Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto or The Last Airbender.
Bodyguard of Azula
Chapter 62: Smacked around and Beaten down
"Talking"
"Thinking"
"Bijū/spirit talking"
"Bijū/spirit thinking"
(Location: Naruto)
He groaned slightly as he kept the icepack on his head. "Did he have to slam my head into the wall?" He asked himself. It had been a half hour since the end of his regular fight with Bee, having occurred in the evening rather than the morning (Bee had always given him a different time to show up after each fight). It had been a week since they had come to Kumo and every day, he had fought the other Jinchūriki. So far, Killer Bee had the lead. The blonde had been trounced in every fight and yet for some reason he didn't know, the Kumo shinobi kept walking away disappointed.
"Well, he must be getting as frustrated as I am." The Kyūbi answered with very heavy sarcasm. As the days (and the fights) went on, the fox was getting more and more frustrated and annoyed at his host.
"Oh, get over that already." He sniped back. As the fox's frustration grew, so did his annoyance. It was getting to the point where a brawl would've broken out (if the two could actually fight each other). As the dull throbbing of his headache continued, he shifted the icepack. "Man, I am glad I was able to cover my head in charka before that asshole tried to smash it in." All he got out of that was the bruise the icepack was covering and the headache.
"Maybe you should've let him smash it." The fox growled.
"You'd be dead if that had happened, furball." He retorted, making the Bijū snarled and ignore him. Shifting his weight so he could lean forward on the couch to look at what he was writing. He focused more on his story ever since the fights started and actually written a great deal. He had gotten farther in his story and was getting close to the end. Apparently, the old saying about pain being a good motivator was true.
As he wrote in silence, the door to the room opened. The sound made him look up to see who had come in. "Hey, Sokka." He said in greeting to the Tribesman.
"Naruto," He returned the greeting as he sat down in the chair opposite of the blonde. Akela padded over to the side of the wall and lay down, resting his head on his paws. The only noise that was in the room for at least a minute was Naruto writing. "Naruto, what's happening out there?" Sokka finally asked him.
He looked up with a little confusion on his face. "What do you mean?"
"I'm talking about the fights between you and Killer Bee. They always end the same way. You should've been able to get at least one victory against him." If he had to be honest, it was a bit disturbing to see the blonde having his ass handed to him daily.
"Hey, I didn't take Ba Sing Se from Long Feng in a day. Just give me some time." He said in an assuring tone, trying to make light of the situation.
It didn't work. "This is a completely different thing and we both know it." Sokka said, getting annoyed. "Why are you holding back?"
"What makes you think I'm holding back?" He asked back.
"It's not just me. Azula was probably the first one to notice it, but I think F.S.-sensei knew long fights keep ending the same way, with Bee leaving either angry or disappointed." The Water Paragon looked pointedly at the blonde. "Why is that?"
He shrugged. "How the hell should I know? You're making it sound like I should know what's going on in Bee's head. I have a hard time figuring out what he's saying." The man's rapping would've annoyed him, if he knew what he was saying. The door opened again, stopping the conversation as the two looked to see who it was. "Hey guys." He said as the rest of Team Paragon walked into the room.
"Naruto, we need to talk." Jiraiya said without preamble, not bothering to say hello in return. His face was set in a stern expression and while the others didn't show it, they had the same opinion he did. "What exactly is happening between you and Bee?"
"Oh Kami, not you too," He groaned loudly, putting the pencil down and leaning back against the couch, holding the icepack steady. "There is nothing happening between me and Killer Bee. The guy is just as stubborn as I am, that's all."
"Bull." June said as she and Suki put the food they were carrying on a nearby table. The light of the evening filtered in through the nearby window but no one paid attention to it. The focus was fixed on Naruto. "Something is going on between you two." The bounty hunter declared.
"There isn't anything going on." He said, unconsciously gritting his teeth.
"Yes, there is." Azula shot back. "I know you, Naruto. I know there is something going on. We were sent here to have something done and you're doing everything you can to make sure that it doesn't happen."
"I can tell you what's going on." Jiraiya said. "Killer Bee has been trying to make Naruto use the Kyūbi's chakra and the little idiot here has been refusing to do just that."
"For good reason," The idiot in question said with a growl, his headache dissipating all of a sudden.
"And what reason would that be?" If the Toad Sage's voice could've been any more acidic, it would've gone through the floor. "That you're afraid of it and you refuse to use it?"
