"You do realise the armour is probably worse off than I am right? And stop with the damn needles woman!" Naruto knew that he could probably be a little less bratty about the whole thing, after all he had been shot and this was the ship's doctor, but in his opinion he didn't need the attention.
After the fall of Konoha medics and other medical staff had been in short supply, and given his regeneration ability Naruto had always been the one to volunteer out of treatment whenever there had been combat or other medical injuries and illnesses that had arisen, his preference that medics spent their time looking after others less fortunate than him a little hard for him to shake. The fact that he wasn't particularly fond of needles, of any form, after the battle in Wave with Haku definitely had nothing to do with it... Honest.
"Just because your surface wounds have healed, which is still very impressive given the short time span, doesn't mean that your health and general well being should not be fully investigated Mr Uzumaki. We have no records to go off in regards to your 'unique' make-up, so it would be best if I created some now, rather than if you do get seriously injured and I have to guess at how to treat you!" The words were stern and made it very clear that Dr Chakwas was not going to take no as an answer, Naruto's sigh of defeat getting a laugh from Shepard as she watched the little exchange from her desk.
They were performing the check up in Shepard's room for two reasons; firstly because it was a secure location that they could talk about Naruto freely without any of the others hearing under the guise of a debrief from Shepard; and also so that they could sort out the aftermath of the council report at the same time. The Council had tried to insist that Shepard use the conference room to contact them, but given that was now where she was bunking Garrus and Wrex as well as to put her foot down with them, Shepard insisted that an audio conference in her office was not only easier but more secure now.
"You better not let any of the Council hear about how easily Dr Chakwas can win arguments with you Naruto, they might try and hire her off of us to act as their ambassador solely to you. Though given how impressed they were with our mission I don't think we need to worry about that for the time being, even the Turian couldn't find anything to complain about and make it stick." Not for lack of trying of course.
Everything ranging from the deaths of the rest of the dig team to Liara not being handed over to the Council in chains had been brought up by the prickly representative, Shepard listening with amusement as the Asari line went mute for a couple of minutes and then the Turian stopped being so blatant with his attempts to sabotage her, obviously the level headed ones in the Council were trying to avoid antagonising her if they could help it.
"We will obviously have to cause them some more trouble in the future Jane-chan, can't have them thinking we will be good little minions all of the time..." Jane's grin widened slightly and Naruto responded in kind, he had to admit he had been damn lucky to have ended up being woken up when he had been, if he had been stuck with someone like Kaidan as a leader he would probably have mutinied by now.
"Given it is you Naruto, I don't think we will need to try very hard. Speaking of potential trouble, how is Liara doing?" Naruto thought for a moment, reviewing what the clone he had following Liara had sent him when it had dispersed.
"It's only been a few hours Jane-chan, she has been resting in the Med-bay, given that she had been in that barrier for a couple of days I doubt that she will be doing anything else in the near future. Pressley is watching the data streams from the access port you have given her, if she does go on the extranet for any reason we will know, though I imagine he does the same for all of us non-Alliance personnel." His educated guess barely fazed Jane, who shrugged unapologetically at him before smiling once more.
"Standard procedure, especially given the nature of the Normandy. Command are creating non-disclosure agreements for all of you, which I imagine will cause Tali to become quite the annoyance when she hears about it, but this is experimental and classified technology so I think we can talk her round." Naruto winced as he already knew where this was heading.
"And by 'we' you mean 'I' will talk Tali-chan round? Do you not like me all of a sudden Taichou? Don't forget I am one of those non-Alliance members you are meant to be watching after all, what would command say if they heard I was doing your negotiations for you?" His ploy to get out of being the messenger nearly worked, Jane's face shifting to her deep thought expression for a few seconds before the proverbial light bulb came on and she glared at him half-heartedly.
"Nice try Naruto, but you are still talking to her, she has certainly gelled with you a lot better than she has the rest of the human crew. You can make it clear it's from me of course, but I think it will be better coming from you." Naruto nodded, the logic was sound even if he didn't like the end result.
