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Thank you for reading and please enjoy

Legend of Zelda: Interloper of Time

-Chapter 40-

-Last Time-

'Don't think about it, it's probably just a coincidence.' She thought, taking a deep breath before finally descending down the steps, the wall rising back up behind her and sealing away the entrance once more.

-And Now-

"Seriously Naruto?"

"What? It was a great idea."

"It's disrespectful."

"How is it disrespectful when I'm just using it how it is supposed to be used?"

"The Master Sword is not supposed to be used as a torch."

"It's meant to 'cleave through darkness' though, so I'd say lighting up a dark tunnel counts as that."

"You're taking it too literally, Fi, please explain it too him."

"I'm sorry Mistress Saria, but I must agree that Naruto brings up a valid point."

"For Hylia's sake…"

"Are they always like this?" Nosos asked with a mixture of amusement and exasperation as she watched Naruto and Saria bickering with each other. Meanwhile Fi, back in her spiritual form, simply floated along beside them, chipping in from time to time when prompted and Elia just rode atop her fellow greenette's head without a word.

The reason for their argument was of the legendary blade currently held in the former's grasp, its blade enveloped in a bright blue gold glow that illuminated the tunnel. Naruto had decided to use the Master Sword's ability to light up with his chakra in order to help them see, which it certainly did. However, Saria felt that using it for such a 'menial' task was both asking for trouble and degrading to a sacred weapon.

"Oh yeah," Navi said as she casually floated around the desert dweller's head, snickering when Saria huffed in exasperation. "Just watch, any second now Naruto will probably say something goofy without thinking that'll somehow make everything settle down."

"Come on Saria, it's just to light the way, not like I'm using it to bash rocks for flint or something."

"That's… why would you even… oh forget it…"

"See?" The little blue fairy asked rhetorically with a giggle, which soon proved contagious as Nosos covered her mouth to stifle her own laughter.

However, as her gaze drifted over the walls of the tunnel they were traversing through, a frown suddenly marred the Gerudo's lips. That didn't go unnoticed by her little blue companion who touched down on the woman's shoulder with a concerned look.

"Something wrong?"

"This damage…" Nosos's eyes narrowed as she took in the sight of the degraded crumbling stone that held the old cavern up. Many were covered in deep cracks as bits and pieces crumbled away while some spots had whole chunks fallen out. Grabbing onto a piece about the size of an apple as she passed by, the frown on her lips only deepened when it broke off with alarming ease and she got a closer look at the weathered stone. "This is not natural; something was trying to dig through the stone from the inside."

"Oh great, so there's something else in here with us?" Navi asked, intentionally raising her voice to get the rest of the group's attention as she spoke, causing them to stop and look back at the duo.

"It is very likely, many of the desert's creatures survive by building their dens beneath the sands," The Gerudo Captain stated, letting the stone drop to the floor. "That is one of the reasons why my sister's platoon was assigned to watch this passage, to ensure that... oh no…"

Eyes widening in horror, Nosos suddenly shoved past Naruto and Saria as she rushed ahead before just as quickly coming to a stop at the edge of the light and dropping to her knees. The rest were quick to follow after her to see what was wrong, only to quickly get their answer when the light from the Master Sword cast over the darkened corridor, or more precisely what was within.

Bones… human bones…

There were at least three bodies given the number of skulls, but with how they were strewn all over and broken into pieces it was hard to tell exactly how many there were. The few bones that were left intact had several teeth marks deep in them, leaving no doubt that whoever they had been, they didn't die of natural causes. That along with the shredded pieces of armor and various broken weapons mixed amongst the carnage.

Naruto and Saria were immediately on alert as their eyes snapped towards the darkness ahead, the former taking a defensive stance as he grabbed a shield from his pouch while the latter drew and nocked her bow. Meanwhile, Fi floated over to Nosos's side with a curious look as she watched the woman sifting through the debris.

The sword spirit was about to ask what she was doing but got her answer before she could even open her mouth when the desert warrior pushed aside a clump of cloth to reveal a bent gold clad dagger. Gingerly picking it up, she wiped the dust off the guard with her thumb to reveal the symbol of the Gerudo enveloped by a crescent moon and writing that Fi did not recognize engraved on the handle. "By the seven… Sakis."

