Apologies for not being able to update this story in a while, am getting very less time to write these days.
Thank you for the support so far. Hope you continue it.
Chapter 7
Battle of Nagaon: Part 2
Kakashi and his Red team of the 10th Shock troopers had taken the lead in taking the Spartans of Noble Team towards the Southern and Eastern defensive lines of the Nuira Starport zone.
They were joined by few marine squads and the sole surviving Nightmare Battle Tank from the Western line which these Spartans had helped secure with brutal efficiency.
"We should split our forces in two, Commander Ruto. Enemy air attacks and heavy armor have nearly decimated every friendly tank and IFV's on the western line, whereas a massive infantry force supported by heavy artillery and sniper fire is crushing the eastern line" suggested Kakashi, as he continued receiving critical intel from headquarters on the developing situation.
"Noble-2, lead a fireteam consisting of Nobles- 4 and 7 to assist the eastern line" commanded Naruto swiftly, earning a firm nod from Sasuke and acknowledging lights on his HUD from Gaara and Neji who would go alongwith him.
"Asuma, take Anko from our team and Delta, Bravo and Echo marine squads to assist Noble-2 and his fireteam" concurred Kakashi, which earned him swift nod from his two teammates and the respective Marine NCO's leading their squads.
"Kurenai and the rest of the marine squads on me! We will assist Noble-1 and his remaining fireteam to clear the Southern sector, same goes for you Butcher-1" commanded Kakashi, earning a chorus of affirmative's from the remaining Marine NCO's.
"Solid Copy, Captain Kakashi" came the voice of the lone Nightmare Battle Tank commander in their ranks,
Naruto watched as their force started splitting up into the decided ranks, with Samui, Pakura and Darui coming upon his flanks while the rest of Noble departed under Sasuke's command together with the three marine squads towards the eastern line.
Even as Kakashi, Kurenai alongside the remaining marine squads and the lone tank followed after the rest of Noble Team, the Shock Trooper Captain couldn't help but feel these lethal warriors were deliberately keeping a moderate pace in their run so the rest of the force could keep up.
As they neared their destination, they could hear a massive exchange of gunfire and bombs not too far away.
"Noble-3, you are on overwatch. Clear the skies of any banshee's trying to take us out from air and any hidden snipers" instructed Naruto,
"Will be done" acknowledged Samui with determination,
"I want all marines to bolster our crumbling defensive line and start tending to our wounded, you must stabilize our defenses, while the rest of Noble under my command alongside Captain Kakashi and Kurenai take the fight to the enemy alongside Butcher-1" ordered Naruto,
While the marine NCO's were quick to share their acknowledgement of the orders, there was some hesitation from the others.
"My sensors are showing there are atleast Six Wraiths in the area, alongside atleast eight banshee aerial units. We will join your charge, Spartan. But it won't be long before my lone tank is obliterated against this much enemy firepower" said the Tank commander grimly,
"Understood, Butcher-1. Spartans will lead the charge and draw as much attention and firepower towards us, you and the Shock Troopers back us up the best you can" reassured Naruto calmly,
"We will do what we have to, Noble-1. For as long as we can" assured Kakashi grimly,
"Zulu squad requests to join your frontal assault, Noble-1. You and the Shock troopers could use the help" said Sergeant Massani, the lead NCO of said Marine squad making Naruto look in his direction.
"You sure about this, Sarge?" asked Naruto seriously, and looked at the marines following the man. None of whom were shinobi but just normal human beings who didn't have the ability to wield chakra in combat. They were well trained soldiers but against the enemy they were going up against...their chances of survival were slim.
"These devildogs are some of the toughest bastards I have served with. We will handle our own and prevent enemy infantry from disrupting you from reaching your main objective- the tanks" promised Sergeant Massani, earning firm nods from all the marines of Zulu squad.
Naruto remained silent even as he contemplated the offer from the marines.
Few moments later, the mixed group of Terran fighters and their lone tank reached the edge of the battlefield which was the Southern line surrounding the Starport.
Or what was left of it now.
A dozen Terran tanks alongside IFV's were nothing but smoking pieces of junk across the battlefield. Two companies worth of enemy infantry was leading an assault on the remaining Terran Marines desperately trying to hold the line while under constant fire from Banshee's in the air and Wraith tanks of the Otsutsuki in the rear.
Naruto's suite sensors barely captured three platoons worth of friendly forces left, most of whom didn't look to be in good shape.
"One direct hit from those tanks and you'll be toast, brat"
Naruto was surprised upon hearing the Nine Tailed Fox's voice, the beast was not much for conversation but had gradually co-operated in lending its power to him over the past few months of training after he had proven his will was strong enough to resist the fox from completely taking over his body.
