Onward to chapter three! Please leave a review!
Hope you all enjoy it!
Disclaimer: I don't own "The Hunger Games" or "Naruto," they belong to their respective owners.
The Fight for Love
As Katniss ran, she realized it wouldn't do her any good to fight in the Cornucopia. She initially wanted to get in, gather supplies, then run out.
While sprinting to the Cornucopia, however, she noticed that many of the Career Tributes had already made it there. They were specially trained for this moment after all.
Deciding to change plans, Katniss ran towards a bag on the field that was about 20 meters away from her. Running to the bag, she narrowly missed a throwing knife that nicked her cheek. She didn't turn around but instead, she picked up the bag.
Once again, another knife was thrown at her but she managed to dodge it again. Running deep into the woods, she disappeared.
As for Naruto, he had a similar plan in mind.
When the fighting commenced, Naruto decided to stick to the strategy he had made while meditating. He ran to the woods straight away but stayed close enough to the edge that he could see other tributes running.
After deciding to follow a certain tribute running near him, he waited silently in the nearby bush almost as if he was hunting.
"Now!" he mentally shouted as he jumped out and tackled a fellow tribute.
His plan was very risky, if nobody grabbed a pack and ran near him then he wouldn't be able to ambush anybody. Furthermore, it was lucky if they would even run near his position to begin with.
But it seemed Naruto's luck was off the charts as both factors played into his plan this time.
"Oof," gasped out a female tribute who became disoriented from having a 6'0 male use all his body weight at once against her.
Grabbing the pack in her hands and yanking, Naruto ran off before she could recover. He didn't want to kill if he could help it, but he also needed to look out for his own survival.
Running deep into the woods, Naruto didn't look back once.
After a few minutes of constant running thanks to his stamina, Naruto took a much-needed breather while perching up against a tree. He rummaged through the pack and found what little contents it had inside.
Pulling each item out one by one, he was able to examine everything from the bag he had stolen. Inside the bag was a Bowie knife, two water bottles, a spool of galvanized steel wire, and a fire starter kit.
As for Katniss, she was also rummaging through her pack after nearly risking her life for it. Inside her bag was a rope, a sleeping bag, bandages, little food, an empty bottle, and a bottle of iodine.
Suddenly, both tributes heard the sound of cannons.
BOOM
Eleven cannon sounds went off in the distance, signifying the death of eleven tributes in the arena. Haymitch had explained what the cannon sounds meant in the Hunger Games. He also told them both that those killed during the day would be shown at night with their picture in the sky.
"Fuck…" whispered Naruto in his mind, reeling in from the seriousness of the situation.
This was it, this was the Hunger Games….and kids were dying.
Naruto went to clench his jewel necklace in self-comfort but remembered he had to turn it in to Haymitch before he came into the arena. He also had to give up his father's wedding band as well.
He felt truly alone for the first time in a while.
Later in the Night
Katniss sat perched upon a tree with rope tying her waist to the branch. She was high up and had been walking for hours to find a source of water after the Games began.
It was ironic in a way, her biggest threat at the moment wasn't another tribute but dehydration.
She had decided to end her search for water earlier as to conserve energy. Afterward, she found a random tree and climbed up it, planning to sleep there for the night. As she tied herself to the branch, she had thoughts of her….friend, "I hope you're not among the dead…Naruto…"
Just as she was about to doze off, the faces of the fallen tributes flashed upon the sky. After a few seconds, she was relieved to see that Naruto was not dead yet.
"We have had eleven fallen tributes so far folks," spoke Caesar Flickerman with a solemn expression, "This early in the games and the blood has already started to spill."
Cornelius then piped in, "We'll have to see how the remaining tributes play this out, Caesar."
"Aw c'mon! I already lost my bet!" yelled one Capitol citizen to another.
The other shrugged, "Should have bet on someone better!" they responded.
It was all one big show.
Katniss took a deep breath of relief when the pictures stopped flashing in the sky.
Seeing that she didn't have anything to worry about at the moment, Katniss put her head back on the tree behind her. She needed to rest to find a water source tomorrow.
Naruto was in another part of the forest and had his sleep arrangement.
Earlier in the day, he pulled out his Bowie knife and had it dragged along any tree he walked by. Minutes went by until he heard a "thunk" which meant the tree was hollow.
After setting up some small traps nearby to catch animals and tributes alike, he climbed up the tree. As he got higher, he noticed the tree had a small opening in the middle which could fit someone his size comfortably, barely.
Slowly sliding into the small crevice, he began to sleep with the branch hiding his form. This was a rather good spot in his opinion, as he was high up and out of view.
The pictures flashing through the sky made his situation even more comfortable, as Katniss was not dead so far. He could sleep with that bit of information comforting him.
As morning came, Katniss heard a scream down below her. Jolting awake, she looked down and noticed a female tribute had started a campfire below her. It seemed the Career Tributes also took notice of it as they had just slashed her throat with a blade.
"Cato… Marvel… Glimmer….Clove…" Katniss made a mental note of all the tributes who partook in the girl's death. They took sick pleasure in dragging it out and making it painful.
She also noticed that Glimmer had a bow and arrow… something she wished she desperately had right now.
BOOM
Another cruel death in the Hunger Games.
"Would you look at that, Claudius," spoke Caesar on his show, "Twelve tributes have fallen in just the first few hours of the Games so far."
Claudius responded, "And it looks like the Career Districts are allying. This could be very deadly for every other tribute, Caesar."
Holding her breath and staying still, Katniss let all four Career Tributes pass by under her. They were very clearly on a hunt.
Waiting for about thirty minutes before moving, Katniss slowly untied herself from the branch she was sitting on. Making sure to properly store everything back into her pack, she climbed down the tree.
Looking around for any tributes and finding none, Katniss dashed in the opposite direction of the Career Tributes. She didn't want to encounter them at all if she could help it.
The day went on for both Naruto and Katniss.
Naruto was able to get down from his spot and check his traps. Surprisingly, he had caught two rabbits which caused him to kill, clean, and cook them both with his fire starter kit.
After eating one rabbit, he wrapped up the cooked meat of the other one in his bag for later. He also consumed one of the water bottles he had, leaving him with only one more.
While walking deeper into the forest, he heard many footsteps rushing far behind him. Without thinking about it, Naruto acted on instinct and ran into some nearby bushes.
"I heard someone over here!" shouted a female.
Soon enough, four people stood where Naruto had once been. His situational awareness had saved his life.
"You sure, Clove?" asked Cato while scanning the scenery.
Clove nodded, "I swear, I could hear someone walking over the shrubbery over here! They couldn't have gotten far!"
Marvel added in his own two cents, "Then let's keep searching, we're wasting time here."
Without another word being said, all four Career Tributes kept on searching for Naruto deeper into the forest.
As they traveled away from his hiding spot, Naruto poked out one eye to see that these four tributes had allied. He would have to be careful from here on out.
While Naruto believed in his capabilities in hand-to-hand combat and weapon proficiency, it was never a good idea to take on more people when you didn't have to.
"I need a plan to take out each one…" he thought as he slowly stood up and walked out of the area. He made a mental note to also be quieter as he walked through the forest, he couldn't afford to take the same risk of being found twice.
"Would you look at that Caesar!" spoke Cornelius, "The Career Tributes nearly found the Golden Boy from District Twelve!"
Caesar nodded, "They nearly did, Cornelius! My heart was beating in anticipation!"
The Capitol was going crazy, wondering how this year's Hunger Games were going to end.
