Chapter 1
The Fox & the Cat
His movements weren't fast, they weren't graceful. To anyone watching they looked crude and without fluidity. But they were effective, and in a fight that was what mattered. Speed and precision was all well and good in a fight, but in a life or death situation like this the most effective manoeuvre was usually the best.
The amnesia stricken Shinigami sidestepped the lunge, digging his sandaled feet into the ground and caught the lithe form of the two tailed feline. For a moment he seemed to wilt under the creature's weight, and then with a roar of exertion he lifted her up and tossed the lioness across the clearing.
The creature recovered quickly, performing a spin in midair, landing on the ground, claws digging into the deadened dirt as she skidded to a halt. It studied him with an intelligence far superior than any other creature he had met in this hell before lowering her body with a predatory grace, prowling around him.
In response he did the same, body stooped, legs bent, ready to move at a moments notice. He mirrored her moves, his mask unreadable, yet the glowing crimson orbs, partially hidden by the slits made his intent clear. The amnesiac was going to defend him self, with deadly force if he had too.
Then in a blur of motion his enemy moved, taking off at a near frightening pace, paws smacking the ground with enough force to kick up small clouds of dust and dirt. She pounced. Claws outstretched, jaws opened for the kill only for the blonde to dodge yet again, diving to the side in a sloppy roll before using the momentum to find his feet, hands digging into the earth to stop his skid.
The demon cat hit the ground, her claws digging into the ground to stop her own slide. She slid one hundred and eighty degrees before coming to a stop, once again starring at him with those unnatural cerulean orbs. A growl escaped her and opening its mouth began gathering spiritual energy, a ball of cerulean forming and swirling a few feet from her open maw.
A Cero
Quickly he reached out with his middle and index fingers, his own Cero forming an inch from his fingertips. They fired at the same time and watched as the balls missed each other by millimetres, yet such close proximity obviously had a bad effect on their trajectory. The two Cero blasts swerved in opposite directions, each impacting at opposite sides of the forest with a bright flash of cerulean and crimson.
He blurred from view, appearing above her, crimson energy coating his hands. The cat demon looked up in curiosity before she started to take evasive action. With a throaty growl he reeled back his right arm and brought it forward, palm open and forming a claw. A condensed ball of crimson shot out, impacting the ground where his adversary stood.
His Bala missed his mark as the two tails darted out of the line of fire. With a growl he fired another Bala, and then another, until the small balls of crimson spiritual pressure fell like rain. The feline was forced to keep on the move, its lithe form darting back and forth as it deftly evaded every strike, every blow, every Bala aimed for her.
Within moments the clearing was covered with potholes and small craters, each billowing smoke and steam. He came down in a crouch, hand on the ground to hold him steady, before he stood and watched as his enemy came out of the shadows of the forest, her nimble form sporting a few burn marks from near misses but otherwise unharmed.
"Out of all the Hollow I have fought in this hell you are by far the strongest" he said, his voice respectful and praising to this creature. She had just lasted longer than any other opponent he had faced.
The feline tilted its head to the side "Thank you, you're not so bad yourself"
Definitely a female, the voice had the feminine tone, even if it was distorted "I take it you were the one who was following me?"
The creature seemed to think about it, then nodded "Originally I was planning on ambushing you when you let your guard down. But you never did, and when you started leaving your kills for me I just decided to stick around"
"So why do you want to eat me now" he asked with genuine curiosity, before pointing to the half eaten Hollow at the edge of the clearing "I mean I'm much scrawnier than that carcase over there"
To his surprise the feline threw its head back and laughed, it held no mirth, only a lifetimes worth of bitterness and pain "It's simple. To prove that I exist"
A red haired boy, his form half encompassed by a nightmarish visage of sand, taking the form of a monstrous demon "I will kill you. I will not cease to exist!!!"
"Why?" he asked, shaking the memory from his head.
"Because that's how it works here" she replied, head tilted "We fight and kill so that we may continue to evolve, to continue to have a purpose. If we stop the pain from the hunger becomes so excruciating that we can't even move. If we don't then we revert back to mindless beasts. I refuse to become one of them again!"
