Uploaded: 4th December 2022
1:00 PM AEST - Australian Eastern Standard Time GMT+10
A Naruto and Elden Ring Crossover
Disclaimer: "Naruto" is a property of Masashi Kishimoto, Shueisha, and Studio Pierrot; "Elden" is a property of From Software, Hidetaka Miyazaki and George R. R. Martin. I do not own any of them.
This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, businesses, places, events, locales, and incidents are either the products of the author's imagination or used in a fictitious manner. Any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, or actual events is purely coincidental. Reader discretion is advised.
A/N: The Song of Lament is altered from the game version, with the Latin corrected
A/N: Please join Aizen the Goat's Discord Server; it's a great place: kyTaRuVpBW
Genres: Action, Adventure, Romance, Epic Fantasy, Drama, Supernatural
Warnings: Violence, Strong Language, Implied Sexual Content, SOME CHARACTERS WILL BE OOC
Tags: Whatever applies here applies here.
Universe: Animeverse/Gameverse
Series: The Chronicles of the Eternal Sage - Naruto Uzumaki
"Jutsus/Time change/ Place change"
"Gods/Goddesses/Heavenly Beings/Demons or Dragons Talking"
"Gods/Goddesses/Heavenly Beings/Demons or Dragons Thinking"
'Flashback'
"Talking"
"Thinking/Telepathy speaking/News/Messages/Videos/Different Languages"
Translation if using a different language.
"Alas, this land is well and truly broken"
- The Seventh Hokage
Volume 1 - From Beyond the Sea
Chapter 2: Brightest Light
Story Start.
The calm seas lazily swept the bottom of the cliffs in Limgrave, where shards of a broken city scattered amongst the land, and the sun was setting beyond the horizon, far away from the Lands Between.
In that scene, there was a man, clothed in white and gold, over which, a red cloak sat and danced with the wind. He stood there in silence as he listened to a song that echoed from the cliffside.
O, locus ille, beatus quondam, nunc deminuit… nos destinatæ matribus, nunc fimus turpes.
Ploravimus lacrimavimusque… sed nemo nos consolatur.
O Aureum, cui irasceris?
That harrowing voice echoed in the winds, and he listened to them in silence.
"… poor things," he muttered in pity before he walked away in silence towards a particular destination, where one full of grace was brought into the Lands Between.
"What a quiet night," uttered Naruto as he sat behind a campfire within the ruined building, an old church, as Melina told him.
Speaking of the woman, Naruto knew she hid secrets, not that he would pry them off her, especially with him withholding information himself from her. Kurama has one opinion on her, however.
"She's cute."
Naruto replied with utmost silence; the old fox blabbers too much sometimes, and he paid no heed to the fox's words at the moment.
Melina watched him with hidden intensity as if trying to study him and pry away anything she could, though he was better than to let anything out, not like during his youth, when he wore his emotions on his sleeves like an idiot, but then, he saved his world despite that, and everyone acknowledged him because of that.
Kaguya has other words for that, however.
"How pathetic to have been thinking about that right now, what with that face of yours."
Once again, he had no reply but silence; his unflinching face showed no emotion as he stowed the fire, and then his thoughts turned to their other companion, the one that attacked him the moment she saw him.
The unhelmed Tree Sentinel sat quietly near him; her silence felt like mourning, but for what, he asked, yet there was no answer, not without a tongue for her reply. Her scarred façade softened since earlier during the day, and at that moment, he handed her a piece of bread from his stockpile, and she graciously accepted it.
He also handed one to Melina, who silently accepted it, but once she took a bite, she turned to him with a question.
"Where didst acquire these bread?"
"From home sweet home, far away from here," he replied as he swallowed a bite from his own, and Melina seemed to have picked on that answer, or so her emotions told him.
"Hmm, she's going for the friendly route, I see," muttered another voice within his head.
"She's gonna have to if we're to build a working relationship from this accord of hers."
After Melina came upon him and the Tree Sentinel, she had brought them here, in the ruined church, and from whence they plan to spend the night since he still wondered about the circumstances that brought him into this world, but not much came to him. Hence, he decided at that moment to scour the land, perhaps with clones.
