Hello and welcome to another installment of the Hunger Games: Spark of Revolution. I hope you are all enjoying it so far. I know this has been one of my favorite fics to write so far.
Let's look at a review or two before we get started.
Qalleesyawesome wrote: i really am curious how Tresh will react to rue's death. and how the alliance will be after this. btw im pretty sure killed marvel just now. it wasn't just a random tribute. anyway enjoying this so much! cant wait for the continuation! update soon
My response: that is definitely going to come into play in this story, though the impact will not be so big as I would like, mostly because we are entering the last legs of the games now. As for the one who died in the canon series it was definitely Marvel, here however it was one of the few remaining other contenders.
xxxFictionFiendxxx wrote: I'm glad to hear you plan to include the latter half of the series, instead of doing what some writers do and end it with the final of the first games. Keep it up.
My response: I agree. I love the first book of course and the movie was good, but the war and honestly the entire second half of the series needed more in my opinion. I mean it felt like the second rebellion lasted a few weeks at most. We will be seeing a much larger more horrible conflict over a much longer period. I feel like the time between the two games and after the second game is where I will really have more freedom to turn this into a unique story with original storylines and events. I hope you enjoy it.
Anyway let me invite you to a couple of servers on discord with the following links and we can get started.
Link→ /7x4YFstKcz
Link→ /auc4PQjVtz
On to the story.
Chapter Nine
Adaptation
While Naruto, Katniss, and the other remaining tributes fought on to survive in the arena, things outside had grown more violent and chaotic by the day.
The riot in district one was subdued, but only through force. The destruction of grain silos and buildings as well as dozens of deaths from the peacekeeper crackdown had made the district appear as if it was a warzone.
Outside of district eleven, other outer districts or those that were the most oppressed also rose up in protest. They too faced peacekeeper retaliation, though none as badly as district eleven had.
While things there remained tense, they were slowly being returned to normalcy. More out of fear of further reprisal than anything else. In districts eight and twelve things were only growing more intense though.
District twelve had always had a bit of an independent feeling to it. They got the least food, least power, and least support from the capitol out of all the districts. To survive in a place like the district twelve seam, you had to bend rules and pull off some creative stunts.
Gale Hawthorne and many others among the young adult generations of the district had found themselves locked down in holding cells following a brief riot. From there he and the others were still forced to watch the games, only now in the discomfort of a detention center.
District eight was different though. It was one of if not the most densely populated district in the country. Extremely urbanized sub-divisions made up the district's territory and nearly it's entire population toiled in the massive factories for textiles, producing clothing and fabric for the rest of the country as a whole.
Those that didn't work on the factory floor either worked to maintain the machinery that the district used or fit into the extremely small group of people that filled the same role as the merchant side of district twelve.
The food rations in eight were thereby more strictly enforced than anywhere else and shortages were common. Hunger was also common and while death by starvation was more likely in the remote district twelve, that was only due to population statistics as district eight's numbers dwarfed those of district twelve.
At the very least those in twelve could rely on poachers when things grew too lean. In eight there were no forests to hunt. The closest they had were ratcatchers whose title implied exactly what source the protein they provided came from.
With the threat of twelve and eight outright rioting in greater and more organized shows of force, Seneca Crane was beginning to truly feel the weight of his position. As well as the weight of President Snow's disappointment.
The Game Master was facing an impossible situation. The President expected him to fix things with the games but even someone born and raised entirely in the capital like Crane had been could see that the system was broken. Revolt was inevitable.
How could he possibly use a game designed to kill the children of the districts to keep the districts happy, or at the very least docile?
It was entirely impossible.
That is until Haymitch Abernathy approached him. Haymitch was an opportunist. It was ingrained into the people of district twelve to think outside the box, but people like Haymitch took that further. He could easily see the situation that the Game Master had found himself in. That meant he had an opportunity.
It took time to corner the game master for a conversation, but when he finally did the man listened. He had no other options really.
"You want to get the people out there to calm down? Show that they have been heard and give them just a little sliver of hope. Give them a show. Those two kids care about one another and between Flickerman and Effie the whole country thinks that they are in love with each other. Take their mind off of the death of that girl from eleven and put it on something positive for a while." Haymitch whispered into Seneca's ear as they say at a table and picked at the lavish meal before them.