"Got it in one, F.S.-sensei," He answered bitingly. He stood up from the couch and walked over to where the food was, ready to get something to eat, only to have June step in front of him. "Come on, June. Can I get some food? I was manhandled out there for the love of Kami!"
"You let yourself get manhandled." Suki pointed out. "If I didn't know you any better, I would've thought you're a masochist." It certainly looked that way at the end of the last fight. He had been face down on the ground, groaning.
He scoffed at that. "I am not a masochist. Now can I please get some food? I'm hungry."
"You're not getting anything until you tell us why." June said, stopping him again from trying to get the food. His scowl told her that he was annoyed, but she held firm.
"I'm with them on this one." The Kyūbi chimed in.
"I didn't ask you." The blonde silently snapped at him. He didn't see a reason to all of this and it was getting on his nerves. "June, move." He ordered, using his authoritative tone. When Fire Nation soldiers heard that tone, they obeyed without hesitation.
However, she wasn't impressed. "You go anywhere near that food and I'll sic Nyla on you." She threatened.
He in turn wasn't impressed. "Nyla is currently three floors down and outside the hotel. Somehow, I don't think that tongue of his can reach this far up." He retorted. He suddenly threw the icepack at her. Caught off guard by this, she flinched and ducked out of the way. Taking advantage of that, the blonde quickly moved around her and grabbed a portion of the food. Successful in his endeavor, he reached down to pick up the icepack. He frowned as he took hold of it. "Crap, it's torn." He realized as his fingers brushed against the ice inside. Turning around, he saw June try to make a grab for the food and quickly switched what was in his hands. "Careful, it'll probably start leaking soon." He warned as she held the icepack instead of the food. But now, the bruise was there for all to see.
"That's quite the shiner you got there, gaki." Jiraiya commented.
"What can I say? Bee knows how to slam a guy's head into a wall." He quipped as he grabbed a utensil and started eating.
"Shouldn't it have faded already?" Sokka asked him. Every time he had seen the blonde with a wound, it would've faded away within the next few hours. This one had stayed around since the fight, which ended just after noon.
"It doesn't matter." Azula said before Naruto could say anything. She looked over at her boyfriend. "Will you just tell us the truth, Naruto?"
"I am telling you the truth!" He said, angry at the fact that they wouldn't let go of something that he thought was completely useless. "Will you all just drop it?"
"No, we will not drop it." Suki told him, her face set in a firm expression. "We want to know why you refuse to use something that's in your arsenal."
"It's none of your business." He all but snapped at them. Seeing that he wasn't going to get anywhere with them, he turned around and walked out of the room into one of the bedrooms, slamming the door behind him. Sitting on one of the beds, he ate in silence and in anger. "Why can't they leave it alone?" He asked himself.
"For the same reason I can't." The Kyūbi answered. "You're being an idiot."
"I am not being an idiot!"
"Could've fooled me," The fox muttered, loud enough for him to hear. "Kami, I wish Sifu was around. He'd be able to talk some sense into that thick skull head of yours." The spirit was able to succeed where he hadn't; even though it annoyed him a little (he had his pride as a Bijū to consider).
"Just let it go already. Soon, Killer Bee will give up on me, we'll go back home and focus on the Akatsuki." The blonde declared as he swallowed some of the food, feeling it go down his throat.
"Don't you mean Konoha?" Kyūbi asked him once the Bijū had processed the words his Jinchūriki had said.
"I said that, didn't I?" He asked shortly in return. When he noticed all the food was good, he tossed the empty carton away into a nearby trash can.
"…Yes…you did." The fox conceded. Although he knew that Naruto had said differently, he also knew that now was not a good time to push the subject. But he knew that something was going on with the blonde and it partly dealt with his Killer Bee issue. He just hoped that the others would see it and figure out what to do.
He stood on the deck of a Fire Nation ship, helping others do their work. They were sailing close to the Earth Kingdom coast and were part of a small fleet (of which they were on the outside), heading towards Akawan. So far, they had spent two weeks at sea. "Hey kid!" One of the sailors shouted at him, getting his attention. "If you're done over there, come over here and help us out."
"I'm coming!" He shouted back. "Why do I have to do this?" He silently asked as he walked over there.
"Because it builds character and you didn't want to be above the soldiers you fight beside." The Kyūbi reminded him. "That and you still need to improve your stamina. You want to be certain that you can last in a fight and you're slacking in that area. Now get to it." He ordered, sounding like an impatient boss.
