Alright next chapter time! Gotta warn you all now. This is where it starts to get ugly. For this chapter, I'll just place any warnings before the bad shit, but I want to know if you guys would rather me just place all of the warnings at the start, so it doesn't mess with the flow of the story? And so it can surprise you more when you read it? Anyway... get ready... because as of now... the kids gloves are off.
Broken Angel
Chapter 24: Bravery
"Riley has to fight that?!" Pansy shouted fearfully.
"How in the hell is that fair?" Theo shouted as well.
"It's based on their abilities... this just goes to show... how much stronger than everyone else she is." Draco stated with wide eyes.
Elsewhere, similar reactions were occurring.
"What in Merlin's name is that abomination? Remus... we have to do something." Sirius said to his friend. He had come to witness the first round of the tournament, and also confront Minato and Lily when it was done, but this wasn't what he had expected to occur today.
"We have to have faith in her. Riley is strong. I believe she can beat it." Remus replied, his eyes locked on the monstrous abomination that just spewed forth from the earth.
"I agree. She defeated a basilisk easily enough. I don't think we have much to worry about." Came the voice of Severus Snape, who stood by next to many other spectators, that had come to see the first round of the Triwizard Tournament.
Sirius let out a snarl but didn't say anything. He had his hands latched onto the guard rail and was transfixed on the fight that was about to occur. He knew they were probably right, but still, seeing this monster... it was almost hard to believe she could do it.
In the Judge's booth the judges were having their own argument.
"How in the hell is that fair?!" Minato shouted.
"Look at that damn thing... that's a Homunculus? BULLSHIT!" The Raikage agreed.
"That girl... she looks just like..." The Tsuchikage said in a whisper, his eyes transfixed on Riley.
"Lord Madara... yes." Minato agreed.
"Who is she?" The Tsuchikage just had to ask.
"His granddaughter... … … my eldest daughter." Minato replied in a whisper, drawing shocked looks from the other Kage.
Suddenly the cannon sounded the start of the match, and the beast let out a roar that shook the earth and forced everyone to cover their ears. With that roar, Riley also vanished from sight.
Minato saw Kakashi raise his headband, revealing his Sharingan. Minato too, focused on the fight. His keen eyes, being able to match the Sharingan's perception abilities. After years of moving as fast as he did, his eyes were now even keener than the legendary dojutsu, which now wasn't surprising considering who his father was. It was probably the dormant Sharingan, hidden behind those blue eyes, that allowed them to be so keen, to imagine what his own Sharingan would be like if he ever activated it.
Suddenly they all saw the great beast lunge towards a rock spire, teeth first. Riley appeared on that same spire, right as it lunged. She quickly jumped away from it, right as its massive mouth bit through the stone spire, like it was nothing.
One of the heads then turned and roared at her, sending forth a shockwave that sent her flying back.
Riley landed on her feet and placed her hands together.
"Fire Style: Pheonix Flower Jutsu!" Ninja in the crowd were surprised to see her perform the technique with one handsign, but they were more surprised when over a hundred small fireballs shot forth from her lips.
The Fireballs all rained down upon the beast, slamming into different parts of its body, probing for weaknesses. The monster easily shook off the minor attack, and the fireballs left only some minor scorching on its thick leathery skin.
The middle head of the beast then began to rear back, and its neck began to expand.
"Oh shit!" Riley hissed as she jumped up atop one of the stone pillars, ready to dodge whatever attack this thing was about to launch.
Suddenly the middle head lurched forward and vomited out a waterfall of bile, and grossness. What came out was a tannish color, and was filled with numerous body parts, and bones. The stench caused those in the audience to begin gagging and vomiting. This bile carried with it, a stench that could only be described as what you get when you combine the smell of vomit, feces, and rotting flesh.
The bile was spewed at Riley, like a tidal wave of death. Burning acid was mixed in with the sea of bile that came rushing at her.
Riley leaped high and far away from the incoming attack, knowing full well that this was a one-two combo. The acid would burn her flesh, allowing the rotten bile to get in, infecting her wounds. If she allowed this thing to get a proper hit in, it would wear her down with massive infection and sickness. Even if she managed to beat it, it would only be a pyrrhic victory, if the creature got her sick. Riley had never been sick, nor did she know if the poisonous Youki flowing through her body would defeat demonic bacterium, but she had no desire to test her capabilities, not today, not with this nasty crap.
The sea of bile bubbled and churned as it filled the field. Riley could tell that whatever this shit was, it was highly caustic as stone began to dissolve, and the barrier around the edge of the arena glowed and groaned as waves of bile splashed against it, earning shrieks of surprise and revulsion from those in the lowest seats. They were thankfully saved by the barrier, but still. It soon covered most of the terrain, leaving only the tall spires and a handful of high points left to stand on.
"Oh god... someone put up a ward or something to block out the stink!" Minister Fudge shouted as he gagged and dry heaved.
A few of the more experienced Aurors were able to reinforce the barrier already around the field, with a smell blocking attribute so people could breathe easier.
"That action, probably just secured Fudge another term in office." Snape noted, as he Remus and Sirius recovered from their retching.
"Riley..." Fleur stated fearfully as she watched the woman she loved, do battle with this mighty monstrosity.
"Come on Riley... you can do it!" Katie cheered for her.
"Don't die." Daphne whispered worriedly, as she watched the massive creature lurch towards her girlfriend.
"Happy she chose to fight alone?" Shikamaru asked to Cedric.
"Most definitely." Cedric replied with wide eyes.
On the field, Riley whipped out her wand and sent a full powered cutting curse, right at the monstrous demon. This was the same cutting curse that she once used to cut through multiple trees at once. With that in mind she was shocked when the curse barely nicked the mighty beast.
'Its skin is incredibly tough!' Madara noted.
"Gods be damned, looks like I'm going to have to step this up." Riley thought in reply.
