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The Following SEVEN Chapters are already avaliable for Patrons
Chapter 25 (A Calm Before the Storm), Chapter 26 (A Monster or A Human), Chapter 27 (Together), Chapter 28 (Love and Pleasure), Chapter 29 (At the Edge of Madness), Chapter 30 (Regrets), and Chapter 31 (Korra's Love) are already available for Patrons.
The next few days had been strange for Korra and Naruto. The blonde both felt bad and angry at Korra for confessing that she liked him. The others were the same as before, especially his family.
Meelo asked if he could ride Sozu.
Ikki kept asking Naruto about Asami, sometimes very embarrassing questions.
Jinora would sometimes fluster in Naruto's presence, much to the blonde's confusion, who couldn't understand why.
His uncle and aunt were acting the same as before; surprisingly, Asami had started acting a bit differently, sometimes asking him how Korra had been doing.
Korra, on the other hand, was in a tough place; she had revealed her feelings to Naruto, yet he didn't accept them; he even got angry at her more than anything; the poor Avatar had no idea what to do about it. Thankfully there were a lot of things keeping her occupied.
Speaking of the tournament championship, the Fire-Ferrets were getting ready for the season's final game. They were going against the Wolfbats, the Pro-bending team that held the championship title for the last three years. The Fire-Ferrets may have won all their matches so far, but this one promised to be the hardest of them all. All of Republic City's habitants were trembling in anticipation, for they knew this was going to be one of the biggest events of the year.
Now, back at the crew...
Pro-Bending Gym
It was a cold, snowy morning in Republic City. Naruto was watching Mako, Bolin, and Korra shooting fire, rocks, and water to a bunch of pictures with the face of Tahno on them. The pictures proved to be great practice targets, for the Fire-Ferrets never missed not even one picture in all of the time they were training.
"Yes! Wo-hoo!" Korra exclaimed as her water shot went straight into the picture of Tahno. She took her helmet off and grabbed a towel a servant offered her. "Man, I got a good feeling about tonight. I don't care if we are the underdogs; we can take those pompous Wolfbats down."
"It's gonna be our toughest match ever, but I think you're right," Mako answered, taking his helmet off as well.
Naruto grinned. "Yes, I have heard of many underdogs, but so far, you have reached the furthest anyone ever did," Naruto encouraged.
Suddenly, the radio was interrupted by the sound of static. Then, a cold and threatening voice took the place of the radio's announcements.
A voice both Naruto and Korra were very familiar with.
"Good morning, citizens of Republic City." The voice started to say. It was the voice of the Equalist leader, Amon. This made Korra's eyes go wide. Naruto immediately stood up from his place and went near where Korra was standing. "This is Amon. I hope you enjoyed the last Pro-bending match because it will be the last. It's time for this city to stop worshipping athletes as if they were heroes. I am calling on the Council to shut down the bending Arena and cancel the finals, or there will be severe consequences." Amon's voice said, finishing the message.
"That guy has some nerve," Bolin commented with a frown.
"You think the Council will give in?" Mako said, worried. If the finals were canceled, all their hard work and efforts would be for nothing.
The Airbender of the group stepped in. "Knowing uncle Tenzin, he'll definitely try to stop the game."
"Well, I'm not waiting to find out. We need to get to the City Hall." Korra said with determination. Before her encounter with Amon, she would've said the same thing, but only because she didn't want to look scared in front of her teammates and Naruto. Now, her confidence and intentions were genuine.
Republic City's City Hall
The crew made their way to the City Hall. They entered the building without asking permission from nobody and opened the door where Tenzin, Tarrlok, and the other councilors were gathering.
Tenzin turned around. "Korra, you shouldn't be here. This is a close meeting."
"As the Avatar and Pro-bending player, I have a right to be heard." Korra countered as she stepped in. "You can't cancel the finals."
"I know that winning the championship means a lot to you. But as far as I'm concerned, we need to shut the Arena down." Tenzin said.
"What about the rest of you? Tarrlok, there's no way you're backing down from Amon, right?"