"Yes, master." He thought sarcastically. He joined the group of sailors and helped them with their task, moving the rocks for trebuchets from where they were stacked (which had been brought up from storage) next to the machines. "Does anyone know when we're going to be in Akawan?" He asked as he placed a rock down next to a trebuchet.
"Probably within a day or so," One of the sailors, Young Lee (there were a lot of Lees) answered. He was only a few years older than the blonde and had been on the ship for a couple of years. "What do you plan to do when we get there?" He asked the group.
"I plan to find a good brothel and get really lucky." An older sailor, Ho, answered with a big grin. That got a few eye-rolls and quiet groans from the rest of the group. "What? What did I say?" He asked.
"With your face, you're going to need a bit more to get lucky." Young Lee remarked with a grin.
"He's better off than you." A woman sailor, Yin, told him. "The only way you'd ever catch a girl's eye is if you opened your money pouch first." That little statement made everyone there (aside from Young Lee) laugh.
"Hey, I've got a girl back home!" Young Lee protested, almost dropping the rock he was carrying. "I wouldn't cheat on her like that!"
"Relax lad, we're only playing with ya." Ho assured him with a grin. We could tell you've got a sweetheart just by that locket you've got around your neck."
"Is she cute?" Naruto asked Young Lee.
"Of course she is." An old sailor, affectionately known as Old Lee, told him. "Why else would he be carrying that piece of metal around?"
"How about you, old man?" asked Yin. "You got someone?"
"Once," He answered with a small smile. "Ah, she was a beauty. Every day when I woke up next to her, I thank the spirits for making me a lucky man."
"You know how this will end." A voice whispered in Naruto's ear. From the corner of his eye, he saw a bone-white skull floating in the air. "Why waste time delaying the inevitable?" All of a sudden, the ship shook violently.
"What in the name of Agni was that?!" Young Lee asked in surprise as the ship shook again.
"We're being attack from the rear!" A sailor shouted from nearby. "It's an Earth Kingdom ship!" The warning bell began to ring as everyone raced to their battle positions. It was a common fact that the navy of the Earth Kingdom was so inferior in size, strength, and technology to the Fire Nation navy, it actually was laughable. However, the Earth Kingdom knew the weakness of the Fire Nation cruisers lay in the smokestacks and propellers in the back. So instead of trying to fight them head on (like an Earthbender would), they employed sneak attack methods.
"How in the name of Agni did they sneak up on us?" Yin demanded as she stood ready by a trebuchet along with Old Lee. "Were they lying in wait nearby or something?"
"Now is not the time to be wondering that, missy!" Old Lee told her. "We have to fight back." But they both knew that they currently couldn't do anything. The trebuchets were positioned so they could fire at anything in front of them (the ship designer had arrogantly thought that the enemies of the Fire Nation would always come at them from the front); they couldn't see what was attacking them from the back.
"Lord Naruto, you need to go join the captain!" A junior officer, standing by the trebuchet he commanded, urged him. Even though they knew he was the Paragon of the Fire Nation and Azula's bodyguard, he had insisted that they didn't call him a lord (which led to him being called kid). "Please, sir!"
"I'm better suited out here." He replied, shaking his head. What good would he be standing beside the captain? If they managed to successfully turn around and fire on the enemy ship, he could get over there and bring the fight to them. As he saw that the ship was slowing turning, he began to ready himself for the fight.
"But you already know that it won't happen." The voice of the skull said to him. "Let's just move on."
He was suddenly seeing the world sideways. Realizing that he was on his side, he quickly stood back up. To his horror, he saw one of the trebuchets destroyed and soldiers lay dead among its wreckage. Old Lee had one of the rocks on top of him, having crushed his torso and face (Naruto could only tell it was him by the tattoos he had on his arm. Yin was also dead, a chuck of wood lodged in her eye. He was stunned to see people he had just been talking to were now dead. "Don't just stand there, kid!" He distantly heard Ho until he felt his shoulders being shook. "We need to move!" Ho shouted at the blonde, getting his attention. "They managed to take out the propellers! We're sitting turtle-ducks!"
That got his attention and made him move. Others were coming out onto the deck from below, trying to get away from the water leaking in from the bottom, slowly flooding the ship. The ship itself had stopped when it was almost broadside to the Earth Kingdom ship. Firebenders stood at the side, trying to either attack the enemy ship (which didn't really work as it was too far out of reach. The trebuchets were having better luck, but not much) or trying to destroy the incoming salvos of rocks.
As he raced over to another trebuchet, he saw something off to the side. "It looks like the other ships are turning around and joining us!" He said in delight.
