Here we go with chapter eight! Hope you all enjoy it and please review!
Disclaimer: I don't own "The Hunger Games" or "Naruto," they belong to their respective owners.
Allies and Enemies
Katniss swam and swam until her lungs were burning and her arms were tired. But even then, she continued to swim.
Eventually, Katniss propped herself up on a strip of land before looking around her. To her left, it seemed another tribute had also just arrived. Not giving it another thought, she ran to the Cornucopia.
As she ran with all her might, she glanced over. There were tributes on other strips of land also running to the Cornucopia. Some she recognized right away, others looked blurry due to the distance they were at.
Step after step, Katniss made her way to the Cornucopia. The water droplets fell off of her body and splattered on the land below.
There was only one other tribute keeping pace with her that Katniss could see. All the other tributes were either far behind or still in the water.
This tribute soon fell as he ran, however, tripping over a rock in the way. This let Katniss take the lead and be the first one at the Cornucopia.
Loading up a quiver on her back and grabbing the bow, Katniss aimed. Scanning her surroundings, she noticed Gloss from District One. He stopped in his tracks after realizing that Katniss was armed.
She shot an arrow into his calf which made the tribute grimace from the pain. To avoid more damage, Gloss dived into the water below.
She also aimed at Enobaria who was on the other end, but she dived directly into the water without a moment's waste.
Hearing movement to her left, she directed her bow to see Finnick's smiling face. Finnick was holding a trident in his right hand while displaying a golden bracelet on his left. He held up his wrist to his face, purposely showing off his jewelry.
Recognizing it as the charm Haymitch had, she asked her question, "Where did you get that?"
Katniss never took her eyes off the opposing tribute, ready to shoot an arrow into his neck at any moment if needed.
"Where do you think I got it?" Finnick responded in a cool manner, "Looks like we're allies, right?"
Feeling tense, Katniss didn't know what to do. It wasn't until Finnick spoke, "Get down!" he alerted.
Taking a leap of faith, Katniss ducked and hit the ground. Finnick threw his trident right over her prone body, slamming into a tribute who was running up on Katniss.
They heard a cannon boom in the distance.
Walking over to the dead tribute, Finnick retrieved his trident with a grunt. Standing up, Katniss looked at Finnick with weary eyes, still not fully trusting the man.
Finnick then spoke, "Don't trust Districts One or Two. I'll cover this side and look for Naruto, you cover that edge."
With his piece said, Finnick turned the corner with his trident in hand.
Looking behind her for any more tributes, Katniss spotted another tribute far into the arena. She let an arrow fly and watched as it nicked his cheek, drawing blood.
The only reason it didn't pierce the tribute's head was because they were running onto the beach. The trajectory of the arrow was barely off.
"I need to fix that, I can't miss again," Katniss berated herself, knowing these moments would be life or death.
Hearing frantic footsteps, Katniss turned her head over to see Finnick again. This time, he had a worrying look on his face.
"Katniss, Mags found Naruto! But he's in the water fighting!"
Throwing caution to the wind, Katniss ran with Finnick as they approached Mags. Before she left however, she grabbed something that caught her eye.
Mags was pointing at the water and gesturing to the fight happening. She also had a forming bruise on the side of her face.
Far in the water, Katniss could see a fight happening. Upon closer inspection, she could see it was Naruto and the male tribute from District Ten fighting.
Leaving his trident on land and jumping in the water, Finnick swam after them. He just hoped he would make it in time.
Katniss raised her bow but she couldn't get a clear shot. Both men were tumbling and punching each other so violently that it would be impossible to tell who she would hit.
As for the blonde in the water, he was slightly struggling at the moment. He was thankful for his time training in the water during the Training Center or else this would be a much different fight.
However, his skill at hand-to-hand combat was slowly giving him the edge needed to win. It was only thanks to him being unfamiliar with underwater combat that was preventing him from ending it right away.
Grabbing the District Ten tribute by the front of his shirt, Naruto shoved him underwater. Just before both males went deep, he took in a deep breath.
Maneuvering himself behind his opponent, Naruto placed his arm under his neck. He now had him in an underwater choke-hold. Still holding his breath, Naruto then placed his right hand on the back of his enemy's head, ensuring there would be no escape.
With the technique properly set, Naruto began squeezing extremely hard. He squeezed and squeezed, and squeezed. He also made sure to pull at times when the tribute would try to claw or remove his arms.
After a few more seconds of violently jerking him around and choking him, the man in his arms went limp.
Hearing a cannon sound, Naruto let go and rushed to the surface. He was barely able to make it back up before he gasped for air.
The body of the dead tribute surfaced next to him, unmoving.
Seeing Finnick swim towards him, Naruto prepared for another fight. To his surprise, it was Katniss who yelled out, "Trust him for now! Please!"
Looking over, he saw his fiance in a desperate state. Her pleas must be true if she was still alive.
Glancing back over to the male swimming with him, Naruto decided to listen to Katniss's words. They both swam back to the strip of land and pulled themselves out of the water.
The couple hugged tightly for a split second, happy to see each other once more. Splitting, they glanced over at the Cornucopia only to see a group of tributes inhabiting the area. They could no longer go back there.
"Let's bounce," Spoke Finnick while putting Mags on his back. Nodding their heads, the duo joined Finnick in the forest.
After sprinting some time to create distance between the other tributes, the group of four took a rest. Reaching into her quiver, Katniss pulled out two trench knives, just the perfect size for Naruto's hands.
"I grabbed these for you," Katniss spoke with a smile. She felt much more useful in this year's Hunger Games compared to her last.
"Thank you, Kat," Naruto spoke with a smile, putting them away for now. They felt great in his hand.
Mags then hugged Naruto, surprising Finnick and Katniss at the sudden gesture.
"What's that about, Mags?" Asked Finnick with a raised eyebrow.
The old woman tried to explain with her gestures, but it was Naruto who spoke up.
"The bastard I was fighting tried killing Mags. He got one good punch in before I could take him into the water. I caught him as I was running to the Cornucopia," said Naruto with a serious tone.
