Writer's Note I: I promised a big-time battle in this chapter. Here it is... Naruto versus Heracles.
Also, stay safe out there. Those hurricanes are serious business.
The Last Shinto Kami
Chapter Fourteen: Sun vs. Strength
A thin veil of bubbling suspense took hold of the hunter camp. Their problems stemmed from a missing sister and how they could find her. "It has been long enough. Exercising patience won't solve our problems. We need a search team. Or worse case, a rescue team if needed." Every hunter understood this life was perilous. The danger could catch up with any one of them. Experience didn't mean immunity.
By all measures, Theodora's century by Artemis' side should spare her the pitfalls of the path. She'd slain monsters in droves and trained younger hopefuls by the handful. If there was something out there she couldn't handle, Theodora was smart enough to retreat and regroup. That's what made her unexplained absence so concerning to her fellow hunters.
If that wasn't enough, the current conclave of the gods compounded the hunters' problems. Whatever the reason, the meeting took away their lady at an inopportune time. Without Artemis' steadying hand, too many differing opinions sprung up. The plethora of choices caused paralysis among the well-trained group.
"That's enough! Cease thy pointless squabbling! It helps no one!" The lieutenant's barked command oozed uncompromising confidence. That alone quelled the panic before it got any worse. A sense of worry remained, but Zoe managed to stop her sisters from turning into some directionless mob.
Collectively, the group of maidens took a much-needed breath. "Thank you, Zoe. We lost our nerve, but there is merit in putting a team together to track down Theodora. We don't leave one of ours behind."
Some of the steel in Zoe's eyes softened when she heard the painful concern in her sister's voice. That surge of emotion turned into a gentle reproach from the usually gruff lieutenant. "Sending a team puts more of thou in danger. I shall go after Theodora alone."
Zoe's sudden decision drummed up some discontent among her peers. It was as clear as the frowns on their faces, yet out of respect, no one said anything. They gave her well wishes as she went to her tent to collect her travel gear.
To others, it'd appear like Zoe didn't have much of a plan. But in reality, she had an ace in the form of a three-pronged kunai. The weapon's dull metal glistened as the hunter held it aloft. She couldn't help but feel the memories come back to her. Lord Naruto was absent since his and Lady Artemis' disagreement. However, Zoe believed when she called, Naruto would appear.
'Then I can organize a meeting between the two. Lady Artemis has been off since Lord Naruto tore into her. The others might not see it, but it's there. It will be good for Lady Artemis.'
That belief in her chest was powerful enough to fuel the experienced huntress' journey. With Naruto's weapon bouncing on her hip, she reached down and ruffled the scruff of her trusted tracking wolf. "Come along, my friend. I need thy keen nose. Hold on a little longer, Theodora. I am on the way."
Today on Naruto's list of objectives? Solve the corruptive pollution problem that was hampering the local water nymphs. His natural inclination for helping those in need led him here, shin-deep in the shallow rises of the lake where the foul black moss originated. His guides were three nymphs who watched from the shore. "This is the place?"
Nodding, the nymph with looped blue hair bobbed with a crease-creating frown that clashed with her natural beauty. The concern was understandable, considering this massive lake was her home. "That's correct. Can you feel the wrongness in the water?"
Naruto tentatively nodded his head, eyes closed, but his senses extended. He sensed the nauseating ilk of whatever was down there in the depths. Its life force was tainted but not immense enough to be a monster, which was a relief. "Yeah, I feel it alright."
"Every time we tried eradicating the invasive moss, its spread would stop for a day then suddenly expand. We're at a loss..." The middle nymph had straighter hair but with a greenish tint over a blue base. It was her words that truly captured Naruto's attention.
"Moss? One moment, I'll be right back." The water nymphs were left watching as Naruto took a few steps forward and vanished mundanely under the water's placid surface. Confused by his actions, the trio started whispering. A series of unsure questions came forward as they waited for something to happen.
The eerie quiet lasted long enough to make the nymphs worry for the blonde's health. Questions about going in after Naruto started bubbling to the surface. They were a breath away from entering the water when the lake shined an ethereal blue. A moment later, a wave of pure nature washed over the stunned water women, causing them to gasp gently as a light blush tanned their faces.
