Disclaimer: But of course! I do own Naruto and/or World of Warcraft! But wait! Today is opposite day! Or is it? So does that mean it isn't opposite day? Yay! I mean, nooo!!!!
Here's the next installment of The Legend of Uzumaki Naruto!
Hisari didn't wait to attack, she just did. She threw herself at Naruto, brandishing the massive, curved, blood red blade that shined with the awful green light that now surrounded her and surged through her chakra system. She glowed like a neon sign in the districts that Jiraiya frequented, and produced a powerful wind that kept Naruto off balance. She slammed her blade into Naruto's side with furious abandon, but he parried. The contact of the two blades produced more than a ringing of steel—there was a flash of green and gold light, which tore Naruto from his feet, throwing him into the side of the wall. The six inches of solid stone was blown outwards into the air, but Naruto remained standing, his chakra gripping the smooth stone beneath him, and steadying his weak and shaking legs.
Hisari came at him again, her murderous green eyes pulsating wildly. Again Naruto parried, and was once more dazzled by the flash of light, which left him momentarily senseless; and left Hisari time to hurtle her weight into him, sending him off the edge.
Naruto fell ten feet before he recovered himself, and with a burst of chakra, jettisoned himself onto the wall, skidding to a stop. He glanced up, and saw Hisari staring down at him, one hand making a half-seal; it soon began to glow with intense yellow light, expanding to form a large hammerhead. She then leapt from her perch, straightening her body as she fell like an arrow, her glowing hand stretched out above her head.
'Hammer of Justice'
Naruto took a deep breath, twisting his body in preparation for a thrust. Hisari came like a bullet, and at the last second, Naruto drove a spinning, tightly wound ball of chakra—the Rasengan— upwards to meet her glowing hand in a fantastic explosion of light. Hisari's jutsu was dispelled utterly, and having no backing, her body was thrust upwards, flailing and spinning as result from the intense rotation of the chakra she was hit with. Naruto charged after her, roaring, "Stop it! You're gonna get us found out!"
Hisari grabbed the ledge and pulled herself up. She swung her blade at Naruto's head when he came up, but he lurched back and she missed. He scrambled up, and dodged back when she swiped at him again. On the next swing Naruto brought Magni's Pride up, batting her blade away, creating another flash. He then propelled himself forward and punched her in the side as hard as he could, then pivoted around and swept a leg out from beneath her. Finally he drove an elbow into her chest as she fell, sending her coughing to the ground.
"What the hell's your problem?" Naruto shouted into her face.
"You," she growled simply, pushing him off and smashing her head into his nose. It broke with a crack and a fierce burst of pain, and he fell back while Hisari recovered. "Weakling!" she hissed. She kicked him twice, driving out his breath, and then raised her sword to skewer him, shrieking wildly. He twisted to the side, avoiding the first blow, then pushed himself to his feet, stumbling some, and backed away towards the edge. Blood flooded his vision and his broken nose made it hard to breath.
Hisari rushed after him, the pulsating green aura roaring brighter than ever, slamming the blade on top of his with wild and powerful blows, all of which were absorbed by the Dwarven sword's talent, but pushed Naruto more into the stone floor with each burst of light. Naruto finally pushed her off, and then made a few hand seals, sucking in a great quantity of air.
'Katon: Goukakyuu no Jutsu'
A burst of howling flames erupted from Naruto's lips, engulfing Hisari suddenly and pushing her back. The fireball exploded in a crash against the other railing, spreading out across the path of the wall as if it were liquid, from which Hisari emerged perfectly unharmed, rushing forth, and crashing into Naruto again. Her body was surrounded in a bubble of golden light, which soon faded as she prepared to attack. Naruto was astounded by the ability, though he had seen it before—from Undrig, the paladin.
"Die," she hissed. She swung her blade high and then brought it crashing down. In the split second before her and Naruto's blades met, the blond created a clone directly behind her who planted a foot directly in the small of her back and thrust her forwards. Naruto fell back, kicked Hisari in the stomach, and flipped her straight over him, into the open air.
Hisari fell. She flailed in mid-air, attempting to push herself towards the wall to stop, her eyes wide with desperation; but Naruto didn't let her. He had already forgotten his earlier words, and now was prepared to beat some long needed sense into this girl. He shot after her and let loose a barrage of punches into her stomach and face, roaring like the winds of a tornado. He used air-grasping to keep her aloft, wanting to prolong the session as long as he could. Hisari snarled like a wild animal at its end, furiously attempting to regain her advantage, her anger growing greater with each second and blow, but her stamina lessening; Naruto's punches assailed her like stones at an execution, driving from her more than just life.
Finally, Naruto ended it—with a final cry, he swung his leg down in an axe-kick, driving Hisari down over fifty feet to the ground where she landed with a riotous crash and a plume of dust. Naruto pushed back, landing on the wall and skidding to a stop a few feet before the ground, where he hopped off near the crater where Hisari's body lay.
Or rather, where she was now rising, apparently unharmed. Naruto's eyes grew wide when Hisari managed to stand completely, turning her vicious eyes onto Naruto, panting loudly and painfully.
"Stop," Naruto said, finally, with difficulty due to his nose. "Just stop!"
"I am not weak," she said, as if repeating a mantra. "I am not weak."
"Yeah," Naruto said. "You are." Her eyes flashed, but he continued coldly. "You stupid bitch. You're letting that energy you've got in you control you; you can't fight without using it. You can't even use it properly."
"Shut up," she roared. "Just shut up!"
"You've gotta learn to control it," he snapped. "You've just got us found out. If anyone dies because of you—I'll never forgive you. All because you're insecure about how strong you are. That just proves it, anyways. You get so angry when you're called weak, 'cause you are weak."
