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A Shinobi Among Monsters by euphoric image
 Naruto & Percy Jackson and the Olympians Xover Rated: T, English, Adventure & Humor, Naruto U., Artemis, Apollo, Words: 208k+, Favs: 8k+, Follows: 9k+, Published: Mar 21, 2020 Updated: Jan 15 3,237Chapter 10: Unexpected Outcomes
Three children of the Big Three. The lieutenant of the Hunters of Artemis. And Naruto in both Sage Mode and Kurama Chakra Mode.
Atlas didn't stand a chance.
Before Atlas could continue monologuing, Naruto attacked. Sure, it may have been bad form to strike while Atlas was still talking, but at this point, Naruto didn't really care. He crossed the distance in less time than it took to blink with a speed comparable to the Hiraishin. Not quite as fast, but nearly.
With Kurama's chakra enhancing his physical capabilities, Naruto unleashed a flurry of combination attacks. His movements flowed smoothly but slammed into Atlas with a formidable force that should've cracked bones on a normal human but instead only bruised skin. His golden chakra arms were a blur around Naruto as they constantly weaved in Rasengans and even mini Rasenshurikens.
Of course, the attacks Naruto landed didn't matter because Atlas healed as fast as Naruto could deal out the damage. Naruto gritted his teeth at the unfairness of the situation. Not only did Atlas take reduced damage due to both his Titan physiology as well as his domain of endurance, he also regenerated at a ridiculous rate.
Percy and Thalia quickly joined him. Not in close quarters combat, of course - Naruto was likely nothing more than a blur of movement to the two, and getting in between the son of Artemis and the General was suicide. Rather, Thalia assisted by calling down blasts of lightning and sending out arcs of electricity from his spear. Percy, on the other hand, was manipulating water to bombard Atlas's face repeatedly. It didn't damage him, but it certainly distracted and caused him to lose focus.
Atlas staggered back, trying to block as many of the blows as possible, but it was futile. His spear had already been shredded by the Rasenshuriken and he had resorted to using his elbows, hands, and knees to block and deflect - although his body was infinitely more durable than the spear.
We don't need their help, Kurama commented. They're just getting in your way.
It's fine. I kinda enjoy this. Besides, I promised to let them have some of the fun too.
Fighting alongside them filled Naruto with a warm feeling of nostalgia and happiness. He had forgotten just how good teamwork felt - the satisfaction of a combination attack gone well and the elation of completely overwhelming the enemy with superior tactics.
Behind them, Zoe and Bianca knelt by Artemis. Clearly, they were unable to get a clear shot at Atlas due to Naruto constantly moving around and instead decided to check up on their mistress.
"Milady," Zoe pleaded to Artemis, "Please, let me take thy burden."
Artemis shook her head and smiled weakly. "Don't worry about me. The weight of the sky is not yours to bear."
Naruto had almost forgotten about Artemis. Damn it, what kind of son was he?
He needed to end this. Now.
Naruto blurred above Atlas and slammed an Ultra-Big Ball Rasengan down on Atlas, stunning him temporarily. Percy and Thalia jumped back, avoiding the explosion and shrapnel. Naruto's golden chakra arms enlarged and grabbed Atlas's prone body before launching him over to where Artemis knelt.
"NOW!" Naruto yelled.
Artemis nodded and prepared to roll out of the way so that Atlas would be trapped under the sky once more. Zoe let loose a couple more arrows at Atlas's flying body and Bianca quickly stepped back to get out of the way.
With an inhuman strength, Atlas spun around in midair and landed on his feet, skidding on the ground and coming to a stop just a few feet away from Zoe and Bianca.
. . . oops.
Naruto hadn't expected Atlas to recover so quickly. Zoe abandoned her bow immediately, clearly understanding that arrows won't do anything against the General's tough skin especially at close range, and instead drew her Celestial Bronze sword out of nowhere.
Hey Kurama, lend me a hand.
Shouldn't you be worried that you knocked Atlas right next to them?
Nah. They're strong.
Atlas seemed amused by her actions. Even as his wounds healed, he towered above Zoe with a smirk. "My dear daughter, are you really going to try to cut me dow - " His eyes widened as he quickly snatched an arrow out of the air. His head whipped around to stare at Bianca. "Did you just shoot me as I was talking?"
Bianca raised her eyebrows, showing some bravado for the first time on the quest. "You know, they didn't exactly cover combat etiquette yet. Besides, last I checked, you're fighting against kids. No, not just that, you're losing against kids. Zoe, remind me to tell Nico to toss out his Atlas Mythomagic card."
Holy hell, did Bianca just say that to Atlas? Thalia, Percy, and Naruto shared identical grins of pride. It appeared that Bianca finally gained some confidence and learned the art of banter and trash talking opponents. Sure, it wasn't perfect and there was room for improvement in the tone and inflection, but for a beginner's attempt, it was pretty good.
"You filthy Hunter!" Atlas snarled in rage as he raised his fist holding the arrow - then he froze. "Wait. . ." he slowly turned his head to look at the arrow, scrutinizing it. "This is Stygian Iron."
There was a moment of silence at that.
Then Atlas began laughing. "Oh, this is beautiful. So little Corpse Breath also had a kid?" He paused. "No, kids. You have a brother." He let out a few chuckles. "So I'm against children of all the Big Three, huh?"
Behind Zoe and Bianca, Artemis narrowed her eyes at the revelation.
Is the chakra balanced?
Yup. It's ready. Damn, that took way too long. I've gotten rusty.
Don't worry, so have I. We'll have to train a lot after this to get back to our former level of strength.
A miniature Bijuudama formed in one of Naruto's chakra hand with Kurama's help. By himself, Naruto could only create the Super Mini Bijuudama, but with Kurama's aid, they could form a Bijuudama the size of a regular Rasengan. An ultra-condensed sphere of chakra with the perfect ratio of black positive chakra to white negative chakra, not even Atlas should be able to get up from this anytime soon - plenty of time to drag him back under the sky.
Time to end this.
Shadow clones formed and quickly stood in front of Artemis, Zoe, and Bianca.
"Aww, are you protecting your little family?" Atlas said mockingly, a taunting smile on his face. "It's cute, really, it is." At that, a hint of confusion entered Zoe's eyes.
"Actually, I am," Naruto nodded. A wall of golden chakra exploded out from the clones, shielding the goddess and demigods from damage. "Not from you though."
The smile on Atlas's face faltered as Naruto's chakra arm blurred forward, crossing the distance almost instantaneously. Atlas reacted impossibly quickly, bringing his elbow up to block the scaled-down Bijuudama. "Oh look," he said dryly. "It changed colors. Now it's purple - " he was cut off when the extraordinarily dense sphere of chakra overcame the resistance and broke his elbow. He immediately let out a roar of pain, twisting his body to try to dodge the Bijuudama but failing.