As for Katniss, she was having a difficult time at the moment.
While searching for water, she had been assaulted by a random forest fire starting mere feet away. She believed it was due to the Gamemakers, but didn't understand why it was happening. Perhaps they were trying to lead her into more tributes?
Nonetheless, she kept her mouth covered while she ran to avoid inhaling the smoke flying around her. Jumping over logs, sprinting over the grass, and keeping her eyes alert were happening all at the same time for her.
A fireball nearly scorched her torso until she ducked low, but she could feel the heat radiating from its passing.
What she didn't see, however, was the small flame flying to her leg.
"AGH!" screamed Katniss as the fire made direct contact with the back of her foot. She quickly put out the flame but could see that it managed to scorch her flesh.
It wasn't anything life-threatening at the moment, but she needed to be careful. As of now, the flesh was too tender to walk on it.
Limping to a nearby clearing, Katniss accidentally tumbled down a small cliff due to not seeing the drop. As she stumbled down, she landed on a mud plain and stopped.
"Ugh…." Katniss groaned in agony, feeling extremely weak and dehydrated, "...Is that….water?" she mumbled to herself.
Crawling to a nearby pond, Katniss realized her eyes were not deceiving her. In front of her was a small pond of freshwater.
Smiling like a lunatic, Katniss took in many swigs with her hands and drank it ferociously. After a few minutes of this, she wiped her mouth with the back of her sleeve. She also grabbed her empty bottle from her backpack and filled it with the freshwater as well.
Deciding to try and address her leg wound, she also placed her leg near the pond in hopes of healing her burn wound. It did make her hiss in pain, but the water was helping as best it could. She would constantly pour the water onto her leg but make sure none of the blood or dirt contaminated her only drinking source.
Thinking it was best to try and recover from her exhaustion, Katniss scooted herself a few feet back until her back was up against the cliff she fell from earlier. Before she knew it, her eyes closed shut and she slept once more.
Many Hours Later
Dawn had turned into dusk before long, and soon it was dark outside. More cannons had been sounded which meant more tributes were dying.
The Career Tributes were on a mission to try and kill as many as they could. It was a game to them after all.
Naruto paced his way through the forest as he looked for another spot to sleep for the night. As he walked, he came across a clearing that had a small pond at the bottom.
Initially, he planned to walk past the clearing and keep searching but then his eyes spotted something peculiar. A bright orange patch stuck out in the darkness of the night.
Upon closer inspection, he realized it was a patch from a bag on a tribute. That tribute just so happened to be his friend, Katniss Everdeen.
"Katniss!" mentally shouted Naruto in surprise, not expecting to find her in this condition.
She was slumped over and passed out, clearly tired from whatever struggles she had to endure.
Without wasting another moment, Naruto made his way down the cliff carefully and paced over to his fallen teammate.
"Katniss… Katniss please wake up… Katniss…" Naruto said as he gently shook Katniss awake.
"Huh! What!" cried out Katniss, instantly reaching for anything nearby to use as a weapon.
"Katniss, it's me!" pleaded Naruto as he backed up a little, "It's Naruto."
Katniss took in a deep breath and tried her best to calm her nerves.
"N-Naruto? How'd you find me here?" she asked despite still feeling disoriented from being awakened.
"I saw your bright orange patch and made my way down here."
Seeing what he was talking about, Katniss instantly ripped off the patch and put it into her pocket. She was very lucky it was Naruto who found her instead of another tribute.
"Look Katniss…" spoke Naruto gently, "I don't want to fight you. I understand if you're weary of me, but please, let's work together for now until we figure something out."
At first, Katniss wanted to deny the request as he could easily turn on her at whatever moment. But the more she thought about Naruto and his kindness, she couldn't see him killing her mercilessly. He had done far too much for her at this point.
"Y-Yeah… that's fine…" she responded while fidgeting slightly.
Their conversation was rudely interrupted when they both heard some voices far into the distance. The problem was that the voices were getting closer and closer.
"Damn, you're pretty good at tracking footprints!" said Clove to Marvel who was inspecting the footprints left behind by Katniss.
"I trained in this," responded Marvel with a smirk, "Soon we'll find whoever left these behind."
These words made Naruto and Katniss's stomach drop. They would have to face the Career Pack soon.
"Let's get up and go," said Naruto as he turned to lead the way.
Trying to get up, Katniss instantly slid back down and whined in a whisper, "I can't, my leg is too burned to be useful right now…"
Naruto went to go examine the injury and realized Katniss was right… she couldn't walk right now.
Katniss looked into Naruto's eyes and said nothing. This was it, this was the moment he could leave her to die and not turn back. Instead, Naruto did what he always does… he surprised her.
"That's fine, I'll get it taken care of," he nodded firmly while placing her foot back down.
"How?" she questioned, genuinely curious as to why he hadn't run off yet.
Naruto gave a smile in return, "Just watch."
Slowly crawling back out of the ditch they were in, Naruto pulled out his galvanized steel wire from his bag and began tying it from tree to tree. The wire was placed around ankle level and slightly higher, so it wouldn't be visible in the darkness of the night.
Earlier that day, he had unfurled his spool of steel wire and cut into it with his Bowie knife. The slices were along the wire and he had to be careful to not cut himself, but he managed to do what he wanted.
After folding the cut-up pieces by hand and tying them around the main wire, Naruto made his homemade version of barbed wire.
Placing this wire along the trees and tying them, Naruto prepared to launch his plan into action.
Seeing the tributes come closer and closer, Naruto eventually saw them break through the treeline as Glimmer was holding up a torch.
"The footsteps lead down into this ditch," pointed out Marvel while looking into the dark abyss.
"Well what are we waiting for?" spoke Clove, "Let's go down there and see who's hiding."
Just as the four were about to walk down the slippery slope of the cliff, they heard a twig snap in the distance. They all then turned their heads in that direction while Glimmer held out the torch to get a better view.
There, standing like a deer in the headlights, stood Naruto with wide eyes. Without saying another word, he sprinted back into the forest from where he had originally come from.
"Get him!" shouted Cato as they all took off after the blonde.
"Good… they bought my shitty acting…" thought Naruto with a smirk as he sprinted through the forest. He acted like a scared animal and they had taken the bait.
Given that they were much lighter and faster than the boys, Glimmer and Clove sprinted ahead.
In a quick moment, they both slumped forward like they had tripped over something. Clove instantly gripped the skin around her tibia. Glimmer clutched her foot instead and cried in pain.
"Fuck!" shouted Clover as she held back the tears from the pain.
Glimmer was just hissing in pain and holding her foot as it profusely bled.
Grabbing the torch that had fallen out of Glimmer's hand, Marvel was able to see what had caused the two damage.
A makeshift barbed wire was tied between two trees, and they had run straight first into it.
"That bastard!" shouted Cato with anger, "I'll get him for this!"
With a swing of his machete, Cato sliced the barbed wire and ran after Naruto without thought.
Not wanting to leave both girls behind, Marvel stayed behind to help them with their wounds. After helping Glimmer, Clove stood on her own.
"Fuck this," spoke Clove with a hiss, "Let's go back to base. I'll leave Cato to handle him."
"What about the footprints?" asked Marvel.
"Isn't it clear?" responded Clove sarcastically, "That bastard was the one who placed them here, he lured us into a trap."
Not being convinced but wanting to keep the peace, Marvel led both girls back to the Cornucopia. They were going to nurse their wounds and rest up for the night back at base.