"Damn straight. You can beat this fucking thing. It may be massive, and have large chakra reserves, but it's just a demon. Hell, it's weaker than the Ichibi. You have more power than the Ichibi, so kick its ass already!" Kurama berated her, urging her to forgo caution and let loose. There was such a thing as being careful, but as far as Kurama was concerned, this thing was an affront to his existence, and his very nature, demanded that this demon be destroyed.
"Right!" Riley said aloud.
Riley slammed her hand into a nearby pillar of earth, causing it to crack. It then began to fall forward, using her super-strength she caught the pillar turned and threw it towards the giant demon.
Everyone in the crowd was surprised by the show of strength, as the chunk of rock she threw had to weigh at least ten tons.
Riley wasn't finished, as soon as the rock was airborne, she jumped onto the back of it, stuck to it with her chakra and as soon as it passed over the demon, she slammed it down toward the beast. The rock hit it in the middle head, with immense force. Sending the middle head plummeting down into the ground.
The other two heads lunged up toward her, but as soon as one had its teeth around her, she exploded, revealing that Riley to be a Shadow Clone.
The explosion wrenched the beast's jaw open, but other than pissing it off, did little else.
The middle head also began to rise up off the ground, covered in blood and vomit. It now had a large gash on the top of its head where the rock had hit it, but otherwise it was alright.
Riley appeared not far away and spun through handsigns.
"Earth Style: Mud Dragon Jutsu!" Riley shouted as a large snakelike dragon rose out of the ground behind her and shot towards the massive demon. Once close, the mud dragon opened its mouth revealing a large ball of bomb tags within, it then dove into one of the open mouths of the demon and exploded.
The explosion rocked the pitch, and was accompanied by a roar of cheers, led prominently by Riley's gang. Their fear for their illustrious leader was quickly fading, being replaced by the raw excitement of the battle.
The demon let out a roar of pain, as some blood began to pour out of the injured head, though again, the beast proved how tough it was by shaking off the attack and going on the offensive.
The beast then began to pull towards her, dragging itself forward with its huge meaty hands.
Riley activated her staff, which earned a few shocked gasps from the witches and wizards in the crowd. She held her staff out in front of her for a second, before beginning to wave it in an intricate fashion. As she performed the staff movements, lightning began to build around the staff. The sound of electricity soon overpowered even the loud lumbering of the giant demon. Once the beast was close, Riley pointed her staff at the sky, and a massive bolt of lightning shot into the cloudy heavens.
Once it was close enough the great demon lifted its giant hand into the air and tried to bring it down on Riley. She jumped back just as she made a downward swinging motion with her staff.
Suddenly the sky lit up and a massive barrage of lightning rained down on the creature. Hundreds of lightning bolts shot down from the sky, zapping the giant demon, over and over. To some it looked like a solid column of white, piercing the creature from the heavens. The sound of the repeating cracks of lightning was ear shattering and people had to cover their ears, lest they risk deafness.
Those in the crowd were in awe of the might of this attack. Shinobi and magicals alike were rarely given such a spectacle of power.
This attack did some damage. The giant beast was covered in black scorch marks and looked a bit dazed by the massive electrical attack.
Seeing an opening Riley raced towards the giant creature. Extending her staff out as she ran and channeling earth magic through it, Riley prepared her attack.
People in the stands felt the earth quake and rumble as Riley raced at the dazed beast. Right as she closed in on it, she whipped her staff forward and a massive column of earth, nearly ten feet wide, shot out of the ground and slammed right into the right-most head, sending it slamming into the middle one with a loud crack. Many were sure that bones were broken from the sound of that strike.
Riley continued her attack. She jumped onto the column and raced up it towards the giant's head. About halfway up the column she spun her staff around and held it like a javelin. She then wrapped it in wind magic and hurled it over the two injured heads, right into the uninjured left head. The wind wrapped staff pierced the creature's skull and shot out the other side embedding into the ground nearby.
The demon let out a pained roar, as Riley jumped into the air. Without needing handsigns, she grabbed her wrist, and the sound of chirping birds filled the pitch.
"That's..." Minato began, as he recognized the move instantly.
"Chidori." Kakashi said with a smile.
"Chidori..., " Riley shouted as a clone materialized next to her and tossed her higher into the air. She reached about two hundred feet up, when gravity started to catch her. Another clone then appeared and tossed her down towards the great beast's Right head. "...Heaven Piercer!"
She slammed her Chidori into the creature's skull. Like a hot knife through butter her arm embedded into the thing's head. A spray of blood and gray matter shot up and coated her arm. Those around the stadium could see the roof of the right head's mouth explode in a rush of lightning. Blood began to pour out of the wound as the demon let out an ungodly wail of pain. It thrashed about and sent Riley flying across the field.
She managed to right herself and stuck the landing, quickly she spun around and watched the creature roar in agony. She then summoned her staff back to her and prepared her next move.
"Well... I need it to hold still for a minute... guess I'll be showing off a bit of the secret stuff." Riley thought, as she shrunk her staff back down, and stuck it back into its holster.
She then began to speed through handsigns.
"You're going to use that?" Kurama asked with a bit of surprise.
"Sure, why not." Riley replied with a smile as she finished her technique.
"Wood Style: Great Entrapment!" Riley shouted, earning gasps of shock from all the shinobi, and a very loud 'What!' that she could only assume came from Tsunade.
As she shouted the technique, six long, thick tree branches rose out of the ground. Two on either side of each of the massive creature's heads. The branches wrapped around its heads and pulled them all to the ground. Now that the beast was pinned Riley grinned viciously.
Her body was suddenly surrounded by a dark blue aura, and she slowly began to rise off the ground. She rose about fifty feet in the air, and the blue energy took the form of the imperfect full body Susano'o.
