Listening to a rac.o.o.n laugh maniacally as he prepped what he dubbed the "Hadron Enforcer" was something Naruto could honestly say was one of the strangest things he"d ever witnessed. Quickly strapping the ma.s.sive cannon like weapon onto Drax"s torso, said man wearing the top half of a s.p.a.ce suit to allow him to breathe while out in the endless oblivion.
"Oh, this is gonna be good." Rocket chuckled out, having just put on the finishing touches. Making sure the weapon was securely strapped to Drax"s person, the intelligent rac.o.o.n gave a quick crash course on how to use it, "When I tell you to, aim for the helm of the ship, and then press these b.u.t.tons." He instructed, pointing towards the two triggers positioned to the sides of the weapon, "Once you do, it"s gonna blow the s.h.i.t outta that ship, which means you gotta get back in here as quickly as possible, got it?"
As Drax nodded in understanding, Naruto looked back from the co-pilot"s chair saying, "Are you sure this is a good idea? I could just sneakonto the ship and get them that way. Way cleaner than playing a game of chicken with a group of rogue Ravagers."
Rocket looked over at Naruto agitatedly as he helped Drax get up to the top of the ship, "Yes I"m "sure this is a good idea." It"s my idea." He said with condescension, "You drive the ship, I handle this." Giving Drax a quick push, the rac.o.o.n said, "Now get a move on! We ain"t got all day airhead!"
Drax looked down at the frustrated rac.o.o.n, "My head is not filled with air, tiny creature." Continuing up the latter towards the top of the ship he mumbled, "Imbecile."
Said "imbecile" ran his hands down his face in frustration, "Please get blown away in the explosion, please." He pleaded, hoping to whatever G.o.d was out there that they would answer his prayer.
Shaking his head, Naruto turned back to continue driving the Milano towards Yondu"s ship, the Eclector, "This better work, last thing I need is to save your a.s.s from this stupid plan."
"I am Groot."
Looking to his left, Naruto saw that Groot was seated behind him, his big build barely able to fit into the seat he was sitting in. Smiling over at him, the talking tree gave him an innocent smile. Keeping his eyes in front of him, Naruto asked rather weakly, "What?"
"I. Am. Groot." It said back, putting emphasis on each word as though that would help Naruto understand him.
Giving a weak smile Naruto said, "Yeah, didn"t catch any of that."
"You feel the energy wafting off of that thing, right?" Kurama asked.
"Yeah." Naruto thought, "As soon as I got close to him. He"s a walking talking tree, of course he"s gonna have a bit of Natural Energy coming off of him."
Kurama nodded, "Makes me wonder if he"d ever actually be able to use it."
Naruto gave a mental shrug, "More than likely all that energy is being used to keep him going, and heal him from any physical injury. Still, could be interesting to see what else he could do with a bit of training."
"You"d just have to figure out how to understand a d.a.m.n word he says first." Kurama chuckled out, "You would think it"d get old after a while, but I gotta admit it kinda grows on ya."
"Yeah, I know what you mean." The blonde thought back.
"He said it"ll work." Looking over to the pilot"s chair, Naruto saw that Rocket had plopped himself down as he took back the controls, "He"s been a part of every single plan I"ve come up with, and each one we"ve come out alive." Giving Naruto a wicked smirk he finished, "You just gotta trust me."
"Was it your plan to steal the High-Ruler"s Hydro Gun?" Naruto asked, "Last I heard only three out of the eight people that pulled off that heist survived. You call that a plan that worked?"
"Hey, we survived, didn"t we?" Rocket asked, "And besides, we got into that near the end. I didn"t have much say in what happened. If I had, none of those guys would"ve died." Looking over at Naruto he said, "And how do you know about it anyways? I thought the Kree government did a pretty good job covering that whole debacle up."
"Speed Cater told me about it."
"Speed?" Rocket asked, "How is that b.a.s.t.a.r.d? Still an a.s.shole?"
"No." Naruto said, "He"s dead."
"…oh." After a few seconds, Rocket gave a weak shrug, "Well, the guy had it comin" I suppose." Giving a slight chuckle he continued, "h.e.l.l, most of us in this group do."
-x-
"You betray me?!" The sound of Yondu"s fist bouncing off of Peter"s midsection shot over the sound of his cheering crew, the lot of them looking at the spectacle of their captain beating on their former comrade, the sight bringing satisfied smirks to their faces, "Steal my money?!" Yondu yelled out as he sent another punch into Quill"s side. Yondu was a strange looking man, with blue skin that made his origin possibly that of Kree, and a red metallic mohawk atop his head.
"Stop it!" Gamora yelled out, the woman being held back by four of Yondu"s men, each struggling to hold the weakened woman back, "Leave him alone!" She pleaded.
Yondu ignored her, glaring at the still defiant Peter, "When I picked up as a kid, these boys wanted eat you!" Roughly grabbing his face to keep Quill"s attention on him, he continued, "They ain"t never tasted Terran before. I saved your life!"
"Oh, would you shut up about that?! G.o.d!" Glaring angrily at Yondu he struggled against the crew members keeping him up against the wall, "Twenty years you"ve been throwing that in my face! Like it"s some great thing not eating me. Normal people don"t even think about eating someone else, much less that person having to be grateful for it!" Quill stopped trying to break free from their grasp, instead looking Yondu in the eye, "You abducted me man. You stole me from my home and my family."
The Ravager captain pointed his finger into Peter"s face angrily, "You don"t give a d.a.m.n about your Terra! You"re scared. Cause you"re soft. In here!" Slamming his hands on his chest, Yondu then grabbed a hold of Quill"s shirt, right above his heart, "Here, right here!"
"Yondu, listen to me!" Gamora yelled, getting Yondu to stop for just a moment, "Ronan has something called an Infinity Stone-"
"I know what he"s got girl." Yondu interrupted.
"Then you know we must get it back! He"s going to use it to wipe out Xandar!" This seemed to have gotten the attention of Yondu"s right hand man, Kraglin Obfenteri, a lanky man with a rather scruffy appearance, said Ravager looking at Gamora intently, "We have to warn them, or billions of people will perish." She pleaded.
Yondu looked back over to Peter, an amused smirk on his face as he asked, "Is that what she"s been filling your head with boy? Sentiment?" With that he slapped him in the face, "Eatin" away at your brains like maggots?!" Backing away from Peter, Yondu began to shake his head, "That"s it."
With a sharp whistle from Yondu, an arrow flew from the holster at his side towards Quill, the arrowhead touching his jugular gently. Upon further inspection, one could see that the tip and end of the arrow were glowing a bright red, with the head piece on top of Yondu"s head glowing the same color.
"No!" Gamora screamed, worry on her face as she tried to fight against the four Ravagers holding her back.
"Sorry boy." Slowly turning around the room, the captain looked each and every one of his present crew in the eye, "But a captain"s gotta teach his men what happens to those that cross him."
"Captain"s gotta teach stuff!" Kraglin added, helping those that lacked the ability to understand their captain"s vocabulary, with several nodding afterwards in understanding while giving the first mate a thankful nod.
As Yondu puckered his lips to give the finishing whistle, Peter spoke, "If you kill me now…you are saying goodbye to the biggest score you have ever seen."
A cruel smirk in place, Yondu turned back to Peter, "The Stone? I hope you got something better than that. Cause ain"t n.o.body stealing from Ronan."
Quill looked up in thought quickly before saying, "We gotta a ringer."
"Is that right?"
Looking to Gamora, Quill said, "She knows everything there is to know about Ronan. His ships, his army."
Yondu looked to Gamora, the woman"s face now confident, "He"s vulnerable."
"Whatcha say Yondu, huh?" A friendly smile on Peter"s face, "Taking down marks side by side, like the old days."
Slowly, a smile spread across Yondu"s face, his crew waiting in antic.i.p.ation for his verdict. His answer finally came in the form of another sharp whistle, the flying arrow flying back into its holster as Gamora flinched, obviously thinking the arrow was about to bury itself into Peter"s neck.
