Author's note: Had both good news (I've passed all my classes, so hello university degrees!) and semi-bad news this week, so it took me a bit longer than I would have liked to finish this chapter, but here it is!

Thanks to the following reviewers: leighd1314; PinkiePieParty122894; Pen-Woman; SarahNThatcher; Kalos

Warnings: We're going a bit dark and morbid here, guys; violence

Disclaimer: I don't own Naruto, Kishimoto owns it. I also don't own Pokémon, that belongs to Satoshi Tajiri and The Pokémon Company.

I hope you'll like it!


Chapter 24

I'm going to die.

It was the only thought shooting through Naruto's numb mind as he plummeted down, the ice cold air shrieking around him as he hurtled down towards his inevitable death. His knuckles bashed a few times against the rough surface of the mountain's insides but there was nothing for him to grab or claw at, nothing that would slow down or stop his fall.

I'm really going to die.

His heart lurched into his throat and he opened his mouth but nothing came out. If he fell down to his death, would his Pokémon survive? Their Pokéballs were attached to his belt and if they shattered apart against the rocks …

Pidgeotto's screech broke off right in the middle of it, turning into a horrified wail when he saw his Trainer falling with a frightening speed to the ground. With Pidgeotto freed, Naruto hastily removed his belt with the rest of the Pokéballs and threw the belt to Pidgeotto, who caught it between his claws with a shocked screech.

There was no time to explain anything anymore; Naruto closed his eyes and braced himself for impact, quietly hoping that he wouldn't remain conscious for too long. All the air got knocked out from his lungs, making him gasp painfully, when his back made impact with something …

Soft?

His fall was abruptly stopped, but whatever he was lying on, it wasn't rock or even earth. Instead it was something soft and flexible, causing him to almost … bob?

Bewildered and his heart beating like a drum against his ribs, Naruto reached beneath him to feel the surface he was lying on. Before his fingers could touch it, it suddenly disappeared and he yelped when he dropped down roughly onto the ground. The drop was short, but when whatever had stopped his initial fall vanished, it sent him toppling over so that he ended up on his stomach, nary avoiding breaking his nose.

Groaning, he pushed himself up and knelt on the floor, wincing as tiny stones dug into his kneecaps. Pidgeotto flew down screaming, the sound of his wings furiously whipping echoing through the space. With no idea where his torch had landed and his surroundings pitch black, Naruto had no choice but to take off his bag and feel around for his Pokédex, using the dim light of the screen to peer around him.

With how weak the light of the screen was, naturally he couldn't see much. He heard Pidgeotto's claws scratching at stone before a firm breeze announced his Pokémon's arrival. His belt was dropped into his lap and Pidgeotto's head rubbed anxiously against his arm.

"I'm okay," Naruto rasped, ignoring the tremble running through his arms. "I didn't expect there to be a hole in that corridor. Pidgeotto, can you see if you can find my torch anywhere?"

He would need a bigger light than the Pokédex screen to explore his surroundings. He would definitely need light in order to make his way out of here – if he could make his way out of here, that was. If he had fallen down into a completely closed off chamber in the mountain …

He swallowed, the sound too loud in his ears.

Pidgeotto chirped quietly in agreement and took off again. While Pidgeotto looked around for the missing torch, Naruto put his belt back on and used the dim light of the Pokédex to try to look around. The space immediately around him was filled with nothing but pebbles and broken pieces of rock. When he carefully stretched out his arm, he found a wall immediately to his left and free space around him. The air here was tainted with a hint of decay, making him wrinkle his nose.

Something nudged his hand.

"Ah, thanks, Pidgeotto," Naruto murmured and called him back into his Pokéball.

He tested out the torch, hoping the fall hadn't broken it. Aside from the scuffed plastic casing around the lightbulb, the torch had survived the fall as it instantly flashed its bright beam when Naruto pressed down on the button. Standing up, he slowly moved the light from one side to the other, studying the place carefully.

The jagged walls reached so high he had to tilt his head all the way back in order to catch a glimpse of the ceiling, which wasn't very reassuring. The ground was littered with rock debris and withered, thin tree branches. To Naruto's big relief there was a small gap in the northern wall through which the faint sound of the wind echoed. That had to mean there was a way out of here. As he wondered just how deep he was in the mountain now, he started carefully walking around, exploring this cave chamber further.