All of her friends stood slack jawed at the sight of the monstrous magical construct. Everyone else was cowering at the pressure that Riley was releasing. You see when Riley grinned, she also released all the seals on her chakra, and now the entire stadium could feel the monstrous weight of her power.
"This girl..." The Raikage said with wide eyes.
"That... it's just like his..." Onoki stated with eyes, full of fear as he stared at the mighty chakra construct.
"Begone..." Riley stated menacingly as Susano'o raised the arm with its Gunbai fan into the air. And with a single burst of Amaterasu fire in front of her, the great fan blasted the fire forward. Infused with magical wind, the Fire expanded and enveloped the great beast. The creature roared in pain and agony as the Fire burned through its thick hide. It tried to escape but the giant branches held it in place.
Riley watched as the fire burned away it's hide revealing the weaker muscle below. That's when she made her move. Jumping into the air, Susano'o came crashing down onto the burning beast's back. It then drove its blades into the flesh of the creature's back, earning a roar of pain. But Riley wasn't finished, her double arms then positioned their hand Scythes over the two side heads. They then slammed down into them, piercing the great beasts two outer skulls.
"Now to end you." Riley muttered darkly, as the branches around the middle head pulled the roaring snakelike head back, forcing it to point at her. With a single handsign more branches appeared and wrenched open the beast's mouth, just as Riley began to charge up the Rasenshuriken.
"What is that sound?" The Kazekage asked as the pitch was filled with a metallic kind of whirling screeching noise.
The Kage then all took notice as the wind began whipping around Riley. In her hand was a large rotating shuriken of wind.
With a menacing smile Riley reared her arm back and shouted, "Wind Style: Rasenshuriken!" Then she tossed the rotating shuriken right into the beast's mouth. She showed off her near perfect chakra control, when she was able to curve it down the beast's throat and get it a descent way down its neck before detonating the rotating sphere of wind.
Before it exploded, she jumped away from the beast to get clear of the blast.
Everyone in the stadium was left wide eyed and shocked beyond belief as a massive sphere of rotating wind burst from the creature's middle neck and engulfed its whole body. The sphere had to be nearly a hundred and fifty feet across, as the giant creature disappeared within it.
Everyone watched in slack jawed amazement. The barriers around the pitch glowed brightly as they were struck by the shockwave of the Rasenshuriken.
"That's... unbelievable..." Kakashi said with awed amazement.
"What is it, Kakashi? What do you see?" Minato asked.
"That isn't just one attack. It's a number of separate attacks, a nearly infinite number. My Sharingan can't follow them all." Kakashi stated in complete disbelief.
"A child... has zat kind of power!?" Maxime stated in awe, as the sphere continued to tear the massive monster apart.
"That girl... that power... What the hell are we dealing with here?" The Raikage ground out.
"Madara Uchiha... Look at her... she's just like him. A smile on her face, even after all that." Onoki muttered, just loud enough for the other judges to hear him.
The other judges shot a glance at him, and then glanced down at Riley. She was still floating in the imperfect complete Susano'o. She had her arms crossed and a dark grin stretched across her face.
"She's classified by the Leaf as an A-ranked ninja, though after this, I do believe we need to rethink that classification." Minato stated, hardly able to believe just how powerful his eldest child had become.
"Hard to imagine you've had a Kunuoichi like that under your belt all this time Lord Fourth, and none of us knew." The Kazekage stated.
"She's not one of mine. She's a state ninja. A Jonin for the Land of Fire." Minato replied, only the barest hint of anger and shame present in his voice.
"A Ronin? There exists a Ronin in this world that holds this kind of power? What the hell?" The Raikage growled out, sounding almost affronted. Ronin have always been known as the weakest of the weak. They were few and far between and were often barely a threat to even most Genin squads. To see that there was one that was S-Rank was almost to much to believe.
"That Riley... always one for the dramatic." Kakashi said with a chuckle.
"Coming from the guy who's jutsu she used to quite brilliant affect." Jiraiya noted.
"Ah yes, I'm so proud." Kakashi said with glee as he wiped away tears from his eyes.
"Yes... well... that wasn't the only technique she developed... Chidori: Heaven Piercer, Wind Style: Rasenshuriken, and Wood Style: Great Entrapment... to my knowledge, those are all original techniques." Minato noted.
"Not so original sensei... the Rasenshuriken... it had similar properties to the Rasengan, from what my Sharingan could tell. If I hazard a guess... I'd say she completed it." Kakashi told him.
"Yes... I think you're right." Minato agreed.
"And she also has Lord First's Wood Style. How the hell did that happen?" Jiraiya asked.
"I don't know. Narumi has always known more about our heritage than I have. I have zero clue how she knows the things she knows about my past. I have no clue how she possesses the First's Wood Style, and I have zero clue how she knows how to fight like Madara." Minato shot out rapidly. This was quite obviously a source of great frustration for him. Taking notice, the other Kage and Judges chose not to comment on it.
"Well, we best figure it out, because Tsunade's going to tear into the girl, the second she gets out of that arena." Jiraiya noted.
"Damn... can you go make sure that doesn't happen... the last thing we need is a fight between the two of them, especially with so many civilians around." Minato ordered. Nodding Jiraiya Shunshined away.
"Speaking of fights... that was an actual demon, right?" Kakashi noted, concern filling his voice.
"It absolutely was. You can still feel the Youki in the air." The Raikage replied gruffly.
"Kakashi, take a squad and arrest Mr. Yurik." Minato ordered.
"This isn't good Lord Fourth. We need him to summon one more time." Crouch informed him.
"Why the hell would we do that?" The Raikage ground out.
"The first round must be completed to its fullest. The last two champions must compete... or the round will be incomplete, thus the tournament cannot go on... and it's quite possible that all of the champions could lose their magic, and lives." Crouch explained to them. Earning curses and complaints from the judges.