There was a sudden muffled boom, and the cat vanished from his senses in a blur. Quickly the amnesia suffering Shinigami uttered a colourful curse before raising his hands out of instinct. The demon appeared in front of him, rushing towards him, maw open showing rows of dagger teeth and lengthened canines.
He shot up his right hand to grab the snout of the top jaw, and followed by his left hand reaching down to stop the lower jawbone. The power behind the dash was too much and he found himself flying backwards, feet scratching off the ground kicking up a cacophony of dirt and dust.
With a grunt of pain the Shinigami was slammed against a tree, the dead crystalline bark snapping like a twig to the combination of their weight and spiritual pressures. He was continuously forced back, feet skidding off the ground, never losing purchase. Then both slammed into a wall of rock. A crater formed at his back as he was unceremoniously slammed into the barrier, spider web cracks forming along the smooth surface.
The cat Hollow dug its heels in, growling from its effort and in annoyance, jaws still trying desperately to clamp shut and end his life. Still his hands remained in place, trembling from the exertions. He needed to do something if he was to survive the next few minutes, and to hell with the consequences.
With a crack he forced his masks mouth open, a ball of condensed crimson forming on the tip of his tongue. The cat saw this, tried to jump out of his attacks reach. But it was too late and with a roar he released his Cero upon the world. The feline was fast, and the doom blast struck only a glancing blow along her right flank, but with such a high level attack the damage was enough to rip through armoured skin and flay organs.
The cat gave off a mewling scream before it hit the ground, rolling to a halt in a heap, steam rising from its charred right side. The once unnatural white armoured skin flayed black. Forcefully it tried to get to its feet, but collapsed when it tried to put weight on its charred right legs.
Her opponent fell to his knees, hands trembling from the phantom pain of holding back so many tons of crushing power, breath leaving him in gasps. He took a dry gulp, and forced air into his lungs before forcing himself to his feet, swaying back and forth before slamming his heels into the ground, steadying himself.
He approached, concentrating his rietsu into his right hand, a small blade of condensed crimson spiritual pressure encompassing the limb. The cat was unable to move, unable to defend from his next strike. It would all be over in the next few seconds.
"No" the creature growled weakly, forcing itself to its feet, limping to face him only to collapse again when she tried to balance herself on her burned limbs, its own breathing leaving it in quick gasps, chest rising and falling frantically. He stood towering over her, hand drew back to deliver the disembowelling stroke. Yet he stopped, a mass of memories assaulting his senses.
A man, at least twice his height, dark skin, sunglasses over dark brown eyes, seven swords sheathed upon different placed on his back. They had sat together, the fire between them cackling. Talking about everything and nothing, they're lives as Human sacrifices, the people they met, the friends they made and the battles they had seen.
Then a question had left his lips, casually so "Did you know any of the others?"
The huge man looked at him for a moment "What ya mean kid?"
"You know" Naruto replied "Anyone else like us, a Jinchuriki?"