Glancing over at the woman who practically raised him, Finnick had one thought, "That explains the bruise on her face…"
Looking into Naruto's eyes, Finnick thanked his fellow blonde. "I appreciate it, glad you got to kill him before I got my hands on him. I would've done worse…" Finnick let the sentence hang in the air.
Naruto nodded.
"But why risk your life for a woman you don't even know?" Finnick had to ask. It was out of the ordinary for a typical Hunger Games.
"I don't need a reason to do a good thing. Besides, I have a soft spot for older people," Naruto said with images of Edwin and Greasy Sae popping into his mind.
Katniss shook her head with a smile, "He's always been like that even back then, don't look too much into it. He's too honest."
Darting his eyes between both, Finnick decided to give up and accept their word for now. He would need to repay this favor sometime.
The group then heard four booms in the distance, signifying the death of four more tributes. Finnick let out a small laugh at the noise.
"Something funny?" Katniss asked in caution.
Finnick looked at the girl on fire, "I just love the sounds of those cannons. Each time one goes off, it provides me with just a little more security."
Wanting to diffuse the situation before it could get ugly between the two, Naruto stood up abruptly. "Let's get out of here, we should find a place to make camp soon."
Agreeing with the blonde's words, Katniss also stood up while Finnick placed Mags on his back. He would carry her throughout the entire Games.
It had been a while since the group had heard their last cannon "boom." Once they made their way into the forest, they had just been steadily walking until they made camp.
The tension between Katniss and Finnick was easily noticed by Naruto. It seemed that Katniss held a lot of animosity toward the fellow tribute while Finnick didn't care as much. Mags and Naruto got along just fine, happy to not be enemies.
Mags was happy that she didn't have to fight a healthy, young man while Naruto was happy he didn't have to kill an old woman. If only Finnick and Katniss could get along like they did.
Naruto took the lead in the group, slashing some vines with his trench knife. It wasn't meant for chopping, but it would do for now until they got something else.
As they walked behind Naruto, Katniss noticed something strange. A faint glimmer caught her eye as they walked forward. After giving it some thought of where she recognized it, she yelled.
"STOP! IT'S A FORCE FIELD!"
She was one second too late. Sparks of electricity erupted into the air once Naruto's trench knife made contact with the barrier.
Naruto flung back many feet until he slammed onto the ground. There was smoke slowly wafting from his body as he lay there, motionless.
Katniss instantly flung herself atop Naruto, putting him facing upwards. She lightly slapped his face in hopes of him waking up.
Finnick, seeing the dire situation, set Mags down to help. He pushed Katniss away and began administering CPR to Naruto.
Thinking that Finnick was trying to finish off her fiance, Katniss pulled an arrow but didn't draw it. She realized that Finnick was doing the opposite, he was trying to save Naruto's life.
After breathing into Naruto's mouth, Finnick would start some chest compression and keep the cycle repeating.
"C'mon…c'mon…c'mon…" Finnick said repeatedly while doing chest compression.
"He can't die… he just can't…" Katniss thought in distraught. She couldn't handle losing him.
Naruto opened his eyes to realize that he was lying down in a dark area. There was no light around him and he couldn't see anything past his hands. Standing up, Naruto could only hear the echo of his movements.
The world around him felt… empty.
"Hello?" Naruto asked, only hearing his voice repeat back.
Walking around in confusion, Naruto didn't know what to expect. The last thing he remembered was hitting a vine before everything went dark.
"Am I dead? Did Finnick stab me from behind?" Wondered the blonde. It was the only plausible explanation for now, as he would never suspect Katniss to kill him.
"Uhh…hello?…" Naruto asked again while walking around. Once again, he received no answer.
It felt like minutes to the blonde as he wandered around, but it honestly could have been hours. He lost all track of time as he paced.
Eventually, Naruto banged his head into something that sounded metallic. Rubbing the spot that should be in pain, Naruto was surprised to feel no pain. It was quite odd that he felt no pain when he should have.
Looking at what he hit his head on, Naruto realized it was a huge metal bar. Taking a step back, he noticed multiple rows of metal bars. The structure seemed like a prison of some sort.
"But what would need a prison this big? What's big enough to be housed here?" Naruto wondered while examining the cage.
Before he could inspect it any further, Naruto felt the area around him begin to get fuzzy. Slowly, the black melted and bright colors began filling his vision.
The darkness peeled away to reveal something that he missed, Katniss's face.
Groaning awake, Naruto was happy to see his fiance's face so close to his.
"Hey Kat… I think I died for a second…"
Laughing in relief, Katniss gave a kiss to her partner. She was overjoyed that he hadn't lost his life.
"You were dead, your heart stopped. Finnick resuscitated you." Katniss cried while holding onto the blonde.
"I'm alright. I was just taking a nap," Naruto joked while wincing slightly from the pain he was in.
Turning his head over to Finnick who was sitting on a nearby log, Naruto spoke, "Thanks for the help, Finnick. You saved my life." he chuckled.
Finnick smiled back, "Call us even for saving Mags."
This brought a smile to everybody in the group, feeling the tension slowly slipping away. It looked like Naruto was the glue of the group.
Standing up with the help of Katniss, Naruto stood up with a slight wince. He was hurting, but he would live.
"How did you even know there was a force field there anyway?" Finnick asked while placing Mags on his back.
Knowing she needed a lie so that the Capitol figured it out, Katniss said, "I could hear the low humming noise. It's a specific kind of frequency, hard to hear."
Being satisfied with the answer for now, the group began trekking through the forest once more. This time, Katniss led the group.
After traveling for a long while, the group was tired. They had not found a water source and only had a few rodents to eat. It wasn't much, but it was all they could gather from a hunting trip they took.
Placing Mags down gently, Finnick began setting the fire. In the meantime, Naruto gutted the animals they had caught for food.
As for Katniss, she climbed up a nearby tree to see if she could spot any freshwater. After climbing to the top, she looked around but saw no freshwater sources. However, she did notice the sky seemed much closer to the ground floor than usual. Aiming an arrow at the top to test her theory, Katniss was pleasantly surprised when it hit the roof of the dome rather easily.
