Shinobi Amongst Huntsman
Qrow holds a bag high above his head, his arms outstretched in an effort to keep it away from him.
"I said no you damn brat!" He yells, despite knowing none of his words were understood.
In front of him was Naruto, hands clasped together in a begging motion. Glistening eyes and flopped over fox ears weaken his resolve ever so slightly but Qrow holds strong. He's seen that same look on Ruby's face before and he refuses to give in. He gives a more stern response this time.
"No!"
The blond holds the expression for a few more seconds before finally letting out a defeated sigh. Naruto puts his hands behind his back as his head hangs in a resigned manner, causing golden locks to cover his face. It really is a pitiful sight and for just a moment Qrow feels the slightest bit guilty...
The three puffs of smoke that burst into existence right in front of him immediately change that.
Qrow leaps in an attempt to avoid the multiple clones that now throw themselves at him but it's too late. The kid is damn fast and Qrow had lowered his guard. Two clones slam there hands onto his ankles with an iron grip while another completely launches itself towards the bag. The ones attached to his feet immediately pull him back down to the ground with a vengeance. A loud thud sounds out as his back smashes into the dirt floor. The impact causes harbinger to get pushed into his back, the feeling isn't a pleasant one.
The third clone soars overhead and rips the bag from his hands before throwing it to the original. The obnoxious laughter that rings out signaling that Naruto had caught it.
Naruto opens the bag with gusto and shoves his whole arm into it. He searches around the bag for a moment before pulling out a handful of bars. He rips and tears at the wrapping. Scraps of plastic go everywhere before revealing what's underneath.
Chocolate.
A stupid grin makes its way onto the boys face as he stuffs his face, smearing his face in the stuff while he does so. Qrow just feels tired as he laid splayed out on the floor.
They had been traveling for a few hours and Qrow had realized Naruto was hungry. So he'd quickly hunted down some animals, set up a small fire and cooked something up for both of them. They'd eaten uneventfully in silence and he'd decided to throw in a treat at the end, just a single bar of chocolate.
The kid went nuts. Naruto had immediately scarfed it down and tried to grab more, he acted like he'd never had a chocolate bar before!
Qrow let out a deep sigh before deciding to get up. He shifted his leg slightly before pushing himself back up, the clones attached to him quickly turning to smoke. Qrow makes his way towards to the blond, still preoccupied with stuffing his face, before getting behind him and snatching the bag away.
"Oi!"
Is the muffled sound that comes out in response but Qrow doesn't pay any mind. Qrow takes a look into the bag and his eyes narrow.
There weren't any bars left.
Naruto had eaten seven chocolate bars in less than a minute. How? Those were full sized chocolate bars! How was that even possible? Even competitive eaters didn't eat that damn fast! He turns back around and glares at Naruto which only causes a small chuckle to form up. The boys right hand rubbing the back of his neck.
"Ē to, soreha mōshiwake arimasen. Yokattadesu." Naruto says, a sheepish expression written on his face.
Qrow decides to just assume that the brat was apologizing for going crazy over some candy and nodded.
"Alright kid, I forgive you. We're going to start walking again though."
And Naruto... just stares at him. Qrow felt exasperation grow, language barriers were the worst. If he can't talk to him how would he make him follow? He thought for a moment until a solution came to mind. He slowly begins to walk and makes a waving motion behind his shoulders to follow. Luckily the boy seems to understand and soon a secondary pair of footsteps resonates behind him.
Their trek to Vale resumes once more, each step causing the ruffle of leaves. After a while his gaze wanders up towards the sky which made him come to an annoying realization. A frown starting form on his face.
The sun was starting to set, night would come, they'd have to sleep soon and all progress to Vale would come to a halt.
Qrow sighs.
He supposed it didn't matter much anyways, they'd reach Vale by tomorrow but right now they would have to set up camp.
Naruto lays in a sleeping bag, Qrow not too far away in one of his own as a small campfire lit up the surrounding area. His hands behind his head as he stares up at the night sky. As he does so his eyes can't help but fixate on one point in particular.
The shattered moon. It's size larger three fold then before, and it's brightness much more than he was used to. Chunks of it seemed to drift away and millions of smaller pieces floated near it. He'd never really thought about it all his time in the forest, he'd been preoccupied with the monsters and just trying to survive, but now that he laid down he couldn't help but question.