"What do you have in mind, Fox? I am open to suggestions"
Kurama couldn't help but smirk at the reply, contrary to its concerns of being sealed inside a whiny, weak or arrogant human- he had been assigned a host strong enough to hold himself against the strongest of the Biju's; but one who had the sense to listen to suggestions on the battlefield.
Something which Kurama found quite accepting, not that he would ever say it outloud.
"You'll need more numbers if you want to destroy this enemy force while protecting as many of those weak humans following you. Or else most of them will end up dead even if you are victorious" suggested Kurama,
"I cannot use the Shadow Clone technique openly- while it can create copies of me, it cannot replicate a complicated piece of technology like the Hachimon Armor I am wearing and you know we are forbidden from voluntary showing what's underneath it to anyone" countered Naruto with a frown,
"Humans and their stupid secrets and morality. You are no longer children, but trained killers and warriors. What difference does it make?" questioned Kurama in an irate voice,
"Those are our orders and I will not break them" refused Naruto with a finality to his tone,
"How many soldiers are you willing to lose?" pressed Kurama without hesitation, wanting to see and truly understand what mattered more to this Spartan.
It watched the boy clench his fist bitterly as the trained Spartan within him fought to obey his orders and keep the darkest truths of their program a secret, while the soldier within him wanted to do everything possible to save as many friendly lives.
"How many, Commander?" asked Kurama once again seriously,
"None"
Kurama felt the conviction behind that decision clearly in the young Commander's voice and it reflected in his next words.
"Help me create a dozen clones with as much chakra, I have an idea" said Naruto decisively, making Kurama smirk savagely as the boy relayed his idea to him in detail.
"This should be interesting"
With the fox in agreement to the idea, Naruto turned towards the men and women following him.
"Darui, Pakura, Samui- I am implementing the strategy I undertook in training exercise Free Fall if you remember" said Naruto over a private channel, and the opposition was instantaneous.
"That was a training exercise among Spartans, Noble-1. We can't reveal what we are beneath the armor to others!" warned Pakura swiftly,
"I know you want to save as many of those following us, Ruto. But this is crossing a line command has forbidden us from even thinking about" cautioned Darui,
Samui was the only one who sighed and even behind the helmet, Naruto could feel she was rolling her eyes in exasperation.
"Think you can do it fast enough? Someday your bleeding heart will get you in serious trouble" said Samui tiredly,
"The fox will help make it happen, it thinks this will be interesting" countered Naruto defiantly,
He could feel the surprise from the three Spartans even if they stood still, for it was not often the tailed beasts interacted with their hosts- much less decided to help willingly.
"I think the fox enjoys the carnage you wreck a little too much" said Darui with a smirk,
"Does it matter as long as it helps kill our enemies?" retorted Pakura,
"Now that one I like. She's a smart brat" commented Kurama with a wicked grin,
"Shut up" whispered Naruto, making the beast huff in annoyance.
"Then it's decided. I'll lead the charge, Darui, Pakura- when you see the opening, lead the others in following me" decided Naruto,
"You truly have a death wish, Ruto" said Pakura with a sigh, earning a brief laugh from Darui and a silent nod from Samui.
With the Spartans in agreement, Naruto turned towards Kakashi, Kurenai and the rest of the marine squads.
"I'll lead the charge first, Nobles- 5 and 6 will lead you after me when they see the opening I create" said Naruto simply,
"Forgive the insubordination, sir. But this is Nuts!" spoke Sergeant Massani frankly,
A series of explosions and the panicked cries of their fellow comrades in the Southern line made the decision.
The next moment a monstrous surge of chakra engulfed Naruto's entire armor as he turned towards the battlefield. Samui was not the only one who felt a strange reassurance within her heart upon seeing her friend and Commander offer his chest to the enemy and his back to their comrades.
He looked back one last time towards all of them.
"Trust me"
Samui watched that simple but honest request touch something inside Kakashi, Kurenai, and every marine in their ranks. The power radiating from Naruto alongside the iron clad determination in his voice gave them confidence ultimately making them all nod in agreement.
Naruto jumped down the roadside leading towards the battlefield and charged straight towards the enemy.
"Terran Forces, friendly forces coming in from the west!" he informed over the radio channel,
A few marines in their defensive positions turned in his direction and saw him charging, as did many enemies across the battlefield.
His hands were already weaving through a set of hand signs when a pair of Banshee's turned in his direction, as did the aim of four Wraith tanks alongside dozens of enemy infantry.
Plasma arcs from the Wraith tanks started landing all around him aiming to reduce him to dust even as he increased his speed, while his energy shields started depleting rapidly under the staccato of plasma fire that came his way from the enemy infantry.
A satisfied smile came upon his lips when one of the Banshee's flying towards him exploded.