Climbing back down, Katniss got to work to prepare their food.
Soon enough, the fire was roaring and the animals were being roasted. It was a quiet affair, with not much being said.
As the group of four sat around the small fire, they heard a loud anthem being played. Knowing this was time to honor the fallen tributes, they all looked up at the sky. Images then flashed of slain tributes who had already been eliminated.
The male tribute from District Five, the male tribute from District Six, the male and female tribute from District Nine, the female tribute from District Ten, and the female tribute from District Eleven were shown.
"Damn…" Naruto clenched his fist in anger, "…They got to Seeder…" The woman from District Eleven had always been nice to him.
"More people killed," Finnick said with a smirk, "Even better odds for us."
Katniss didn't respond, instead choosing to eye him carefully.
Naruto shook his thoughts away.
Deciding to speak up, Naruto laid out a game plan, "Let's keep watch as we sleep. Me and Finnick can take the first shift while Kat and Mags can take the second. We stay up for two hours each, wake the others up, then repeat until morning. Deal?"
Not seeing a reason to complain, Finnick just shrugged his shoulders in acceptance. Mags and Katniss simply nodded.
As everybody got ready for their respective tasks, they all heard a 'ding' ring throughout the air. Looking up, they saw it was a sponsor package. Standing up, Finnick was the first to reach it. Opening the package, he read the note inside which read, "I'm rooting for you! - U."
Not knowing or caring who the sponsor was, Finnick threw the card out. It was picked up by Naruto and Katniss to read, but they were also confused about who it could be.
"What's this?" whispered Finnick to himself while looking at the contraption in his hands.
Looking over his shoulder, Katniss realized what it was. "Can I see that?"
Nodding, Finnick handed the device over to Katniss. Examining the object, Katniss knew what it was.
"This is a spile!" she said excitedly. Katniss then ran to a nearby tree while Finnick looked on in confusion, still not sure what it was.
Grabbing a rock and kneeling by the base of a tree, Katniss slammed the spile into the bark. It took a few good hits before the spile was left standing on its own, protruding from the tree.
Waiting excitedly, Katniss had a big smile on her face. Meanwhile, Mags and Finnick look confused about what the contraption is. As for Naruto, he put two and two together after seeing the device and its use.
Moments later, a small stream of water began pouring out of the spile. It wouldn't last long, and it wasn't much, but it was perfect. They now had a water source, even if only temporary.
Taking a few gulps, Katniss moved away to let someone else drink. Finnick took the spot, drinking as much as he could while also washing his hands.
Stepping away, Naruto then knelt and gulped down many mouthfuls of water. He also washed his face while grabbing a nearby leaf on the ground. Cleaning it from the dirt, he then poured water into it.
Scooping it up, he handed it to Finnick.
"For Mags," Naruto said while handing over the leaf full of water. He had a soft spot for old people.
Nodding his head in appreciation, Finnick took the leaf and brought it over to Mags. He helped the older woman drink the entire water supply.
Drinking up, all four members felt much more refreshed than before. Removing the spile in case they needed it later, Katniss placed it in her quiver.
The group then started to get rest, wanting to be refreshed in the morning. It was during the shift of Katniss and Mags that they noticed something peculiar.
There were twelve gong sounds in the distance before lighting struck a tree far into the distance. It struck the tree multiple times before ceasing began. Filing that information away for later, the two women kept watch until the men woke up.
It had been some hours into the night before Katniss snapped awake. It was her and Mags' duty to keep watch, but she was falling asleep.
They had been going back and forth for a while now and she still didn't know if they could trust Finnick. Mags hadn't been an issue, but Finnick still made her tense.
Hearing a soft hiss far behind her, Katniss craned her head over her shoulder. Deep into the forest was an approaching cloud of white fog. It seemed to travel rather slowly, creeping up on the group.
Eventually, the fog was close enough that Katniss could touch it. Curious about its purpose, Katniss reached her left hand out to touch the fog. It was a mistake.
Instantly, Katniss felt her hand sizzle with pain and white boils appeared. The pain was so jarring, that Katniss fell backward while clenching her hand. It was such a horrible sensation.
"RUN! THE FOG BURNS!" Katniss screamed out while getting on her feet.
This alerted Mags who had her eyes closed, not keeping watch like she was supposed to. Finnick and Naruto snapped into motion, neither in a deep sleep due to their survival instincts.
Finnick grabbed Mags and placed her onto his back while Naruto ensured that Katniss ran with him. The group of four then ran through the forest and low-hanging vines, desperate to get as far away as possible from the fog.
As the four ran, Naruto tried his best to cut away branches and vines with his trench knives. It wasn't much help, but it was to clear the path for Finnick and Mags behind them.
The fog slowly crept behind them and for a while, the four thought they could outrun it. That was until they saw the fog creep from in front of them as well as to the right. Seeing as they could only go left, they decided to take that route.
Finnick's legs were burning from carrying Mags, sprinting through the forest, and stepping over rocks. It was taking a toll on his body. This was shown as the duo were slightly behind Katniss and Naruto.
Jerking right after seeing the fog cut them off once again, Katniss and Naruto kept their sprint. It was at this point that Mags and Finnick took a different route than the duo.
Losing sight of Finnick and Mags, Naruto and Katniss knew they had to keep running. So they did.
Sprinting far ahead, Naruto almost didn't hear the cry of pain from Katniss behind him. Turning his head, he saw that Katniss tripped and the fog had burned the backside of her leg. She was screaming from the pain.
Running over to his lover, he decided to carry her like Finnick carried Mags.
"C'mon, wrap your hands around my neck!" Naruto commanded to Katniss. The girl on fire nodded with a wince, wrapping her legs around his waist as well.
With his fiance secured, Naruto then began sprinting with all his might. He was determined to ensure neither died in this fog.
As Naruto ran, he caught sight of Finnick to his far right. It looked like they had been tagged by the fog a few more times. Despite this, Finnick still tried his best to carry Mags. Boils had started appearing on his arms, face, and neck. As for Mags, she didn't scream but her face held an expression of extreme pain.