"That was... wow." Their awe-filled appreciation culminated with Naruto emerging from the lake, which lost its glow with a shimmering surge. The soaked blonde returned to a question from his captivated audience of three. "What was that...?" Whatever Naruto did, it left their hearts beating loudly.
Naruto beamed with the satisfaction of a job well done. "That was the solution to your problem! You girls had the right idea, but instead of using your energy to remove the moss, you needed to feed the surrounding area. With the extra boost, the land should get rid of the moss naturally by the end of the day."
The nymph on the water line sat on her knees and placed her palms on the lake's surface. She shut her eyes in concentration but didn't have to look long to find the lake healing. "The lake... the lake is healing!"
Her encouraging news spread positive vibes and hope through the water spirits. The other two nymphs smiled at each other before they took their thanks to Naruto. Suddenly, standing at Naruto's sides, they stood on their toes and kissed the surprised god's cheeks long enough to feel his cheeks burn red.
Listening to her fellow nymphs giggle with a smile, the nymph who scanned the water approached the group of three. "Would you care to stay and enjoy the beautiful day with us, my lord? It's the least we can do to show our thanks~!"
Naruto wouldn't lie. He was more than tempted to agree to the nymph's suggestion when a static sensation tickled the back of his brain. It was one of his kunai marked with a fade rune pulling on him. "While I'm flattered, I have something to do. Enjoy your day, ladies!" With a dazzling smile given in farewell, Naruto vanished with a sparking golden light.
Earlier Elsewhere
With a bag of tricks as deep as hers, Zoe swiftly tracked down her prey. Her many years of practice in the field made a tedious task into an effortless experience. That's where the good news ended, unfortunately. The trail she hunted led to a small home outside an agricultural settlement where a familiar presence awaited her.
"Heracles..." The name she seethed out sparked a righteous fury in Zoe that not even her bastard of a father invoked. Her grip on her bow tightened gradually until the wooden weapon groaned against her white knuckle grip. "Heracles!"
Once the yell settled, the door of the little house was blasted off its hinges by a man made of pure muscle with sandy hair. There he was, the demigod elevated to immortality after his death, the Heroic God himself. The brutish visual of Heracles greedily guzzling alcohol straight from a human-sized jug made the incensed Zoe grimace.
Heracles hurled the emptied jug aside with a belching sigh. The muscle bound man stared through the fogginess in his eyes, looking at Zoe for a moment before recognition flared in his eyes. "Look at you! It's the little Hesperide. I'm not drunk enough for your attitude."
Repulsed by the former mortal's unabashed arrogance, Heracles stoked the hunter's anger. However, Zoe was disciplined enough to keep her eyes on the prize. "Where is Theodora?"
BWAHAHA! BAHAHA! BWAHAHA!
Heracles bellowed laughter from the bottom of his belly, loud and proud. The sound was pure mockery Zoe was forced to endure for too long before the blowhard bastard finally found his words. "Your stupid hunter girl told me to control myself. You see, that's not my style, so I broke her neck like a twig and went back to partying the night away. Why? What are you going to do about it, little girl?"
Zeus' prodigal son saw how pissed off he made Zoe. He just didn't give a damn. Heracles happily bulled over the hunter's angered silence with a wicked grin on his tanned face. "Are you going to call your lady? Too bad she can't do shit about it. Father would pick me over her every time. You, her, and the other little girls can cry about it. It's what women do best."
Behind the cover of her lip, Zoe's teeth sunk into the inside of her mouth. The sharp jolt of pain from the self-inflicted bite offered clarity when she needed it most. Zoe retrieved the kunai from her hip and brandished the dull metal's iron bite.
Heracles took in the puny weapon with a derisive snort. Unimpressed with the hunter's choice of item, the son of Zeus continued his merciless demeaning. "What are you going to do with that, little girl? Tickle me to death? Poke out one of my eyes?"
"I'm not a pig-headed fool like thee. I know my limits, and I know someone who can defeat thee, bastard." Zoe took pleasure from the scowl she won from insulting Heracles' infamous pride. That was her solace as she threw the blade with three prongs at the Patron of Heroes.
The wayward projectile got halfway between Zoe and Heracles when Naruto arrived in a golden flash. He snatched the kunai out of the air without issue, but his golden eyes stayed glued to Heracles, taking measure of the physically forged hero turned god.
The first word belonged to Heracles and his vast arrogance. "This is your champion, girl? This womanly twig is the one who defeats me? I know women with more muscle and manhood than this fool."