"I could be wrong… but…" Marvel thought as he helped Glimmer walk, "...those footprints were in the shape of a woman's shoe, not a man's…"
"Would you look at that!" shrieked Caesar, "The star-crossed lovers from District Twelve are keeping their love strong even in the arena!"
Cornelius nodded, "I couldn't agree more, Naruto even led them away at the risk of his life. They are keeping their bond strong."
Once they were all gone, Katniss stayed in the darkness with her thoughts.
"He just… risked his life for me…" she pondered, "...even after I created distance between us, he came back and helped me…"
Naruto needed to live in her eyes, he had helped her too much for him to die like this. He was her hope after all.
With Naruto
Dodging branches and jumping over holes, Naruto did not stop his sprint. He had been running for a while now and was feeling exhausted. After a while, he stopped by a tree to catch his breath.
Soon enough, he only heard one set of footsteps following in the distance.
"Only one person is chasing?…" thought the blonde, "My trap worked better than I thought…"
Naruto had hunted in complete darkness before many times, he was used to running off instinct. Cato however, was not.
"Where are you, huh!" shouted the tribute, "Come out and fight me!"
Reaching into the side of the backpack, Cato pulled out a butane torch lighter. He had gotten it from a sponsor earlier in the day.
After lighting his lighter, Cato swung it around looking for Naruto. The lighter stayed on by itself so all he needed to do was use it for sight.
"Let's make him regret chasing me alone…" pondered Naruto from the darkness. He was crouched behind a nearby tree and stared at Cato's back.
Grabbing a small rock near his foot, he threw it hard at a tree to Cato's right. With a loud "thunk," Cato instantly turned to look at the noise.
Running to Cato's left, Naruto gave a hard right hook that connected with the back of Cato's head.
This instantly dropped the boy from District Two into the ground with a thud. However, while this would knock out most people and even kill others, Cato showed why he was trained for this moment.
Getting back up, Cato searched around for his attacker. The lighter in his hand had fallen and so the light only radiated around him dimly. His machete was tugged tightly in the palm of his hand.
After delivering the left hook, Naruto dashed back into the darkness of the forest. He was using hit-and-run tactics to slow down his opponent.
"WHERE ARE YOU! SHOW YOURSELF!" shouted Cato with a face full of rage. He wanted to kill Naruto even more.
Naruto slowly pounced around his target with quiet footsteps. He needed to do more damage to scare off Cato it seemed.
While this may seem cowardly, Naruto knew Cato just needed one good slash to open a wound on his body. If that happened, then the infection could cause his own death if he wasn't careful.
"He'll have to come out eventually…" thought Cato as he scanned his surroundings, "All I need is one chance to grab him…"
Grabbing his empty water bottle from his pack silently, Naruto crouched to the floor while keeping his eyes on but surely, he scooped in piles and piles of dirt into the bottle. Once it was full and heavy, he aimed for his target.
Aiming for the center of Cato's back, he threw the water bottle full of dirt directly at his spine.
Cato, thinking this was Naruto, instantly turned around and swiped with his machete. This was his next mistake.
As soon as Cato turned around to slash at his invisible enemy, Naruto dashed around once more until he was behind Cato again. Running forward, he hooked his arm under Cato's left leg.
This caused Cato to crash onto the ground hard, knocking the breath out of him momentarily.
"Fuck this…" groaned Cato as he got back up, "I can't take this fight anymore… I'll just have to kill him later…"
Getting back up and grabbing the lighter that fell earlier, Cato gave one last glance at his surroundings. Not seeing Naruto, he made a mad dash back to the Cornucopia to hopefully meet the others.
Once he no longer heard Cato's mad footsteps, Naruto let out a massive breath he was holding in. Despite the darkness of the night, he made his way back to Katniss.
Hearing footsteps approach her location once more, Katniss tensed in preparation in case it was another Career Tribute that came looking for her. To her relief, she saw Naruto's signature spiky blonde hair in the dark.
"Hey Katniss," whispered Naruto as he slid down the slope to her location, "It's me, I made it back. Gave that Cato bastard the slip and he ran away."
Despite the dire situation she was in, Katniss couldn't help but chuckle at the image of Cato's big form running away like a little girl. Only Naruto could manage to pull something like that off.
Slouching down beside her, Naruto began to speak softly, "Listen, I think we should stick together for now. When morning hits, we can fill up on water and find a new location to stay at."
He then glanced over to Katniss, "Deal?"
"Deal."
Feeling relieved she no longer seemed to be distant from him, Naruto took off his pack and leaned onto the dirt wall behind him.
"Here," spoke Naruto as he handed Katniss the remains of the second rabbit he hadn't eaten yet.
Looking over and seeing cooked rabbit wrapped in leaves, Katniss couldn't help the watering that formed in her mouth. She hadn't had any real food in a while.
"Thank you Naruto," she said softly, feeling horrible that she ignored the blonde for a while back at the Capitol.
He waved her off, "Don't worry, just eat for now and rest. I'll take watch until morning hits."
Feeling useless, Katniss could only nod. As of now, she wasn't much help due to her injured leg and exhausted state.
As she grabbed the rabbit from Naruto's hands, their palms touched for just a moment longer than usual. The darkness hid the blush that appeared on her cheeks while she slowly munched on the food.
"Now would you look at that!" shouted Caesar Flickerman to his audience, "The Golden Boy from District Twelve helped his fellow female tribute immensely!"
Cornelius added on, "Indeed he did! He even risked his life and gambled that he could lead the Career Tributes away. A gamble that paid off, Caesar."
Neither had ever seen someone risk their life so easily for someone else in the Games before. This Naruto character was proving to be something special.
As morning came, Katniss was the first to awake. When the blurriness left her eyes, she realized that her head was on Naruto's shoulder and they were cuddled up.
Quickly jolting her head up, she straightened herself. This was the same action that awoke Naruto from his sleep.
Seeing that the sun was out, Naruto spoke up, "Good morning Girl on Fire," he teased.
Gently shoving his shoulder like an embarrassed girlfriend, Katniss spoke up, "Let's get up and go. My leg doesn't feel as weak anymore and I should be able to walk on it."
Nodding, Naruto helped Katniss up and watched as she tested her leg. Just as she said, she could walk relatively easily on it, but it would be best to get medical attention to it soon before it became infected.
Just before both tributes took off, they heard a slight "ding" in the sky. Looking up, they saw two small packages flying in on small parachutes.
As if they were perfectly aimed, each package landed directly into Naruto and Katniss's outstretched hands respectively. Twisting the lids open, they looked inside to see what it was.
Both tributes reached in and pulled out a card with writing on it.
Katniss read the words on her card, "Use it generously, keep alert, and stay kicking – H."
Naruto read his, "Someone loved your performance and wants to see you in action more. Don't die – H."
"These are sponsor packages," said Naruto aloud, finally figuring out what it was.
Katniss looked inside her container and pulled out a small steel can. Opening it, she realized there was burn ointment inside.
As for Naruto, there was a black pouch filled to the brim with something inside. Opening the zipper, revealed six throwing knives in perfect condition. Holding one up to the sun, Naruto could tell it was made of quality steel.
Placing the pouch on his hip, it clicked on like a belt buckle. Shaking it around to see the stability, he was pleased to find it stayed sturdy on his hip.
"Looks like I have something reliable to protect us with now," joked Naruto.
Katniss shook her head and smiled, not worried in the least about Naruto turning the weapons on her. She would finally give him a genuine chance and stop blocking herself from him.
Getting your life saved in a death match generally makes people feel more comfortable with you.