At this point, the group of four was well ahead of the fog, but they didn't let up. They couldn't risk the fog catching them off guard or speeding up, both possibilities at this point.
Naruto kept running, with Finnick eventually catching up to them. Both men had their respective tribute partners on their backs.
That was until Finnick dropped. Hearing the thud of a body hitting the floor, Naruto stopped and saw Finnick groaning on the ground. It looked like his body could no longer support Mags from the intense pain he was in as well as the constant running they had done. Finnick did carry Mags much longer than Naruto had been carrying Katniss.
Biting his lip in frustration at what to do, Naruto spoke up, "Finnick, you have to get up! We have to go!"
Finnick spoke through pained grunts, "I can't…I'm too tired…"
"Can you run, Mags?" Naruto asked, watching the fog slowly approach them in the distance.
Mags shook her head sadly, knowing that she was too frail and took too much damage to sprint through the forest.
"I can't carry everyone… I just can't…." Naruto was exasperated, not knowing what to do. He wanted to just run with Katniss, but he couldn't leave them both either. It didn't feel like the right thing to do in his heart.
Katniss didn't know what to say either.
Mags then looked around before walking over to Finnick. She gave him one final peck on the cheek before willingly walking into the fog, gone forever.
"…Mags… MAGS!" Screamed out Finnick in despair, too tired to even walk to the woman. A cannon boomed mere moments after she had walked into the fog.
Naruto then set Katniss down and got to work, he was going to get all three out of there. Standing Finnick up, Naruto hoisted his fellow tribute over his back.
"Grab onto your legs," Naruto said as Finnick was stretched over his neck. Looking at Katniss, he stated, "Now get into my arms!"
Nodding her head, Katniss hoisted one leg before hopping into Naruto's outstretched arms. He was carrying her bridal style while Finnick held himself on the blonde.
"Fuck!" Naruto thought while sprinting through the forest, "It's so much weight!" Having two grown humans on your body as you ran put a strain on his body. Each step that he took was with gritted teeth and a clenched jaw.
However, Naruto didn't complain while he ran. He needed to get out of harm's way, and he wouldn't stop for anything. He would rather have a heart attack and die than drop both tributes from fatigue.
Thankfully, after a few minutes of running with strained muscles, Naruto turned around. The fog hit an invisible barrier, whispering upwards and dissipating.
Groaning, Naruto dropped unceremoniously as both tributes fell with him. All three moaned in pain and clenched their injuries.
Katniss was the first to move, crawling over to a nearby water source. She just wanted the water to cool her hand and ease the pain she was in. As she dipped her boiled hand into the water, she watched with amazement as the injury washed away. Even the pain she felt from the fog's burns went away.
Gleaming in excitement at the discovery, she shared it with her fellow tributes. "The water helps! It washes it away!" she said scrubbing her hand vigorously.
Finnick, hearing this, crawled to the water source as well. He eventually dipped his entire body in, gurgling the water as he screamed in pain. His body was in excruciating pain all around.
Naruto was the last to move, the most exhausted out of the group physically. It took the help of Katniss to get him into the water, helping the blonde immensely.
Eventually, all three tributes washed themselves in the stream of water they found while thinking over what happened.
"I'm sorry about Mags," Naruto whispered in the forest, "I wish I was stronger to carry her too… I'm sorry."
While it wasn't his fault, the blonde felt he could have helped more. He felt that Mags didn't need to die.
Finnick shook his head, "Don't be, you did enough… If we're being honest, she wasn't going to make it… but I couldn't abandon the woman that raised me…"
Naruto bit the inside of his cheek after hearing this, feeling even worse for his fellow tribute.
Katniss went to speak but her words were lodged in her throat after seeing something that shocked her. A group of monkeys were stalking the trio, jumping on branches around them.
"Guys… we have a problem…" Katniss said in a low tone while slowly reaching for an arrow in her quiver.
Looking back, both men saw a group of wild monkeys snarling with bare teeth. They were inspecting them all.
"Mutts…" Finnick whispered in shock at seeing these mutations.
Glancing over to his right, Naruto said, "There's a clearing to our right, it goes straight to the beach. Let's shoot for that."
Katniss and Finnick both nodded their heads while not keeping their eyes off of the monkey mutts. Katniss had an arrow ready while Finnick drew his spear. Naruto also clasped both of his trench knives in both hands, ready for a fight.
Some monkeys got near Katniss and jumped back, while others snarled at Finnick. Naruto kept his eyes on the supposed leader of the pack, given that he was much larger than the rest of the monkeys. This 'leader' seemed to hate the blonde, snarling while showing his teeth.
"We need to cover each other's retreat out," said Finnick in a low tone.
Seeing that they would be surrounded soon and have no opening left, Naruto shouted. "GO, I'LL COVER FIRST!"
And just like that, all hell broke loose.
The leader of the pack jumped at Naruto which he ducked under. However, he made sure to leave a deep gash on the stomach of the monkey mutt, causing it to fall dead with its guts falling out. This seemed to anger the rest of the monkeys as they screeched before attacking.
Katniss and Finnick ran down the forest trail, but they didn't get very far. Finnick had killed two monkey mutts with his trident while Katniss shot three more down. Unfortunately, Finnick didn't notice a monkey tackle him from his left. This left the two tumbling onto the forest floor.
Katniss couldn't help at the moment as she was shooting down more monkeys charging her. It was then that Naruto came to Finnick's help, slashing the monkey that was trying to kill him.
Pushing the monkey's dead carcass out of the way, Naruto helped Finnick back up with a hand. The two gave a nod of respect to the other before fighting their way out.
This time, it was Naruto and Finnick who ran ahead while Katniss covered. She sniped one monkey after another, but it seemed to never be enough. They kept on coming after her.
"KAT, LET'S GO!" Shouted out Naruto from further down the trail. Seeing that she needed to get moving, Katniss gave one final look before running. She heard the monkey's screeches and footsteps chasing behind her.
A monkey mutt then jumped from a nearby branch, ready to land on the girl on fire. Or at least it would have if Finnick hadn't thrown his trident into the monkey's chest. The mutt landed on the ground, giving out one final pained cry.