"Actually, Tenzin and I agree for once," Tarrlok responded while standing up from his seat. Naruto noticed a black mark on his cheek as if someone had punched him hard.
"We don't have time to play here; the Arena will shut down whenever you want it or not; not even you Avatar can do anything about it," Tarrlok added with a blank tone; the blonde narrowed his eyes; there was something wrong here.
The aged Airbender nodded. "The Council is unanimous. We are closing the Arena."
"No!" Mako shouted.
"You can't!" Bolin followed.
Korra looked confused. "I-I don't understand. I thought you of all people would take a stand against Amon!" she exclaimed, referring to Tarrlok.
"While I'm still determined to bring that lunatic to justice, I would not put innocent lives at stake just so you and your friends could play a game." The Northern Water Tribe said with finality. Naruto didn't know if he meant that or not, but he couldn't disagree with that argument.
Now it was Mako's turn to speak his mind. "Pro-bending might just be a game to you, but think of what it means to the city! Right now, the Arena is the only place where benders and non-benders can gather together in peace to watch benders-"
"Beat each other up! In peace! It's an inspiration to everyone!" Bolin finished what could've been an excellent argument from Mako.
Naruto had another argument that could help the cause. "Councilmen's, with all due respect, have you considered what will happen if you close the Arena? If you decide to close it, the Equalist cause will become stronger. Amon will gain more influence as well as followers because the citizens will think that he is the one under control. If anything, we are giving Amon the chance to become a bigger threat than he already is. Is that what you want?"
Everyone in the room was surprised by Naruto's solid argument. In all honesty, the members of the Council did not consider the negative consequences that the peaceful option might bring upon the city.
"I appreciate your words Naruto, but you're ignoring the reality of the situation," Tarrlok answered.
Korra was starting to get angry. "The reality is that if you close the Arena, you let Amon win!"
"Yes, exactly what she and Naruto said! Yes!" the earthbender of the crew shouted in approval.
"I'm sorry, but our decision is made. This meeting is adjourned."
After saying those words, Tarrlok lifted a wooden mace and attempted to smash it into the table, the act that symbolized the end of a meeting. However, just before the mace could touch the table, it was taken from Tarrlok's grasp by a metal cable. Everyone turned back and saw it was none other than Chief Beifong, the author of the action.
"I can't believe I'm saying this, but I agree with the Avatar and the brat," Lin stated.
Tarrlok was surprised. "You do?"
Korra was even more. "Yeah, you do?"
"Granny is trying to help us? Never saw that coming." Naruto said out loud, a little payback for her nickname against him.
Lin glared at Naruto for a second but quickly returned her gaze to the Council members. "I expected this kind of cut-and-run response from Tenzin, but the rest of you? Come on, show a little more backbone! It's time for the benders of this city to display some strength and unity against these Equalists."
Tenzin frowned. "We must prevent the conflict between benders and non-benders from escalating into all-out war! The Council is not changing its position." He said with finality. This was the first time in months the Council was unanimous in its decision regarding one of the many problems they had to face against the Equalist issue. Spirits knew that didn't occur too often.
"Now wait just a moment, Tenzin." Tarrlok suddenly stepped in. "Let us hear what our esteem Chief of Police has to say."
'Wow, I can literally feel uncle's frustration coming out of him.' Naruto thought, half-guilty and half-amused.
"If you keep the Arena open, my metal benders and I will provide extra security during the championship match. There is no better force to deal with the chi blockers; our armor is impervious to their attacks." Lin said confidently.
"Are you saying you will personally take responsibility for the safety of the spectators and the Arena?" Tarrlok asked with interest.
"I guarantee it."
Tarrlok placed his hand on his chin. "Mmh, it IS hard to argue with Chief Beifong's track record. If she is confident that her elite officers can protect the Arena, then she has my support. I am changing my vote." he said as he raised his hand. "Who else is with me?"
All of the Council members raised their hands as well, except for Tenzin.
"The Arena stays open. Good luck in the finals." Tarrlok declared with a hidden smirk on his face; the blonde narrowed his eyes slightly. Was he missing something here?