Kneeling, Katniss applied the burn ointment on the surface of her skin. It soothed the skin and lessened the pain slightly.
"How's your leg?" asked Naruto while looking over at Katniss.
"It'll heal," Katniss spoke as she wrapped the bandages from her bag around her foot, "These should hold the ointment in place until I need to switch them out later."
She was very happy that she visited the medical stations back at the Training Center right now.
Nodding his head, Naruto secured his backpack while Katniss did the same.
"Let's get out of here then," Naruto began, "The "dings" from our packages probably alerted anybody nearby that we were here. I'd prefer us to not get robbed just after we got our prizes."
Agreeing with the blonde, both tributes made their way through the forest.
Many hours passed as Naruto and Katniss wandered through the forest. They spoke, bantered, and joked with one another. They were trying to make the most of this nightmare while keeping their morale higher.
It was an unusual scene for many back at the Capitol viewing the Games, wondering why they both seemed at peace with one another.
As they turned a corner, they heard some familiar voices once again. Grabbing Katniss and ducking behind a tree, Naruto peeked over to see what the commotion was about.
"Come on!" shouted Cato at Glimmer who aimed another bow at the tree they stood in front of, "Hit her already!"
Glimmer let the arrow fly loose, but it didn't hit anything important.
Squinting his eyes to see what they were looking at, Naruto realized it was the girl from District Eleven. She was at the very top of a high tree and looked fearful for her life. He assumed they had found her and she ran up this tree to hide.
"What's going on?" whispered Katniss.
Naruto then spoke back, "The Career Tributes are surrounding a tree. The girl from District Eleven, Rue I think, is at the top. They're trying to kill her."
Katniss then felt a lump form in her throat at the information she was given. Rue was a little girl who was barely old enough to fight in the Games. She didn't deserve this fate.
"Please," pleaded Katniss in a whisper, "Let's help her."
Naruto nodded back, "Don't worry, I'm already ahead of you."
Peeking back over the tree, Naruto looked for anything he could use to help Rue. As he searched up and down, he finally spotted something that could be useful.
"Tracker Jackers…" Naruto thought as he noticed a nest was near Rue's hiding spot. If it dropped, it would land directly on the tributes below. He was very happy he decided to learn about wildlife back when he was training.
Searching for the weakest point in the nest, Naruto spotted where the nest hung by a thread towards the top. It was sturdy enough to keep the nest up, but he could easily slice through it if needed.
Slowly grabbing a throwing knife, Naruto took a deep breath. He had a few throwing knives, but he wanted to make sure he could hit it on his first try. If he didn't hit it, he would essentially be giving away his position to the Career Tributes.
Placing his left palm on the tree and exposing his body to get a better angle, Naruto aimed directly at the top of the nest. In the next second, the blade flew from his outstretched hand at is soared through the air.
THUNK
"YES!" thought Naruto in happiness. The blade had perfectly cut through the nest's support and embedded itself into the tree bark behind.
The nest then fell many feet to the ground until it cracked in half. Hundreds upon hundreds of Tracker Jackers then leaked out in a frenzy. They were angry and wanted to take it out on any nearby humans.
All four Career Tributes then smacked the Tracker Jackers away as they swarmed them.
"What the hell!" shrieked Clove, being stung a few times already.
"We gotta go," shouted Marvel as he began to run back to base, "Get out of here!"
Cato, Clove, and Marvel all began sprinting back to their base of operations. Glimmer wasn't so lucky, however.
"Guys! GUYS!" she shouted in agony, "Please come back! Help me! Please! GUYS!"
Her "friends" had abandoned her the moment she needed them most. After being stung repeatedly for minutes on end, Glimmer stopped moving. Her body no longer had life.
A cannon boom shot off in the distance, ensuring that Glimmer was dead after all.
Naruto calmed himself after hearing Glimmer's cries for help. He was the one that killed her and he was having trouble dealing with it.
Noticing that Naruto was spacing out, Katniss put two and two together. She gently placed both hands on Naruto's face and turned his head to meet her eyes.
"Hey, hey!" she began, "Listen to me, you did what you had to do. They've already killed so many and were planning on murdering that little girl. You did the right thing."
Naruto just nodded, not feeling the strength to talk at the moment.
Hearing that the tributes were long gone and the Tracker Jackers stopped buzzing around, the duo approached the scene.
Standing over Glimmer's body, Naruto grimaced at the sight. She was full of stings and boils were all around her body. The Tracker Jackers had left no inch of skin go unblemished.
Katniss then looked up to see Rue's startled eyes staring back at her. She decided to speak up, "It's okay, he's the one who dropped the nest," she pointed over to Naruto.
"I know…" said Rue softly.
Nodding her head, Katniss spoke out, "We wanted to help you."
After thinking it over for a few moments, Rue decided to take them up on her offer. She had seen Naruto throw the knife seconds before it flew. For now, they seemed trustworthy enough to be around.
Climbing down the tree, Rue stood before them both with a nervous expression.
"Sorry if we scared you," said Naruto while looking at Rue with gentle eyes.
"No, it's okay," responded Rue in a soft voice.
Before they could say anything else, Katniss realized the bow and arrows on Glimmer's body. Wanting to be well equipped with her best weapon, she pried the equipment off of Glimmer and hoisted it on her own back.
She now felt like she had a chance in the Games.
As Katniss fastened the arrow pouch around her shoulder, she felt a slight sting on the back of her palm.
"Ouch!" she cried while holding the back of her hand. It seemed a stray Tracker Jacker had been left behind.
"We have to treat that immediately," spoke out Naruto in concern.
Rue then chose this moment to speak up, "I can help…" she started, "I can help remove the venom with some leaves. I know a spot too…"
Katniss and Naruto then looked at each other before agreeing.
"Show us the way," Naruto said softly.
Nodding her head, Rue then began walking in a certain direction through the forest.
The trio decided to make small talk to pass the time as they walked.
"So Rue," started Katniss, "How is District Eleven like?"
Rue answered back, "It's beautiful, we have fields that grow much of the Capitol's food there."
"That sounds wonderful," spoke Naruto.
Rue nodded, "It is, but we can't keep any of it. If we're caught stealing food, we get whipped and sometimes killed…"
Katniss's heart clenched at hearing these words. It seemed that every District had its struggle with the Capitol in some shape.
Rue continued, "I even had this friend who took a pair of night-vision goggles one time. He wasn't going to hurt anybody, he just wanted to play with them…"
Seeing that she went silent for a moment, Katniss spoke up, "It's okay if you don't want to talk about it, Rue."
"It's okay," Rue said while keeping her voice still, "… He was eventually caught and they killed him. I sometimes think about him and get sad..."
"…Bastards, all of them…" Naruto thought while clenching his fist in anger. The Capitol didn't care who they hurt or killed, even if they were children.
The conversations they had going forward were much lighter in tone.
Soon enough, the trio arrived at a clearing of flowers everywhere. Crouching down to gather a certain plant, Rue then began using its properties to slowly extract the venom from Katniss's hand.
Katniss hissed in pain at first due to the tender flesh being touched but relaxed once Rue had separated all the venom.
"There, you should be good," Rue said while throwing the plant she used on the ground, "It's all out now."
Katniss grabbed more bandages from her bag and wrapped her palm a few times, just making sure nothing was exposed to infection.
"Thank you," Katniss spoke in a kind tone.
Not knowing what to do, Rue picked at the plants nearby. As she did, so did Katniss.