"He's right. But we can ensure he summons no more demons. Black magic is against the rules of the tournament. Have him summon one of those lesser beasts, for the last two champions to do battle against and then arrest him." Dumbledore stated to his fellow Judges.
"This battle is over, right?" Yugito asked.
All the judges turned back to the field. The giant beast was now hidden by a plume of dust. They all watched as Riley floated back down to earth and her Susano'o vanished. She then dove into the dust cloud and vanished from sight.
In the cloud, Riley landed on the corpse of the demon. All three of its heads were gone, and most of its upper body was nothing but meat hanging from bone.
"So... you think this thing will give you a nice power boost Kurama?" Riley asked.
"Absolutely. Give me it's core and chakra, you can have its soul." Kurama replied.
"What am I gonna do with it?" Riley asked as she activated her Rinnegan. Luckily, she was shielded from prying eyes by the dust cloud. And those with sensory abilities like the Byakugan were impaired by the Youki in the air.
"By absorbing another demon's soul, you can gain some of the abilities it's manifested over years of honing it's magic. I have no clue what you'll get, and a lot will be lost in transition, but you should gain a few nifty powers." Kurama told her.
Riley grinned in understanding and did just that. She felt Kurama devour the three headed demon's core, and it's chakra, earning himself some considerable strength. While she passed the dead demon's soul into her own. Having an archdemon's soul, allowed her soul to break down the demon's soul at an insane rate. It was almost like it dissolved into hers.
"So, what did I get?" Riley asked, as she felt foreign magics ripple through her being, changing her in some unknown way.
"Hm... looks like you've got three new abilities. The first is a breaking of the physical requirements on muscle mass. Basically, you can condense your muscle infinitely now, and they'll never increase in size, unless you want them too. They will however increase in weight, but that's where your next ability comes in handy. You seem to have the ability to control your own weight. It seems by using your magic, you can increase or decrease the weight of yourself or anything around you. Basically, if you wanted too, you could infuse a kunai with your magic and multiply it's mass a thousand times, making it hit with extreme force. The only restrictions I can see, is that the heavier an object the more magic it takes to alter its weight. And it seems the final ability you gained is an alteration to your mouth, stomach and digestive system. Seems they've all been modified so that you can eat pretty much anything, from steel to spoiled meat. I'm pretty sure your stomach acid is strong enough to dissolve almost anything now." Kurama informed her.
"That's fucking awesome." Riley said with a smile as she flared her power, forcing the cloud of dust away to reveal the massive demon's corpse.
Those in the crowd were either disgusted by the shredded, mangled, bloodied remains of the massive demon, or they were cheering for her victory.
One of the few outliers was Naruko, who stared down at the field, disbelief dancing across her face. She now knew, without a shadow of a doubt, that all those stories about her older sister were true. Riley was as strong as people said, and she was without a doubt, worthy of her rank as a Jonin. Her powers were vast, and as much as it stung Naruko to admit it, she couldn't deny it any longer. Riley was stronger than her. A lot stronger. The power that had just been displayed, and now how confidant and nonchalant Riley seemed about it all, like she hadn't just fought that hellish thing, it spoke immensely about her condition. Even after all of that, she was fine, and could probably keep fighting.
Now on top of her freakish power, and her Sharingan, she also had the First Hokage's Wood Style? Where had her sister learned that from? What else was she hiding? Naruko felt her breathing begin to speed up as she gripped at the safety railing and glared down at the field. All of this power, all of this strength, and her sister had chosen to run off to some far-away land, to be some nobody school kid. With all this strength, she should have been back in the Leaf, fighting by Naruko's side, fighting with her family. None of this was supposed to happen, everything that Naruko had hoped for when coming to Britain, of finding her twin and forcing her to go home, it was all burning away before her very eyes, and Naruko didn't quite know how to deal with it.
While Naruko struggled to reign in her emotions, others were dealing with their own disbelief at the situation. Sasuke watched the match play out with utter amazement. He had heard mention of how Riley had managed to defeat his brother during the massacre. Whispers like that had been around for a long time, but no one knew any details, and few people were willing to ask Itachi about what had happened that night so it went unverified. Seeing this now, Sasuke knew that those stories were correct. There was actually an Uchiha out there that was stronger than his brother. This girl, Naruko's big sister, was the same age as them, yet she far outclassed them in terms of strength and power. She was like Haku, someone who proved that even with all of the hard work in the world, there was always someone who was better. He never thought he'd admit it, or even acknowledge it, but he couldn't deny it anymore, this girl was stronger than Itachi.
Many Hogwarts students could hardly believe the sight they'd just witnessed. A battle, truly for the ages. The members of Slytherin house were now completely assured in their belief that the Slytherin house Queen was absolutely untouchable.
Riley took in the cheers of the crowd, basking in the spotlight for a moment, as school kids and shinobi alike, cheered for the conquering champion. It was rare for her to get such absolute recognition, and she couldn't help but beam pridefully at being the absolute center of attention. Within her mindscape, Madara and Kurama smirked at her success. After years of hard work and brutal determination, the world now saw Riley for what she truly was. Even those bastards from the Hidden Leaf could no longer pretend her successes were some kind of fluke. Her power was now readily apparent, and no one could deny it any longer.
"Now to kill Yurik." Riley said with a smile as she turned towards where the asshole had been up in the stands, only to find he wasn't there anymore.
"And of course, these incompetent assholes let him get away." Riley hissed as she raced over to Yurik's last know position. She found a team of Anbu along with some Aurors there.
"He got away, didn't he?" Riley asked as she approached Kakashi.
"Uh... yep." Kakashi replied.
"We're all fucked, aren't we?" Riley asked with a deadpanned expression.
"Uh no... he left this summoning tag for us to finish the round. At least you all won't lose your magic." Kakashi noted.
"Yeah... but now my girlfriend might be fighting a fucking demon." Riley hissed as she Shunshined back to the champion's tent.
