A/N: WARNING! INTENSE CHAPTER HEAD! THIS IS YOUR ONLY WARNING!
Here we go~! Dark's hard at work with other stuff, so this chapter was written by yours truly.
As always, I appreciate any review given. It truly does help me write. Large or small, any feedback is better than nothing at all. Silence only makes us fall.
As ever, I own no references, quotes, themes or memes. They're tributes to legends far greater than little 'ol me. I'm just a humble author trying to make his way in this wild world, one word at a time. Time and feedback will determine if this remains a story. Simple as that. As ever, I own no references, quotes, themes or memes. They're tributes, one and all.
As always, we'll be listing Naruto's current offspring in order from oldest to youngest from here on out to prevent confusion. First and foremost, there's Samantha (Eve), then Joshua, Luca, Jessica, and finally little Amanda.
Last but not least, we're sticking with the lively young version of Thula from the comics, not that crude caricature we got in the show.
I won't keep you any longer up here, time for the fight. May it live up to your expectations and more. Ready, set...go~!
Conquest vibes are Conquest vibes and good lord now I'm imagining these two meeting.
Epic the Musical references are tasteful as always.
"There's always someone stronger, smarter, faster, or just plain luckier.
In the end, it all comes down to a flip of the coin.
So? Which will it be? Heads or tails?
~You Know Who.
Break the Ice
Thula was fast.
Naruto could admit as much freely within the safety of his own mind when he took that first fateful punch head on; the Viltrumite assassin was faster than Anissa, more agile than Nolan, and downright devilishly quick with that hair blade of hers. Moreover, she possessed a wealth of close combat experience that they both lacked. Which made her something of a tough nut to crack as a result.
Not impossible mind you, but tough.
Moreover, he had the distinct feeling she was holding back. He could see it there in her swings; feel it in the force of her kicks; either she wasn't truly trying or she wasn't completely committed to this course of action. He suspected the former, yet the latter was also possible.
So, in his curiosity, he let her get a hit in.
Just to see how much.
For fun.
Why, he even dared closed his eyes as he rode out the momentum with a smile, utterly uncaring when her clenched knuckles barreled into his cheek, snapped his head to the side, and launched him into the sky in a shower of blood.
Granted, the latter was more from him biting his own cheek than any real damage; nevertheless, he he felt the air ripple as she gave chase. Saw the moment in his mind's eye as her blade slashed in at his seemingly exposed throat, ready to open his jugular.
Impressive. Most impressive. But she was no Sasuke.
Still, she didn't play around, didn't toy with him; went right for the kill like a true Viltrumite.
Respectable.
Admirable, even; downright cold as ice.
He couldn't wait to break through it and shatter her.
Was that wrong of him? Maybe. But he hadn't been the one to start this. She'd come here, she'd acted all high and mighty, and now SHE would pay the price. Simple as that.
The blade bounced off his neck.
Thula hissed in naked surprise and recoiled viscerally before floating back to safety. "What?!"
"Sorry," When next he opened his eyes they gleamed gold with Sage Mode, orange dusting the outer lids of his eyes. "You'll have to try a little harder than that."
Thula stared at him for a long moment and released her weapon, letting the wind tug at her long braid. He watched her knife sway restlessly at the end of it, coiling and twisting in on itself like a serpent ready to pounce. Its mistress seemed even less pleased; her eyes were cold, her full lips pursed into a thin line of abject displeasure. Yet when she spoke, there was hardly any emotion to it, only the smallest of scorn.
"Stop running and fight back, coward."
He could, but he wanted to put on a show; if only because he knew Cecil was watching, and the GDA with him, to say nothing of Nolan. More than that, he was angry. He'd helped his Sinister!Self and for what? The man had his wife back, but he was even more miserable now than before. He'd done a good thing, hadn't he? Kept his word. Helped him. Yet he felt absolutely awful.
And now another Viltrumite had come to call, far more troublesome than the last.
The perfect outlet to unleash all his frustration on.
He was going to enjoy this very much.
Inhaling deeply through his nose, he caught the telltale scent of rain on the air; a storm was approaching over the ocean. Big one too, by the sound of it. He could just see it from this high up. Black clouds on the horizon, bridling furiously like his own quietly contained temper.