Once he finished his bread, he crossed his legs and sat still.
Melina and the Tree Sentinel turned their eyes on him.
…
"… unbelievable, this world is almost beyond any hope."
It was Kaguya who spoke those words as Naruto meditated with nature; he connected with the land, its flora, its fauna, its people, everything he could sense, and all those within him felt what he felt through his connection.
His face at that moment was the first time Melina, or even the still-unnamed Tree Sentinel, in their short time of meeting, showed any sort of emotion other than calm and collected.
The Seventh Hokage felt it all, emotions varying from almost peaceful to absolute terror, but there was no genuinely peaceful moment; it was all tenuous, even chaotic in many places.
He sensed some powerful presence throughout the land but did not pry any further than he would like at that moment. From that, he broke out of his meditation willingly. After a while, he broke out with a heavy sigh, and Melina felt the weight behind his words, "Alas, this land is well and truly broken."
The Tree Sentinel looked down to the campfire with a resigned look; she knew what he talked about, they all did; her fellow Sentinels far away from Limgrave knew it, but they were still keeping their duty to this day, and here she was, away from all of it.
On the other hand, Melina also understood what that truly meant, but from a different perspective; she has one purpose, and she will do what she can to push this man that she has chosen towards that path, but carefully. Torrent may have measured him first, but she still needs to measure him herself.
"…"
"… these sites of grace, I can see directions being pointed from them," he said, and Melina nodded as she began her explanation. The Hokage absorbed all the information that entered his mind, which his companions replicated as they shared their thoughts on the matter presented before them.
From there, he made up his mind.
"I shan't make haste on these matters, Melina. Strategy is necessary, and rushing wildly will do no one good, not in this world."
Silence ensued once more; even his old companions remained silent.
"The Capital can wait, these lands need restoration and purification, and I will do what I can, with what power I have," he finished as the night went on, starlit skies above them.
Kaguya meditated on his words; her old warden spoke well and true. Each and every single one of them were brought here for a purpose; whatever that may be, it is clear now that this world requires aid, and it will receive such.
For now, she surmised, the only thing she can do is provide counsel whenever they may come to be necessary. She could already feel it, the toiling, the anguish, and the suffering they might face, but no matter, she and the creations of her eldest son will be there with his heir, always.
For Kurama, and the other Tailed Beasts, this rag-tag group is nothing short of a great source of entertainment for those who watch from beyond the stars; all ten of them are aware of those who gaze from across the vast sea of stars but not the Hokage, no, if they have to keep a secret to their pillar of unity, their father's heir, it must be that, until such time all is revealed.
The ways of this world confounded him, yet there was a strange charm about it. Still, he could feel it from far below the land, something down there, something horribly wrong, in fact, some things felt horribly wrong down there, but he paid it no heed at the moment; it wasn't on his agenda, for now at least.
Melina gave him a delicate golden ring that could be used as a finger whistle to summon the spectral steed called Torrent, a part of their accord, she said, and despite not needing a ride, he accepted graciously.
"Bah! I could outrun that horse anytime, any day."
"Now, now, Kokuo, don't be like that; besides, using Torrent can be a change of pace instead of running around." Naruto saw that the ring fitted well on his left index finger and gave it a try.
He mounted Torrent outside the ruined structure and went on his way, all while the clones he sent forward mapped the lands for him, especially in the vicinity of Limgrave, as it was the current place where they found themselves.
The Tree Sentinel… he thought she needed something else to be called because that title isn't much of a name, not for him at least.
"Any ideas?"
"Not really; without that tongue restored, we're not going to hear much from her," replied Kurama, lazily he sounded, probably in the middle of an attempted nap.
"Should we?"
"Maybe not now; she seems to be fine riding behind you," said Matatabi, who was playing with some balls of fire if the sounds he heard were accurate.
Melina rode with him, strangely enough, maybe to try and pry things from him along the way, but it was he who intended to pry more from her.
"… tell me about Stormveil over there, Melina."
