Trying to get back into the swing of things. I feel a bit rusty. There's probably a few grammar mistakes here and there too, but I figured I'd post it first and just iterate the grammar fixes later. On a side note, I'll be super busy starting August as I'll have full-time work by then, so the updates will come a bit slower.

XXXX

"...O-Orc… Lord." Renji stiffened, his posture rigid.

So these are orcs, and this one… could it be a Monster-Rex?

It had yet to move but its presence alone was enough to render everyone around him frozen.

"O-Orc Lord." A soldier took a step back, shaking in disbelief, "H-Hey… Wha-What the hell..."

Naruto frowned, looking around. Whatever morale boost he'd brought had plummeted down instantly. But he couldn't blame them, its monstrous presence could be felt all around. The Goblin Mutilator he had killed a few months ago didn't even hold a candle to it.

If this truly is a Monster-Rex then perhaps Merry was correct. It wasn't something he could face alone. A beast that defeated even a veteran party of twenty, and the only ones here are...

His eyes narrowed.

They're all rookies. Most of the veterans like Barbara were out handling an order of extermination on the eastern border after all.

It's quite the predicament.

"Tschk!"

Naruto looked beside him to see Renji shakily forcing himself up, wiping a bit of blood off his lips.

Atleast, it seems like there are still those who are willing to fight — He'll make do.

"GRaaHRk!"

Following the roar, Naruto spun around and took a quick swipe, decapitating the reckless orc, but immediately another one followed, sending a side-swing his way.

CLANG.

Naruto grunted skidding from the force of the blow as he fought to maintain balance on the slippery floor. He heard a piggish squeal, followed by the attacker hitting the hard pavement.

He shook his numbing arm. It was the first time he'd met one of its strikes head on. It didn't help that the floor had been drenched in liquid from a leaking water tank. It made it difficult to fight but — he glanced at his stumbling adversary — it's worse for them.

With a quick fling of his knife, it fell flat on its back with a hole in its head. Again, another orc appeared, replacing its fallen comrade. He wasted no time.

SLASH

And another.

SLASH

And another.

He fell into a mantra, splotches of warm, pungent blood, struck against him as he weaved through opponent after opponent. But, everytime he cut down one two or three more would replace it.

It's unending, there's too many of them.

Naruto took a deep heave, crinkling his nose as blood, piss and feces mingled together to form a horrible stench.

Ducking from a stab, he flung water on the eyes of his attacker and swept its legs making it fall down with a splash, immediately he followed up with a quick thrust that skewered its head in.

Naruto surveyed the field, taking a second to right himself. Observing the mass of orcs beating down on the dwindling forces of volunteer soldiers.

He wasn't tired, not yet, but at this rate… wait. His eyes fell upon the liquid dripping out of his hand, slowly realization came upon him.

This was...

XXXX

"Choke on it you piece of hog shit!" Renji yelled, ripping his sword off a gurgling orc. He heaved once, twice before righting himself.

A soft thump behind signaled someone's arrival.

"Renji, right?" Naruto started, his back toward him, with his tanto drawn out in a guarded position. "That's your name, correct?"

Renji grunted, cracking his neck, his face matted with sweat. He took a breather, leaning the dull edge of his blade up to his shoulder, and notched his head back.

"Y-Yeah." the warrior heaved out as he bashed an unfortunate orc's face in with his pommel, "Don't think now's the best time for introductions blondie."

"I need you to gather those who are still willing to fight, I have a plan."

Renji eyed him, a dubious look in his face, "What kind of plan?" — He couldn't place a finger on it but something was off with the blonde's look.

The blonde didn't answer, rather Renji caught a suspiciously round and heavy object. Renji threw another confused glance at him.

"A decisive one," Naruto retrieved his ninja wires from his pouch, forming a knot on both ends of his kunai and his tanto while surveying the vast field, eyes landing on the humongous form of the Orc Lord, "I'll give you the signal… you'll know what to do."

Before Renji could even protest, Naruto surged forward, meeting the ferocious swarm of orc grunts head-on.