Letting the insult wash over him harmlessly, Naruto ignored the tasteless barb thrown at him by Heracles. This kind of behavior was a dime a dozen, not worth acknowledging. Instead, he addressed Zoe, who he felt lingering behind him a few yards back. "Zoe, what's happening here?"
"Lord Naruto, this man murdered one of Lady Artemis' hunters. I searched for him, but I am not enough to defeat Heracles..." Her effort to ask for assistance ended when Heracles jumped in. Never one to miss a chance to gloat over his strength, Heracles sealed his fate with the senseless need to glorify himself.
"You'd do well to listen to the nymph, boy. Everything she says is the truth. No one stands a chance against my unmatched might. The nymph is next. But don't worry, you'll join her in the Underworld soon enough!"
CRASH!
Naruto crashed his fist into the back of Heracles' ego-bloated skull, sending the muscular man face-first into the ground at his feet. Adding insult to injury, Naruto shifted his weight and landed smoothly on Heracles' broad, muscular back.
His perch wasn't permanent by any means. Naruto jumped off Heracles' back when he felt the muscle mass stirring beneath his feet. The Greek god answered with a chunk of rock the size of a cabin, which Heracles chucked at him like it was weightless.
Naruto dashed by the slow-moving bulk of soil and rock, paying it no mind. He advanced on the more muscular man and uncorked a lightning-fast barrage of punches that Heracles tanked with a laugh, proving them ineffective, much to Naruto's dismay.
Where Naruto threw twenty punches, Heracles went for one devastating punch, intent on crushing the foreign upstart into the dirt. Missing his attack didn't stop Heracles from following through and connecting with the ground, creating a gigantic crater around him and Naruto.
Naruto bounded up, using the hollow point of his knee as a pseudo battering ram. A battering ram that Naruto slammed straight into the bottom of Heracles' chin with enough force to snap Heracles' head backward.
It proved a feint on Heracles' part. He faked the damage for fun because while Naruto was coming down, he folded his sizable arms around Naruto in a crushing bear hug before he bent back and deposited Naruto on the top of his head and neck courtesy of a brutal suplex that planted Naruto chest deep in the loosened soil at the basin of the crater.
Oozing rampant pride, Heracles pulled Naruto out of the ground by one of his ankles like one plucked a weed. When Heracles saw Naruto with his eyes closed and his body limp, he took his focus off Naruto in favor of leering at Zoe. "This is the champion you thought could beat me? This piece of crap?"
While Heracles made the error of looking away, two golden eyes opened. Naruto kicked at the fingers around his ankle with his free foot, forcing Heracles to drop him. Gracefully righting himself mid-fall, Naruto turned with the momentum to slam his feet into the former demigod's ribs. The sideways force and the added weight of the massive club on Heracles' rear sent the son of Zeus onto his back.
'I need to hit harder...' Naruto had a trick in mind. Manipulating his flames, he stoked his divine blood into a kinetic simmer. With a wave of empowerment going through him, his body expelled a bursting cloak of steam. Naruto wasted no time bringing the hammer down. He stuck Heracles in the face. His godly opponent wasn't unconscious like he wanted, but Naruto felt his unrivaled strength shatter his opponent's nose.
The solarborn kami didn't savor the moment. He quickly jumped away from Heracles, avoiding the blind swing of retaliation thrown in his direction. Landing in front of Zoe, Naruto heard her whispered question pouring into his ear. "Is he unconscious?"
"Unfortunately, no... his thick head is good for taking a punch." Both hunter and god watched the son of Zeus stand with blood leaking freely from his misshapen nose. Rather than get angry, Heracles cherished the pain. It felt good being challenged by someone after so long.
"It's about time! Finally, someone who will put up a fight! Do you know what this means? I can take things a step further! This fight is what I live for!" Riding the adrenaline high, Heracles hefted the metal club off his back, easily shouldering the burden of a weapon as large as a bear.
"You should probably give me some space, Zoe." The hunter did as ordered, moving away from Naruto, who Heracles charged with his weapon in hand. A repeated overhead smash seemed easy enough to sidestep until Heracles surprised Naruto by changing to a one-handed grip that allowed Heracles to bludgeon Naruto's side with the trunk-like club.