With that, Yondu let out a loud boisterous laugh with Peter quickly followed suit. The captain ordered Quill be let go as he pulled him in for a bear hug, "You always did have a s.c.r.o.t.e, boy! That"s why I let you stay on this rig in the first place!"
The celebrations were soon cut off however, as the ship began to shake from a sudden attack outside.
-x-
THOOM!
"Yeah…this is a really bad idea."
THOOM!
"Will you shut up already?! It"s gonna work."
THOOM!
Naruto ran his hands through his hair as he thought, "This rac.o.o.n is f.u.c.king crazy." Perched in front of them was a ma.s.sive ship around the size of your average battleship. The thing was simply parked there, taking the blasts Rocket sent their way, looking as though it was barely doing a thing.
Feeling as though he"d gotten their attention, Rocket hacked into their PA system, allowing his voice to blare throughout the entire Ravager ship, "Attention idiots. The lunatic on top of this craft is holding a Hadron Enforcer, a weapon of my own design." Naruto couldn"t help but give a slight eye role at Rocket"s need to brag, "If you don"t hand over our companions now, he"s gonna tear your ship a new one. A very big new one. I"m giving you to the count of five." Rocket didn"t bother wasting a second to begin his count down, "Five!"
Rocket had barely gotten the word out of his mouth when a man"s voice came over the Milano"s PA, "Rocket, it"s me! For G.o.d"s sakes we figured it out, we"re fine!" Silence reigned for several moments as both sides waited for Rocket"s reply.
"…Oh hey Quill, what"s going on?"
Naruto let out a sigh of relief as he mumbled, "Such a bad plan…"
-x-
"Who the h.e.l.l"s this guy?"
Naruto was standing with his back pressed up against the wall with his arms crossed over his chest, "I"m here to help." He said, answering Peter"s question as he finally made his way to the cargo hold.
Peter looked at Naruto like he was an idiot as he said, "Okay…but that doesn"t answer my ques-"
"Naruto?"
The two men looked over to see Gamora had entered the room. Smiling, Naruto said, "Gamora, it"s good to see you. You know, now that you"re not trying to kill me and all."
Quill"s face was that of bewilderment as he said, "Wait…what?"
Realizing his confusion, Gamora said, "Peter, this is Naruto Uzumaki. A few months back we had an…encounter."
"Yeah," the blonde said with a chuckle, "If by "encounter" you mean you and your sister tried to kill me, there sure, we had an encounter."
Gomora nodded, the blonde able to see a small amount of shame on her face as she said, "And Naruto, this is Peter Quill-"
"I know who this guy is." Naruto interrupted, getting off the wall as he walked closer towards Quill, the two men now face to face, "He"s the guy I"ve been looking for. The guy that took the orb…an Infinity Stone as it turns out." His face grew more and more serious as he spoke, "The man who calls himself…Star-King."
Peter"s face, which up until then had been as deathly serious as Naruto"s had been, immediately dropped in defeat, "…It"s Star-Lord."
"Oh…" Naruto said, giving a sheepish grin as he said, "My bad." His eyes now on Gamora he said, "I"m here to get the Stone, and to kill Ronan while I"m at it."
"You can"t possibly kill Ronan, not now at least." Gamora said, "With the Stone, he"s powerful enough to wipe out entire planets. That"s not something we can just fight, not even you, a man they call a Celestial. We need a plan."
"I agree." Star-Lord said, before blinking as something seemingly just hit him, "Wait…you"re the guy they call the Celestial?"
Naruto sighed, "Yeah, I really wish they"d stop calling me that. But by the time I heard about it, it had already spread too quickly. I"m trying to change it to "Maelstrom," that"s what everyone called me back on Earth, or Terra as you like to call it."
"Woe, woe, woe." Peter said, waving his hands around to stop the conversation, "Did you just say you"re from Terra?"
Naruto raised an eyebrow before remembering, "Oh that"s right, you"re from Earth, aren"t you?"
"And you are too? Oh man, you have no idea how awesome this is! I haven"t talked to another Terran since I got abducted! I have so many questions! Did they ever make a sequel to Back to the Future, or make another Star Wars movie? How many songs can a ca.s.sette tape hold now? Is Michael Jackson still a thing? Have people realized that WWF is fake yet, or is that still going on? Are John Hughes movies still awesome? Did they ever cancel Star Trek the Next Generation? Did America ever win the Cold War? Is Reagan still President? Has AID"s been cured? What about MTV, is that still on? Does Jane Fonda still work out? Do people still wear parachute pants-"
"Dude…I don"t know what most of those things are." Naruto deadpanned.
Peter blinked at Naruto"s interruption, "But…I thought you said you were from Terra?"
"No." Naruto said, "I never said that. I was there for a little over four years though."
"Why were you there?" Gamora asked.
"It"s a long story." The blonde answered, "Pretty much I got sent there during an apocalyptic fight with a pseudo-G.o.d, spent four years trying to figure out a way home, managed to get back home thanks to an Infinity Stone, everyone was dead including the pseudo-G.o.d, and now I"m here exploring the universe looking for the other Infinity Stone." Shrugging he stuffed his hands in his pockets, "And now here we are."
"All of your people…are dead?"
Looking over to the other side of the room, the blonde warrior could see that Drax, Rocket, and Groot had just entered, more than likely hearing his quick description. Naruto didn"t bother speaking, simply giving a slow nod in response. All five of them seemed to be looking at Naruto in a new light, whether it was respect Naruto couldn"t say, but at least it wasn"t utter annoyance or confusion from Rocket and Quill.
Still, Peter still felt the need to ask, "So how exactly are you going to defeat Ronan? I haven"t even seen you fight. And I"m not gonna believe what they say on the news, for all I know it"s all some weird trick."
Drax made his way to Naruto"s left, resting a hand on the blonde"s shoulder, "I shall vouch for this man. He may look puny. And weak. Maybe even a little delicate. But I also see the makings of a warrior."
"Gee…thanks." Naruto grumbled.
The s.p.a.ce bandit looked at Drax in indignation, "Well that"s all well and good Drax, but-"
"I can vouch for him as well." Gamora said, looking Quill in the eyes with an unwavering stare, "He"s strong. Trust me."
Sighing in agitation, Peter pinched the bridge of his nose for a few moments before saying, "So, how exactly do you plan on defeating Ronan."
Naruto shrugged, sitting down on one of the various crates thrown around the room, with Drax following suit as he sat down next to him, "Oh I have a plan. I just want to see your plan. You have it all figured out, don"t you?" He asked, his face scrunched up in his signature fox like smile.
"Right…" Quill said, scratching his scalp as Rocket and Groot to a seat to his right, the six of them forming a makeshift circle in the cargo hold, "Well as of this moment…we"ve decided we"re gonna take the Stone from Ronan before he lands on Xandar."
The room was quiet for several seconds. No one bothering to say a word as they looked Quill with varying expressions, with Rocket looking at Peter disbelievingly, Gamora with complete stoicism, Naruto in amus.e.m.e.nt, Drax in boredom, and Groot not paying attention at all, more occupied with the leaf that had begun to grow on his wrist.
Finally, the d.a.m.n broke, "You call that "figured it out?!" We"re gonna rob the guy who just beat us senseless?" Rocket demanded, obviously not pleased with Quill"s plan thus far.
"Oh, you wanna talk about senseless?" Peter demanded back, "How about trying to save us, by blowing us up?" He asked, his voice greased with sarcasm.
"I told him it was a bad idea." Naruto said matter of factly, "I had a way better plan, but nooooo. We had to go along with Rocket, cause all of his plans are just so perfect."
"Shut up blondie!" Rocket retaliated, pointing an accusing finger at him, "If your plan was so good, why didn"t you speak up sooner? Huh?!"
Naruto looked at Rocket both stunned and bewildered, "I totally said something!" Looking to Groot and Drax he said, "Didn"t I guys?"
