//------------------------------// // Chapter 7 // Story: Shinobi of Equestria // by Fan of Fanfics //------------------------------// Hey everyone! FINALLY got a chapter out. It's short, but it at least resolves the deal with the bits from last chapter lol. Hope everyone enjoys. Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto nor do I own MLP:FIM Princess Luna yawned as she rose from her bed, dashing the blankets from her body. She moved toward the window and looked out at the orange sunset. It was near time for the nightly raising of the moon. Making sure she looked perfect, as was befitting a royal, she groggily opened her door and stepped out into the halls of the palace. Her destination was the north tower, which was much taller than all the others, giving not only the closest location to the sky without flying, but also giving the best view. Rounding a corner, she came to a halt as she nearly bumped into the human-turned-unicorn Gaara. “My apologies, Princess,” he announced in that same quiet monotone. “I should have been watching where I was going.” A blush adorned Luna's cheeks, though Gaara didn't seem to notice. “No harm done, Lord Kazekage,” the Alicorn replied, trying to keep to formalities, but Gaara seemed disinterested. “While I was Kazekage to my village, that title is meaningless here. I would prefer to be addressed by my name, if you would.” Luna just nodded, not able to will herself to speak. Gaara continued. “I take it you are going to raise the moon?” Again, Luna nodded, but this time found her courage. “Would you care to join me?” she blurted out. “You have claimed that you dare not sleep, and I am quite lonely.” Her eyes widened as Gaara's eyebrow quirked and she realized exactly how that sounded. “That is to say, I could use a bit of company besides my night guard. Most of the ponies around here sleep at night, except sister on occasion.” The unicorn's expression was, as usual, unreadable, before he answered. “Alright,” he replied, turning around to the direction the Princess was headed, falling in stride to walk next to the alicorn, whose face was practically glowing. Neither noticed the strange, black fog that seemed to manifest itself from the shadows, before drifting out a nearby window. “So...Gaara,” Luna began, trying to make conversation. “Has your stay in the castle been pleasant thus far?” “It is different, I admit,” he replied. “My villagers are a desert people. I am not used to Canterlot. Or Equestria in general.” Luna's smile faltered for a moment, before Gaara continued. “But I must also admit, I enjoy the more peaceful atmosphere of Equestria as compared to the Nations. Perhaps when this mess with Akatsuki is done and over with, I will keep my position as ambassador. I know first hand the things that my world can turn its people into. Insanity is sometimes our only escape...this place is paradise in comparison.” The Night Princess let loose a sigh of relief. So Gaara did indeed like it in Equestria. The Kazekage noticed this sigh and voiced what Luna believed was whatever form of concern he could manage. “Is anything the matter?” he asked simply. Luna laughed nervously. Had Gaara known her better, he would have realized how uncharacteristic of her it seemed. “I've just not fully woken yet,” she lied. “For most ponies, this is a time of preparation for sleep. For myself, however, it is instead time to awaken.” Gaara nodded, though he didn't fully comprehend the mechanics of sleep, due to his aversion to it. He however did recognize that there were some who simply were not 'morning people.' That is to say, those who were groggy and even irate after waking. He dealt with plenty of that from Temari, even more so when she realized he was unlikely to kill her for it. At least Luna cared enough about her appearance to do something about her bed-head. They scaled the staircase to the top of the tower, stepping out into the open dusk. Gaara had never seen the moon-raising before, and had to admit he was legitimately interested. The forces of nature here were controlled by the ponies here, and that intrigued him, because that possibility in some ways showed that the ponies potentially had more power than shinobi. Control over the sun or moon were no laughing matter, and given that the ponies kept their abilities in the Nations and vice versa, if for some reason conflict would break out between worlds, the Princesses alone could potentially wipe out most humans in the world. Luna eyed the unicorn and took a deep breath, hoping to impress Gaara with this. Flying to a spot above the tower, her eyes and horn glowed and her entire body was covered in an enchanting aura. Out on the horizon, Gaara watched amazed as the moon began to be pulled into the sky above. His horn began to glow as sand began to zip around his body. It wasn't Shukaku either. As she descended back to the roof, she took note of the still emotionless Gaara and his sand. Blushing, the alicorn just smiled, sheepishly. x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x Naruto had easily managed to give Applejack the slip. He didn't even need his clones. Just a few good leaps to the rooftops had him slipping around Ponyville with ease. It was ridiculous for him to have had to do that of course, and had Applejack not needed to be awake early, he was certain the mare would have continued the chase throughout the night. Element of Honesty his hoof. More like Element of Stubbornness. He decided to play it safe and sleep outside that night. It didn't bother him, and he could just lay around on the roof he was on, stargazing. As his eyes began to slip closed, he didn't notice the lone, stray storm cloud inching closer and closer to the spot above his head. Nor did he notice the rainbow-maned mare peaking out from behind it, a practically evil grin plastered on her face. The blonde