Naruto slammed the Tailed Beast Bomb into Atlas's chest, cracking several ribs. Then Naruto quickly drew back his chakra arm and the Bijuudama exploded. The golden chakra contained the destructive explosion, shielding everyone from the force. But even then, they all skidded back several inches from the sheer magnitude of the shockwaves.
Game over.
What do you mean by that? 'Game over?' What, did you become a shogi master when I was asleep?
Naruto's eyes widened in realization. Remind me to introduce you to the awesomeness that is video games.
Finally, the explosion died down and Atlas collapsed onto the ground, unmoving. Naruto grinned as the shadow clones dispelled. It appeared that the Bijuudama worked.
Of course it did. I helped in its creation, after all.
Exactly. Why do you think I had doubts?
. . .
No comeback? Seriously?
I just woke up, Kurama grumbled. Give me a break. Besides, I don't even need to say anything; the results speak for itself. All of your Rasengan variants? Failed. But my single Bijuudama? Success.
Zoe wasted no time and immediately stepped forward, grabbing Atlas's arm and effortlessly dragging him with a strength that a girl her size shouldn't have. Atlas groaned weakly, his head flopping side to side as Zoe dropped him down right in front of Artemis.
Naruto grinned. They won -
Naruto! Kurama shouted in warning as both his negative emotion sensing and intuition exploded, sending warning signals after warning signals.
And then everything went to shit.
XxX
"Oh my gods!" Nico screamed out in shock.
Hecate and Pan whirled around to face him, fierce expressions on their face, clearly expecting a squadron of trained demigods. Instead, they came face-to-face with a young kid.
Pan blinked. "Hecate, am I seeing things, or is that a kid there?"
Hecate was a bit more straightforward. She immediately lifted up her hand and green mist began curling around it. "Who are you?" she demanded.
"My name's Nico," Nico responded happily. "Are you Hecate?"
The two shared a glance and they seemed to grow even more suspicious and wary.
"Yes," Hecate nodded her head. "I am Hecate, the goddess of the - "
"That is so cool!" Nico interrupted, an excited smile on his face. "You deal the most magic damage, and you have complete immunity against magic damage. It's as if your very existence is a bane to magicians everywhere!"
Now Hecate just looked confused. "Magic damage? Magicians? What are you talking about?"
"Mythomagic!" Nico answered. "The best game in the world, infinitely better than poker!"
Hecate raised her eyebrows, intrigued. "Mythomagic? What is that? Is it a form of magic? Why have I never heard of it before?"
Nico's eyes widened. "You haven't heard of Mythomagic before?" he breathed in horror. "But you're one of the best goddesses!"
Hecate's lips quirked up. "I am?"
Nico nodded vehemently. "I mean, let's face it. Hera just grants her allies bonus stats, Athena does some decent physical damage but Ares does more, Demeter is an intro pack card, and the only reason why anyone would use Aphrodite's card is because her splash art is pretty. But you? Not only do you have the highest magic damage output, but you also have complete immunity against magic damage. Complete immunity! Cards like Circe or Medea are completely nullified and useless against you!"
Throughout his speech, Hecate seemed to grow more and more pleased with each goddess named. "I see. What is your name again?"
"Nico."
"Nico. How do you feel about joining the Titan lord?"
Nico frowned. "What?"
Pan stared at her. "Now wait a minute. Why are you trying to recruit him?"
Hecate sighed. "Can't you see he's extremely intelligent?" She turned to Nico. "Tell me. Do you feel any resentment towards your godly parent for abandoning you?"
Tears welled up in Nico's eyes. "I. . ." he sniffled. "I. . ."
Being able to cry on demand was extremely useful when dealing with teachers who didn't have the patience to comfort a sniveling kid and instead would walk away in disgust, allowing Nico to get away scot-free.
He took a few hesitant steps forward, looking down. "I didn't want him to leave me. He abandoned us," he said in a voice filled with a faux sadness and hatred. Or maybe it was a her. Nico couldn't remember.
Hecate bought it. "Don't worry," she said soothingly as she walked forward. "I understand completely. Nico, I will promise you this. If you join us, then no child would ever be abandoned by their parents again. There will be no more stupid Ancient Laws preventing us from interacting with our children."
"Really?" Nico asked hopefully, taking another step forward. Just a few feet left. . .
She closed the distance, placing her hand comfortingly on his shoulder. "Really."
Nico looked up at her before his eyes widened in horror and fear filled his gaze. "Behind you!" he screamed.
Pan and Hecate whirled around -
And Nico struck. He grabbed his concealed knife and stabbed it into Hecate's side.
She's a goddess, he told himself. Not a human. A goddess who was about to hurt the Hunters. Sure, they suck and all, but they don't deserve to be captured and hurt. She's not going to die from this.
Golden ichor splattered out as Hecate screamed in pain and agony, throwing out her hand. Nico was blasted back from an unseen wave of energy, slamming into a tree and groaning in agony.
Hecate stared at him with pain and betrayal in her beautiful green eyes. "You - " she winced as she held her hand to her stomach, trying to staunch the bleeding.
"Hecate!" Pan reached out and steadied her. He turned to look at Nico, anger in his eyes. "What do you think you're doing?"
Nico backed away slowly, holding up his knife threateningly. Golden ichor dripped down the blade. "The best way to counter an illusion is to attack the card creating the illusion."
Pan frowned. "You're speaking nonsense. What do you mean by - " he froze as the tip of a bronze sword touched his neck.
"It means," the Hunter said, her gaze murderous, "that we were able to break free of the Mist."
Pan bleated nervously. "Hey, we can talk about this - " he quickly let out another blast of unholy sound. This time the Hunters were prepared for it and its effects were greatly diminished. However, it was still enough to get the Hunter to lower her knife and step back in fear, giving Hecate enough time to snap her fingers and enveloping them in green mist.
A second later, they were gone, dematerializing out of existence.
Nico grinned in exhilaration. It worked! He did it!
Honestly, it had been a massive gamble. There was a high chance that his plan would fail. However, Nico wagered that being stabbed would break even a goddess's concentration temporarily, enough time for the Hunters, who had thousands of years of experience in everything supernatural, to break through the illusion. Of course, he had to lower Hecate's guard first to get close enough to her, but that's what Mythomagic was for.
Then all of his euphoria disappeared immediately when the Hunters pointed their bows at him, their eyes narrowed.
A Hunter stepped forward. Phoebe, Nico recognized. She was the one who broke the Stoll twin's bones. "Why are you here?" she demanded.
Nico returned her cold stare with a smug grin of his own. "I was looking for you guys. Now then. . . shall we discuss terms?"
She frowned. "Excuse me?"
Nico smirked. "Well, it wouldn't look very good for the Hunters of Artemis if word got out that they had to be saved by a boy, would it?"
The Hunters exchanged glances, growing looks of worry appearing on their faces.
"I mean, here you are, super awesome fighters who've trained for thousands of years, but you had to be rescued by a mere ten-year-old boy," Nico continued, his smug expression almost unbearable at this point. But hey, they took Bianca away from him. They deserved this. "I wonder how long it would take for your street cred to recover. Decades? Perhaps even centuries?"
