AN:
Thank you GlidingOne, Deadzepplin, e7cg13, and DreamingIn2Eternity for reviewing!
GlidingOne= Thank you for the well wishes! And you will only be partially disappointed because I am addicted to cliffhangers. To sate your curiosity about your post-script question:
Eldarion/Hoshi left his world and entered another (the ninja world) through a desert oasis, ending up at a desert oasis in the Land of Wind. He and his companions ended up in 'Quest of the Ring' era Middle Earth through a tunnel in the Land of Earth, ending up in the Mines of Moria. So Hoshi/Eldarion traveled to another world and entered a different timeline of his world through that world, which is more like dimensional hopping with a little bit of time travel. My idea of it is that if Naruto was to meet his father, he couldn't do it in Arda. He would have to go into a completely different world and find a different entrance back to his own world, but possibly leading to Minato's timeline. So time travel could be considered possible, it's just stupidly difficult (I guess)
That sounded a lot better in my head.
Deadzepplin= Now that you say that, I wonder why I never thought of those defences myself. I totally agree with you, by the way. Helms Deep has an excellent location that was under-utilized.
e7cg13= advice of any kind will always be mentioned ;).
DreamingIn2Eternity= Thank you! Now for the excuse for my poor spelling. My document software doesn't have spellcheck. So I have to actually look up the words that don't look right *gasp!*. I know, such hardship. But seriously, thank you for pointing them out in such a kind way (nothing at all like me). I will fix them as soon as I have a chance.
Thank you all and on with the show!
Obito gulped as his eyes focused on the army of onis. They had come to a stop a good thirty or so feet from the fort's walls. The only movement came from the rows shifting to fill the gaps the traps made in their ranks.
"There are so many," he murmured to Anko as the stood above the gate. His companion could only nod, struck dumb by the number of orcs still left. The Uchiha glanced at her, raising an eyebrow. His expression did not go unnoticed.
"What?" she asked defensively. The kunoichi was wearing a hot pink rain slicker with designs of flowers all over it. Obito was not the only person who was staring at it.
"Nothing," he squeaked, as she wore a venomous look on her face. The Uchiha wisely turned his attention back to the horde.
"That must be around six to seven thousand," he murmured. A blonde teen-aged boy turned to Obito, frightened.
"Are you saying that our defences will fall?" he whispered.
"Hell no!" yelled Anko, surprising both boys. "We're gonna kick their asses all the way back to Saruman! We'll show that old fart!"
Before any of the (appaled) Rohirrim could comment on the kunoichi's language, one of the Uruks gave a roar. Than the entire army began to slam their spears against the ground, roaring, blowing battle horns and generally making an intimidating amount of noise. Many of the Rohirrim had noched their bows and drew them back, ready to fire. An old man next to the blonde teenager was struggling not to fire his bow. After a few minutes the man's hold on the projectile loosened. The arrow flew as the bowstring gave a hearty twang! and buried itself into the jugular vein of an unsuspecting oni. With a grunt of surprise, the Uruk toppled forward into the ground, dead. Both armies went silent as soon as the arrow struck the oni, greatly disappointing Obito. The little war dance the Uruk-hai performed was pretty cool. But now Saruman's horde was clearly ticked and wanted revenge. With a series of roars and a what seemed to be a command, the army charged. Anko pulled on Obito's shoulder.
"C'mon, it's beginning!" she hissed as she lead him down to the Deeping wall. The Uchiha pulled down his goggles, giving her a questioning look.
"This area is going to be attacked first," she explained. "Our job is to gather the wounded and bring them to Kuro and Rin. Minato-sensei can cover the gate and the keep,"
Obito nodded as the two ducked and dodged the Elvish archers to join Kakashi and Hoshi on the steps. Hoshi had his Guan Dao in his hands, looking anxious. He gave Anko and Obito a welcoming smile.
"Right on cue," he said cheerfully. "I would like someone to cover the steps and catch anyone who falls back,"
Anko gave the pointy-eared boy a grin. "I suppose that that would be me,"
Hoshi shrugged as more arrows sailed over their heads and out of sight. Kakashi was toying with a kunai.
"You didn't happen place any traps by the wall, did you Hoshi?" he asked, looking at the ramparts above. Hoshi shook his head, tensing.
"Didn't get the chance," he said rapidly, before catching a falling elf and flickering away. Kakashi quickly did the same, but with two elves.
"Watch out, they're quite heavy," grunted Kakashi before he shunshined away. Hoshi returned as soon as Kakashi left.
"Ladders!"
Aragorn's commanding voice carried over the sounds of the battle. The shinobi tensed, preparing themselves for the influx of casualties.