What he saw would stick with him until the end of time, the huge man's smile turned sad, like he was remembering a painful memory "Yeah, I knew one"
Of course the younger was oblivious to the elder's feelings at that moment, leaning forward, silently urging him to continue. Without warning the elder looked up to the sky, a sad smile on his face as he spoke, his tone full of regret "Her name was Yugito Nii. She was Jinchuriki to the Two Tailed Monster Cat, and she was my friend"
He saw his error then, and his face fell "I'm sorry, if this is too painful-"
"No, no" the man replied, waving his hands in dismissal "Nothing like that, just a few regrets is all. Now where was I? Oh right. She hadn't had a good life, none of us seem to, but she was strong willed, fiercely loyal to her comrades and played a beautiful melody with her Shamisen"
Naruto listened intently, it was so rare he learned about his fellow Jinchuriki, those who had fallen for the simple reason that they had been chosen to become the host to a monster "At the age of two she was implanted with the Two Tailed Monster Cat and put through detestable, cruel training to try and control her beast. I remember I first met her when she was eight, she had been crying because of her lack of progress. I don't know what came over me but I started spurting some rap phrases, I was so terrible that I cheered her up" he seemed to smile at the memory "Ever since then she jumped into her training with a new determination, happy she found a friend and confidant in me, a fellow Jinchuriki. She worked hard, and even my brother noticed, for he elevated her to Jonin for her efforts. She was so happy when she got the flak vest"
He chuckled, and then his face darkened "She was twenty nine when she died. Caught by Akatsuki while I was training in the Cloud Mountains, I didn't find out until later. She was sent on a mission with her team, which turned out to be a trap. The two men, Hidan and Kakuzu if I remember, attacked without mercy or remorse. She led them into the sewers to protect her team, fought bravely but was defeated"
He clenched his fists "They humiliated her, Naruto. They crucified her by stabbing a kunai through her hands and leaving her hanging from a wall. When I found out my first instinct was to hunt the bastards down and rip them apart"
Naruto leaned back, turning the names backwards and forwards through his brain "Hidan and Kakuzu huh? Well you don't have to worry about them anymore. We got them"
"You did"
"Yeah" he replied, his own eyes glazing over from his own set of painful memories "They killed the head of the Sarutobi clan. He was expecting a baby, going to get married. The whole world ahead of him only to be cut short by that bastard Hidan" he looked up at Kirabi "I killed Kakuzu. Ran him through with the Rasenshuriken, while a friend of mine, Shikamaru, blew Hidan to bloody pieces"
"Man, what a bummer" Kirabi muttered "I wanted to kill those bastards, only to find you've done it for me"
"This Yugito sounded like quite a beauty" at his fellow Jinchuriki's look he reiterated "By the way you talk about her and all"
He smiled again, a sad smile for a departed friend "Kid, she would give any woman a run for their money"
Naruto
His name was Naruto
He frowned, the rietsu blade flickering out of existence like an extinguished flame. The small surge of memories had been a surprise, and the suddenness of them was enough to make him stumble, head spinning as if he were drunk. A hand shot up, absently holding onto his forehead as if it were about to fall off.
The nausea left him and, with a huge gulp of air he opened his eyes to find himself once again in the living nightmare which was the forest of Menos. That same Hollowfied Cat lying exactly where she fell, right flank still badly burned, although he saw the charred flesh recede.
His frown didn't leave his masked face. How did he not notice how familiar this Hollows presence was? He reached out with his right hand, resting his palm against her unburned side, confident this creature was not in any condition to fight back. He closed his eyes and concentrated, allowing his power to seep through his body and make contact with hers.
Usually when his spiritual pressure made contact with another creature's it was like a collision of two extremely flammable materials, the end result usually being a mass explosion of some description with a very messy aftermath.
When his rietsu made contact with this one there was a bright white flash, followed by his spiritual pressure rising from his body. In his mind he could see two incoherent masses of energy, one crimson and the other cerulean, both swirling around each other like the outline of a great tornado. There was a familiarity to the way they circled, as if they shared a connection. Then he removed his hand. The connection vanishing as quickly as it came.
He stood up, surveying the unconscious Hollow. Her wounds were healing at a rapid pace, in fact most of the burnt skin and once useless limbs had already been replaced by white skin with swirling azure markings. Already the Hollow was emitting a low, pained groan in her sleep.
"Your pretty strong" he whispered "By far the strongest I have faced in this thrice damned forest. Live, get stronger and face me again"
Rising from his place Naruto turned, giving his fallen opponent one last glance before vanishing with a low level boom. When the Hollow awoke she found that her wounds were healed, and the mysterious stranger was long gone.
------
The Hollow let out a piercing scream before a diagonal line ran across its shoulder, ending halfway through its stomach. There was a long spurt of black blood before it fell on its side, twitching and convulsing for a moment before finally becoming still. Its killer appeared in a blur behind the dead monster, robes flickering in the wind, a blade of crimson spiritual pressure encompassing his right hand.
