Homecoming
#9 of Breathless
A/N: Alright. Just to start this, I would like to thank all the readers of this story. When I first started writing it, it was purely out of boredom, and then it grew on me, much like it most likely grew on you. Now now, I'm not putting this in this chapter because it's the last one. Nope. But it's good to always thank those that wish for something like this to continue--the epic that I've seen it be.
For a second note, I would like to state that I -WILL- be writing the sequel to this. I know this, because I've already have concept art being drawn for me from a friend of mine. With that said, I hope you enjoy this, and every other chapter that I write. Oh, and this chapter, I'm writing as I go. Wanted to try it with this story instead of waiting till it was done. Makes me have to work. ^_~
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The clouds passed quickly through the stone window. With the fading light of the day, he knew truly that this was to be the last stand; this place was perfect in its architecture to hold them all. Closing his eyes, he remembered the way he had found this place, and all the beautiful knowledge that came with it.
Within the air, the stagnant smell of death surrounded the boy. The structure around him seemed ancient, even foreign to the land he was in. Dragging his hand against the wall, he felt each and every stone that had been put up for the long corridor forgotten all those years ago. "What is this place?" An utterance for him, one that nagged at him ever since he found the two that were adrift in between worlds.
Questions. There were a myriad of them, all wanting to be known--each one faught to find themselves at the tip of his tongue. More and more, he wandered further into the underground passageway, eyes scanning anything and everything for something that he knew. But there wasn't anything that he could find in this place, save for the cryptic ruins they were in.
Moss grew on the walls, their moisture adding even more stench that filled the air. It was almost enough to make him lose whatever he ate, but he strode through it. Deep inside, he knew that there was something inside these caverns, these man-made hallways; there had to be.
His mind wrapped itself around as much as he could take in; each step, each odor, each feeling. Somehow they all made sense to him, and yet they didn't. He couldn't figure out why, but he didn't need to--especially with the wall coming up in front of him. A dead end. Muttering an oath, he punched the wall. This was the seventh dead end he came across in the labyrinth underneath the mountains.
Under his strength, the wall began to crumble slightly. Pebbles and debris fell from the wall, giving a small enough hole for air break through. And as it did, it seemed to purge the air of everything except for the moisture. The death that had seeped into the walls had left altogether, finally giving him some breathable air. Gasping, the boy leaned forward, putting his eye level with the hole. Beyond, he knew not what would happen--
And what did happen, was that his eyes crossed upon a larger room, one that almost blinded him with his first few blinks. Being almost in complete darkness, the boy had become used to the darkening colors all around him--that is until his eyes were beset by the large white crystal in which a figure was hovering in. Going wide, those eyes blinked a few more times, wanting to see if this was just a pleasant mirage from all those days of wandering beneath the mountains, but the crystal was still there.
Stepping back, he looked at his hand. It was bruised. He'd need some medical attention to it so it would get better, but he wanted to know what was inside even more--
"Master!" The word almost made him jump out of his thrown-type chair. In his reverie, he hadn't noticed Sakura had come up in front of him. "I've come to your call!" Staring back at her, his eyes scanned up and down on the woman, noticing her new clothes. Pink and black. It was the same colors that drew him to seeing her while he was working on the Digital World.
Blinking a few times, he tried to remember why he had called her. "Oh..." It finally occurred to him. "I need a status report of those little weaklings. Can't leave them be, especially since they got their powers." Relaxing back, looking almost uninterested in it, he rested his head upon his palm.
She got to the point really quickly. "They have arrived here along with one of the Resistance!" Sakura's eyes, though teal, seemed to be colorless--a side-effect of the Black Rings--as they stared at him. "It also seems that the Resistance has become more of a nuisance than before. Though their numbers increase, their skill doesn't."
He listened intently, noting down everything he can. "I understand. Do you think you can summon the other two and get down there with them to quash the Resistance." Within his words, he could see her bit her lips. "What's wrong?"
"Uh...Sasuke and Naruto are... a bit indisposed at this moment." She tried to hide the sadness that would come about from the thought she knew the two were doing. "I can do this myself, Master!"
Raising an eyebrow at the reason, he just motioned his hand. "Alright. Just deal with it. And when those two are done with whatever they think is more important than my orders, tell them that they need to come see me." The inflection in what the boy said made Sakura's skin crawl.
Although she was under his control, she still had her own mind that did what she wanted to do; and following Ken at this moment was what she wanted to do. It made her forget that the other two had a history together, and now were missing at the moment, in god know's where, doing the unthinkable to her. "Y-Yes!"
Giving another look at her, she stood straight, before jumping up and disappearing. Finally, he was left alone again, and his mind wanted to remember what had happened on that day.