"Someone you knew?" Navi asked softly, getting the redhead to slowly nod with a shaky sigh.

"One of my best students, I had this blade custom made as a gift to show how proud I had been… she was just about to come of age to start searching for a Voe to marry." Nosos's eyes watered a little as she clutched the blade tightly to her chest and muttered a quiet prayer under her breath. Not knowing what else to say, Navi just silently patted the woman's cheek, giving what little comfort she could.

"I'm sorry to intrude upon your grieving," Both were brought out of their thoughts when Fi floated into their field of view. "But I believe you'll want to see this."

As the sword spirit spoke, she gestured to the wall just above where the skeletons lay, causing the Gerudo and Fairy duo to finally notice something carved into the stone. It looked like the crest of the Gerudo Tribe although it was hard to make out due to being so crudely drawn. The only clear part was what seemed to be inscriptions of flames and Ice that situated on the top and bottom respectively.

"Well that's not ominous at all." Navi muttered, hugging herself and huddling behind Nosos's ear as the marking just oozed bad vibes that sent a shiver down her spine. It was a good thing she did too as not even a second later did her ride suddenly jump to her feet with a snarl.

"I should have known," Hands trembling in pure rage, the Gerudo Captain drew and slashed one of her blades across the inscription, cleaving it in half in the blink of an eye. "It just had to be those miserable… wretched… engfkt soucnhtiucmr!"

"Whoa! Watch the language lady!" Navi exclaimed with wide eyes, only to be ignored as Nosos hacked and slashed at the symbol several more times, only this time with both her blades.

"Uh… what did she say?" Saria asked Elia with a raised brow when she noticed the green fairy recoil at the redhead's words as well.

However, the fairy shook her head as she covered her mouth. "Trust me, you don't want to know."

The ringing clang of stone against steel echoed through the tunnel over and over, only matched by the redhead's enraged battle cry. By the time Nosos finally stopped to catch her breath there wasn't anything left but a heap of crumbled stone littering the floor.

…

…

"You all done?" Naruto asked after almost a full minute passed in tense silence. Not answering right away, Nosos spun her weapons to shake off any dust before she glared at the darkness ahead.

"I will tear those witches' hearts out with my bare hands and force them down their throats."

"I'll just take that as a yes…" The blonde muttered before wisely deciding to just take the lead once more without another word, not wanting to poke the angry redhead. A thought the rest of the group seemed to share as they all started moving again, albeit far more cautiously than they were earlier.

"If I may inquire, whom are these witches that you've referred too." …At least most of them did.

Sadly, being as emotionally unknowledgeable as she was, Fi completely missed the unspoken que to drop the subject while floating by the redhead's side.

"Kotake and Koume," The names were spat out like they were the most disgusting thing Nosos had ever let past her lips. "Disgraceful wretches that are mastered in many mystical arts, including some of the darkest most foul forms of magic even known. A 'necessary evil' they claim to ensure our protection against that which physical might would not prevail, but I've never trusted their words."

"They sound like likely candidates for the spell that overtook the minds of your village, why didn't you mention them before?" The sword spirit asked curiously, making the Gerudo warrior's lips narrow further into a scowl.

"I had believed they would've accompanied Ganondorf to Hyrule Castle when he took over, they are his teachers, advisors, and caregivers after all. No doubt Lady Nabooru's attempt at a rebellion changed those plans…"

"Ah, a logical conclusion."

"In any case we best prepare ourselves," Nosos stated, flexing her fingers around the handles of her swords as her eyes bore into the darkness. "Whatever beast they conjured forth mostly likely still lurks these depths. It will come for us next."

"That Is actually something else I mean to speak of, I analyzed the bite marks left in the remains and the dentition appears to be-"

"SKREEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE!" A high-pitched scream from up ahead cut Fi off mid-sentence as well as causing everyone to freeze up.

"Oh no," Saria's eyes narrowed upon recognizing that dreadfully familiar sound before she shook off her paralysis and drawing her bow. Wasting no time, she quickly aimed down the tunnel and fired, the arrow catching aflame the instant it went airborne.