"Shut up! Human! Vile, weakling, human!" Hisari snarled.
Naruto spat blood, and wiped his nose. "Geez, that's all that separates you from these bastards, huh?"
At that, Hisari roared and raised her blade, readying another attack. Naruto simply glared at her, and crossed his arms. She paused, and stared at the blonde's eyes. His eyes were narrowed and blue—perfectly blue—and she suddenly found that she couldn't move. Those eyes! What were those eyes?
"How about both of you quit it."
Naruto turned as Fen landed beside him, looking far different from usual. Though his face hadn't changed, he no longer seemed to smile, and his eyes were as narrow as his miniscule amount of flesh allowed. He glanced at Hisari for a moment, then back at Naruto. "We've got trouble. Something's been happening in the town for a while now. I think they may have been found out."
Naruto touched his earpiece with a frown. "I haven't heard anything from Yamato-taichou. But I haven't exactly been able to pay attention 'cause of her. But I saw a big group of Crusaders go in a few minutes ago, led by a really big guy who looked pretty important and very strong. They were heading up towards where Yamato-taichou and the others went."
"That seems reason enough for us to get going, huh?" said Fen. "I don't know what the hell happened here with you two, but settle it some other time, alright? Hisari, mind giving Naruto's face a bit of a fix-up? He might need it soon."
Hisari looked at Naruto, but the blonde was already moving. "Doesn't matter now. It'll heal soon anyways, remember?" He ran in the direction of the town, crying to the two behind him, "Come on! We gotta go now!"
Fen followed with but a backwards glance at Hisari, whose face was unreadable, even to him. She simply continued to stare after Naruto, long before she started to follow, and even then, it was only because her legs had started moving, and she stumbled slowly after them.
Nothing more.
Yamato glanced around him as a hangman would at the crowd he would die before. He looked at the woman who had previously addressed him. She was tall and brown-haired and extremely beautiful—or perhaps would be without the look on her face, a look he had seen many times before in the span of a few hours. She wore a small white and red cap, and wore a leather outfit with a white and red tabard over the front. But she carried herself like a queen and spoke like a commander, and so Yamato could only guess that she was the General he had been seeking.
"A spy or assassin," she said to him. "For the Scourge, doubtless. Thou smell like them; what did they promise thee? Immortality?"
"Nothing," Yamato said. "I was hired by those who fear you—humans who fear you. I've heard a lot about what goes on here." He could stall, that was his best bet. "I wonder if you have any idea of how many enemies you have among the human race."
"They are all potential enemies, until they are purified," the General said. "Perhaps thou wilt reconsider your allegiances, Scourge! For otherwise, thou wilt perish here. We," she looked at all the Crusaders around her. "Shall destroy thine body and send thy rotten soul to suffer in the Twisting Nether. What shall it be?" As she said this, she drew a gleaming sword from her side, which shined as if revealing the sun. "Death or salvation?"
"I have," Yamato said softly, "nothing to be saved from."
"Only an infidel would speak such nonsense," she said. "So it is death."
The Crusaders began to surge forwards, coming like a wave of bloody steel. But Yamato was ready; he made a dozen hand seals in a few blurs of motion, and ended it in a clap.
'Mokuton Hijutsu: Jukai Kotan!'
The perfect, white, stone floor of the basilica exploded as huge, dark, wooden tendrils erupted out, coiling around Yamato as if in protection. Then more tendrils began to erupt outwards from Yamato, appearing with great roars, like wood being stretched and pulled on a grand scale. An enormous trunk burst from the floor near to Yamato, growing upwards and spreading many long branches, which shattered the glass windows. Crusaders were thrown in all directions as roots blossomed from every inch of the floor, and soon the walls; and they were crushed, bound, and even impaled by the huge creepers, though the roaring wood drowned out their screams. The General cried out in hateful fury before she was swallowed by dozens of smaller tendrils, and Yamato could no longer see nor hear her. The tendrils burst through the walls and eventually the trunk pierced the ceiling, its branches ripped apart the roof, as they grew huge tufts of lively green foliage. The basilica shook and came apart more with every moment of the jutsu's duration, and more Crusaders were laid low by falling stone and debris. Many escaped towards the back of the basilica, as the entire front was soon torn to bits by the birth of an enormous tree.
The thunderous genesis awoke all of Tyr's Hand. The town below the basilica was soon alive, as Crusaders discovered the destruction of their holiest of buildings, and the deaths of some of their most trusted and sacred brethren. Ringing shouts, boiling with their maddened, zealous fury soon filled the night, as the entire town came to arms to combat the ones who sought to destroy their peace.
A giant of a man watched the growing tree from the town, his entourage of blood-soaked Crusaders silent and cold. He grunted. "What have you done now, hateful woman? Brought the fury of nature upon us? Come." He called to his soldiers. "We shall discover the cause of this before our rest."
"Yes, milord!"
----------------------
The room was dark but well furnished, and covered in beautiful scarlet drapery and extraordinarily ornate furniture, and had the pleasant smell of recently burnt incense. Or it once had, until Myrdraxxis had slain everyone within, drenching the scarlet carpet in crimson blood. Though possessing formidable skills in battle, the Crusaders lacked the crucial ability to recognize and organize against surprise attacks. No matter how zealous or driven they could be, the lack of a coherent threat against their city had made them slack off in their guard duties. He had picked them off with ease. He was now the only living being (if one could say that of him) in the church. He had searched every room for his target, and only in the last one had he found it. It was a copy room. Each desk had a version of the portal plans at some point of completion upon them. At the head he saw a stack of complete ones, copied with such precision that even erroneous ink stains had been duplicated. It was all in Common, as well.