"Got my back, Noble-3?" asked Naruto coolly,
"Always" came Samui's calm voice over his private channel, as the sniper unleashed her next explosive round that clipped the wing of the second banshee making it lose momentum and crash straight into a large group of its own ground forces.
Naruto marked the position of as many enemy forces and Wraith tanks on his HUD for the rest of his force.
"Let's go!" announced Pakura over their radio channel, earning a chorus of battlecries from the marines and Shock Trooper duo as Naruto made his move.
"Hidden Mist Jutsu!"
A thick mist descended upon the entire battlefield reducing visibility completely within seconds as Naruto made his next hand sign.
"Shadow Clone Jutsu!"
A dozen clones appeared all around him filled with great amounts of chakra but not wearing any armor like the original. Wordlessly, they all disappeared rapidly in various directions across the thick mist and seconds later multiple explosions and the cacophony of dying cries of dozens of Otsutsuki species followed as the clones exploded one after another in suicidal attacks.
Massive explosions followed when few of the clones managed to reach the Otsutsuki Wraith Tanks and blew up atleast three of them, but the massive explosions everywhere one after another resulted in the mist disappearing rapidly and Naruto found himself getting surrounded by three large Nur's alongside four Grunts.
"Tear them apart, brat!" said Kurama eagerly,
Naruto's chakra sword laced with wind chakra had already clashed with the first Nur's energy sword aimed to cut his head off, even as he delivered clean heads shots from the pistol in his left hand and blew the brains out of two nearby Grunts.
He jumped wildly in the air and deliver a crushing kick to the offending Nur shattering his rib cage and used the momentum to propel himself backwards, turning mid air to reverse sweep his chakra sword and cutting off the head of another Nur trying to attack him from the rear.
Grabbing the severed head, he threw it towards the remaining two Grunts who screamed in panic and then in agony when the grenade stabbed inside the severed head by Naruto exploded reducing them to bits and pieces.
The last Nur roared furiously and charged towards him fearlessly.
"Jump Far left!"
Trusting the fox's warning, Naruto took a massive jump towards the left just in time as a soaring plasma bomb crashed landed on the position where he was about to clash with the last Nur.
His shields depleted to less than twenty percent from the blast, but unlike the Nur who simply disappeared- Naruto was atleast alive. Narrowing his eyes, he saw the last three of the Wraith tanks had all started aiming in his direction and firing rapidly.
As he started dodging the incoming balls of plasma rapidly to save himself, Naruto switched to his assault rifle and activated the incendiary rounds as he reached the rear of one of the Wraith tanks.
Launching suppressive fire over a pair of Nur trying to close in on him, he lobbed a grenade straight into the rear of the tank and jumped as it erupted into a fiery explosion.
His recharging shields started getting further depleted as he came under plasma fire from the Grunt gunners on the remaining Wraith Tanks.
"Scorch Release: Great Steaming Explosive Blast!"
One of the Wraith Tanks was engulfed in a massive explosion as a giant flaming orb hit it directly incinerating it completely as Pakura joined the battle. Before the last tank could zero in on her, a powerful round from the lone Terran Nightmare tank blasted it apart.
Behind Pakura came Captain Kakashi who dove straight towards a Nur closing in on Naruto and jammed his Lightning laced hand straight through its heart.
"Chidori!"
Kurenai was not far behind and had already disoriented the visual perception of the next Nur with her genjutsu before plugging his body full of bullet holes.
Sergeant Massani and his Zulu Marine squad charged in fearlessly and unleashed a staccato of deadly gunfire which blasted several remaining enemy forces.
Naruto joined the fray and started mopping up the dwindling enemy ground forces alongside his allies.
"Butcher-1, Noble-6: remaining Banshee's are closing in on the team. I am designating targets, on my mark- take them down" instructed Samui,
"Acknowledged, Noble-3" replied the Tank Commander,
Darui had remained in the rear alongside the Nightmare Tank as they saw the Six Banshee's heading straight for a bombing run towards their allies.
Samui fired the opening salvo hitting the wings of one the Banshee's which made it flip and crash straight into its nearby wingmen resulting in a fiery explosion.
The Nightmare Tank locked onto another banshee and unleashed its powerful round that not only blasted it apart but also took out another Banshee in the resulting explosion.
Darui had finished his hand signs by then and launched his own attack.
"Gale Style: Laser Circus!"
A dozen massive bolts of lightning were unleashed by Darui and hit the last two remaining Banshee's head on frying many of their systems instantly which made them soon lose flight capability and crash to the ground in fiery explosions.
"Noble-1, mop up enemies. Noble-2 and his fireteam have already repelled the enemies on the eastern line. He just sent in a confirmation" said Samui impatiently,
"Damn, Sasuke is fast" thought Naruto with an amused smile,
With renewed vigor, he descended upon the remaining enemy infantry.