Gasp! The air ripped from his lungs as he staggered back. But there wasn't any time to gather himself. Heracles forced him into an awkward backpedal away from the Greek hero's rabid swinging. "More! I want more! Give me more!"
Naruto held out as long as he could but inevitably tripped over his feet. He managed to land on a knee instead of his back, which was good. With Heracles' club bearing down on him, Naruto had no choice. He channeled another invigorating burst of steam into his arms and caught the blunt weapon before it turned his head to mush. He felt his arms aching and shaking under Heracles' overwhelming power, making the golden kami grit his teeth against the strain.
With his arms up, Naruto had no defense against the punt kick that threw him toward the house Heracles walked out of earlier. His forced progress came to a crashing halt when his back hit the house wall, followed by the back of his skull cracking against the home.
Naruto groaned in pain as his pupils swam around his golden eye pools. The fogginess was still clouding his head when he saw the club barreling toward his face. Instinct kicked in for Naruto when a shroud of golden flames wrapped around his arm. With a small grunt, he punched.
Knuckle met metal, and then,
CRAAACCK! CRACK~! CRACK! CRACK!
Heracles watched his weapon shatter. His most trusted tool rendered nothing more than a confetti of slag scraps, leaving behind an inadequate core of celestial bronze.
Then there was silence.
Seeing red over the destruction of his treasured weapon, Heracles hauled back and punched Naruto through the building wall, crushing his Shinto counterpart sternum-first until the building collapsed on Naruto.
There was more silence.
"What's wrong, bastard? Is thy toy broken?" Zoe joyously jumped on Heracles in his moment of emotional distress. It was the least her tormentor deserved but the most she could deliver safely. Plus, it also bought Naruto a moment to gather his wits.
Heracles wasn't just mad. He was visibly seething over the loss of his weapon. Being mocked for it by the former Hesperide only made the sour taste in his mouth more repulsive. "Your champion took something from me, so I'll take something of equal measure from you."
Artemis' right hand didn't hesitate. She put a silver arrow in Heracles' chest with pinpoint accuracy. The glimmering arrowhead struck true, opening an incision that bled around the arrow's entry wound. "I'd die before I let thou touch me, bastard."
Heracles dragged two fingers through the blood streak, smearing it against his skin before he watched the sanguineous liquid drip from his outstretched digits. "My blood yearns for more. The battle didn't satisfy me, but I have an idea. I break every bone in your body and listen as you scream for me. Yeah, that'll do it."
"What was that?" Naruto's frigid whisper intervened in the argument between the two long-time enemies. The rubble pile shuddered as the blonde and raven-haired kami dragged himself out of the debris. His skin was all cut up with lacerations that dripped his divine blood. The golden proof of Naruto's immortality stunned Heracles, who believed Naruto was nothing more than a stronger-than-normal demigod.
Dark clouds gathered overhead, blotting out the light of day with their oppressive gloam.
Licking the blood from his busted lip, Naruto reached up, and without flinching, he reset his crooked nose with a cringe-inducing SNAP! "Who do you think you are, asshole? You think you can threaten my friend in front of me and get away with it?"
A frenzy of golden sparks twisted along Naruto's body, jumping from spot to spot without any semblance of a pattern. An invisible burst of force shattered the ground as the kami vanished within a geyser of fire. The dirt around Naruto quickly turned into a molten pool of slurry while the fire projected a blanket of golden illumination.
The brightness of Naruto's light show forced Heracles to bring his arm up to shield his eyes. When he brought said limb down, he had a brand new Naruto waiting for him.
His skin exuded this otherworldly glow that Heracles could only compare to the latent splendor of Olympus' pristine white marble. The golden jacket over Naruto's body was power manifested, shifting over a black bodysuit adorned with a line of burning magatama. The almost regal nature of Naruto's transformation had Heracles staring instead of fighting. And two golden pupils set over a pair of black voids stared back emotionlessly.
'Power... this is power...'
Heracles didn't have time for his nervousness to catch up. His body abruptly jerked back against an invisible force as Naruto stood where he once stood with one leg raised. Heracles was still blasting away when Naruto closed the distance in a blink and drove his fist deep into Heracles' stomach. His gasping ended when the Shinto Sun lifted him by his throat and stared silently into his shocked eyes.
The son of Zeus felt his heart twitch in apprehension as he watched Naruto's golden pupils shrink. Looking into Naruto's eyes was like getting lost in the darkness of Chaos. Heracles didn't get to speak before Naruto planted him spine-first into the molten ground.