The fiery projectile briefly lit up everything in its path down the darkened corridor… including several Redeads that were slowly shuffling towards them. Her arrow struck one right in the head, setting it ablaze in an instant and illuminating the entire undead horde blocking their path.

"Guess we know what happened to the rest of the guards…" Naruto muttered with a snarl as unlike Redeads that they had encountered in the past these ones weren't nearly as eroded. While their bodies were decayed and armor ruined, there was no mistaking that these shambling corpses had once been Gerudo.

One in particular both towered over and outpaced the rest, unhindered by the many weapons pierced through its body. What was left of its mangled red hair drooping over its face as it shuffled towards them until it suddenly lurched backwards, revealed shriveled eyes that glowed a menacing blood red.

Nosos's eyes widened upon seeing this one, unconsciously taking a step back with trembling hands when it looked right at her. "Ikulu… by the seven what have they done to you?"

'Ikulu' simply growled at the captain in response before slowly reaching into its back, ripping out a pair of rusty chipped Scimitar from its flesh and taking a ready stance.

That snapped Nosos out of her shock, immediately replaced with rage as her hands trembled from barely contained fury.

"They will pay for this dearly sister, I swear it. But first," Taking an identical pose, the redhead's gaze hardened while she took a deep breath. "I'll put you out of your misery."

Snarling, the Redead that was once Ikulu charged, crossing the distance between itself and its living counterpart in the blink of an eye. Sparks flew as steel clashed against steel with a metallic screech as the duo immediately started trading blows.

And like that chaos erupted through the entire tunnel with the swarm of undead following after their leader, albeit at a much slower pace. Meanwhile Naruto and Fi met them head on as Saria covered by unleashed a flurry of flaming arrows.

"Take this!" Stopping just short of the horde, Naruto stabbed his sword into the floor as it was enveloped by an aura frost, releasing a wave of super cold that flash froze the monster's feet in place. Not a moment too soon either as they all screamed at once, paralyzing everyone once more. "Fuck! Fi! Mute them!"

"Right away." The sword spirit stated while kicking the nearest monsters away, both her eyes and the Master Sword glowing before the latter released a pulse of translucent blue energy. Bubbling out in all directions, the wave washed over the tunnel causing all noise to just stop.

'Much better.' Now unhindered, Naruto wasted no time charging again, slashing through several of the entrapped monsters before they could pry their feet free.

Most of them fell easily thanks to the combination of Naruto and Fi's past experience along with Saria's continual onslaught of flaming death. There were a few smart ones amongst the bunch that managed to form up, falling back behind their brethren who carried shields.

However, this only ended up expediting their second demise as the enclosed quarters just allowed the fire from their burning comrades to spread to the rest until almost all of them were ablaze.

Quickly weaving between their flaming bodies, Naruto hacked, stabbed, and slashed at anything he could reach, chopping his enemies into as many pieces as possible. And for good reason as one he slashed in half at the waist simply lifted itself back up using its arms before rapidly crawling towards him again with a silent scream.

That was until Naruto kicked it right in the face hard enough to smash the top half of its skull to bits. Then, as its body was crumbling into ash and bone, the whiskered blonde spun around and stabbed another one under the chin, the blade going clean through the top of its head.

Ripping his weapon free, he kicked the Redead's crumbling body into the rest before raising his shield to block a pair of spears that tried to skewer him. Before he could retaliate though, Fi swooped in and slammed her heel into the zombie's face, caving it in and causing its jaw to go flying off.

Back with Saria, the greenette frowned when she reached into her quiver only to find it empty.

'Dammit! I got caught up in everything that I forgot to restock!' She swore mentally with grit teeth, quickly tucking her bow away in her pouch and pulling out the Megaton Hammer instead.

But rather than joining Naruto and Fi, Saria instead ran towards Nosos, who was still locked in combat with her zombified sister. Both Scimitar users were evenly matched, trading blows in near perfect sync with neither able to get an upper hand over the other. Or at least, that's how it looked at first, but Saria could tell that the truth was far from that case.

While their skill was even their stamina was not and already Nosos was starting to slow down, gradually losing ground with each exchange.

