Disclaimer: I certainly don't own Naruto, Disney or any of its affiliated properties. If I did, I wouldn't be writing this now would I?
"The connection of our hearts…" : Speech (Bold for yelling ,Bijuu, or massive creatures)
'The connection of our hearts…' : Thought
Deep in the forests of Neverland…
John and Michael were on a grand adventure – according to the Lost Boys, there were real Indians on the island and they were excited to meet them (after all, it was every English boy's dream to meet a real-live Injun man). Of course, the Lost Boys were all too happy to take them to the settlement as they knew their boss and Naruto were always welcome there.
"So how far is the Indian village? We've been walking for so long that I think my feet are getting blisters!" Michael said, adjusting his glasses as John nodded, his small frame shaking in minute exhaustion.
"Oh we're almost there! The village is just off the coast and we've been walking for about two hours so we should be there in about twenty minutes…" The ringleader (who was dressed up in a fox costume) said. He then grinned when the new blood groaned in annoyance, fondly remembering how he was in their shoes so long ago.
His estimate was accurate however and after the projected time period had passed, the Darling brothers found themselves overlooking the Indian village. It looked different from what they had expected an Indian village to look like based on their studies – for one thing, the traditional teepees had been modified into larger tents with bamboo awnings, lending the structures a more Oriental feel. Another thing was that the 'braves' they were expecting to see were both male and female, with little to no distinction on age – they saw adults training children and vice versa on all sorts of things ranging from hand-to-hand to foraging.
"So this is the village huh? Michael…this is a little strange but I don't think your books said anything about stuff like this…" John said as he tugged on Michael's robes, the older brother cleaning his glasses off in disbelief.
"Y-you're right! This is quite unprecedented – what incited this cultural change I wonder?" He said as the Lost Boys cackled at his lost expression.
"Ya see, there's the rub – we think it's because the Chief's daughter is sweet on Naruto that the village here has seen such a change in 'organization' or sumthin'…" The two youngest Lost Boys said (dressed up as raccoons) said while snickering mischievously – everyone could see plain as day that the little fairy man had more than a little sway over the females they knew.
Their conversation was cut short though, when a little warrior girl noticed them and rushed towards them, tackling the Darling brothers down while shouting out to the rest of the tribe.
"I caught the intruders! Sound the alarm – the chief must question these two on the whereabouts of Tiger Lily!"
Understandably, the boys were all shocked – none more so than John and Michael, who were more than a little scared of the reception they got.
"W-what?! We didn't do anything – we just got to Neverland a few hours ago and never even met the princess of your village!" Michael said, the Lost Boys corroborating his story as well.
The Indian girl wasn't convinced though, perceiving the sniveling newcomers as nothing more than the cowardly minions of the slimy Captain Hook. Pulling out a length of rope, she then bound the brothers' hands together before pulling them further into the village.
"The chief will be the one to decide that – now follow me!"
After a few minutes of tense silence as they were taken to the chief before the cold eyes of the tribesmen, they found themselves standing before the Chief himself, who looked upon them with a thunderous expression.
"So Hook has finally sunk this low – to use children to ensnare my daughter by preying on her good morals? Truly, the man is pathetic – incapable of handling my daughter in any fair trial of combat…" He said as he turned to look at his wife Squaw, who was carefully scrutinizing the newcomers.
"Perhaps we should have the Lost Boys here summon Peter – he can tell us if these intruders work with the enemy or not…" Squaw said as the Darling Brothers squirmed in discomfort.
'Oh, I wonder what Peter, Tinker Bell, Wendy and Naruto are up to now? Hopefully they haven't left Hangman's Tree yet…' Michael thought, trying to comfort John (who looked ready to bawl his eyes out at any second).
Meanwhile, with Naruto and the others…
Wendy was having the time of her life right now – having just learned that mermaids did in fact exist in Neverland, Peter was willing to take her to the cove where they normally gathered. While the immaturity of Peter did grate on her sensibilities a little bit, she was also happy that the two fairies (Naruto in particular) had been quick to set him straight.