"Hai Jane-chan, when the doctor has finished trying to kil-I mean heal me I will go talk to her, we are due another training session as it is." The fact that Tali had approached him about further close combat training really pleased Naruto, he rather liked the shy Quarian, and he also found he rather enjoyed teaching as well.
"Well, despite the fact that your ungratefullness makes me want to run another batch of tests just to annoy you, I think I am done for now. So, you are free to go, though if I hear any more whining the next time you are in my care, I will start on the invasive diagnostic tests..." Damn, Dr Chakwas was scary when she wanted to be, Naruto quickly deciding it was best to give up the fight rather than risk the veteran doctor actually trying to go through with her threat.
"Hai, hai, I will be good." Naruto did his best to ignore Jane's continued chuckles as he stood and made his way to the door.
Now he just had to find Tali-chan to arrange the training without Wrex finding out and trying to join in...
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It was quiet aboard the ship, something Liara greatly appreciated as opposed to the the much more crowded and raucous atmosphere she had often experienced whilst travelling with Benezia in her youth. The quiet allowed her to think without distraction, and thinking was something she had been doing ever since she had been brought aboard the human ship 2 days before.
Whilst young for her kind, Benezia had raised her to be methodical and calculating in everything she did and Liara had found at least one of those things to be useful enough to keep after finally managing to move away from her and onto her own things. Certainly her logical approach had helped in persuading the Salarian in charge of the dig on Therum to allow her to be a part of the team, though given what happened that could be taken as both a good and a bad thing.
'I would also advise you do not show such excitement when Jane-taichou gets here, the Geth attacked a planet called Eden Prime which we helped clear before coming here, a lot of humans died in the attack...' The words of young human soldier who had found and rescued her came to the forefront of her mind, something they had been doing a lot since they boarded the ship as she tried her best not to think about the rest of her captivity or the actions of the Krogan who had come with the Geth.
She knew she probably owed him an apology for her ill choice of enthusiasm and words, he didn't seem to have mentioned them to his boss despite the fact that they could be taken as her supporting the Geth, though she had been umming and arring about how to do it. Human culture was something she was not particularly experienced in, having devoted herself to her Prothean research before humans even existed to the Council races, and the extranet videos she had watched whilst she recovered hadn't helped much.
"Dr T'soni?" Drawn from her thoughts by someone speaking behind her, Liara turned around hastily, how had she been so distracted that she hadn't noticed someone come in?
"Oh I am sorry, Tali wasn't it? I am afraid I was lost in my thoughts and didn't hear you come in. What can I do for you?" The Quarian girl didn't seem too bothered by her social awkwardness, thank the goddess, her posture relaxed and friendly even as she replied.
"Not a problem, you have had a lot to think about I am sure. I was just here to offer a tour of the ship, from the sounds of it you are going to be here a while, it certainly helped me settle in a little when I joined up." It was something that Liara had been wondering, how there were a group of aliens aboard a very human spaceship, but she had merely put it down as a spectre thing until now.
"A tour? Are you sure that would be okay? I mean, given the Commander's concerns..." Jane Shepard, the first human Spectre, would normally have been a piece of living history that Liara would be dying to meet.
The woman had been very... professional but Liara could tell she didn't trust her and probably wouldn't for some time to come. In fact, Liara was surprised she didn't have a guard following her at all times, she knew her extranet activity was being monitored and approved given how long some of the loading times were after all.
"Naruto has given you the all clear, and if he believes you so will Shepard even if it is just provisionally, I just would make sure not to prove either of them wrong in that belief..." The young human had such sway over a Spectre?
She knew that Commander Shepard had checked her initial story with him before letting him out, and from what he said he had very good people reading skills, but she had barely spoken to the man since then. Such a level of trust made her wonder if she had significantly underestimated the man, perhaps his claim about the number of Geth he had killed hadn't been an idle boast.