Katniss then weaved a small flower crown for Rue made of nearby sunflowers. Handing the crown to Rue, the girl happily accepted the gift and placed it on her head. She then began making her flower crown for Katniss in return.
Naruto stood in the back and watched them both with a smile, laughing at their childish actions.
This moment couldn't be taken away from them, so he would enjoy it while he could.
After they had finished playing around for a while, the trio laid out their supplies and counted what they had. Taking stock of their entire inventory, Naruto claimed he wasn't thirsty which left Katniss and Rue to share a bottle of water.
Once they were done resting and rehydrating, each member looked for some kind of shelter for the night. After searching, they came upon a large tree.
This specific tree was twice as wide as normal trees and reached far into the sky. Deciding this was their best bet for shelter, the trio climbed up the tree.
Finding flat branches, Naruto made himself comfortable while Katniss and Rue shared a branch. There were only two branches that could comfortably fit them all.
Grabbing her sleeping bag, Katniss snuggled inside with Rue. It felt wrong for her to only have the warmth and leave the young girl in the cold.
As for Naruto, he slept while sitting down in case he needed to be on alert. His situational awareness needed to be top-notch to not get caught off guard.
Just as he was dozing off for the night, Naruto heard Rue speak in a whisper.
"What do you think will happen if nobody wins the Games, Katniss?"
"Hmm… that's a tough one…" she began, "…I think if no one won then they would have to stop doing it because then they would never have a Victor…with no Victor, they have nobody to cheer for on their show…"
"...No victor, huh?…." dozed Naruto, "...it's an interesting thought…."
Letting the girls speak and gossip into the night, Naruto fell asleep.
The Next Morning
The trio awoke to the sound of a cannon boom early in the morning, meaning another tribute had fallen. They didn't know if any other cannon shots were played throughout the night as they all slept deeply.
Getting up, each member of the alliance got their things and slowly climbed down their tall tree. Once hitting the ground and helping Rue down, Naruto spoke.
"We need a plan of what we're going to do."
Both girls nodded.
"I have an idea," spoke out Rue. All eyes were on her, "I know where the Career Tributes have been keeping their supplies. They moved it from the Cornucopia… that's why they were chasing me down in the first place. I got spotted."
This piece of information instantly got the attention of both tributes from District Twelve. They finally had a way of hurting the strongest alliance so far in the Games.
"How's the layout of their camp?" asked Naruto with a thoughtful expression.
"It's all in the open, the supplies are gathered together in a circle. When the Career Tributes go hunting for another person, they always leave this boy behind to guard the camp. To help with security, they also placed the landmines from the platforms around their supplies."
Rue had been spying on the Career Tributes for a while to gather all of this information.
The duo thought about this for a moment then Katniss spoke, "Okay, we can work with this."
Naruto agreed, "Definitely, we just need to divert their attention into thinking they found someone, attack while the lone boy is defending, and strike."
"But the question is how?" replied Katniss.
Rue then raised her hand like she was in class, "I have another idea!"
Naruto smiled at the childlike wonder of the kid, "Go for it, Rue."
"I can light three campfires and make them think they're all different tributes."
"Not bad," replied Naruto. He then reached into his bag and pulled out his fire starter kit.
"Here," he handed her, "Use this to help make the fires, the quicker you can make them the quicker you can get out."
Rue grabbed the fire starter kit and nodded in appreciation for his help.
"So how do we split this up?" asked Katniss.
"I can go with Rue and defend her," replied Naruto.
Surprisingly, it was Rue who shook her head at this, "No offense, but it's better if I go alone. I'm quicker and faster when I'm by myself and I can climb if I need to hide."
"Are you sure?" asked Naruto while rubbing the back of his neck in nervousness, "I don't feel comfortable leaving a child alone."
"Don't worry," smiled Rue, "I can handle it."
Katniss then chose this moment to buy into the conversation, "But how will we know if you're okay or not?"
This made Rue pause and think for a moment. After a while, it clicked in her mind.
"I can sing to the Mockingjays, I used to do it all the time while working the orchards back home. If you hear my song, then you'll know I'm okay."
Katniss bit her lip in anticipation of letting Rue go off on her own.
"What's the song?" she asked.
Rue then let out a small tune that made Naruto and Katniss widen their eyes at the sound of it. It was a beautiful tone that resonated with the birds in the area.
"That's amazing Rue!" cheered Naruto, "You have a nice song."
Rue smiled, "Thanks, I practice with it a lot!"
The next few minutes went by as Rue taught the song to Katniss while Naruto stayed in the back. He didn't have a singing voice and was not scared to admit it.
Putting their plan into action, Rue went to go start the fires with the fire starter kit from Naruto.
Katniss and Naruto went to go see what they could do about destroying the supplies of the Career Tributes. Following the directions Rue had given them, they soon came upon the camp. Hiding behind some trees, both tributes spoke to one another.
"There it is…" whispered Katniss.
The supplies of the Career Tributes were stacked together and in a pile. The male tribute from District Three stood guard by sitting near the supplies with his back to the duo. The other three Career Tributes were making small talk and laughing further down the field.
"Katniss, look!" pointed out Naruto in a hushed whisper. Ahead of them was a sack of apples that dangled off the edge of the supply pile.
If they could get one of those apples to hit the mine, it would make the whole thing go kaboom.
Counting her arrows again just to double-check, Katniss confirmed that she only had five left in the quiver. It seemed that Glimmer had used most of them when she was still alive.
This was also the same amount of throwing knives that Naruto had as well.
"I'll do it," spoke Katniss before Naruto could reach into his pouch. Not arguing with the girl in such a pivotal moment.
"Look at that, we got a fire!" cheered Clove, stopping her sentence to announce her revelation. Taking a look at what she was talking about, the other two Career Tributes cheered in excitement. As they ran towards the smoke flying into the sky, Cato spoke to the male tribute from District Three.
"Do NOT let anything happen to this," Cato gestured to his supply pile with his hand, "Got it?"
The boy from District Three gave a shaky nod.
"Good."
With that being said, Cato joined Clove and Marvel in the woods. They were now officially on a hunt.
Pulling out an arrow and taking a deep breath, Katniss aimed the sack of apples. She waited for about five minutes to give time for the Career Tributes to run deeper into the woods.
In the next moment, she let go of the drawstring and watched as an arrow sliced into the sack of apples. She had hit her target dead center, just like in training.
The apples rolled off and one green apple tumbled down the crates of food. As it tumbled, it rolled onto the soft grass until it bumped into a nearby land mine.
BOOM
The loudest explosion that Katniss had ever heard blew her back a few feet. The explosion was so great, it lit a massive fire that reached into the sky. She could feel the heat radiating from the fire, despite being so far.
Naruto was also in the same situation as Katniss, being launched a few feet back as well. However, unlike Katniss, he was able to get back up rather quickly.
Katniss on the other hand was severely disoriented and had a loud ringing in her left ear. Her vision was blurry and she felt dizzy.
"Here," Naruto holstered Katniss onto a nearby tree, "Let me help you."
Their attention was diverted when they heard shouting in the distance. Looking over, they saw Cato had returned with an angry expression. Clove and Marvel were not to be seen with him.
They couldn't make out exactly what Cato told the boy from District Three, but they saw Cato mercilessly snap his neck suddenly.
This made Katniss feel fear in the pit of her stomach, being reminded of how ruthless Cato was. A cannon sounded in the distance which only confirmed his death.
Looking up from the body of the boy he had just killed, Cato spotted Katniss and Naruto at the same time.