Finnick then grabbed his trident while covering the escape. They were close enough to the beach at this point that he could slowly walk backward.
As Finnick kept his eyes trained on the monkeys, he felt a hand on his shoulder. Naruto stood with his fellow tribute, ready to kill any mutt that attacked. Together, the both of them paced backward carefully while Katniss kept cover in the back. They were all working as a team.
Then, something extremely unexpected happened for the group. Two monkeys flew forward at the same time, each landing on Finnick and Naruto respectively. Feeling shocked at the scenario, Katniss shot down three more monkeys that tried to pile on.
Finnick struggled with the monkey's jaw clasping so close to his face as he tried to reach for his trident. One hand was on the monkey's chest pushing it away. He was mere centimeters away from the handle of his trusted weapon.
As for Naruto, he was physically holding back the monkey's arms with his own. It wouldn't last long as the mutt was superior in strength, but it was all he could do unless Katniss could snipe it or Finnick could help.
Naruto started grunting from exhaustion, close to losing his grip on the mutt's arms. This would spell certain death for him if he let go.
Then, seemingly out of nowhere, they saw a fellow tribute jump out of a nearby bush. They were camouflaged perfectly.
The tribute had a small dagger in each hand and stabbed it into the back of each mutt on Finnick and Naruto.
The mutt on top of Naruto snarled in pain and momentarily forgot about the blonde below him. Seeing the monkey get distracted, Naruto reached by his waist and stabbed the mutt through the head. The monkey then went limp, which Naruto then pushed off of him.
However, the mutt on top of Finnick screeched in pain before swiping widely behind them. One of these swipes managed to slash through the tribute's throat, causing them to fall with choked gasps. Blood was slowly leaking through their fingers as they tried to clutch the wound.
This gave Finnick the opening needed to grab his trident and stab the mutt through the side repeatedly. Once he was sure it was dead, he shoved the body off of him.
The rest of the mutts seemed to lose interest after this, running back deep into the forest with howls.
Noticing the tribute that saved them now clutching their throat, Naruto stood up. He ran over to their dying body and cradled them closely.
"It's the Morphling from District Six," the blonde announced while looking at Finnick and Katniss.
Finnick rubbed the feeling back into his arms while looking on with a sad gaze. Katniss, however, seemed confused.
"Why would she help?" the girl on fire wondered.
"I don't know," the blonde said while holding onto her body, "… I don't know…"
As the Morphling took her final gasps, Naruto thought back to Rue. The young girl died when she didn't need to. And now, this tribute would also die but this time it was to save them. Deciding to give her a proper goodbye, he cradled the dying tribute in a bridal-style hold.
Walking over to the water, he submerged himself up to the waist.
"What is he doing?" Finnick asked with a confused gaze.
"He's being himself," Katniss said with a sad look. The Hunger Games could never break Naruto, they would never turn him into a monster. He was too kind for that.
"Do you see the sky?" Naruto asked while looking up, "It's beautiful. I would sometimes look up at night and think that one day I could reach beyond the stars."
The grip of the Morphling was slowly fading. Her hands that were gripping his shirt were becoming loose.
"And do you feel the wind pass by? The trees swaying in the distance? The water's cool sensation?" Naruto asked while looking at the tribute, "It's all parts of life. It's all beautiful."
The Morphling looked on without being able to say anything. However, her expression slowly seemed to become peaceful.
"And think of all the people that mean the most to you. Think about the conversations you've had, the high moments of your life. It's all beautiful."
The Morphling went limp in his arms, arms falling to her side. Naruto just stared at the deceased woman, hearing the cannon sound in the distance.
Slowly, he retracted his arms and let the Morphling float in the water. Just before the waves could carry her, he closed her eyes in a final act of respect. She had died protecting him, it was the least he could do.
As Naruto stood in the water and watched the fallen tribute float away, he heard the sounds of a hovercraft. Looking up, he saw the flight-craft drop a crane and carry away her dead body.
"Why?" Naruto whispered aloud, "Why did she die protecting us? What was in it for her?"
Katniss stood by her lover, wrapping her arms around his waist. "I don't know Ruto. I don't know."
It had been about two hours since the Morphling's death. At that time, the three had decided to make a meal for themselves.
Naruto and Finnick were able to collect shellfish, one crab, and two fish. Naruto's knife, after being thoroughly cleaned of course, was used to help gut the fish.
While the men prepped the food, Katniss got to work on starting a fire. She had managed to collect water for the three while they hunted for food. With the help of the spile, she had collected three coconuts and filled them to the brim with water. One for each of them.
They had also received two packages in the meantime. One sponsor package was from the same person titled, "-U."
The package contained several food ration bars, two loaves of bread, and a bag of trail mix. It was quite a lot for just one package but the three had decided to add these on with their dinner.
The other sponsor package was from Haymitch and it had multiple containers of clean water. They decided to keep these for later on.
Haymitch's note was also interesting as it said, "People love this alliance, keep it strong – H."
Only Katniss saw this note before she crumpled it and threw it into the water.
The trio then ate their dinner with some small talk. Katniss and Naruto sat next to each other while Finnick sat across from them. The three ate cooked fish, shellfish, and crab. The food provided in the sponsor package was also scarfed down.
Finishing their dinner, the three felt full for the first time in a while. Getting up, the Golden Boy got ready to clean up. Just as Naruto stomped out the fire, the three heard a loud crash.
Looking in the distance, they could see a massive wave of water tearing down a certain section of the forest. It crashed through the trees in a rapid motion. They heard one shrill scream before silence overtook the area. A cannon then sounded a few seconds later.
The wave then slammed into an invisible barrier just before it reached the Cornucopia, slowly dispersing. The final ripple effects of the water barely made it to their feet.
A hovercraft then appeared, taking away one body from that section of the arena. It flew away just as quickly as it appeared.
Hearing voices, Katniss turned to her right and saw three tributes. She drew an arrow before saying, "We've got company."