"Surprising isn't it? Though when you get to know him a little better, I think you will come to understand why, despite how he acts he is quite brilliant in his own way. Now, shall we?" Obviously her thoughts had been easier to read than Liara thought, a small blush rising on her face as she chose to ignore the first question and nod to the second, not trusting her voice in case she said something that could be interpreted badly.
"You're too kind Tali-chan, though it's not going to get me to go any easier on you in training later." The rather amused voice of the subject of their conversation from behind Tali made both of them freeze up, though Liara was very glad she hadn't said anything now as she would probably be as embarrassed as Tali was.
"Naruto, what have I told you about sneaking up on me?" Embarrassment was quick to turn into outrage for the Quarian as she turned to face the new arrival, who seemed content just to ignore the hostility with his usual warm smile.
"Doesn't matter, Jane-taichou has said that the ground teams all need awareness training given the appearance of these new Geth, if they can sneak up on me they can definitely do the same to the rest of you." Liara didn't know which 'new' Geth type they were talking about, but she assumed it was an infiltrator/assassin class if it was using stealth.
"Sorry Mr Uzumaki, I didn't manage to get your rank before so I hope I don't sound rude, are you here to escort us on the tour?" This made more sense than just having two aliens walking a human ship by themselves, though Liara was surprised when Naruto shook his head with a small laugh.
"Call me Naruto Liara-san, I don't think my rank would translate very easily. I was actually on my way here from Jane-taichou, to ask if you were still serious about wanting to join the ground teams?" The fact that Naruto added small words after everyone's names still confused Liara, especially given that none of the other humans seemed to do it, but the fact that he was hear about her admittedly on the spot offer was surprising.
"Well, yes, if the commander will have me I would prefer to be doing something useful rather than stuck hiding on a ship out of harm's way. I thought the others were against it, saying that I didn't have any military training..." Naruto nodded and gestured out of the room.
"You will have to come meet Nirali-chan Liara-san, I think you and her would get along very well. And actually the other's concerns are the reason I am here, Jane-taichou has asked me to check your basic fitness and combat skills, if I think they are good enough then there will be no problem." Liara couldn't help but grin at the opportunity to prove herself, as well as in thanks to Naruto for doing this for her, she had to admit there were not many that would even entertain the possibility of allowing a civilian to fight with them.
"And don't worry about it too much, as Tali-chan is also a civilian, she will be doing the training with you." Normally the possibility of having someone else there would be good news, as it meant she wouldn't be the only one embarrassed by whatever training she was put through, but judging by Tali's sudden stiffening and nervous posture Liara couldn't help but feel even more ill at ease.
"Naruto, you've already seen me work remember, I am sure you don't need me to do an actual training course beyond our normal training..." Naruto's grin, along with Tali's rapid attempt to excuse herself, turned her ill at ease into actual concern.
By the goddess, what was she getting herself into?
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"And just a few more laps!" Tali didn't ever think she could hate Naruto, not after he saved her life and helped her integrate herself into the crew, but as the boy turned around jogging on the spot in front of them, she found herself remarkably close to crossing that line.
The training he had put her and Liara through had been absolutely gruelling, making their close combat sessions look like a breeze in comparison, her lungs on the verge of pulling her suit's air filter down her throat with the large ragged breaths she was being forced to take. She was doing better than Liara though, obviously the young Asari had spent more time looking through dossiers and examining artefacts than training, bent double as she attempted to try and draw precious air into her lungs once more.
"Naruto, that is enough." The call from the entrance to the cargo bay, which had been converted into an impromptu assault course, alerted Tali to the presence of the rest of Shepard's team.
Keelah, if things weren't embarrassing enough with them not completing the training course, everyone had turned up to watch as well. Naruto nodded, the boy barely even sweating, before going over to grab a couple of bottles of water from near the start line of the assault course.
"They've passed taichou, certainly most of the academy graduates from when I graduated would have struggled to keep up with me for that long." The news surprised and cheered up Tali, she had honestly thought given Naruto's lack of exertion that they had failed, something that Ashley was quick to bring up.