The maiden aspirant remained quiet for a moment before she replied, "The home of the decrepit demigod… Godrick the Grafted, do you intend to go there immediately?"
"Maybe, but I'm still having my clones scout the area around it and beyond. Some of those I sent away have reported strange things."
The maiden raised a delicate eyebrow at that, as he had not yet explained what even clones are, and from what she could gather, the memories of those he sent away returned to him.
"All I could say is that I'm already building a map of this land, but only in my head… cartography is not my best skill, but it comes with experience," he muttered as they continued to ride down the road; the old church already a distance away, but for now, it was their strategic centre, having marked it with protective seals, and already occupied by a merchant that went by the name Kalé.
He was a strange man but affable enough, and he freely gave some pointers about the land.
But his thoughts of the merchant were interrupted by his companion abruptly.
"Margit, the Fell Omen keeps watch of the bridge to the castle itself, guarding against any Tarnished that may try and fight Godrick for his shard of the Elden Ring."
He hummed in gratitude, and then, at a short distance, there was a skirmish of sorts, some monsters and some men in armour.
Naruto hoped to help the men, but they also turned out to be hostile against his group, so he made quick work out of them without dismounting or even the Tree Sentinel helping.
"For shame," he muttered before he rode away; still, the Tree Sentinel trotted after him.
Then they came upon another set of ruins, and this one stood before a great gate.
"The Stormgate", said Melina, "the only way towards Stormveil Castle from our location."
They saw this place was filled with Godrick's men, no doubt hostile to them or any Tarnished. Green and Gold were the colours these men bore; their tabards bore Godrick's sigil.
Melina, despite some reservations, has no doubt that the one she struck an accord with is powerful, indeed, taming a Tree Sentinel and making her join him. He is a strange man in an already strange world, and there is much to know about him, and she knows that only time will unravel these things.
"… ah, I'd rather not." Melina perked up when she heard Naruto speak, yet it was not directed at her; no, it was as if he was conversing with his mind.
He sensed another site of grace, or so she thought as they avoided the ruins and went southwards, and voila, there was a site of grace that waited for them.
The moon rose quietly that night, their little group made some foothold below the cliffs of Stormhill, camps were made, and with his abilities, fortified for whatever came; then, Melina saw more of his clones, to which he said, was tasked to search not above ground, but those nooks and crannies that await exploration.
"Strange decisions, why?" she asked.
"Why not?" he replied shortly.
Then silence fell upon them as they returned to the ruined church; the merchant was there, tending the fire for the night. Still, the Tree Sentinel diligently followed them, unhelmed again; her mount rested outside the ruin, but her halberd and shield remained with her.
Despite all, they were still strangers, friendly, yes, but strangers nonetheless; thus, reservations were still there. Naruto couldn't care much, or rather, he was too busy in his mind with the information his clones fed to him, and a well-formed image of the place began to find its place in his view.
"Limgrave is a lush place, a bit down in the dumps, maybe, especially down in that Weeping Peninsula, but better than what I just heard about this Caelid place."
Naruto heard one of the Tailed Beasts say as they conversed amongst themselves, but he pushed it out of his head as he relaxed by a wall near the fire and rested for the night.
And they all found that brief rest, but another presence awoke him rather quickly; then, it was there when he saw the place shrouded in mist, though there was no ill will behind it; instead, it only deepened some sleep, if Kale's snoring was something to go by.
Melina was missing, gone to spectral form, but she was there; he could feel her nearby. Meanwhile, the Tree Sentinel was also sleeping… ah, he remembered the need to give her a name, but not yet.
"Who are you?" he asked, but he did not turn towards the presence he sensed.
"…"
A few moments of silence were shared between them, but his gaze remained forward.
"A pleasure to meet thee, Tarnished," a woman's voice said, soft and chilly like a winter's night, it felt, and he finally turned around and found the source of the voice. A woman in white robes sat on a ruined outcrop of the church they were in.
Blue hands, blue skin, and four hands. His eyes noted those features quickly, and those hands were folded neatly upon her lap and adorned overall by a wide-brimmed hat that sat atop her head; beneath those, he saw a lone eye on a pale face, not so much different to Melina.