The game Master chewed his food silently while he contemplated the mentor's words. Despite his drunkenness and unkempt nature Haymitch was one of the most popular victors still alive. He had fought in the second quarter quell and managed to come out on top of a much larger hunger games than was normal.
Between his time in the games, his time as a victor, and his time as a mentor, Haymitch had more experience dealing with all of this than Seneca did. Much more actually.
"Alright, what did you have in mind?" Crane asked.
Haymitch smirked a bit as he leaned in again to give him his idea. Truth be told he couldn't care less if Crane hung for it or if the plan worked at all. It was for Naruto and Katniss. The slimmest chance that both might come home and get the chance to live the lives they deserved.
Back in the arena, Naruto had set out to look for his fellow district twelve comrade. A night had passed since the explosion that had claimed the career pack's campsite. A night that saw Rue appear in the sky.
Naruto had given the same sign his district had to Katniss when she volunteered. Unknowingly mirroring his partner from home. He pities the girl, and he pities Thresh knowing the boy wanted nothing more than to see Rue go home alive.
That being said worry had begun to grow in his chest. Did that mean his deal with Thresh would be gone now? What reason would the District Eleven tribute have for continuing to work with Naruto and Katniss, assuming of course Naruto could reunite with either of them soon.
In fact, if he was in Thresh's position he doubted that he would even bother returning to the rendezvous point they had agreed upon. He would rather avoid a chance of being betrayed or possibly having to betray someone he got along with so easily.
That didn't matter at the moment though. Right now his mind needed to be focused. Not just on finding Katniss either. His arm had been poorly stitched and had reopened when he had been trying to bandage it the night before.
It was thankfully not infected, but the pain and bloodloss was not helping him in the slightest. He fought exhaustion and nausea continuously and he was effectively down to one arm at the moment. Still he knew that he needed to find Katniss and so set out to do just that.
He started by edging past the center of the arena. He couldn't say for certain but out of all of the remaining competitors, Katniss was the only one he could see somehow destroying the career pack supplies. Who else could really pose that sort of threat to the likes of Cato and his remaining cronies.
From there Naruto slowly began working his way further and further into the woods. Even with the bad luck Katniss had suffered so far in the thick woods, it was the environment she knew best so he was sure she would stick to it.
After several hours though, the best he had managed to do was find a few of her snares to catch small game. As the sun passed the mid point in the sky he began slowing down and preparing to turn back for his cave.
More than disappointed he was beginning to really struggle with his injury, the poor attempt at stitches he had performed threatened to make the wound even worse than it had been and traveling over rugged uneven terrain made sure he had no way to stop jostling the wounded limb.
Since Rue had been killed Katniss had become almost numb. Her tears had stopped but she worked almost on autopilot as she set up snares and found a place to rest.
That was extremely dangerous on her part as she wasn't paying close enough attention to her surroundings in the event that the careers or another tribute might get the drop on her.
Thankfully the person she encountered wasn't one of the tributes itching for a shot at her head. In fact it was her own fellow tribute from twelve. Clearly he hadn't noticed her hidden far up in the branches of the thick trees as he trudged past her, or rather underneath her.
Naruto looked worse for wear with one of his arms in tattered and bloody bandages held in a makeshift sling to try and keep it from moving too much. He stumbled a bit but was more sure footed while injured than some of their opponents had been while perfectly healthy.
Katniss was incredibly relieved to see him with her own two eyes. He had already helped her out twice now and it looked like she could return the favor…and she wanted to until she reminded herself that only one of them would be leaving the arena alive.
After holding Rue as she died, Katniss didn't want that again. Not with someone that she actually knew from back home. She didn't think she could bear it.
So she watched silently as he passed by. It looked like he was searching for something, and when he found one of her snares she knew he was looking for her. It made it even harder to watch as he passed by and the sun began to dip lower into the sky with the late afternoon.
Settled in for another night in the woods, Katniss jolted slightly as a voice came to life over the sound of the forest.