Groot looked over at Naruto and said, "I am Groot."
Seeing he wasn"t going to win the argument with Groot, he looked over to Drax. Upon seeing Naruto and Rocket looking his way, Drax mumbled, "What were we talking about? I wasn"t paying attention."
"This conversation is pointless!" Gamora yelled, putting everyone"s attention on her, "What"s important now is that we get the Ravager"s army to help us save Xandar."
As Naruto and Peter nodded in agreement, Rocket asked, "So we can just give the Stone to Yondu, who"s just gonna sell it to somebody even worse?"
"We"ll figure that part out later." Peter interjected.
"We have to stop Ronan." Gamora insisted, desperation clearly in her voice.
"How?!" Rocket insisted back.
"I have a plan." Quill answered.
"You"ve got a plan?"
"Yes."
"First of all," Rocket said, lazily pointing towards Peter as he said, "You"re copying me from when I said I have a plan."
"He wasn"t even there when you said that." Naruto said, a look of exasperation on his face, "Let"s at least hear how bad the plan is before we pick it apart."
"Yes, thank you!" Quill said, gesturing to Naruto. Looking back to Rocket he added, "And it"s not that unique of a thing to say, everyone says it."
"Secondly," Rocket continued, "I don"t even believe that you have a plan."
Now getting thoroughly annoyed by the rac.o.o.n"s attempt to demean him, Peter began to rebuff him only to pause half way through, "I have…part, of a plan."
"What percentage of a plan do you have?" Drax inquired.
It was Gamora"s turn to get annoyed, jabbing her finger in Drax"s face as she said, "You don"t get to ask questions after the nonsense you pulled on Knowhere."
"I just saved Quill." The Destroyer insisted.
"We"ve already established that you destroying the ship that I"m on isn"t saving me." Quill said, his patience wearing thin.
"When did we establish that?"
"Like three seconds ago!"
Drax scoffed, "Oh, I wasn"t paying attention to that either." This caused Naruto to shove his face in his hands and Gomora to sigh in exasperation at the man"s antics.
"She"s right, you don"t get an opinion." Rocket said, for once agreeing with the green skinned a.s.sa.s.sin. Looking back to Quill he asked, "What percentage?"
"I don"t know." Quill said, thinking quickly as he answered, "Twelve percent."
"Twelve percent?!" The rac.o.o.n yelled, amus.e.m.e.nt on his face as threw his head back, "Hah hah hah!
Quill glared at the mocking Rocket, "That"s a fake laugh." He said in the middle of the rac.o.o.n"s display.
"It"s real!" Rocket bellowed.
"Totally fake."
"That"s the most real, authentic, hysterical laugh of my entire life, because that is not a plan." Rocket said, getting a nod from Groot and Gamora.
"It"s barely a concept." Gamora said with a shake of the head.
Peter turned his frustration on woman, "You"re taking their side?"
Naruto looked over at Quill, "You gotta admit that that"s pretty barebones, even by my standards." Leaning back, he said, "I haven"t done that kinda s.h.i.t since I was fifteen."
Pinching his nose once again, Quill had to turn away for a moment to collect himself. Letting out a big breath, he turned to face them all, "Guys…come on. Yondu"s gonna be here in two seconds to hear this big plan of ours. I need your help." Looking at each and every one of them, Peter lazily pointed his finger around the circle as he said, "I look around at us, and you know what I see? Losers." Seeing that he"d lost Rocket and Drax, Quill corrected himself, "I-I mean…folks who have lost stuff. And we have, man we have. All of us." Looking at Naruto and Gamora he said, "Our homes." To Drax he said, "Our families." And to Rocket, "Normal lives." Putting his hands in his pockets he continued, "Usually, life takes more than it gives. But not today. Today, it"s given us something. It"s given us a chance."
"To do what?" Drax asked as he looked up at Quill.
"To give a s.h.i.t." Peter answered, looking Drax in the eye as he did. Looking to the rest of them he continued, "To not run away, for once. I for one am notgoing to stand by and watch as Ronan wipes out billions of innocent lives."
"Look…Quill." Rocket said, his voice low as he spoke, "Stopping Ronan, it"s impossible. You"re asking us to die."
"Yeah…" Peter mumbled, "Yeah, I guess I am." Peter broke away from the circle, the other five thinking over his heavy words.
"Maybe not." The five fugitives turned their attention to their newest member the man standing up as he continued, "I know I haven"t been a part of your motley crew for long, but I can tell that each of you are good people, good people who are just trying to find some kind of purpose in this vast universe. Whether it"s fighting, stealing, whatever, you guys have done some pretty stupid, pretty f.u.c.ked up s.h.i.t before now." A small smile graced his face as he said, "Whether the universe brought you here or not, I don"t know. What I do know, is that we"re here, and we"re the only people that can stop a threat like this and survive. And with me on your side, well there"s just no way we can lose." Looking to Quill he said, "Whether these guys decide to join or not, I would be honored to join your fight, Star-Lord."
The remaining four remained silent, all of them thinking over what Peter and Naruto had said. Finally, Gamora looked up from her feet, "I have lived most my life surrounded by my enemies." Getting up, she took a deep breath, "I would be grateful, to die among my friends."
Drax was the next one to get up from his seat, his baritone voice speaking with a surprising softness, "You both are honorable men…I will fight beside you." Giving a sad smile he continued, "And should the end come, I will see my wife and daughter again."
Groot followed soon after, the four others standing up forced to crane their necks to look the tree man in the eye, "I am Groot."
The remaining five looked at the last one sitting, said rac.o.o.n looking around the room in bewilderment. Closing his eyes, he gave a hefty sigh, "Oh what the h.e.l.l, I don"t have that long of a life span anyway." Slowly getting up to stand upon the crate he"d been sitting on, he quickly straightened his vest as he said, "Now I"m standing, you happy? We"re all standing up now. Bunch of jacka.s.ses standing in a circle."
-x-
Looking down at the red leather Ravager jacket in his hands, Naruto couldn"t help but wince a little bit, "Do I seriously have to wear this. Leather isn"t really my thing."
Quill looked up from strapping on his boots along with taking off his retro head phones, the man now wearing full Ravager garb, "We"ve gotta wear this if we want to be distinguished as the good guys by the Nova Corps. We"re all wearing it, even Rocket and Drax."
"Not Groot."
"That"s "cause we don"t have anything that"ll fit Groot."
Naruto gave an overly dramatic sigh, "Fine." Slipping the jacket on, Naruto gave a few testing stretches. "A bit restricting…but not as bad as I"d thought it"d be. I"m surprised your jacket actually fit me." He admitted, zipping the jacket up to his lower chest.
Walking out of the boarding room, the two men descended down the hallway, the remainder of their group soon joined them, Gamora"s uniform rather form fitting, Drax only wearing a pair of Ravager pants with his knives strapped to his boots, and Rocket wearing a Ravager version of his previous vest. Entering the Eclector"s flight deck, the six of them were greeted by over three dozen of Yondu"s men, along with the man himself sitting in the captain"s helm.
Turning towards them, Yondu said, "Took you long enough boy, do you need a few more minutes to powder your nose, or can we get on with little "plan" of yours?"
Naruto, Gamora, and Peter stepped forward, with Rocket staying close behind and Drax and Groot sticking to the back of the crowd. Walking in front of the two men, Gamora was the first to speak, addressing Yondu and his present crew, "The Stone reacts to anything organic, the bigger the target the bigger the power surge."
Quill stepped forward, "All Ronan needs to do is touch the stone to the planet"s surface and zap, all plants animals, Nova Corps-"
"Everything will die." Gamora concluded.
"That means Ronan does not make the surface." Quill said looking at Yondu eye to eye.
Naruto stepped forward, "And that"s where I come in. The best course of action is to make sure Ronan is kept away from any kind of planet that can sustain life, otherwise he can obliterate it with the Stone. The only way to do that is to take him to a place where we can fight he safely, without worrying about endangering innocent life."