Before long the inevitable happened and she mistimed a swing, it was just by second but that was more than enough to allow 'Ikulu' a chance to counter. Deflecting the living redhead's strike so it hit the ground, the undead captain immediately followed up with a stab aimed at its opponent's heart.

A blow that thankfully never landed as Saria swooped in, slamming her hammer into the blade, smashing it to a thousand pieces. Stumbling from the impact, 'Ikulu' was given no time to recover as the greenette followed up with another blow, this time smacking the Redead's leg, crushing it like a clay pot.

Screaming soundlessly, the undead Gerudo raised its remaining blade to strike back…

…

Only for its arm to drop limply by its side, its sword slipping out of its grasp and loudly clattering to the ground, making Saria flinch as sound came rushing back. A low groan echoed forth from the monster's desiccated lips before its head dropped to the ground, cut clean from the shoulders at the neck.

Standing over the severed head as it groaned, a stone faced Nosos flicked the dust that had once been blood off her sword before switching to a reverse grip. "Goodbye… sister."

Without another word the redhead brought her weapon down, embedding its blade clean through 'Ikulu's' skull and several inches into the floor.

Gargling weakly one last time, a familiar black substance oozed from the undead warrior's eyes as the red glow slowly faded away and it went still.

Not a second later the few Redeads that remained collapsed, dropping to the ground like puppets with their strings cut before rapidly decaying away until there was nothing left but bones. The sole exception being Ikulu, who's body and head burst into sickly purplish black flames that reduced everything but her skull and Nosos's sword to ash.

Not that the redhead seemed to care for the latter as she left it where it lay, walking past it as she slid her other sword back into its sheath.

"Keep on your guard, that is unlikely to be the only obstacle placed in our path." She stated, walking past the rest of the group as she continued down the darkened corridor.

"Hey, hold up a sec," Navi said while slipping out from her hiding spot in the redhead's hair and landing on her shoulder with a concerned look. "Are you sure you're okay? That was-"

"Not a problem anymore." Nosos cut the fairy off curtly, her face stoney and emotionless as she kept her gaze locked the path ahead.

Naturally not convinced, Navi was just about to call the captain out on it, only to have the words die in her throat when the lighting shifted thanks to the bluenette's natural glow. Under the soft light of her own illumination, she finally noticed the solitary tear slowly sliding down the redhead's cheek before dropping to the sandy ground below.

"Right… of course." Navi mumbled before floating off Nosos's shoulder, floating over to Naruto's as he and the other girls caught up, and tucking herself into his collar. When the blonde gave her a questioning look, silently asking what was up, but she just shook her head and nudged him to keep going.

Nothing else was said after that as a tense silence settled over the entire group during the rest of their trek. Naruto soon joined Nosos in the lead, illuminating their path with the Master Sword's glow, while Fi retreated within it in order to recover her energy from both the fight and sustaining the silencing spell on several people at once.

Saria on the other hand kept an eye on the rear just in case there were any last-minute surprises lying in wait to catch them off guard after they passed.

Fortunately for them all though no such issues came to be, and the sextet eventually arrived at a solid stone wall bearing the crest of the Gerudo, otherwise known as a dead end.

Not to be deterred, Nosos pressed her hand against the symbol, causing it to sink in with a click as the tunnel started shaking. A grinding rumble echoed through the air before the wall split in two, allowing light to flood into the tunnel as well as revealing a set of stone steps. "Welcome to the Temple of the Desert Colossus, otherwise known as the Spirit Temple."

One quick ascent later and the group found themselves walking up into a large chamber. The room itself was split in half into two levels with them on a lower area leading outside and the other several feet up, connected by a second set of stairs, with a carpeted floor that formed two paths. Between the two were a pair of huge stone statues of Cobra heads with Gerudo writing engraved on the insides of their hoods.

Meanwhile the walls were lined with intricately carved pillars and engraved portraits that seemed to depict various parts of history.

"Huh, nice place you guys have here," Naruto said with a low whistle as he took it all in, with Navi nodding in agreement, before the whiskered blonde looked back to see the staircase they'd used be hidden away once more under a slate of stone. This also ended up kicking a large cloud of dust that made him cough a little as he waved his hand to clear the air. "Could use a little spring cleaning though."