"This is my lucky day!" he announced while running at the duo.
"Run!" Naruto whispered into Katniss's ear, "I'll take care of him. You go find Rue and make sure she's okay."
Feeling horrible at having to let Naruto deal with Cato alone a second time, Katniss wanted to refuse. She desperately wanted to refuse.
But Naruto did make a valid point, she needed to check up on Rue and make sure she was okay. After all, Clove and Marvel could still be after her.
Nodding her head, Katniss took off into the forest in search of Rue.
Cato didn't care that Katniss sprinted away, his target was Naruto. He wanted to pay back the blonde who humiliated him earlier in the Games.
Sprinting off, Naruto dashed deeper into the forest as well. He wanted to fight in an open area while Cato was unarmed. The last thing he wanted was for him to grab a rock, stick, or some other object to use in their upcoming fight.
Luckily, he didn't have to run far as he soon reached a clearing that was devoid of trees. It was just flat grass for many meters all around.
Stopping his run, Naruto turned around to face his attacker.
"Done running?" questioned Cato with a snarl.
"Running?" Naruto joked, "That was hardly a jog for me."
Not caring for his jokes, Cato charged at Naruto headfirst.
"He doesn't have any weapons on him… good. The idiot must have forgotten it while he was in a hurry…" Naruto thought as he watched Cato running at him.
While he could use his throwing knives in this situation, it looked like they would be engaged in close combat. Not only did Naruto feel confident in his close combat abilities, but he would also be wasting seconds by reaching into his pouch mid-fight.
In a fight, seconds could be the difference between life and death.
"I am on the edge of my seat Cornelius!" exclaimed Caesar on his show. "This is the first real encounter between two of the best tributes in the Games so far!"
Cornelius nodded, "That's right Caesar, many didn't consider Naruto's show in the dark to be anything more than stalling. Right now, we're about to get a real fight."
In a split second, Naruto and Cato went at it. They were both fighting for their lives.
Cato let off the first blow which was a left hook at Naruto's jaw. Moving his head backward slightly, Naruto barely avoided a fist that nearly connected.
Cato was planning to overwhelm his opponent like a rushing bull while Naruto planned his techniques as counterattacks.
Two clashing battle styles, only one would result in victory.
Not feeling discouraged, Cato kept attacking the blonde with jabs, hooks, and kicks. In response, Naruto blocked, dodged, or weaved out of the way.
Both were just waiting for a solid chance to strike.
Deciding to change tactics, Cato rushed Naruto's legs and planned to lift him into the air. Knowing what Cato was going for right away, Naruto brought up his knee which landed a sickening "crunch" on Cato's face.
Cato's nose was now broken and leaking blood profusely.
As a testament to his pain tolerance, Cato didn't stop his attack or cry from the pain. He followed through and lifted Naruto up.
Now in the air, Naruto adjusted himself to wrap his legs around Cato's neck. He squeezed hard. As his legs squeezed, he delivered elbow blows into Cato's skull.
In response, Cato started punching directly into Naruto's thighs, ribs, and legs. They were strong, powerful punches that made the fellow blonde wince every time they landed. His legs and ribs would be badly bruised from this.
Eventually, it was Cato who gave out first as he was losing too much oxygen from Naruto's leg squeeze and getting dizzy from the amount of blows that landed on his skull.
Cato fell forward on purpose, which resulted in Naruto hitting the ground hard. Using this moment to reset the fight, Naruto let go of Cato and rolled over.
Both fighters stood back up in an instant.
"Got to hand it to the bastard…" Naruto thought while wincing at his fresh bruises, "...he can take a beating…"
Cato was bleeding from his broken nose, had been choked out, and hit many times in the skull. Normally any other man would be out, but he just stood with a bloody smile.
The fight resumed.
Ducking under a missed right hook, Naruto grabbed Cato by his torso and picked him up. Grabbing him firmly, he slammed Cato onto the ground. This time, it was Cato who was on their back.
He took a few good hits in the side as a result when he held Cato up, which only added to the bruises he already had.
Cato coughed up some blood when he impacted the ground. Whether it was from the blood of his nose leaking into his mouth or a result of internal bleeding, he didn't know.
Getting on top of the fallen tribute, Naruto placed his hands around Cato's neck and began squeezing hard.
"G-Go a-ahead, kill m-me!" Cato coughed out while holding onto Naruto's hands, trying to pry them off his neck. His nose blood has smeared all across his face by this point.
It was difficult for Naruto as well. Having Cato's hands trying to stop him made this much longer than it should have been.
"But you'll never get to that little girl in time!" Cato choked out. "Marvel and Clove are looking for her!"
"Rue?!" Naruto thought in panic while keeping his hands firmly placed around Cato's neck.
This could all be a trick, he needed to make sure that he didn't slip up.
"And Marvel's good at tracking footprints!" Cato said with a red face, starting to lack oxygen. "I'm sure they'll kill her real nice and slow!"
"If what he's saying is true… then Rue and Katniss are in danger!" Naruto thought in realization.
Katniss was running after Rue not knowing that she could be walking into a trap herself.
Without realizing it, the trio were now separated which could be the perfect moment for Katniss or Rue to be killed without him being there.
"We saw you save that little girl with the wasp nest trick, so we know she means something to you!" Cato said with a sinister smile. He may die here, but at least so would Rue.
While running from the Tracker Jackers earlier in the Games, Cato glanced back to see Naruto's spiky blonde hair peeking around the corner. That's when he realized it was the tribute from District Twelve that had saved Rue.
Not having the patience to try and choke out Cato any longer, Naruto reared back his right fist and delivered a vicious blow into Cato's jaw. The punch rocked Cato's head to the side and put him to sleep right away.
Blood then slowly seeped out of Cato's mouth while he slumped unconscious. It was a miracle how he could put up with so much punishment in the first place.
"Fuck…" Naruto thought while nursing his hand and getting off the enemy, "I might have broken my knuckle from how much force I put into that…"
Not caring for Cato's broken state any longer, Naruto ran deep into the woods. He needed to check up on Rue and Katniss.
With Katniss
Katniss was sprinting through the forest once she had departed from Naruto's care. She would have to place her faith in the blonde once more as he dealt with Cato.
As she pushed past all the shrubbery and branches, Katniss eventually across a campfire that was not in use.
In fact, upon closer inspection, she realized the wood was set. The stones were even placed around it in a circle, but it was never lit. This was a bad sign.
Looking around for any clues of where Rue might have gone, Katniss heard a shrill scream in the distance.
"Rue? RUE!" she shouted while running to the source of the sound.
After sprinting so fast that her legs were burning, Katniss ran. She ran and ran, and ran, but it was too late. It was always going to be too late.
Pushing past some branches, Katniss came upon a horrifying sight. Marvel was crouching over a tied-up Rue who was in a net. The worst part was the fact he was smiling while looking at her body.
He held a spear that dripped blood, blood that was acquired from when he stabbed Rue through her stomach. She was slowly bleeding out… she was slowly dying.
"NO!" Katniss screamed. She drew an arrow faster than she had ever in her life and shot it through Marvel's neck.
Clutching his neck in surprise, Marvel turned to his left and realized Katniss had shot him dead. He had fallen due to his arrogance.
Dropping over, Marvel gurgled on his blood as the arrow protruded from one side of his neck to the other.
Within seconds, a cannon boomed which meant he was no longer among the living.
"Rue… Rue… Rue please…" pleaded Katniss while she slowly cut the rope off of Rue's body. Naruto had given her his Bowie knife in case she needed it for self-defense as he had his throwing knives.