The walls had jagged edges but they were too spread out to be of any use to climb back up. Higher up on the walls the jagged edges grew broad enough for someone to stand on if they managed to reach that far. Maybe if he had some kind of rope that one of his Pokémon could attach to the edge of the hole he had fallen in through, but he didn't. His only way out was the small gap in the northern wall, which would hopefully lead to –

Something cracked underneath his foot. The object he had broken with his foot was too big to be a stick, so he looked down curiously.

A bone. He had stepped onto a bone. A bone that looked suspiciously a lot like it had belonged to … a human at one point.

Slowly he directed the torch across the ground, his heartbeat loud in his ears, and to his horror more bones were scattered in this corner of the cave. Some had been gnawed on to the point where teeth imprints were deeply edged into the bone; others were splintered, the jagged edges looking like they could splice skin apart. The nearest wall was covered with rusty brown splatters, old and long dried up by now. Blood, he realised numbly. He was standing on a mass grave. The chill running down his spine had nothing to do with the icy air hanging stagnant in the cave. How many people had landed to their death here? Or … had been dragged here? Because the teeth imprints weren't a result of a fall. It was possible that the bodies had been eaten after they had died, but …

The quiet exhale hitting the back of his neck was his only warning.

He dove to the right at the exact moment one of Zweilous' heads snapped its teeth down. The noise of teeth clacking together when they missed a vulnerable neck was ominous enough, but the furious growl both heads released at having missed their prey was spinechilling. Naruto rushed to the gap he had seen before, but Zweilous nearly snatching his bag had him veering to the left again.

Panting, he whirled around and threw two Pokéballs into the air. Twin beams of red light instantly filled the cave, making Zweilous snarl as it backed away slightly. Mimikyu and Riolu immediately tensed up when they came face to face with Zweilous.

"Mimikyu, keep using Dazzling Gleam until Zweilous is down. Riolu, use …" Naruto trailed off for a moment, cursing when he realised that Riolu didn't know any Fighting moves yet.

There was Counter, of course, but that probably wouldn't have the necessary power behind it to tackle a Zweilous of all Pokémon. Mimikyu's move had the advantage, but considering how high Zweilous' level had to be to have evolved in this form … He couldn't have Mimikyu attacking on his own, so Riolu was necessary.

"Riolu, use Metal Claw," he decided quickly. "Just keep going until Zweilous is defeated!"

Zweilous roared, throwing both heads back, but Mimikyu's Dazzling Gleam brightened up the cave, making Zweilous flinch. Before Zweilous could recover, Riolu shot forwards, unleashing one Metal Claw after the other. Zweilous' left head snarled as it dashed forwards; its right head snapping down in a Crunch around Mimikyu's stuffed head. Mimikyu squealed, his shadowy tendrils shooting out to smack Zweilous' head. The slap surprised Zweilous long enough for Mimikyu to flip himself out of the way by using his shadows to push himself off the ground.

Riolu ran to Zweilous, landing two more Metal Claws which caused blood to seep from the gashes and drip down its side. That appeared to be the tipping point for Zweilous, whose enraged roar sent a couple of rocks tumbling down, forcing Naruto to jump out of the way or get bashed in the head with them.

Naruto's eyes widened when both of Zweilous' mouths opened widely and energy started to collect in the back of their throats. Was it going to use Dragon Pulse?! Wasn't that one of the moves that were very hard to dodge?

Zweilous needed to get knocked out right now.

"Mimikyu, Dazzling Gleam now! Riolu, Metal Claw!" Naruto ordered, trying not to panic.

It was hard to remain calm, however, when they were facing such a dangerous opponent with their only exit blocked off by the Pokémon in question. If Mimikyu and Riolu didn't manage to defeat Zweilous now, they were going to be in big trouble.

Riolu's Metal Claw slashed Zweilous right across its two faces, distracting the bulky Pokémon long enough for Mimikyu to launch an even stronger Dazzling Gleam which lit up the cave until it looked like they were out in the open in full sunlight. The strength of the gleam hit Zweilous full on, knocking it backwards. Its two heads slammed against each other and Zweilous sagged down, slumping over, finally motionless.

"Oh, thank Arceus," Naruto sighed relieved, placing a hand on his chest where his heart was still beating wildly.

Riolu tilted his head to the left; his face covered in shadows until Naruto directed the torch in his direction. "Riolu?" In team?