With a deep, cleansing breath he righted himself, before feeling the tiniest surge of rietsu within the shadows of the forest, somewhere to his north. The spiritual pressure was familiar and with a frown of concentration he recognised it as belonging to that cat Hollow he had fought with a week ago. He had expected that he would see her again, but it was a little soon.
Sighing he found a seating position by a fallen, half rotted away log, eyes starring at the clearing, waiting. He did not have to wait long. With a blur his stalker came into view, and he knew right away that it was the same feline he had fought a week before. Naruto noticed that her wounds had mostly healed, although she still had a limp in her right leg and foreleg.
"Hungry?"
Those glowing yellow orbs narrowed "How can I be sure you won't strike when my back is turned?"
Naruto shrugged "If I wanted to kill you then I had the perfect chance a week ago"
She was unsure; confused that someone whom she had tried to kill a week ago would go through all this just to meet with her again "Why are you offering this to me?"
"You helped me" he replied, at her raised eyelash he continued "I remember nothing of what I was before I came here. Not my name, who I am or where I was from. When I fought you…your rietsu seemed familiar, and when I touched you I received a surge of memories from my past life!"
"So this is thanks"
"Yea" was the blondes reply.
She hesitated for just a moment before slowly prowling up to the corpse. One last look was sparred before her head darted in, ripping off a chunk of flesh. Silence persevered for a handful of minutes, she digging into the corpse and he sitting on a log, his eyes on the forest line.
"Do you have a name Nee-san?"
She stopped chewing and looked up at him, oceanic orbs seemingly starring through her soul, seeing the bitterness and resentment she held for the outside world. She was about to answer with a bitter retort, but stopped. There was something in his eyes, something which shouted that he understood her hatred, her resentment of the world.
"I don't know my name" she whispered, taking another bite of flesh and wolfing it down "I remember nothing, not who I was or what I was. We are the same in that regard"
"I see" the blonde replied, but his eyes did not leave hers, and after a moment he spoke again "Does the name…Yugito…ring a bell?"
She stopped in mid-chew, looking up at him with something rivalling confusion in her eyes. The feline was about to deny his question. She didn't have a name, she didn't deserve a name. She was pathetic, dirty. Guilty of atrocities made in the name of survival. Then a mass of memories flooded her mind.
"Hey kid" looking up she saw a young man, just out of his teens, form muscular, his skin a dark brown, his hair white with a slight yellowy tint "You alright?"
Quickly she dried her tears, cursing herself for showing weakness. To show weakness was unacceptable for a weapon. Taking a deep breath she began reciting the mantra she had told to her every day when she awoke.
What am I?
A weapon
Why do I exist?
To kill the enemy
Who do I serve?
The Raikage and Kumogakure no Sato
Suddenly she was bonked on the head "Oi kid, I asked you a question? Are you alright?" bewildered she looked up at the towering teenager, who frowned.
Was it a trap "H-hai"
He reached out with a huge hand, and she flinched, expecting to be struck. Instead he ruffled her hair, which surprised her "Good to hear, you wouldn't be the Nibi Jinchuriki would you?"
At her hesitant nod he grinned brightly "Yo yo yo I finally found you. My brother sent me to get you out, 'cause when he found out he thought they were having a lark"
She blinked; completely bewildered, so she responded the only way she could "Huh?"
"Huh" the towering teen repeated teasingly "What do you mean huh, aven't you ever 'eard of rap before?"
Dumbly she shook her head, to which he looked insulted "Huh? How come you don't know about it? It's all the rage"
"Um…I've never…b-been outside the t-training centre" she spoke timidly, every now and then looking around to make sure this wasn't some bad prank the guards had planned. They had done it a few times in the past.
"Wha, seriously?" he looked around, noticing as if for the first time the small sleeping mat at the other side of the darkened room. Other than that there was nothing, no furniture or decoration on the walls, just hard concrete "That just ain't right!"
Unceremoniously he scouped her up, ignoring her squeak of surprise, and marched out of the drab prison cell which had been her home since her mother died, and what was worse was that she let him. This seemed too good to be true. One of the first things she had been taught was that dreams didn't exist for a weapon; there was no knight in shining armour coming to rescue her.