(Otsutsuki Flagship: Dark Silence; Fleet of Annihilation)
The atmosphere aboard an Otsutsuki Supercarrier designated to lead an entire fleet was often one full of discipline and obedience of its well trained crew in carrying out their assigned duties to the letter.
Anything less and the consequences would be worse than death for anyone, no matter their rank or importance.
But now they very controlled atmosphere had descended into unspoken dread, the same was visible most prominently upon the bridge where the command officers stood before their Fleet Admiral in grim silence with their heads bowed.
Their fearful hearts unwilling to look at the magnificent and equally terrifying visage of their Fleet Admiral and Supreme Commander seated on her throne in cold fury.
Nissana Otstusuki had to restrain herself and fight back her disappointment upon seeing the terror in the very soul of her officers from various slave species, something she had never witnessed before which could only mean something had gone horribly wrong.
"What has happened?" she asked icily, making the leader of their groundforces battling planetside finally look up fearfully.
Major General Orvum Kalie was a formidable Nur officer who had lead several dozen campaigns in this decade long war against the vermin known as Humanity. His Legions had been victorious in every battle and his faith in their Otsutsuki masters was second to none. In the several years he had served Nissana, not once had the mighty Nur looked as worried as he did now.
"We have lost Four Legions planetside in a matter of hours, Supreme Commander" reported Orvum hesitantly, and instantly bowed his head in shame.
Nissan was a tall and beautiful pale skinned Otsutsuski standing at nearly six feet in height. She had soft facial features like every Otsutsuki female with crystal white eyes alongside short and round eyebrows depicting her status as one of the nobility. Her full red lips were in stark contrast to her long pale hair reaching upto her back, and her womanly figure was well rounded like every Otsutsuki noble who expected nothing but the best- either for themselves or everything they devoted themselves to.
Unlike her more experienced clansmen taking part in military operations across the Empire, she was barely a Maiden at the age of 2418 years and was one of the youngest to be leading an entire fleet earning envy from many of her peers. Not that those old fools had anything to complain about after the series of victories she had delivered everytime against humanity. Not that she had much of a choice, certainly not after her own brother Fleet Admiral Kido Otsutsuki had presided over the only defeat their Empire had faced against humanity in the Battle of Freedom not long ago.
Kido's shame had nearly led to death of her entire family until Nissana had personally petitioned their High Command to grant her a chance to regain their honor, a request which was barely accepted. Their military council had been shamed in front of the Emperor after their disastrous defeat at Freedom, their confidence in their superiority had been shaken for the first time in several millennia.
The last race to present a defeat to their invincible Empire had been the Nur nearly a thousand years ago, and it was not even close to the scale of their defeat at the human world of Freedom.
Nissana had saved her family and regained her overconfident deceased brother's honor by leading her own fleet against the blasted colony of humanity. She had inflicted heavy losses upon Admiral Tobirama's fleet, the man she was facing today again at Nagaon making it impossible for humanity to defend the world. When the human fleet ran, she had ordered the slaughter of every human left on Freedom and destroyed the very planet to an extent that it would never be habitable again for eternity.
It had crushed humanity's renewed hope of ever achieving victory against the Otsutsuki Empire.
"You are telling me you lost more than 100,000 troops in such a short span of time against humanity? I hope you are not joking, Orvum!" chastised Nissan brutally, while outwardly there was not even a flinch on her pristine face but her killing intent made many of her officers fall to their knees and clutch their chests in great pain.
Major General Orvum was also not unaffected, but unlike the other weaklings- the Nur stood his ground and looked back at her with regret.
"Humanity has deployed new special operations forces across the planet. These soldiers are tearing our forces apart" reported Orvum in a grim voice, and gestured towards one of his subordinates who quickly pulled a video feed across the bridge.
"Intercepted enemy communications have given us intel these new troops are called Spartans"
Nissana narrowed her eyes at one of the multiple video feeds on her screen showcasing the Battle of Nuira, Nagaon's capital and the most important city that had to be eradicated with extreme prejudice.
A cold chill gripped her heart when she saw a massive chakra bomb unleashed by these Spartans that tore through one of her divisions, and upon landing on the ground she caught first glimpse of these warriors.
Taller than most human beings in existence with body builds to rival most Nur's, these soldiers proved their mettle by unleashing a merciless slaughter. Even the fearsome Cannibals were put down with precision and brutality.
Her eyes slightly widened when she caught sight of the largest Spartan in green armor moving to engage the Cannibals.
His rapid charge reminded her of the human responsible for the Otsutsuki's only defeat against the Terran Federation.
A soldier of humanity who had fought an entire company of Otsutsuki warriors head on, slayed dozens of their ranks in single combat before personally annihilating millions of their slaves, ships and precious clansmen in a nuclear inferno.
