Disclaimer: I do not own anything from the Naruto or Digimon franchises. Comments/Criticism is fine as long as it isn't just hate or flaming. If you do not like, no one is forcing you to read and you can just leave.
Thank you and please enjoy
Humon?
-Chapter 29-
-Last Time-
"What the hell is going on here?!" Naruto demanded while grabbing the nearest clone. "I told you guys to get them to safety in the cargo hold!"
"Sorry Boss, but we ran into a few complications along the way!"
-And Now, Fifteen Minutes Earlier-
"Everyone grab a clone, we need to get you out of here!" One of the clones yelled as they and a dozen more landed around them protectively. The children and Patamon did what they were told, hurrying to the closest blonde they could reach where they promptly scooped up.
Carefully avoiding all the chaos that was erupting everywhere, the clones rushed below deck and regathered in the kitchen. "Alright everyone, there's a chance that some of the wolves got below deck as well, and we can't carry you and fight them off at the same time." One of the clones said to the children as they were set down. "That means we're going to have to walk it. I want all of you to be on guard and stay together at all times."
"Uh, excuse me, but where are we going?" T.K. asked with a raised hand.
"The cargo hold, it has the thickest walls of the entire ship, and in case the worst comes to be there's an emergency exit shaft built in with an escape raft." The clone said bluntly as he and the other clones formed a protective circle around the group. "Now stay together, keep your guards up, and your eyes peeled."
Not waiting for a response, the clone signaled to his brethren and the group were off, marching into the hallway in a coordinated manner with each of the whiskered blondes keeping a keen eye on their surroundings.
At first everything seemed to be going fine, other than a bit of jostling as the ship shook, and they were making good progress towards their destination, but ended up running into a snag halfway there.
"Ah crap, looks like the wolves are down here after all," The lead clone as the group stared at the destroyed hallway, several holes having been clawed through the floor, ceiling, and walls. "And we just finished buffing this section to."
"Like that's the important problem right now," Matt said sarcastically while eyeing the gaps dubiously. "I don't like this, we should take a different route."
"I agree, I can hear those bastards nearby," Naruto muttered while his ears twitched slightly.
"How about we try cutting through the main boiler room on deck C instead." Mimi suggested, causing everyone but the clones and Izzy to look at her in surprise.
"Good idea Mimi, then we can just take the cargo lift straight down." The lead clone said with a grin before turning to everyone else and motioning for them to head to a corridor on the left. "What are you guys waiting for, we don't have time to doddle, double time!"
Snapping out of their surprise from the copy's urging, the group broke out into a jog as they hurried across the ship.
However, several twists, turns, more shaking, and a short flight of stairs later, their plan hit yet another snag as they reached the main boilers and found the room filled to the brim with steam.
"Double crap, something must've ruptured the pipes." C. Naruto said with an annoyed growl, wiping the perspiration that was already starting to build on his forehead from the hot mist. "I can barely see, hear, or smell a thing in there."
"Great, just great, we avoid one possible ambush for an even more likely ambush." Joe said while drooping.
"Another route then?" Tai suggested, only for both the clone and Mimi to shake their heads.
"We'd have to backtrack almost half the ship-"
"-Or risk going abovedeck, both of which are terrible options." Mimi started and C. Naruto finished, earning themselves more odd looks.
'I don't know if that was incredibly cute or extremely worrying,' Sora thought, sending a concerned look towards Izzy who nodded in understanding as similar thoughts played through his own head.
"We'll just have to keep going… and hope the leaks were from all this shaking." The lead clone muttered with a frown. "I recommend you guys cover as much exposed skin as you can, it may be a bit stuffy but trust me, a direct blast from one of those leaks will sting like a meinu."
"Oh great, and here I was worried about sunburn." Tai muttered while T.K. shuffled nervously as they and Matt looked down at themselves, or more specifically the only article of clothing they were wearing, swimming trunks.
"Yeah, you three best stay in the middle of the group just to be on the safe side." The clone nearest to them said, getting the three to nod in agreement, albeit reluctantly in Tai and Matt's case. Meanwhile the rest of the kids covered as much as they could with their current clothing, which sadly wasn't much as everyone but Mimi were dressed up in casual clothes like tee-shirts and shorts.
"I'd just like to note that this is probably a terrible idea." Joe said, jumping a little when the hissing sound of steam escaping rang out.
"Well every other option is just as bad if not worse, so you'll just have to buck up and deal with it." C. Naruto told the slightly hypochondria prone boy, causing him to slump in depression.