"Bro is going to hear about this, and these morons will get a taste of his fist" the teen growled before looking down at her, too surprised and confused to even mount a proper retort "Oh right, there's a new Raikage, and he's ordered this whole setup shut down"
A new Raikage?
Come to think of it she hadn't been collected for her training sessions for a couple of days, it was almost like they had forgotten about her "Yo, you got a name?" she looked up at her towering saviour, who grinned "I'll start, names Kirabi, Kirabi Yotsuka. I'm the Raikage's little brother yo, and a Jinchuriki like you"
She hesitated, before answering him in a timid voice "Y-Yugito…Yugito Nii"
"Yu-gi-to" she whispered the name slowly, before turning to Naruto. She whispered the name once, twice, three times before it actually hit her. Her name, she remembered her name.
It was her, her name.
Naruto raised his hand, ghosting his fingers across his mask, the porcelain seeming to shred and vanish in a flurry of particles, revealing a handsome face of tanned skin, whisker like markings on his cheeks and brilliant oceanic orbs. The blonde looked her in the eyes and smiled.
"My name is Yugito?"
He nodded "It's a pleasure to meet you Yugito Nii. My name is Naruto, Naruto Uzumaki and I am – was, a Jinchuriki, just like you"
"Naruto" she repeated the name before bowing to him, a small smile gracing her feline lips "Thank you"
"Your welcome, Yugito-san"
She left the Hollow carcase, walked up to him and flopped onto her side. Her eyes scanning him "So why have you called me here. I am grateful but I think there's more to this than helping me with my memories"
The blonde chuckled "You're right about that. Actually I have a proposition for you"
She raised her eyebrows slightly "What kind of proposition?"
"An alliance" he replied "It's simple. I help you hunt when you get hungry and you guard me while I sleep. We travel together and we protect each other when we need it"
She nodded "A good plan under normal circumstances, but it has one small flaw" at his questioning glance she continued "Trust, we hardly know each other, and just a week ago we were at each others throats, plus I am an Adjuchas Hollow. Could you really trust me to watch over you while you slept?"
Naruto sighed, a small smile playing across his face "I fought you, and when you fight a person you learn more about them in a minute than you would have in a year. You know what I have learned about you, Yugito Nii?" at her glance he reiterated "I have learned that you are patient, a capable warrior. Yet I also saw an honourable soul. You could have struck me when my guard was down; instead you showed yourself to me and faced me head on"
"Or I could have been cocky" she pointed out.
"I doubt it's in your nature to be cocky" Naruto replied with a slight chuckle "If you were cocky then you would have attacked me beforehand instead of spending a couple of weeks studying me"
"Very intuitive" Yugito said, gaining new respect for this man.
"So is that an agreement"
In response the cat bowed her head; eyes closed "I accept your offer, Uzumaki Naruto"
His lips formed into a toothy grin "That seemed a little easier than I thought"
------
Nelliel Tu Odelschwanck was not considered a spiteful or selfish Arrancar. She was unique in that she was quite the opposite of what many would perceive, considering her heritage as a Hollow, a supposed soulless monster who hunted the souls of the living. In truth she had not preyed on humans for centuries, disgusted with herself when she had finally evolved to the level of Adjuchas.
It was true that newly born Hollows were nothing more than mindless killers. The same could be said for a majority of Gillian-class Menos Grande. But once a Hollow evolved to the mid level of the Menos, the Adjuchas, they regained shards of their humanity with their mounting intelligence. These shards took the form of one of the ten aspects of death.
All Hollows embodied the ten aspects of death in one form or another, whether it be rage, loneliness, old age, nihilism, despair, destruction, intoxication, greed, madness or sacrifice. Of these ten aspects it was sacrifice which was considered the rarest, and those who possessed it usually gained great power. Those who embodied sacrifice gained more humanity than any of the others. They gained a conscience, a need to protect those precious to them and a need, a desire to sacrifice themselves for their beliefs. Whether that belief is an ideal, a calling or a person was entirely up to the individual.