"Get up..."
Naruto was unmoved by Heracles' struggle. The kami's arms stayed crossed against his chest as a wobbling Heracles fought to his feet. When Heracles saw Naruto waiting on him instead of fighting, his temper rebelled with a vengeance. "How dare you look down on me! My name is Heracles, son of Zeus, the strongest who has ever lived! I refuse to be humiliated by some nobody!"
The ascended demigod channeled every ounce of frustration and repressed anger he possessed and poured it into one punch. But his efforts were for naught as Naruto caught the punch. The glowing kami let his divine flames burn Heracles' flesh, which made the Greek Hero scream in pain. "If this is your best... I am sorely disappointed."
Heracles answered Naruto's detached criticism with a deranged growl. He threw a desperate elbow at Naruto's chin to free his steaming fist from Naruto's ironclad grip. "Haah!" The chiseled musculature in Heracles' arms bulged to obscene levels as he threw everything he had into a furious combination of straight punches into Naruto's chest.
Each fist landed with a concussive impact that packed so much force they sent visible tunnels of tearing pressure out through Naruto's back and into the ground with consecutive explosions of molten mud.
For a moment, Heracles had hope as Naruto stood motionless with his head aimed down. Two little words ruined that hope. "That tickled..." Naruto stiffly craned his neck back upright and was treated to Heracles looking like he'd seen a ghost. All the while, the sun mark placed on him at birth shone with the sun's intensity- which went unnoticed in the madness of battle.
"Minor god, minor power..." Naruto turned a palm on his demoralized foe. His hand cradled a tiny ember, nursing it into a tongue of blistering flames that exploded in Heracles' face. Olive-tanned flesh was scorched an ugly black by the unforgiving fire as Heracles fell back, wailing in utter agony.
Lightning tore through the dark horizon, racing across the sky in erratic jolts of fury.
Forgotten in the climactic clash between gods, an amazed Zoe watched the beatdown play out. She understood Lord Naruto was powerful. He needed to be for all the times he accompanied Lady Artemis on her hunts. However, seeing it play out firsthand was something else. That is when the hunter's eye noticed something strange about how Heracles was moving. "He is going into his Divine Form!"
Zeus' bastard son stood with his beaten body tensed in exertion, popping veins out all over his hulking frame. His bruised limbs shook as his breathing deepened into a panting huff. Heracles gnashed his teeth as his balled hands clenched around his thumbs. "I'll crush your skull!" Heracles' rousing yell synched with his head flinging back to stare into the overcast sky.
He anticipated the familiar rush of euphoria synonymous with undiluted power pouring through his veins. Heracles expected his wounds to be mended. He expected to tower over this annoying rat but ended up with nothing. Heracles felt empty. The one eye that wasn't scorched shut offered only a blurry glimpse of the rumbling sky.
Harsh beats of thunder rained down from the cloud-obscured heavens.
"I was told stories of gods going divine for an advantage in battle. That's not happening. Look at your hand." Doing as instructed, Heracles looked down for clarification. Instead, his confusion went unsolved as he gazed at a red brand imposed on his skin. It was a symbol Heracles couldn't make heads or tails of. "I'm not here for a fight god against god. Fight me man to man."
'I can't win...' Heracles was doubtlessly arrogant, but he was no idiot. In a straight fight, defeat was inevitable. There was still one way for him to win. 'Kill the Hesperide!' He tried bull-rushing Zoe and made it less than five steps before being sent back by a palm strike from Naruto.
"Coward..."
Stuck between his pride and instinctual panic, Heracles was at a loss. He wracked his brain, trying to think of a way out of this catastrophic mess, but his choices were dwindling rapidly.
"No time to think!" Naruto materialized behind Heracles, his flames flickering out behind him in a trail. He grabbed the large man by the scruff and skipped Heracles across the ground until he collided with the house's rubble pile.
A caking of mud stuck to Heracles' face and filled his mouth, forcing him into a coughing fit as he pulled himself from the muck. This was no fight. This was humiliation, and it hurt Heracles more than his boil-laced flesh. "Father! Lend me your aid, and I will crush this foreigner in the name of Zeus!"