"So just like usual then."
"Yeah, pretty much."
With their pieces said, the group cautiously stepped into the steam filled room, their eyes squinting mostly shut reflexively to protect them from the hot mist.
All the clones were on high alert, scanning around for any sign of danger with kunai posed and ready to strike. However, no matter how hard they tried, none of them could see more than two or three feet in any direction, and the steam was diluting any scents into incoherent messes that made little to no sense.
Despite this though, everything seemed to be going well as they proceeded onwards, other than the occasion slip on the wet floor and close calls with steam blasts.
"Jeez, how far do we have to go? This place is sweltering." Sora panted after a minute or so, shaking her shirt in a vain attempt to get the condensation buildup off as it soaked into the fabric.
"I think we're about halfway there." Mimi said while wiping the sweat from her brow.
"Seriously?" Tai asked incredulously. "This place can't be that large, can it?"
"How else do you think this ship handles three hundred showers, forty adjustable hot tubs, two pools, and boss's personal jacuzzi?" One of the clones asked back with a raised brow.
"Oh, well when you put it like that it makes seeee… Hey! Why do you get your own Jacuzzi?!"
"Because Boss is the captain, and captain get's first dibs." The clone said with a cheeky grin while Tai grumbled about unfairness.
*Click* *Clatter* "…grrr…"
"Stop!" The lead clone whisper yelled with his hand raised, causing everyone to freeze mid-step. "Close up perimeter! Patamon front and center!"
His orders were complete in seconds as the rest of the clones pushed the group tighter together until there were no gaps between their defensive circle while Patamon landed on the lead clone's shoulder.
"What's up?" The small orange digimon asked.
"We have company, can you to see if you can clear some of this kuso with a low powered bubble thingy or yours?" C. Naruto asked quietly even as his eyes roamed through the foggy room.
"Sure, Boom Bubble!" Patamon called, his whole body inflating like a balloon before he expelled a large ball of condensed air out of his mouth. Unlike when he normally used that attack though, the compressed air only went a few feet before bursting outwards.
With a soft whooshing sound, the escaping wind parted the steam slightly, not much but enough to reveal the quintet of stone wolves that were previously hidden within it quietly snarling at them.
"Kuso," The clone muttered as the wolves charged before the steam filled back in and everything vanished from view. "Brace yourself!"
"GRAAAAH!"
"Dammit! I can see anything!"
*Poof* *Crackle*
"Where are they?!"
"I don't kno-"
*Poof* *Crackle* *Poof*
"They're everywhere!"
"We can't hold them off!"
*Crackle* *Poof* *Crackle*
"Fall back! Fall back!"
Moments later, the kids and seven remaining clones burst out of the steam from the way they had come with several dozen stone wolves hot on their tails.
"Alright, forget the cargo bay! Head for the kitchen and take shelter in the food locker!" One clone yelled before he and three other duplicates suddenly stopped and turned back towards the wolves. "Diamond Storm!"
Firing the attacks at the same time, the normally dangerous attack turned into an absolute devastating assault as thousands of razor sharp crystals flew through the air, shredding through over half the charging canine golems, damaging a few others, and hindering the rest from getting forward. On the down side however, the clones exhausted all of their chakra with that move and ended up dispersing into puffs of smoke.
Not only that, but they had also ended up inflicting loads of collateral damage to the surrounding area and several crystals flew into the still open boiler, causing a large explosion that rocked the entire ship.
"Holy crap!" Joe yelled as he and the rest of the digidestined struggled to keep on their feet. "That can't be good!"
"If we were on water, no it would not since we would be sinking. Thankfully we aren't." Izzy said while helping the nervous boy to stand.
"Yeah, now it just means more work for us and Boss when this is all over." A clone grumbled as Mimi clung to his side. "Now stop panicking and get your ass in gear before I punt you the rest of the way!"
"Alright, alright, no need to… LOOKOUT!" Joe suddenly yelled while pushing Izzy away just as a wolf flew past where the tech genius had been standing… and sunk its teeth straight into Joe's shoulder. "AAAAAAGH!"
"Kuso!" Acting quickly, the clones rushed to the boy's side and restrained the wolf while prying its mouth open. Joe cried out once more as the earthen creature's jagged teeth were pulled out of his flesh before collapsing to the floor once they were completely free.
"Aaah! Fuck! Fuck! FUUUCK!" He cursed while clutching his shoulder, blood seeping between his fingers.