Phoebe stared at Nico with an intense stare that almost made him back off. Almost. Phoebe finally relented and sighed, making a hand signal that caused the other Hunters to lower their bows. "What do you want?" Phoebe asked in resignation.
Nico's grin widened. Time for negotiations. "First off. . ."
XxX
The ground under Bianca, Percy, and Thalia's feet dissolved into shadows and they dropped through, Percy and Thalia screaming out various Greek obscenities and Bianca just flat-out screaming. The ground solidified immediately after them, returning to normal as if nothing had happened.
Zoe whirled around. "Bianca!" she shouted.
"Zoe!" Artemis shouted at the same time. "Atlas!"
Atlas's form began glowing a bright grey. Zoe leaped away immediately, landing next to Naruto. "Close your eyes," she hissed. "Actually, no. Get out of here now."
"What?" Naruto protested. "I - "
"He's entering his divine form!" Zoe drew his bow and showered arrow after arrow onto Atlas, all of which had no effect. "You'll die from being in his presence alone. Please, leave now!"
"But you'll die too - "
"And that is my fate!" Zoe's dark eyes were wild. "'One shall perish by a parent's hand.' I joined this quest knowing I would die - but you don't have to."
Naruto glanced over and he felt his heart clench at what he saw in Zoe's eyes. Fear. Anger. But also acceptance.
She accepted the prophecy. She accepted her fate. And she accepted that she would die by her father's hand.
"Find and regroup with the others," Zoe continued, backing up slowly as Atlas's form glowed even brighter, gripping her sword tightly. "Make sure you - "
"No," Naruto narrowed his eyes. "Those who abandon their comrades are worse than trash. We'll defeat Atlas, together."
Zoe shook her head. "It's pointless. I'm going to die on this quest. There's no changing fate - "
"There is," Naruto asserted determinedly. "If you don't like your fate, don't accept it. Change it. And even if you might accept it, I won't - and if I have to, I'll change it for you!"
Zoe made a sound of frustration. "You're still young. You're one of the few good male heroes I've met. You don't need to die now."
"Don't worry, I won't," Naruto responded simply. That was a lie. He might. But for Zoe's sake, he'll have to try.
He wasn't going to let another one of his friends die when he could've prevented it. He won't let another death like Neji's occur.
Never again.
"Naruto," Artemis spoke up for the first time since their argument began, her gaze sad and sorrowful. "Listen to Zoe. Leave." Uttering those words seemed to physically pain her.
Naruto was silent for a moment.
Hey, Kurama, how confident are you that we'll be able to survive into an instakill disintegrating area-of-effect attack?
. . . I'm gonna need a little more to go on here. How does the attack work?
No idea, to be honest.
Kurama snorted. Then I can't exactly come up with an answer then, can I?
Then let's just hope for the best. I mean, I'm half god, half chakra. Should be fine.
You're half what now?
Long story, I'll explain later.
"Sorry, Artemis," Naruto smiled. "But I'm staying. I'm not going to give up. I'm not going to run. And I'm most certainly not going to let Zoe die." Naruto grinned at Artemis as Atlas's form became blinding, signifying that he was mere seconds from entering his divine form. "I swear it!"
A massive wave of devastating power exploded out from Atlas as he entered his divine form. He emanated an intense energy that slammed into Naruto with the force of a Bijuudama. Naruto felt a sensation on his skin that he couldn't quite describe, as if his very molecules were being scrambled up.
Nope. Naruto slammed his eyelids shut immediately. He'll stick to long range attacks for now. He wasn't risking it.
Next to him, Zoe also tensed up. However, even though she was looking straight at Atlas, she wasn't dying.
"How are you not dead?" Naruto asked.
"My mother is a river goddess," she responded, though her voice was strained. "I can withstand Atlas's divine form for some time, but eventually, he will overwhelm me. My divinity is extremely weak."
"Ahh," Atlas let out a sigh of satisfaction as he stood up. "It's been thousands of years since I've entered my divine form. You have no idea how good this feels."
Relying on his other senses, Naruto could tell that Atlas was still a humanoid being. Two arms, two legs, a head. . . if it wasn't for the tremendous power radiating from his form, Naruto would think Atlas was just a human.
"Why did it take so long for you to enter your divine form?" Naruto asked. If there was a time delay, then Naruto wanted to know for future battles. He had been a shinobi, after all, and shinobi loved information about enemy attacks.
"Entertainment," Atlas answered simply. "The conversation you and my daughter had was amusing, and I was curious if you were going to leave or not. Personally, my money was on you staying; you don't seem like the type of person to leave their friends."
Despite himself, Naruto grinned. "Thank you."
"After all," Atlas continued, "You are remarkably stupid. Leaving would have been too smart for you."
The smile melted off of Naruto's face, replaced with a scowl. "Yeah, I was only going to beat you up a bit before, but now, you deserve a complete and utter smackdown."
Overconfidence or arrogance?
A bluff, actually.
Ah, I see.
Atlas laughed. "Oh, you are truly amusing. You still think you stand a chance?"
Naruto tilted his head. "For sure. As long as I keep my eyes closed and I stay out of your range of death, then I should be fine." Atlas's death aura range appeared to be about two meters - that was where the power felt the strongest.
"You can still run, you know," Zoe muttered, a bead of sweat trickling down. "I won't hold it against you."
"You won't, but I will," Naruto held his hands up in a cross-shaped seal. "Let's win this - " he paused. "By the way, where is Percy, Bianca, and Thalia?" he called to Atlas.
Atlas shrugged. "I can't exactly enter my divine form with those three around, could I? Those three are valuable. I'm not allowed to kill them."
Naruto nodded.
"As such, I just had to wait for my subordinates to manipulate the Mist and extract those three from the battlefield before I could fight for real. Othrys has an extensive underground tunnel system, you see," Atlas explained. "They're down there right now, fighting against some old friends."
"But enough time for talking," Atlas lowered into a stance. "You injured me numerous times already. It's time I returned the favor."
Naruto jumped back immediately as Atlas blurred forward. His chakra arms extended and battered Atlas with three Rasenshurikens, but Atlas simply charged through them.
Zoe met him head-on. Atlas punched and Zoe sidestepped before Atlas smirked and elbowed to the side with his extended arm, attempting to crush Zoe's skull. Zoe immediately dropped to the ground in a crouch, spinning while doing so, and redirected her momentum into a horizontal sword slice aimed at the back of Atlas's neck.
It was an elegant counter, one that even Sasuke would've approved of. The Celestial Bronze sword cut into Atlas's neck - and then Zoe was blown back as Atlas simply snapped his fingers, releasing a pulse of energy. Naruto quickly extended a chakra arm to catch Zoe, lowering her to the ground gently.