Now finding herself flying through the skies of Neverland once more, she was treated to the incredible sights of the island, as she could see where the forests gave way to the ocean and where they also turned into vast open fields or even small deserts. Tearing her eyes away from the sights though, she noticed Naruto and Tinker Bell flying closely, seemingly ignoring her as Peter then decided to fly closer to Wendy, seeing as she was lost in thought.
"Why are you looking so lost Wendy? Got something on your mind? 'Cause if you do then don't worry too much about boring stuff – kids like us never grow up her after all!" He said as she gave him a faint smile.
"Oh it's nothing serious – just some thoughts I had is all…" Wendy said as the group arrived at the Mermaid's Cove, a natural calm pool of water tucked in between cruel looking cliffs. She could see more than a few mermaids sunbathing, the sun's rays reflecting off their scales giving them a dazzling look. They were quick to slip back into the ocean when they felt intruders though, leaving the cove empty of residents.
When they landed, Peter took one of her hands and guided her to the cove's edge to see if they could catch sight of the elusive creatures.
"Why did they disappear like that? It's not like we were going to harm them in any way?" Wendy asked Peter as he laughed a little at her crestfallen face.
"Oh these mermaids are a cheeky sort – they'll only come out if they like you. You should have seen how they acted when Naruto and Tink showed me this place. Tell you what, why don't I get Naruto to show you just how weird these mermaids are?" He said as Wendy gave him a curious look.
"How would the mermaids even get a good look at him – he's only a fairy after all?" She said, inwardly giddy about finally getting to confirm whether one of her childhood crushes actually had a human form.
"That's no problem – Naruto's an oddball, even among the fairies. He's got a lot of cool tricks!" Peter said as he walked over to the fairies, who looked to be in a deep conversation.
"Hmph! I don't like how you and Peter seem to give that new girl so much attention – I mean, it's bad enough that Lily likes you already…" Tinker Bell as she pouted at Naruto, who looked taken aback at Tink's jealousy.
"It's not like that – I think she might be the key to me actually finding a way to Wonderland again! Besides, she likes Peter – the girl might be one of his most ardent fans given her library of books devoted to his adventures…not to mention I am not interested in little girls!" Naruto said as Tink's face looked conflicted.
'He is really set on leaving huh? Will he even want me to come with him? It's been forty years on the mainland and he's still hung up on his previous loves… At least I can say that if he was going to bring anyone with him to Wonderland it would be me and not any of these other hussies!' She thought as she smiled faintly when she felt Naruto hug her gently, inhaling his scent as she found her head in the crook of his neck.
Their peaceful moment was broken up by Peter however, who suddenly appeared before them with a request.
"Let me get this straight – you want me to spend time in my human form so that Wendy can see mermaids when they appear to try and beguile me?" Naruto deadpanned at Peter (he knew the kid was incapable of truly understanding romance but he wasn;t looking forward to putting his body out on display for the boy-crazy mermaids…).
"Please Naruto! You wouldn't want Wendy to be sad now would you?" Peter said, impishly playing on his desire to see children happy. Tinker Bell didn't know whether to look proud or annoyed by her charge's manipulative behavior (he learned from the best after all…) since she could clearly see that he was winning Naruto over.
"Alright fine – but I am not responsible for what those crazy women will try to do so keep an eye on Wendy for me!" Naruto said as Peter whooped in joy before calling Wendy over to witness his transformation.
Wendy was more than a little surprised (and pleased) to see the diminutive fairy suddenly glow a bright blue before turning to a handsome seventeen year old boy (she had to hold back an excited squeal at his mix of cute and sexy looks – she was a pretty precocious young lady…).
"So the stories of your human form were true! Is this how you were able to train Tiger Lily into such a capable warrior?" Wendy asked as she moved closer to Naruto, touching his broad chest in awe as he looked amused at her behavior.