"But you don't even look like you were trying Naruto, are you sure that you haven't gone easy on them?" Ashley had been the most vocal in her concerns about the pair of them, Tali would've taken offence at that if she didn't know it was more about concern for their safety on the field than any kind of superiority complex.
"Ashley-chan, I don't think you could even make me work up a sweat before you passed out, though I am more than willing if you wish to try..." There was silence for a moment, even Tali had caught the possible double meaning to that sentence and she was glad of her mask as the blood rushed back to her face, Naruto merely stood with a cheeky smile that made it clear he knew exactly how it sounded.
Ashley seemed unsure whether to blush or get angry, which probably wasn't helped by Kaidan and Wrex's laughter from behind them. The commander merely chuckled for a moment before speaking.
"I assume this was you taking it easy on them then? Perhaps you can run us through the advanced course then whilst Tali and Liara rest, we can run them through gun drills when we get back to the Citadel." The laughter stopped abruptly as Naruto's smirk returned full force, Garrus looking a little uneasy even as Naruto started moving around to alter some of the setup pieces of equipment.
"Commander, are you sure this is necessary? We are due into the Citadel in a few hours..." Jane Shepard, Spectre and hero of the human Alliance, merely grinned at the Turian's attempted excuse, and suddenly Tali got the rather smug feeling that she might yet come out best in this encounter.
"I am sure a little training won't do you any harm Garrus, I did promise the Executor that I would ensure you remained in peak physical condition after all. Now, let's start up with a gentle warm up." Tali was distracted by Naruto appearing next to her, having just helped move the almost comatose Liara off to the side, gladly accepting his offer of a shoulder to help her shuffle off to where a small bed was set up amongst all the crates.
"Nearly there Tali-chan, you did very well today, much better than I was expecting. Now you get to watch this lot have a go, 10 credits if I can make one of them cry..." Tali smiled at his obvious attempt to distract her from her aching muscles, though she waved Naruto off when he tried to sit her down on the bed, running through a set of stretching exercises he had taught her, if she didn't finish properly she wouldn't be able to walk in a few hours.
"Thanks Naruto, though I will almost definitely hate you tomorrow for this, keelah I am going to have to find a Quarian spa to get rid of all this sweat..." Originally upon joining the Normandy Tali would have been horrified to have said such a personal thing in front of someone, whether she knew them or not, but Naruto had a way of making her comfortable with being honest about things.
"Well if you want a massage Tali-chan, that will probably help your muscles a little, Sakura-chan taught me how to do them..." Naruto trailed off before shaking his head and waving, whenever he brought up someone from his past he tended to do this, though Tali wouldn't push for now as she tried to ignore the blush that rushed to her face at the rather personal offer.
He let her have her secrets, she would let him have his, for now at least. Finishing the stretching for the moment, she sat down just as Naruto rejoined the group as they finished their warm up laps of the inside of the assault course, taking them round to explain each exercise with a spring in his step she couldn't help but envy. Though from the slowly sinking faces on her 'comrades' faces, she definitely wasn't envying them right now...
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Wrex was a simple creature, to be honest all Krogan were really, he knew what made him happy in life and didn't usually get interested in things that ranged beyond fighting, drinking and eating. Saving his people from their slow bitter extinction was a lofty goal in comparison, but Wrex knew he hadn't thought too hard about how to do it, after all if he had complicated things the other Krogan would probably have gotten confused.
So, as he stopped to regain his breath for the eighth time in the last 2 hours, he found himself surprisingly interested in the young human that had managed to run a team of trained killers into the ground. It wasn't even his fighting instincts screaming at him to fight for dominance of the pack, those had been silenced when he had lost the contest on Therum, as much as he complained about Naruto getting to run off first and get the advantage.
This interest went deeper than that, to a level Wrex had never really descended to before now. It wasn't just how the boy fought and how Wrex could beat him, which was usually as far as Wrex got with his acquaintances these days as they all ended up dying off quite quickly anyway, but more trying to understand how he thought and why he was holding back so much.