Her arrows were great, but Naruto reasoned that she also needed something for close-range engagements.
As she sliced through each string of rope, Katniss let out trails of tears. Rue couldn't die her, she just couldn't.
Eventually slicing the entire net apart, Katniss split both ends apart and held Rue's head in her lap.
Rue could hardly see at this point, her vision had gone blurry due to the massive amounts of blood loss she had endured.
"K-Katniss….I'm sorry I couldn't succeed…"
Katniss hushed her, "No… you did great. You did amazing…."
She stroked Rue's hair while trying to comfort the young girl. This girl was about her sister's age… it wasn't fair she had to die here.
"Katniss…"
"…. Y-yes, Rue?…"
"…
…
…
… I'm scared to die…"
Katniss felt her heart clench at the statement. No child should have to die like this, or at all.
Trying to help the girl get her mind off what she was going through, Katniss began to sing for Rue. She sang the song Rue had taught her with the Mockingjays.
Rue listened intently, feeling at peace while Katniss sang for her. She had such a nice voice and it made everything slightly more bearable.
"Katniss…" Rue began.
Katniss stopped her singing to listen to Rue.
"Please… you have to win… for us…."
Katniss cried even more than she already was.
"… and I guess that Naruto guy can win too…"
Katniss chuckled through her tears, laughing at the idea of multiple Victors being allowed. It was such a pure and childish idea.
"Rue… what is your happiest memory?" Katniss asked while feeling the saltiness of her tears enter her mouth.
Rue then began talking in quiet, whispers while clutching her stomach wound.
They both went back and forth for a while, as Katniss tried to make Rue's death as painless as possible. She just couldn't stop crying the whole time, while stroking Rue's hair in her lap.
Eventually, Rue stopped responding to the conversation.
"Rue…. Rue…. Rue…." Katniss kept speaking over and over.
No answer was given.
A cannon sounded in the distance.
Biting her lips from the emotional pain she was going through, Katniss let out more silent tears. She stayed like that for a while, silently crying over Rue's dead body.
She suddenly heard footsteps coming from her right, which made her reach for her bow. Thankfully, it was Naruto who emerged.
"Rue…. no…. please, no…." Naruto said as he watched Rue lay peacefully in Katniss's arms. While running here, he heard a cannon sound which made him sprint even faster.
He could put two and two together.
"She's gone Naruto… she's gone…" Katniss choked out through tears.
Naruto then hurried over to Katniss and held her close. He looked down to see Rue's eyes staring right back at him, unblinking.
Softly placing his hand on her eyes, he shut them for good.
Both tributes stayed that way for a while, just consoling one another over a young girl's death. Knowing they couldn't stay there for much longer or risk being found by another tribute, it was Katniss who acted first.
She gently pried Naruto's arms off of her and stood up.
"I'm going to make sure that Rue's not forgotten…"
That was all Katniss said before she was gone. In the meantime, Naruto stayed with Rue and stroked her cheek with the back of his hand, almost like a father. As he sat there, a lone tear fell from his nose and landed on Rue's face.
As he stroked her face in kindness, he noticed something prodding from under her side. Taking a closer look, his eyes widened.
"She died… with the fire starter I had given her…."
It made his heart break.
Another teardrop flowed down his face, landed on Rue, and stopped. It looked like she was crying herself.
He gently grabbed the fire starter kit and clenched it. He would carry it onward for Rue.
Eventually, Katniss returned with a flower crown in one hand and a bundle of flowers in the other.
She crouched down and placed the flower crown on Rue's head. After it was situated, she began sprinkling the other flowers around her body.
Naruto winced, realizing that the flower crown symbolized the time she and Katniss spent together the day before.
As Katniss placed the flowers around Rue's body, Naruto spoke up.
"I'm sorry I wasn't here in time Katniss…"
"…. don't be sorry. It's not your fault, you were dealing with your problem…"
Naruto didn't know what to say at that.
As Katniss adjusted a flower near Rue's head, she spoke out once more. "Rue wanted us both to win these Games… and I plan on trying for it…"
Naruto said nothing but nodded, releasing another teardrop onto Rue's face. He couldn't stop looking at her peaceful expression.
After placing a flower bouquet in Rue's hands, Katniss was finished. Knowing they needed to leave soon, Naruto gave one last glance at Rue before standing up as well.
His legs felt sore from his fight with Cato as well as the sprint on the way here but he didn't acknowledge the pain at the moment.
Wanting to make a statement about the brutality of the Games, Katniss turned to a nearby camera she spotted from a tree. Looking directly at it, she kissed her hand before raising three fingers.
This was the symbol of unity back in District Twelve.
Realizing what Katniss was doing, Naruto joined in beside the Girl on Fire. He raised his three-finger salute in solidarity with his friend.
In District Eleven
Rue's father looked upon the scene of his daughter's death with anger, sadness, and hate. He felt hate for the Capitol and its twisted games.
He was the first to raise his hands from District Eleven as Katniss did the same. Soon enough, everyone near him raised their hands as well.
District Eleven then had each of their citizens raise the three-fingered salute.
But this wasn't enough for Rue's father, not even close to it.
Without saying another word, he attacked a nearby Peacekeeper who was on guard duty. As he swung his fists and shouted, others joined in.
As if a switch had been flipped, District Eleven's people felt a flame of resistance in their spirit. They had been oppressed for far too long, and Rue's death was the catalyst that lit the spark.
"NO MORE GAMES!" shouted the people of District Eleven as they rioted.
Steel containers full of grain were tipped over while entire buildings were burned down. Some Peacekeepers were also killed in the following violence.
The Peacekeepers tried their best to fight back against the people, but it was nearly impossible. They were outnumbered severely.
People broke into the Peacekeeper's armory and stole whatever weapons they could get their hands on. Others began stealing the food harvested to feed their resistance. The wheat that could never be touched before was now in the hands of District Eleven.
Fires erupted, chaos ensured, and people were killed on both sides. This was a full-on riot in District Eleven.
But beyond a riot, this was a call to action. District Eleven had made their stance very clear.
They would no longer stay quiet or in submission to the Capitol.
If the Capitol wanted to control District Eleven, they would have to fight for it.
Back with Naruto and Katniss
After leaving Rue's body surrounded by flowers, both tributes walked away in silence. They had collected anything useful from Marvel's dead body.
Night soon came so both tributes decided to make camp in a wooded area. They were once again in a tree.
The familiar sound of a "ding" assaulted both of their ears.
Looking up, there was a single package flying in from a parachute. It landed in Katniss's hands and she opened it slowly.
Inside were two loaves of bread for her and Naruto. The card inside read, "From us – District Eleven."
Naruto looked surprised, he didn't even know a District could technically be a sponsor.
Taking out the loaves of bread, both tributes took a bite and fell in love instantly. The bread was warm, and tasty, and fed their bellies.
Finding a nearby camera, Katniss spoke, "Thank you, District Eleven."
Naruto also nodded, appreciating their efforts. "We won't forget Rue," he said.
As night fell, the temperature in the arena began to drop quite dramatically. It went from feeling chilly to freezing in a matter of minutes.
"These Gamemakers are either trying to stir up a cuddle fest between these two lovers or are trying to kill any stray tributes!" spoke Caesar with a laugh.
Grabbing her sleeping bag, Katniss once more snuggled inside. As she felt the temperature drop, she looked over to see Naruto with his arms crossed and slouched over.