"I'll take that under advisement," Nosos stated sarcastically while ascending the second staircase… before an irritated groan escaped her lips when she reached the top and looked at both paths. "Dammit, those witches really left nothing to chance."

"Is something wrong?" Saria asked the redhead once she caught up to her, taking a glance down the paths as well. "Oh… nevermind, I see it now."

"I take back what I said, this place sucks already." Naruto muttered dryly under his breath while Navi nodded in agreement.

The reason for their pessimism, to their right there was a large archway that looked like it should have taken them further into the temple, if it wasn't blocked by a slab of unusual bluish-grey stone that is. Whereas the left just led to a tiny little tunnel, like not even as tall as the greenette's knees small. Or in other words, they were stuck with two seemingly impassable dead-ends laid out in their way.

Heading for the former without a word, Nosos wrapped her knuckles against the stone barricade, frowning when she didn't hear an echo. She then felt around the edges, hoping to find some kind of release or opening mechanism to no avail.

"I wouldn't bother," Navi said, floating up beside the redhead's face as she gestured to a crescent moon that was engraved into the stone itself. "I've seen these enough times to know this is just a block, we'll have to push out of the way."

"And by we she usually means me," Naruto chipped in as he put his hands against the cold stone, wrigging his fingers around until he felt he had a good grip. The blonde then gave the block a quick test shove but only succeeded in pushing himself backwards a few inches. "Never had to deal with one this big before though, I don't think any of us are gonna be able to move this."

"Not alone at least." The Gerudo Captain stated, planting her palms against the stone as well before both started to push with all their might. Their faces soon turned red

Whilst they were doing that, Saria and Elia decided to check out the tiny tunnel on the other side of the chamber.

"Yeah, I don't think we're gonna be able to go this way…" Elia muttered with a shake of her head as she floated into the tunnel, revealing a ten to fifteen foot long path with a light on the other end. However, while she could easily fit into was not the case for her fellow greenette.

"A bit of a tight squeeze but I think I could fit." The former forest child said as she poked her head in the little passage. It was so short that Saria had to get on her hands and knees, lying flat on her belly just so she could peer inside.

"You're kidding right?" Elia asked with an incredulous look, which only grew when Saria actually tried to crawl in after her. Even when she tried to bunch herself up as much as she could though, the larger greenette's body squished against the walls, forcing her to wriggle and squirm just to move. "What are you doing Saria? You're just going to get yourself stuck at this rate."

"No I won't," Saria said, her face slowly turning red as she wiggled even harder. "I just… gotta give it… a little bit more-"

"Oh will you stop it, you're not going anywhere." Her fairy cut in dryly while walking up the larger greenette and slapping her on the nose as she spoke to get her attention. And sure enough, once she was paying attention, Saria found that she had barely made it a few inches in the cramped little cavern despite her best efforts.

"Ugh… fine, I don't fit," She conceded begrudgingly as she squirmed back out, ignoring the 'I told you so' look Elia gave her the whole way. Once she was back on her feet, the young lady idly dusted herself off as she stared at the pathway intensely before fishing around in her pouch and pulling out a bomb. "Maybe we could blast it open a bit wider."

Faster than one could blink, Elia zipped up from the tunnel and snagged the explosive from Saria's grasp. "Are you crazy? You'd just bring the whole tunnel crashing down."

"Oh… good point… uh, any ideas?"

"Maybe go see if those guys need any help," The fairy stated while pointing at the duo still trying, with not much success, to move the stone block barring the other path. "Looks like they could-shit!?"

A swear tore from Elia's lips when, due to her taking a hand off the bomb, it slipped from her grasp. The color drained from both greenette's faces as the spherical explosive hit the ground and the fuse lit.

Thinking fast, Saria quickly kicked the bomb down the tunnel before grabbing Elia and sprinting away. "Hit the dirt!"

Hearing her shout, Naruto or Nosos took one look at the running girl and the small trail of smoke seeping from the hole before diving down to the lower floor.