It was strange that this aspect seemed to manifest itself more in females than males. She was a being of sacrifice. Her greatest student and soon to be successor, Tia Harribel, was a being of sacrifice. Her newest Fracción, Rafaela, was an Arrancar of sacrifice. Perhaps it was because a female could be more protective of what they consider precious than a male, she wasn't really sure.
If Nelliel Tu Odelschwanck embodied the aspect of sacrifice, the need to protect, then her partner was the complete opposite. Nnoitra Jiruga, the Octa Espada and the embodiment of despair, was a man who relished in the suffering of others. The Arrancar lusted for bloodshed and carnage, forever hungering for battle and worthy opponents to fight, and kill. He was arrogant, chauvinistic and insulting to all around him, and while fighting he did not care whether he fought fairly or used dishonourable means, just as long as he achieved his victory.
For years the two had been forced to work together, and since they first met the two could not stand each other. Nnoitra could not stand the Tres Espada because she held a rank higher than him. He could not stand the fact that a woman could outrank him, and a supposedly soft one at that, and so challenged to fight her constantly. In contrast Nelliel considered her partner to be an animal, a sick, sadistic killer. She could not understand why an Arrancar, who had regained their humanity and intelligence, could thirst for such bloodlust and death like he did.
But despite their dislike of each other there was one thing they could not deny, together they were an almost unbeatable team. They worked well together, Nnoitra with his warrior instincts, and Nelliel with her intelligence and ability to keep the Octa under control.
That was why they were a team.
They knelt before a high backed throne, eyes lowered and heads bowed in respect before their leader and creator. It was Nelliel who spoke; she always spoke "You called for us, Aizen-sama?"
Sitting regally on his throne, his head held up lazily by a hand, Sosuke Aizen smiled upon two of his most powerful creations and answered "Nelliel, Nnoitra, thank you for coming. I have a mission that only the two of you can handle"
"We await your word, Aizen-sama" she replied.
"I want you two to travel deep into the bowels of the Forest of Menos. I have recently felt a surge of powerful spiritual energy, and I want its owner"
"Hai, Aizen-sama" both Nelliel and Nnoitra whispered in unison.
"And a word of warning for you both" their lord added "It is highly possible that the one I seek is a Biju, and he might not be alone"
A lunatic grin stretched the Octa Espada's serpentine features "Great, I've waited a long time to fight one of those tailed bastards"
"Ah, then you will not be disappointed, Nnoitra" Aizen replied, his own head slightly bowed, eyes closed and a small smile tugging his lips "For the one whom you will be fighting will be the strongest of them. It is highly probable you will be fighting the Nine Tailed Demon Fox"
"Heh, even better" Nelliel could feel his spiritual pressure coming off of him in waves, screaming its unbridled joy to the world. It made her cringe inwardly at being near such wanton destruction.
"You leave immediately" the architect of Las Noches said "Dismissed"
They both vanished in a blur of motion, a muffled duet of booms signalling their departure.
------
Yugito creaked open her eyes, twin orbs of glowing yellow in the dark, dank cave where she had chosen to rest. Groggily she raised her head, and opened her mouth to yawn, lips retracting to show her sharp teeth and dagger canines. Her head darted left, and then right. Making sure that there was nothing hiding in the shadows, waiting to strike at her, she had been in such a situation more than once.
Then she felt a weight against her side, and a groan of contentment. Her head darted to the noise, ready to strike, only to find the smaller form of her partner, upper body nestled against her flank, using her as a makeshift pillow to rest his masked head. Naruto had taken to doing this a lot, as time went by and they became less distrusting of each other.
It had been six months since they had first met. They had hunted together and protected each other from the horrors of this dead and nightmarish world. But as time went by, and they got to know each other, the alliance of necessity had slowly changed. In the six months they had travelled and fought together they had become friends.
Or were they friends? The problem was that both Yugito and Naruto did not talk about themselves or their past, because they could not remember enough about their past to talk about. They basically knew nothing about each other. Most of their time was spent in a content and comfortable silence, travelling together, fighting together, and eating together – although while she could eat the Hollow meat raw Naruto had to cook his.