The Fire-Ferrets cheered in victory after hearing the Council's final decision. Korra gave Naruto a big hug, one that the Airbender hesitated to return, his eyes looking at Tarrlok; he knew there was something he was missing here.
The way Korra was acting with Naruto wasn't as subtle as she thought. Without them noticing, Tarrlok watches the action with subtle yet unmistaken interest. Perhaps there was more than a simple friendship; it was known that Naruto was dating Asami Sato; they were both public figures. 'This might be useful.' the councilman thought, smirking inwardly. "Also, good luck to you, Chief Beifong." With that said, Tarrlok left the room.
As he walked away, a single thought on his mind, it seems your part of the plan is working, brother; let's see where it goes from here; he thought the entire city would soon be theirs.
Back at the meeting. Tenzin couldn't believe his bad luck. The one time the Council agreed on something he also did, the decision changed at the last minute. Leave it to Lin to make the Council go with the violent option. "A word, please, Lin," Tenzin whispered as he made his way to her. The two of them went to the hall outside the chamber.
"What do you want now, Tenzin?" Lin asked rudely.
"Tarrlok is playing you, and I don't want to see you get hurt," Tenzin answered.
Lin was taken aback a bit hearing that Tenzin didn't want her harmed, but she quickly ignored it, putting on her famous cold face. "I know what I'm doing and the risk that comes with it."
"In that case, I am going to be by your side during the game."
Lin glared at the Airbender. "You don't need to babysit me."
Tenzin rolled his eyes. "It's for Korra. I want to make sure she's safe."
The Chief of Police had enough with the discussion. "Do what you want!" she snapped at him. "It's not like I've ever been able to stop you before," Lin said as she now started to leave the hall. The moment she started walking, the two people she didn't want to see any further today (and probably never) reached her. It was the Avatar and the disrespectful brat.
"Excuse me, Chief Beifong. I wanted to thank you for your help." Korra started to say. However, Lin ignored her and continued to walk. "It really... means... a lot." When the Avatar finished her sentence, the cranky Chief of Police was already gone. Korra then turned around to face Tenzin. "What is her deal? Even when she's on my side, she's against me!"
"She probably forgot to take her pills today. Although, she's always irritated, so I don't really know." Naruto commented.
"I've known Lin since we were children. She's always been... challenging." Tenzin said. He did not like where this conversation was going.
Korra was intrigued. "What did your father do to make her hate the Avatar so much?"
"My father and Lin got along famously. I'm afraid her issues are... with me."
'Her issues are with him? What kind of issues could she probably had with Tenzin? It's almost like...' Korra thought. Then she gasped. "Wait a second, it all makes sense now! You and Beifong, Beifong and you... You two were a couple!"
"What!?" Tenzin gasped; he hadn't expected Korra to put two and two together.
"Where did you get that idea?" Tenzin asked, looking very nervous.
"Ha! Your wife." Korra answered with a triumphal look on her face.
"Criminy! I'll have to have a word with her."
"Soooo, Pema stole you from Beifong? I'm surprised our 'esteem' Chief of Police didn't throw her in jail." Korra said, amused.
"Anyways, Pema didn't steal me. Lin and I had been growing apart for a while. We both had... different goals in lif-Why am I even telling you this!? It all happened a long time ago, and we've moved passed it." Tenzin explained himself as best as he could.
"But... But I don't understand." Naruto said, worried. "You make it sound like you actually had a relationship with her."
Korra saw the chance and took it. This was going to be so much fun for her. "That's because they had a relationship, dummy," she said with a big smile.
"W-What? Uncle, you didn't..." Naruto looked at Tenzin at the edge of panicking.
Tenzin sighed. "Yes, Naruto, I once had a relationship with Lin. Now, I'm going to ask you to please take it ea-"
"HOW COULD YOU! HOW COULD YOU EVER HOOK UP WITH THAT MUMMY? DON'T YOU HAVE A SENSE OF MORALITY OR SOMETHING!?" Naruto screamed while pointing at Tenzin.