Turning their heads, Naruto and Finnick also saw the tributes. However, Naruto armed himself while Finnick gained a smile after recognizing who they were.
"JOHANNA!" shouted Finnick while running towards the woman. He sprinted with his trident at his side.
Naruto looked at his fiance, "I guess they know each other." He didn't realize Finnick knew the woman personally.
Katniss had a weary expression, "I think we're about to find out if they're allies or enemies."
Taking her hand in his, the two then followed after Finnick. They did keep their guard up, however, not willing to risk it.
As they walked closer to the three tributes, they realized who they were. It was Johanna, Wiress, and Beetee. They were all covered in a red substance.
Beetee was washing himself in the water while Johanna talked to Finnick. Approaching the duo, Katniss and Naruto overheard their conversation.
"-so when we were in the jungle, it started raining on us. At first, I thought it was water, but it turned out to be blood. Thick, hot clumps of blood were pouring down on us. We were practically drowning in it…" Johanna said with an annoyed tone.
She then let out a deep sigh, "We also lost Blight to the force field, he hit it on accident. After that, we made our way here."
As Beetee cleaned himself, Wiress could be seen stumbling around. She was mumbling to herself over and over, twitching her fingers.
Her rambling could then be heard. Wiress kept repeating the phrase, "Tick, tock," over and over again.
Wiress eventually stumbled into Johanna, who pushed her away out of frustration. This made Wiress fall onto her butt with a thud.
"Get the FUCK off of me, you crazy bitch!" yelled out Johanna, feeling her tipping point.
Seeing this, Katniss felt the need to defend the woman. "Hey, leave her alone!" She then shoved Johanna just like she had done to Wiress.
Immediately, Finnick held back Johanna before she could retaliate. Naruto also came up behind his fiance, wrapping his arms around her to prevent a fight.
"I got both of them out, FOR YOU! FOR BOTH OF YOU! And this is the thanks I get!?" shouted Johanna while Finnick slowly dragged her away.
"For me? For us?" Asked Katniss in confusion, "What does that mean?"
Naruto let go of his fiance, "I'm not sure, I'm drawing a blank myself."
Seeing Wiress slowly get back up, Katniss decided to put Johanna's comments to the back of her mind for now.
"Here, let's go get you cleaned up," Said Katniss in a gentle tone. Grabbing Wiress by the hand, she led her into the water to wash off the blood staining her body.
As Katniss cleaned the crazed woman, she heard the same two words over and over again. "Tick, tock" was the only thing that Wiress was capable of saying at the moment.
"I know, tick, tock," responded Katniss gently while washing her hair.
"Tick, tock," said Wiress. "Tick, tock. Tick, tock. Tick, tock."
Katniss just hummed in agreement while cleaning the woman. However, she soon heard a familiar sound of lightning charging up.
Looking up, she saw lighting strike the same tree the night before in the same spot. Once again, it struck the tree multiple times before stopping.
"Tick… tock…" Katniss thought in amazement. "I get it now…it's a clock!… the arena's a clock!" Looking all around her, Katniss could see the layout finally. The strips of land and Cornucopia made up the functions of a clock.
"Wiress, you're a genius!" cried out Katniss in joy, cheering on the woman. Wiress simply smiled and said her phrase once more.
The group of tributes were all walking towards the Cornucopia. They were all washed up and clean. Beetee did have a slight wound on his back from a knife earlier in the Games, but he would survive. In his eyes, it was worth it, as he was able to acquire a coil roll from the Cornucopia.
The group of tributes were all walking on a strip of land, watching their every step.
Katniss took the lead, "The layout of the arena is similar to a clock. There's a new threat every hour, but it's confined to their specific section. The lightning, monkeys, fog, blood rain, are all threats within the first four hours. Then at ten, that huge wave crashes down from over there," Katniss pointed out.
Reaching the Cornucopia, the group huddled in a circle while discussing the theory.
"The tail end of the Cornucopia," Finnick pointed out, "Points to twelve."
Naruto nodded, "It also points to the tree that gets struck by lightning." As he walked by the weapons rack, he noticed a pouch of throwing knives. It looked like the tributes this year didn't care for the weapon as much as his first Hunger Games. Deciding to arm himself, he took the blades and pouch while strapping it to his waist.
"Which tree?" Asked Beetee while looking around. Naruto then directed his gaze to the tall tree in the distance.
Wiress chose this moment to sit down on the outer edges of the Cornucopia, mumbling to herself. Everyone glanced at her before speaking again.
Pointing his finger in the gravel, Naruto made a circle with clock hands. He then began assessing what they knew.
"So from twelve to one, we have lighting. From one to two, we have blood rain. Following the pattern, we then get fog and monkeys. Finally, we have the wave from ten to eleven."
"We just need to stay clear of any section under danger, and we should be fine." Beetee pointed out.
The rest of the group nodded, coming to the same conclusion. That's when they heard Wiress gasp behind them. Turning their heads, everyone was surprised to see a shirtless Gloss retrieving his knife from Wiress's neck.
With wide eyes, Katniss drew an arrow quicker than Gloss could react, shooting him in the heart. Just to be sure he was dead, Naruto followed up with a throwing knife to the head, hitting him between the eyes.
Gloss and Wiress then slumped backward, both dead. Two cannon shots were heard.
"AHHH!" screamed Cashmere who erupted from her hiding spot. She was charging at Katniss's blind spot.
Thinking quickly, Johanna shoved Katniss out of harm's way while also throwing her axe with one hand. In a fluid motion, the axe spun in mid-air before lodging itself into Cashmere's chest. The impact was so great, that it forced the tribute to fall on their upper back due to the force of the hit.
Hearing a clang of steel, Katniss and Johanna turned their heads to see that Finnick was fighting with Brutus. His trident was holding off the man's metal staff. That was until Enobaria came around the corner and threw a dagger into Finnick's thigh.
Finnick grunted in pain while falling on one knee, having a dagger lodged into his thigh was extremely painful. Seeing his opportunity to kill the blonde, Brutus raised his metal staff. However, a throwing knife was then lodged into his shoulder, forcing him back with a pained hiss.