He snatched up a copy, and read it over. The mission was to retrieve the plans, and destroy the rest; and so he rolled them up and slid them into a side pack. He then picked up a second copy, and this one he took a few more minutes to delicately fold and then slide within his tunic, where it would be hidden from every one.
He then set about the room, planting small metal balls covered in runes and sounding of liquid when shook. He had set them in every other room in the church. He sent a spark of chakra into the last one, causing it to begin to glow. It was done.
He left the room in a flash.
Yamato climbed from his small nook near the base of the tree, but did not stop to observe his work. There was truly now only one way to ensure that no hint of the portal survived this encounter. The situation had changed, and so would the mission. In this case, to preserve the safety of his world, he'd need not to recover the plans, but destroy any evidence of them.
Thus, he needed to destroy the basilica.
To many it would seem like a foolish and futile last attempt to salvage success from an otherwise failed mission; but Yamato was no fool, and such a task was not futile, at least at this point. The jutsu he had used had been created by the First Hokage, and had been used, it was said, to create the village of Konoha itself. Not even the Third had been able to learn it, and so before his death, he had given it to Yamato. Its power was boundless and its uses many. When used just once, it became the center of a mokuton user's strength and ability, and could be used for any sort of situation.
Especially the current one.
Gathering his chakra, Yamato willed the mighty tree to grow. Branches began to shoot out from the trunk, and more branches from those, while the roots grew longer and deeper. They began to pierce the other walls of the basilica, and beneath the ground, they began to demolish the foundations; he just needed a bit more time. He was running out of chakra, but he would have enough if he destroyed the building from the bottom up, and then made for the wall. He'd have to contact Naruto as soon as he finished, however, as the boy had doubtlessly seen his tree and would be coming to help.
Suddenly the night was lit with fire, and the air resounding with dozens of booms. The roots around the base of the tree began to explode, causing it to rock and shudder, and lighting the base of it aflame. Yamato didn't understand what was happening, as there was nothing beneath the roots but the Crusaders unfortunate enough to become tangled in them.
His eyes then grew wide.
They're killing themselves, he thought. They're using suicide jutsu to destroy their bodies in an effort to destroy the tree. He shuddered—what kind of people were they, to sacrifice their lives so pointlessly? Six more explosions followed that thought, finally reducing the surrounding roots to nothing more than a mass of coiling flames, from which a figure suddenly emerged, charging straight at Yamato with twisted rage saturating every feature on her face. The General was perfectly unharmed, though her hat was missing, and now clutched her shining sword in both hands as she ran, screaming a battle cry. She was not particularly swift on her legs, so Yamato had some time to prepare; he drew a kunai and ran to meet her. He struck at her side, but she dodged with a pivot and rammed her sword hilt into his kidneys, sending a wave of fire through his torso. He coughed, and twisted to block her second attack with his dagger, only to have her blade cleanly slice through it and gash his right thigh. The blade felt hot when it cut him, but he managed to stop himself from crying out and instead leapt back, stumbling when he landed.
The General attacked him again. At close range, it didn't matter how quickly she ran—her hands moved twice as fast, and she wielded the blade as easily as a master painter might a brush. Her attacks were also relentless, and she seemed to possess an otherworldly stamina, as she hardly seemed to take a breath. He could find no opening to counterattack, as she never took even the slightest fractions of a second to recover herself, and threw everything into each strike. But she remained perfectly balanced and seemed always ready; it was not blind rage, then, but something else. She had full control of herself, yet only someone who had lost themselves completely could attack with such ferocity. Now any evidence of beauty had fled from her face—it was indescribable how much hate he saw in her eyes, something he didn't believe people capable of.
He continued to avoid her hits, backing steadily towards the tree, which was now almost completely aflame. She thrust at his chest, and then he seized his chance—from his arm two tendrils of wood grew, coiling around the blade as it passed near him. Before she could pull it away, he rushed forwards and thrust his knee into her stomach, and then grabbed her arm and twisted it, making her reflexively release her grip on the sword. He pulled back and slammed his foot into her face, crushing her nose and knocking her onto the ground. She spat and snarled, immediately getting up, but didn't attack. Yamato took that time to toss her sword as far as he could behind him, where it landed, point in the ground, near the flames that had once been her companions.
"Thou…hast no idea of the sacrilege thou has committed! To violate that place of purity and beauty with thine vile seed!" she snarled. "Thou wilt suffer a thousand times over for this. Thou hast no idea of what is in store for thee."
Yamato glanced slightly to the side, so that he could see the burning tree in his peripheral vision.
"I don't know," he said softly. "I think it makes this place more beautiful. It also shows more truth than this place might ever have."
The General snarled. "Scourge, thou shalt not win. The Light shall prevail, as it always has! What thou hast done to me is unforgivable! I have dedicated my soul to destroying thine kind, to purify the taint that thou hast bestoyed upon me! Vile, parody of nature! Of life! The Light shall annihilate all that seek to mimick that wonderful, God-given force."
Yamato breathed laboriously, and didn't respond. There was no point—whatever he said would simply make her angrier, and talking like this in a fight was to present him with nothing more than a breather. And he had had one, and it was time to end this.
Then the air suddenly roared. Yamato whipped his head to the side, where the church he had left Sai in suddenly exploded in a tremendous flash. Then a second later, the church Myrdraxxis had entered exploded as well. The ground shook wildly from both explosions, and issued a blast of heat so intense that it was painful. Shards of wood and stone then began to rain down on the road ascending to the basilica, peppering the Crusaders rushing up it and stalling them for a moment more.