"Attention tributes, attention." The game maker's voice said clearly. "The regulations requiring a single victor have been…suspended. From now on two victor's may be crowned if both originate from the same district. This will be the only announcement."
Katniss blinked in shock before scrambling to undo the rope that kept her secured to the tree. She needed to catch up to Naruto. There was a chance for both of them now and they wouldn't have to fight at all.
She quickly collected her handful of items and began moving through the forest after Naruto. She wasn't quiet or all that careful, more worried about catching up to him before he moves too far away than anything else.
She was a far better tracker than he was as well, and while Naruto could recognize her snares, Katniss could pick out his path from even the sight of bent grasses and broken twigs.
Soon enough she was hot on his trail and certain she was gaining on him until suddenly she felt a hand snap out and wrap tightly around her mouth. Her eyes went wide as thoughts surrounding the large career tribute Cato running her through with his sword now of all times ran through her mind.
Instead the hand let go and she slowly turned to see who had released her.
Naruto stood before her. He had pressed into a thick bit of underbrush and waited for whoever had been trailing after him to step past him.
Both stood and stared for a moment before exhausted smiles spread onto their faces and they tightly embraced.
At least until Naruto hissed in pain from the girl brushing against his arm. She jumped back apologizing while he waved off her worried tone.
"Don't worry about it. It hurts but it isn't killing me. I'm just glad to see that you are doing better than last time that I saw you." Naruto said as he let himself slowly drop down to sit on an old fallen tree.
Katniss smiled softly at that reminder. One of the times he had come through for her even before the announcement that they could both be allowed to survive. It made the numbness she'd felt since Rue was killed begin to dampen and a warmth return. Just a little.
"We shouldn't stay here. I was pretty loud trying to find you." Katniss said as she remembered their situation.
"Right. I was pretty surprised, never thought I would hear you tramping through the woods like that. You are more controlled normally." Naruto agreed.
"Yeah, well I was in a hurry to catch up to you." She replied with that small soft grin beginning to return yet again.
Naruto couldn't help but share one of his own with the girl. Stiffly he stood back up and waved for her to follow him before taking a much more careful and roundabout route back toward his cave. It was better this way to keep others from simply following after them or from running into those that might have stumbled onto their trail that they had made while looking for one another.
The fact that it was a smoother path than what he had taken previously so that his arm was jostled less as he moved was neither here nor there.
Soon they came to his hide away. One that impressed Katniss well enough. Naruto had to show her the path through his defenses which made it clear how difficult actually attacking his cave would be for others. On top of that the cave was comfortable and well stocked with a decent amount of supplies. Naruto didn't hesitate tossing a bit of food her way.
"Ration bars? You still have some?" She asked in shock that Naruto had so much food left.
"Mostly from stealing some supplies from others either while they were distracted or…" Naruto trailed off, they both knew what he was going to say and there wasn't a need to voice it out loud anymore.
Katniss quietly tucked into the food he had given her. She settled into a semi comfortable place beside the makeshift bed Naruto had made. For a cave made up of cold damp stone it was actually a pretty cozy place to rest or even sleep. Much better than up in the trees she had gotten used to during the nearly week long games.
When she had finished she noticed that Naruto was sitting nearby just watching her. Her cheeks heated up slightly at that. Not because he was looking at her, she wasn't so bashful at that, but because she had practically shovelled the food he had given her into her mouth like a pig without thinking about it.
Naruto seemed to notice her blush though as he chuckled at her expense, making Katniss pout faintly as she flicked a small stone in his direction.
The boy twisted his head out of the way but in doing so brushed his arm against the rocks of the wall causing him to jerk away from it and hiss in pain.
"Oh God, are you alright?" Katniss asked worriedly, mentally kicking herself for somehow forgetting he was injured.
"Yeah, fine really." Naruto replied trying to turn so that he hid his hurt arm behind his body.
"Let me see it. I might be able to help." Katniss said.
"I handled it. It's as good as it's going to get as long as we're here in the arena." Naruto argued.
"Then it shouldn't matter if I look at it right?" Katniss asked with a bit of steel in her tone that surprised Naruto a bit.
