Naruto Shippuden -H-: Chapter 027: The Lonely Void
The fifth day of Naruto and his friend's journey to the city of Lazarus had arrived, as six in the morning came about, and the sunrise could be seen in the horizon.
"Damn, I could not sleep well last night, I had the worst back pain and I am not sure why." said Shikamaru as he got up and stretched his arms.
"I thought it was too hot to get any good sleep, it seems that the Land of Earth's climate around here is constantly fluctuating." said Sai in a grouchy mood.
"I did not hear anything out of the ordinary last night, it seems that no one is around us at the moment." said Sakura as she was ready to continue on with the journey.
"I feel like I am going to be sick, ughhh." said Naruto as he got up, holding his head and sweating.
"Something has been bothering you lately, did you contract a cold or something?" asked Shikamaru with concern as the four shinobi walked towards a long, winding road that stretched out over a cliff.
"Eh, probably just my nerves getting at me, I am so excited to extract my own kind of justice for what that brown haired freak did to those innocent people back in Ishigakure." said Naruto with a serious tone.
"I see, well nothing else to do now but to venture on ahead, I am also sickened by what he did, and that Jesei as well, he may have gotten away, but I will see that he never forgets me." said Sakura valiantly.
"I am glad to see that everyone is so determined this morning, let's take advantage of that and move forward." said Sai as the four leaf shinobi continued on with their adventure towards the outer reaches of the Land of Earth.
Sasuke and Bee had awoken around seven in the morning, having arrived in the Land of Wind, on their way to Lazarus, after warning the five Kages of the threat to come.
"I did not hear anything out of the ordinary, perhaps those fools knew we are really scary, fool, ya fools!" said Bee as he cleared the sand resulting from a recent sandstorm out of his glasses.
"They will not show themselves out here, if they are so interested in Naruto, they will most likely be approaching the areas around him, since we are a few days behind we should be able to see if anything came down from Naruto's journey." said Sasuke with his Mangekyou activated.
"I really hate this sand, is there not something else finer in this land?" asked Bee as he and Sasuke dashed quickly down the deserts of the Land of Wind towards the Northeast.
Deep within the booming castle of the city called Lazarus, the institution-like atmosphere and the wet, rainy boiler room that surrounded the back of the hallways was lighting the nightmarish atmosphere that adorned the lower ends of the construction.
"I for one am not pleased with how things turned out, I had no idea he would take it that serious!" said Lunesto, who had bandages around his newly-restored limbs, replacing the ones he lost in his battle with Naruto.
"You were fighting the Golden Hero, what do you expect, but let's be honest, that Sakura was a real surprise, she really showed up for that little game of mine, even legitimitley overcame me, she did." said Jesei as he was looking exhausted from the events that have transpired the past few days.
"At least that damn doctor got my surgery right, I was afraid I would not live to see the next day, you know." said Lunesto as he and Jesei approached another long, dark hallway that led to a series of stairs.
"We are going to visit the boss, he will tell us what to do next, now that our current mission has been cleared." said Jesei as the two shinobi walked down the horrific hallway towards a flight of stairs.
"I just hope he is not feeling angry today, I swear I did my best against Naruto." said Lunesto with a worried expression as he and Jesei started to walk up the flight of stairs that led to an upper level above the catacombs of the castle.
"I wonder, what brings you two here today?" asked Lehourihm, as he was waiting for Jesei and Lunesto at the top of the first flight of stairs.
"Lehourihm, you were one of the three sent to save us, what did the boss have to say about what our next move should be?" asked Jesei as Lehourihm joined his two comrades in walking towards their boss' quarters.
"I have not heard, ever since it started raining heavily around here in recent hours, he has been quiet, perhaps he is anticipating the arrival of Naruto Uzumaki, and that alone should give us a clue as to what awaits us next." said Lehourihm as he knew what awaited them.
"So, we just wait for Naruto to arrive here, well, what about reviving Madara then, you and Dreatoen were making a big deal about that?" asked Lunesto with curiosity.
"Soon, but for now we have to let the next three days play out, after all, you cannot rush good things, you have to take your time." said Lehourihm as the three of them arrived at a large set of double doors covered in blood.