"Naruto! Please don't make a scene right now!" Tenzin begged his nephew.
"DID SHE MAKE YOU DO IT!? DID SHE TRICK YOU INTO BEING WITH HER!? DID SHE THREATEN YOU!? I AM GOING TO KILL HER!"
"No! None of that ever happened. We were young and-"
"ARE YOU TELLING ME YOU GOT FLIRTY WITH THAT DISGUSTING GRANNY ON YOUR OWN FREE WILL!? SHAME ON YOU, UNCLE, SHAME ON YOU! "
At this point, Korra was rolling on the ground laughing harder than ever. She knew her friend would react like this, but it was still hilarious. Now she had a whole new material to tease him with, a teasing gold mine.
"That's enough! Besides... this is none of your business!" Tenzin said, embarrassed out of his mind as he walked away from the pair. Knowing his nephew, it would take a while for him to 'forgive his uncle for his unspeakable sin.'
"See you at home, Mr. Heartbreaker!" Korra shouted at Tenzin before laughing again. Tenzin did the only thing he could do right now: Run.
As Naruto and Korra were leaving the City Hall, Korra noticed how bad Naruto was feeling. He was trembling, and he looked like he was about to throw out. She giggled and was about to make a joke when her blonde friend gave her a very dirty look.
"Not a word."
This was the perfect opportunity to test out that new material she had just discovered. "About what?" she asked with a little too much innocence behind her words.
"You know very well what I'm talking about," Naruto said threateningly.
"Hmmmm, oh, you mean the fact that your uncle was Lin's boyfriend some time ago?"
"S-Shut up!"
"I just wonder, how many times do you think they have kissed before?"
"I said shut up! What part of 'shut up' you don't understand!? Are you deaf or something!?"
Oh yeah, the following weeks were definitely going to be fun for her.
Air Temple
Naruto and Korra were currently sitting on a bench near the gardens of the Air Temple. They were enjoying a nice hot cup of tea, courtesy of the ever-caring Pema. This special tea recipe was usually made to calm one's nerves. Korra was having one for her anxiousness because of the championship final, and Naruto was having one because... well, he just found out about Tenzin's past with Lin.
"So, how do you feel about the match? Are you nervous?" Naruto said, breaking the silence between them.
"Nope, not at all," Korra replied. After a few moments of hesitation, she spoke up again. "Ok, maybe I'm just a tiny bit nervous."
The Airbender looked at her, surprised. "Is that so?" he asked. Then, his lips turned into his usual smirk. "Fortunately for you, I have the ultimate method to get rid of your nervousness."
"And what method would that be?" Korra asked, interested.
"Sozu," the blonde simply said, much to Korra's delight; the next hour they spent flying around, Korra quite enjoyed it, the wind blowing in her face, making her feel free, despite having the urge to kiss Naruto, especially when they were alone like this, her imagination not for the first time running wild with images of his strong hand gripping her body, exploring everywhere, her hands touching his six packs that she had seen many times.
Pro-bending Arena
A couple of hours later, the Fire-Ferrets were being introduced to the crowd at the Pro-bending Arena. Naruto was watching the whole thing with Asami and her parents in one of the VIP posts.
Of all the times the Airbender had visited the stadium to watch his team's performance, this had to be the most attended one by far. The whole thing was a blur of shouts, faces, and light flashes. This was not the first time they had been in a VIP room; he and Asami would come here often but sometimes just ended up using the room for other activities.
As Naruto entered the VIP room, he saw Asami was just about to take a seat next to her father and mother. The place consisted of a small room with a big red carpet and a couple of red padded chairs. The view was great, and there was a mini-bar where one could have free water and some snacks, courtesy of the Arena.
"Naruto, good to have you here, honey," Asami said warmly, grabbing his hand before giving him a quick kiss that he enjoyed, despite her parents being right there.
"Good to see you, Naruto; it is always a pleasure to talk with you," Yasuko said sweetly; she enjoyed it when she saw them together like this.
"Naruto, my boy, has been a while," Hiroshi greeted him with an extended arm and a smile that didn't reach his eyes, something the blonde noticed right away.