One named by the Otsutsuki as "The Yellow Flash", while their slaves had come up with a more fearful name.
"He moves like The Demon of Freedom, Supreme Commander!" whispered the only Grunt Major on her bridge anxiously,
Nissana had to restrain herself from obliterating the cowardly fool only because it was a menace to find another Grunt suitable to keep his vermin clansmen in line like this one could, but just like his entire race this one was a coward deep down as well.
"What kind of name is Spartan?" she asked instead, trying to divert the attention of everyone towards this new enemy.
"The bits and pieces our officers have been able to secure from human history records on Nagaon are faint hints of a small city state on the human homeworld, Earth. It was called Sparta and its warriors refused the rule of shinobi in the early days of human conquest of their own homeworld; a thousand of their warriors known as Spartans engaged in a final but doomed battle with the Shinobi Nations. They were massacred to the last man but were undefeated for nearly half a month and took thousands of shinobi to their graves despite the Spartans not wielding the holy power of chakra. The shinobi respected their bravery enough to allot them a place in their history at the very least as a worthy foe" reported Orvum evenly,
Nissana was mildly intrigued, whoever created and trained these new Spartans had studied humanity's own history in detail. That person had clearly realized humanity's current military forces did not have enough strength to hold off the Otsutsuki long enough from destroying every human colony they came across.
"So you recreated your old foes to hold the line a little longer for you, not that it would help much in the end. How simplistic" she whispered with a faint smirk,
"Supreme Commander?" asked Orvum, bringing Nissana's attention back to her officers.
"The games stop here. Prepare our fleet to move into a spindle formation to neutralize the enemy fleet. Tell our groundside forces to hold their ground no matter the cost, and call our backup quick reaction force to jump in over Nagaon and burn the planet to the ground. They want these Spartans to hold the line, but we will obliterate it entirely!" ordered Nissana icily,
The officers including Orvum were quite satisfied upon hearing their new orders.
After the defeat at the human colony of Freedom, it was deemed necessary by High Command that a small portion of each Otsutsuki fleet would always remain in reserve, to be called upon if the situation became dire or required a message to be delivered to the enemy of their sealed fates.
Humanity had sent a message to them in the form of Spartans, a showcasing of their power.
It was only fitting to respond in kind.
(Nagaon: Planetary Capital- Nuira)
Colonel Shikaku Nara had always considered his role as a Shock Trooper with great pride for they were the finest shinobi that humanity had to offer in their war of existence against the Otsutsuki Empire.
No matter how desperate or impossible the challenge, humanity had always turned to its Shock Troopers for an answer.
It was the Shock Troopers led by Minato Namikaze who had achieved humanity's sole victory in this war, but looking at the feeds on his video screens made it clear that humanity now had even more lethal warriors to defend itself.
"All enemy presence neutralized across the entire Starport zone, Shikaku" reported his longtime friend- Colonel Inoichi Yamanaka of the 22nd Shock Troopers, the relief and surprise easy to spot in his voice.
"The Spartans did what they promised and more" commented Shikaku carefully, as he looked at the thousands of smoldering and dismembered enemy corpses left across multiple directions around the Starport.
An entire Otstusuki Division consisting of thousands of troops had been massacred.
The few lucky Otsutsuki forces that escaped were in full retreat from the Starport which greatly invigorated Terran forces commanded by Shikaku and Inoichi.
"We can deploy the Spartans next in eliminating the enemy resistance in the city's Northern sector. The 43rd Shock Trooper Battalion needs all the help they can get to stave of enemy advance in their area" suggested Inoichi confidently,
"We don't have authority over the Spartans, Inoichi. Only Admiral Tobirama does, we were lucky enough to get these Spartans to defend the Starport. Mabui- any word from the Admiral?" asked Shikaku seriously and looked at the dark skinned female staff officer for an answer.
Shikaku and Inoichi both swiftly got up from their seats and saluted immediately upon seeing Admiral Tobirama appearing on their holoscreen a few moments later.
"Admiral Tobirama, sir! We're happy to report that the Nuira Starport zone is completely secure and we are ready to begin civilian evacuation operations" reported Shikaku confidently,
He didn't expect a jubilant reaction from a stern leader like Tobirama, but what Shikaku or Inoichi didn't expect was an extremely worried look in the Admiral's gaze.
"I heard, Colonel. Good work holding the line until Spartan reinforcements arrived" replied Tobirama flatly,
"How's it looking up there, sir? I'm getting the feeling you are concerned about something" asked Inoichi seriously, making Tobirama grimace.
"A stalemate for now, our refined ship armor and weapons are giving us a minor edge. But we were already losing too many of our own vessels against the enemy fleet. Atleast planetside the situation is different- ONI's Spartans are a game changer. Enemy forces across the entire planet are facing great setbacks wherever Spartan forces have landed. Admiral Orochimaru has given us a decisive edge" said Tobirama frankly,
"There are more of these Spartans on Nagaon?" asked Inoichi with a desperate hope, one mirrored by Shikaku as well.