An idea dawned.
And then Thula surprised him. "How are you unharmed?"
Ahhh, so she was curious after all; a bit of banter made for an excellent battle and he wasn't in an hurry to break her just yet.
Let everyone watch through their cameras, drones, satellites or what have you.
He intended to make this a show for the ages.
"Sage mode, hun." he tapped his throat when she continued to glare at him. "My skin hardens in response to physical trauma. That little knife of yours won't be breaking through so easily."
Oddly enough, his frank admission seemed to impress her. "...is it possible to learn such a power?"
"Not for you." he took great pleasure in crossing both arms before his chest and denying her.
Technically it was, not that he'd ever make it so.
He wasn't about to go burning chakra coils into a Viltrumite anytime soon; fun as that fight might be, he didn't have a death wish. Best to destroy Sinister's machine as soon as he returned. Technology like that wasn't meant for this world and should be erased. And it would be.
Just as soon as he killed this Viltrumite.
Said assassin scowled, unaware of her impending demise. "What are you, then? You're clearly not of this planet, else there would be more of you."
Thunder rumbled in the distance as the wind picked up; the storm was drawing closer.
Kurama sighed. "Go ahead, say the line. I know you want to."
He really did.
"You really wanna know?"
Thula planted a fist against her hip. "Do not make me repeat myself, earthling."
Well, that settled it; you really couldn't ask for a better cue than that, so he wouldn't. Grinning, he uncrossed his arms, spread them wide with a grin and decided to ham it up a little. "I am the storm that is approaching. And you? With that pretty little knife of yours?"
He raised a fists and pointed.
"You're a living lightning rod, missy."
Her eyes bulged, no doubt realizing his intention, but he didn't give her the chance to react and decked her, launching her into the clouds.
Nature didn't disappoint.
Call it heaven's wrath, the bolt of Zeus, anything you like. The result was the same. Naruto saw the flash before he heard it; the human silhouette against the clouds in a singular moment of brightness, then the incredible explosion that followed. A smoking human shape tumbled out of the storm and into the choppy sea below. Ripples followed for a moment before they too were swept away with the waves.
She did not emerge from the water.
The rest of the storm reached him a moment later, wind and rain lashing against his face as heaven and sea alike churned bridling furiously. He smiled into the storm; as he hadn't a single speck of metal on him, he was quite...well, not safe, lightning could still strike him if he wasn't careful, but he was prepared to deflect anything that came his way.
Viltrumites didn't have that courtesy. Thula certainly hadn't. She'd been down there for awhile now..
Naruto leaned forward into the wind, squinting against the rain. "Think that killed her?"
"With our luck?"
A moment of silence passed.
He kept his gaze focused on churning sea.
There! He thought he saw a shadow in the water.
The sea boiled.
And then.
"UZUMAKI!"
He caught the flying punch that followed, wrenched her arm over her shoulder and tossed her into the air. Thula was on him in an instant, driving her blade down between his eyes. He caught her wrist in hand and held her back with a grin. Only then did he see her sorry state. The enraged Viltrumite was simultaneously soaked and singed, but still very much alive, uniform burn and charred in places, braid somehow still intact despite the devastating shock she'd received. He supposed it would be too much to kill her.
She loomed over him, bracing her knife with both hands, doing her best to drive it into an eye.
"I will skin you alive and wear your hide as a cloak!"
Promises, promises...
Naruto slammed a knee into her torso, winding her. The grip on her blade slackened, but didn't break. Two more kicks followed the first, each harder than the last. Finally she couldn't take it anymore; she faltered, and the moment she did, he surged forward, let the blade scrape across his cheek and grabbed her by the face.
She bit him.
Annoyed, he pivoted in the air and tossed her back toward shore.
Only then did he realize his mistake.
Civilians.
Thula's backside struck a sandy shoal with all the force of a small bomb; the shockwave of which sent a score of hapless beachgoers flying into the air. Naruto caught each in the time it took a human to blink, swept them away to safety via a swarm of shadow clones, and dove on the stunned warrior before she could recover, decimating her defenses.
Kidney punch. Target the liver. Surgical strikes.