Naruto shook his hand. "Yeah, it's been a while. How have you been?"
"Ooooh, same things as always. Long and boring meetings with the investors and exhaustive appointments with my business partners. It feels nice to take some time off work and spend a few minutes watching the Pro-bending finals with my daughter and wife." the Sato businessman said as he grabbed Yasuko's hand tightly. The old couple sat in a pair of chairs, while Asami and Naruto were sitting in a different pair.
The brunette was resting her head on his shoulder, enjoying the feeling of being close to Naruto, holding his hand.
"Naruto, how about I talk to Korra after this game?" She suddenly suggested; the blonde looked at her with a raised eyebrow.
"What for?"
"Just some girl stuff," Asami replied; the blonde didn't ask specifically, knowing she wouldn't tell him. The blonde had an idea of what they would be talking about; he just hoped that nothing bad would happen.
In a couple of seconds, the lights on the roof were turned on and focused on the center of the Arena, where a man wearing a black and pink suit was standing, striking a posture that was a little too overdramatic for Naruto's taste. The man grabbed a microphone and started talking. "Introducing the challengers, The Future Industries Fire-Ferrets!"
The crowd cheered at the introduction of the underdogs. The Fire-Ferrets approached the stage on a moving platform, greeting the fans as they waved their hands. Naruto waved at Korra, and so did Asami, who kissed Naruto's cheek.
"Only that?"
"Shut up, you idiot!" she whispered back.
Naruto chuckled, and his gaze returned to Korra. She seemed confident and ready, with no trace of nervousness on her. However, there was something that Naruto couldn't get out of his head. The Arena had stayed open, ignoring Amon's order to close it. The Equalist leader did say that there would be severe consequences if his command went unheard, and that man did not seem to be one who bluffed. Even with the metal bending squad guarding the place, Amon could still find a way to outmaneuver them. Naruto would have to be alert, especially since Amon made it very clear that he was one of his targets, along with his family.
"And their opponents, the three-time champions Wolfbats!" the man on the stage said as he now pointed to the other side of the Arena. Three men wearing capes and Wolfbats masks were standing now on the ring, two of them behind one. Out of nowhere, the Wolfbats raised their capes and started howling as fireworks appeared on their backs.
Upon seeing this, Naruto sweat-dropped. He thought the man introducing the teams on the stage exaggerated his entrance a bit, but this was taking it to a whole new level.
When the two teams were positioned, the referee ordered them to start, and the bell ringed. Even if he hated to admit it, Naruto was surprised by the display of skills the Wolfbats were showing. However, the Fire-Ferrets were not left behind as they attacked just as strong as their opponents. As the first round went on, Naruto spotted Tahno launching a large stream of water to Bolin, who received it and was sent rolling onto the last base of the ring. He was no Pro-bending hardcore fan or anything, but Naruto was pretty sure that move was illegal. In fact, he heard Mako complaining to the referee about that last move. But the referee ignored his complaints and gestured the Fire-Ferrets to retreat.
Not even five minutes later, Naruto spotted another illegal move made by the Wolfbats earthbender. The nameless earthbender controlled some disks from the Fire-Ferrets base. Next, he bended another disk from his own base and sent both of them to Mako, who was struck hard from both sides and ended up falling to the ground. Yet again, the referee seemed to ignore the obviously illicit move that had been done.
"I think something is going on here. Those two moves were obviously illegal, but that referee over there isn't doing anything." Naruto commented.
Hiroshi nodded. "I agree. I'm no expert on these kinds of things, but even I can tell those last moves were sketchy."
"It's like that referee has been bribed or something. There's no way he could dismiss them like that." Asami said while frowning.
That last comment made Naruto think. Did the Wolfbats actually bribe the referee? It didn't seem so far-fetched, considering those last two moves. Any decent referee would have stopped them right there and made them lose the round. Maybe he even disqualified them if he was a strict one. This one seemed to shrug off the teams' complaints despite witnessing such obvious foul play. Was that why the Wolfbats were Pro-bending champs three years in a row? Because they paid the referee so they could play as dirty as they wanted? If that was correct, then Tahno had a black eye coming to him.