The judges quickly delivered out her score. Not that it really mattered. Her fight took ten minutes out of the twenty she had. Meaning with ten minutes remaining she already had a score of sixty. She scored high with all the judges, almost perfectly from all of them. Since she couldn't score higher than the highest total, she was given eighty points.
Riley received a slack jawed reception from her fellow champions when she returned to the tent.
As she walked in, she quickly cast Scourgify on herself, to clean the blood, puss, and guts off of herself.
She made it about halfway through the tent when she was hit with a blonde missile.
"You miss me?" Riley asked with a smile, as Fleur locked her in an air right hug.
"You scared ze crap out of me." Fleur said lightly, relief spilling out of her voice.
"Hey, hey. None of that. You need to stay calm. You've still got a fight on your hands." Riley noted as she peeled Fleur off of her.
"Yes... you are right." Fleur agreed with a nod.
"You stay alive out there. You make it back in one piece..." Riley told her as she pulled Fleur into a kiss.
"Come back safe... because tonight you're mine." Riley whispered sensually to her. Earning an excited smile from Fleur.
"Alright... we will be taking a ten-minute recess while the remains of the last battle are cleared away." Bagman informed the crowd. In the field, the demon's corpse was quickly rotting away, and the bile that it had covered the field with, was also bubbling away.
Riley sat with Fleur the whole time, trying not to smile at the awestruck looks she was receiving from the other champions, especially her sister, whom for once didn't have an ounce of jealousy in her eyes.
Riley was actually quite surprised that Tsunade or the Hokage didn't come barging into the tent, demanding an explanation for her use of Wood Style. She guessed they must have been saving that confrontation for later.
Eventually the ten minutes passed, and the bones and bile had vanished from the field. Riley gave Fleur one last kiss as she and Diana made their ways down to the field.
"Are we sure this is a good idea?" Minato asked.
"No... but it has to be Mr. Yurik's summon. He's the recognized administer of this task. If we try to use someone else's, the magic of the tournament could reject it, and they could lose their magic. We'll have all the guards on watch and offer our prayers to the girls." Crouch replied, much to the other judge's disappointment.
"You alright Riley?" Cedric inquired as Fleur and Diana made it onto the field.
"No... one of the women I love is about to possibly fight a demon, and I'm bound by a fucking magical contract, to stand here and do nothing." Riley bit back in reply.
"Look... I wanna thank you for keeping me out of your fight. I know I wouldn't have made it out of that." Cedric stated.
"Think nothing of it. I'd never ask someone to fight a battle meant for me." Riley replied.
"What do you mean?" Cedric inquired.
"Before he summoned that monster... he said that he was waiting to show me his greatest creation. He came here today, for me." Riley replied, with a scowl on her face.
"Do you think he's the one who put your name into the Goblet of Fire?" Cedric asked.
"Maybe." Riley lied in reply as Kakashi appeared on the field, holding the summoning paper.
On the field, both Beauxbatons champions displayed an air of confidence about them. Though both girls were in reality truly nervous.
"Good luck ladies." Kakashi told them as he glanced at the timekeeper, who shot the clock into the air. To many peoples joy, it landed on six minutes.
"Alright. Get ready." Kakashi told the two girls as he set the paper down and channeled his chakra into it. There was a poof of smoke, and Kakashi quickly Shunshined off the field.
"Son of a bitch!" Riley hissed as the smoke cleared, revealing the armored knight that Naruko had fought.
"Oh shit!" Naruko stated fearfully, her eyes flitting to Riley as she saw her sister's normally composed or aloof demeanor shatter, and worry flooded her features.
"Damn." Minato whispered, as he and the other judges cringed. Madam Maxine even let out a fearful yelp.
The sound of a cannon could be heard, and both girls immediately cast Notice-me-Not charms on themselves and dashed away.
Luckily for them, the Knight seemed to be unable to see through the illusion, as it slowly drifted across the ground towards their previous location.
"Just hide from it. Don't fight." Riley whispered. She could easily follow both girls with her Sharingan. All she had to look for was the disturbance they made in the environment to know where they were.
She noticed that one of them had circled behind the Knight and was setting up to strike.
"Dammit! Just hide from it!" Riley grit out as one of the two girls shot out a Reducto, right at the creature's back.
The Knight spun and blocked the incoming spell, and made a dash toward its assailant, which was revealed to be Diana. The girl swore and dove away from its strike then quickly made a run for cover.
The Knight gave chase and was closing fast.
Riley could see Fleur appear behind the Knight. Fleur quickly jumped on top of a rock, earning a few shocked gasps, from those around at the sight of her incredible agility. None were aware that the veela had, had Shinobi training.
Fleur quickly began speeding through handsigns, earning more surprised gasps from the crowd.
"Fire Style: Phoenix Flower Jutsu." Fleur called out. She then breathed out six fireballs that went racing towards the Demon Knights back.
The crowd burst into cheers as the fireballs connected and sent the Knight flying into a stone pillar. Diana took the moment of reprieve and recast her Notice-me-Not charm, and dove into a crevice to hide.
The knight quickly rose up and dashed towards Fleur.
Fleur immediately recast her charm as well and dove out of the way of the attack. The knight easily cleaved the pillar she was just standing on, in half. But she managed to get away.
Fleur was left hiding in between two rocks. She knew the knight was close by, looking for her, and she feared to move.
She couldn't hear it, and that caused her tension to grow. A part of her just wanted to stay here and stay hidden. Just surviving was enough for her. At this point she wasn't afraid to of looking like a coward, she just wanted to live, wanted to make it through this and return to Riley's waiting arms. She'd seen what this same creature had done against Naruko, and she knew she didn't have a hope of defeating it outright. All she could do was run out the clock and if she had to hide between some rocks to get there, then so be it.