She breathed heavily, exhausted. It appeared that even though both her parents were immortals, fighting Atlas still took its toll on her. Naruto didn't blame her. Atlas's aura affected even him from this far away through Kurama's chakra cloak. Naruto still had that uncomfortable sensation on his skin, and he had no doubt that if he wasn't in Kurama Chakra Mode, his skin would be steaming by now from the extraordinary energy, and he wasn't even in Atlas's range of death yet.
It appeared he had no choice. He breathed in as he prepared to -
If it weren't for Atlas right there, Naruto's eyes would've snapped open in surprise. As it was, a sharp intake of breath still escaped him.
How is that possible?!
Damn it. This wasn't good. There was no time to dwell on it though; he'll have to deal with it later.
"You okay?" Naruto asked Zoe in concern, ignoring the confusion and slightest hints of panic suddenly surging through him.
She nodded. "I'm fine."
Atlas strolled forward, completely unconcerned. His posture was relaxed, as if he was taking a walk through the park. "Now then. . . which shall I kill first? The lieutenant of Artemis. . . or the son of Artemis?"
Zoe's eyes widened. "What did you say?!"
Before Naruto could respond, Atlas took advantage of the small distraction and dashed forward. The ground shook under their feet and cracked from the force. Naruto jumped up as Zoe leaped back to avoid Atlas. Naruto began forming another Bijuudama -
Then he froze. Or more accurately, time around him froze.
Naruto couldn't move. He couldn't breathe.
What in the name of the Sage?! Kurama roared in shock as he pumped his chakra through Naruto's body.
Kronos. The Titan of Time. Naruto had thought he was too weak to interfere with mortal affairs, but apparently he had gathered enough strength to manipulate the time of a single person. More importantly, it appeared that the Titan Lord had deemed Naruto enough of a threat to personally aid in dispatching him.
Damn. Damn damn damn. Naruto released a massive pulse of chakra, attempting to dispel the spell like he would dispel a genjutsu. No effect. It was like when Kaguya pulled him into the gravity dimension, only Atlas and Zoe didn't seem to be affected at all. He was completely isolated.
Atlas materialized in front of him with a burst of speed, reaching out and forcibly prying open Naruto's eyelids, as if wanting to see the life fade from Naruto's eyes.
And Naruto came face to face with divinity itself.
XxX
Percy landed on his feet, wincing from the impact. One second he was standing back, watching a one-sided fight in which Naruto utterly destroyed Atlas with a purple ball, and the next second he was falling into a hole that wasn't there a moment before.
He looked up, expecting to see a large open space because he had free-falled for about five seconds, which is longer than one might expect, but instead he was met with a ceiling just a few meters above his head. It was like the Labyrinth all over again. It appeared that going back up wasn't an option anymore.
He glanced around. Thalia and Bianca were next to him, thankfully. They stood in a well-lit room, torches lining the wall. There weren't any doors and windows - they were trapped in. The walls were composed of the same black marble material that the ruins were made of.
Percy didn't focus on that, however. Instead, his eyes narrowed at the person standing in front of them. Beside him, Thalia's eyes widened in shock and she actually lowered her guard somewhat.
"Luke?" she whispered.
Luke Castellan grinned at them. "Hey there, Thalia." Short, sandy-blonde hair. Mischievous blue eyes. A scar that ran from the bottom of his eye down to his chin. Unlike the last time when Percy had seen him when Luke had worn a button-down shirt and khaki pants - fashionable but not very good for combat, Luke went for a more sensible outfit for combat: T-shirt and shorts.
"You look terrible," Thalia immediately replied. She was right; Luke's usually tan skin was now ghostly pale and he had multiple grey streaks running through his hair.
Luke chuckled. "That's the first thing you say to me after we haven't seen each other for years?" He ran his hand through the grey streaks in his hair. "I won't argue though. The sky. . . it took its toll on me." He smiled. "But you still find me devilishly handsome, don't you?"
Percy's jaw dropped. Was Luke. . . was Luke flirting with Thalia?
Thalia scoffed, her shock slowly turning into anger. "You know, I have quite a lot of questions for you, Luke Castellan."
"You're mad at me," Luke observed.
Thalia's eyes flashed. "Wow, what made you think that?"
"You called me by my full name," Luke noted. "You only do that whenever you're really really mad." He paused. "Don't tell me you're mad at me because I betrayed Olympus."
Percy had to physically hold Thalia back, grabbing her shoulders and preventing her from charging Luke. "Thalia, he's baiting you!"
"I am not," Luke looked offended at the very idea. "I don't understand why you would be mad at me, Thalia. Don't you remember all those times we talked? All those times we cursed the gods? The gods only bring misery and suffering upon us," he snarled. "They abandoned us, they betrayed us first."
Thalia hesitated before a steely look entered her eyes. "I don't care about that. You didn't just betray Olympus. You betrayed us." She clenched her fist. "Family, Luke. We were a family."
Luke flinched slightly. "Sacrifices must be made for the greater good," he finally said. "And I'm sorry. But it doesn't have to be that way. If you join me, it'll be like the old times. The three of us together. Fighting for a better world."
"Sacrifices?" Thalia hissed in rage. "I heard about what you did last summer. Annabeth nearly died because of you. Is that what we are now? Sacrifices?" Sparks of electricity leaped from her fingers, and Percy could smell the distinct scent of ozone.
Luke realized his mistake. "That's not what I meant, and you know it. Besides, I had faith in Annabeth. She wouldn't have died." He sighed when he saw that his words weren't getting through to Thalia. "Thalia, please. Just join me." He waved his hand and a pond ringed in black marble appeared. "Just call the Ophiotaurus. It will come to you."
Thalia blinked, confusion temporarily overtaking anger. "Ignoring the fact that you can now apparently conjure up objects, you realize that the Ophiotaurus is with Poseidon right now, right?"
Percy nodded. "Dad is personally guarding him right now."
Luke shrugged. "Don't ask me how it works. It's magic. However, just know that the Ophiotaurus will appear if you wish for it," He turned to Thalia with a pleading look. "Thalia, you will be more powerful than the gods if you summon the Ophiotaurus. Just call him, sacrifice him, and then join me. Please."
For one scary second, Thalia had that hungry gleam in her eyes again, and Percy genuinely thought that she might accept his offer. Then Bianca stepped forward and rested her hand on Thalia's shoulder.
"Don't you remember what you promised to do?" Bianca murmured. "You said you would defeat him in battle, chain him up, inflict massive amounts of pain onto him, and then finally try to convince him to - well, you know."
Thalia stirred from her trance.
"You promised to do what now?" Luke asked incredulously, backing up slowly.
"And you," Bianca turned onto Luke with a fierce glare. "I admit, I don't know the full circumstances surrounding you. But I do know that you betrayed your friends and family, and you are undeniably evil."
"Evil?" Luke's face twisted. "The gods are evil, Bianca di Angelo. Have you not seen what they've done? The misery and suffering they've caused? Trust me, right now, they may seem all good and righteous to you. But give it a few years, and you'll truly understand. We're just their tools. Do you think that Hades truly cares about you?"