"I will ask the boss myself, he will be more clear about the state of affairs around here than you have!" said Jesei as he was in a haste to hear from his boss personally about what to do next.
"Okay, suit yourselves, but don't be surprised if he throws the both of you out of his window." said Lehourihm jokingly as he teleported out of sight.
"I guess he was just trying to scare us, but he ended up making me excited to find out more about this whole revival of Madara Uchiha!" said Lunesto with a tone of excitement.
A few hours passed as the sun was now shining brightly in the sky, and the rain could be seen in the process of condensation as Orochimaru was traveling with Taka, and was in a great haste.
"How much longer must I be in anticipation of seeing you again, brother, I will not be able to hold back the urge of killing you, it makes me so excited that I cannot handle it." thought Orochimaru to himself as he was in front of his three followers.
"We will be there soon won't we, I can tell by the way Lord Orochimaru's pace has increased, I think he really wants to meet this man more than the other way around." said Suigetsu who could barely keep up.
"This person that Orochimaru and Sasuke are going after could be a dangerous man Suigetsu, we all need to be careful once we arrive in at the destination, especially if Orochimaru is this psyched to meet him." said Jugo as he could read Orochimaru's intentions.
"Heh, there is no reason to be scared with the four of us traveling together, I feel sorry for whatever sad bastard encounters us, but of course if I do not get something to eat soon, I may pass out." said Karin who was grew more angry the hungrier she got.
"Bring Suigetsu, Jugo, and Karin was a good idea after all, they will play a good role in invading my brother's castle, because unlike me, he never had a talent for studying the overall nature of this world's history." said Orochimaru as he and Taka approached a large canyon filled with rivers, trees, and bridges that led from one part of the canyon to the other.
"I guess we have to go down there now, eh?" asked Suigetsu to Orochimaru.
"Yes, this canyon will lead to a large vast plain that will then take us on a direct path to Lazarus, and soon this little journey of ours will get very exciting!" said Orochimaru with a fierce look in his eyes as he was eager to descend into the canyon.
"I have never seen him this excited before, it could be a testament to what is to come." thought Jugo to himself.
"Man, I don't see any food in sight around here, maybe I can take a piece of Suigetsu and eat him, hehehe." laughed Karin.
"The only thing you need to eat is a batch of patience." said Suigetsu as Karin smacked him in the head, causing it to turn into water.
"Hahahaha, gets you every time, like a child almost." said Suigetsu mocking Karin.
"That is enough fooling around, we are now entering this canyon, be on the lookout for any Iwagakure shinobi, or even better, one of those Knights of Dawn." said Orochimaru as he and Taka arrived at the first bridge in the vast canyon.
"You always ridiculed me when we were younger, and to make it worse, I spent my best efforts into research and figurative thinking revolving around what you told me when I was a child, I even grew to hate Hiruzen's foolish teachings, but once I heard about the Akatsuki, I had forgotten about you, and now that all of these events have come to passed, being the coward you are, you take advantage of the absence of competition to snag up Naruto for yourself, I will take great pleasure in sending you to hell, hehehehehe, hahahahahah!" laughed Orochimaru as he ran at high speeds across the canyon, leaving Taka in the dust.
"Damn, something is pushing him, we will never fucking catch up now!" yelled Karin.
"Hey, let's speed up too, let's show Orochimaru we are just as good as him!" yelled Suigetsu.
"Good idea, though I may be more proficient than you two in that department." said Jugo as he formed jet boosters on his back, a result of his clan's Sage Transformation, and quickly blasted off into Orochimaru's direction.
"Son of a bitch, he could have at least waited for us to grab onto him!" said Suigetsu as he grabbed Karin's arm and decided to run at his fullest speed.
"Hey, let go of me ya' motherfucker, I can run at my own pace you hear, I don't need your help!"! said Karin as she tried to kick Suigetsu in the head, only for him to pick up Karin in his arms, and run while holding her.
"Huh, uhhhh, what, ehhh... Suigetsu...what are you doing?" asked Karin as she began to blush immensely.