'Twenty-five meters...'

His head throbbed, copious amounts of liquid adrenaline being pumped into his bloodstream as his eyes sharpened into focus. His breathing matched the rapid pace of his steps, not a single ounce of energy was wasted. He'll need it if he was to survive this.

'...ten meters...'

For just a moment... for some reason, a certain blue-haired priestess flashed into his thoughts.

'...five meters...'

"Naru..."

His eyes hardened with resolve, opening his pouch.

'One...'

He'll survive this — no matter what.

At the lead orc's roar, Naruto sprung into action, throwing his last canister of smoke bomb right at the orc's head, and skidding between its legs, making sure to quickly clip its heels as he passed it.

It took awhile for the orcs to register what happened, before their comrade tumbled to the ground, squealing and screaming. It was only a slight moment of confusion, but that's all the time he needed as the area was blanketed in a thick smoky fog.

Naruto didn't waste any time and surged forward, being mindful of the slippery ground as his blades swung wildly, taking full-advantage of the cover the smokescreen provided. Heading straight for the general vicinity he'd last seen the Orc Lord.

Shouts, grunts, and squeals sounded around him as the orcs panicked; pushing at each other in an attempt to escape the fog, while some of the reckless ones swung and hit their comrades trying to land a lucky blow against him.

He didn't stop, not for a second, objective in mind.

In his line of work, very seldom does a plan come off without a hitch, which is why Danzo instilled in him to make backup plans for his plans, and backup plans for his backup plans.

"— However, if you find your plans working in full succession, do not take the time to consider it. Instead…"

"Take the opportunity to milk every single ounce of it." Naruto finished softly.

...and that he shall.

XXXX

[Cure]

Merry wiped the sweat at the crease of her brow, letting out an exhale of breath as she turned to the worried gaze of the rookie soldier grasping the hand of his injured comrade.

Giving him a firm nod, Merry assured him, "She's stable for now, but bring her to the apothecary, I wouldn't put it past these orcs to poison their blades."

With a look of gratitude, the leader and his party gave her a quick bow, before the leader took his comrade on his arms and hurriedly left.

Merry took the time to get another breather, before slowly moving up to stand.

That's the tenth one now. Priests were often the ones most boggled in sieges, being the least frequent but most in demand class; and though she was often cold, she wasn't heartless. She'd never turn down someone in dire need of healing, even if she herself is running low on reserves.

A grim look came over her. Her Lips settling down to a thin line, as a particular memory flashes before her eyes.

'In fact… that was the reason…'

A loud shout broke her train of thoughts.

Merry scrunched her eyes, slowly heading toward the source of the commotion. Two parties, from the looks of it.

The source, an imposing silver-haired warrior dressed in a rather striking set of crimson steel armor who'd shoved another warrior in the standard warrior gear — a rookie from the looks of it.

"...call yourselves volunteer soldiers?! Spineless cowards, all of you!" said the silver-haired warrior.

"Look, we don't want any trouble we just— " The rookie warrior's mage attempted to justify.

"Men are dying out there! Your fellow soldiers... just think for a second! If you don't fight now, Alterna will fall. There's no alternative, now's the time to make a stand!" The man yelled.

Merry scooted herself in the forming crowd, watching as the warrior berated the rookies, while his own party — consisting of a mage, rogue, paladin and a priestess; dressed in their own impressive set of gear, silently observed from behind him.

"I'm talking to all of you!" He turned to address the whole crowd, his arms splayed out. "Listen, the Frontier Army is not going to come, there's no help! It's just us, this is all on us! If you refuse to fight now, Alterna along with your friends and family will be slaughtered!" The warrior heaved with deep breaths.

Yet none replied, all was silent, the tension in the air palpable to touch.

Merry observed this all with a silent stare.

The unfortunate truth is, rookie volunteer soldiers who've come this far in Alterna often had the same trait, they were cautious, some might argue even cowards; but it is true nonetheless. Brave and foolhardy parties most often than not, died early on in their career and the few which exceled moved on to better ventures… her former group was no exception to that rule.