His prayer was answered by a blinding bolt of lightning from the heavens. It struck Heracles, but rather than harm him, Zeus' divine intervention wrapped his son in a lightning shroud that danced over Heracles' body. The many wounds littering his frame closed up beneath the lightning's protective embrace.
"This is what true power looks like, xénos. No more tricks; now I put you in your place!" Looking at his fist, Heracles tested the feeling by opening and closing his fist. Good as new, the Heroic God carried a face-splitting grin as he rolled his boulder shoulders to the sound of crackling lightning.
Naruto's composure slipped into a look of disbelief, but not for Heracles. He was staring at the sky like it was a proxy for the God-King who ruled over its limitless domain. "You... you actually support this?"
That flabbergasted disbelief quickly turned into anger as black spots formed before fading into the resplendent jacket's golden surface. "What kind of man rewards pointless bloodshed and gratuitous torture? This is what Olympus thinks is fair and just? You're a disgusting excuse for a king!"
The raging kami's fury manifested in more than some sharp words. The black spots turned into spreading blotches until the fluttering coat went from lively gold to vindictive black. And the suit under it all changed to a golden color. Complete with the accents dotting Naruto's form going black with faint white outlines.
Lightning lashed out, striking the ground around the defiant blonde.
Zeus flexing his rage didn't intimidate Naruto, who stood unmoved in the face of Zeus' anger. The sunspawn refused to repent.
"Don't worry, father. I'll make this fool pay for disrespecting you... and I'll love every second of it."
'Deal with the problem in front of you, Naruto.' After calming himself, Naruto created a glowing kanji that turned into a wormhole. He reached into the reality tear and pulled out Amenonuhoko and his kopis from the Trojan War. Both weapons were immediately drenched in black flames, drawing Naruto's attention momentarily before he glared at Heracles.
The tempest-charged deity blurred toward Naruto, moving faster than a man his size had any right moving. But he wasn't still quick enough that Naruto lost track of him. Naruto crossed his sword and spear in front of him, using the makeshift 'X' to block the fist aimed at his face.
It was lightning raging against fire until Heracles backed away from the test of mettle. Another breakneck rush came his way, but Naruto was ready for it. With a sweeping swing of his kopis, the burning kami unleashed a wave of black fire on Heracles.
Heracles didn't run through the pyro wall... he jumped over it and into the sky, drawing lightning down from the clouds. The raw power funneled into him, making his cloak triple in size. With all the firepower he could ever need, Heracles fell like a star on Naruto.
One upward shove from Amenonuhoko hurled a typhoon of ebony incineration at his foe. The deadly inferno forced Heracles to the side, so his landing hit next to Naruto rather than on the Shinto God's skull. Going for a snap kick directed at Naruto's neck, Heracles felt his kick be blocked by the flaming kopis.
SNAAAPP!
Sadly for Naruto, the mortal-forged sword couldn't withstand the combined pressure of Naruto's flames and Heracles' strength.
Thinking on his feet, Naruto snatched the snapped piece of metal as it went into the air and tried jamming the broken blade into Heracles' muscular abdomen. However, a burst of static sent the magnetized piece of metal out of Naruto's hand. Both gods spared a moment to look at the smoking metal burn slowly. Heracles broke the peace with a satisfied smirk. "A weapon for a weapon..."
The vertical line of Shinto sigils running Amenonuhoko's shaft glowed brown against the wood as Naruto buried the butt of his polearm in the ground. "Yomi Numa! (Swamp of the Underworld!)"
Heracles felt himself being sucked into a thickened brown syrup of dense mud. He struggled to pull out one leg, and in doing that, he sunk further into the marsh's ravenous bog. "What in Hades-" The line of cursing was cut short as Heracles vanished under the aptly named swamp.
Whole chunks of mud exploded outward in every direction as Heracles erupted from the wet ground. His uppercut missed Naruto's chin by the smallest of margins. Naruto quickly followed his foe into the air and folded Heracles over his spear by turning the shaft into a bat he used to club Heracles in the ribs. The kick that followed sent the airborne son of Zeus tumbling ass over feet.
Righting himself was more annoying than a challenge. "What the...?" This is when the former hero noticed his footwear was still on fire? Shrugging both shoes to be safe, Heracles also saw from the corner of his eye- the broken sword also burning beneath a blanket of black flames. That's when he made a concerted effort to take in their battlefield.