"Easy there Joe. Easy. We got you." Tai said as he and Izzy pulled the older boy out of the way and helped him to his feet.
"The bite is really deep, we need to get him help now." Izzy said worriedly while applying pressure to the wound.
"How? The medical bay is on the other side of that?" Mimi said while pointing to the burning and destroyed hallway behind them.
"Oi!" One of the clones cut in, drawing attention back to the trio of blondes struggling to keep the stone wolf subdued without getting popped. "Could somebody kill this fucking thing already! We can't hold it much longer!"
"I got it." Matt said, picking up a large piece of broken pipe off the floor and using it to smash the golem's head apart, leaving the rest to crumble into a harmless pile of dirt and rocks.
"Took you long enough," A clone grumbled while dusting himself off. "Come on, we're going back up deck."
"Uh, didn't you say something like that was extremely suicidal just a few minutes ago?" Sora asked with a raised brow.
"And it is, but staying down here just got even more risky." The clone said bluntly. "There are most likely several more of those little bastards all over the ship by now and there's no way the three of us and Patamon will be able to fend them all off."
"Hoi! We aren't defenseless you know." Tai said in an annoyed tone, to which C. Naruto responded with a dull look. "We aren't!"
"I'm not saying that you are Tai, but those things are basically rabid dogs on steroids. They would tear you apart before you even realized what happened without hesitation." The clone stated bluntly in a matter-of-fact tone that made the goggle-headed boy recoil. "Besides, the other clones will be able to get the supplies we need to patch up Joe, preferably before he bleeds out."
"…Yeah… definitely before then…" Said boy groaned, his face already extremely pale from blood loss.
-Present-
"Then they came back up here and we got Joe some bandages." A clone finished explaining to the original who had a deadpan expression. "We sent down a platoon to extinguish the fires and access the extent of the damage and how bad our little infestation is."
"And?"
"The boiler's a bit messed up but fixable boss, decks C and D are badly damaged, and every other deck below that is crawling with these damn things. The little bastards were breaking in through the lower portholes."
"Wonderful," Naruto muttered with a sigh before turning serious once more. "Good job, now let's find a way out of this mess already."
"We're way ahead of you Boss, but first we need to do a little fishing." The clone said while pointing over his shoulder, causing the real Naruto to look curiously before smiling widely.
"Ah, that could work, tell me more."
Meanwhile, TitanEtemon garbled incoherently as it was repeatedly blasted with blue and orange waves of fire that caused the crystal in its chest to fracture. With each blow the cracks spread further and soon the gem was barely held together, it's once bright crimson glow now barely flickering to life.
"He's almost down, one more good hit should do it." Garurumon said confidently, even as his breath came out slightly raggedly.
"Then let's make it count." An equally tired Greymon said before both inhaled deeply. "Nova Flame!"
"Howling Blaster!"
Taking inspiration from what Naruto and Biyomon had done, the two fired their attacks right next to each-other, causing the powerful blue and orange flames to mix together into a maelstrom of fiery death that struck the crumbling goliath.
The cracked rock lasted exactly one second before succumbing, allowing the vortex of fire to tear clean through its chest with an ear-wrenching screech. Once the attack died down, TitanEtemon stared at them with the best look of shock its mangled face could managed as it grasped at the gaping hole where its 'heart' used to be.
With each movement it made, cracks rapidly spread across what remained of the giant's body until it eventually just started falling apart, crumbling away into a massive pile of rocks and sand.
"Ugh, finally, I was starting to think he'd never die." A now devolved Gabumon grumbled as he and Agumon fell onto their rears.
"I know right, he was as stubborn as a rock." The orange lizard digimon punned with a tired grin, earning a quiet chuckle from his companion.
However, that humor quickly died away when both digimon noticed something.
"Uh, is it just me or is that going even faster now?" Agumon asked as he pointed towards the still spiraling whirlpool of sand that promptly sucked down the remains of TitanEtemon.
"…Uh-oh."
Back at the… back, Naruto, the rest of the digimon, and the digidestined watched in relief as the remaining wolf golems suddenly fell to pieces.
"Well, that was convenient," Naruto said before signaling his clones to spread out and search the ship, just to be safe. "You still alive Joe?"
"Barely," Joe groaned while gently grasping his freshly shoulder.
"Better than nothing, how about you guys?" Naruto asked while turning towards Palmon, Tentomon, and Gomamon as the trio walked towards them and Biyomon who was being checked over by Sora.