"Really, it is fine Katniss. Let me worry about it." Naruto tried to argue.
"Of all the things to act prideful over it's a hole in your arm? Really? Give it to me." Katniss practically commanded.
Naruto stared over at her for a moment. With a small grumble he slowly did as she wished.
Katniss removed the makeshift sling and gently set the wounded arm into her lap before carefully unravelling the old bandages that he had over it. The moment she finished she gasped at the injury.
The poor attempt at stitches that Naruto had done himself had torn at some point and the wound was a bloody mess of torn flesh and fishing line.
"I have to stitch this properly. You managed to mess it up pretty bad." She said seriously as she snatched up the makeshift needle and thread Naruto had made from a fishhook and fishing line.
Naruto really had no choice in the matter. Katniss carefully cut the old line free before threading the needle and starting on repairing the damage done to her partner's arm.
Naruto bit his lip and grunted softly as the girl worked on him. It was painful, though not nearly as bad as the initial injury had been. He was not having a pleasant time though.
In an attempt to distract him from the pain, and to a certain extent just calm her own nerves at sewing up human flesh, Katniss began to talk.
She talked about all manner of things. Little unnecessary things. To the point she was just babbling incoherently about something from their time at school back in district twelve.
"Katniss." Naruto finally said between deep breaths to keep himself steady from the feeling of her digging into his arm with a needle and thread.
"Huh?" She asked as she pushed the sharp point of the needle through his skin once again causing him to choke back a gasp of pain.
"You don't need to fill the silence. Really I'm fine." Naruto said.
The girl simply scoffed at him.
"You know it was fine, I didn't need you to help me with this." He said snappishly as his hackles rose at the dismissive scoff she gave him.
"Oh really? Maybe you didn't want my help but I wanted to help you. You've been helping me plenty even before the rule change." Katniss replied gradually speaking more softly.
The pair grew silent at that as Katniss grew close to finishing. She paused briefly to glance at his face only for both of them to freeze as they locked eyes with one another. Blue and gray unwavering as they looked at one another.
"I never really thanked you for all that. Or for helping back in twelve, with my family." Katniss said awkwardly.
Naruto huffed faintly while shaking his head. "Don't think about it like that. You helped me first, I just don't like owing people anything."
Katniss was quiet for a bit before she turned to look up at him again. She frowned at his words the last few weeks had really started to confuse her and his choice of words both compounded that and sting her slightly.
"That was all it was, huh?" She asked quietly. Almost whispering.
Naruto stared back at her. Only now did he realize that they were so close to one another. Inches apart. He opened his mouth to say something before closing it again when words failed to form.
They continued to simply sit pressed against one another and eyes locked until Naruto felt a pull. He wasn't certain what caused him to do it, but he leaned forward and kissed Katniss. Deeply.
The girl was stunned but after a brief second of surprise her eyes closed and she returned his kiss just as deeply. Slowly the two pulled back when they needed to catch their breath.
Naruto coughed and cleared his throat, clearly surprised by his own actions. The wave of peace and pleasure that washed over him during the kiss was still very present on his mind but the boy didn't know what to do and had no idea how to answer her inevitable question of why he had done that.
"You should get some rest. I will sit on watch for a while to make sure the careers didn't pick up our trail." Naruto said before hustling out of the cave without a look back at Katniss.
Had he looked he would have felt some relief. She was blushing, worse than he was in fact, and a warm soft smile had splayed itself across her face as she gingerly touched her finger tips to her lips.
Katniss was happy he hadn't seen her reaction to his kiss, she was embarrassed by it. Like him she was unsure what her feelings really were and battling her own thoughts regarding him.
Unfortunately for her, while Naruto had missed her reaction to his kiss, beyond returning it during the act itself, the multitude of cameras set up by the capitol had not.
The very real and tender moment between the tributes was broadcasted across the country, even to the rioting districts. No. Especially to the rioting districts.
The Capitol
Caesar and Claudius practically glowed after watching the interactions with Naruto and Katniss. For something that would be such an unimportant event with any normal pair of teens across the nation was the talking point of practically every person in the capitol and plenty of others across the districts.