"We're going to be sending those rock-heads packing!" Ho crowed in victory. The opinion was shared by the rest of the crew, if the cheering he heard was anything to go by.
"And we both know that didn't last long." The skull said as an almost abnormally large rock sailed through the air, smashing into the smokestacks. "So let's just move on."
He found himself kneeling on side of the hull. The smokestacks had exploded, causing the ship to capsize. Ho had been thrown overboard and he hadn't seen him surface. But that wasn't important right now. "Come on, get over here!" He shouted at nearby Firebenders. "There are still people in here!" He could hear people pummeling on the hull, the sound echoing around him. He couldn't risk using his chakra for a Rasengan and he didn't have time to pull a kunai out or draw his jian to augment with Wind style jutsu, the ship was sinking too fast for that. "Just hang on in there!" He shouted at the hull.
"Get us out! For Agni's sake, get us out!" Someone inside screamed. The Firebenders quickly joined the blonde and bent their fire into small, thin blades. They began to cut through the metal but it was hard going, mostly because they were still being bombarded by the Earth Kingdom ship and the water level was rising.
"Hurry up!" Naruto ordered the Firebenders as the water level rose to their waists. The level of noise that was coming from within could only tell them that the water level was rising inside as well.
"It's not doing any good sir!" One of the Firebenders told him. "The ship's sinking too fast!"
"Then cut faster!" He screamed as he watch the water seep into the cuts they had made, causing them to hear a new chorus of screams from inside the sinking ship. He wouldn't let the people inside die.
"I'm sorry, sir. But there's nothing we can do."
"You can't abandon them!" Before they could answer, a boulder splashed down next, causing a small wave to split them apart. The Firebenders went under and Naruto was sent further up on the ship. He quickly got back down to the spot where the cuts had been made, but now it was below the surface. Taking a deep breath, he submerged himself and reached for the edge of one of the cuts. He then began to pull, trying to make a hole for the trapped to get out.
"Why do you bother?" The skull asked him. "You know you can't save them." He ignored the skull and kept trying to free the sailors with small success. He was forced to let go when he realized he was about to run out of oxygen and surfaced. He inhaled and dived again, but the ship was still sinking.
"Kit, use my chakra!" The Kyūbi told him as he swam down to the cuts. It was the only way he could save the people trapped inside.
"No!" He instantly refused as he grabbed hold again. He had made a small tear before and he continued pulling from there. If he tried to use the charka, not only would he probably lose control but he might injure or kill the sailors. He was losing oxygen again, making him surface, inhale and dive again. But this time, the ship was too deep.
"And yet you'll go after it." The skull mused, seemingly knowing what he was going to do. Again, he ignored the skull and tried to swim down after the ship. But strong arms grasped him and held him back. Turning his head, he saw that it was Young Lee with a sad expression, but shook his head nonetheless. He tried to struggle, to get free, but the grasp remained strong and firm.
"Naruto, it's too late." The fox quietly as the ship sank into the dark depths of the sea, disappearing from sight.
He stood in the training ground, waiting quietly. The memory of the ship sinking had woken him up long before the sun had risen and he couldn't go back to sleep (Azula had decided to sleep in a different room). He spent the rest of the remaining time before going out to the field trying to write. He managed to get a few things down, but his dream/memory kept him from focusing. After the survivors of the sunken ship had been rescued (the rest of the fleet had destroyed the Earth Kingdom ship), they had been dropped off at a colony that was still being constructed while the fleet continued on to Akawan.
While they recuperated there, Fong had arrived with his force and demanded the surrender of the colony. Having been in a bad mood since Young Lee had pulled him out of the water, Naruto said the colony he would take care of it, walked out to meet the Earth Kingdom army, told Fong to leave and when he refused, slaughtered the majority of them before giving Fong his name and telling him to leave again. He had been recalled to Azula's side shortly after that.
By the time the sun had come up, he was grumpy due to the lack of sleep. After eating a quick breakfast, he left before the others could wake up and made his way to the training grounds, waiting there for the remainder of the time. As he always did, Bee arrived two hours after the sun rose. "How long have you been waiting, ya fool?" He asked the blonde.
"Long enough," He answered shortly. "Let's just get this over with." He loosened his shoulders and surged forward, ready for the fight and ready to start it. He leapt into the air and delivered a roundhouse kick, which Bee blocked with ease, not moving from his spot. While still in midair, Naruto delivered another kick as well as an overhead punch. But again, Bee blocked them with ease. He then shoved the blonde away, making him crash to the ground on his rear.