"Mimi, Mimikyu!" Not in our team. Too bad.

Right, Zweilous was unconscious, knocked out by his Pokémon. Theoretically that meant Naruto should be able to capture it now, right? The alternative was leaving it behind until it woke up again and risk having it track him down. He could only keep six Pokéballs attached to his belt, but he could keep the Pokéball in his bag until he got back out of this mountain and in the new town. There he could go to a Pokécentre and use the computer there to send the Pokéball to Tsunade to keep Zweilous safe.

"Zweilous is not going to join our team, but I am going to catch it," Naruto decided and grabbed an empty Pokéball from his bag, throwing it at Zweilous.

He was happy with the Pokémon he had in his team now, so there was no reason to switch out one of them for Zweilous. Having more Pokémon couldn't hurt, though, especially one as high levelled as Zweilous was.

The Pokéball flipped open and its red light shot out, enveloping Zweilous. The light swallowed the Pokémon right into the Pokéball and the ball closed, wiggling back and forth twice before the ball stilled, resting calmly on the ground.

Naruto walked over to it and picked it up, staring down at the Pokéball. "Well, guess you're mine now," he murmured and placed the Pokéball in his bag.

He turned to Mimikyu and Riolu, who were watching him curiously. He smiled at them, hoping he didn't look as rattled as he felt. "All right, there is a gap in the wall over there that we can use to - "

Something rammed into his side harshly, slamming him into the wall and making him drop his torch, which rolled over the ground, its light dancing over a pair of blue paws. His head smacked against the stone, disorienting him, and he yelled when teeth snapped close around his arm. Before they could snap his arm in two, two things happened at once. Mimikyu unleashed an enraged shriek and a bright white light filled the cave. The white beam whirled around quickly until it compressed into a large white ball. The light disappeared as sudden as it had appeared and dazed, Naruto watched a shadow slam into the Pokémon loaming over him, pushing it aside.

Head pounding, Naruto scrambled towards the torch and grabbed Mimikyu when he was about to dash past him. Clutching Mimikyu against his chest, Naruto hastily aimed the torch in the direction of the angry growls, needing to know what on earth had just happened.

There was a second Zweilous. When had it managed to sneak up on them?! And in front of the Zweilous a blue and black Pokémon stood. The Pokémon had its back to Naruto, but it was bigger than Riolu and its medium-length tail was coloured blue. It seemed to stand on its toes rather than his feet and it had four black appendages at the back of its head which started to rise up. Both its arms spread out, allowing Naruto to catch a glimpse of a short round spike on the back of each forepaw before the Pokémon released a pulse of pure power, which hit Zweilous straight into its chest.

As Naruto sat there gaping in shock, Mimikyu wriggled himself free and lit up the cave with another Dazzling Gleam. At the same time the blue and black Pokémon released another one of those pulses, which hit Zweilous right in its left head. The combined attack seemed to be too powerful or perhaps this Zweilous was a lot weaker, because Zweilous stumbled backwards, sinking through its paws before dropping onto its side, losing consciousness.

"Mimikyu, Mimi!" Second one down!

The blue and black Pokémon turned around, allowing Naruto a good look at its front. Aside from the two spiles on his forepaws that Naruto had spotted before, the Pokémon also had a third spike on its chest. Its eyes were red and both its ears and snout were long. When it opened its mouth slightly, two pairs of pointed teeth were visible. The blue and black fur was broken up by cream-coloured fur on its torso.

A quick survey of the cave showed it empty of Riolu and slowly Naruto turned back to the unknown Pokémon currently approaching him.

'Everything is okay.'

Naruto jerked his head back, shocked and slightly afraid at hearing an unknown voice echo in his mind. "Who are - "

'I'm Lucario. I was Riolu before. Do not be afraid, I am speaking telepathically to you,' the Pokémon, Lucario, spoke calmly.

Telepathically, right, because of course that was a thing that – wait, this Lucario had been his Riolu? Riolu had evolved?

"You evolved?" Naruto said dumbly.

'Hm, to protect you I needed to become stronger,' Lucario explained; one of his four black appendages twitched and he twisted his head in Zweilous' direction. 'Best to leave before it wakes up again.'

"Right." Naruto shook his head and instantly regretted it when the pounding in his head worsened. Grimacing, he gingerly touched the side of his head, but aside from the pulsing pain in his temple and most likely a developing bump, the skin wasn't broken, his fingers coming back clean.