Credit where it was due, she gave as good as she got; she was sturdy, fighting back without so much as a whimper of pain. Weaving left around a jab, then right, he clasped both hands behind his back and taunted her to draw her away; giving ground and forcing her to chase him further down the beach from the irritating innocents.
She couldn't catch him.
He had seen faster, fought stronger, and experienced for worse All she had was her fists and feet, and that pesky knife of hers. Grit perhaps, but grit could only carry you so far.
Thula lunged and he swayed past, snagged her by the braid and yanked her in to smirk at her. "Is that all?"
She could've slashed her braid and free'd herself, but she didn't. Too arrogant. Too proud.
Too fond of her hair.
She spat in his face, surprising him.
He recoiled, briefly taken aback by the gesture and she took full advantage to latch onto him for all she was worth. From there she twisted around his shoulder, writhing up and over him to lock both legs around his back, simultaneously trapping his arms to his sides with her thighs. It left her clinging onto his back like some demented monkey; so much so that he couldn't help but laugh.
"Congratulations." he rolled his eyes. "You've trapped me. Now wha-ack?!
Before he could ask what she hoped to accomplish, Thula looped her long braid around his neck and yanked, drawing it taut across his throat. For the first time since their brawl began, a grimace twisted his face. His world darkened at the corners, shadows creeping into his vision.
"You may be strong," she hissed, "But you need to breathe! How long can you last?!"
His fingers twitched at his sides.
"Longer than you."
He vanished in her grasp with a quick substitution jutsu, swapping himself out with an upturned tree stump.
Thula balked and realized her peril too late; she was clinging to so much dead-weight, her braid wrapped around an essentially useless log. By the time she'd realized it, he was already on her. Left, right, left again, he hammered her exposed back, powering her forward into the sand. She threw the stump at him as she fell and batted it away with a hand, stomping on her ankle to prevent her escape.
Here at last, she faltered.
One must never, EVER falter in a fight.
She snarled, surged upright, and threw a panicked punch.
(.0.0.0.)
Nolan watched them wage war from the sky, silent as the grave.
He knew he should intervene, interfere at the very least.
On who's side?
That was the question, wasn't it? When he first sent that message, he had never once anticipated that it might come to this; Anissa had it been easily coaxed, cajoled in the right direction, even. Predictable. It had been simple to point her at Naruto like an earth missile and unleash her. Fire and forget, as they say.
Thula was nowhere near as simple.
Unlike the infamous Conquest, she was no mad dog reveling in blood on her teeth, she knew what she wanted.
Once she finished with Naruto -if she finished him-she would come for him.
Would she bend or would she break?
He knew the answer.
(.0.0.0.)
Naruto caught her fist.
Thula had half a second to balk as her hand smacked into an open palm, then another to hiss in pain as he twisted her wrist, forcing her to a knee.
Agony coursed through her arm, but she refused to speak, refused to cry out.
She would not give him satisfaction.
She refused!
She...
His eerie bright eyes gleamed over the knuckles of her fist. As she looked on, they slowly blazed red, then blue, the gold all over again; a whirl of constantly shifting colors that she couldn't comprehend. What were they? What did they mean? She didn't know. She didn't want to know.
"...look lady, if that's the best you can do, this is not going to end well for you."
That gregarious golden gaze gleamed back at her. Crinkled now as he smiled.
His left fist flickered, little more than a blur of motion.
And then, quite suddenly, her world inverted.
Simply put, down became up.
Naruto was waiting for her in the upper atmosphere.
Fast! Her eyes bulged as she tried to arrest her momentum, but it was too late.
A fist swung back with intent; she saw stars.
Felt the fire of her reentry.
Tasted mud.
Ordinarily she adored descending to a planet, the fiery freedom it offered.
This was not that. She struck the ground and the ground exploded in a wash of fire and flame, scorching her skin.
Mercifully, she didn't black out-she almost wished she had-and thus was given a split second to experience humiliation, and another to glance about her surroundings. Some dense heavily forested area she didn't recognize, now badly burtn and very much on fire from her crash landing.
A shadow fell over her.
Shame coursed through her as she dragged herself upright on bent knee.
"Kneeling already?" those whiskered cheeks dimpled in a smug smile. "And here I thought your kind didn't kneel."