The momentary lapse cost him as Naruto appeared with a massive globe of blue energy spiraling in his hand. Heracles recoiled but couldn't react further as Naruto's self-contained sphere suddenly expanded as he brought the energy bomb down.
BOOOOOM!
Shooting out of the explosion of light, Heracles rocketed into the ground with a loud crash. Naruto followed after, avoiding a stray string of lightning. He crashed on Heracles with a double foot stomp, making Heracles cough out a massive splattering of golden blood.
Amenonuhoko streaked through the air and straight into Naruto's waiting grasp. He spun it around so the bladed end was pointed down and stabbed Heracles through the shoulder, pinning the groaning man to the ground.
Pained shouts were forced from Heracles' mouth as the lightning around him slowly dispersed. When the shock and pain of being stabbed faded, he felt his fatigue return full force. "What did you do to me!?"
"This spear is no ordinary weapon. It's more than capable of rendering your flimsy gift obsolete. You're done for, Heracles."
The beaten and broken Greek Hero snarled defiantly at Naruto, showing his blood-stained teeth as he thrashed futilely against the numbing sensation emanating from where the spear struck him. "When I get this spear out, you'll regret running your mouth!"
"Killing isn't something I enjoy. Knowing you'll come back with enough time doesn't change that. This whole thing leaves a bad taste in my mouth. Give up this blind violence and swear you'll leave my friend in peace. If you do, this all ends here. Do the right thing... give up this pointless grudge." How Naruto stood over his defeated adversary, from an objective view, Naruto looked like a walking contradiction. He was a demon wreathed in black flames with a hand extended in mercy. [1]
The tumultuous thunder on high whispered soft assurances in the prone Greek's ears. It lent Heracles the confidence to laugh at Naruto's misguided interpretation of their situation. Or he laughed for as long as his bruised, possibly broken ribs allowed. "I don't give a damn about the Hesperide. This is about me and you, xénos. You defeated me, and I won't stop hunting you until I wipe your stain from my name. I swear, I don't care who I break or what I ruin to get what I want! This doesn't stop until you're broken at my feet!"
Naruto expressed his disappointment with a muted sigh. It appeared Heracles held onto things for better or worse, just like his father before him. "One more thing..."
"You shouldn't have fucked with my father."
Rapturous yellow lightning tore its way out of the dark sky. Make no mistake, this was divine intervention. The blatant smiting thrown at Naruto came courtesy of Olympus' king. Heracles felt like it was happening in slow motion. He saw the flash that followed as his victory... and he laughed.
Then Naruto did the unthinkable. He caught the lightning without looking, leashing it around his hand and wrist. Everything seemed eerily quiet as the yellow lightning changed to deep violet in Naruto's grip with what sounded like a thousand different birds chirping in an incensed fury.
"When I approached you, I came with my hand open in mercy. Now you've forced me to end this with a closed fist." When faced with the choice, Naruto didn't hesitate to act. A sudden thrust from his lightning-doused fist sent the destructive technique through Heracles' heart with a sopping squelch.
"Chidori... (One Thousand Birds...)"
He felt the life fade from his vanquished enemy. The sign of a job done, Naruto stumbled back with an exhausted sigh as the discharges of the Chidori caused the corpse to twitch in the dirt. Without the energy or will to keep it up, Naruto felt his transformation drop, revealing the streaks of sweat running down his tan skin. "I'm glad that's finally over. I got to tell Eudokia to watch out for assholes when she's on the road."
You did well, my sunshine. I couldn't be more proud of what you achieved today.
The profound affection and pride shown transcended words. If Naruto was less alert, he would have picked up the positive flow of emotions, but fresh from battle, survival trumped all else. 'Who are you? Where is your voice coming from?'
I will happily answer as many of your questions as I can. All you have to do is ask.
Perhaps it was his body's natural response after coming down from an adrenaline high, but Naruto felt himself growing more relaxed as time marched on. 'Then, I'll start with this one. Where are you?'
That's simple... let me show you.
That's when Naruto felt himself being pulled inward on a conscious level as the familiar phantom sensation of the Veil descended on him like fresh rain.
END
[1] - My take on deities dying in this universe is like a Tailed Beast's death in Naruto. With enough time, they will come back, so long as they are worshiped enough to create enough power for a rebirth. If they are worshiped by enough people, they'll return in a weaker state. However, if there isn't enough belief, there is a high likelihood the deity fades.