In that time, the General attacked. She ran forwards, snarling, while he drew a kunai and waited. They met, and she demonstrated the same dexterity with her bare hands as with her sword—she grabbed his wrist and pulled it aside, as well as pulling him in and driving a hand into his stomach, many times. Her hits were amazingly strong, enhanced by her awful wrath, making Yamato gag and cough. She twisted his arm and brought her hand swiftly down on it, but struck wood instead of flesh and bone. Yamato had pulled away, wooden vines leaping from his body to form a dummy that the General now gripped.
'Moku Kawarimi no jutsu'
The General roared, and released her grip, or tried to. Vines had coiled around her arm, binding her to the wooden dummy, and more had wrapped around her leg. She struggled furiously, shouting curses at him as the vines dragged her close to the dummy, which then embraced and completely immobilized her. She screamed suddenly, as if violated.
"Vile Scourge!" she shouted, spitting in his face. "Release me!" But here, Yamato saw the first traces of something besides rage, as he wiped the saliva off his cheek. It was only a hint, but within her shaking, bloodshot eyes, he saw the first traces of fear. He stared; it was the first vaguely human emotion he had seen in a Crusader since he had arrived. She now seemed truly afraid of him, which was remarkable, as minutes earlier she had shown him nothing but disgust and hatred, and had lorded herself as superior to him in every fashion.
Perhaps that was the root of their hate, he thought. Fear.
But to generate that much hate…they must be truly afraid.
"Release me!"
"I shall, Lady Abbendis. The Light will embrace thee a thousand times over, for enduring such suffering."
The next moments were a blur.
The man in red appeared, and in that same movement he placed his shining gold dagger against General Abbendis' neck and cut clean through. The head fell to the side, spewing an volcano's eruption of blood from the neck, and making her body shudder violently for a few seconds, before falling limp in the dummy's embrace. Yamato had only a few seconds to realize this before the man thrust his glittering silver dagger into Yamato's left shoulder, piercing it straight through. Yamato roared, reeling back, his left arm going limp and his vision hazy from the intense, jarring pain. Oddly, the man in red did not continue the attack. He stood calmly while Yamato panted and coughed, clutching the wound tightly; but he when finally reigned his emotion, and made no other sound, the man spoke.
"She fought well, and led well. Thou wilt never know the suffering she endured. Tortured by the Scourge she was—she owed them far more destruction than she gave, but I am pleased that she went in such a fashion."
Yamato coughed. "You killed her, of course you would."
"I saved her. It matters not, now. Doubtless, thine companions wilt be here in a moment. They have destroyed all evidence of the world portal in this place, in their destruction of those buildings. Thou too, hast done thy part." He pointed to the basilica. The tree was completely consumed by flames, but it had spread to the roof of the basilica and had doubtlessly spread within. Unless put out soon, it would burn everything.
"But thou hast not removed all evidence in the world. In great Stratholme, thou wilt find one more portal, built for the Grand Crusader himself. It is there thou must go now."
"And what if you're lying?" Yamato asked, more to stall than anything. He knew what the man would say.
"Thou wilt come nonetheless. Thou must ensure that all traces are removed—and if there are none, thou wilt come simply to make sure. I look forwards to thine arrival. Goodbye, walker-in-the-night."
And the man was gone, as quickly as he had come. Yamato had no time to rest, as a moment later, a monstrous crowd of Scarlet Crusaders erupted from the curling wall of smoke that covered the road between the destroyed churches. They were beyond mad—some were even frothing at the mouth, glancing wildly around in an attempt to identify the ones responsible. Inevitably, there eyes fell on Yamato, who stood alone, by the corpse of General Abbendis.
A single, horrible cry—indistinguishable from pain or fury, a collective of the hundreds of Crusaders who had amassed to defend their town and leader, arose into the night sky. For the first time in a long while, Yamato felt the wracking tremors of fear throughout his body, from that single, zealous cry.
"Oi! Yamato-taichou!"
Yamato had never felt relief until that moment.
He looked to the side, where Naruto had appeared, sporting a bloody nose which was slowly healing, followed by Fen and finally Hisari, whose body was covered in dirt and sporting a few cuts. They rushed to his side immediately, the blonde-haired boy smirking at him.
"Need some help?"
"Please," Yamato said, more easily than he felt he should be able to. "We're going to escape. There's no point in trying to fight them all. Just create a distraction."
"I got it," Naruto said. "Oi! Fen, help me! Hisari, help Yamato-taichou out, he's hurt!"
Fen glanced at Hisari, who looked insulted for a moment, then nodded coldly. She went to Yamato's side, placing a golden glowing hand over his shoulder, whilst guiding him back towards the forest. Naruto and Fen went forwards, towards the ever growing mass of Crusaders, who were moments from surging forwards to attack; but for some odd reason, hung back, despite the ever intensifying fury as they watched their holy capital burn. They grew even worse upon seeing Fen, roaring in a single voice, "Scourge! Scourge!" Yet still they stood back, in perfect military attention, their only indication for eagerness being the ceaseless booming shouts and the wrath in their eyes. And then the crowd of Crusaders parted, though the one they parted for had been visible long before. The giant whom Naruto had seen enter Tyr's Hand earlier, his armor still covered in the rotting flesh and congealed ichor of Scourge, entered the courtyard before them.
Naruto immediately noticed something vastly different about the man. It was not his appearance, but his presence; Naruto supposed he hadn't been able to accurately feel it before, not having faced him directly. But the man exuded the most powerful presence he had felt since meeting Thrall. He seemed to rise into a giant before Naruto, even though he stood no less than thirty feet away.