He leapt right back up and attacked again, slipping into a Firebending stance. He swung, kicked, and punched but Bee kept blocking each and every one of them. The Kumo shinobi didn't fight back and the expression on his face, one of disinterest, stayed firmly on and was beginning to annoy Naruto. He kept on trying to strike, mixing Firebending and Earthbending stances (which gave him strong stances and swift kicks), but Bee was like the mountains the village was a part of, unmoving and unyielding. He let it go on for a few minutes and then shoved the blonde again. "Fight back already!" Naruto shouted him as he stood back up, angry that he wouldn't fight back.
"No, I'm not here to play. I'm here to make you listen to what I say." He replied shortly.
"How can anyone understand what the hell you're saying when you speak like that?" The blonde demanded. He charged again, drawing a kunai. Bee still didn't move from where he stood. When the kunai was about to pierce his skin, he disarmed the blonde and sent him flying again. But he didn't move.
"Use your Bijū's chakra and I might not sock ya." He ordered the blonde. He had been waiting for him to do so for the past week, but he hadn't. While he had to admit that the blonde's stubborn refusal to use the Kyūbi's chakra was impressive, it was also getting annoying. No matter what he tried, the blonde tried to fight him with only his own power.
"I will not." Naruto declared.
"If you won't do it, I'll make you do it." With no warning, he was cloaked in the red chakra and charged him. Naruto reacted quickly by ducking under and rolling past the charge. But when he got back onto his feet, he saw that Bee had turned around and was coming right back at him. Caught off guard, he just leapt to the side, avoiding the charge but still getting slightly hit by one of the chakra tails. It was a small wound, but it was enough to make him hiss in pain.
"That's it!" The Kyūbi bellowed, surprising the blonde. "You're using my chakra!"
"What? Kyūbi, don't you dare!" He silently replied, but it was already happening. He could feel the fox's chakra coursing through him. Even though he wanted to stop the flow, a silent part of him he tried to ignore, his anger, his annoyance, and his guilt all welcomed it. His anger took hold of him and allowed him to take hold of the chakra faster. He focused on Bee, directing his anger at him. When the chakra coated him completely, he roared and charged at the Kumo shinobi.
"It's about time." Bee thought to himself as he waited for the blonde to hit him. When he did, the two clashed against one another. They tried to move the other, but were kept in lock. The chakra tail that Naruto had sprouted thrashed wildly, but Bee's remained still and motionless. It was a testament to his control. He soon gained the advantage and swung the blonde into the air, immediately leaping after him.
But the enraged blonde wasn't going to let him take out that easily. He swung his hands down and the charka extended, slamming into the ground and holding a good grip. The extended chakra arms shrunk, sending him down to the ground as Bee sailed overhead. Turning around, he leapt back into the air and went after the Kumo shinobi. He was faster and was able to grab hold of Bee. Once his grasp was firm, he pressed down. Their combined weight sent them crashing into the ground faster than Bee had anticipated. When they hit the earth, they created a very impressive crater.
In the midst of the crater, Naruto stood over Bee. With a roar, he raised his arm and brought it down, intent on smashing his opponant's skull in. It didn't follow through as Bee was able to carefully and calmly block the attack, gripping the chakra-covered fist with his own. Swinging the arm back, he sent the blonde sailing out of the crater. Getting back onto his own feet, he jumped out of the crater, ready to fight again.
He saw that the blonde made another crater when he landed (albeit a smaller one). But Naruto was out of it almost immediately after he made it, charging again at Bee. His attacks were not what they were when he was in control. They were wild, sloppy, and full of anger. But Bee was not a raging beast. He was in control and he was able to protect himself against such wild and sloppy strikes. He also noticed that the singular tail Naruto had sprouted had now become two.
The brawl (as that was what it had become) raged on. Naruto kept attacking like a maddened berserker. He managed to get in a few hits but they were small ones and inconsistent at that. He did more damage to the surrounding area then to Bee. But that didn't matter to him. He just kept on attacking, trying to take out the enemy that stood in front of him, anger and madness spurring him on.
"I think I've seen all I need to." Bee said to himself as he leaned back to avoid a swipe of the chakra claws, back-flipping when another claw appeared out of the red chakra and tried to tear his guts out. "Okay, fight's over." He announced as he landed back on his feet, his coat of red chakra disappearing. If Naruto had heard him at all, he had simply ignored it and kept on attacking. "Whoa, boy needs to calm down." He thought as he danced away from the savage strikes of the blonde.