"Tired, hungry, and in real need of a bath but otherwise fine." The plant digimon said, waving off the blonde's concern.
"I'll be fine." Biyomon stated with a smile before wincing when she tried to wave with her broken wing.
"Agumon and Gabumon are also alright Boss." A clone yelled from above. "Also, the sand vortex is starting to destabilize like you thought it would, I suggest we try plan 'Get the hell out of here' before it's too late."
"Got it, I'm on my way." Naruto called back as he started heading to the front of the Sandoraidā.
"Hey, mind filling us in on this plan of yours?" Tai asked as the rest digidestined and their digimon followed the whiskered blonde.
"I'm pretty sure the name says it all." Naruto said jokingly without missing a single step.
"Okay smart-aleck, 'how' do you intend to do that?" Matt asked with a good-natured roll of his eyes.
"Simple, we need to get out of here before that pit over there sucks us in all the way," Naruto started as they reached the front of the ship where a bunch of clones were just finishing pulling the anchor onto the deck, "So I'm going to fish us out."
…
"Huh?" Everybody said at the same time.
*Sigh* "Just stand back and watch." The whiskered blonde muttered while digivolving back to his Teumesemon form and grabbing the top of the large metal hook. "What a waste of a perfectly good one-liner."
Eyeing the edge of the sand whirlpool carefully, Naruto's gaze narrowed when he saw a glimpse of green before he spun around several times and hurled the anchor with a grunt. The digidestined and digimon watched in awe as the giant hook soared through the air several hundred yards until it collided with a massive cactus in the distance, embedding itself deeply into the spiny plant.
"Brace yourselves!" Naruto yelled as the chain connecting the anchor to the ship went taunt, causing the entire vessel to pivot from the sudden resistance. "Alrighty boys, I got something, now reel her in!"
"Hai Boss!" His clones cheered while operating the winch, slowly pulling the cruise ship out of danger.
"Dude, could you give us a little more warning before you do something like that? Me and T.K. almost got thrown overboard." Matt said angrily as he and the rest of the digidestined got back to their feet.
"Really, I thought it was kinda obvious what was going on." Naruto said with a raised brow.
"Uh, guys, we might want to take cover." Izzy cut in, nervously eyeing the sand whirlpool as it rumbled ominously. "If my math is right, the material that is being suctioned into that vortex is about to reach critical levels of compression which will most likely result in a high intensity expansive reaction."
"In english Izzy?" Tai asked dully.
"It's probably going to blow up and shoot sand everywhere." The computer genius simplified bluntly while not so slowly backing up towards the doorway leading into the ship.
"Oh…" A brief silence fell over the group after these words before everyone but Naruto's clones booked it inside. Not a second to soon either as the vortex it suddenly stopped and the loose sand started roiling rapidly.
*BOOOOOM*
Sand and rocks were sent flying skywards at high speed as the sandpit exploded upwards, creating a cloud of dust that rapidly expanded outwards. It only took a few moments for the newly created sandstorm to engulf the Sandoraidā, the powerful winds of rock particles scraping over it like super coarse sandpaper.
This went on for several minutes, with many clones were dispelled from this shredding force, and even more were cut down by chunks of rock that tore through them like bullets.
When it finally died back down, the gang cautiously peeked out and most couldn't help but wince sympathetically at the damage. Almost every inch of the ship was covered in scratches, had rocks embedded into them, or was now more… aerated then before.
"Oh come on, are you freaking serious," Naruto groaned sadly while falling to his knees, a single tear falling down his cheek as he ran a hand over the ruined deck. "I just got this baby too."
Giggling a little at his over dramatic reaction, Mimi patted the blonde's shoulder comfortingly. "There there Naruto, don't be sad, we can still fix this."
"Hey look, a crest." Tai said while pointing to the top of the cactus they had anchored to which had a large flower that just bloomed to reveal the large stone plate of a crest with the symbol for Sincerity on it.
"Huh, you know, I'd actually forgotten that we were looking for that." Izzy admitted as the slab shrunk down to a small green rectangle and floated down into the tag around Mimi's neck. "Well, that's three down, just four more to go."
-End Chapter-
AN: I am SOOOO sorry for how long this took, I was stuck for a while trying to make this a proper chapter since this was originally supposed to be just the ending of last chapter. To that end I am also sorry if it didn't come out very well because of that. Thank you for reading and please review.