But what was distinctly different from his and Thrall's presences, were that this man's was the foulest, most disgusting presence he had felt in a while. It dripped blood and violence, and he felt—hotter than the roaring fire behind him—the intense, boiling hate that was concealed behind nothing but two inches of red steel.
"Such desecration," the man spoke. "Such desecration her wrath has brought upon this place, this most holy of holy sites. She forgot her teachings, the worm." He took one step forwards. "You! Boy! You're the shadow I felt before."
Naruto's eyes widened. Guess I'm not that good at stealth after all, he thought.
"Cultured in the arts of war, are you, boy? I feel it. You are more a warrior than a rogue. I see immense spirit in you; you have chosen the wrong profession, it would seem. But it makes it easier." He stepped forwards again. "I challenge you, then, so that you might pay for this desecration. I call you to one-on-one combat. Well? Boy?"
Naruto stiffened. He glanced at Fen, who looked with disgust at the man, and shook his head slowly. Naruto then snuck a look back, and found that Hisari and Yamato had vanished. He'd buy them time, however, to get as far away as possible. He straightened, and glared at Fen to stop him, before walking forwards.
He smiled.
"I refuse!"
Fen sucked in a deep breath and released it, as the dam broke, and the Scarlet Crusade charged.
'Heat Veil'
They ran into a heated bubble, which in an instant became a dome of solid fire, incinerating everything within as far as possible; dozens of Crusaders became nothing but ash in seconds, as flammable gas invaded their lungs and body, and immediately ignited, combusting them from the inside out. The air was filled with short, but horrible screams, which Fen ignored, and Naruto tried to. They immediately broke for the forest, to escape before the Crusaders could recover.
The giant had avoided the death trap, and saw that Fen and Naruto were going for the forest. He drew a huge, single-edged sword, made of steel as red as his armor; and in one step, bounded across the courtyard to where the two were making their escape. Naruto stumbled, staring in horror at the man's speed; but then he had no more time to be shocked. The man's blade sliced the air so finely and powerfully that before Naruto had even seen the blade move, it had crashed into the ground before him. He tried to move away, but the earth exploded in a dazzling flash of light. Naruto was hurtled backwards, stunned, and rolled back into the undergrowth of the forest, his vision clouded with blood. He landed on his back, his body engulfed in agonizing pain.
The giant Crusader loomed above Naruto, suddenly, his huge body shielding Naruto from the light of the distant flames. He felt shivers of fear through the pain, recognizing the power the man now had over him. It'd take but a single movement from the strangely hot sword held inches from Naruto's throat to kill him. Worse, Naruto had no idea what the man was going to do; his eyes were no more than black triangular pits in the helmet.
"Perhaps I misjudged. I see only fear. Where is the spirit I saw?" The giant rumbled.
"You'll see," Naruto said, in a gasp. Then, he flashed the man a cheeky grin, and vanished into the shadows beneath him, as if sinking into a pool of water.
The giant stepped forwards, landing on solid ground. The boy was gone. He looked to the side, and saw that his Forsaken ally had disappeared as well. He stepped back, glancing about him. The boy did not return as he had expected.
How…surprising.
His companions then gathered behind him, furious.
"Milord! Where hath they gone?"
"Into the shadows," he said. "An interesting boy, he was, defying me that way. I wish to meet him again." He cocked his head to the side. "Douse the fires. Enough destruction has been caused this night."
Somehow, they managed to find there way to a meeting spot, just outside the walls. The putrid fog returned full force, and soon the clear night sky that had enshrouded Tyr's Hand was not visible. Sai and Myrdraxxis had arrived first, then Hisari and Yamato, and then Naruto and Fen. Naruto collapsed onto the ground, wiping his bleeding face with his sleeve. There was a huge gash across his forehead, and another across his nose, which had almost healed from its break; and the left side of his face was covered in burns. Everything oozed and bled, and had long ago started to hurt. But more than anything, he was tired. He wanted to rest in a quiet place, more than anything, now.
"That went well," Fen muttered. "I suppose you could say. What'd you guys find?"
"Plans and evidence," said Yamato, "which has hopefully all been destroyed. Unfortunately, the mission isn't over yet."
They all looked at him. "What?" Naruto said, stunned. "Why the hell not?"
"I was…informed by one of them that another set of plans, and most likely another half-complete portal resides in Stratholme."
Fen groaned loudly, lying back against a tree and clapping his hands to his eyes. "Crap. I should've known."
"They told you? Why?" Naruto asked. "And what if they're lying?"
"No matter if they are, we have to go. Just to make sure. He has counted on that—I believe he wants us to come, though I don't know why." His eyes narrowed. "The one who told me was…different. He wasn't like the other Crusaders."
Fen arched an eyebrow. "How so?"
"He wasn't filled with the fury everyone else was. He was cold, and reacted with skill and intelligence, not anger. I don't know how to explain it. He acted like a true shinobi might. He seemed far more dangerous than any of the others. I've never met anyone like him."
"There was another one who was different, in a manner of speaking," said Fen. "The giant one that nearly killed Naruto and I. He spoke less like a religious zealot, and more like the commander of some army. Looks like these guys are a lot different from what we first suspected, huh?"
Yamato glared at the ground, and then at everyone else. "We'll need to head north, now. This mission just got a whole lot more complicated. But we need to find a safe place to rest first. Though I don't think staying in the immediate area would do that for us."
"There's a Argent Dawn headquarters somewhere up north," said Fen. "Or so I've been told. Somewhere in the mountains, near the ruins of some town. Best thing is to head there."