From a quick glance, considering the gear of everyone around here, it wasn't hard to guess they're all rookies.

Merry shook her head and held back a snort. It's no use trying to convince them.

Just their luck for there to be an order on the day of the siege. This should've been more manageable had Soma's Daybreakers or even Shinohara's Orion been here.

"So that's it, huh? None of you are willing? None of you will fight?" The warrior shook his head, giving them all a disgusted glare.

"Fine." He turned around, heaving his blade up to his shoulders his party following him. "If we survive this, when we survive this, I'll consider turning in my badges." He turned to give them all a sharp look "You'll all amount to nothing anyway." He finished, lodging a glob of spit on the ground.

There was a bit of murmuring as the crowd dispersed. Merry looked around, wondering if she'd see Haruhiro's party here somewhere.

'But knowing them, they're probably near the apothecary making sure no one gets to Moguzo.'

That brought a small smile to her at least. Though she wouldn't admit it, the party's bonds were indeed strong, it was really what made it so hard to be amiable with them to begin with. It was all so much like her former party, it hurt.

"I won't let them die."

But… perhaps this time, with him… she could…

Merry suddenly stumbled,, as a resounding boom came from the main battleground. Tremors displaced the solid pavement, the ground shaking. Merry gritted her teeth, fighting hard to maintain her balance.

Finally, after what felt like an eternity it stopped, though the ringing in her ears didn't. As her vision cleared and the dust settled, she found everyone on the ground, some unconscious but mostly unharmed. Thankfully, they're at the part of town where all the structures were built mostly in wood, and there weren't too many debris to worry about.

Merry slowly stood up and turned to face the source, scrunching her eyes a bit as dust particles cleared around the area of the impact zone.

The massive Orc Lord had slammed a fist unto the ground, gorging the once flat landscape into a deep crater. Safe to say, the group who's on the receiving end of that was —

Her eyes widened

'W-Wait t-that's...!'

"N-Naru?" Merry whispered to herself in disbelief. But it was unmistakable, there were only a few blondes in Alterna, even fewer are the absolute lunatics dumb enough to sprint over the Orc Lord's arm!

"Hey, Sassa hurry up! That numbskull's going to get himself killed..." The crimson warrior ordered the voluptuous rogue, hefting his blade.

"C-Coming...!" As the rogue, Sassa, caught up; she chuckled in nervousness. "S-Say, Renji… Uh, what's our plan here again?"

If Renji heard her, he didn't acknowledge her.

"I'll come…" Renji's group turned at the sound of Merry's voice. Renji himself, stopping a bit to glance back with a raised brow.

"That… numbskull," Merry rubbed the aching side of her head as she continued, "is a part of my party. So, I'll help."

Renji snorted, before smirking a bit and turning around. "Well, I hope you fight as good as you look, princess. Looks like we have a bit of an entourage waiting for us." he said, eyeing the approaching swarm of orcs.

Merry scowled, walking toward them, "I hope you fight better than how you look, I'd rather not waste my reserves on the elderly."

Renji's brow twitched before he started chuckling, blade drawn out in-front of him as the party assembled into formation, "Those are some fighting words, princess. I think I'm beginning to like you."

"Can't say the feelings mutual." Merry uttered as she finished her spell, "O light, return to Lumiaris' divine protection… [Blessing]!"

"Chibi," Renji nodded at his party's priestess.

"Hai," the priestess replied, like her namesake, she's quite short. Merry doubted she'd even reach past her chest. "O light, return to Lumiaris' divine protection… [Protection]!"

A warm sensation filled Merry originating from a glowing white symbol that appeared on her wrist.

Compared to Blessing, Light of Protection was a more defensive buff that increased the reflex, resistance and natural healing of the party; and unlike Blessing, the spell has a max limit of six party members. But the spell is a lot less taxing for the priest.

"Ron, you're up." said Renji.

The paladin nodded with a grin, as he started to repeatedly smack his pommel unto his shield, whilst moving forward, attracting the attention of the orcs.

