened. He had fought battles, gained friends—even family—and in the end he had almost forgotten one promise, perhaps the one that meant the most to him. But what could he do at this point? He was in the middle of the vilest place he could imagine; Sasuke was an entire world apart. So all he could do was promise himself that once this was over, he'd commit himself totally to locating Sasuke. He affirmed this to himself many times in that hour.
Some time after, however, he heard a distant, dreadful sound. He got up, slipping out of the tower and to the edge of the wall. He couldn't see much, so he slid on his goggles and activated the night-vision mode.
At the bottom, marching towards the gate, were two-dozen Scarlet Crusaders, marching in nearly a perfect circle, dressed so alike they might have been clones. At the front was a monstrous man who towered a foot above the rest, whose armor was much more ornate in appearance, with wing-shaped pauldrons and a horned helm, who strode with much greater purpose than his companions. Naruto focused his goggles on this man for a while, when he noticed something strange. Wherever the group moved, it left a luminous trail, making their route visible for some distance into the brown fog beyond. He peered closer, and switched off the night vision. It was hard to make out, but he finally realized what it was, and grimaced.
It was a trail of blood.
It was not red, but a dull, dark green. He knew it was truly blood when he saw that in the back, every soldier dragged the body of a Scourge. He also realized, with wide eyes, that the Scourge were not dead—they writhed and twisted and he could periodically hear their moans above the din of the marching. The soldiers, too, were covered in it. Their leader was the worst, dripping with things more vile than plagued blood. The guards at the gate came forwards with exultant shouts at their coming, and there was a humming sound as the gate doors began to open. Naruto ran to the other side of the wall, hopped over, and skidded his way down the vertical wall and came to a light stop at the bottom. He crept as close as he could to the wide open doors, which thankfully opened inwards, allowing him to hide behind them. The marching then stopped, and he heard several Crusaders begin to speak.
"Milord! You have returned!" cried one. Naruto assumed he was addressing the large man in front.
"Yes." The man's voice was deep and muffled, but commanded awesome power. The single word sent a shiver through Naruto's spine.
"How many did thee kill?"
"It does not matter. We have slain many hundreds in the north, near the City. Tomorrow, more shall be destroyed. Do not ask such a foolish question again."
"Of course, milord."
"It matters not how many die." He said this loudly, addressing everyone. "They all must be destroyed eventually. And conceal that face!" Naruto didn't know what face the man had put on, but from the earlier enthusiasm, it must have been a smile. "You are a soldier, it is not your duty to take pride in how many we slay. Our duty is to simply destroy. We must do it all without conscience or emotion. It is not our Way to delight in destruction; it simply must be done."
"Forgive me, milord. I-I, I know now what I speak."
"Remember your teachings, soldier." There was a pause. "Destroy the ones we have dragged." The sound of steel biting flesh and several piteous moans then came, before the leader, "milord" spoke again. "You know your duties. Purify thyselves of the taint that touches your armor now, and have it cleaned for tomorrow. Rest, but not easy—there is still so much to be done."
"Milord, General Abbendis wishes to see you and Lady Demetria."
"Hateful woman. Lady Demetria is not here. She had important business to attend to, in the midst of our campaign. She shall return in time."
"O-of course milord." The sounds of marching began again, making Naruto shrink back to the wall, activating the Kagesui. The small army marched past him, towards the city, 'milord' at the forefront. A horrible smell, like putrefying flesh, accompanied them so heavily that Naruto thought he could see it. The gates then began to close, and so Naruto returned as swiftly as he could to the top of the wall. Breathless, he ran towards the mountains, knowing that he should warn at least Fen about the Crusaders. He ran until he spotted a figure in the distance, and praying that it was Fen, called out to it. But when he could clearly make the figure out, he stopped.
Two green eyes, like neon lights, peered at him in the darkness, illuminating the frightening face of Hisari.
"Good," she hissed. "I was waiting for you. Call me weak, boy? Say I can't help it? I'll teach you, boy! I'll teach you…" Even the blood vessels in her face began to glow now, a terrible, unearthly green.
"…what strength can be!"
Done, finally. Sorry for the wait—I've had a few family problems, which have caused me to slightly neglect my story. Worry not; I have the next two weeks free, so I'll be able to write more.
Also, note that in the last chapter, I accidentally called Hisari a "Quel'dorei" which is incorrect—she's a Sin'dorei, a blood elf, not a high elf. Sorry about that.
I hope this chapter got to the point well enough. I've been hearing complaints like that, and I've felt that I've "beat around the bush" a few too many times in the past few chapters. Tell me if this is better or not. I rather liked doing the scene near the end.
I'm getting a lot of requests for the Draenei. They will come. Don't worry. This chapter, no, next, no, but in a few—yes, they will come. So stop asking, okay?
Think that's it. Hope you enjoyed the chapter, and see you next week. Much less beating around the bush, and hopefully a pick-up in the arc plot.
See ya!
General Grievous
Scroll of Seals:
Moku Bunshin no jutsu (Wood Clone Technique): Creates a clone forged of wood.
Divine Fire: Breathes super-heated flames from one's mouth, hotter than Goukakyuu no jutsu.
Judgment of Might: Releases built up chakra that is used by a seal (in this case, the Seal of Might, a jutsu which enhances strength) to deliver a powerful blow on a focused area, which can kill or stun opponents depending on the amount of chakra the user has.
Turn Undead: An aura which makes Scourge flee in pain. It does not seem to affect Forsaken.
Bingo Book:
The Scarlet Ghost (Humanoid)(Boss): The murderer of King Anduin, whose power and speed match that of some of the most skilled shinobi, and who is utterly loyal to the Scarlet Crusade. So far, nothing else is known, save for his curious speech and incredible skill.
'Milord' (Humanoid)(Boss): Other than his strict adherence to the teachings of the Crusade, and his incredible hatred for the Scourge, nothing else is known about this man. He stands over seven feet tall, however, and is the leader of a large regiment of Scarlet Troopers, and seems to be associated with Lady Demetria, the Scarlet Oracle.