Anger!
he closed the distance between them and an instant and she whipped her knife at him in a blind fury.
He caught it in his fist. Then squeezed. It shattered in his grasp. Gone in an instant.
A stray shard flickered back her way and struck her right eye.
Half her vision went dark forevermore.
Pain! Agony! Fire in her face!
Thula crumpled with a scream, clutching her ruined visage.
That brief moment of inattention cost her dearly.
Most dearly indeed.
Naruto seized her by the throat, slammed her down into the ground. Pinned her beneath him, pressing her back into the scorched earth as she'd once seen Conquest do to a poor bastard on some backwater planet whose name she no longer remembered. Panic gave her limbs fresh strength and she lashed out, desperate to free herself.
He caught her fist and squeezed, shattering her fingers in a mass of red and bone.
The pain was so much worse than the wound in her face, but it didn't stop her. She refused to let it. Undaunted, she struck out with the other, only for him to catch her wrist with his teeth. Sharpened fangs sank into her flesh and she had an instant of awful, terribly realization before he turned his head aside with a twist AND-
An ugly tearing sound filled her ears.
In an instant, she was left balking at a ragged stump.
Naruto spat it out, disgusted, and wiped the blood from his lips with his free hand.
"So uncivilized," he muttered under his breath. "I'll be washing my mouth out for days...
Both arms ruined, Thula flailed at him, to no avail, legs kicking wildly under him, all for naught. In retaliation, he placed his free hand on her throat and redoubled his grip until she saw stars.
This was it, then. She was going to die. Her eyes rolled back.
Abruptly, the the pressure eared.
Naruto leaned down. His lips brushed the outer lobe of her right ear.
"How does it feel, Thula...?"
Her blood froze in her very veins, colder than ice.
No.
"How does it feel to be helpless?"
No, no.
"How does it feel to know pain?"
No, no, no!
The bastard was pulling a Conquest on her! Damn him! She gurgled angrily and slammed her ruined arm into his chest, the one that still had fingers. Her mangled digits bent and broke further, spattering his costume with fresh blood; all the while he remained undaunted. He did not bend. He didn't break. But she did.
"How many have you watched die in horror," he asked, "Crying for mercy in vain?"
Tears sprang to the corners of her good eye.
"Look what you turned me into."
They didn't faze him at all.
"See what I've become."
Dread clawed at her, deep and dark and deadly. Wild and primal.
This should not be.
This couldn't be.
It mustn't be.
And yet it was happening; here, now, this very moment.
How is this possible?' she tried to gulp, but he wouldn't even let her do that. 'I'm a Viltumite! I was born stronger than anyone on this miserable mudball of a planet. I stand above these wretched creatures. With every success I grow stronger! I'm supposed to win!
Naruto glared down at her.
'I am...
Red eyes filled her vision.
'...supposed to...'
He bared his teeth in a savage snarl.
Something came loose deep inside Thula.
...run.' her mind bleated! 'Run away! In order to survive I need to run and get as far away as I can! AwayawayawayAWAY-
But he wouldn't let her. His grip was inexorable, crushing. Darkess swept in...
.
..
...until Uzumaki yanked her back out of once more.
"No, you don't." he shook his head. "You don't get to go that easily."
Torture, then. Her worse fear, primary above all overs.
It was too much; she didn't want to die.
Thula broke.
Tears ran down her cheeks, bloody and watery. "Mercy...
"Mercy?!" He glared down at her. "You ask me for mercy?! After everything your kind has done?!"
She pawed at him with her ruined arms, good eye stinging even as the other wept bloody tears. "Please...I don't wanna die...
He tripled his grip, rendering her words a pained croak.
"YOU SHOULD!"
She wept openly. "I...yield...Master...!
He headbutted her, leaving her seeing stars.
"You think three little words will fix this?!"
"N-No...
Another headbutt.
She tried to fend him off.
A third headbutt broke her nose.
"Please!" she all but wailed the word. "Spare me! I'll serve you!"
Yet a fourth came crashing down.
What else did she have to offer? Her body?
Would he even accept such an offer?
...she didn't know.