"Fine," said Yamato. "Let's get moving."
They gathered themselves up, and made for the smoggy forest away from the wall. Yamato led the way, limping slightly; and Hisari came last, sagging and walking slowly behind the others, staring at the ground. She had spoken to no one, and shook as she walked. But no one noticed. She made sure of that.
Fen sidled up beside Naruto, and gave him a slight smile.
"That was pretty surprising. I'd have though you'd have taken that guy's challenge to fight."
Naruto gave him a sideways look, and a smile followed. "I am Konoha's Number One Most Surprising Shinobi, you know!"
Tsuwabuki glanced around Gnomeregan when she first entered, leaving the awful desert behind. It was her third time in the capital of the gnomes, and she found she disliked it just as much. It was too loud—too many awful clanking and clicking and beeping and ringing sounds to process at each moment, and none of them ever stopped for even a moment. The smells too were disgusting—oily, metallic, sweaty, and burning materials (though not as much as Ironforge) all came together to make a disgusting cocktail that made the silver fox even prefer dung to it. The smooth metal beneath her paws, which made her slip and slide every time she attempted to walk, was beyond annoying, and was more humiliating as well. The dog-like boy had snickered a few times when she had first done it; he had stopped after she had bitten his leg, and given him a slight limp, which none of the medic-nins wanted to treat. The only redeeming feature of the city was that it was perpetually cool, which was quite preferable to the boiling sun of the desert behind her. Foxes were not supposed to live in deserts, and now she knew why. He first trek through it had been bad, but her second had been far worse.
Three days ago she and the small entourage of bodyguards selected by Tsunade had left Konoha, heading across the Hi no Kuni and into the deserts of the Kaze no Kuni, and then across the seemingly endless desert, to make a brief stop in the Hidden Sand, which had turned out to be pointless. Gaara had already gone to the portal to wait for her, putting his old teacher, Baki, in charge of overseeing the rest of the Sand while he was gone. So they had marched half a day across more desert to the portal to meet him.
Somehow, every step of the way, Tsuwabuki had found some way to be annoyed by her travel mates. At first it had been just the dog boy and his annoying dog, which just wouldn't leave her alone. But it had spread. She began to get annoyed at the screeching blonde-haired girl who would rail at the lazy moron for hours at a time, and the fat boy who sweat too much. And the stupid guy who smelt like smoke looked lovingly at the black-haired girl who wore too much smelly fragrance. To even look at the shy, pale-eyed girl annoyed her, whose lack of confidence was something Tsuwabuki could not stand; and the boy whose body was apparently made of bugs creeped her out; then there was the girl who smelt like iron and oil and never ceased jabbering to the pale-eyed boy, whom Tsuwabuki had gained a little respect for, for he had been the only one who hadn't annoyed her, in some way.
And she wouldn't even get started about the two weirdoes dressed in green.
Tsuwabuki was forced to endure all of them, the curse of not having the ability to speak with most humans. She absolutely refused to talk to the dog or his owner, and so she suffered in silence. She tried in vain to contact Naruto, but he seemed busy, or something was blocking the bond—both of which annoyed her as well, and she hoped would change by the time she got to Azeroth.
Gaara met them at the portal, accompanied by only his brother and sister and a few Sand-nin who had been there before. He spent no more than a few moments speaking with Tsunade in private, before all of them followed a single gnome through the massive ring-shaped threshold of the portal. It felt like stepping through a doorway into another room, not another world altogether. Then her final annoyance came—the reactions of the shinobi.
It was generally wonder, to some degree—whether barely showing a hint of it, such as Neji and Gaara, who only widened their eyes and glanced around; to nearly epileptic levels like Lee and Gai, who bounded about, shrieking wildly at everything they saw in that one entrance room. It took a sharp reprimand and a thinly veiled threat from Tsunade to make them stop. But not even she could hide her amazement.
"Nothing like this exists in our world," was the first thing Tsunade said to Mekkatorque, after their introductions. The old gnome smiled at her, pleased by the praise.
"Thank you," he said. "I'd give you a tour, but there is not time for that now, is there? The meeting starts tomorrow, and this day is already half over! Come, the tram awaits us."
"So this is the place Naruto helped save way back when, huh?" Kiba said, glancing around. "He's a bad story teller, you know? I didn't picture it at all like this!"
"I know, right?" said Ino. "This place is so cool. I wish we'd get to see the rest of it."
"Neji! What kind of weapons do you think they make here?" Tenten practically shouted at the young man, glancing around her with stars in her eyes and a permanent smile affixed on her face.
"I don't know," Neji said calmly. "Please let go of my arm, Tenten."
"Weapons are Ironforge's specialty, miss," Mekkatorque said, briefly interrupting his own conversation with Tsunade. "You may be able to see it, during your visit." Tenten looked overjoyed.
"I wonder what kind of food they have," Chouji asked, forgetting how tired he was now that he was out of the sun.
"Kakashi! What a wondrous place this is! Look up from your book and gaze about you in glory!" Gai roared, clapping the man on the shoulder. Kakashi glanced up from the orange tome he read, and looked around him a few times.
"Interesting," he said. "Please let go of my arm, Gai." But he put the book away, nonetheless, and walked up to where Mekkatorque and Tsunade were, in front of all the rest of them.
"Mekkatorque-sama? Might I ask you something?"
The old gnome nodded.
"Have you heard anything about Naruto or Tenzou…Yamato?"
"Nothing that I know of," Mekkatorque said. "We have heard nothing from them. But then again, the Plaguelands are an incredibly difficult area to send messages from. We most likely won't hear anything until they have completed the mission."