Looking over, Finnick saw Naruto with an outstretched hand, showing that he was the one to throw the knife. Enobaria then threw another dagger, this time at Finnick's head. This time, however, Naruto intercepted the projectile with his blade.
CLANG
Both blades hit in mid-air before dropping.
"That's just like… when he protected me from Clove…" Thought Katniss in amazement at seeing the same thing twice.
Cutting their losses, Brutus and Enobaria ran around the corner of the Cornucopia. They were aiming at retreating for the moment.
Plutarch liked to consider himself a patient man, but even a patient man has his limits. He was overlooking the arena with his staff members. Right now, he was not pleased at the state of things.
It looked like the tributes had figured out the layout of the arena as well as its meaning. This would cause issues for Plutarch if Snow found out. They weren't supposed to find out the arena's meaning this quickly.
Wondering what to do, Plutarch was struck with a great idea. Pacing around the table with the tribute's tracker in them, Plutarch spoke out.
"Spin the arena," He said while walking around, "I want it to violently shake."
Nodding their heads, a certain Gamemaker punched in some numbers on his touchpad. With a few more clicks, they placed their hand on the screen and began to turn it.
On-screen, everyone overseeing the Games could see the land under the Cornucopia begin to spin rapidly. It started with a low rumble before it took off, causing each tribute to latch on.
"Let's see what they do now," Thought Plutarch while examining his hologram.
Just as Naruto was about to give chase to the fleeing forms of Brutus and Enobaria, the ground under him began to rumble. This forced him to give up chasing the two tributes, who had already made their way into the jungle.
The shaking eventually got to a point that each tribute fell to their feet. Everyone was dispersed in different areas.
Katniss latched onto a work with only her left hand and tried to plant herself into the ground. Johanna was right next to her, not faring much better.
Finnick was by himself, however, he was lucky. Right before the arena began spinning, he had fallen into a small pocket with a protruding rock. This meant he would be fine as long as he didn't move much, which was perfect as he had a thigh injury.
Naruto had managed to catch his fall and only slipped a few feet. He grabbed both trench knives by his waist and stabbed them deep into the rock. Both blades were slipping, however, causing him to have to constantly re-stab them into the ground.
Looking over his shoulder, Naruto saw Beetee a few feet away. The older man was having trouble staying on the platform, barely able to hold his body down.
Hearing a clunk of water splash below him, Naruto was able to catch the bodies of Wiress and Gloss fall into the water. He assumed Cashmere must have fallen in sometime before as well.
The arena continued spinning, causing weapons to fly at the tributes. Water lashed out, nipping at the heels of many tributes.
It felt like forever to Naruto, having his muscles begin to strain while holding himself up. It looked like he hadn't fully recovered from holding up Katniss and Finnick earlier in the day. The monkeys he had to fight afterward also drained him as he had no rest afterward. Even his stamina had limits, and he was feeling it.
Beetee grunted in exhaustion, close to letting go. His grip on the rocks was slipping and he didn't have much strength left in his arms.
"I'm close to slipping!" cried out Beetee, closing his eyes from the exertion.
"Don't let go!" Shouted out Naruto over the crashing waves under them, "Try to reach for my hand!"
It would be difficult to grab onto Beetee, but Naruto had to try and save the man. It wouldn't be right for Beetee to die in this manner, besides, he was always kind to him and Katniss.
Releasing the hold on one of his trench knives, Naruto outstretched his right hand as far as he could.
Beetee tried, he did, but it was too much for him. As soon as he reached one hand out to Naruto, he slipped back into the water. He fell in while his coil stayed on the platform.
"BEETEE! NO!" Shouted out Naruto in shock, not expecting the man to fly back so suddenly or violently.
Things were not looking much better for Katniss or Johanna. Katniss felt her grip slipping just like Beetee did. The rocks were getting wet from the water, which made it harder to get a good grip.
The slippery surface was causing her feet to slowly slide as well. Eventually, her fingers slipped away and she slid down the platform. It was only thanks to Johanna grabbing her arm at the last second that saved her from immediately drowning.
"C'MON! STAY WITH ME!" Johanna shouted out through gritted teeth. She had planted her axe in the rock, hoping it would help leverage both of them.
Johanna tried her best to keep Katniss from falling into the water, but it was progressively getting harder. Each second that passed felt like a year for the girl, her arm screaming from exhaustion. Holding up the body weight of another tribute with one hand was not easy.
A lone dagger then flew through the air, one of the many weapons flying down from the Cornucopia. This dagger sliced Johanna across the top of her wrist, leaving a very light gash. However, this sudden pain shocked the girl long enough that she lost concentration.
In the very next moment, Johanna's grip loosened as Katniss fell below. She submerged in the water instantly.
Two seconds later, the arena stopped spinning much to the delight of each tribute.
Katniss resurfaced with a gasp, choking out the water that had filled her lungs. With a few heavy coughs, she climbed back atop the platform. Johanna was the first to reach her, helping her up.
Clearing away the water from her eyes, Katniss looked around. She could only see Johanna and Finnick.
"Where's Naruto and Beetee?" Katniss asked, her heart getting worried.
Finnick shook his head, "I don't know. As soon as the platform stopped spinning, I didn't see either of them."
When the arena stopped spinning for the Golden Boy, he jumped into action right away. Beetee had been under the water for about ten seconds at this point and he feared the man would drown with these violent waves crashing into him.
Placing both trench knives away, Naruto dived into the water in search of their missing tribute. He held his breath and kept his eyes open, eager for any sign of the man.
"Where are you… where are you… where are you…" Naruto pondered while swimming around the Cornucopia. Just then, a glint caught his eye in the water. Swimming over, his eyes widened.
There he saw Beetee unmoving, slowly sinking below. Hooking one arm around the man's chest, Naruto began swimming back to the surface. Reaching the rock above, he placed one palm on the platform.
With a heave of extreme exhaustion, Naruto slammed Beetee's form onto the solid land. The man was soaked and unconscious while lying down.
Getting himself on the land, Naruto dragged Beetee closer inland before stopping. Grabbing the man under his armpits, Naruto jerked him on his feet. This made Beetee slouch forward in the blonde's grasp.