Still, she felt her anxiety grow further. She didn't know where the demonic knight was. Was it drifting ever closer to her or was it on the opposite side of the field? She needed to know.
A couple more moments passed, and she just had to peek out. She spotted the knight not ten feet away. It had it's back to her. She remained quiet, hoping that it would go away. It was then, that she noticed movement. To the knight's right, where it's shield blocked its view, Fleur could see footsteps appearing in the dirt. She knew Diana was moving for another strike.
Fleur would have hexed the bitch at that moment, if they weren't in mortal danger. It seemed Diana had some kind of death wish... that or she just wanted to prove something. Whatever it was, was going to get her killed.
It was when Diana was no more than ten feet away from the demon, that Fleur noticed the Knight twist it's arm ever so slightly. It was then she realized that somehow it knew that Diana was there. In a moment it would lash out and end her fellow champion's life.
Not thinking Fleur shot out of cover and banished Diana away. Sending the invisible girl flying back.
Just as Diana was moved out of the way, Fleur saw a flash of steel.
She heard the crowd erupt into panicked screams and could only wonder what they were screaming about. Amongst those screams she caught a particular voice. Somehow, she knew that it was Riley. Her mates panicked screams caused a vivid memory to flash in her mind, the look on Riley's face when she had come to see her last year in class, after her encounter with the Boggart. Fleur could remember her fear and panic, and for a moment, she wondered just why her beloved mate had cried out for her. It was then that she noticed that the Knight was floating right in front of her.
Fleur let out a startled yelp and tried to aim her wand at it. It was then that she came to shocking realization. The reason for the screaming in the crowd. Her wand, and her left arm, were gone.
Fleur's hand shot to the bleeding stump where her arm used to be. Shock finally setting in. She didn't get much time to register the injury, as the Demonic Knight slammed her away, with its shield, sending her flying fifteen feet back, to land painfully on some rocks.
Fleur felt her head ring as she was struck by the giant shield, and she felt the wind get knocked out of her as she landed. She was bleeding profusely from her arm as the demonic knight floated closer, all the while, the screams of terror and fear in the crowd, hadn't quieted.
In the Champions tent, Riley immediately began to move, leaping up onto the railing, she readied to jump down to the field, only to be pulled off by Naruko, and a dozen of her Shadow Clones.
"Let go of me!" Riley roared with rage, elbowing one of the clones in the gut, causing it to burst into a cloud of smoke.
"Narumi! Calm down! If you go down there, you break the rules of the tournament. Who knows what'll happen, you and your girlfriend could die!" Naruko cried out to her, trying to hold Riley back. Despite personally having Riley in a choke hold, she found herself barely able to keep a grip on her twin as Riley roared and tried to pull free. Her attempts to try and control the situation seemed to be failing, as Riley's neck felt like a thick steel cable, almost like Naruko couldn't exert any pressure on it, even if she was actually trying to hurt her twin.
"Fucking let go of me!" Riley hissed as she twisted and tossed several clones off of her.
"Narumi!" Naruko tried again.
"Get the fuck off of me! I'll kill that fucking thing! I'll fucking kill it!" Riley snarled, as she ripped her arm free from one of the clones and suddenly grabbed it by the throat, viciously crushing its windpipe with one hand, causing it to pop. The brutality of her actions, actually caused Naruko to begin fearing for her life, her twin's composure was failing, her fear at losing someone she obviously cared very deeply for, was revealing a side of Narumi that Naruko had never seen before, and it honestly terrified her.
Suddenly they all heard gasps from the crowd. Riley and Naruko both focused on the field, as all eyes turned back to see Diana firing spell after spell at the Knight's back, drawing its attention away from the downed Veela.
The Knight turned toward Diana and made a dash towards her. Diana turned and ran, leading it away from Fleur.
They all watched with bated breath as the demonic knight closed in on Diana. It was getting closer, and without support, it was very likely that it would end the girl.
More gasps could be heard, as everyone spotted Fleur rise to her feet. The injured Veela was heavily bruised and bleeding profusely. They all watched as she grasped her bleeding stump and channeled her natural fire magic into her hand. Fleur let out a few screams of pain as she seared the wound shut.
"Fleur..." Gabrielle gasped as she watched her elder sister sear her flesh to stymy the bleeding. The vicious snarl on Fleur's face was unlike anything she'd ever seen before. Along her remaining arm, her neck, and even her face, white feathers were starting to bloom, Fleur was an inch away from transforming.
Nearby her parents were equally horrified.
"How is she even still able to stand?" Jean muttered in disbelief.
"Her mate is here, terrified for her, crying out for her. She won't give up now. Not until she's dead." Apolline responded, despondently. Her daughter's unnaturally strong veela nature would be her undoing without some sort of miracle. She didn't know what it was that was driving Fleur in this moment, but she knew that it was partly the bond. Given the nature of the situation, if instincts took over, it wouldn't be for Fleur's benefit. With her mate so close by, Fleur was more likely to fight until she was killed, than run the risk of something happening to Riley. Even though Fleur would logically know her mate was in no danger, after sustaining such an injury, instinct would start to take over, and all her body knew was that she was hurt, there was danger nearby, and that her mate was also nearby. Veela were brutal in the defense of their mates and children. Stories of what they'd do to those that threatened their loved ones, were terrifying things. Here and now, they were seeing the results.
Fleur let out a scream of pain as she finished cauterizing her wound. She then dragged herself forward, up to a high point where she could spot that demonic knight.
She then whistled sharply, just as the Knight was about to strike at Diana. Using the distraction to her advantage, Diana dove into a crevice and cast the Notice-Me-Not charm.
The Knight turned to her, and hung there for a moment, it almost looked confused at seeing Fleur still standing. It then glided higher into the air and made a dash for her.
"Fleur! RUN!" Riley screamed down at her. But the young Veela wasn't listening.