"Well, you're the one who got him like this in the first place." His Bijū, the Hachibi, told him with a little bit of sarcasm. "You might want to consider getting him out of it."
"I'm working on it, Eight-o. Just leave it to me-o." He declared.
"…I'm going to pretend that I didn't hear that last bit." He had been with Bee for a long time and his Jinchūriki's rapping still irked him from time-to-time.
"Hey, ya fool. It's time to play it cool." Bee told the still-enraged Naruto. The blonde ignored him. Instead, he roared a challenge and charged again, leaping for the Kumo shinobi. Bee simply stepped to the side to avoid the incoming leap, but Naruto had used his tails to slow him down (he did this by thrusting them into the ground). When he finally stopped, he turned around and attacked again.
When he saw that he was about to be attacked again, Bee yelped, turned around and ran. He didn't need to look back to know that Naruto was chasing him. He could tell that just by listening (and apparently, the blonde was running on all fours). He ran around the training ground with the enraged Jinchūriki of the Kyūbi right behind. Naruto grinned savagely, his lengthened canines gleaming in the light of the morning sun. His enemy was slowing down and thus by definition, getting weaker. Sensing victory, he leapt forward, ready to tear his enemy apart.
But it wasn't going to be. The only reason Bee had stopped was because he had planned it, right from the yelp. As he heard the blonde leap into the air, he spun around and slammed his forehead into Naruto's. The entire training ground was filled with the sound of a loud SMACK! As the sound faded away, dying quietly after echoes repeated it, the red chakra on Naruto dissipated. The blonde fell to the ground, completely unconscious.
Bee stood over him, panting slightly. The kid had put up quite a good fight while he had been using the Kyūbi's chakra. Sure, he had fought like a berserker who had lost control as well as a wild beast but that could be taken care of. If it ever happened again, he would just use the traditional way of getting a Jinchūriki out of that: head-butt.
(Location: Team Paragon)
"Morning," Sokka yawned in greeting as he walked over to the small kitchen, intent on feeding both him and Akela.
"Morning, gaki," Jiraiya said in greeting as he drank the coffee he had. In front of him was some of Naruto's story. He was going over it and making notes about certain things. He was Naruto's unofficial checker, as he wanted the book to be a good one when it was finally released.
"How's the thing looking?" June asked from where she leaned against the wall. She had already eaten and made sure Nyla had too, keeping the shirshu company. Jiraiya made a noncommittal noise in his throat as he kept looking things over. "Is that good or bad?" She asked.
"It means I'm still looking it over." He said shortly. He wouldn't give an actual opinion until he was done and he would give it only to Naruto.
"Has anyone seen Naruto?" Azula asked as she came out of the empty bedroom. After Naruto had disappeared the previous night, she had decided to bunk with June (which included a fifteen minute lecture of "This is my side of the bed" from the bounty hunter).
"You mean he's not in there?" Sokka asked as he sat down at the table and began eating. Akela also ate his own breakfast with the same gusto as the Tribesman (energetic, but subdued). She shook her head in the negative. The bedroom had been empty.
"Maybe he's already out fighting Killer Bee?" Suki suggested. "Bee did tell him to meet him out on the field two hours after the sunrise this time around."
"And we did sleep in a bit." Jiraiya absently commented, glancing up at the clock. Everyone else did and saw that he was right; it was well past the designated time.
"You think he'll be okay?" Sokka wondered aloud.
"He'll be fine." June declared. "He's a stubborn bastard."
"Yeah, but with the past week, I don't think that stubbornness of his will last much longer. Especially since his temper's been getting shorter after every fight." The Water Paragon pointed out.
"His stubbornness will outlast his temper." Azula said confidently. "I trust him to be able to do that." She knew that there were many times early in their relation as bodyguard and charge that she deliberately tried to make him annoyed or angry, all in the hope that he would give her a reason to make him leave. But his stubborn refusal to do so made him suppress his anger at her and he stayed. In the end, she had accepted the fact that he wasn't going anywhere (which she was grateful for nowadays).
"Perhaps it might." Jiraiya said, looking up at the rest of them. "But everyone has a breaking point and sooner or later, they go past it. And I've got a feeling that with all that's going on and his refusal to use the Kyūbi's chakra, Naruto is either about to hit his point or has gone right past it."
"And what does happen when someone goes past the breaking point?" Suki asked. While she had seen people get mad or lose their tempers before, she had never actually seen anyone really go past their own breaking point.