"And how exactly do you plan to do that boy? Ask him nicely?" Yondu mocked.
"No." Naruto said, raising up his hand to show the Hiraishin Seal, "I"m going to do it with this. This seal allows me to place a marker anywhere I choose: person, place, or thing, and teleport to it in an instant. I"ve places hundreds of these throughout the universe thanks to my Shadow Clones, which means I have the pick of the litter as to where our battleground will be."
"Which is?" Kraglin asked.
Pulling up a planet on one of the screens in front of them, Quill answered, "Hiberlac. The place has zero intelligent life forms, it"s the perfect place to secure the Stone and kill Ronan."
"Well this is all fine and dandy." Yondu said, "But just how do you plan on getting on board Ronan"s Warship?"
"The same way we"ll get to Hiberlac." Naruto answered, "I had an encounter with some of Ronan"s men on Morag, one of whom I spared to send a message to his master, that message being a Hiraishin Seal. Providing he didn"t destroy the note, four of us will teleport to the Dark Aster. From there we will separate, with Drax, Groot, and myself going to grab Ronan, while Gamora will go and shut down the ship and safely land it in the ocean below." Looking around the room, Naruto said, "While we"re doing this Quill and Rocket will be a.s.sisting you in making sure the Sakaaran Necrocrafts are kept at bay. I will call the Nova Corps and tell them everything that"s going on, including the fact that you all are helping in saving Xandar."
"Just so we"re clear," Yondu spoke, his face deathly serious as he said, "How exactly are we getting paid for our services? Saving a planet ain"t cheap ya know."
Quill hesitated for a moment, looking to Naruto who gave him a slow nod, "Your payment…is the orb."
A crooked grin spread across the man"s face, obviously liking the sound of that. After a moment, he asked, "And if Ronan destroyed this seal of yours, if he got it?" Yondu asked.
Naruto nodded over to Quill, "Then we use his plan for getting on there."
"…Great."
-x-
Location: The Dark Aster
-x-
The Dark Aster"s captain"s chamber was devoid of all life. The dark room was surrounded in an earie quiet, the only sound being the distant thoom of the rear thrusters. That quiet was soon disrupted by the sound of four people appearing out of nowhere, one of whom looking around wildly with his daggers drawn as he prepared for battle. Said fight never came as he and the rest of his entourage realized they were alone in the room.
Looking to Gamora, Naruto asked, "Is this place always so dark and gloomy."
The a.s.sa.s.sin gave a light-hearted shrug, "For the most part."
About to use a fire jutsu to light up the place, he was beaten to the punch by Groot. Lifting up his arm, pieces of his wrist and forearm began to slit and open up, allowing hundreds if not thousands of luminous spores to drift up above them, illuminating the chamber in a beautiful golden glow.
"When did you learn to do that?" Drax asked in wonder.
Naruto shrugged, "I doubt we"d understand, even if he knew. His translator isn"t here, remember?"
Almost on cue, the Dark Aster shook from taking a heavy hit, the sound of multiple dog fights outside alerting the group that the fight for Xandar had begun.
"Come on." Gamora said, "The flight deck isn"t very far from here, that"s where we"ll have split up so you can head to the observation deck."
The three nodded, all of them making their way out of the captain"s chambers. As they made the short trek, Drax spoke softly, "I want you all to know that I am grateful for your acceptance of my blunders. It is pleasing to once again have friends. You Naruto, you are my friend."
Naruto looked at Drax with his trademark smile, "Same here big guy."
Looking to Groot, Drax said, "This dumb tree, he is my friend."
"I am Groot." Said dumb try replied.
Walking closer to Gamora, Drax finished, "And this green wh.o.r.e, she is my fri-"
"Oh, will you stop!" Gamora demanded, her ire pointed directly at the grey skinned man. Turning briskly back towards the front, she continued to lead the walk towards the exit.
Blinking in confusion, Drax quickly caught up with the group, leaning into Naruto ear as he whispered loudly, "What"s the green wh.o.r.e"s problem?"
Naruto leaned in to whisper back, "Probably the calling her a green wh.o.r.e part."
The man"s confusion didn"t go away, "Is she not green?"
"Well…yeah."
Drax leaned back, a scoff on his face, "Bah, if she"s going to act like that, I don"t need her as a friend. I have the furry rodent as a friend. And Quill, the man that has slept with an A"askvariian, is my friend as well."
"Sure buddy, whatever you say."
The group went silent as they walked up to the ma.s.sive double doors, Drax and Gamora walking up to a door each before pulling them open with a heave. With a loud creak, they flew open, only for the four of them to blink as they saw dozens of Sakaaran soldiers moving about in the halls in front of them. All the insectoid soldiers stopped in the tracks, each looking at the four intruders in shock.
Naruto, Gamora, and Drax didn"t bother waiting for them to react, all three charging to the fray head first. Gamora was the first to make contact, pulling out her retractable blade as she bisected the poor man in front of her, not stopping in her movement as she kicked another with a roundhouse kick, and then finished off the combo by piercing the tip of her blade into a soldier"s skull that was too slow to even see it coming.
Drax was no different, throwing the Sakaaran"s left and right, snapping necks with a single punch, and dismembering any who got in the way of his dagger"s blade. The Destroyer did all this and more, all while giggling like a kid in a candy store.
Not wanting to miss on the action, Naruto summoned Sasuke"s chokuto from the seal positioned on his wrist, gripping the squared handle tightly as he channeled Wind Chakra into the blade. Darting into the fray, he flicked the tip of the blade along the chest of the first Sakaaran he came across. What should"ve been a simple scratch turned out to be a deep slash that nearly split it in two. Not losing his stride, he continued by slicing off the head of one and then literally disarming another, before sending a powerful kick into its other kneecap, snapping it in two and forcing the soldier to topple over in pain.
Seeing a wave of Sakaaran"s heading his way, Naruto reared his arm back before giving a mighty slash, releasing a wave of slicing wind that was shaped like a crescent moon. The soldiers weren"t given much time to think on their upcoming deaths, as the wave zoomed into them slicing each and every one of them in two.
Opening up his hand, Naruto allowed a ball of fire to combust in his palm. Running the fire over his wind incased blade, he allowed it to be swallowed up and absorbed, incasing his sword in a blazing inferno along the edge of the weapon. Giving it a testing twirl, Naruto allowed one of the Sakaarans to run up to him with a baton looking weapon in their hand. Swiftly sidestepping the strike, Naruto plunged his sword into the soldier"s midsection. Holding it there, Naruto watched as the fire along the blade covered it almost immediately, causing it to scream as its entire person was set aflame. It didn"t last long, as the intense heat quickly turned it to ash, its body crumbling to the ground in an ashy pile.
Seeing that that there weren"t any soldiers near him, he took a quick look around to see that those that weren"t fight him were a good thirty yards away on each side of the hall, all of them with their guns pointed right at him. Driving the chokuto in the ground beside him, Naruto calmly extended his arms out so his body formed a "T." Lightning Chakra enveloped his hands, the crackling energy causing every hair on his body to stand on end. Gathering the right amount he needed, Naruto said, "Chidori Senbon."
The sound of a thousand birds chirping filled the hall, quickly followed by multiple needle like lightning strikes ejecting from his lightning incased hands, each one finding itself in the soldiers down both sides of the hall. All but one.
Taking advantage of it being too distracted by the fact it actually survived, Naruto plucked his sword out of the ground and threw it like a spear into its forehead. Quickly Hiraishining to the seal stamped on the hilt of the blade, Naruto withdrew the sword before the Sakaaran began to even fall to the ground. Giving it a quick flick to get rid of as much blood as he could, Naruto resealed it.
Turing his head over to his companions, he raised an eyebrow at their bewildered expressions, "What?" He asked.
It was Gamora who answered, "You never did any of that when we fought..."
Scratching the back of his head, he asked sheepishly, "Was it a bit much?"