"Something like that – Tiger was already good at fighting before I came along. I just helped her reach her true potential is all…" He said as Wendy blushed faintly at his baritone voice – a far cry from the boyish tones of Peter and her brothers.
The group didn't have to wait for long after Naruto's transformation as the mermaids started popping out of the water like daisies, hopelessly attracted to the new man on their cove. This meant that Wendy got to see mermaids but she also had to deal with them trying to charm Naruto(her second and unknown to the others, true crush).
This went on for an hour or so before the group noticed a familiar ship in the distance, with a rowboat making its way toward it.
"Hey, isn't that Hook's ship? What's he doing so close to Mermaid's Cove?" Wendy asked as Naruto and Peter walked over to the water's edge, squinting their eyes to get a better look.
"It looks like Hook's captured someone – there's Mr. Smee taking the captive to Hook right now. I don't know who it is because they've got a burlap sack over their head though…" Peter said as Naruto turned back into a fairy.
"Well, whoever it is, we should go and save them. Peter, you handle Hook as usual – Tink and I will spirit the captive away!" Naruto said as the entire group started flying towards the ship.
Back on Hook's ship…
Tiger Lily was not having a good day. She was just about to take her morning bath and do her daily 'de-stresser' session thinking about Naruto when she was drugged and taken to Hook's ship. While she normally would be able to fight off her captors, whatever the pirates used had her feeling more than a little loopy and weak.
Once the burlap sack on her head was taken off, she was met with the smug visage of Captain Hook, who looked mighty pleased with himself. She was then put on her knees before him, with two pirates each holding an arm behind her back.
"At last, I have you all to myself Tiger Lily! Your days of teasing me with your svelte body and pert bottom are at an end for I shall now claim you as my bride!" Hook said as Tiger looked at him like her was a bug on her shoe.
"Foolish man – you may have weakened me but I shall never submit to you! It is only a matter of time before my partner rescues me anyway…"She said, looking away from Hook derisively, only to be surprised by him laughing at her.
"Oh yes, your partner. Naruto was it? It doesn't matter whether he comes to your rescue or not – once I claim your chastity, the very laws of your tribe will force you to accept me as the next ruler of your village!" Hook said as he moved closer to Tiger, his hook slowly tearing the bodice of her dress, revealing more of her delicious cleavage (the girl regretted aging up so quickly now as she could see the flame of lust in the pirate captain's eyes).
"No! Back away from me you cur!" She said, weakly struggling against her captors' hold.
"Shh…stop struggling. You only need to accept you new place under me – now, let me sample your ruby lips…" Hook said, moving closer to the scared girl, his lips puckered up for a kiss.
"BACK OFF PERV!"
*Bamf*
With a titanic noise, Hook was suddenly hit in the side of the head by an irate Naruto, who despite his tiny form, sent the pirate captain flying into his crew, so great his rage. He punched Hook so hard that his fist was smoking and Hook was an improvised bowling ball that smashed into the rest of the crew, knocking them unconscious. This meant that only Mr Smee, Hook and one other pirate remained conscious on the pirate ship.
"Naruto! You saved me! These pirates caught me off guard with some drug they slipped into the pond where I bathe or I would have taken them down!" Tiger said as Naruto re-sized himself before knocking Mr Smee and the other pirate out with a two solid punches.
"Never mind that, the main thing is that you're safe. Did Hook do anything to you?" Naruto said, gently helping Tiger to her feet, taking note of her state of dress before putting his hand on her chest, willing his magic to repair the threads in her dress (missing the rosy blush on Tiger's dusky cheeks since he figured she was still a little loopy).
"No, I am fine – you came just in time actually. Are you alone?" She asked as Naruto jerked his head in the direction of Hook, where Peter was engaging him in a duel. Wendy and Tink then arrived on the ship before landing close to Naruto as they felt unsafe around the pirates (especially given what almost happened with Tiger).
"Nope. I've got Peter and Tink with me. We also have some new arrivals – here's Wendy and I'll introduce you to her brothers later since they went to visit your village not too long ago." He said as Tiger hummed a little, casually sizing up Wendy as her intuition told her that this girl was more than a little interested in her teacher.