"I am the witch, Renna," she introduced herself; her voice was low, like a whisper in the wind, but she was there.
His sensors did not lie; he knew a lie if there was one.
"Why do I feel you're lying about your name?"
Cold silence.
"I mean no ill feelings," he continued immediately, "we have our secrets; some, we'd rather not see the light forever or until the time is right."
She remained silent, her lone eye oversaw him, but he turned his gaze away from her and back to his group.
"What brings you here, Renna?"
He inquired, eyes closed and body relaxed.
"I'd heard tell of a great warrior hurtling about these lands with a spectral steed, together with a Tree Sentinel."
He hummed, but she continued, "And upon looking into the matter, the talk, I surmise, is of thee."
Naruto cleared his throat but answered nonetheless, "Great warrior, hmm, is that the whispers that travel in these lands? But yes, that is our little group here and me."
"As I thought," she replied, her voice sounded content.
"What does thou hope to accomplish in your actions?"
"What, indeed. This world is broken, shattered into pieces," he stated, as if in lament, but went on with his words, "I've been called into this world; perhaps I shall help it. The land is ailing; I can restore and purify, reorder things out of chaos, seek balance; whether I succeed, only time will tell."
"Failure awaits thee, more than success," she replied, and once more, he turned towards her, eyes drilled towards her lone eye.
"Perhaps, perhaps not; I've lived long and faced countless obstacles, but with hope, I succeeded; failure was never an option, Renna, or whatever your name is." His words were powerfully delivered but calmly.
The witch eyed him, her emotions kept intact, and she remained stoic as she replied, "this world is beyond hope."
"In the darkest shadow, the brightest light can shine through. There is always hope."
Melina awoke to the scent of burning meat; a delightful smell entered her nose; she opened her lone eye and saw Naruto by the campfire, together with the merchant Kale and the Tree Sentinel, eating some meat cooked in the fire.
"Mmm, this is good," praised the merchant before he took more bite from the piece he had, while the hulking Tree Sentinel grunted in agreement,
"Where did you learn this recipe?" Kale asked Naruto, who smiled in remembrance; Melina noted it.
"Home." His reply was delivered succinctly, and the merchant did not pry any further but nodded and ate his share.
It was then that Naruto called out to Melina, despite his back turning on her, and soon, she found herself eating quietly.
As the merchant said, it was good, but her mind was not on it; instead, her thoughts returned to the last night.
"The Witch has taken notice of him in such a short time that he was here."
She heard the entire conversation that occurred last night, and she was somewhat surprised at how her chosen… warrior managed to make the Witch talk more than she should have. Clearly, Naruto had a way of making people talk, with the Tree Sentinel exempted, for apparent reasons.
Lunar Princess Ranni; he did not need to consort with that one, yet he still did.
"He even managed to pry her real name from her… after an hour of talking, that is." Melina's thoughts went on as she ate the food given to her, and despite her ignorance of the immediate surroundings, Naruto knew she was in deep thought but did not voice anything.
Hence, she delved deeper into her thoughts and had genuinely realised that the man she chose was not a mere Tarnished; despite seeing the guidance of grace, he was not one of those who walked and fought alongside Godfrey an age ago.
No, his appearance, his attire, none of it belonged in the Lands Between, and it was by some miracle that they understood one another in the same language.
Regardless, it was another day, perhaps a more significant day than yesterday. Later that day, Melina rode with Naruto again, this time towards Stormveil Castle upon Stormhill.
In their slow ride, he muttered to himself one thing.
"Godrick the Grafted… what kind of horrible title is that?"
Melina remained quiet, as was her wont.
He'd learn, she thought, and see it for himself; such was the way of this world, and she would be there, hopefully, to guide his way. Tarnished or not, they struck an accord, and she will see it fulfilled.
AN: I know, I know, it's short. I stopped writing long chapters because I found it troublesome and meddled with the story flow I wanted to go through. He is also thinking of giving something else to call that Tree Sentinel, somewhere along the line of "金" (kin), gold.
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