*BOOOM* Not a second too soon either as the bomb went off, shaking the entire chamber and sending bits of shrapnel everywhere. Sand rained down from the ceiling, cloying up the air and causing everyone to break out into coughing fits.

Once the dust settled, Naruto cautiously peeked up from his hiding spot before giving Saria and Elia a dull look. "Okay, so who's bright idea was that?"

"Sorry…" The former mumbled as she scratched her cheek with a sheepish smile, wincing when a chunk of stone clunked the top of her head.

"And you say I'm the reckless one," Rolling his eyes, the whiskered blonde wiped the sand off his shoulders while Navi dusted out his hair. As he and the others turned their attention to the source of the blast, they found that the wall had collapsed just as Elia had feared, sealing the tunnel under several tons of stone. "Whelp, definitely won't be going that way anytime soon."

"That is unfortunate, because I doubt we're going to be able to travel this direction either." Nosos stated as she walked back over to the other passage that was still barred by the stone block, her and Naruto's efforts having failed to move it even an inch.

"I concur," Materializing beside Naruto and drifting over to the blockade, Fi looked the whole thing over… before passing right through it. A few seconds later she reappeared with a frown and floated back to the whiskered blonde's side. "Based on the dimensions this block weighs approximately twenty-one point eight seven five tons and would need to be moved at least twenty-five feet for this passage to become traversable. Even with all our combined strength the likelihood of successfully achieving this is less than two percent."

"Well maybe there's a back door or something we could use? Another secret pathway maybe," Saria suggested as she glanced at Nosos, only for the redhead to shake her head.

"The only other way would be from the top of the Colossus, and it's locked from the inside."

"What about that glowie thing you did back at the water temple?" The greenette asked her boyfriend. "You were able to throw around Queen Octorok like a ragdoll when you used that. So surely you could move a bit of stone with it."

"Well sure, you know except for the fact I have no idea how I even did that last time." Said boyfriend pointed out with a dull look. "And even then Fi said there's a good chance it'd kill me. Right Fi?"

"There is an eighty eight percent likelihood of death or permanent injury without more training to get your body and spirit more adjusted to the strain."

"Thank you Fi. So yeah, pass on that," Naruto stated before grabbing the Megaton Hammer off Saria's back and hefting it onto his shoulder with a grin. "How about we smash it instead?"

"And break it up into smaller pieces. Yeah, that could work," Smirking as well, Saria dug around into her pouch for a few moment until she pulled out a small dagger, a souvenir from Impa's many lessons. A quick glance over the block and she found the perfect little crack to stuff it into before quickly moving aside. "Everyone get to cover, this could get messy."

"Way ahead of you Saria." Elia said from her cozy spot in Nosos hair along with Navi as the redhead ducked behind the dip again while Fi vanished back into the Master Sword.

"Oh, then let it rip Naruto." The bow user said while jumping down there as well, causing her whiskered lover's smirk to grow more than a little maniacal as he lined up his strike.

As he was winding up for a swing though, Navi's eyes widened as a thought hit her. "Wait, maybe we should check if there are any-"

A loud clang cut the fairy off midsentence as Naruto slammed the hammer down onto the dagger with all of his might. A visible shockwave rippled through the block as it trembled under the power of the blow.

However, rather than shattering into itty bitty much easier to move pieces like it should have, the shockwave just… stopped. Then, just as quickly as it stopped, it suddenly reversed on itself and came zipping right back at the blonde.

"SHIT!?" Naruto had no time to react as the entire force of his own blow slammed into him like a wrecking ball, sending him crashing into the opposing wall.

"…protection spells in place," Navi finished weakly, wincing at the sight of the boy left embedded several inches into the stone on impact. She and the others were quick to rush to his aid though when Naruto noticeably cradled his arm as he pulled himself free.

"Are you okay Naruto?" Saria asked in concern, helping the blonde stand while Navi and Elia wasted no time getting to work on fixing him up.

"I'm fine… a bit banged up, but I've had worse," He grunted out through grit teeth, struggling not to flinch when Navi gently landed on the arm he was holding. "Better question is what the hell happened?"