"Quite a few''
Both the Colonels were shocked upon hearing that revelation for a single squad of these Spartans were enough to nearly defeat an entire Otsutsuki Division!
If used well and with some desperately needed luck, these Spartans could help the Terran Federation achieve its second victory against the Otsutsuki possibly.
"I am grateful for all that your troopers and Spartans have accomplished. But I'm afraid, you will need to retreat from the Capital because of this" revealed Tobirama gravely,
Before the two Colonels could react, they were presented with a new video feed on their holograms.
Their eyes widened in shock and despair when they saw additional enemy ships jumping near the planet of Nagaon, but instead of joining their main fleet breatheren battling the 5th Fleet led by Tobirama- these new arrivals made a straight beeline for the planet itself.
"The enemy has also arrived at the same conclusion that you have after the Spartans entered the battle. Their reinforcements have arrived to crush us all and I am truly sorry for I do not have enough ships to stop this new fleet from attacking the planet in full force. If I send more of my battleships to your aid, I risk further weakening my dwindling position against the main enemy fleet inviting the possibility of a total collapse. A small portion of these new ships are heading towards Nuira to retake the city and kill every person still standing. We barely have little time left before they arrive, I can deploy the evac ships to rescue as many of your men and the Spartans out of there" explained Tobirama bitterly,
"What about the civilians waiting for evacuation within the city, Admiral? We cannot leave 25 million innocents to be butchered!" argued Inoichi in disbelief, making Tobirama clench his fist.
"This is our only option! I do not want to leave our people to die, but I need your soldiers to survive more than the civilians if we are to avoid a total catastrophe!" pointed Tobirama with great reluctance,
Inoichi refused to give up that easily and looked to Shikaku for some support, but found his friend and fellow officer standing in grim silence for a few long seconds before looking back at the Admiral.
"I understand your point and the situation, Admiral. But if there is little time left to evacuate even all of our soldiers, how will this even work?" asked Shikaku seriously,
"We may not be able to evacuate all the troops in time. Some will have to stay behind and buy time for the others to escape" admitted Tobirama with a grim tone,
Shikaku grit his teeth at imagining having to leave even a single one of his troopers behind to die alongside millions of innocent civilians.
He could not help but remember the choice made by his deceased friend- Lieutenant Colonel Minato Namikaze of the 7th Shock Troopers Battalion when faced with worse odds in the Battle of Freedom.
And what the consequences of that choice turned out to be.
"Can we expect more reinforcements anytime soon, Admiral?" asked Shikaku frankly,
"I have relayed the new development to Supreme Commander Madara. He has assured additional reinforcements from the 4th Fleet, but they will not arrive until atleast two days. It will be too late for your forces in the Capital by then" answered Tobirama truthfully,
"I want to hear what Noble Team thinks of this situation before I can give you my honest thoughts, Admiral. They have been a big part of why we were able to do all we have so far. It's only right we include them in making this decision" said Shikaku seriously,
Admiral Tobirama stared at him for a very long moment, but Shikaku never flinched and was joined by Inoichi who supported that call making their leader finally give a weary nod.
Mabui quickly made the arrangements and within a few moments the holographic image of Ruto-141, the leader of Noble Team appeared on the screen followed by the rest of his squad. Upon seeing Tobirama and the Colonels, the Spartans offered a firm salute which was returned by the Admiral as well as Inoichi and Shikaku.
"You really delivered on your promise, Noble. You have saved a lot of lives with your actions, but there is a situation that has taken place and Colonels Shikaku and Inoichi over here want your opinion on it" said Tobirama seriously, making Naruto look towards the two Shock Trooper battalion leaders.
As the Colonels explained the situation to the Spartans, Admiral Tobirama really wished to gauge their reactions but their helmets prevented him from doing so. But he did see them all looking at each other for a moment once Shikaku finished his explanation.
"What is your opinion, Commander?" asked Tobirama curiously,
"Our orders are to follow your command and do everything in our power to defend this planet, Admiral. I understand the situation and agree with your reasoning, but we cannot leave millions of innocent civilians and many fellow soldiers to die. Noble will meet the enemy and engage in a delaying action for as long as possible for reinforcements to arrive or for as many civilians and soldiers to escape. That is our opinion" replied Naruto firmly, earning curt nods from the rest of his team.
Disbelief was clearly etched not just on Tobirama's face but even those of the staff officers in the command center.