Grumbling to himself, Ken pushed against the stones with his entire body. He knew that it couldn't take too much pressure, from just the punch he had given it. Within no time, he had knocked the wall down, enough so that he could climb into the room. Ken walked over to the crystal, and placed a hand upon it. Feeling warm to the touch, he wondered again.
"Who are you? Why are you here? Why are you sealed?" He blurted questions out to the large wolf held in stasis, moving his hand to put it against one of the crossed arms of the large wolf. Inside, it seemed to be sleeping to the boy, sleeping inside of the crystal like it was just a vat.
Ken removed his hand from the crystal totally, backing up to look around the whole room. There were other crystals, yes, but none that compared to the large one he saw first. "Was this all that was hidden?" Another question he blurted out without thinking, but it was a valid one. One that he'd have to figure out when he got that large crystal out.
Spinning his vision over, the boy looked at the crystal--or where the crystal was once. It disappeared, wolf and all, from the room, the only imprint of it left was that upon Ken's mind. "What the..." Before he could even finish, the ruins began to shake.
'Take heed, Awakened One. This life shall be naught soon enough, unless thou creates the sun's strokes, and the moon's phases. Her Palace that flies, a city upon the stars, I give you; a last gift of those Ancient enough to remember.' Words that he had not spoken, ran through Ken's head as he tried to run away from the large room. Debris was knocked loose from the ceilings, as it crumbled down upon the boy who still wished to get out, and get out alive.
"Uh Ken?" Another voice knocked him out of another reverie. "Why are you just staring out the window?" He knew who it was this time, and he was rather angered by it.
"WORMON!" His voice was strong, almost like a growl. "How many TIMES have I told you? Call me MASTER!"
"Y-y-yes M-master." Recoiling back from the scream, the worm digimon looked up at his 'master.' "Wh-what are you doing?"
Ken gruffed a bit, closing his eyes once more. "I am planning another invasion." A lie befit for a king. "So leave me alone!"
"Ahh! B-b-but I f-found the other t-t-two...."
His attention was won back, "Oh? You've found where Sasuke and Naruto are?"
Wormon nodded.
"Then where are they?"
"I-I-in your private bedroom. I don--" Ken immediately jumped up to attention, his fists clenching tightly. "M-Master?"
"Shut it, idiot." He jumped off the dias he was on, and ran towards the door, ready to pound some sense into the two who decided that there was enough time to be laxing around and sleeping.
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She grinned from the tree she was in. After twilight had set in, the world became dark, and she was much better suited for this. Sakura watched below, the Resistance slowly making their way back to the Head Quarters they had made for themselves inside of the Hokage Cliff.
The clouds overhead seemed to darken even in the night sky. A rumble echoed through the chamber she was close to. Sakura knew what was coming--another thunderstorm to wash away the blood about to be spilled. Her guess was acknowledged as the rain began to pound hard upon her back.
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Growling to himself, Veemon followed the group. Though a bit unwilling, he understood that this was the best chance for him to find his trainer and lover. "Kyuu...I'm going to get you back. That way you'll never leave again." His eyes settled upon the leader of the gang--Gaara--and held such distaste it burned him to the bone. "He's not an idiot," he muttered loud enough for the sand master to hear.
If Gaara had heard, he hadn't let the words get to him. The others had a lot to learn about Naruto to understand what he believed. The red head knew that the blood may have been an idiot, but he was the shrewdest one that he knew. With the rain pouring from the sky, wetting the ground they walked upon to get to the Hokage Cliff, it barely was noticed by the green eyed man. It was normal for the rain to come down, especially after the Four had come here.
"Let me speak first." He said to the group. "They only know of you by rumors, so I'll have to take you immediately to our leader. But until you meet him, you should stay quiet and close to me--they aren't too fond of your creatures."
"I don't care." Veemon interjected, but it fell upon deaf ears. Takato and the gang understood a bit why Gaara was being cautious. All of them would be the same if they knew nothing about Digimon.
Closing in on the door hidden by everything, Gaara knocked a few times before muttering, "It's the Kazekage, let me in." Shuffling was heard beyond the door, before a few locks were undone. The door opened slowly, revealing another 'boy' with a pony-tail. His eyes scanned Gaara first, before looking at the others.
"WHo are they?"
"They're with me. We need to see Him. So don't worry."
A scoff, before the boy let them pass. "Butter slip by the others quickly."
Nodding to his fellow ninja, Gaara walked in, with Takato, Matt, Henry, and Mikoto with all their digimon. His pace picked up when they were in the underground compound, trying to weave the others past the ninja that took residence in this solitude. It hadn't stopped a girl who had come up to Gaara. "G-Gaara. Why do you have those a-animals in here?" Her voice was soft, but behind it something strong could be heard.
"I'll tell you later. Right now I need to get to Him."