Yugito found that she enjoyed the company. She found life in this hellhole a hell of a lot easier with someone to talk too, someone who helped her hunt, who talked to her and laughed with her. When she was alone she was moody. When she was alone the pains of hunger came all the more quickly and when she was alone the world just seemed bleaker than it usually was.
But since she started travelling with Naruto things changed. There was just something about him. Perhaps it was the joy and relief in finding a shard of her own world, her old life. In finding a fellow host just like she was. Maybe it was just the simplicity of having company. But one thing she was sure. His presence soothed her. Their rietsu was so similar that it was almost uncanny, and this similarity had led her to feeling a kinship with him.
Before she met him Yugito had been plagued by nightmares when she slept. Nightmares of figures, dressed in high collared black cloaks with red clouds etched into the fabric, all standing on the stone fingers of some horrid statue which seemed to be openly laughing at her, whispering an incantation in a language she did not know or understand.
She used to awaken from these nightmares soaked in sweat, screaming.
But then she had met him. She did not notice it at first, but after two weeks of travelling with him her exhaustion had finally caught up to her, and she had fallen asleep while he stood watch. It was the most blissful sleep Yugito could remember, and when she awoke she felt rejuvenated. It wasn't for another month that she realised that the only reason the nightmares stopped was because of him.
She was pulled from her reverie by a groan and then a voice, slightly groggy "Yugito-chan, you up?"
"Yea, I'm up" she replied, slowly nudging him off her so she could stand and extend her aching muscles. Stretching her forearms and arching her back until she heard a welcome crack.
"Hungry?"
"Yes" she replied, before turning to him "But don't get up. I'll go out myself and hunt for something. You just rest here"
He fixed her with groggy version of a glare, then a teasing grin "You sure you don't need my help?"
She scowled, then huffed "I need to go out on my own and hunt every now and then, can't have my reflexes getting rusty because I have you around"
The blonde shrugged, before standing and walking over to the cave wall, leaning against it as he sat back down and tried to get comfortable "Right, just give me a shout if you need me"
"Will do" she replied before bending her knees and taking off to the entrance at a dash.
When she exited the cave to be greeted with the same landscape of the forest she decided that some exercise was in order to stretch her legs. Bending her form low again she used the momentum to take off at a dead run. The former Jonin relished in the feel of the wind on her face, her claws retracting to dig into the scorched earth as she darted through the forest, using feline speed and stamina to dodge the crystalline trees.
Yes, Yugito was indebted to Naruto, but she was a cat and needed a chance to roam around on her own every now and then. Cats were strange like that, they were sociable animals, hunted in packs, yet every now and then they just wanted to be alone, to contemplate, to hunt and to think.
The former Kumo-nin ran dozens of kilometres in the space of a few minutes before finally coming to a halt. She thought she had sensed some possible prey around here, but found nothing.
A sense of foreboding suddenly filled her as she noticed the bodies for the first time. Hollows, dozens of them lay on the ground, severed and ripped to pieces, before being pilled up and left in the clearing. She saw common Hollows; a few Gillian's and even an Adjuchas among the cacophony of corpses. Whatever had done this had been powerful, extremely so.
"Hey little kitty" a snide voice called from behind her "How long are ya going to stare?"
Yugito turned to see the owner of the voice. A tall, lanky creature, serpentine face set in a huge smile showing his upper row of teeth. Black hair hung past his shoulders, partially concealing the left side of his face, but she could still just make out a white eye patch. He wore a white, high collared jacket which parted to show his chest, and pants, with knee high black boots, the ends curved upward. In his hand was a long pole, which ended in a wicked, crescent moon shaped blade. The spiritual pressure she sensed from this being was immense, easily a match for her own.
"Well" he called mockingly, gripping his weapon with both hands "You seem like more than just a little house kitten, don't die on me too quick!"
And so the end of another chapter, at the moment I am really trying to lengthen my chapters, so unless they are a prologue or epilogue they won't be a couple of pages anymore. The problem is I am not good at lengthening, for after twelve pages or so a little voice appears in my head to tell me to stop. It's an annoying little bastard.