"I truly admire your courage and have no doubts now about the skill of your team, Commander. But this is a suicide mission you are asking for. You have done exceptionally well for your first battle, but this decision you want to make means death for your entire squad. Do you understand what you are asking for?" asked Tobirama earnestly,
Shikaku and Inoichi were even further stunned upon hearing these super-soldiers who had saved their lives were essentially rookies of war.
"We know what loss is, sir. Have lost more than enough already which is why we standby our opinion!" answered Naruto somberly,
Neither the Admiral or the other officers in the command center including Colonels Shikaku and Inoichi had expected such an answer. Some of them looked at the other Spartans of Noble on the holoscreen and they stood steadfast behind their Commander's decision.
Even with their faces covered behind helmets, Shikaku could feel no fear or hesitation in a single Spartan.
Admiral Tobirama however still wasn't entirely convinced and didn't mince words with his opinion.
"This new enemy fleet group is smaller in size than the main fleet which I am engaging. Most likely a Quick Reaction Force that was dispatched upon your arrival on the planet and the staggering casualties the Otsutsuki are facing groundside. The only way to prevent this new fleet from reducing Nagaon to rubble with their might is to somehow increase the pressure in the space battle on the main enemy fleet making these new reinforcements rush to their aid instead of focusing on destroying the planet" surmised Tobirama, a heavy frown visible on his pale face.
"That's quite a tall order, sir. But I have an idea considering the capabilities of some of us Spartans, however I am not authorized to disclose those capabilities in detail" pointed Naruto carefully,
"Let me guess, Admiral Orochimaru can?" asked Tobirama shrewdly, only earning a brief nod from the Spartan commander in return.
"Communications are being frequently jammed in the ongoing battle, we barely managed to send a ship back just to inform Supreme Commander Madara of our situation and request for reinforcements. I will not be able to get clearance from Orochimaru in time!" said Tobirama bitterly, tired of all the secrecy when millions of lives were at stake.
Naruto understood the dilemma clearly, the Spartan in him was trained to not divulge any secrets of their program...but considering the situation could he really make such a decision?
Admiral Tobirama curiously watched Naruto turn his head slightly towards a blue armored Spartan, most probably his second in command.
"Noble 2 here- Lieutenant Commander Sasuke, second in command, Admiral. We understand the situation you are in, but revealing our true capabilities without proper authorization from ONI command is punishable by death at best. The most we can do is to suggest our plan of action and hope you can trust us to execute the same" suggested Sasuke calmly,
Tobirama alongside Inoichi and Shikaku were even more surprised by the small revelation, it made them wonder as to what really ONI had done in creating these Spartans?
"Given the situation, I would like to hear your plan" relented Tobirama with a sigh,
"Permission to access the space battle and fleet formations, sir?" asked Naruto, as he sent a request from his HUD to the flagship which was swiftly approved by the Admiral.
Tobirama even displayed the situation on the holo screens across the command center so Shikaku, Inoichi and rest of Noble team could also be on the same page.
Upon seeing the curious looks of Tobirama and the other high officers being directed at Naruto, it was Sasuke who decided to answer their unsaid question.
"A select few among our ranks are trained to operate space vessels, upto frigates and cruisers at most. Ruto-141 on the otherhand has achieved the rank of Commander not just as our leader and proficient in special operations on the ground, but also in space combat" admitted Sasuke, making Tobirama raise a curious eyebrow.
"So what is your assessment of the enemy's strategy, Commander?" challenged Tobirama, wanting to test the mettle of those very capabilities.
"Enemy movements suggest they are planning to break through our fleet's center, their recent movements suggest preparation for such an action" answered Naruto truthfully,
Tobirama was mildly impressed with the assessment but didn't reveal his feelings as he gazed at the Spartan Commander, for some reason he felt a familiar feeling when he looked at the armored Spartan.
"I have a plan to counter that and my fleet commanders are trained to execute the manevoure once that happens to prevent the enemy from tearing us apart. What we lack is enough firepower and ships to devastate the enemy fleet once we seize the advantage" explained Tobirama in detail, as he presented a simulated plan of action on the holoscreen.
Naruto's eyes widened in surprise inside his helmet as he realized the complexity of such a counter manevoure and the deception involved.
"But sir, you mentioned enemy fleet is still jamming our encrypted fleet communications. How will you communicate these orders to every ship captain of ours in time and without the enemy realizing our plan?" asked Naruto curiously, making Tobirama smirk.
"By broadcasting a compressed data transmission across all frequencies ordering our ship captains and commanders to access an encrypted plan of action codenamed Z41 on their respective ship's tactical intel system. I ensured every ship of my fleet had that file before we entered this battle for a situation like this. Even if the enemy is monitoring our communications, they won't understand anything if that's all we say" explained Tobirama shrewdly,
Naruto alongside Noble Team and Colonels Shikaku and Inoichi were humbled upon learning the foresight Admiral Tobirama Senju had to have planned so far in advance.