"B-but they aren't allow here."
"They're with me. I know you'd doubt I'd bring them in without knowing who they were and all that."
"I-I guess."
"Alright Hinata. Go tell the others to let us pass."
Hinata nodded, going back deeper into the cave-like structure. She had let them pass, but everyone wanted to know how bad things had gotten for Humans to not want Digimon around. Their minds wouldn't have enough time as they stopped for a final time, seeing a tall white haired man. "Kakashi. I've brought the Chosen Ones."
He looked up from his book, before closing it. "Good. Let's get the others together and have a briefing."
Gaara nodded to Kakashi. "And update them on the plan."
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She snickered in the darkness around her. The rain seemed to not chill her, even though her entire body was soaked to the bone. "Excellent. They can all be destroyed in one simple strike." Jumping down from the tree, she stood in front of the door, a hand on her hips. Sakura knew this was the chance they all were waiting for. A last stand, a last battle for both sides.
The door creaked open, as she ran behind a tree. Right now, Sakura didn't want any attention drawn to her. Peering from the tree, she saw a few ninja from the Konoha families that had entered the Resistance. "Well well. I might even have a little fun."
They looked around, before waving a few more to run out. Seemed to Sakura that this was a hunt for some food for the rest of them. As they ran towards the town, then the forest, Sakura kept a good distance on them, but followed.
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"So you understand what you need to do?" Kakashi's voice was a bit gruffer this time as he talked to the other ninjas, whom the group found out their names: Hinata, the one they met before, Shikamaru, the boy who was the guard detail at the door, Temari, a woman that had a fan to her back, and finally Gaara, the one they were with. They all were the main force, the ones that had a lot more strength than the others, and the ones that would lead the main assault against the castle, in which they found out was a hovering palace in the sky.
Hinata nodded, keeping her hands close to her chest. "Y-yes. So me and T-Temari are the decoys?"
Kakashi smirked, though it was hidden behind his face mask. "Yes, and you two need to draw Sakura away from the others. She is the most powerful one with her strength." Shivering at the memory of the new fight against her and Naruto, the one where he truly gaged their strengths. "And Shikamaru, you will need to slip in with Gaara, and help Takato and them get past Naruto and Sasuke. That way we can destroy the last of their defenses."
"What if they use their powers?" With his naturally disinterested voice, Shikamaru had known of the secondary things that Team 7 now had. "We may be strong enough to take them if they just use their learned abilities, but if they turn into those..those things--"
"We're called Digimon" Terriormon spoke up.
"Digimon...whatever. It still will be hard to deal with, especcialy if you have nothing to fight against it."
Takato chuckled. "I think I'll go with you and Gaara. We just need to take them out in a quick battle, and then we can all meet up with Matt. And Mikoto, would you mind going against Sakura."
Her eyes squinted, "I'd love to. She still has a lesson to learn about destroying a Digimon." Tailmon pawed at her trainer's leg. "It's alright Tailmon. We'll defeat her easily."
Kakashi's hand motioned towards the Chosen Ones. "See? We'll have back-up."
Veemon didn't want to stay silent anymore. "I'm not a lead weight! I want to help to."
Henry sighed as he knelt down to the blue digimon. "Dude. You're trainer is gone...er...missing in action. You can't--"
The dragon digimon didn't want any part of that sentence. "I don't give a shit! I will help!"
Sighing once more, Henry just shook his head. "Just don't do anything rash." That was far in the back of Veemon's head. He just wanted to get Naruto and have him by his side once more.
"Then it's agreed." Temari smirked. "We all attack at dawn."
All nodded, as they punched their hands into a center. "Let the Resistance take back Konoha!"
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Finding himself blushing as he left his bedroom--although he was still as furious as ever that they decided to use -that- room for their act--Ken just leaned against the wall. "I'm going to have to burn those sheets, that bed, the table...EVERYTHING." Groaning, he just closed his eyes, letting him remember the past again.
Hearing the voice spooked him, but he was more afraid of the falling debris. If he was caught in here, he wouldn't be able to do what he wanted. Yet, as the rumbling increased, he felt himself fall down onto the ground, with the rubble stopping their assault on his body. His heart wouldn't stop racing, though, but he didn't care. At least his life was still in his clutches.
"W-what the f-fuck...." However, as he spoke those words, he felt his heart jump up his mouth and get swallowed down once more--The cavern felt like it was rising into the air, rising so fast that it made his whole body sink into the ground.
Pushing himself up once more, he ran back through the passageways, attempting to get back out to the castle ruins. Tripping only once, Ken stumbled through out into the lighted sky. He squinted, being blinded by the brightness after the darkness, but it evened out quickly, letting him see the spectacular--
His door slammed, pulling him back from the past once more. "Hope you enjoyed the show." Being as snide as he could, Sasuke closed his shirt before walking away from the room, Naruto grinning and staying next to him. "Maybe next time we'll invite you to join." The raven haired shinobi looked back and grinned at Ken, before winking at him.