"Alright. Come and get it, you filthy animals." Ron taunted.

Merry didn't know if the orcs understood his jeers, but it seemed to have the effect he wanted as the beasts started converging on his location.

"Jeeru mea gram fel kanon!" the mage wasted no time and started his incantation. From the chant alone, Merry could already guess that it was an ice spell. She'd know, Mutsumi favored them along with fire spells after all.

And as if proving her right, the air condensed around them. The moisture around converging into a single point forming a ball of ice which immediately launched itself into the swarm.

The effects were devastating.

Those at the epicenter of the collision were lucky as they're flash frozen instantly, those on the outside though…

CRACK

"GraAAHHHk!"

Merry glanced briefly as an orc clutched at its profusely bleeding stump, the rest of its remaining leg still frozen in place.

Rookies would have been more empathetic to these things, but experience had taught her to quickly ignore any feelings of pity for these creatures. They wouldn't bat an eyelash had it been on the reverse.

Besides…

A tremor shook the ground once again and she turned a sharp eye toward the general vicinity of the Orc Lord, trying to find her blonde companion; but it was hard to see with all the dust clouds blanketing the field.

Eitherway, she couldn't afford to waste anymore time.

'Naru...' Merry gritted her teeth.

Putting forth a palm out in front of her she chanted, "O light, under the divine grace of Lord Luminous… [HOLY LIGHT]"

Light formed on the palm of her hand, small at first, but gradually growing in size. Soon it had taken the form of a giant cross, radiating a light so bright that for a moment, the whole field was illuminated, and everything was made visible.

Then it launched, tearing through the ground, sending dirt and rubble flying everywhere as it consumed the swarm.

Their cries sounded almost like that of a dying animal

By the time it was over, a line had been cut straight through the center of the orc army. The smell of burnt flesh mingling in with the smell of war.

Merry took a deep breathe. Her outstretched palm trembling a bit. She'd poured out a generous amount of her reserves unto the spell, more than what was needed and the sharp tingles on her arms were testament to how close she was on running empty.

A low whistle came out of Sasha, admiring her handy work, while Renji snortled once again.

"Hah! Look like someone's eager... very well then," a mad grin stretched Renji's lips, "we'll cut a line straight through the middle."

And just like that, Renji charged into the mass. His party only took a second to respond before following their leader. Normally she'd protest, but she didn't know how long Naruto would last against a Monster Rex, strong as he was, no one can match a Monster Rex.

Renji was mindful enough to make sure the group had a semi-decent formation. She couldn't see much of what was going on upfront but from the number of orcs that were left in an incapable state on the side as she passed by, she could tell that Renji's quite formidable. They have that going at least.

Still, this was insane. It went against everything she'd known as a volunteer soldier. It was idiotic and reckless — Lumiaris, it was suicide!

Merry gritted her teeth, ducking from a swing that would've swiped her head clean and quickly returning with a back strike of her own that caved the orc's head in.

She'd long forgone her priest staff for her mace. Most priests didn't ever bother learning to wield a mace as it signified their willingness to fight in the frontline. She'd only done it to ease the burden on her party back then… but it was a mistake she'd refused to make again. She hadn't wielded it for years ever since the incident.

But here she was doing the same ludicrous, insane...

Lumiaris! Her emotions, her thoughts, everything was a mess! All because her blonde numbskull of a party member had no sense of self-preservation!

Hadn't she warned him not to engage a Monster Rex by himself? Why couldn't he—

A sharp whizzing in the air broke her tirade.

"Volley! Take co—"

"[Pneuma]"

Before Ron could even warn the group, she'd already precasted the defensive barrier, the bluish cloud consuming every arrow that was launched at them.

"Well done, princess!" Renji praised, "Adachi!"

"I'm on it. Jeeru mea gram tera kanon! [Ice Comet]"

Like before, a ball of frozen ice formed from thin air and collided with the group of orc archers.

'That was…!' Merry brows rose slightly, sending a curious glance at the back of the mage, '...this group.'