His contributions in the Battle of Freedom in defeating the Otsutsuki Fleet were equally as important as the sacrifice of all the soldiers and sailors including Minato and Kushina.
It only made Naruto's own resolve harden as he looked at the Admiral without hesitation.
"It's a sound plan, Admiral. But if our men don't move the way we want them to in time, then all of us are dead. But we have no other option but to move forward. We can be the hammer in this operation by doing this" explained Naruto confidently, as he inputted the necessary data to the flagship's tactical computer.
Tobirama and the other officers watched the Human Fleet executing the manevoure Tobirama had planned for, with the enemy fleet catching on to it quickly and moving to counter.
Then something unexpected happened which neither humanity or the Otsutsuki could have planned for.
"Is this really doable, Commander? How many men would you need for this?" asked Tobirama with hope and disbelief mixed in his strained voice,
"A few Spartans, and a dozen of our ships whose chances of survival will be minimal. Same goes for my men and myself" answered Naruto truthfully,
The hope within Tobirama's heart vanished upon hearing that and he looked carefully at the Spartan commander for a long moment.
"You will lead this operation personally?" asked Tobirama in surprise,
"It's necessary for the mission to have any chance of success. These few Spartans for classified reasons are considered the strongest among our entire force, I am also one of them. Together, we can deliver a blow which the enemy will find it hard to recover from quickly giving your fleet the chance to finish them, Admiral" answered Naruto frankly,
"While the rest of us Spartans on the ground can initiate boarding actions upon the new enemy ships that come planetside. We are trained for such missions, we will attempt to control them and use them against the enemy but should that prove untenable, destroying the ships would be best. As such, we would request to be given to access to any tactical nuclear weapons still active across Nagaon to destroy as many enemy ships" suggested Sasuke without hesitation,
"That's a one way trip even for many among your ranks, Noble-2" said Shikaku hesitantly, making Sasuke glance back at him.
"We all make it sooner or later, Colonel" replied Sasuke calmly,
Admiral Tobirama as well as Shikaku and Inoichi were slightly taken aback by that calm acceptance of death, and were even further intrigued when they saw many among Noble Team lowering their heads a little upon hearing Sasuke's words.
"Sasuke..." said Commander Ruto hesitantly, and for the first time the other officers saw a hint of worry present in the ever controlled Spartan Commander's voice.
They were all further intrigued when they saw Sasuke place a firm but gentle hand upon Ruto's shoulder.
"We have to save Nagaon, Commander. We will not be able to meet the eyes of the fallen if we fail"
Those words made Naruto lower his head and hit something deep inside Colonel Shikaku and Inoichi's own hearts as they remembered their own fallen comrades who had made the ultimate sacrifice for humanity's future.
Even Admiral Tobirama lowered his gaze somberly.
After a brief moment, Commander Ruto finally looked up and offered a firm nod to Sasuke and the rest of Noble Team.
"Then go and do what needs to be done. I shall do the same" agreed Naruto seriously, as he firmly clasped his own hand with Sasuke's.
They were interrupted by a light cough from Colonel Shikaku.
"The Spartans will not be alone in this. I will deploy my best Shock Trooper platoons to assist Noble Team in these ship boarding operations" promised Shikaku earnestly,
"As will I" assured Colonel Inoichi with a respectful nod,
Admiral Tobirama couldn't help but nod as well upon seeing the camaraderie and unity among the best of humanity's special forces.
"The Colonels are right, Commander Ruto. It would not be right if we let the Spartans shoulder this burden alone, I will order any available Shock Trooper, Marine, Army and Air forces across the planet to assist any Spartan team taking part in enemy ship boarding operations planetside. Until reinforcements arrive, this mission is our only option to hold the line and save as many lives as we can and for that we will need all hands on deck. I am also authorizing the handover of any available tactical nuclear weapons to Spartan teams for the same.
As for the space battle, we will go ahead and integrate your plan of action with my counter-strategy. You will have the ships you need. Let me know which are the Spartans who will participate in this mission so I can order their evacuation from the planet back to our fleet on priority" advised Tobirama evenly,
Naruto couldn't help but look at the Admiral and the two Shock Trooper Colonels in stunned silence. Their reassuring nods and a firm squeeze on his shoulder by Sasuke made him strengthen his own resolve.
"We are in your debt, Sir's" replied Naruto gratefully, and offered a small bow.
"We are in this fight together till the bitter end, all of us. Let's make sure all our fallen get to see that their sacrifice wasn't in vain!" encouraged Admiral Tobirama with determination,
The crisp salutes he earned from everyone present was the only response which was needed.
Author's Notes: End of Chapter.
Hope you guys liked it.
Suffice to say the fight only gets tougher from here onwards.
Review please?
Until Next Time,
Blackwolf501