"A bit much?" Drax asked, "That was awesome!" He roared out before giving a bellow of a laugh, "We must do battle someday my friend, you are a true warrior indeed."
Groot gave a nod in agreement, "I am Groot."
"Enough." Gamora barked, "We don"t have time to dilly dally."
"Right." Naruto said.
"I am Groot."
Drax scoffed, "The rac.o.o.n was right, you just have to suck the joy out of everything."
Gamora didn"t bother replying, leading the group down the hall as they sprinted to their destination. After several turns, a few doors, and a handful of other Sakaaran paper people as Drax called them, they finally made their way to a giant door, "This is it." Gamora said, "Prepare for a fight."
The other three nodding, they each prepared themselves for another big battle. As Gamora tried to open the locked door, they were startled when the door seemed to open by itself. The door now open, Naruto couldn"t help but be startled at who was standing on the other side. Sporting her new arm, Nebula was equally as shocked, the two staring at each other for several seconds before the woman gave the mightiest battle cry the blonde had ever heard, pulling out a pair of lightning charged batons as she did. She was stopped however. Literally. Her body frozen midmotion, she looked at the blonde across from her in complete shock.
Naruto, his hand out in front of him, gave a goofy smile, "Magnet Release. Gotta love it." Forcing her to drop her arms at her sides, Naruto said, "After our fight a few months back, it wasn"t hard to figure out you"d been modified quite a bit, which means you"d have quite a bit of metallic s.h.i.t in you too. Now, could you please move aside? We got places to be."
"You b.a.s.t.a.r.d! I will kill you, do you hear me?! Do you he" She wasn"t allowed to finish her sentence, too busy being thrown into the wall on the other side of the room.
Gamora gave her sister a quick glance, hesitating for only a second, her attention then immediately on the ship"s controls. As she began go over the system, she said, "Alright, go ahead to the observation deck, it"s right above us."
Pointing up, Naruto asked, "Up there?"
"Correct."
Smirking, Naruto said, "Oh, I got this." His hands going through a set of hand signs, Naruto thought, "Wisdom Wolf Decay!" Opening his mouth, the blonde heaved out a stream of reddish orange gas. As soon as the gas made contact with the ceiling, it began to erode and decay. Before long, the area it touched disappeared entirely, with Naruto using Wind Chakra to disperse the gas before it could harm the three behind him.
His legs bent for the jump up, Naruto stopped at the sound of Nebula groaning awake, any injuries she gained mending with a mechanical snap. Giving a tired sigh, he raised his hand to finish the job, only for Gamora to say, "No. I"ll handle it."
Not seeing any reason why she couldn"t, Naruto nodded back as he jumped through the hole. Quickly followed by Drax and Groot, the tree man extending his arms to pull himself up, the three entered the observation deck. And there, standing before them, was the man of the hour. Ronan the Accuser.
-x-
"Woohoo!" Cried Star-Lord, piloting the Milano along the skies, swerving through lasers and ships crossing his path. Pulling off a quick barrel roll, he let loose a wave of laser fire, blasting through the Necrocraft in front of him with ease. Pulling back, he leveled himself before letting loose another blast, the lasers just barely missing the Sakaaran craft, "s.h.i.t." He cursed. Locking on again, he was about to open fire, only for the Necrocraft to get shot out of the sky, followed by Rocket zooming by in his borrowed M-Ship.
"S" the matter Quill? Losing your touch?" Rocket mocked, blasting another craft as he did, the ship blowing up in a shower of fire and metal.
Scoffing, Star-Lord said, "I"m just getting started, Rackety c.o.o.n." Chuckling at his own joke, he shot down a Necrocraft in front of him, the descending ship running right into another that happened to be under it, the two blowing up in an awesome display, "Ha! Beat that you G.o.dd.a.m.n woodland creature!"
"It"s freakin" Rocket, Star-Dunce!" After a moment of thought, and another Necromancer shot down, he asked, "And what the h.e.l.l"s a woodland creature?"
Quill was on the cusp of answering when Yondu spoke over the radio system, "I"m hit boy, I"m going down." After a few seconds of static, the man continued, "Don"t forget boy, you get us that orb, or you say goodbye to you and your friends, you hear?"
"Yeah…yeah I hear." Peter answered, his response from Yondu being static before he cut off the feed.
-x-
Nebula"s battle cry echoed through the flight deck, the woman clashing one of the batons she managed to pick up against her sister"s sword, the two clashing in a mighty duel of strength. Her muscle"s straining, she cried out, "You work for that man, sister? You disappoint more and more. The fact you need him, only shows how weak you are!"
"So says the one he nearly killed." Gamora shot back, "That man is more powerful than you could possibly imagine. I"ve seen it!" Pulling from her ma.s.sive reserves of strength, she pushed forward, shoving her sister back enough to go for another, swing.
Nebula quickly blocker it, "It doesn"t matter how powerful you say he is. He"s nothing compared to Ronan, not now. With that Stone, not even father can stand in his way."
"You don"t know that Nebula! You"re walking a path that only has one destination!" The two entered a quick dance, both trying their best to outdo the other and land a finishing blow. Their weapons clashing once again, Gamora pushed her sister back into the ship"s control panel, the blue skinned woman"s leaning back against the table as she tried to keep her sister back, "Death!"
Anger crossed Nebula"s face, the woman pulling an amazing show of strength by pushing back and flipping the two"s position, with Gamora now being the one with her back pressed against the control panel. The look of utter effort on her face showing how much she tried to press forward, Nebula looked pa.s.sed her sister for a moment to look at the panel situated behind her. Giving an utterly evil smile, she grunted, "We all have to die sometime sister." With that, she gave another heave. This time, Gamora"s arms gave way. Only, the tip of her sword didn"t find its way into her, but rather, the control panel behind them.
Desperately kicking her sister off of her, Gamora examined the panel, the display flashing a dangerous red. Turning sharply at her sister she screamed, "What have you done you fool?!"
Her smile still in place, Nebula answered, "It"s like you said sister, my path has only one destination." Her smile grew even bigger, "And now, so does everybody else"s."
-x-
"So, you"re the guy everybody"s making a big stink about huh?" Standing across from Ronan, Naruto couldn"t help but give the man an appraising look, "I thought you"d be taller, to be honest."
"And I thought you"d be bigger, Celestial." Ronan shot back, "How such a silly nickname came to be is beyond me. Though, after your little display on Zephyr, I suppose you are the closest thing to one anyone could be. Other than me of course."
Naruto snorted, "You think having that stone makes you a G.o.d? Get real buddy."
"I can kill life with just a thought. What else could I be?"
"An average Tuesday?" Naruto asked, giving a slight shrug.
"Enough of this!" Drax demand, stepping forward with his daggers drawn, "Let us end this Naruto!"
Alerted to the fact the Destroyer had charged forward, Naruto shouted, "Drax wait!"
But it was too late. Drax was already in Ronan"s personal s.p.a.ce, the man"s daggers bouncing off the Accuser"s armor uselessly. Already done with Drax"s little attack, Ronan grabbed the man"s throat in a vice like grip. Whispering softly, the Kree fanatic said, "I was mistaken. I do remember killing your family. Their screams…were pitiful. And where were you to save them?"
Drax began to beat on Ronan"s arm and body, trying his best to break the man"s grip so he could break the man, only to fail miserably, "Gagh!" Was his strangled reply.
"If you were too weak to protect them, what makes you think you"re strong enough to avenge them?" Ronan asked, a second away from snapping the man"s neck, his action stopped when he was sent flying back several yards, landing in a roll before stopping in a crouch. Ronan"s face showed nothing but annoyance as he looked at Naruto, the man holding Drax over his shoulder, "And what ma when he was sent flying back several yards, landing in a roll before stopping in a crouch, an annoyed look on his face as he looked at Naruto, the man holding Drax over his shoulder, "And what makes you strong enough to defeat me?"
Naruto disappeared in a burst of speed. Appearing next to Groot as he lied the nearly unconscious man on the ground, resting him against the wall, "Oh you know. Guts, stubbornness, and a lot of ramen. Sage, I haven"t had ramen in forever."