"Ah," said Kakashi. "Well, it's nothing that can't wait until they come back. I had something to tell Naruto and Sakura."
"You'll be able to tell Miss Sakura soon. She remained in Stormwind to receive her treatments."
"Did she?" Kakashi asked, frowning. "I didn't think Naruto'd let her go that easily. It must have taken a lot to convince him."
"So I was told," said Mekkatorque, smiling. "But she convinced him, in the end."
"I imagine," said Kakashi. "She could make him do anything."
"How are her treatments going?" Tsunade asked, sharply. "Is she alright?"
"I know not. But I'm sure she's been taken care of. Lady Kira is quite the healer, as is Archbishop Benedictus." Mekkatorque smiled at her. "I imagine she will be ready to greet you when you arrive, with a fully healed arm. You'd be surprised how much that can be done." He chuckled, a little feebly.
"You don't sound totally convinced," Tsunade said, arching an eyebrow. Kakashi had turned away, forced to speak with Gai again.
"It has nothing to do with that," he said, with a sigh. "Forgive me. I have a lot on my mind of late. I am a little worried about tomorrow's proceedings."
"It sounds like a recipe for disaster to me. You're gathering people into one room who've been enemies for years, or so it sounds," Tsunade said, stepping out into the large corridor that led to the tram. "I'd be just as worried, where I in your position."
"Your position isn't much different," Mekkatorque said. "You simply have the fortune of not being involved in these prejudices. It must be so much less complicated where you come from. I hear that only humans populate your world."
"That's debatable," Tsunade muttered. "On both points. Besides, people find a hundred other things to find fault with. That's why war exists. Race is just one factor; it'll never be the sole reason."
Mekkatorque nodded. "Nonetheless, I hope young Lady Kira knows what she is doing. She will need to deal with all of this quite carefully. She handled it splendidly during the attack on Stormwind by Onyxia and her brood, but this is another matter. There is much bad blood between the leaders of these kingdoms; I myself am no different. Though I wish to keep an open mind, I know that some of them are responsible for the deaths of many of my people in past wars."
"She will do what is necessary." Both of them jumped at Gaara's voice. He walked silently beside Tsunade, as they rounded the corner and headed towards the tram's cavern. "She has all that is necessary to make it work, according to Uzumaki Naruto."
"But she's young, and so are you, Kazekage-sama," said Tsunade, a little sharply. "I don't mean any disrespect, but that will make a difference, in somebody's eyes."
"Of course," said Gaara, without emotion. "But as long as she speaks true and with confidence, she will get her message across. And she has no desire for war or conflict between these people. She will do, therefore, what is necessary to prevent that."
"She is a smart girl," said Mekkatorque. "I agree with Lord Gaara. Ah! Here is the tram. There is room for eight in each, so choose whichever one you like. The tram will last four hours, and when we reach Stormwind, you'll be led to your accommodation."
Tsuwabuki winced at the screeching sound the tram made as it ran along the tracks to the platform they stood on. When the doors opened, she immediately leapt onto the last of the cars, curling up on one of the comfortable leather couches, and burying her head in a pillow. Only four more hours, and she'd be free. She couldn't wait to see Kira and Sakura again, either.
Those two girls were not only good petters, but didn't annoy her in the slightest. She also hoped to see Naruto again soon, as well. But somehow she felt it would be some time before she met her partner in person again.
"You're late."
Orochimaru spat onto the dusty floor of the room, and hissed. "Forgive me Sasuke-kun," he said. "But I'm not in the mood for your cheek."
At the other end of the monstrous room, which was populated only by rows of columns and lit by only a few rows of torches, and sitting before a golden statue of a giant snake, a figure watched the Sennin and his silver-haired companion. He sat before a large basin filled with fire, so his form was obscured by shadows, but Orochimaru knew the voice and its disgustingly arrogant tone. Any other day, he might have played Sasuke's game, and pampered the boy like a prince with oozing, insincere apologies. He'd cater to the boy's every selfish demand, which was nothing more than an exercise in power over his master; Orochimaru knew that Sasuke was far different from how he acted.
But he was not in the mood for it.
"Hmph. I suppose it didn't go as you had planned it," the boy said. His eyes blazed Sharingan red across the room, and seemed so close to Orochimaru. It was as if the boy stood a foot in front of him. That was all you could see of the boy's face. Those eyes, those covetous, beautiful, powerful eyes that Orochimaru hungered to have.
Those wonderful eyes.
Orochimaru scowled at his apprentice. "It did not."
"Figures," the boy said. "If you had let me come, it might have been different."
"No matter how confident you are, Sasuke-kun, you are inexperienced in these matters. You are strong, but you'll need more than that against Akatsuki. And even more than what they have to defeat your brother."
"If you weren't so slow, that might be different," he said. "You haven't taught me a new jutsu in weeks."
"I have been busy, and you have yet to master that blade I gave to you. You're impatient, Sasuke-kun." For some reason, Orochimaru's anger was ebbing away. He enjoyed doing this with Sasuke; pointing out faults in the boy's fighting style pleased him, as it showed both of them that Sasuke was not as infallible as he was taught to think. He knew it angered the boy, because he had grown angry when Sarutobi had done it to him. And like him, Sasuke was learning to hide that. He would really be a fine shinobi, he reflected. It was unfortunate that he'd never live that long.
The boy scoffed, and continued the meaningless banter. "When am I going to learn a new jutsu?"
"When I'm ready. Return to your room, or practice with one of the prisoners. I'm tired."
"Fine," the boy said, with false petulancy, but he did not move. He stared at Orochimaru with the frightening red eyes, which began to slowly spin.