As the knight closed in, Fleur raised her remaining hand up. She then began to go through handsigns. The shinobi in the crowd could only stare in amazement, as the Veela, tried to do something, most Jonin couldn't even do.
Fleur reached the last handsign right as the knight was about to reach her.
"Fire Style: Grand Fireball Jutsu!" Fleur hissed out as she brought her hand to her lips, took a deep breath and to everyone's amazement released a massive fireball from her lips.
The Knight was too close to dodge and was hit with the full force of the jutsu. It was pushed back by the fireball, right into a stone pillar, which was where the fireball exploded violently.
"That was amazing!" Katie shouted in cheer. Similar cries of joy could be heard from those in the crowd. The rest of Beauxbatons was on their feet cheering loudly. Along with them, were Fleur's parents and sister, who were amazed but also fearful for her injuries.
"That's impressive." Minato noted, earning nods from his fellow Judges.
As the technique faded, the adrenaline finally faded, and Fleur fell to the ground.
The cheers from the crowd soon turned into screams of fear and anguish however as the demonic Knight floated out of the rubble. They could see its armor was damaged, and its shield was gone. But otherwise, it was still battle ready. It slowly floated up to where Fleur lay. It knew, she had nothing left.
It reached down and grasped Fleur by the neck. Lifting her injured body off the ground. It brought its sword up and prepared to decapitate her. It flinched a few times as Reducto curses slammed into its back, courtesy of Diana, but it would not falter. It would not let it's pray escape this time.
Fleur looked into the dark glow of its helmet. "Enjoy hell..." Fleur spat out, as the sound of a cannon could be heard.
Before the knight could react, a blur passed in front of it. The arm holding Fleur, found itself separated as a windmill Shuriken flew between the two.
Riley appeared in time to catch Fleur before she hit the ground. And before the knight could react to defend itself, a kunai hit the ground in front of it, and with a Yellow Flash, the Yondaime Hokage appeared with a Rasengan in hand. Minato drove his Rasengan into the knight's chest, sending it flying back.
The Demonic Knight had no chance to protect itself as Minato appeared behind it, and the Raikage appeared in front of it. Minato drove his Rasengan into the knight's back, while A wrapped his arm in lightning chakra turning it into a spear, then used the momentum of Minato's attack to drive his hand into its chest plate.
The two men held the demon there for a second. They watched as the glow left its helmet and it went limp. The Raikage tore his arm out and was surprised to find it covered in dried blood and chunks of flesh.
The two men were shocked to see as the armor crumbled to the ground, and the helmet fell off, that inside was a young girl. Probably fifteen years old. She looked to have been dead for a couple of days.
"What the hell is this!?" The Raikage asked at the grotesque spectacle.
"That... is a human sacrifice... used to bring that monster into this world." The two men heard Riley answer.
They both glanced over to see her kneeling over Fleur. Her hands glowing with the telltale sign of medical chakra.
"You know... you're an idiot, right?" Riley asked with a tearful smile, as she glanced lovingly into Fleur's eyes.
"I am sorry. I guess I did not make it back whole." Fleur replied with a pained chuckle.
"Look at you making jokes... you'll be fine." Riley replied as she continued to heal the damage to Fleur's body. The young Veela had several broken ribs on top of the missing arm.
"What were you thinking? Trying to be a hero?" Riley asked with a grin.
"When I saw, what it was about to do, to Diana... I just asked myself, what would Riley do? And zen I did ze opposite." Fleur replied with a pained chuckle.
"Yeah, fuck that bitch. You weren't thinking though, were you? You should have just let her die." Riley lightly scolded her. Knowing what she knew about their history, to Riley, Fleur had no reason to endanger herself on Diana's account. The wretch was not worth it in Riley's eyes, not even close.
"I had... considered it but... but... I guess I just did what I zought you would do. It was not her I saw running away from zat thing, I saw a person, scared, about to die... I just... reacted. I am sorry... it looks like our night will have to be put off." Fleur stated with a pained wince as a rib snapped back into place.
"What are you talking about? As soon as I finish healing you, and we find that damn arm, and get it reattached, you and me are going to be spending the night making up for the last few weeks, shit the last year." Riley replied with a grin.
"Ha... I look forward to it." Fleur replied. Just about now, the medics had made it onto the field and were approaching.
"I've got her, check on the other girl." Riley called to them.
The medics shared glances but when Tsunade walked past them and gave them a nod, they went to Diana.
Tsunade knelt next to Fleur and was about to offer her assistance, but to her surprise the young veela was almost fully healed. She was still missing an arm, but she wasn't in any danger, any longer. Riley's healing abilities had come a long way since childhood, just from appearances, she seemingly now had the skill of a fully trained medical shinobi. At the very least she was on par with what Tsunade would consider acceptable for a medical shinobi in the field.
"Wood Style chakra, mixed with healing chakra, is a helluva thing." Riley answered Tsunade's unasked question.
Tsunade took note of that, noticing just how quickly Fleur's wounds were being healed. After a moment she gave Riley a look, one that demanded more answers, but Riley was unfazed. She simply told her to ask later and continued to heal Fleur.
The Kage and judges approached the two along with Diana.
"Will she be alright?" Madame Maxime asked as she knelt next to Fleur.
"Yes... she'll be fine." Riley replied.
"My Lady." Came Shizune's voice. She had Fleur's arm with her.
Riley took one look at it, then at the wound and scowled. "That's no good. Someone find her wand please. The arm is useless."
"What do you mean? It's perfectly fine. We could easily reattach it." Shizune replied.
"No... it was severed with a cursed demonic blade. Now that I'm looking, there are traces in her wound. It's like a Severing Curse, the wound is tainted. The limb has been permanently severed from her magical system and cursed to reject reattachment. It can't be reattached with magic." Riley informed them, internally seething as she wished a brutal death on Yurik for the part he played in the maiming of her girlfriend.