The Toad Sage shrugged his shoulders as he drank more of his coffee. "They let it all out or turn it inward. Either way, if you don't manage to get them to stop and calm them down, it will not be pretty." He had seen one too many of those scenes, when someone had failed to stop a person who went past their breaking point. The sad thing was that they had all sort of blurred together. He had seen too many of them.
(Location: Naruto)
When he finally came to, he wished he hadn't. The headache banging away from the inside of his head was twice as worse as the one he got yesterday. His body felt sore all over, but he wasn't if it was because of the fight or what had happened to him. "You are a fucking bastard, furball." He told the Kyūbi.
"And you're a stubborn one." The Bijū replied with nonchalance. "If you had just used my chakra the first day like I said, it wouldn't have taken this long."
"I see you're awake." Bee's voice said from over to his side. Turning his head, he saw the Kumo shinobi was sitting on the ground next to him. He had spoken without rapping, which surprised the blonde. "Now you can tell me why you're afraid to use the Kyūbi's chakra."
That statement made him angry. "You could've asked that question during the first day!" He shouted at the Jinchūriki of the Hachibi. If he could move, that would've been the point where he started a slug-fest.
"I could've." Bee admitted. "But I wanted to see how you fought while using it."
"Well I hope you enjoy the show. I certainly don't remember it all." He spat before turning his head to glare up at the sky. The fight was a bit of a blur after the Kyūbi forced him to use his chakra, which he didn't like.
"So why are you afraid of using the Kyūbi's chakra?" He repeated his question, not sounding any different.
Naruto didn't say anything; he just stared in silence at the sky. Bee didn't say anything either, he just waited. They waited in silence, waiting to see if the other would speak first. In the end, Naruto was the one who cracked. "Have you ever lost control?" He finally asked. The question was almost too quiet to be heard.
"No, I can't say that I have." Bee answered, shaking his head. He was actually proud of that fact. He got on well with the Hachibi (and he was pretty sure that his rapping had helped that process along).
"Then you've never known what it feels like once you've come out of it. To see or hear about all the destruction you've caused, all because you couldn't control it." He said with a bit of a bite to it. "I lost it when I saw someone I thought of as a friend die as I tried to carry him away from the battlefield. I had promised that I would get the both of us out of there alive and I failed. My anger took over and when it did, I took the Kyūbi's chakra by force. What happened next, I was only told about."
"How many enemy soldiers did you kill?" It was an innocent question (or at least semi-innocent), but it made the blonde even angrier.
"It wasn't just soldiers I killed. Kami, I didn't even kill them." He said with a derisive snort. "I slaughtered them! And when one idiot tried to run away, to run back to the supposed safety of the nearby fortress, I caught him and in the process of catching and killing him, we both went through the front gate of the fortress. And so, once he was dead, I proceeded to kill. Everyone. There!" He declared, spitting out those last three words and somehow finding the strength to sit up, his headache and sore body quickly forgotten. "And it wasn't just enemy soldiers. Oh no, there were civilians in that fortress! Men and women, even children, who didn't deserve what I did them! And do you know the worse part of it all? The higher-ups were going to give me a fucking medal for the horror I did!" When he told them what they could with their medal, he felt some satisfaction, but not enough. "That is why I refuse to use the Kyūbi's chakra. So I would never have to do something like that again." He may have said that, but it was also because he would never have to feel that level of guilt again.
Bee stayed silent throughout the rant. When Naruto was finally done, he kept silent for a minute. "I'm sorry." He finally apologized.
The blonde scoffed when he heard that. "You're sorry? Sorry for what? Were you among the dead I killed in that fortress and somehow managed to come back to life?" He asked scathingly.
The Kumo shinobi shook his head. "No, I'm sorry about not asking you on the first day. You were right, I should've done that. But when you told me that you didn't want to be trained, I was determined to make you use the Kyūbi's chakra. To see how you fought in that."
"Why? Why would you want to see something like that? Just look around us." The training ground was completely ruined and riddled with craters, deep claw marks, and lots of churned up rocks. "This is what happened because you wanted to see."
"I always believe the best way to learn was to see or do it yourself." The Kumo shinobi told him with complete seriousness. "I could never sit still for those lessons that came from books and the classroom."
Naruto was silent for a minute. "…I was like that once." He finally admitted. "At least, until the fox had all but beaten it into my head that I needed to read the books."
"Wow, my Bijū never did that to me." He noted.