Bianca nodded confidently. "Yeah. I do."
"How?" he demanded. "Wait, let me guess. He gave you a little gift, then he spoke a few words of encouragement?"
Bianca paused. "How do you - "
Luke laughed bitterly. "Because that's exactly what my father did to me, Bianca. Showed up one day when I was, err, breaking into the camp store, gave me some stupid winged shoes, said that he was proud of me. Then when I failed my quest. . . nothing. He did nothing for me. Tossed me out like yesterday's garbage."
"You're kinda forgetting the fact that Hermes asked me to watch out for you and try to bring you back during the quest to retrieve the Golden Fleece," Percy said.
Luke waved his hand dismissively. "Oh please. That means nothing. The point is. . . well. Thalia, Percy, Bianca. The children of Zeus, Poseidon and Hades. Join me, and together, we shall overthrow the gods and bring about a new era of peace and prosperity. A better world."
A moment of silence.
"You aren't Luke," Thalia spoke up, her voice filled with sadness and sorrow. "I don't know you anymore."
"Thalia," Luke pleaded, and for a second his gaze softened and his eyes were impossible gentle. "Please."
Thalia hesitated. She gazed at Luke, her eyes full of pain, as if the only thing she wanted in the world was to believe him and join him. Then she leveled her spear at him. "Percy, Bianca," she spoke in a whisper. "Stay out of this."
Luke sighed before flicking his hand. His sword, Backbiter - half Celestial Bronze, half steel, capable of killing both the divine and mortals - appeared out of nowhere and Luke lowered into a stance. "Before we battle though, I have just one question."
"What is it?" Thalia asked.
"Why are you guys so early?"
Percy blinked. "That's what you're asking?"
"It's been on my mind for the past hour or so," Luke confessed. "I mean. . . it just seems wrong. The winter solstice isn't until tomorrow. You guys are a whole day early. I mean, are you guys even demigods?"
Percy opened his mouth to respond but then froze when Thalia began laughing. As in, full-blown laughter.
Luke watched her with a small genuine smile that Percy hadn't ever seen on his face before, even before Luke defected and pretended to be Percy's friend. Luke seemed. . . younger, almost. Brighter. Happier.
After a while, Thalia's laughter slowly subsided. She regarded Luke with a sad smile. "I'm glad to see that at least some things never change."
Luke grinned. "Of course."
For a moment, they just gazed at each other, and Percy got the sense that they weren't really looking at each other but rather remembering happier memories of a time that would never come back.
And then Thalia charged.
XxX
Naruto smiled widely when absolutely nothing happened. His gamble paid off. Atlas's divine form didn't affect him at all. Of course it wouldn't - he was half Bijuu chakra, half goddess. He wasn't mortal; the divine form should have no effect on him whatsoever.
Then his body fell to the ground. But he stayed up in the air.
What?!
Naruto glanced around, surprised. He was floating in the air, and when he looked down, he could clearly see his body collapsed on the ground, unmoving. How was he flying? Did he accidentally form a shadow clone or something?
Kurama? What just happened?
No reply. Nothing.
Something was wrong. Wrong on epic, perhaps even legendary proportions. Naruto had grossly miscalculated something. But what was it?
Was it Atlas's divine form? No way. Just to be sure, Naruto looked directly at Atlas. Atlas radiated an intense grey light and waves after waves of power and energy still emanated from him, but other than that, Naruto suffered no ill effects. What the hell?
The facts connected in his mind and formed an unpleasant conclusion. His body was on the ground. He was flying even though he wasn't in Six Paths Sage Mode. He couldn't hear Kurama. And judging by how even though he was right in front of Atlas's head, Atlas didn't take any notice of him, he was probably invisible to everyone. Existing as nothing but a soul.
He may actually be dead.
Wait.
Was he a ghost right now?!
"First blood in this war," Atlas smirked triumphantly, "goes to me."
There was a moment of absolute silence.
Zoe's eyes widened in shock before sadness filled her gaze. She had already seen too much death in the past few thousand years, though, and was used to it; she took only a second to grieve before a new anger entered her eyes.
"Congratulations, Atlas," she spat, saying Atlas as if it was particularly foul. "You had to resort to using your divine form to kill a mere demigod. Are you proud of yourself?"
Atlas shrugged. "Hey, I was honorable once. Trusted your little boyfriend. Got stabbed in the back for it. I'm not going to make the same mistake twice. A win is a win."
"Naruto?" Artemis spoke up softly, fear and uncertainty in her voice, as if refusing to believe that Naruto was dead.
"He's dead," Atlas said bluntly, a smirk on his face. "Are you going to cry, Artemis? I need a camera for this."
I'm alive! Naruto wanted to scream. But even though his mouth moved, no sound came out. He had no physical form.
Artemis stared at Naruto's lifeless body hollowly, disbelief slowly turning into despair. "No. . ."
"The look on your face right now is delightful," A ruthless smile spread on Atlas's face. "I wonder how you would look when I kill my daughter next - "
He paused when an intense golden light suddenly flooded the mountaintop, even brighter than his divine form. The air became superheated as some sections of the ruins burst into flames from the blistering heat. Atlas shielded his eyes from the light with his hand, genuine confusion on his face. "What in the name of Tartarus?"
Atlas's eyes widened as the sun grew closer and closer to the top of the peak. "Oh - " he managed to mutter a single Greek curse before the sun chariot crashed into him, sending dust and rubble flying everywhere as Atlas hit the ground once more.
Zoe took advantage of the diversion and quickly sprinted to Artemis's side, kneeling by her. "Lady Artemis," she said tentatively. In all her years serving her mistress, Zoe had never seen such a look of despair on Artemis's face.
"Zoe," Artemis whispered quietly. "Please, can you please take my burden?"
Zoe nodded without hesitation, instantly stepping next to her, bracing herself on one knee, holding up her hands, and touching the cold, heavy clouds. Her muscles protested immediately as an impossibly heavy weight settled upon her form.
Artemis slipped out from under the sky, entering her divine form as she did so; she radiated an intense silver light the same color as the moon. A pair of hunting daggers materialized in her hands.
The door to the sun chariot - a red Maserati - opened and Apollo stepped out. His expression was deadly serious as he too entered his divine form, radiating an intense golden light the same color as the sun. His eyes blazed with fury and anger as he gazed at Naruto's unmoving body, a hint of sadness and regret in his expression.
Atlas recovered quickly, extracting himself from under the sun chariot and leaping out of the crater, his posture defensive as he eyed the twin gods. He backed up a bit to put some distance between them.
"Hey sis," Apollo greeted quietly.
Artemis inclined her head. "Apollo," she murmured. "Cover me." Apollo nodded as his golden bow materialized in his hand.
She initially hadn't wanted to be with Naruto. At all. She had been foolish. When Hestia made her realize her mistake, she thought that it had been too late, that Naruto already hated and resented her for abandoning him. But she was wrong. He defied her expectations and forgave her far easier than he should have. He was much like Hestia in that regard.