"You're not dying today, c'mon!" Naruto said while placing both hands at the center of Beetee's body. With a squeeze, Naruto began to push into Beetee's torso. He was doing the Heimlich maneuver.
It took a few times and some patience before Naruto saw Beetee cough up mouthfuls of water. Once he saw the man was moving again, he gently let go.
Beetee awoke to see himself standing on land again, feeling someone behind him. It only took him seconds to realize he had just coughed out the water he inhaled when drowning. He then stood up on his own.
Wiping his mouth with the back of his hand, he looked at the blonde. "You saved my life, thank you."
Before Naruto could respond, they heard the shouts of their fellow tributes. Looking over, they saw Johanna, Finnick, and Katniss jogging over to them.
"Are you both alright?" Katniss asked.
Glancing back at Beetee, Naruto answered for both of them. "We're fine." He wouldn't mention saving Beetee's life, it wasn't necessary.
Hugging the blonde, the couple shared a quick moment. Separating, Johanna spoke out in annoyance.
"Let's get what we need and go, this place is a death trap."
Nodding their heads, the rest of the group gathered whatever supplies they needed before walking onto the beach. Beetee made sure to gather the coil that he left behind earlier.
Walking off the land together, the group eventually made their way to the beach. They huddled around, discussing strategy.
"So who do we have left?" asked Katniss while looking around.
"Well we have Brutus and Enobaria for sure," Naruto responded with his arms crossed.
"I'm guessing Chaff too," said Finnick while cleaning his trident.
"They know we have the strength in numbers, they'll be hiding from us. We'll need to go on the offensive," said Johanna.
Before any other words could be said, everyone heard a shout. It was faint at first, before getting louder. It was somebody screaming, "HELP ME!" over and over.
"That sounds like…Prim?" Naruto thought in confusion, wondering how this was possible.
"KATNISS, HELP ME! KATNISS!" The voice screamed out deep in the jungle.
"Prim? PRIM!" Katniss shouted back, running deep into the woods. She abandoned all logic and reason after hearing her sister screaming for her.
"Kat, wait!" Naruto yelled but it was no use. Katniss had already run deep into the jungle.
Katniss ran as fast as her legs could take her. She ran and ran, trying to locate the source of Prim's voice.
"PRIM!" Katniss yelled out with desperation, "PRIM! WHERE ARE YOU?!"
She scanned her surroundings but didn't see her sister. It was all confusing for the girl on fire as it sounded like she was next to Prim already. The voice sounded to clear, like it was right next to her.
Looking up, Katniss saw a bird flying around her location. Pulling out an arrow, she sniped it and it fell. Prim's voice then ceased, hearing her no more.
Finnick was the first to reach Katniss. She had run off so fast into the jungle, it was hard to locate her. The group had decided to split up and Finnick found her first.
"Katniss, are you okay?" he asked with worry. Before she could respond, another scream was heard. However, this voice was unfamiliar to the girl on fire.
"Annie? ANNIE!" Finnick screamed with fear in his eyes. He sprinted past Katniss and deeper into the jungle.
Katniss was able to snap out of her shock and grabbed Finnick by his shoulder before he could run off too deep. "Finnick, it's all a trick! It's jabberjays, none of this is real!"
Finnick snapped back at her, "And how do you think the jabberjays got those noises? They copy!"
"…they… copy?" Katniss asked, feeling her stomach sink.
Suddenly, Katniss heard a new voice screaming out for help. This was her mother.
"Mom?" Katniss asked aloud in confusion.
A swarm of jabberjays then entered the area and shouted at Katniss and Finnick. These screams asked for help and only got louder.
Not wanting to stay here any longer, the pair ran together out of the jungle. They ran while jumping over rocks and ducking under branches. As they sprinted, the jabberjays followed while screaming louder. More and more jabberjays were joining the pack.
Katniss felt relieved when she saw Naruto waiting down the trail she was running on. Far into the distance, she could see him waving his hands above his head. Johanna was standing next to him.
Finnick also saw the pair and ran alongside Katniss.
However, just before Katniss could touch her fiance, she ran into an invisible barrier. She slammed her hands onto the barrier, but it did no good. Finnick was off to her side and also slammed into it with his shoulder. When that didn't work, he tried stabbing his trident through it, again with no results.
Katniss felt defeated hearing the voices of her loved ones constantly screaming around her. It was all too much for her at once. Falling to her knees, she sank while clutching her ears. She tried to drown out the screams but it wasn't doing much good.
"It's okay, it's all fake! It's only jabberjays! It's not real! None of this is real!" Naruto screamed through the other side of the barrier. He tried his best to comfort his lover, but his words were not reaching her.
Johanna just looked on with empathy at the duo's suffering. Even she didn't think Katniss deserved something like this. She bit her lip in frustration at not being able to help either.
"DAMN IT!" Naruto yelled out at seeing his fiance crumple to the ground. He reached out a trench knife and slammed it over and over again into the barrier. This didn't do anything besides make his hand bleed due to the constant rubbing of his skin on the steel handle.
"C'mon! C'mon!" Naruto screamed while trying to break through. He would do everything in his power to help Katniss.
His heart broke when he saw the love of his life go into a fetal position, clutching her ears, and crying softly. She looked broken.
"C'MON! C'MON!" Naruto screamed while stabbing his blades over and over and over again. He had to keep trying.
"Stop…" Johanna whispered while looking at the scene, "You'll only hurt yourself, you won't be able to get through it. This will only last for an hour anyway, so we just have to hold out till then."
Naruto didn't care however and he kept trying. Katniss was no longer looking at him, instead shutting her eyes while rocking back and forth.
As for Finnick, he was slumped over on his knees. He looked defeated and heartbroken as well.
It was pure torture for an hour, just in different ways for all the tributes.
BOOM, DONE!
We have officially finished the eighth chapter so far, and I'm excited for more. We have a lot of plot points that are going to be used in upcoming chapters.
As always, please review! I read them and it helps with the story!
Thanks for your time!
Cheers!