"It would seem this barricade has been mystically protected from being damaged," Fi stated, reappearing in a flash of light right in front of the block as she waved a cloak hand over it, revealing a faint but noticeable shimmer. "My apologies Master, I should have noticed that before."

"It's fine Fi, we all make mistakes," The blonde waved her apology off, before wincing again as Elia started working on his arm as well.

"So what do we do now?" The little green fairy asked while pulsing her magic over the injured limb, the bruised tissue gradually turning back to normal tan under her touch. "We've still got two dead ends and no way past them."

"I… I'm not sure…" Her fellow greenette muttered softly, glancing between the two paths with a growing look of worry on her face.

"Yeah, I'm tapped out too," Naruto muttered with a shrug. "Anyone else got any ideas?"

"I've got nothing."

"Nope."

"My apologies but no."

"We could try traversing to the past."

"Well that's just-" The whiskered blonde started to grumble under his breath, before blinking when that last sentence caught up to his brain. "Wait, what did you say Fi?"

"I said we could try traversing to the past, much like we did before." The sword spirit repeated herself as she floated back to the blonde's side. "There is a chance the obstructions currently blocking our paths were not there seven years ago. So, if we go back to then we-"

"No, no, not happening," Saria cut Fi off abruptly, surprising everyone when she actually clapped a hand over the blue girl's mouth to stop her from talking. "Thanks but no thanks Fi."

"But that's a pretty good idea though, Saria." Elia pointed out as she landed on the larger greenette's shoulder, who rolled her eyes in exasperation.

"Oh sure, because the best answer to getting past a few rocks is literal time travel?"

"Well that's what we did last time," This time it was Naruto who spoke up, his brow rising at Saria's uncharacteristic stubbornness. "You didn't have any issues about doing it back in Kakariko so what's the big deal?"

"That was before… I mean it's just… it's a bad idea, right Nosos?" The greenette stumbled over her words for a moment before turning to the redhead for support. However, all she was met with was a dull deadpan expression by the Gerudo Captain that just screamed 'don't ask me'.

"You lost me at Time Travel."

"Long story short, Fi can make a gateway that takes us seven years into the past," Navi stated. "We could use that to go back before the paths are blocked and either prevent them from getting blocked or find another way in now."

"…Could you also warn Lady Nabooru and myself about what happens to our people?" Nosos asked, a slight amount of hope bleeding into her voice while she spoke.

"Potentially yes." Fi nodded her head, causing the redhead's lips to quirk upwards.

"Then I say go for it." The Gerudo warrior stated without hesitation as she crossed her arms.

"Okay then, that's five to one, looks like we're time hopping," Naruto said with a victorious smirk while Saria slumped in defeat. "Fi, could you do your thing?"

"Of course Naruto." The sword spirit bowed to the blonde before floating off to the middle of the chamber. Finding a spot she seemed to like, she took a deep breath before bowing with her cloaked arms spread wide.

As everyone else was focused on her dance ritual to summon forth a gateway, Naruto grabbed Saria by the shoulder with his good arm and pulled her in close. To the others it may have looked like he was simply giving her a hug, possibly even giving her a kiss from how close their faces were.

However, that was far from the truth as the whiskered blonde instead fixed his love with a stern yet concerned gaze.

"Why are you really so against this Saria?" He asked softly, barely speaking above a whisper so only she could hear him.

"I don't know… what…" The denial died on the Saria's lips when Naruto grabbed her chin and forced her to look him in the eye. Those glimmering ceruleans bored into her light sky blues so intensely, ripping through any desire she had to try deceiving him. "For once time is made to rend, All You know shall come to an end…"

"…uh, what?" Naruto blinked, completely losing his prior seriousness in favor of confusion, complete with a little question mark blinking above his head.

Sighing as she shook her head, Saria's eyes dropped to the ground in shame as she let herself sink into the blonde's grasp a bit. "Back in the Shadow Temple I… I spoke with the Ferryman."

"You what?!" Her whisker faced love whisper-shouted, fortunately not being noticed as the rest of the group were still focused Fi's dance. However, after a moment a memory flashed through his mind, of a certain incident as they were getting off the boat. "You mean when you bumped into him? I'd hardly call that talking. He didn't even say anything."