After that, Artemis had grown to care for Naruto. A lot. She hadn't expected the level of affection she would have for him - but then again, Naruto seemed to have a habit of defying her every expectation and assumption. He was kind. Funny. Respectful - at least to her. Sure, he was a bit loud sometimes and he ate a little too much ramen, but other than that, Artemis genuinely enjoyed being with Naruto. He never failed to brighten up her day and bring a smile to her face.
And now, he was dead. Whatever Naruto was, there was no possible way he could've survived seeing Atlas's divine form. His red blood was proof of that.
Artemis's only child was torn away from her and she hadn't been able to do a single thing about it.
Naruto was gone.
Her despair slowly turned into a primal rage as she walked - no, stalked forward, silver light coating her hunter daggers.
She was the huntress, and Atlas was the prey.
And it's time she showed him what it's like to be hunted.
XxX
He paused, his black wings fluttered in agitation. Something felt. . . wrong. He couldn't explain it, but. . .
Oh well. He'll deal with it later. For now, he has a job to do. Souls to reap, and all that.
XxX
Unsurprisingly, Thalia was winning.
She was the daughter of Zeus, she had Aegis, which constantly broke Luke's concentration and filled him with an irrational fear, and her spear gave her the advantage of range. Not to mention how Luke was probably still recovering from holding up the sky.
Luke may be the best swordsman in a century, but against Thalia, he couldn't do anything. He was forced onto the defensive, and hadn't landed a single blow on her so far, whereas Thalia had already inflicted a nasty slice on Luke's leg, blood steadily trickling out.
"You've gotten better Thalia," Luke breathed heavily, his forehead glistening with sweat.
Thalia didn't respond, instead charging him again. Yellow lightning gathered at the tip of her spear which she thrusted forward, and Luke's eyes widened before spinning to the side, evading the spear. "Are you trying to kill me?" he demanded incredulously.
"You and I both know that it wouldn't have hit you," Thalia narrowed her eyes as she swung her spear in an arc. Luke blocked it with his blade, grunting before stepping forward and punching Thalia in the stomach. Thalia intercepted his fist with her shield and there was a clang as Luke's hand collided with the hard metal.
Luke hissed in pain before leaping back, gaining some distance. ". . . yeah, this isn't working out," he said. "I only came here to try to convince you guys to join me. Not to fight. I'm outta here."
Then he turned around and fled, a hole opening in the wall in front of him. Thalia ran after him immediately, Percy and Bianca close behind her. Although Percy had a slightly different objective than Thalia.
Thalia wanted to go defeat Luke.
Percy just wanted to find Annabeth. "Hey Bianca," he murmured. "If you see a blonde-haired girl with grey eyes, let me know, alright?"
Bianca nodded. "Got it."
XxX
Artemis lunged forward, her form a blur. Atlas met her head-on, blocking her slice with his elbow and attempting to kick her in the chest. Artemis dodged with an unbelievable grace, leaping upwards and flipping over his head, landing behind him.
Atlas turned around - and was promptly shot in the back of the head with an arrow that lodged itself in his skull. He growled and pulled it out - and then the arrow exploded, releasing a concussive wall of sound that briefly knocked Atlas off balance.
Artemis immediately stabbed him in the stomach with her knife, twisting it, before jumping away once more as Atlas grabbed at her. In the air, she let go of her knives as her silver bow formed in her hand and she unleashed a hail of arrows that slammed into Atlas. Atlas merely sighed, pulling out the arrows, his wounds immediately healing afterwards.
And then Artemis was in front of him again, forcing him backwards with a flurry of strikes. She effortly dismantled his defenses and constantly cut him over and over again. Apollo interspersed Artemis's strikes with arrows of his own, his aim true every time. They pierced Atlas's skin and afflicted him with symptoms of diseases: necrosis, lesions, spasms, itching, paralysis.
However, it was all useless. The wounds on Atlas healed almost immediately after they were inflicted. Apollo cursed under his breath. Atlas's regeneration was notorious.
There was a reason why the war between the Titans and the gods lasted ten whole years even though there were less than twenty fighters, give or take. Kronos, Atlas, Hyperion, Iapetus, Koios, and Krios versus Zeus, Poseidon, Hades, Hera, Demeter, Hestia, and the three Hundred-Handed Ones. Quite simply, nobody would stay down. Fatal wounds were healed up in seconds, and each side struggled to come up with a way to permanently incapacitate the other.
Fortunately, Apollo didn't have to permanently incapacitate Atlas; he only had to force him back under the sky. And it appeared that despite Artemis's rage, she understood that as well because she was slowly but surely leading Atlas back to Zoe Nightshade, who was watching the fight intently.
"If I were you," Atlas said, "I would just give up - " he gurgled as Artemis spun around and sliced his throat. It healed up in a few seconds. "How rude. As I was saying, you should just give up. You're not going to defeat me."
Artemis narrowed her silver eyes. "Watch me," she snarled before thrust-kicking him. Atlas stumbled backward and then another arrow slammed into him; a Greek fire arrow this time that blasted him back.
Atlas laughed insanely, waving aside the dust. "I haven't had this much fun in a long time." And then he switched to the offensive, a Stygian Iron spear appearing in his hand. He advanced, pressing Artemis. She was fast, but his strength was unstoppable. Artemis was well aware that if she was hit by a single strike, then it wouldn't go well for her.
Her gaze cold and calculating, she avoided every strike with an effortless grace. She tilted her head to the side to avoid a thrust before performing a back handspring, pushing off her hand and twisting in the air to dodge Atlas's punch. She landed soundlessly before bending back to evade a spear swing.
Then Atlas smirked and stomped his foot. The ground shook under them and Artemis briefly lost her footing. Atlas capitalized on the opening immediately and raised his spear to stab down -
"No!" Apollo shot ten arrows at Atlas at once, but Atlas simply raised his hand and all the arrows were blasted back by a wave of energy. Fortunately, that was long enough time for Artemis to get back onto her feet and disengage.
Atlas growled in frustration before charging Artemis again. She stood there, twin daggers at the ready. At the last possible second, she jumped to the side, twisting in the air, blocking Atlas's hasty spear swing, before pushing off a section of the air that suddenly solidified, leaped behind Atlas and kicked Atlas in the back with all her might.
She backflipped off as Apollo's arrows curved in the air and slammed into Atlas's back as well. She recognized Greek fire arrows, sonic arrows, arrows filled with his godly power. . . and then they all detonated in unison. A multicolored explosion of green, gold, and red.
The combined momentum and force of Atlas's charge, Artemis's kick, and the explosion was enough to blast Atlas off his feet and send him hurtling forward - straight at Zoe Nightshade.