Was this how her victims felt before she killed them? Wasted and gasping for air? Begging for mercy that would never come? She didn't like it; it was an ugly revelation. She'd always thought herself above it. Superior. But she wasn't, was she? In the end, she was no better than them.
Just another victim in the mud.
Naruto reared back, face dripping blood, and took one hand from her throat. Any hope she might've felt in that moment died an ugly death as he clenched his fingers into his claw. A spiraling blue sphere ignited in his free palm. In an instant, Thula knew its intent; he was going to bring it crashing down on her head.
He moved.
"RASENGAN!"
A hand caught his wrist, stopping him short.
Naruto absolutely hissed at the responsible party. "Let go."
"I will do no such thing."
A shadow fell over them both. Thula couldn't see its owner in the sun. Her vision was far too blurry now in any case.
But she could hear her voice, oh-so-familiar:
"This isn't you, Naruto."
She knew that voice.
Anissa...?
Wasn't she dead?
Sure enough, it was her.
Her hated rival looked...softer. Gentler.
Naruto was not; he snapped at her in his rage. "She deserves to die."
"Perhaps," the-not-dead-woman allowed, "Or perhaps she can yet change her ways."
He scoffed. "Like you?"
Something inscrutable flashed across her face."...yes, like me."
"That's not the same thing!" Naruto protested sullenly. "You're different."
She didn't let go. "I was made so by your mercy."
"Anissa-
They said more words, argued, but Thula didn't hear them.
Couldn't.
Her vision swam.
Her ears were ringing.
With a sigh, her body finally slipped into sleep.
This time, when the darkness came, Thula dove into it.
A/N: Beru vibes from Solo Leveling anyone?
Naruto quite literally scared the courage out of Thula. Will she be healed? That depends entirely on her.
Hope you enjoyed this chapter~!
Remember, we're now committing to bi-weekly updates for both Apples and Atoms and Vanguard.
What chaos awaits? Who will live? Who will die?! Feedback is important!
Well? What say you? Do you want this to remain a story? Yes? No? Maybe so? Make yourselves heard! Really need to hear from you, here.
So by all means, speak up! Your voice matters! Make yourself heard! As ever, reviews are the fuel that sustain me. Without them, I cannot write a single word. Simple as that. Working nearly all hours of the day keep me absurdly busy, and I can't bring myself to write something folks don't like.
So...in the Immortal Words of Atlas...
...Review...Would You Kindly? Hope you enjoy the previews below, can't spoil too much.
Don't mind the X symbols, the site doesn't like scene breaks down here.
We've got some new ones and some are...intense.
They've been expanded and then some!
Read at your own risk:
WARNING! WARNING! WARNING!
SPOILERS AWAIT YOU!
YE BE WARNED!
(Previews)
x
"Well?" Cecil quirked a brow at him and gestured to the scene below. "Unless you don't think you can do it."
His eye twitched. "Bold words for someone within punching distance."
"See, now you're resorting to threats. Can you do it or not?"
Naruto passed the bottle off to him.
"Hold my beer."
x
There is a door. Once you walk through that door, once you see evil, you can never unsee it. Evil infects. Spreads out all around you. Touches everything you touch. The most we can hope for is that when its time to face it...you don't have to go through that door alone.
x
"Hoooooly shit."
"You must be Rex." The man stood before him, idly wiping blood from his hair. "Your boss had good things to say about you...before I popped his skull."
Crapbaskets. That would explain all the blood then, wouldn't it? He looked like he'd gone through a blender; no, that wasn't right, he WAS the blender, and everyone else had been sliced and diced, minced and finced like a fruit smoothie. He could still see the bodies...what was left of them at any rate.
What was that old Drowning Pool song again? Let the Bodies Hit the Floor?
Yeah, that about summed things up here.
The boy raised his hands. "Whoa, whoa! I don't want any trouble."
"No, son." the blond man tutted softly. "No, you do not."
A hand came down on his head, mussing his hair.
"Tell me, how do you feel about adoption...?"
EDIT: Hope this story brightened your day and made things better, even if only a little.
As always, I appreciate any review given. It truly does help me write. Large or small, any feedback is better than nothing at all.
Looking forward to chatting with you all when I get back from work~!
May you have a great day and lots of luck!
Warm regards,
~Nz.