"Hoshi, I need backup!" cried Susano'o from the upper wall. The tall genin turned to his two comrades.
"You know what to do," he said, before joining Susano'o at upper wall.
The first thing Eldarion did upon arriving at the ramaparts was knock over a ladder, landen with orcs. Susano'o was doing the same, shoving the ladders sideways so they would knock over other ladders. The bandaged shinobi began to weave a jutsu.
"Sensatsu Suishō!" he cried as the raindrops solidified and struck the eyes of the Uruks scaling the ladders. Cries of pain came from below as the injured and dead climbers fell from their position. Eldarion did not have time to admire the other shinobi's work as he bifuricated two orcs and kicked another ladder back over the edge.
"Kuchiyose no Jutsu!" screamed Susano'o.
The tall boy promptly hit the ground as a pair of wings swept over him. Eldarion turned his head to the left to see Aragorn lying on his back next to him, eyes wide. Without missing a beat, the lanky shinobi began weaving a jutsu, inhaling deeply. He quickly stood up I front of a ladder.
"Katon: Ryūka no Jutsu!" Eldarion spat a tongue of fire at the offending invaders.
Much to his surprise, the Uruks ignited as well as the wooden ladder. Finding the move successful, he quickly repeated the technique on the next few ladders.
"Legolas, two already!" cried Gimli, who was standing beside him.
The archer turned to the dwarf with a miscevious look on his face.
"I'm on seventeen!" he responded cheerfully. The elf moved out of the way as Kakashi ducked by him, carrying two elves.
"What!" cried Gimli. "I can't have a pointy-eared elf outscoring me!" The red head he Ted his axe and slammed it right into the private parts of a ladder-climbing beast. Eldarion promptly set that ladder a-blaze, too.
Upset, the dwarf turned to the tall shinobi, not even flinching as the Guan Dao sailed over his head to behead a different Uruk.
"What's the big idea, laddie, stealing my kills?" he growled, chopping off the leg of an enemy.
"To protect Rohan and my future," Eldarion grunted, setting another ladder aflame.
The dwarf went silent. He then looked up the the taller boy.
"How did a large seabird get here?" he asked, gesturing with his axe at the giant albatross carrying several of the wounded.
Eldarion left the question unanswered. The defenders had caught on and attempted to knock over or set fire to the ladders. While several times the attempts were successful, the rest ended in some poor chap being pulled over the side of the battlements. Anko usually caught those people with Sen'eijashu. Obito was periodically helping burn the ladders, although he mostly transported the wounded to Rin and Kuro's care. Although he waited with baited breath for something to go wrong, the battle seemed to be going smoothly. So why was he getting this feeling of doom? Eldarion effortlessly burned down another two ladders while Gimli finished of the Uruk-hai around him, counting all the while. But a movement on the causeway caught his attention.
"Oh dear," he thought, noticing his teacher standing on the causeway as a tortiseshell of orcs headed toward the jōnin.
"Step back, we have another elf!" cried Obito as he carried a wounded elf into the field hospital.
"Place him here!" a grey-blonde woman said, gesturing to a cot. Obito laid the unconscience elf on the cot indicated by the lady. The Uchiha gave her a short bow and left quickly. The woman, named Mægan, removed the armor from the elf and stripped the unfortunate fighter down to his small-clothes or, as the two medics called it, underware. Kuro ran over to the new arrival. The dark-eyed medic put a gloved hand over a nasty bruise on the elf's forehead, slightly healing it.
"He has a concussion," The Uchiha stated to Mægan, who hovered nearby. "Put a cold poltice on the bruise, he should be fine,"
The field hospital was humming with action as the shinobi brought in the wounded and they were tended to. A vast majority of the injured were elves, with a few humans here and there. Rin exhaled heavily as she struggled to heal a dark-haired elf who's hand had been cut off. The chakra of elves was very different than human chakra. Instead of accepting Rin's healing chakra, it put up a fight, only yielding a little ground to heal. After minutes of getting nowhere, the medic gave up.
"Rowena!" she called to a teenager. "Could you get me a hot iron?"
The honey blonde girl nodded, running off to grab an flat slab of metal resting in a fireplace. Rowena carefull handed it to Rin, who seared the wound shut. The elf gave a moan of pain, causing the brunette to wince.
"And this is just the beginning," she murmured while bandaging the stump. Her ears caught the sound of squawking as Susano'o's summon slid into the hallway with more injured elves.
"ARRRGGGHH!" screamed Kuro, noticing the large bird. "I just sanitized that hallway!"
Rin shook her head as several of the 'nurses' relieved the albatross of it's precious cargo and laid the males out on the cots.