"Are you seriously thinking of ramen right now brat?" Kurama growled out, "This is the f.u.c.king boss fight, and you"re thinking of that disgusting dish?"
"Hey, it can"t be helped. What we should be talking about is the fact that you"ve been with me for nearly twenty-five years and you"re still shocked that I love ramen. I mean seriously guy, get with it." Naruto thought, giving a few quick stretches as he said a loud, "How about we take this outside?" In another burst of speed, Naruto appeared behind Ronan, his hand on his shoulder.
"Take your hand o-"
-x-
Rocket raced along the Xandaria skysc.r.a.pers, blasting any and all Necrocrafts that tried to divebomb the city in a desperate attempt to distract the resistance against their attack. Saving a group of civilians just in time from getting plowed into by a descending craft, Rocket looked up to see that the Dark Aster was still heading towards the surface.
Getting on the radio system connecting him and the others in his group, he shouted, "Hey Gamora, what"s taking so long, we can only hold these a.s.sholes off for so long!"
Static was his only answer for nearly a minute, and just as the rac.o.o.n thought she had lost connection, she spoke, "-ebula"s destr-ed -he control panel! The shi- -onna crash!"
"s.h.i.t." Rocket cursed, "Quill did you hear that?!"
"Yeah!" Quill answered, "That definitely wasn"t part of the plan!"
"What"re the h.e.l.l are we gonna do? The things gonna land in the middle of the freakin" city, that"s millions of people Quill!"
"I know, I know! Where"s the G.o.dd.a.m.n Nova Corps when you actually need them?!"
"Right here."
Rocket was about to answer when a squad of Star Blasters whizzed pa.s.sed him. Looking up, the rac.o.o.n gave a wicked grin as he said, "It"s about d.a.m.n time!"
Inside one of the said Star Blasters, Denarian Saal gave an annoyed eye roll, "Don"t worry squirrel, we"ll take care of the Dark Aster. If you"d be so obliged as to take care of the Necrocrafts, I"d greatly appreciate it."
Flying up to the still descending Dark Aster, hundreds of Star Blasters began to line up side by side and top to bottom. As each one began to line up evenly with each other, a golden energy began to emit from the ends of the star shaped air crafts, the energy merging with the energy next to, above, or bellow it. Before long, each and every one of the Star Blasters were connected in the golden energy, creating a giant net like barrier. Catching the Dark Aster in their ma.s.sive blockade, the ship"s descent came to a near lull.
"Blockade engaged." Saal reported.
Over the radio, the Nova Prime spoke, "Excellent work Denarian Saal, but we"re only half way done. Now we have to direct the ship safely away from the city."
"Understood ma"am."
-x-
"-ff me fool…" Ronan"s declaration trailed to a lull as the man realized he was no longer on the Dark Aster. Looking around, he quickly realized he wasn"t even on Xandar. Looking around wildly, the Accuser finally found the blonde standing several yards off to the side, the man taking off his jacket with a rather laid back look on his face, "Where have you taken me boy?!"
Opening his arms out invitingly, Naruto gave a c.o.c.ky smirk, "Welcome to Hiberlac!" The rocky landscape was the same as it ever was, the contrasting colors of the orange rocky mountain side with patches of blue foliage and purple cloudless skies made for a rather beautiful sight, in the blonde"s opinion anyway. The lack of any animals made for a rather quiet experience, not counting his echoing voice of course, "It"s been a while since I"ve visited, but it"s as beautiful as I remember her to be." Naruto patted the thick tree to his right, said tree having a Hiraishin Seal emblazoned on the bark, "Good place to go and just think, ya know?"
Ronan"s eyes narrowed, "Take me off this rock, and your death will be a quick one."
Mild surprise crossed Naruto"s face, but that was quickly taken over by one full of mischief, "You know, one of my abilities is to sense negative emotions, helps me tell when someone"s lying to my face. And you sir, just gave me one h.e.l.l of a lie. It"s practically wafting off of yo-" The blonde wasn"t allowed to finish his sentence, to busy being sent flying when Ronan used his Power Stone infused Cosmi-Rod to plow a powerful force of nearly invisible energy into his person.
Ronan watched the warrior tumble after his attack, his scowl not letting up, "Your words agitate me boy."
"Fine." The dust now settled from Naruto"s landing, the man got up as he dusted himself off, "No more banter." Flipping through a set of hand signs, Naruto said, "Water Style: Bubble Jutsu." Taking a quick breath, he blew out a gentle stream of air. It didn"t take another second before a large bubble began to spew from his lips. Before long it was the size of Naruto himself, the blonde finally relenting when it began to beat him height.
Ronan raised an annoyed eyebrow as the bubble began to slowly drift his way, "Perhaps I didn"t make myself clear." Reaching his hand out, the man extended his pointer finger out, the appendage just an inch from touching the ma.s.sive bubble, "I"m done with your games bo-"
BOOM!
As soon as Ronan"s finger burst the overly large bubble, a ma.s.sive explosion blew him away. Naruto, forced to raise his arms in order to prevent the flying debris from hitting his face, didn"t bother waiting for the smoke to clear. The power of the Six Paths Sage Mode flowing though his person, Naruto rushed into the cloud of black smoke and fire and b.u.m rushed the recovering Accuser. Sending him flying from the shoulder check, the man flying horizontally for a moment, Naruto appeared in front of him his body horizontal as well with his leg pulled back as far as it would go.
The sonic boom created from Naruto"s foot connecting with Ronan"s torso tore open the earth around them, the ground splintering and shooting up in an angry roar. Dashing next to the crater he formed, Naruto created two Shadow Clones. All three quickly began to flash though a different set of hand signs, each one finishing at the same time as the chanted, "Sage Art: Elemental Collaboration Wholesome Trinity!"
Each took a deep breath before releasing a different element. Wind, Fire, Lightning. All three forged into a trifecta of power that swallowed Ronan full resulting in an explosion, even bigger than before, with the real Naruto standing off to the side as he watched his clones" handy work.
"Quite the attack brat." Kurama complemented.
"Thanks, though there"s no way that took him down." Naruto thought, "This is just a warm up."
"You and your warm ups." The nine-tailed fox grumbled.
Naruto smirked, "Don"t act like you love it."
The Biju gave a smirk of his own, "Never said I didn"t."
The sound of clinking armor warned Naruto that Ronan was on the move, the man stepping out of the crater as he wiped the blood from the side of his face. For the most part he"d survived the barrage of attacks undamaged, though his armor had a few pieces missing like the left shoulder pad and the area around the left hip. Looking down at his cracked and broken armor, Ronan murmured, "You managed to hurt me. Congratulations." His eyes now on Naruto he said, "Not many can say they"ve accomplished such a feat."
Naruto didn"t say a word, simply looking Ronan in the eyes as prepared his next attack.
Feeling that the blonde wasn"t going to answer, Ronan spoke, "Oh, that"s right. "No more banter."" Flexing his Cosmi-Rod, the weapon miraculously remaining in his grasp the entire fight, the Kree warrior sent another wave of energy at Naruto, though this one was much more powerful, tearing up the ground in its wake as it headed for the blonde.
Dodging to the side, Naruto made for another mad dash for Ronan, only for another energy wave to be sent his way. Jumping to the left, the blonde began to go through a set of hand signs, but found himself intercepted by Ronan, the man showing a shocking amount of skill and speed by getting in his face so quickly. The Cosmi-Rod reared back over his head, the Accuser gave a mighty roar as he made to cave in Naruto"s skull with a single swing. There hammer"s head never met the blonde ninja, instead plowing into the ground.
BOOM!
-x-
Drax stirred awake with a ma.s.sive jerk, the man jumping to his feet as he looked around the room, only to find it empty minus himself and Groot. Looking to his only companion at the moment, the Destroyer said, "Stupid tree, where are Ronan and Naruto?!"