"No!" Atlas yelled and released another wave of divine energy to cancel out his momentum. He skidded to a stop just a few inches in front of Zoe. He breathed a quick sigh of relief before smiling. "That was close - "
His eyes widened in panic as a golden blur slammed into him, driving a purple sphere into his chest. "How - " he gasped in shock and confusion as the immensely dense sphere of balanced chakra exploded and blew him back. Zoe rolled away instantly as Atlas crashed down to the ground and the sky dropped onto him, crushing him flat.
Atlas roared in pain and fury. "NO!" he bellowed, shaking the mountain itself. "NOT AGAIN!" But it was too late. Once more, he was trapped underneath the sky. He was forcibly taken out of his divine form by the presence of Ouranos, the grey light dying down. A litany of Greek curses flowed out of his mouth.
Zoe breathed heavily as her muscles burned. All her attention was focused on the person standing in front of her though. "Naruto?" she breathed. "How?"
Artemis materialized in front of them, reverting to her mortal form. "Naruto! You're okay - " she froze.
Apollo strolled forward as well, grinning. "Good work, Naruto. I honestly thought you died - " he paused when he caught sight of Naruto's eyes. "Oh dear."
"You're not Naruto," Artemis murmured. "You don't feel like Naruto." Her eyes narrowed. "Who are you?" she demanded.
Naruto stared at them with red, slitted eyes. His expression was alien and undecipherable, an expression they had never seen on Naruto's face before. He regarded them with a cold wariness instead of his usual warmth. "The name's Kurama." His voice was different; deeper.
Artemis opened her mouth to speak but stopped when she realized she recognized this aura. It was the exact same one she had felt on the night Naruto had been born. This was him. Artemis snarled in rage, her silver eyes glowing. "I see, so that's how it is. You wait until he's dead, and then you take over his body. Is he your mortal vessel? Is that it?"
Apollo narrowed his eyes. "Artemis, are you saying that. . ."
Artemis nodded. "He's the one that night."
Fury entered Apollo's eyes once more as an arrow materialized in his hand and he aimed it at Kurama. "You shall die," he promised as golden light gathered at the tip of the arrow.
Kurama looked at them both before sighing. "Alright, two things. First off: I don't even know you. Second: Naruto isn't dead."
Artemis froze, the slightest bit of hope entering her eyes. "What do you mean?"
Kurama stared at her as if she was a lower life form. "He's right there," he said dryly, pointing off to a spot in the air. "Can't you sense him?"
Artemis turned to look but there was nothing there. Her anger returned with a vengeance. "Is this a joke to you?" she hissed. "I swear on the River Styx itself - "
"Artemis," Apollo interrupted, his eyes glowing a little "The Mist. Soul layer."
Artemis frowned but complied as she entered a deeper layer of reality. This was the layer where demigod dreams take place, their astral projection allowing them to go practically anywhere and observe, imperceptible unless someone looked past the Mist. This was the layer where Thanatos collected the souls of the dead, which is why the gods typically referred it to the soul layer, or dreamwalking layer.
And her eyes widened.
Naruto was right there, floating in the air, looking really confused at the proceedings.
"Naruto!" she called.
He blinked. "You can see me?"
Artemis smiled in relief and happiness. "Yes. I can."
Naruto grinned. "Awesome. So uhh. . . I have no idea what's happening right now."
"You didn't die correctly," Apollo laughed. "How did you manage that?"
Naruto smirked. "I'm just that good."
"Is Naruto there?" Zoe asked hesitantly.
Artemis nodded. "His soul is." While Artemis and Apollo could easily enter deeper layers of the Mist because they were gods, Zoe's divinity wasn't strong enough. She wasn't a goddess, after all. Currently, Artemis and Apollo occupied both the normal layer and soul layer of reality.
It was comparable to being in a pool. If Artemis walked on water, then Zoe could see her from the land. However, if Artemis stepped into the water and it came up to her waist, then both Zoe and Naruto, who was under the surface, could see her. Zoe couldn't see Naruto because the water was reflective, but Naruto could see Zoe. Of course, it was more complicated than that, but that was the gist of it.
"Alright, come down," Apollo commanded. "Let's get you back into your body."
Naruto nodded and was about to move down but then froze and stared at Apollo suspiciously. "For some reason, I don't trust you."
Apollo placed his hand on his heart, wounded. "What? Why?"
Naruto thought of all the things he had done to Apollo in the past several days and floated up, putting more distance between them, just in case. "No reason, really."
Apollo crossed his arms. "You realize you'll have to come down someday."
"Try me," Naruto challenged.
"Naruto," Artemis said.
Naruto relented. "Fine. But I expect you to stop him before he tries to eviscerate me."
He drifted down and stood in front of his body. Kurama occupied it currently, and even though he couldn't see Naruto, he was staring right at him; probably due to negative emotion sensing or Sage Mode or something.
"So how do I return to my body?" Naruto asked Apollo.
"You'll have to kiss yourself," Apollo replied with a straight face.
"WHAT?!" Naruto yelled.
Apollo nodded, completely serious. "Haven't you heard of the powers of the kiss? The legendary Sleeping Beauty was awakened through a kiss - "
"Apollo," Artemis chided.
Apollo held her stare for a moment before sighing dejectedly. "Fine. So I wanted some blackmail material. Sue me." He rubbed his chin, staring at Naruto. "Honestly, I have no idea what to do right now."
". . . aren't you the god of healing?" Naruto asked.
"I mean. . ." Apollo scratched his head. "I already gave my son Asclepius jurisdiction over most of my domain of healing. I retained enough power to bring a person back from the brink of death, but the second their soul exits their body and they're actually dead. . ." he shrugged.
"Ah. You're useless then," Naruto said simply.
Apollo's eyes flashed. "That's it. Naruto, prepare to face the unbridled wrath of the god Apollo. I shall - "
"You shall what?" Artemis cut in dangerously.
Apollo paused. "I shall. . . deliver my threats when you're not standing right next to me?"
Artemis nodded. "Better."
Naruto took a deep breath before walking into his body. Hey, it might work. The second his ghostly hand touched his body's chest, there was a flash of silver light.
XxX
"Found her!" Bianca yelled. Percy rushed over immediately.
Annabeth was in a cell, sitting on a chair. Blonde hair with streaks of grey in it, just like Luke. Grey eyes. She smiled when she saw Percy. "Hey Seaweed Brain. You're late."
"Annabeth," Percy whispered, relief in his gaze. He looked over the cell. "Where's the door?"
"There isn't one," Annabeth answered. "They just waved their hand and the bars would appear/disappear."
Percy blinked before shrugging and cutting the metal bars with Riptide. The Celestial Bronze sword cut through the steel like butter.
Annabeth squeezed through the opening. "Where's Luke?" she asked.
"Thalia's fighting him right now," Percy reassured her. Annabeth's eyes widened in shock before she rushed off.
"She knew Luke too?" Bianca asked.
Percy hesitated. "It's a long story. The three of them ran away from home and survived on the streets together." Then he ran after her, Bianca behind him.
They emerged in another circular room, torches lining the walls. Luke had multiple new gashes - one on his arm, another on his side, and another on his lower leg. Thalia was still completely uninjured, fighting like a demon. She was a blur of movement as Luke tried to defend from her onslaught.