"Making sure you do not get left behind, my beautiful demonic red-head." said Suigetsu as he sped up to catch Jugo and Orochimaru.
"What...wait...beautiful, Suigetsu called me beautiful, what the hell, that is...not too bad." said Karin as she smiled and looked up at Suigetsu as he was carrying her.
"Make any signs of resistance and I drop your nice ass!" said Suigetsu comically.
"Then I will make sure you fall down this chasm with me!" said Karin.
"Sheesh, those two back there are somehow managing to keep up with me, oh well, I just hope that Orochimaru does not destroy the entire city once we get there, I would like to do a little sight seeing." said Jugo as he could see Orochimaru at the end of the canyon waiting on his three followers to catch up to him.
"About time you make it here, I was so intrigued on the prospect of facing my brother that I seemed to have forgotten about taking the three of you into consideration, kukukukuku." laughed Orochimaru sinisterly as Suigetsu and Karin also caught up.
"I see the two love birds made it as well, keep yourselves in line, or I may gobble you up!" said Orochimaru trying to psyche out Suigetsu again.
"There you go trying to act like a monster again, we all know that women are the true monsters." said Suigetsu as he let Karin down on her feet.
"And red-headed women are the worst kind of demons." said Suigetsu as he anticipated Karin smacking him in the face again.
"Thank you, I agree all the same." said Karin cheerfully.
"...The fuck?" asked Suigetsu to himself as Orochimaru looked on to the road ahead as three in the afternoon came about.
"Six more hours of travel this way, and we should be within a day's reach to Lazarus, I can finally validate my existence once again, I will not be confined to existing in this lonely void of hellish principles that were laden upon me by a bunch of peace loving old fools, I will be able to feel alive again when I see him, the White Snake can finally slither down to it's nest and feel at home again, without any sorrow in it's soul, I have missed you brother, I have missed you greatly." said Orochimaru as he was eagerly awaiting his chance to strike the man down for good.
"Yes, once you make him pay for the things that he did, it will be justice best served." said Jugo as he stood beside his master.
"No, it is not what he did to me, and there is no justice in this mind, it is all about validation." said Orochimaru as he and Taka decided to take a slower pace traveling down the field that was beyond the canyon.
Naruto, Sakura, Sai, and Shikamaru arrived at a similar canyon that they managed to quickly traverse through, and had arrived at a series of mountainous valleys that were in front of them.
"So, this is the next destination, eh, looks like it." said Naruto as he was looking at the scroll he received from the Knights of Dawn to confirm his thoughts.
"It looks to be around five in the evening judging by the position of the sun, once we reach the end of these valleys, it should be night, and we should be very close to Lazarus at that point." said Shikamaru as he studied the map alongside Naruto.
"I cannot wait to get there, maybe they will have other artists who will appreciate my work, unlike you three." said Sai with a distressed tone.
"Oh my, we appreciate your work Sai, you just never ask us." said Sakura.
"I will tell you something I appreciate, slamming that bastard from back in Ishigakure to the ground, and making sure he never gets up again." said Naruto as he activated his Nine-Tails Chakra Mode and was in anticipation of any threats that awaited in the valleys ahead.
"I like the sound of that, shanarrooooo!" yelled Sakura as she was also excited about arriving at their destination within a day and a half.
"Could this whole adventure so far have been a trap, or maybe I am just thinking too much, but still, to have Naruto come here alone would have been a bad idea, but maybe the enemy is expecting for Naruto to have some company, only way to find out is to push on ahead." said Shikamaru as he had shaken out all of the doubts in his mind and followed behind Sai, Naruto, and Sakura as they approached the nearby mountainous valleys ahead of them.
Sasuke and Bee arrived in a far corner of the Land of Earth around seven in the evening, far from where Naruto and his company was at.
"So, this path will get us there the quickest?" asked Bee as he and Sasuke were jumping through the trees that were above a large chasm in the middle of a derelict field.
"Yes, and once we do get there, we will make sure to clean that whole place out, before Naruto ever has to get his hands dirty." said Sasuke as the six tomoe in his Rinnegan glowed.
-To be continued next time with Chapter 028...-