"I am Groot!"
The grey skinned man growled in anger, "I know who you are imbecile, now tell me what I want to know! Now!"
"…I am Groot."
Their conversation would have to continue at a later point however, seeing as how Korath the Pursuer and a band of Sakaaran soldier had just burst through the observation deck doors. Looking around the room, Korath shouted, "Where is Ronan and the "Celestial," Destroyer?"
It was Groot who answered, "I am Groot!"
Korath looked at Groot, clearly puzzled, "Who?"
"Enough of this nonsense!" Drax shouted, charging forward to slaughter the squad of Sakaarans in front of him, clearing looking to let out his building rage.
In his rage, he let out a roar that shook the Sakaarans armor, the men opening fire on the charging juggernaut only for the bolts of energy to bounce off the man like they were nothing. Showing no resistance at all from the onslaught of laser fire, Drax quickly took out two of the soldiers by driving his fist into their jaws hard enough to snap their necks. Slamming hands into the chest of the next to cross his path, he felt their ribs crack from the force, this being quickly followed by a donkey kick into the fourth"s groin, dropping him on the spot. Coming onto the final Sakaaran, Drax gave a hefty back hand into their temple, knocking him off his feet and into the land of unconsciousness.
Korath, who had stood behind during the entire exchange, said, "Do you really think you can kill me, Destroyer?"
Drax didn"t say a word, simply charging towards the Kree cyborg with his patented battle roar. Engaging in a quick grapple, the two were locked arm in arm when they felt a sudden jerk forward. Looking behind them, they saw that water was quickly rising through the broken observation window, quickly reaching their ankles and getting higher by the second.
Taking advantage of Korath"s distraction, Drax quickly grabbed ahold of the metallic pieces poking out of his head. His grip like a vice, he jerked with all his might. The cyborg didn"t get to say a word, simply dropping to the ground in a splat. Looking down at the still spasming corpse, Drax mumbled, "Finger to the throat means death."
"I am Groot?"
-x-
Gamora jerked forward as she felt the Dark Aster crash into the ocean near Xandaria. The two sisters were taking a short reprieve, the duo breathing ragged breaths, sweat building along their bodies, their movements now a little slower thanks to the water that was beginning to build at their feet, the water falling from the hole Naruto had created not long ago.
Feeling they"d taken long enough of a break, the sisters charged at each other at the same moment. Having lost their weapons just a few moments ago, they were forced to engage in a swift hand to hand. Fists bounced off flesh as they both tried to counter each other"s moves and move pa.s.sed each other"s counters. Having trained with each other for so long, they knew the other"s skill set pretty well, making the fight even more intense as they tried to come up with a way around the other. Finally, Gamora managed to sneak her arm around Nebula"s neck for a head lock. The attempt was thwarted by the blue skinned woman kicking her sister"s feet from under her, sending them both to the wet ground.
Gamora wasn"t letting up, even as Nebula repeatedly drove her elbow into the green woman"s side, her arm wrapped around the modified woman"s throat as she tried to choke the air out of her. Her arm shaking from the strain, Gamora gave a mighty scream as she felt the woman finally begin to let up. With one final heave, Nebula went slack in her sister"s arms, her unconscious body collapsing almost lifelessly.
Huffing in the rising water, Gamora simply lied there, her sister in her arms as she tried to catch her breath.
-x
The destruction caused by Ronan"s Power Stone melded Cosmi-Rod was truly terrifying. Awe inspiring, really. It was like an atomic bomb had gone off. The wave of purple energy swept over the mountain landscape like some kind of plague, wiping out everything in its wake like the wrath of some kind of G.o.d. If one were to be looking at Hiberlac from s.p.a.ce, they would be able to see a purple dot spread across the planet like a strange cloud, the dot swallowing only a slight chunk of the ma.s.sive orb before finally coming to a stop.
As the dust settled, Ronan"s figure broke through a cloud of smoke, his weapon of choice in hand as he looked upon the destruction he"d created, "Beautiful, isn"t it?" Looking to his right, Ronan gazed upon the glowing shape in the distance, "Your powers truly are frightening. To be able to survive such an attack is truly impressive."
Naruto slowly came into view, the first part of his Kurama Chakra Cloak activated as he glared at the Kree warrior. Deactivating the cloak, Naruto revealed that he hadn"t escaped the attack unscathed. His shirt had been ripped from his body, with several cuts and bruises that had already begun to heal littering his body, blood pouring freely from a rather nasty wound on his left shoulder. His pants were barely any better, the left pant leg torn up to his knee cap with a large chunk torn out over his right thigh.
"I didn"t expect that attack to be so big, otherwise I would"ve hightailed it out of here. I"ll be honest, you got me with that one." Naruto said. Flexing his muscles, steam began to emit from the open wounds around his body, the cuts healing at an amazing rate. After a few moments, Naruto was back to normal, rolling his left should as he said, "And it"s because of that, that I"m gonna give you this warning." In a flash of yellow light, the second part of his Kurama Chakra Cloak was activated, the cloak of chakra covering his scantily clad body.
Ronan wasn"t able to respond, seeing as how Naruto"s fist was shoved into his jaw at super-sonic speed. Blasted off his feet, the Accuser wasn"t allowed a reprieve, the blonde appearing behind his back as he sent a round house kick into his lower spine, sending him flying in a new direction, only for the ninja to appear to his right and punch him in the stomach, sending him flying in another different direction. This continued. Again, and again. Over and over. It got to the point that Ronan no longer knew where he was, just that he was somewhere in the air getting the s.h.i.t kicked out of him by a guy he couldn"t even keep up with. And just like that, it ended. Falling to the ground limply, Ronan couldn"t help but lie there for a moment, his Cosmi-Rod still in his vice like grasp, the man trying his best a.s.sess the damage done. Lifting his body up so he was on his hands and knees, he cringed as he felt a hot liquid rise up his throat. Giving a heavy heave, the Accuser began to vomit globs of blood onto the ground just below him, the life liquid splattering along the floor, the red color shining in the setting twin suns.
"I"m gonna kick your a.s.s."
His eyes drifting over to the blonde standing to his left, Ronan"s eyes narrowed as he sent a blast of energy with his hammer, the blonde disappearing just as it was about to hit him, reappearing to his right with a swift kick to his ribs, sending him back to the ground as he coughed up even more blood.
"Though, you already know that by now. Don"t you?" Naruto asked, rather nonchalantly as he looked down at the man, Ronan"s grip still as tight as ever on the Cosmi-Rod, "You"ve got quite the grip, huh? Most people would"ve let it go by now."
Huffing, spittle and specks of blood flying from his mouth from how hard he was breathing, Ronan looked up at the blonde, "I"m…not done yet. Boy." If it were possible, his grip got even tighter on the war hammer, the Kree warrior giving a mighty roar as he took a swing at Naruto, the blonde jumping back to avoid getting vaporized by it. Getting to his feet, Ronan croaked out, "I"m…the most powerful man in the universe! I"m not going to die to the likes of you! YOU HEAR ME?!" Giving a mighty roar, Ronan reared his head back as he tapped into the Power Stone, his eyes glowing a dangerous purple as his muscles bulged outwards, what remained of his armor straining from the excess. The Stone itself was glowing even brighter than before, with the hammer being enveloped in a deep purple energy. The ground underneath Ronan splintered apart, resembling a spider web as he gave his energized body a quick flex. Looking his opponent in the eye, the Kree warrior didn"t say a word.
With a crack, the sound barrier was broken as Ronan took off towards Naruto, the ground where he"d been standing collapsing in on itself. Seeing the attack coming, Naruto raised his hand up to catch the punch. When the two made contact, it was like a thunder clap, with the force of the shockwave forcing the ground to cave in.