"Damn." Tsunade cursed.
"So... I am to remain unbalanced forever?" Fleur asked, her eyes unfocused as she began fading in an out of consciousness.
"Why are you not usually this funny?" Riley asked in reply, offering her a pleasant smile, which she returned as best she could.
"It must be ze pain." Fleur guessed as her family made their way through the crowd. Her father quickly knelt next to her, while her mother held onto her sister, just off to the side.
"Will she be alright?" Jean asked.
"She's tough. She'll live. Even be able to compete in the tournament. Her arm however is a loss... I can't fix it." Riley replied with just a bit of sorrow.
"I think I know of a way to fix her." Madara stated.
"How?" Riley asked.
"The same way, I fixed Obito. Get her somewhere private and summon Zetsu again. Have him explain the procedure." Madara answered.
"That's great grandfather! Thank You!" Riley thought back, happily.
She did another quick medical scan to make sure there were no more injuries before glancing up at Tsunade.
"You want to give her your seal of approval before I move her?" Riley asked the legendary medic. Despite her misgivings about Tsunade as a person, Riley wasn't going to pass up the opportunity for Fleur to receive the green light from what many considered to be the best healer on the planet.
Tsunade gave her a look but nodded. She did a quick scan and was quite impressed to see that besides the missing arm, she had been perfectly healed.
"She's good." Tsunade gave her approval, and Riley scooped Fleur off of the ground.
"We should get her to a bed in the infirmary so she can rest." Madam Pomfrey stated.
"No need. I'll be taking her to the Chamber of Secrets." Riley responded earning curious looks from those around.
"I can assure you Ms. Uchiwa, that the Infirmary is the best place for her." Pomfrey stated.
"Of that I have no doubt. However, I have a method of replacing her arm, which is secret to my families. Thus, I must perform it in privacy. So, unless you are willing to allow me to seal off the Infirmary for several days. The chamber is the next best thing." Riley informed those around.
"You can give her a new arm?" Apolline asked with a hopeful look.
"Yeah... I just require your consent. Since she's technically still underage." Riley answered.
"As long as it does not involve some sort of twisted evil magic, and as long as Fleur is alright wiz it." Jean answered.
"I zink I would rather, have two arms." Fleur stated, sounding a little loopy.
"Wait... what is this method that you're talking about? If my grandfather has an ability that can replace limbs, I think I have a right to know what it is." Tsunade stated, boldly.
"This technique that I possess was created by my grandfather. And it's the same technique that gave Obito Uchiha his mobility back. So, I can assure you it works. Maybe if you decided not to forgo everything Senju and actually embrace your heritage you may be able to learn something more from the First Hokage, like Madara did." Riley stated to Tsunade before continuing her march towards the castle.
"Are you proud of me?" Riley heard Fleur whisper.
"Very. What you did was very brave. Stupid, but brave. And the use of the Grand Fireball jutsu with just one hand... that was awesome. Not to mention when you stared down that damn thing when it picked you up. I think you won the top badass award for the tournament. I know every guy in Durmstrang will be gunning for you now." Riley replied with a chuckle.
"I look forward to watching you fight zem off for me." Fleur replied as she cuddled closer to Riley.
"Ha... yeah right. After what I just saw. You can obviously take care of yourself. I'm gonna just sit back and let you handle it." Riley replied with a chuckle.
"Ha... I love you, Riley." Fleur said with a smile.
"I love you too, babe. Don't ever think otherwise. Now... let's get you patched up."
Riley took Fleur down to the chamber. She kept everyone out, so she could work in private. Once she got Fleur situated into a bed. She summoned Zetsu. She ordered him to gather everything she would need to create Fleur a new arm. Zetsu understood his orders and left. Riley then checked on Fleur, whom by now was asleep from exhaustion. Riley decided to keep her that way and used a stunner to keep her under.
Riley then created a few Wood Clones and told them to prepare for Fleur's surgery. When asked what she was going to do. She simply replied. "I gotta go payback the guy who did this to her."
With that... Riley threw on her invisibility cloak and left to hunt down Yurik. She knew that monster would be an issue. And she wouldn't allow him to live another day, not with what he'd done to Fleur. She'd find him... and then... well... it was up to her imagination at that point... but needless to say, it wasn't going to be pretty. As she snuck out of the castle, inside of her body another conversation was going on.
'What is this power I feel flowing through her?' Madara asked.
"Soon... I can feel it. She's so close to turning. It'll be tonight. I know it will." Kurama replied with demonic glee.
'So... it's time. Time for her to lose the last of her humanity. And become a demon. Heh... That fool Yurik will pay for what he's done. I can only hope he's man enough to struggle when she finds him.' Madara replied with a dark chuckle.
"I cannot wait to devour his soul." Kurama said with a laugh.
Meanwhile Riley raced through the countryside. Her Rinnegan glowing ominously. She locked onto the sickly energy of her target. He was far away, but she had time. Her clones would fix Fleur up by the time she got back. So, she wasn't in a rush. She could take her time when she caught him. She had never before felt this kind of excitement at the prospect of murdering someone. And yet... it didn't shock her. Yurik was vile, and monstrous, and before the sun rose tomorrow, he would be dead.
-To Be Continued-
Alright there it is. Yurik's gotta pay, for screwing Fleur and Diana over like that. Riley's gonna find him, and do some fucked up shit to him, I'm sure. Love the idea of showing just how much a badass, Riley's friends and lovers are getting. Yeah, this thing was above Fleur's weight class, but to do damage to it, and to get back up after it kick's your ass is another. I hope I got it across, because what I wanted to show in that fight, wasn't how Fleur lost, it was how much she'd grown from her cannon counterpart. The Fleur in this story, wouldn't be bested by no damn Grindyglows. Anyway hope to see you soon, Ja NE!
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