"Maybe not for you, but he spoke to me," Saria admitted, hugging herself as a shiver ran down her spine.

"Easy Saria, just tell me what you heard." Naruto said as he rubbed the greenette's back supportively, making her sigh once again.

"Descend into the Tunnel under the Sand, Face the Dead that yet still stand. The way to the sage be too small, And those try shall all fall. For once time is made to rend, All you know shall come to an end," Saria's gaze turned back to the spot where the hidden path they used lay as the words passed from her lips. "I thought it was just a trick at first, one of the temple's mind games. But then Nosos showed us that pathway and everything started to click together and…"

The former forest child trailed off when a soft chuckling reached her ears. Confused, she looked up to see Naruto's shoulders shaking as a grin spread across his lips. "Are… are you laughing at me?"

"Yes." He admitted, before grunting when Saria suddenly socked him in the gut.

"I'm so happy you find my fears so funny," She muttered with a huff, which just made the blonde laugh harder. "So mind telling me what's so funny wise guy?"

"Come on Saria, that 'message' is one of the oldest scams in the books, it's just a bunch of vague ho ha that could've been fit anywhere," Naruto said between chuckles. "I mean of course we were going to go into tunnels under sand, we had to go into a desert. Literally everything here is under sand."

"Well true…

"And the dead still stand? Hello, Spirit Temple, place of the dead, I'd be more surprised if we didn't run into something dead walking around somehow," The blonde continued, with Saria nodding slowly with everything he said. "And how often do we find places that are too small for us to squeeze through or randomly collapse?"

"With how you recklessly charge in all the time, too often," The greenette muttered, a small giggle slipping past her lips before she frowned. "But what about the last part?

"Oh that one's easy, this is the first time we've ever been here, so we won't know anything about what this place will be like seven years ago. We're jumping in completely blind with no idea what we'll find or who we'll run into. Or in other words…"

"'All you know will come to an end'," Saria breathed deeply in relief as she slowly relaxed into Naruto's arms. "That… that makes a lot of sense. How did I not think about that before?"

"Because you overthink things like the adorable dork you are." The whiskered blonde stated while kissing his love on the cheek, making her blush softly.

"Oh shush it you…"

"Why? Are you embarrassed my cute little-"

"Ahem," The sound of someone clearing their throat caused the pair to freeze before they turned their heads in sync to see all the others staring at them. The couple's faces turned pure red when they saw the looks they were getting, from the exasperated amusement from Nosos to the unnervingly deep stare from Fi. Navi, the one to get their attention, had a smirk as she floated down onto Saria's shoulder with her arms crossed. "As much as I hate to interrupt this lovely little moment, but the gate's been done for like five minutes now. So if you two could hurry up and finish your little flirt fest, we can get going."

"Oh, right." "Sorry!" The two couldn't spring apart faster if they tried, averting their gazes as the blonde scratched his cheek and the greenette wrung her wrists. They avoided looking directly at anyone while shuffling to either side of the aforementioned Gate.

"Well then, lets do this." Elia said, perching on Naruto's collar as she did a few last touch ups on some bruises forming on his neck.

"Right." Naruto muttered while drawing the Master Sword from his back, holding it out with the point aimed down at the Gateway.

Staring at the sacred blade, Saria hesitated for a moment and glanced at Naruto, who nodded with a supportive smile, before gingerly grabbing onto the handle as well.

"Next stop, seven years ago." She said jokingly before she and the blonde stabbed into the gate, enveloping everything in a bright light.

-End of Chaaaaaaaadjhf*&#^

"…aaaaaAAAHHH!?"

"Wha-Gck?!" Naruto had no time to react when something yellow and blue slammed into him.

"Naruto!?" Saria cried out as the blonde was knocked away from the Master Sword, knocking him into the abyss of light.

"SariaAAAAH!?" The whiskered teen started to call back before screaming as pain beyond anything he'd every experienced flooded every inch of his body. It felt like molten lead was poured into his veins whilst a thousand barbed hooks tried to rip him apart at the same time.

His vision swam, everything blurred, the air cracked…

And then everything went black.

-The End?-