Percy would've cheered her on if it weren't for the tears in her electric blue eyes.
Next to him, Annabeth watched the fight, biting her lip. "He's not going to win - " her eyes widened as Luke stabbed his sword forward. As expected, Thalia blocked it with her shield. She raised her spear to counterattack and instead of backing off, Luke snarled and rushed forward. He tilted his head to the side, narrowly avoiding the spear thrust.
And then he was inside Thalia's guard. At this close range, her spear was useless. Luke feinted with his sword, Thalia raising her shield to block, and then Luke spun around in a burst of speed and suddenly he was about to cut Thalia's unprotected side. An upward diagonal cleave that would've been lethal.
"No!" Annabeth screamed.
Luke hesitated just before he struck. And that was his mistake. Thalia's instincts took over and with an inhuman speed, swung her spear at Luke. The spear shaft crashed into Luke's head and knocked him off his balance, causing his strike to miss and instead slice Thalia's arm.
Unfortunately, this caused Thalia's arm to involuntarily twitch. Ordinarily for most humans, this wouldn't be a problem, but for the daughter of Zeus with superhuman strength combined with an ultra-sharp spear. . .
A sickening sound.
Red splattering out.
An absolute silence descended onto the battlefield.
Luke looked down. Thalia's spear had pierced his chest, right over his heart. Blood flowed out, bright red. Arterial blood. "So this is the end, huh?" he chuckled weakly.
Horror filled Thalia's gaze. "Luke, no no no! I- I didn't mean - Luke!"
Luke smiled, and for once there wasn't a hint of bitterness or hatred in it. "Don't worry, Thalia." He coughed out blood. If he wasn't a demigod, he would surely already be dead. He turned to Annabeth. "I. . . I'm sorry, Annabeth." Luke looked back at Thalia again, who had tears streaming down her cheeks. "Thalia. . . I. . ."
And he fell back, the spear sliding out of his chest and bright red blood spraying into the air, landing on the ground with a thud.
Thalia stood there, frozen, her face grief-stricken.
"Luke!" Annabeth rushed forward, but then stopped when a person suddenly appeared in the middle of the room. No. Not a person. He wore a suit and he had scars on his face, but the power he radiated. . . he was undeniably a Titan.
The Titan observed Luke's body with his eyebrows raised. "That's unexpected," he said before turning to them and saying, "Out."
Holes opened underneath them again and they dropped into the shadows.
XxX
Naruto glanced down at his hands before patting himself. Solid. He tried to fly, and nothing happened.
Just to be sure, he called, Kurama?
Brat, Kurama replied. You scared me for a second there.
Naruto grinned. He was alive again.
"Did it work?" Apollo asked, staring at Naruto critically.
"Yup," Naruto responded. "I'm back - "
His eyes widened as Artemis stepped forward and hugged him. Her small form was trembling slightly. Naruto hugged her back, breathing in her familiar scent.
Aww, this is adorable.
Shut up.
"I thought I lost you," Artemis whispered.
Naruto grinned. "Don't worry. I'm not that easy to get rid of."
After a moment, Artemis pulled back and Naruto could've sworn he saw a tinge of gold in the corner of her eye, but the next second it was gone. Naruto exited Kurama Chakra Mode and Sage Mode, the golden chakra cloak disappearing and his eyes returning to normal.
Zoe gasped.
Naruto looked at her, confused, before realizing. When he was in Kurama Chakra Mode, he had been covered in golden chakra. But now that he was back to normal, Zoe saw his true form, without a Henge. Silver eyes. Auburn hair.
"That's right," Zoe breathed. "Atlas called you the son of Artemis." She paused, as if afraid to ask the question. "Lady Artemis, is Naruto. . ."
Artemis hesitated for a second before nodding. "Yes. He's my son."
Zoe's eyes widened in shock but before she could say anything, Percy, Bianca, Thalia, and Annabeth appeared out of nowhere. Thalia and Annabeth had tears on their faces. Over what, Naruto didn't know.
"Sis, we should leave," Apollo said nervously, glancing around. "I'm getting a bad feeling about this."
Artemis nodded. "Very well."
"Wait," Percy held up his hand. "Before we go. . . can I, err. . ." he gestured at Atlas, who had crawled onto his knees by now.
Artemis frowned. "Okay?" she nodded, curious to see what Percy would do.
Percy grinned before walking forward. They watched him in confusion when he stopped right in front of Atlas. Then kicked him in the face.
"You bastard!" Atlas screamed in fury. "I swear, when I get out from under here, I will tear you asunder! I shall make your life a living Tartarus. . ."
"That felt good," Percy beamed.
The others looked at each other before looking at Artemis and Apollo with hopeful glances.
After a moment, Apollo chuckled. "Just one each, okay?"
Naturally, none of them obeyed him.
XxX
They were in Apollo's sun chariot, transformed into a small bus to fit all of them. Artemis and Naruto sat next to each other, and Artemis held Naruto's hand tightly, as if afraid he would suddenly disappear if she let go.
Naruto could sense the others had questions. Zoe seemed ready to burst. He had quite a lot of explaining to do.
Later.
For now, Naruto simply wanted to enjoy Artemis's presence again. Just for a minute.
XxX
"IT HAPPENED WITH ZOE'S THREAD AS WELL!"
"OH GODS IT'S SPREADING!"
"WHAT DO WE DO?!"
"WHAT CAN WE DO?!"
XxX
Nico walked away triumphantly. Negotiations had gone very well. He stopped for a moment, closing his eyes and immortalizing the memory.
He smiled.
Gods, being a demigod was awesome.
XxX
Hey, Kurama.
Yeah, Naruto?
It's time for us to bullshit the absolute Sage out of everyone. I'm talking about Kakashi-sensei-level bullshit here.
Kurama grinned. Sounds fun.
Next chapter will be fun to write.
The general consensus seems to be that divine form wouldn't affect Naruto. I already have a reason for why Naruto was killed by the divine form, and it'll be revealed in later chapters. You're all missing several vital pieces of information that even Naruto doesn't know yet.
Death in PJO works like this: Thanatos and perhaps the Furies collects souls and brings them to DOA. However, Naruto's soul doesn't belong in this dimension. As such, death is malfunctioning for Naruto. It's not like Gwen, who went to the Underworld and exited through a passage; Naruto's soul didn't even go to the Underworld. The irony is beautiful.
I know some of you are worried that Naruto is too "weak" because divine forms would be able to kill him. Don't worry, I already have a solution for that. An extremely simple solution, actually.
Zoe survived the divine forms because her father is Atlas and her mother is Pleione, a goddess. She was fully divine. Her putting her immortality into Riptide is fanon. It's not in the wiki at all. She died in canon because she was a nymph - a minor goddess. And nymphs can die in PJO. So now I have to go come up with an explanation for nymphs.
Thank you all for reading, and please review :)
euphoric
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