Feeling bad for the blonde, she spoke up, "You can sleep inside with me,"
Naruto jolted up and looked at Katniss.
"Just no funny business," she said with rosy cheeks.
Laughing at her assumption, Naruto accepted her offer as he was slowly freezing. Crawling inside the sleeping bag upon the tree, both tributes fell asleep.
Neither realized they had begun hugging one another deep in the night.
When morning broke, it was Naruto who noticed first. The sun had hit his eyes and he groaned awake.
Glancing down at his shoulder, he laughed at the sight of Katniss drooling on him. He gently shook her sleeping body.
"Huh, wha?" she lazily said.
"Wake up, Girl on Fire," Naruto joked,
Feeling the dried drool down her lips, she wiped her mouth in embarrassment.
It was amazing that each time she was alone with the blonde, it was always peaceful. Even in a death game where she should have sharp instincts, it all dropped while around him.
Ignoring those thoughts at the moment, Katniss opened up their sleeping bag with the zipper.
Getting up, both tributes climbed down the tree and plopped onto the dirt below.
"First order of action," Naruto said while wiping the dirt from his hands, "We have to find food and water, we're running low on both."
The pack they had taken from Marvel only had little food, three water bottles, and one set of binoculars.
They decided to leave his spear behind for obvious reasons. They wanted nothing to do with the weapon that killed Rue.
Walking through the forest, both tributes looked for a water source. Food could wait for now, it was water that was the priority.
The duo were in better spirits when compared to yesterday. It was a memory they didn't want to think of for now.
As they walked, they came upon a clearing. It housed a fresh stream of water, they had struck gold. Before they could make a move towards it, Katniss spoke.
"I'm not scared anymore."
Naruto gave a raised eyebrow in response, obviously confused about her sudden proclamation.
"I'm not scared of the Career Tributes anymore," she clarified.
Before Naruto could respond, an announcement came over the entirety of the arena.
"Attention remaining Tributes," it began, "A new rule change has occurred."
This perked up the ears of all those alive inside the arena.
"If the two remaining tributes alive are from the same District, both will be rewarded as Victors."
This made Naruto's heart skip a beat in happiness. They finally had a chance in this nightmare.
All the moments, memories, and promises of finding a way back together rushed into his mind. There was a chance. That's all he needed, a chance.
Katniss was nearly brought to tears in relief at the announcement. They both could find a way back home now.
"Furthermore," the announcer continued.
This made Katniss and Naruto snap back into reality, not wanting to miss a single word being said.
"There will be a feast by the Cornucopia tomorrow afternoon. It will contain one backpack that each Tribute desperately needs. Good luck and may the odds be ever in your favor."
The announcement was now over.
"A feast?" questioned Naruto aloud.
Katniss nodded, "That's what they said."
Naruto then laughed, "I don't even care about that if I'm being honest. I'm just glad we're both able to go home if we win this thing."
Katniss also couldn't help but share the blonde's enthusiasm.
Almost as if all the weight in the world was off his shoulders, Naruto kept on laughing. It was a joyful, boisterous laugh.
The laugh was so infectious that it also made Katniss break out into giggles.
They both felt a huge burden leave their spirit. They no longer were forced to kill each other, they could win this.
After their fits of giggles and laughter, both began to settle down.
Wiping a tear of joy away, Naruto spoke, "Then I guess we should make the most of this freshwater stream."
The duo then walked towards the stream of water and filled up their empty containers. They drank, ate what food they had, and enjoyed each other's company.
It was a miracle that Katniss could be seen in a good mood as she was often closed off to others. It just showed the effect that Naruto had on her.
For the first time since the Games began, neither tribute had thought of strategy, planning, or hunting. It was just relaxing by a freshwater stream and talking.
Eventually, it began to get dark. Realizing they needed shelter soon, Naruto spoke up.
"We gotta get going soon, the sun's going down."
Katniss agreed.
As they stood up in preparation to leave, they both looked further down the stream and were surprised at what they saw. Further down the stream, was a large cave.
Approaching the entrance, they walked inside and found out the inside was incredibly spacious. It could hold them both comfortably.
"Can I see those bandages you have?" Naruto asked while crouching down and rummaging through his bag.
Nodding her head, Katniss reached into her backpack and gave him what little bandages she had.
After wrapping her initial burn from early in the Games, she applied ointment and fresh bandages every few hours. She had long run out of the ointment and her bandages were almost out as well.
However, that didn't matter to Naruto.
Grabbing a stick in the cave, the blonde then began to wrap the bandages around the end of it. Making sure it was tight and secured, he then grabbed the fire starter kit from his bag.
After a few strikes on the cave floor, he lit a small flame onto the bandages. Once it caught, the flame broke out into a bigger ball of fire.
He had made a torch.
Bringing it up, he bragged about his work, "Ehh! Ehh!" he said while pointing at the torch.
Katniss only laughed and shook her head in amusement.
Naruto then placed the torch on a nearby rock and let the flame light the inside of the cave. It was nightfall by now and he wanted to keep some light for visibility.
A soft "ding" soon approached their position. Becoming familiar with the sound, Naruto went outside and encountered another sponsor package.
"Trust me, go to the feast tomorrow – H."
Inside the package was a small plastic bag with a white powder on the inside. Reading the label on the bag, it only said, "Mg."
"What was that?" asked Katniss while coming out of the cave to check on Naruto.
Turning around, he handed her the bag and card left by Haymitch.
"I think it's magnesium powder given the symbol on the bag."
"So why would we need this?"
"I'm not sure," Naruto said, "But I'm guessing it's to make a fire bomb. It's a highly flammable substance."
And just like that, Katniss gave the bag right back to Naruto. She had enough of flames in the arena, her burnt foot being a testament to that.
Naruto laughed. Those stations back at the Training Center were paying off right now.
Returning to the cave, both tributes made themselves comfortable. Katniss took out her sleeping bag and prepared for bed.
However, once again, the Gamemakers reduced the temperature once more across the arena.
"Those assholes," Naruto clambered with chattering teeth, "What's up with them doing this twice in a row?"
"I'm guessing they're trying to weed out anybody left in the open."
Naruto could see her point.
Seeing that her fellow tribute was doing less than spectacular, Katniss once again opened up her sleeping bag.
"C'mon in," she joked with a half smile and rolling her eyes.
Naruto smiled, "Thanks Katniss!"
Crawling in, both tributes got comfortable just like the night before. Hours passed before Naruto awoke in the middle of the night, having trouble sleeping.
Now this was hard for Naruto, his heart was racing again. He was here, in the dead of night, lying next to his crush. The girl he had slowly fallen for had her head on his chest. He assumed they must have moved in their sleep.
He didn't know if he should ever say anything or make a move on Katniss, especially if she didn't share his feelings.
What if he made things awkward between them?
What if he made her uncomfortable?
What if he messed up their current friendship?
"Right now isn't the most appropriate time to fall in love anyway…" reasoned the teenager with a deep sigh.
Thankfully, he didn't need to worry about those thoughts any longer.
In a sudden twist, Katniss reached up and touched his face gently with one hand. Startling himself, he looked down into Katniss's eyes.
She then reached over and kissed him.
He melted into the embrace and kissed back.
They had both just shared their first kiss.
ANNNNDDD WE ARE DONE!
This is my longest chapter so far and I hope it was well worth the wait!
I don't plan to keep my story the same as the films or books in terms of making it 100% accurate. Things will be changed and other events may be excluded if needed.
As always, please review! Let me know if you like it, didn't like it, or have any ideas!
Cheers!