Naruto and Katniss were naturals in the talk show host's opinion. The kids didn't even realize the effect their actions likely had on the country, managing to achieve exactly what Seneca Crane had hoped for as the hotly stoked rebellious ideas of the districts began to flicker slightly in the face of such a change with the games.
"Everyone's focus is on these two young lovers now, Caesar." Claudius commented.
"Indeed, my friend. Such sweethearts these two are. So bashful with their emotions but despite that our man Naruto is showing his blood nature by taking the lead with Katniss." Caesar replied.
"With that new suspension of the single victor rule this entire year has become so much more intriguing!" Claudius cheered.
"I couldn't agree more. Though it must be a disappointment for all those poor boys and girls back in district twelve, with both Naruto and Katniss taking one another off of the market." Caesar joked, getting a characteristic over the top laugh from his co-host.
The two went on to replay the moment of Naruto kissing Katniss, slowing the footage to pick apart every aspect of the kiss, especially the moment when it became clear that she was returning the act.
District Twelve
Gale Hawthorne did his best to ignore the glances of his cell mates. His closeness to Katniss Everdeen was pretty well known among their age group in the Seam. Most of those in the detention center at the moment had been a part of the riot along with him and had been locked up as one of the leaders of the riot when it occurred.
The teen kept his face tucked away from the others to avoid the sight of his burning face and slightly stinging eyes. Much like the conflicted and confused emotions of Naruto and Katniss, Gale was distraught with his feelings at the moment.
He was no naïve boy. He knew his interest in Katniss was more than that of a close friend or even a simple crush. He had grown up along with her and been closer with her than anyone else except for maybe her little sister Primrose.
She and Naruto weren't close like that. He told himself they were doing it for the show. Pretending and playing the parts that they had to play to survive.
He still felt a tightness spread across his chest and a burn grow in his eyes. Seeing her return Naruto's kiss and the showmen running everything replaying it over and over again seemed like the capitol was rubbing it all in his face.
Despite all that though, here in the detention center he couldn't escape the television and the broadcast as the games continued.
When Naruto returned from standing watch, not that it hadn't been an excuse for some privacy to get a handle of his emotions, he found Katniss setting up a place to sleep beside his own. The sun was already disappearing behind the horizon and they would need to head out for the rendezvous with Thresh in the morning if his alliance still stood.
"I didn't think you would mind if…" Katniss murmured.
"Ah, no you're fine." Naruto replied as he moved over to his own sleeping place.
Katniss nodded and finished setting up her bedding. Naruto crawled into his own and lay down facing the girl as she finished up. Exhaustion from the games and the knowledge that they were likely watched ensured neither attempted to kiss once again or continue any more emotional moments.
As Katniss laid down though, the found themselves naturally pulling one another closer and wrapping each other in their arms. Both privately told themselves it was because they were feeding off of the body heat of their partner.
"In the morning we need to set out for that tree I hid you in after the tracker jacket hove situation. I agreed to meet Thresh there." Naruto said.
"The boy from district eleven, right?" Katniss asked quietly.
"Yeah. He and I agreed to help one another find and protect you and the other district eleven tribute." Naruto explained.
"Rue." She whispered.
"Yeah… you were there weren't you." Naruto didn't ask her. He could already tell.
"I tried to save her." Katniss' lip quivered and without thought Naruto pressed his lips to her brow and pulled her in closely.
"I'm sure you did." He comforted her. Tomorrow might end up being more difficult than he wanted. He hoped Thresh saw reason.
Slowly the two teens fell asleep tightly twisted together, much to the joy of most of the country watching them from home and the anguish of a young man in district twelve.
That is that. A short chapter but we are getting very close to the end of the seventy fourth hunger games. Obvious progress with Naruto and Katniss. They are a ways from any kind of real relationship, the tenderness and the kiss is stemming more from a need to comfort themselves in such a hellish situation as the hunger games. Kind of like a dependence on one another rather than outright affection for one another. That being said they both are not only attracted to one another but are fond of one another and are stepping down a path toward the pay off.
Anyway I hope you enjoyed.
Till Next Time.