"Well, I was in the midst of a war I had voluntarily joined and I didn't have another shinobi around to help train me." The blonde replied, being a little sarcastic. "So I had to ask the fox to help train me."
"And you were quite the stubborn student." The Kyūbi commented.
"You shut up. I'm still annoyed with you." He told the fox. The Bijū decided to not say anything else and kept his mouth shut.
"That must've been rough." Bee commented.
When he heard, the blonde couldn't help but bark out a laugh. "That would've been putting it mildly. But it all worked out in the end. I'm still here, alive and kicking." Not to mention mentally scarred and plagued by nightmares when his girlfriend wasn't with him, but he wasn't going to mention that to someone he didn't really know.
"And that's what I'm trying to make sure you stay like." He told Naruto. "I'm not asking you to use the Kyūbi's chakra as a crutch. What I'm asking for you to realize that it could possibly be a potentially powerful weapon in your arsenal."
"I've got enough of those in my arsenal." Naruto remarked. His ability to Soulbend, the Rasenshuriken, and that one Uzumaki Kenjutsu came to mind when he said those words.
"What I want to give you could do more, a lot more. If you stop being afraid of the chakra and take the chance to properly use it, the two of us could work together and send the Akatsuki packing."
"You'd still have to run that little idea past your brother." The Hachibi commented. "And I think we both know how that will turn out." The Raikage would say no and that would be the end of it from his point of view.
"We'll worry about that when we get there." Bee told him, mentally waving it off.
"…You're not planning to tell him, are you?" His Jinchūriki's silence was all the answer he needed. "Don't blame me when you get the Iron Claw when he finds out."
He ignored his Bijū, focusing on the blonde sitting on the ground across from him. "So, what do you say? Will you let me train you and make those Akatsuki guys pay?" He asked, slipping back into his rapping.
Naruto sat in silence, thinking it over. As much as he feared the Kyūbi's chakra, he also knew that could help tremendously in a fight (or to even save his life). But that fear still lay within him. It carried a risk that seemed almost too dangerous. "Is it worth it in the end?" He finally asked Bee. "Is it worth the risk?"
"Yes. Yes, it is." The shinobi of Kumo assured him. "And with me around, there won't be a risk." He held out his fist and kept there, in front of Naruto but not close enough to make it seem dangerous. "So, are you in or out?"
He hesitated for a moment, still unsure because of his fear. But he pushed it down; this was something that would probably never be offered again. He had to that chance. He slowly his own fist and placed it against Bee's own, feeling a bit awkward about it. But when he saw that Bee was smiling, he smiled back. "Yeah I'm in and you make good on it. If not, then you will be on the short end of the stick." He told Bee, rapping back at him.
Bee's smile turned into a grin. "Now that's a promise I intend to uphold. Because if I don't, odds you'll knock me out cold. Fool, ya fool." While they were both grinning like lunatics, neither one of them heard their own respective Bijū give an audible groan (either that, or they ignored it).
End
Author's note: Thank you for all the reviews you've sent me.
I had realized that I hadn't really written about Naruto's nightmares, so I decided to write another one. The inspiration for this one came from the movie "Pearl Harbor" near the end of the actual attack by the Japanese. The part where they couldn't get through to the sailors trapped in the Arizona was hard to watch (still is). But I thought that Naruto would probably feel guilty about not being able to save his own trapped sailors, especially when he failed to realize that it was a lost cause and had to be dragged away.
As for the skull being there, he wasn't actually there when it happened. He's there in the dream, questioning why Naruto keeps trying to save even though he knows that they're already dead. It goes back to his question of how blood does the blonde have on his hands.
If you're wondering why Jiraiya is looking over Naruto's potential story, the better question is why wouldn't he looked it over? He's an accomplished writer (even though his books might not be the standard kind), so he would know what to look for in a story that'll make it good and trying to make sure those come to the surface. He might have some harsh comments on a few things Naruto wrote, but it's all for the sake of a good story. And truth be told, I can see Jiraiya as a coffee drinker. All he would need then would be a pair of glasses and the newspaper and we've got a sit-com dad or grandfather (truth be told, I was really tempted to put those in there for the hell of it, but decided it probably wouldn't work. Still, it's a funny image to think about when you want a laugh).
Now since I'm getting near the end of this story (the rest of this arc and the next are the only ones standing between me and the ending), I am going to be focusing all of my available time on this until it is done and I've also reedit the early chapters. Until then, "Misplaced" is on hold. But once I'm done, I'm bringing it back along with "Woken from Exile" (after that one is reedited too).
I'll see you all next chapter!