Naruto was the first to counter, plowing his free fist into Ronan"s jaw. The sound of flesh smacking flesh rang out across the destroyed field, Naruto fist pressed up against Ronan"s cheek, the man glaring into the blonde"s eyes, looking completely unaffected by the other man"s attack. Giving a glare of his own, Naruto threw another punch, then another, and another. Over and over he punch the Kree, his fist bouncing off his face every f.u.c.king time. Giving an angry roar, Naruto formed a Rasengan in the palm of his hand and drove it into the same spot he"d been hitting.
As the gyrating ball of chakra grinded into Ronan"s face, the blonde finally let his control slip, allowing the condensed chakra to explode outwards, sending the Kree flying in a twirling motion. Giving an agitated sigh, Naruto thought, "This guy"s f.u.c.king tough, I mean f.u.c.k."
"It"s that stupid Stone. As soon as he started drawing on its power he could keep up with you. I think it"s time you use that." Kurama suggested.
Naruto scoffed, "No. That"s for when nothing else is working. My trump card to all other trump cards. I"m not gonna use it the first time s.h.i.t gets tough. Besides," Closing his eyes, Naruto activated his Six Paths Chakra Cloak, a Truth-Seeking Ball appearing and transforming into a bo staff, "I"m not even close to desperate yet."
"Is that so?"
His eyes darting to where he heard the voice, Naruto saw that Ronan had pick himself, the armor around his head now completely gone, along with most of the top half of his chest piece. Smirking, Naruto said, "Yeah, believe it."
Giving a smirk of his own, Ronan charge forward, his Cosmi-Rod pulled back for another epic swing. Waiting for him to be on top of him, Naruto disappeared just as the Kree took a baseball swing for his head. Appearing right above him, Naruto pointed his Truth-Seeking Staff at Ronan, the pole expanding and branching out, the ends of the branches as sharp as any sword. Seeing the attack coming, Ronan sent a quick blast of energy towards the incoming branches, effectively slowing them down enough for him to dodge, the branches burying their way in the place he"d been standing.
Allowing the Truth-Seeking Staff to revert back to ball form, Naruto formed a set of rotating blades around like a Rasenshuriken, the Truth-Seeking Ball having been converted into a Tailed Beast Ball. As he hocked the attack at his enemy, Naruto called out his attack, "Tailed Beast Rasenshuriken!"
Ronan, his hammer drawn back once again, swung at the incoming attack with all his might, the Cosmi-Rod in his hands enveloped in a ma.s.sive amount of energy.
BOOM!
A ma.s.sive red ball of energy shook the area like an earthquake, tornado, and hurricane all struck at one single instance. Naruto was forced to attach himself to the ground with chakra, his arms blocking the turbulent winds that whipped along the decimated mountain, well…field now. As the winds died down, Naruto looked ground zero. Even from where he was, the blonde could see it. The ever present glow of the Power Stone, the light walking closer and closer before its owner emerged from the smoke.
Naruto couldn"t help but wince at the sight before him. The once proud Ronan the Accuser was now a walking mess of a person. His once decadent Kree armor was practically gone, with just strips of it hear there, leaving the man practically naked sans the pair of pants he wore under the armor. But that wasn"t the worst part. The man"s right arm, his lead arm judging from how he wields his weapon, was gone. Blood poured from the stump, leaving a trail behind him as he limped his way to Naruto. Speaking of limping, a ma.s.sive chunk of his leg was gone as well, the bone barely visible under the large amount of blood seeping out.
Stopping just a few yards away. Ronan mumbled, "We"re ending this…now." Lifting the Cosmi-Rod with his only arm, he allowed the hammer to be encompa.s.sed by the Power Stone"s energy.
"You"re right." Naruto said. Giving a slow breath in, he raised up his hand, "Magnet Release: Faithful Attraction."
Ronan"s eyes widened in shock as he felt the Cosmi-Rod in his hand begin to pull towards Naruto, the force of the attraction pulling the Kree along, the man refusing to let go of his power. Digging his feet in the ground, he began to scream, "I will not lose my power! You won"t take it! You can"t! I am the most powerful man in the universe! After everything I"ve suffered, the family I"ve lost, I am the only one that deserves this power! Not you! Not Thanos! ME!"
As Ronan finished his tirade, his grip finally slipped, the Cosmi-Rod flying straight into Naruto"s hands. Gripping the weapon that had caused so much trouble, Naruto felt the power granted by the Stone seep into his body. Ronan, the man having fallen forward after losing his hammer, looked up as he felt all his strength leave him, the adrenalin finally wearing off and the pain seeping in. Looking at the Stone imbedded in the side of the hammer"s face, Naruto ran his finger along the gem.
His eyes on Ronan, Naruto said, "Sure, we could"ve clashed with our strongest attacks, or beaten the c.r.a.p out of each other until you eventually submitted. But this way…this way I"m showing you that I could"ve beaten you at any time I wanted." Giving a weak smile he added, "But where"s the fun in that?"
And then, with a hefty pull, Naruto palmed the Power Stone in his hand, the power of the Stone enveloping him completely, the sclera of his eyes now a deep purple, that same color flickering along the tips of his flaming cloak, similar to what happens when he holds the s.p.a.ce Stone.
Ronan, his lip quivering, demaned, "Ho-how?! You"re mortal!"
"Yeah…I am."
With one swift motion. Naruto brought the hammer down on Ronan"s skull, the Kree"s skull splitting open like a watermelon, blood spraying everywhere as the corpse collapsed. Dropping the hammer next to the now lifeless body, Naruto allowed himself to fall on his a.s.s. Remembering what he had in his hand, he gave an overdramatic sigh, lifting his a.s.s up slightly so he could get to the scroll in his hip pouch. Quickly unfurling it, he placed the Stone in the center of the seal.
Flipping through the designated number of hand signs, Naruto mumbled, "Seal."
Releasing a ma.s.sive breath, Naruto let the Six Paths Chakra Cloak fade. After a couple minutes of just sitting there, looking at the destruction he and Ronan had caused, "What a waste." He said aloud.
Getting up, Naruto searched for the Hiraishin Seal he"d placed on Drax. Getting a pin on it, the ninja allowed it to pull him towards it.
Appearing with a bit of a stumble, Naruto looked around to see he was on a beach. Looking around, he saw that the Dark Aster was now half way in the ocean, the top half of the Warship beginning to tear in half like that ship from Earth, Gigantic or t.i.tanic…whatever. Panning his eyes behind him, Naruto scratched the back of his scalp at the dozens of Nova Corps looking at him in otter shock, obviously not expecting him to just appear, especially in his state of dress. Standing amongst the Corpsman was Peter and Rocket, the s.p.a.ce bandit kneeling next to Gamora, the drenched a.s.sa.s.sin sitting on the beach with a tool wrapped around her. Lying next to the woman was her sister, the unconscious a.s.sa.s.sin looking like she"d gone through the ringer.
Sitting right next to Naruto was Drax and Groot, the two facing the seeking ship, more than likely watching it descend into the deep ocean depths. Looking up at Naruto, Groot said, "I am Groot?"
Naruto looked over at Rocket, the rac.o.o.n rolling his eyes, "He asked if it"s done."
"Yes." Drax said, "Is Ronan dead?"
Dropping down next to Drax, he gave him a pat on the shoulder, "Yup."
If anyone expected any kind of celebration, they were thoroughly let down, as everyone was too busy giving tired sighs of relief. Slowly, the crowd of Corpsman began to part, the Nova Prime Irani Rael walking out with Denarian Saal and a Centurion Naruto didn"t know.
Walking up to Naruto, Irani gave a bright, thankful smile, "I can"t thank you enough for what you"ve done, not just for Xandar, but the entire galaxy. I"m sure I can think of a better speech to give after all this madness is behind us, but for now, let me say that you are truly the Guardian of the Galaxy."
Naruto gave a sheepish smile, "Ugh thanks but…I think you got it wrong."
"Pardon?" Rael asked.
"Not "Guardian."" Naruto corrected, a playful smirk on his face as he gestured to Quill, Rocket, Gamora, Groot, and Drax. Looking each of them in the eye before he said.
"We"re the Guardians of the Galaxy."