The mage was able to cast whilst running, something that's usually only seen in more seasoned veteran parties. She couldn't speak much yet for the thief, but it seemed like this group had some outstanding talents.

She wouldn't look past a gift on a horse's mouth but she couldn't help but wonder what a veteran party like this was doing here.

"Push!" Renji suddenly shouted up front.

Merry's eyes narrowed. The orcs have regained their composure, a line of grunts have formed ahead of them. Renji and Ron were pushing against them using their respective weapons, Renji with the flat side of his blade and Ron with his kite shield.

"Push us!" Renji yelled through gritted teeth.

Chibi, who was ahead of her ran even faster and tackled Ron from behind adding force to their pushing power.

'I see…' Merry braced herself, using the momentum from her own sprint to push against Renji. Not long after, she felt a force behind her as Sassa came in to help.

That did it. Renji roared something upfront before the orcs' resistance faltered. Their assailants let out a cry as they barrelled through them.

THWACK. THWACK. THWACK

Not once was there a pause to the sound of steel cutting through flesh as Renji and Ron relentlessly hacked their way through to the Orc Lord.

"Where the hell do these orcs keep coming from, they're like ants!" Ron blocked a strike with his shield and retaliated by bludgeoning the orc's head with the tip of his shield.

"Just keep going! We're almost there!" Renji on the other hand fluidly weaved through their strikes and struck with his own, the way he moved as he spun around with his blade extended out cleaving an orc or two looked more like a dance than anything else.

'Just a bit more.' Merry could already see the devastated field where Naruto and the Orc Lord were fighting. Craters lined the wet ground, orc corpses strewn about — some missing a limb or two.

At the very center, from where the Orc Lord was, she could see that the horde had clumped together. She couldn't find Naruto, but the fact that the Orc Lord was still swinging its fists around told her that he's still out there fighting.

Alone.

'Where are you… Naruto?'

XXXX

The ground shook as he dodged yet another strike from the Orc Lord. A huge gust of wind blew from the point of impact and Naruto was forced to close his eyes, preventing a wave of dirt from entering in his eyes. Immediately after landing on the ground, he raised his blade in a guarded position, just in time to block an axe from taking his head off.

Naruto retaliated quickly, swiping the extended arm off. It took the orc a moment to realize it had lost an arm but by then a kunai had been lodged on its throat.

He breathed hard, his breathing coming out ragged. His movements were starting to get sluggish. He was nearing the end of his limit.

Taking a quick scan of his surroundings, he assessed the enemies around him. He'd lured a great majority of the horde. Their numbers, too many to count.

Good. That means there's just a few more things left for him to do.

The Orc Lord had a few loops of ninja wire tied on its neck from his earlier skirmish, so this made it a bit easier. Naruto's eyes narrowed as the Orc Lord prepared to smash him, at the same time he a warcry from behind him and Naruto leapt up in a backflip, dodging the orc's tackle and landing on its shoulders. He used it as a springboard to leap to the Orc Lord, just as its fists came crashing down on its subordinate.

The force of the blow pushed him up making him ascend even faster.

Just as Naruto reached the peak of his jump, he felt a warm presence at his core, spreading out and gradually easing his fatigue off. The corners of his lips twitched into a slight smile.

'Perfect timing, Merry.'

"[Blessing]"

He spared a quick glance at her direction, their eyes meeting for just for a moment. Her worried gaze with his assuring one.

'I won't die,' was his silent reply.

Renji and the group he'd gathered were fighting against a considerable amount of enemies, but from a glance he could tell that they're still winning. That means he could focus on the matter at hand.

A gust of wind blew from his side and he quickly tugged at the wire binding the Orc Lord just in time to dodge a swift smack from the Monster Rex. He descended toward it at an alarming rate, his blade extended ahead in front of him.

SHLUK!

"GrAAAAAAAAH!"

Naruto held on to his tanto for dear life from the bellowing voice of the Orc Lord. The blade had sunken in deep into its eyeball. Feeling movement from behind, he quickly pulled the blade free and leapt toward the nape of its neck just as its hands came up to cup its bleeding eye.