"You're fighting a losing battle, Kuro-chan," she said with a hint of mirth in her voice. Kuro gave her a look of mock wrath before sobering up.
"I just hope they are't, Rin-san," he murmured, before attending to the wounded.
Minato had taken it upon himself to defend the gate at all costs. The younger shinobi were taking part in defending the Deeping Wall, which appeared to be a minor success. Turning his attention back to the fugly beasts in front of him, the jōnin weighed his options.
"I could use Rasengan, but it wouldn't hit all of them. A wind jutsu ought to do the trick, but which one?"
Staring at the broad shields, Minato began to weave several signs.
"I might be a little rusty, but here it goes," thought the yellow-haired teacher. "Fūton: Daitoppa!"
The oni's defensive formation completely fell apart as the blast of wind hit them, sending them flying backwards. Minato rubbed the back of his neck, embarressed.
"That was weak," he scolded himself mentally. "Orochimaru-sama would find it disgraceful,"
None of the Uruk-hai got back on their feet, though, so the Yellow Flash considered it a success.
But his eyes were drawn to the blocked up drain. Or what remained of the blockage. Slowly but surely, the black creatures had been chipping away at the stone to reopend the drain. To his horror, the bombs innocently sat right by the drain, untouched. The Namikaze immediately teleported to Thèoden King.
"Thèoden-sama," he said, briefly lapsing into his language. "Ask Aragorn to pull back to the keep,"
The older man raised an eyebrow. "Now why should I do that?" he asked.
"They unblocked the drain," Minato said with more urgancy. "They are going to blow up the wall,"
Thèoden's eyes widened, although he seemed reluctant to pull the elves from their spot.
"Go warn your students," he said. "And pass the message,"
With a bow, Minato teleported to the Deeping Wall.
Aragorn could have kissed Minato when the shinobi landed on the skull of a persist orc who seemed keen on unsexing him, killing the beast in one blow. But since the ranger had a decided preferance for the fairer sex, he decided to refrian. Hoshi popped out of nowhere to burn yet another ladder and all the Uruks on it. The boy quickly relieved the fallen orcs of it's sword and stuck it into the battlements.
"Is something wrong Sensei?" he asked wearily.
"They uncovered the drain," Minato said forcefully. His student's eyes widened in horror. The shinobi turned to the tall man, who was slightly preoccupied by a couple orcs
"Aragorn!" he yelled "You are ordered to retreat to the keep!"
The ranger was surprised. "Why?" he asked while beheading one of the beasts.
"Because the wall is going to blow up, that's why!" screamed Hoshi. The boy promptly took off, yelling something to his bandaged friend who stood by Haldir. Minato left the man behind with a warning look and in a yellow flash.
Aragorn nearly stopped fighting due to shock. He had seen Hoshi's explosions in the distance and how the wrecked havok on the horde of Saruman. But up close, in the wall...
"Duck, Gigantor!" screamed Anko. The ranger quickly ducked, as a blade swung inches above
his dark head. The small girl quickly disposed of the Uruk-hai before picking up several of the wounded and disappearing.
The Dunedain stood up, remembering Thèoden's command.
"Pull back to the keep!" he commanded the brave elves around him. Aragorn could hear Haldir repeat the same words. Obediantly, alibit with confusion, the soldiers pulled back to the keep. The ranger, Legolas, Gimli, Haldir and several others stayed behind to cover the retreat as the Uruks kept climbing over the wall.
"Stand back from the outer edge!" cried Susano'o. Heeding his warning, Aragorn moved away from the ladders.
No sooner than he stepped back did something awe-inspiring and terrifying occur. Arcs of lightning kept across the wall, flowing between wires and swords stuck upright in the battlements. None of the orcs were able to make it through the barrier alive.
"Go!"
Aragorn turned to see a protesting Gimli and Legolas being hurried off to the entrance of the keep by Obito and Kakashi, along with several other elves. Now, only he, Haldir, Hoshi and Susano'o remained at the wall. Haldir was breathing heavily and cluching his side, which was streaked with blood.
"Go, Haldir!" commanded Hoshi. "You need to have that wound checked!"
The Marchwarden was hesitating to leave them. Susano'o gave the elf a stern look.
"Go, Haldir-taichō!" he cried. "And you too, Strider! Hoshi, go with them,"
Before the ranger could move, the tall boy grabbed his and Haldir's upper arms and pulled them away towards the keep.
"What about Susano'o?" panted out the blonde elf.
"He knows how to take care of himself," Hoshi said bursquely, looking straight ahead.
All of a sudden, Haldir was wrenched from the shinobi's iron grip by none other then Susano'o on his giant bird.
"RUN!" he screamed as the wall exploded behind them.