"You have a visitor, by the way. I told him you'd be back soon. I don't know where he is now, though. You might have to find him yourselves."
Then the boy was gone.
Kabuto glanced sideways at his master, adjusting the new pair of glasses he had produced. "What did he mean?"
Orochimaru's lip curled. "It appears we have a guest." He glanced around, casting his amber eyes on every inch of the room. The temperature of the room dropped, and all the fires suddenly went out, as if snuffed by an invisible, omnipresent hand. But Orochimaru was used to the darkness, and could see the entire room regardless. Nothing moved and everything was completely silent, for not even his or Kabuto's breath pierced the thick veil of darkness.
"Come out, honored guest," Orochimaru called. "It is rude to not introduce yourself to your host."
A gust of wind ruffled Orochimaru's hair, which was odd, as they were several dozen feet beneath the earth. It was frigid like winter, but slight like spring, draping itself over him and Kabuto as something appeared in a blink before them. A figure garbed in a black, hooded cloak, like a solid mass of fluttering shadow, appeared before Orochimaru. Kabuto recoiled in shock, drawing a kunai, but stopped when Orochimaru lifted a hand.
He was sure that in the darkness, the man could see him. So with a poisonous smile, he greeted his guest, offering a hand and a slight bow to complete the sarcasm.
"Who are you, and what are you doing here?" Though not a typical greeting, it fit. He did not lower his eyes either, affixing them on the hood, where the man's eyes would be.
"I come at the behest of my master to request an alliance with you, Orochimaru. It is something that may be needed for both of us, quite soon."
The voice was brittle and raspy, but deep and resounding. Orochimaru felt the hairs on his neck stand up, but not from fear. Each word was carried like an arctic wind to his ears. But he narrowed his eyes, and frowned.
"Oh?" said Orochimaru. "But even so, what makes you think you may enter unasked? You are terribly rude, and for that, I may simply kill you and thus decline your master's offer."
The man laughed; it was a chilling sound. "Kill me? I wonder. That would be an interesting endeavor. It has been a long time since I've contemplated such a thing. But no matter; forgive my manners."
Orochimaru's smile sweetened. "You have yet to tell me your identity. I don't like that; especially since I have just returned from a battle with my worst enemies, and my patience for dealing with foolishness is at an end. You are easily the worst guest I have had yet, and this place is filled with the most vicious, terrible criminals and shinobi you might find. I might kill you just from principal, but that seems to surprise you. What kind of man does not think of death, and enters this place?"
"One who knows it." the man said.
Orochimaru stopped smiling. "Is that so…?"
"You have a number of enemies, Orochimaru. More than you can imagine, at this point. With so many, it will not be long before you and your 'village' are crushed by the overwhelming power of your enemies. I have come, not only by the will of my master, but my own as well, to offer a hand to you. Take it, and your strength will become so great that none of your enemies would be able to move against you. The very mention of your name would send fear into their hearts, and despair into their ranks, and with your own power, you would be able to destroy them utterly, and take what is yours back." The cruel cackle came again.
"You're confident in your strength, whoever you are. I'll admit it has me intrigued. But I have heard such proposals before, and none of them have come to fruition. What proof do you have, that you can offer this? And what makes you think I'll take it?"
"Because your desires are no different from our own. You seek an ultimate understanding of the world, and we are so close to discovering that. There is much we can give you, and your apprentice as well. But at this time, I can only offer a name."
"Oh," Orochimaru said, as a smile spread across his face. The name whistled in his ears, a soul-chilling wind that brought a delightful mixture of fear and excitement to his heart. "Is that so...?
"You have my attention, then; tell me what he...has to say. I'm all ears."
Done. Hope it went well. I thought it did, but that hardly means a thing nowadays, huh?
The action scene with Hisari and Naruto was a bit short, but I did it because as a battle, it only needed to get a point across. Neither Naruto nor Hisari used their absolute full strength, though Hisari was leaning dangerously close to by the end. Who knows, though; there may be more of them in the future. Hisari won't be converted as easily as the rest!
General Abbendis died easily, but she wasn't an important character, just to show the strange anger of the Scarlet Crusade from an analytical character like Yamato's point of view. The Scarlet Ghost is going to come back soon, as is the giant "milord" whose name will be revealed soon enough.
Next chapter is the meeting between the leaders, and more dark happenings in the Plaguelands. An adventure begins for some of the other characters.
Hope it was a good chapter, and see you next week!
Scroll of Seals
Mokuton Hijutsu: Jukai Koton (Wood Secret Release: Birth of Dense Woodland): Creates a giant tree, which can be altered or grown according to the user's whims and chakra levels. Can be used for attack, defend, or domestic uses. Created by the First Hokage, and said to be used to create Konohagakure.
Hammer of Justice: Creates a hammer of chakra upon the user's hand, which can clobber and stun foes, even kill them, if used with enough force.
Blessing of Protection: Creates a bubble of glowing energy around the user, protecting them from all harm.
Sacrifice of the Crusade: Destroys body of user to create a massive explosion. Suicide technique.
Moku Kawarimi no jutsu (Wood Replacement Technique): Creates a dummy from wood to replace the user, and can be used to capture foes as well.
Bingo Book
General Abbendis (Humanoid)(Elite): A vicious, yet powerful leader of the Scarlet Crusade who lives in Tyr's Hand, and who commands a huge amount of the Crusaders stationed there. She has a tactical mind, but is easily incensed, especially on matters relating to the Scourge. It is said she was tortured by them, and thus possesses a ferocious grudge against them, and longs for revenge. Skilled with a sword.