"Let's get out of here," he announced and held out their Pokéballs, letting the red light swallow up both Mimikyu and Lucario.

He hung the balls back on his belt and tiptoed around the unconscious Zweilous, making his way quickly but silently towards the gap that meant his exit from this cave. The gap was just big enough for him to wiggle through, but before he forced himself in the gap, he ran the torchlight one last time around the cave.

There was the passed out Zweilous; its body half hidden behind a rock. Dead tree branches mixed with the human bones and the jagged edges of the walls cast shadows when the torchlight slid across them. There was nothing, however, that resembled the odd pliable soft surface that had broken his fall initially. He frowned, raising the light higher, but nothing but small holes in the walls greeted him. Had he imagined the soft surface that had kept him from flattening like a pancake against the floor? He had had his eyes closed, but it wasn't as if he had lost unconsciousness.

If nothing in the cave resembled the soft surface, what had formed it then? An air bubble? No, no air bubble would be sturdy enough to carry a human. What had it been then?

Uneasily he turned around and forced his body through the narrow gap, leaving the Zweilous and the cave behind.


Naruto had no idea where he was going.

After he had managed to wriggle through the narrow gap, he had fortunately ended in a broad corridor, but that was where his luck ended. This mountain corridor had several exits – entrances? – and he had no idea which one to pick and follow. The first one had been a dead end; a busted Pokéball discarded at the end of the dusty corridor. The second and the third one had linked together in one loop, making him walk in a circle until he had noticed that and gone back to the main corridor.

Walking through what he dubbed the main corridor showed nothing but shrivelled, dead Berries and withered sticks. Some of the small white sticks looked too much like human bones for Naruto to be comfortable with them, so he kept his eyes firmly averted from them. He came across some Geodude, but Vaporeon's Water Gun kept the boulder Pokémon from attacking Naruto. He made sure to rush away from the defeated Pokémon as quickly as possible, only catching the first unconscious Geodude, as he didn't want to be near when they regained consciousness again.

Following the mountain corridor led him to another cavern, which was luckily completely devoid of violent Pokémon. It was smaller than the cave he had fallen into and in the distance he could pick up the noise of dripping water, which lit up the hope that he wasn't too far away from the exit anymore. It was also possible that the dripping water came from within the mountain, but at least that meant some fresh water.

Some luminous stones created a gentle glow in the cavern and after a long bout of hesitation, Naruto settled behind a large boulder tucked in one of the corners of the cavern. He had no idea how long he had been walking around, but his feet were aching and the headache he had developed after smacking his head against that wall hadn't really abated yet. A short rest was in order if he wanted to keep going. He would take a break here, hidden behind the large boulder.

Aside from the opening he had walked through just now, this cavern had two more openings, which he would explore once he had got some rest. With some luck, one of those exits would bring him closer to the surface.

His breath escaped him in visible puffs of clouds, which wasn't exactly ideal when he was trying to keep himself hidden. His fingers by now were little popsicles as the temperature this deep in the mountain was even colder than he had ever experienced before. He could barely move them, so numb had they become, but he fought with the zipper of his bag until his fingers cooperated, allowing him to grab a blanket. He shifted his bag to his chest and brought his knees up to keep his bag balanced against him. Once he was sure his bag wouldn't topple over, he threw the blanket over himself, tucking himself into a small ball to cover himself completely. The blanket reached just past his nose which should cover up his visible breath.

This wasn't exactly the most comfortable position to fall asleep in, but for now it had to do. He closed his eyes, ignored his throbbing temples, and concentrated on nothing but his breathing while waiting for sleep to take over.


When Naruto woke up some time later, dazed but thankfully no longer suffering from a headache, a pair of luminous eyes stared right at him.


AN2: Nothing like waking up from a nap to find someone/something staring at you.

For anyone who finished the main storyline of Violet/Scarlet, am I the only one who has the impression that the end fights are getting longer with each generation? I mean, I'm not exactly complaining, but man, I did not expect that ending fight to take so long.

Please leave your thoughts behind in a review; should you spot any mistakes, please point them out to me.

I hope to see you all back in the next chapter! Please stay safe and take care of yourselves!

Cuddles

Melissa

P.S. For more information about my upcoming and posted stories, please visit my profile.