"Come on old man, you are already ten laps behind me!" The call reignited the fury that constantly hummed in Wrex's blood, the insufferable brat finally breathing heavily as he jogged ahead of Commander Shepard, who was the only other member of the group still going.
"Be careful brat, we Krogan may not have the best endurance but we are natural sprinters. VERY dangerous over short distances..." Wrex reinforced that with a biting motion as the boy moved past him again, Wrex starting to jog again as Shepard caught him up, the normally unreadable woman scarlet in the face and obviously near the limit herself.
She had really surprised him carrying on this long though, she certainly had tenacity and stubbornness that would fit a Krogan quite nicely, unlike the other three who had dropped out in the first hour. Kaidan had gone first, his implants flaring up under the strain of the exercise, then Ashley had twisted her ankle going over one of the obstacles, the woman more annoyed at herself for the injury rather than actually hurt by it. Garrus had lasted to the fifty minute mark before stumbling to a halt and ejecting his lunch off to the side of the assault course.
"Commander?" Joker's voice broke through the air and Wrex knew it meant they had probably arrived at the Citadel, Shepard slowing to a halt in front of him and giving him a good excuse to stop there. Whilst his aching limbs and burning lungs made him feel more alive than he had ever probably felt off the battlefield, Wrex wasn't going to fall into the brat's trap and run himself into the ground to beat him.
"Yes Joker?" Talking into her comm meant that Wrex didn't hear Joker's reply, but Shepard carried on a moment later. "Thanks Joker, we will be on station in twenty minutes. Team, gather round!" The barked order showed that the prolonged training had not improved Shepard's mood, and having seen her deal with Fist, Wrex was in no mood to be the one on the end of her ire this time.
Wrex cast his eye around as the other members of the strike force shuffled and groaned as they moved into position around him, chuckling to himself as Naruto walked over still bouncing on the balls of his feet.
"Have to get you to do this again brat, though next time we add some shooting challenges, then you will be in trouble." Despite his almost unnatural proficiency in close combat and endurance, Wrex knew that Naruto was only a passable shot at best, so challenging him to a shooting contest was the best chance at getting back at him.
"No shooting my ship..." Whatever Naruto was thinking of replying was cut off by Shepard's glare, Wrex managing to ignore the small feeling that he felt in the base of his stomach that usually only appeared when a Krogan female was brooding, though he decided not to push his luck just in case Shepard decided to break her own newly minted rule.
"Now, we are headed to the citadel for resupply as well as to sell the other items we found, I am giving each of you 24 hours leave." She paused as everyone perked up at that, though Wrex noticed her and the brat share a look which probably meant that she had something planned for him.
"The Council may come across some new leads at any time though, so I need you all to be able to make it back to the Normandy at an hours notice..." Wrex didn't think this would be a problem for this group, the only one who drank heavily was him and he wasn't in a drinking mood right now, he was in more of a smashing things mood.
"That said, given what we have just been through, I suggest trying some of the Presidium Spa's, unless you want to spend the next couple of days wincing every time you stand up. Dismissed!" Short and to the point, Wrex did rather like that about his new employer, as well as taking him to some of the best fights in the galaxy.
As the others all went their separate ways Wrex decided to see if he could help with whatever the commander had in mind for Naruto, given what the brat seemed to get up to most of the time it was almost certainly going to end up either pissing someone off or getting in a fight. And despite having done both more times than he could count, Wrex knew there was nothing he enjoyed more...
A/N: As much as some of you probably want me to rush through things to Feros and the rest of the ME story line I can't do that, it would be very difficult to meaningfully integrate Naruto into the ME universe properly if I don't do little fluff chapters. So sorry if it isn't what you want right now, but I hope you enjoyed it nevertheless.
Review and let me know what you think, and also pass on any side missions/DLC/ME2+3 character's Naruto could interact with now that you think will add to the story, certainly Kasumi would be an interesting interaction at this stage...