"I see. Hello Wendy – I am Tiger Lily. I am afraid we'll have to postpone a proper introduction until I am back in my village and you reunite with your brothers. They might actually be held responsible for my absence since the villagers don't know them yet…" She said as Wendy was in awe at her calm and collected attitude (she figured it was another grown-up thing as Tiger was currently eighteen years old).
The duel between Peter and Hook ended without much fanfare – the pirate was soundly thrashed and was forced to sail away with his metaphorical tail between his legs. Naruto and the gang then made their way back to the Indian village, where Tiger Lily exonerated the Darling brothers of any crime (good thing too since the brothers were fearing for their scalps at that point).
The tribe then hosted a party to honor Naruto and Peter, with Tiger Lily giving Naruto a chaste kiss on the lips much to Wendy's embarrassment and Tinker Bell's amused resignation (Tiger Lily finally grew on her – it took nearly thirty years but the two were now friends).
After the celebrations, the Lost Boys then pestered the Darlings for stories of the mainland. Naruto (now in his human form) was sitting next to Tiger Lily (who was resting her head on his shoulder) and Tinker Bell( who was resting in his hair while playing with his blonde locks). Peter was snoozing off, lazily regarding the group with one eye as he looked up towards the sky.
"Tell us, what's the mainland like?"
"Yeah, what's life like there?"
"Do you have a mother and father who take care of you?"
As one could imagine, the Darlings were overwhelmed with the questions of the Lost Boys and Wendy soon had to calm them down, recounting stories of how their family in England worked. She told them about their grumpy father, their helpful dog Nana and of particular interest to the younger members of the group, about Mary Darling, their mother.
As she told them this, Naruto and Tinker Bell didn't miss the wistful looks in the Boys' eyes as they imagined what it must feel like to have someone who loved you so, who tucked you in at night and took care of you when you were sick. They were all orphans you see and stories like these really made them somber.
The atmosphere of the group was then soured when Peter flew off in outrage, believing that Wendy was trying to make his boys want to grow up and leave him alone. Having the festive mood decidedly subdued, Tiger gave Naruto one last kiss before seeing the group off as they made their way back to Hangman's Tree.
However, what they didn't know was that Hook had followed them, along with a contingent of his men in order to finally find out the location of Hangman's Tree so he could finally eliminate his nemesis once and for all.
After the group had arrived at Hangman's Tree, Tinker Bell nudged Naruto with her elbow.
"Hey, shouldn't we go and find Peter? He looked very upset about what Wendy said…" She said as Naruto grunted his assent.
"Alright – let's make this quick. It's been a long day and night for us." Naruto said, the two fairies flying off to find Peter, missing the pirates waiting to see them leave before capturing the Lost Boys and the Darlings to take them as hostages on their ship. They also left a parting gift – a time bomb primed to explode when touched by someone (preferably Peter).
Speaking of Peter, the fairies found him sulking on the beach and after a few minutes of consoling the brat that his friends would leave him behind, the trio then made their way back. As they did so though, Tinker Bell and Naruto heard some pirates talking in hushed tones about their plan.
"…so the captain followed the kids to their clubhouse eh?"
"Yes, and he left a little explosive gift for its master hehehe…."
"Oh, how devious!"
"Indeed! Hahaha!"
Alarmed by the implications of the plan, Tinker Bell immediately flew off to the Tree, with Naruto and Peter following soon after.
"Tink, wait up! Don't rush into things – maybe I can help defuse the bomb!" Naruto yelled, his pleas ignored by Tink, who quickly flew into the tree, locating the bomb and carrying it off.
Despite her valorous act however, the bomb immediately exploded, taking the Hangman's Tree with it.
"TINK!" Naruto yelled as both he and Peter rushed over into the rapidly collapsing ruins of the Tree, carefully and quickly searching through it to try and secure Tinker Bell before she was crushed by it.