Why was it bigger? What was strong enough to shatter the fucking moon. Did the shinobi at Konoha know? Even though he was a total perv, maybe Kakashi-sensei knew?
Or maybe they were just as confused as him?
He had so many questions but there was no one to answer them. The shattered moon had been the first thing he'd seen after his fight with Sasuke.
Sasuke.
He felt a certain pain start to form in his chest at the thought of his teammate. Was he okay? Naruto prayed to Kami that Orochimaru hadn't gotten him. If he had...
Naruto shook his head, there was just no way that Sasuke would give in so easily to that monster. Sasuke Uchiha was a prideful bastard that was hesitant to bow even to the Hokage. Always rambling on and on about the the power of the Uchiha and his 'visual prowess'. He wouldn't just give his life to some other guy.
Not Sasuke.
And with that thought in mind, Naruto decides to do something that he hasn't done in weeks. He lifts up his head slightly and unwraps his headband. The knot dismantled, he grabs it from the metal plate, and takes it right off with his right hand. His wrist flip over the headband so it now faces him. The symbol of the village hidden in the leaves proudly etched on the plate of metal. Naruto's left hand slowly slides under the metal plate and pulls out something. One of his few material possessions that held any value to him.
It's a picture.
The picture contains four people, all people he knows very well. It was the first picture taken of Team 7. He takes a breath.
"I promise that I'll see all you guys soon so theres no way it's not going to happen cause I never go back on my word," a small smile starts to form "because it's my nindo, my ninja way."
Promise made, he carefully puts the picture back in its place. His worry for them and his desperation to get back home felt just a little bit lighter. Naruto lifts his head once more and ties his headband back into place before laying down.
A drawn out yawn escapes him and his eyelids feel much heavier. His breathing slows and he closes his eyes. Sleep quickly over takes Nar-
Drip.
Naruto opens his eyes to an unexpected scene. There is no blue sky and the sun doesn't shine overhead to signal a new day. Instead his surroundings are almost pitch black and the only source of light is a dark red that glows ominously below him. A sense of familiarity starts to take hold.
Drip.
Water, there is so much damn water. A theory starts to form, was he dreaming? He looks around at his surroundings for just a moment and promptly realizes he's wrong. He tilts his head up to look at the the source of the sound.
Drip.
A pair of red eyes stare straight back at him, the irises alone bigger than Naruto himself. He knows who's those belong to and he holds back a sigh. God damn it.
"You're a moron."
Naruto recoils, a sense of annoyance filling him, causing him to insult the fox back.
"You're the moron!"
Not very well but he does.
"I teach you how to make paper bombs and you get caught by a drunk with a massive knife. How utterly incompetent and idioti-"
"Would you shut up?"
"-c do you have to be?
The Kyuubi stares at Naruto with narrow eyes and nostrils flared. Naruto suddenly feels his appreciation for the metal bars separating them grow immensely.
"Are you just going to keep insulting me! What do you want?"
A scoff escapes the massive creature, an annoying habit Naruto notes.
"No, I could curse you just fine without you here. I've been doing that since you were born, brat. I brought you here to tell you something."
The fox informed, the tone of his voice lowering as he continued. Naruto feels his anxiety spike and heart rate pick up, the kyuubi had something to tell him? That wasn't good, that could never be good. Naruto nods for the fox to continue and he does.
"After Qrow killed those creatures I sensed something, an energy like I'd never seen before, and it is everywhere. The closest thing I can describe it as is strong nature chakra. It's mostly undergroundand usually in small pockets for the most part. But the place Qrow is leading you to is filled to the brim of it boy. I'm warning you, the amount of energy there is larger then even that of the Gyūki or any of your Kage. An epicenter of raw energy. You must be careful, this new worl-"
"We're not in a new world." Naruto said, his words slightly unsteady but convinced.
"Are you fucking delusional? Explain the broken moon? How about the soulless monsters that attack you? Or maybe the fact that you just fell out of the god damn sky?"
Naruto averts his eyes momentarily. Still not willing to even entertain the possibility. Because it just couldn't be. He tries to reassure himself. He takes a breath.
"I'll figure it out when I reach Konoha."
The fox was unimpressed with the answer. He stayed silent for a moment before beginning to speak again.
"You never will, the elemental nations are gone. You'll know when you reach the epicenter and when you do, you'll know I'm right."
Naruto grits his teeth in frustration and immediately goes to deny it. However, he's cut off before he can even make a sound.