Just when things couldn't get any worse, Tahno waterbended some water and launched it at Bolin's feet. Bolin saw this and jumped. When his feet touched the ground, he lost balance as he realized the water Tahno threw at him was now ice. Seconds later, he was struck by a fireball and was knocked out of the ring.
Did the referee do something? Take a wild guess.
"Ok, that referee is either blind or bribed. There's no way he could allow that last move." Naruto angrily stated. "When this match is over, I'm gonna have a few words with him."
"Wait in line," Asami said, equally frustrated.
"As the official sponsor of the Fire-Ferrets, I cannot let this absurdity go unspoken. I shall also talk with whoever is running this show." Yasuko said in a lot calmer way than her daughter and her friend, but just as exasperated.
To finish the game, a waterbending-earthbending combo knocked both Korra and Mako out of the ring. Naruto clenched his fists and was about to storm out of the room when he saw Korra was hanging onto the ring with one arm while holding Mako by the collar with the other. That meant that they were still in the game. Sacrificing herself for the team, Korra threw Mako into the ring. Mako took the chance and kicked a fireball at Tahno, who was distracted. This caused him to fall into the other zone, thus ending the first round. Naruto almost giggled in delight as he saw Mako winking at Tahno, whose left eye was twitching in an unnatural, unhealthy way.
The second round started, and the Wolfbats did not seem to stop their foul play. Luckily, the Fire-Ferrets were able to hold their own without resorting to dirty tricks. It was announced that the second round was going to be decided by a tie-breaker. The referee tossed a blue and red coin and announced that the Fire-Ferrets won the coin toss, which meant that they were the ones who would choose with what element they would go with at the tie-break. Korra stepped in, and Tahno followed her.
'This is gonna be good." Naruto thought with a smirk.
And it was good indeed. Korra waterbended a blast of water towards Tahno, but instead of trying to hit him right away, the blast of water went behind his back from Tahno's left side just to pop up from his right side and hitting him square in his chin, knocking him out and losing round two to the Fire-Ferrets.
Now that they were tied, the Fire-Ferrets needed to win two more rounds, and the title was theirs for the taking. Round three started just like the previous round, with both teams going all for it. After a few minutes, Tahno placed himself behind the Wolfbats earthbender, who cracked a disk on his back for Tahno to pick them up with waterbending. Using water with pieces of rock inside, Tahno shot three streams of water at the Fire-Ferrets, who were knocked out of the ring. The referee stopped the match and named the Wolfbats champions of the tournament for the fourth time.
Naruto was infuriated. "That's it. That referee is dead."
"I barely broke a sweat. Anybody wants to mess with the champs?" Tahno loudly proclaimed as he took off his helmet.
"And that guy is dead too," Naruto said.
Before anything else could be said, screams of pain were heard in the Arena. Naruto looked up just in time to see Lin and Tenzin being electrocuted by a masked man with metallic gloves on their hands. The rest of the metalbending squad were taken by surprise and electrocuted as well. 'Equalists.' Naruto thought as he got tense and narrowed his eyes.
'Where's Korra?' the Airbender asked himself. He looked down where the Fire-Ferrets were, just to see a chi-blocker with two electrical sticks near them. Korra, Mako, and Bolin were still in the water area, and before they could defend themselves, the chi-blocker activated his sticks and dug them in the water. Screams of agony came out of the Fire-Ferrets mouths before they were out cold. Something snapped inside of Naruto. He just witnessed his uncle, his friends, and his childhood friend being electrocuted into unconsciousness.
He was irate. Nobody did that to the people he cared about and was left unpunished.
"Dad, mother, what's going on?" Asami asked her father confused.
"I don't know, dear, but I don't like it. We are leaving now."
"Stay with me. I will get you all out of here," Naruto promised, his arms suddenly engulfed in fast-moving wind, his eyes turned red with two tomoe in each eye.
"Let's finish this,"