Now's his chance.

Naruto didn't waste any time and swiftly jumped off the Orc Lord's back, looping the ninja rope to the structure behind it.

"Oi blondie, time to move!" Renji yelled.

'Not yet.'

Naruto ignored him, continuing to weave around, skillfully evading the Orc Lord's frantic swipes as layers upon layers of ninja wire coiled around the Monster Rex and the structure behind it.

This drive… this feeling.

Feeling the wind shift about, he jumped, just in time to land on top of the Orc Lord's knuckles. Without stopping he blitzed forward, running through the length of its arm.

"What're you doing?! Get outta there, you idiot!"

"Naru! Move!"

The odds weren't in their favor. They're outnumbered, possibly even outmatched but…

Taking a sharp intake of breath, he pushed himself; going even faster, his eyes becoming sharper, thoughts whirling into hyperfocus — Everything was clear, he could see the slight stiffening of the Orc Lord's muscle, the sweat dripping out of every pore of its body, even the short hiccup in its breathing as an ear-shattering bellow escaped its lips.

Compared to the skirmishes he led, the thousands of suicide missions Danzo had sent him and his team on, it wasn't any different.

He skidded beneath the Orc Lord's swipe, swiping at its open palms as he want past it, closing his eyes as a splash of vile, pungent blood splashed on his face.

Finally reaching the top of its shoulder-blades, he channeled strength to his legs and leapt past it.

Naruto soared through the air, eyes focused on the giant container behind it. A container that was leaking something unmistakably familiar. As he reached it, he swung with the last of his remaining strength.

Had it been anyone else, maybe whatever these orcs had planned would've worked, maybe they would've had a chance — but he wasn't a regular soldier, nor was he a regular shinobi. He wasn't a hero, nor a knight, nor a samurai. No. he was a warrior bred without honor. The roots that grew in the dark, enabling the leaves to thrive in the sun.

Naruto heard a warning shout from Merry before a sudden pain erupted from his sides, the wind whipping past him as he was catapulted to the side. Naruto grunted as he was reacquainted with the ground again, and again, and again.

By the time it was over, he couldn't tell how long he was airborne or which bones had broken, only that an unbearable amount of pain wracked his body. Faintly, he felt a soothing pure essence at his chest, slowly his conscious started to come back.

"—old on! Just hold on Naru!" It was Merry, she'd moved toward him the moment he was punted. There's obvious trepidation in her voice as she pumped as much healing energy into him.

He couldn't blame her, his body was in so much pain, he didn't know what hurt most anymore. But he needed to know, he couldn't stop. Not now.

Gritting his teeth, Naruto forced himself through the mind-shattering pain and opened his eyes up to look at the result of his work.

"Boy, in war there's a single unspoken rule."

A torrent of black liquid had emerged from the container, drenching the Orc Lord along with its minions.

Initially, because it was dark, he'd mistaken it for a water tank.

"Cheat. Never give your opponent a fair chance. If you find yourself in a fair fight, you're doing something wrong! We are ROOT. Our victory is our honor. Do you understand?"

But the growing scent in the air as the liquid continued to cover the field confirmed it. It wasn't water... it was oil. And when he'd figured that out, he'd given Renji the exact tool that'll end up being the deciding factor in this battle.

A familiar round object soared through the air, right in between the Orc Lord and the oil tank. It was an object he'd bought on a whim a few days ago from the smithy. It's a prototype, a replacement for the explosive tags he couldn't use anymore.

The smith called it a bomb.

"...victory through any means."

BOOM!

Shouts and wild cries fell out as the raging flames consumed the drenched orcs.

The Orc Lord wasn't fairing any better, the ninja wire held the oil tank secure to it, drenching itself and its comrades even more with oil and scattering the flames further as it thrashed about.

Monster Rex… It was impervious to his attacks, throughout the whole fight the most he could inflict on it were shallow wounds. Even his tanto couldn't pierce all the way through its tough flesh.

Merry was correct, he wouldn't be able to beat one. In an all out fight, any soldier would be hard-pressed to defeat such a creature.