That caused him to blush even more, and Ken hid his face in his hands. "Shut up and get to your posts." He tried to use anger to hide his clear embarrassment. It helped just a bit, as they slipped around a castle corner. Another attempt at remembering how he got this castle, Ken just sighed to himself. 'Yeah,' he thought, 'That'll make this be better.'
--castle. It looked like it rebuilt itself to its former glory. He couldn't stifle a gasp that escaped his lips, looking at the marvel. Yet, something else caught his eyes. The clouds seemed to grow closer, themselves winding in the wind without a care. Double-taking, Ken ran over to one of the few broken walls, and looked over at the mountains that had hidden the castle from everyone's eyes. "Damn!"
Understanding a bit at the fact that he had just awakened something from the Scripture he had found in data fragments. "The Sky Castle will rise when the Ancients are called. A Crystalline Keep, A Crystalline Forest, A Crystalline Lake, A Crystalline Valley. Of the Four Winds, the Crystals call forth their Masters." He stopped reciting it, before he grinned.
"And the Obsidian Princess will awaken at the call of the Crystal of Strength..." Through a talk with both Sakura and Sasuke, Ken heard about a necklace that their friend, the blond that had some connection between them, would never take off. "Seems I'll need to take it.." Yet from the information he had, he couldn't take something that had seemed to be missing from the boy as he became a digimon.
"Better fix that..." With that, he disappeared back into the castle, his Digivice lighting up next to the marble he had on a chain. "Yes, better fix that..."
Now he remembered. That was what started the blond's troubles. Once he found out about that, he wished to call forth the Obsidian Princess, the controller of Fate. "I need to fix that together, so I can have everything I've wanted." His flushed cheeks returned to normal as a sickening grin came across his face. "And take over all the worlds."
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Sakura jumped from tree to tree, watching the six ninja wander through the forest, hunting for some game. "Wonder how I shall deal with them." Her words stayed with her, from the echoing rain that stained the scents of the wild. Flipping a wrist, she took a kunai from her pack to hold in her hand. "I know."
While they were separated, she dove down to the first one, the blade closing in as she wrapped her arm around his neck. "Say hello to the others when you reach there." A quick jerk, and her kunai raced across the man's neck, easily making his blood trickle down his kicking body. The struggling ceased, and she dropped the body, flicking her kunai clean of blood. "One down."
Rustling happened behind her, before two of the shinobi jumped at her, trying to stop the lone girl who just so happened killed another one of them. "Right." Her elbows shot back towards them, hitting both in the gut. Spinning around, she stared down at them holding their stomachs. "Can't really touch this frame guys. It's not yours." Sakura's eyes glazed over for a moment, thinking of how she could get Sasuke towards her with each death. "Yes...It's not yours." She threw two kunai down at them, hitting them directly in the heart. Stepping on both blades, she made sure that they went into their hearts--watching as they squirmed a few times, their life draining from their eyes.
She smirked. This was fun to her. And she knew that there would be more fun with the last trio. Scanning around her, Sakura wondered where the other three went. In the distance, she could hear their voices carry even through the rain. "Perfect."
Bolting towards the voices, she caught two more off guard, the third watching as she sliced at both of their throats. Blood seemed to just cascade down within the rain, mingling both together at her feet. With a frightened scream, the final ninja decided running would be better than facing the woman before him. He made it out of the forest, but as he looked back, he could see that Sakura was quickly at his heels.
And with his vision becoming blurry within the rains, he found himself tripping on the soaked ground. Attempting to get up and run, he felt her foot kick down at his back. Inside, he knew that the kick had snapped his spine, along with rupturing something. Though, that didn't stop him from trying to crawl away. "P-P-please l-let me l-l-live."
"Sorry. Can't let that happen." And in moments, he felt his neck snap, and blackness came. Leaving his lifeless body on the ground, she hummed to herself, before a bright idea came to her. "Ahh...I'll leave a little note with them." She chuckled, and hefted the large body over her shoulder. "Show them what they are dealing with." She disappeared, letting the rain just settle upon the two spots that once held bodies. And once more, the streets became stained--those that had been all around while she waited for the six to get into the woods had found themselves with their throats slit.
Bloodied, the water carried the red river down towards the Hokage Cliff, the only remnants of what had happened, the massacre caused by just one woman. Sakura Haruna.
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End A/N: Well hope you enjoyed this. Took a while, but I finally slipped into a new mind. And yes, the climax is closing in, along with the final tie in of everything. Enjoy this chapter, and await the next installment.