"I'm done with you for now, goodbye Naruto."
Quickly and without warning his surroundings start to disappear. The light that emanates from the cage simply fades away. Then suddenly he's back in his sleeping bag. The sounds of birds chirping replacing the dripping of water in the sewer. When he opens his eyes a blue sky and a beaming sun is all he is met with. He huffs.
"Bastard." The word escapes his mouth, another voice responds
"Lwel, soklo ohw kwaea?"
Naruto almost jumps, his eyes swirl to the source on instinct. To his left was a fully awake Qrow, with his red cape drifting in the wind and his sword at his side. The huntsman raises his right hand and makes a gesture to follow before he begins to walk.
Naruto forces all sleepiness out of his body before getting up. He quickly slips on his sandals and follows the man. The events of his dream still on the forefront of mind as he walks.
The fox's words are hard to forget.
It's a slow realization.
The first thing Naruto notices is the trees. The difference is subtle, but he's grown up surrounded by forest his entire life so he sees it.
With each mile, each step, the forest becomes less dense. Just a little bit emptier. The trees around them also begin to seem smaller, some of them looking to be only a couple years old. Even the scent of the forest starts to smell different, the air feels more...
Polluted?
His initial thought was that they were exiting the forest, yet it never happens. Every mile he and Qrow travel is still forest, just a little bit less. It was odd, but it didn't really mean anything. Just something strange that caught his attention. Nothing more. So Naruto and Qrow continue walking without a word.
Night comes quickly as the sun sets which causes Naruto to notice two other things.
Qrow doesn't stop. The samarui continues to walk through the forest, completely undeterred by the night. It honestly confuses the blond for a moment, they had set up camp last night? What made this one different? It was in this confusion that he sees something else.
The only source of light during the night should be the moon that hangs overhead.
But it's not.
The faintest of glows emanates from up ahead, its reach far as it covers every tree top he can see. It's not bright by any means, more like a far away candle, barely visible but noticeable nevertheless. Naruto's first explanation is fire, but there's no smoke in the sky, not a speck.
It's even more confusing to the shinobi than the first, and his mind struggles to properly explain it. Not only that, but the light also seems to be getting closer. Naruto guesses it's only a mile away.
Qrow clearly notices it too.
"Vael, infally." The man utters, the words barely audible.
The duo continue to walk and Naruto's eyes fixate on the light ahead. Soon, it's no longer just illuminating the tops of trees. The ground floor starts to get more visible as well.
It's then something really fucking weird happens. A quater of a mile away from the light, the air around him changes. It becomes charged, like a shinobi to preparing a raiton jutsu. He can feel the raw energy up ahead.
Naruto's breathing quickens and his heart rate almost doubles. The bijuu's words begin to replay in his mind.
"You'll know when you reach the epicenter and when you do, you'll know I'm right"
It wasn't possible-
Naruto looks ahead and inhales sharply. They're was just enough forest left to cover the scene in front of him but it was clear that the end of the tree line was near. He decides that he has to know what was behind it now. The crunching of leaves sound out as he runs ahead.
He crosses the tree line and gets his wish.
He's never seen anything like it before and for a moment he just stares.
Buildings, buildings made out of materials he doesn't recognize stretch to the clouds above and take up more space than the village center back at home. And next to those buildings are roads devoid of any people. Instead, they're taken up by boxes of metal that go faster than most shinobi. No inch of the area is unlit, lamps cover every corner. Above it all was a broken moon, creating an image he would remember for the rest of days.
Behind the village where vast mountains that made the hokage monument look tiny in comparison and a lake behind that. It was all so new.
Naruto stares for a moment more before a realization finally hits him and reality catches up with him.
He wasn't in his world anymore. The Kyuubi was right. This wasn't Konoha, this wasn't even the elemental nations anymore. There wasn't any way to deny it, no matter how hard he tried.
It was then that Naruto felt something inside him irreparably break.
He couldn't handle it.
So he ran.
A/N
HAPPY HOLIDAYS MY FRIENDS! Apologies for not getting this out sooner lol, stuff kinda happened and I had to get my shit together. Gonna make my New Years resolution to get a chapter out at least every month among other things. Anyway, hope you enjoyed this chapter and all criticism is of course welcomed. I'll probably have to edit this when I wake up, it's 5am
I'm gonna go to sleep now.
Bye!