Which was exactly why he didn't.

THUMP! THUMP! THUMP!

The loud thumps of the Orc Lord resounded in the field as it screamed bloody murder along with its subordinates. The fire continuing to spread, burning them alive.

It's done. It's only a matter of time before they keeled over. Even from his position, far as he was, he could feel the intensity of the scorching heat emanating from the flames.

...

THUMP! THUMP! THUMP!

...

Something was wrong…

The temperature around them grew higher as the Orc Lord kept moving, closer and closer toward them. It's sluggish in its movements, at the verge of collapse — half of the flesh around its head had melted showing a bit of its skull but even still it kept moving.

Perhaps it was revenge, perhaps it was spite, but he knew what it wanted. It wanted to take him along with it to its grave.

" — ry… l-leave." His voice came out raspy, it's hard to breathe, it's a struggle to even form a sentence.

Naruto turned to Merry, he could hear her labored breaths as she continued to use her healing spell on his battered form. At her current state, she wouldn't be able to carry him, she's also at her limit. But she could still run, she could still save herself.

"Me-rry, m-move… you have… to m-move." It came out weak, almost silent, but he knew she heard him, yet she wouldn't budge an inch, continuing to pump her healing spell unto him.

There was a tight feeling in his chest, not just because of his wounds, but because of something else. It's the same thing he felt when he'd lost Hinata, when he'd first met Merry.

What was it again…? Sadness…?

"M-Merry, p-please." Naruto forced his voice to come out clearer. Slowly, ever so painfully, he moved his hand atop hers, taking a weak grip, attempting to pull it away.

He couldn't see her face as her head was down, her bangs shadowing her eyes.

"Y-you n-need to— "

"Shut up." Merry snapped, her voice was sharp. She'd spoken in the same voice she'd use when she's being stubborn, leaving no room for arguments. But still, this was her life. Just like Hinata, the thought of her dying...

"You're— "

"I said shut up and stay still, i-idiot." There's a slight waver in her voice, her hands were trembling just a bit.

…perhaps, this was how she felt too. Maybe, the thought of him dying… was something she also couldn't bare?

" — I can't leave you alone." She looked at him with her lavender orbs, decision resolute.

He couldn't help but think… was this also how Hinata felt?

...Hinata… wait.

"One time access to your chakra, no strings attached."

That's a dream… right? She couldn't be… but even still something, he needed to do something!

Naruto closed his eyes, focusing on his chakra core.

He could feel it, held back behind a dam, waiting to break free. All he needed was to open it.

By now the Orc Lord was just a few meters away from them. He could hear a few yells from Renji's party telling them to move away. Their mage peppering the Rex's back with Ice blasts.

Even if it was all a dream, even if he was to die after this, he had to —

"Are you sure now's the time to use this, senpai~?"

Her voice sent sudden shocks to his spine, before a wave of nausea overtook him and his head exploded with pain.

The heat was burning now, he could feel the wind shifting. He didn't need to see to know that the Orc Lord was plummeting down toward them.

Move.

Merry remained stubborn, unmoved as she continued to pour out the last of her reserves on him.

Move.

Renji's party gave alarming yells.

MOVE!

He forced himself through the pain, opening his eyes just to see the hulking beast fall upon them.

CRASH!

…

…

…

He's alive. Somehow he's alive, but the blinding pain in his head remained. Naruto gritted his teeth, opening his eyes.

Who...

There's a man in a hood, a warrior from the looks of the greatsword strapped on his back, with a single hand raised above him… holding back the full weight of the Orc Lord.

But Naruto's immediate concern was...

'...Merry… where's…'

Upon seeing her form, relief came upon him.

There she was just a few feet away from him, unconscious but breathing. She's fine. Merry's fine.

'Merry's safe... Merry's safe...'

A grunt was forced out of him as the pain in is head became unbearable. Slowly his vision began to darken. The last thing he saw before he blacked out was the mysterious individual hurling the Orc Lord's body to the side.

"...Interesting."

XXXX

Till next time.