"There she is – Naruto, quickly grab her and let's get out here!" Peter said as the two of them could see Tink's faint glow in the dirt. Naruto was quick to pull her out, grimacing at her gruesome injuries.
Her left wing was blown clean off and her right side was bleeding heavily. He could try and heal her but they would need to leave the Tree first. Unfortunately though, the Tree then decided to fall apart while they were in it, burying them all under its weight. After all the chaos had subsided, all that was left was the quiet finality of the destroyed tree, with the residents crushed under its ruins.
Or it would be if one of them wasn't Naruto. With a brilliant flash of blue energy, a section of the ruins was blown off the trio as Peter was holding the two fairies close to his chest.
"We made it! Is Tink alright?" Peter said as his face fell when he saw Naruto openly weeping over Tink's body, her light now completely extinguished.
"She's dead Peter. She died trying to save us from the bomb…all we can do now is to honor her memory and make sure Hook gets what he deserves…" Naruto said as he looked at Tink's body listlessly, passing Peter a satchel of gold pixie dust as he silently let tears run down his face.
"Oh, Hook will pay. I make sure I take more than his hand this time!" Peter said as he flew off, his expression murderous.
Now completely alone, Naruto roared in anguish, his chakra turning to a heatless azure flame around him.
"Why did you have to die Tink – I could have tanked the blast. There was still so much we could have done together, so much I had yet to tell you…I wanted to reunite with my loves so much that I never told you just how much I did love you." He said, his tears falling on Tink's face.
"And yet you stubbornly continued to love this fool – even when Tiger fell in love with me. I should have told you I loved you- despite your pettiness and tomfoolery, you are dear to my heart Tink. I wish I didn't wait so long to tell you this though." Naruto said as he hugged her body lose to him before giving her lips a gentle kiss.
As soon as his lips touched hers though, his chakra suddenly resonated with a glorious golden glow, his tears turning into crystal drops of energy absorbed by Tink's body. His chakra then flowed into Tink as her eyes flew open before closing as she enjoyed the kiss, even deepening it to Naruto's immense surprise.
Little did Naruto know that by freeing his heart of the shackles of perceived guilt and the compulsion to ignore the love in front of him for the need to reunite with his companions in Wonderland, he had finally tapped into all of his power since becoming a fairy in Neverland. As such, his life force was more than enough to heal Tinker Bell as well as give her something a little extra (yes, as Tink would soon discover, Naruto gave her the Resize ability as well).
Breaking the kiss, Tinker Bell then looked at Naruto with a dreamy look in her eyes.
"It was like a deep sleep I couldn't wake up from – after the bomb exploded, I thought I was dead! But your voice brought me back – you said you loved me! Is it true – have you finally opened your heart to me?" She asked as Naruto cupped her face with a peaceful look.
"Yes Tink. I can't deny it any longer – for all your personal flaws and my own bull headedness, we are two peas in a pod and I would be honored to be your mate." He said as he took her lips for a deep kiss that had Tink glowing a pink color as her toes curled in her sandals (hey, Naruto was an experienced kisser – he had five women to refine his technique with after all).
After the kiss, Naruto then pulled Tink with him as they flew in the air towards Peter.
"Where are we going Naruto?" Tink asked Naruto who turned to her with a feral grin.
"Why, we're going to help Peter free the kids and kick Hook's ass of course! He's really crossed the line now!" He said as they flew off to Hook's ship for the climactic final battle with the pirate captain.
And that was chapter 33! Meaty, punchy and hopefully satisfying – we'll have the final battle fused with an interlude next chapter before moving to the next arc. Naruto has all his powers back and with Wendy's help, will enter Wonderland to find his other companions!
If you'd like to support me (and read up to 60+ more chapters) you can find me on Patreon on the 'search for creators' bar under DudeWithaMac (I only get free time on Sundays since money's extremely tight-details on Panacea chapter 14). Alternatively, you guys can follow this link: p#at#re#on.#com/DudeWithaMac (remove the hash tags). Reviews and comments are always welcome!