sputtered as he was hit with what could only be described as a torrential downpour. And hit right in the face, at that. Looking skyward, he spied Rainbow Dash on top of the cloud, laying on her back and laughing up a storm. “HAHAHA!” she bellowed, wiping a stray tear. “Sorry Naruto,” she wheezed. “Applejack totally dared me. But the look on your face was just awesome!” She looked back down at the stallion and laughed even more at his soaked, deadpan stare. Because of her laughter, she didn't see the blank look become a twisted grin, and also missed the swirling blue mass appearing in his hoof. Channeling his chakra into his legs, he pounced. Dash made a severe mistake keeping her cloud lower to increase her accuracy. Rainbow Dash suddenly stopped laughing as the cloud she was on began to shake, before starting to spin. Had she thought about it, she would have just flown off, but unfortunately for Dashie, she didn't think fast enough this time. “Woahoahoahoah!” she shouted. “I! Think! I'm! Gonna! Be! Sick!” As Naruto descended back to the roof, the cloud began to spin slower and slower, eventually resembling an ice-cream cone, with bits of rainbow mane sticking out like sprinkles. The cloud poofed away as Dash shook herself, trying to regain her bearings. Her vision was still spinning, so she decided to move to ground level. Bad move. Naruto winced as his friend crashed into the roof, not five feet from him, still dizzy as ever. She stood up, a bit wobbly at first, shaking her head to try and throw off the shock and dizziness. “So, Applejack dared you, huh?” Naruto said with a chuckle. “That stubborn mare will not learn, will she? I've told her, I'll only accept what we agreed upon, and no more.” “Why don't you just take the bits?” Dash asked, finally achieving stability on her hooves. “She's the element of honesty. If she thinks you're not getting your fair share, she's not gonna stop until you do.” Naruto scoffed. “She's got to give in eventually,” he reasoned, but Dash just snorted in reply. “Trust me. She will not give up until those bits are in your hooves. You may be one tough stallion, but the only one I know that could out-stubborn a mule is AJ,” she said, staring blankly at shinobi as he gave her an incredulous look. Finally, the orange stallion shook his head with a sigh. “Whatever. I'll deal with it tomorrow. But I need to be up to visit Pinkie Pie tomorrow. I promised her I'd come taste her new recipes. So if you wouldn't mind keeping the skies clear, so I can get some sleep?” Rainbow Dash smiled sheepishly. “Yeah, sorry...um, before you go to sleep, could you do one more thing for me?” Naruto raised an eyebrow as in a multicolored blur, Dash shot off and quickly returned with another small cloud, sitting on top with her wings outstretched, looking at Naruto hopefully. The stallion smiled, forming another Rasengan. The late night crowd looked up to see the rainbow-maned pony flying in an arch overhead, shouting what sounded something like, “THISSSS ISSSSSS AWESOMEEEEEEE!” x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x Morning had come even sooner than he thought, and the first thing he saw when he woke up? Was a hat, and a pair of green eyes. He didn't have time to think of how she found him, he pushed the bits back to the mare, and took off in a cloud of dust. He knew she was hot on his trail, well, if the yells of 'Get back here!' were any indication. As zipped around a corner, a light bulb lit up above his head. Applejack slid to a stop. Her green eyes glanced around. She was near Carousel Boutique, and she saw her target fly by here. That stubborn stallion! If he would just pony up and take the bits, she wouldn't have to chase him all over Ponyville. Then her eyes caught a glimpse of movement, but before she could give chase, she saw Naruto leaping from rooftop to rooftop. “Oh no ya don't!” She began to run, only for Naruto to leap over her head. She looked all around her, and saw several Naruto's doing various things. “...uh, did I get enough sleep?” She shook the thought from her head, remembering his ability to copy himself, and decided to give chase. One of them had to be the real one. x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x Inside Sugarcube Corner, Naruto watched as Applejack galloped by the window. He wiped the sweat from his face with a sigh. Didn't that stubborn mare ever give up? He quickly ducked his head as he saw Applejack run by again, and she was hot on the tail of one of his clones. That'll keep her busy... “...looks like she's having fun.” A voice whispered in his ear, and he quickly paled. He slowly glanced back, only to see Pinkie right next to him. She quickly poked her head out of the window. “Come on, girl! Catch him!” Naruto paled even more, and quickly ducked back down as Applejack turned their way. “Shh!!” Naruto shushed, then walked towards the counter. When it looked like Applejack wasn't gonna burst down the door to forcefully give him the bits, Naruto breathed out a sigh of relief. “So, what's this new recipe?” Naruto looked back to Pinkie, only to see her missing. He quickly paled again as a voice entered his ear. “Let's see! I know it's around here... somewhere.” “Ah!” Naruto leapt back, and saw Pinkie was already in the kitchen. “How do you...” Pinkie placed several cakes onto the counter. It was faster than Naruto could keep up with. “Alright! First up is this gorgeous looking thing. Look at her shake her stuff!” Naruto looked at the cake, and indeed it was jiggling. He also wondered where Pinkie got that microphone. “Say 'ello to the.... marshmallow cake!” She indicated the pure white cake before him. He gulped. The cake had yellow icing covering the side. To him, it looked good. But it was Pinkie that made it... With a sigh, he bit into the cake. Only for his eyes to widen. He pulled back, only for a marshmallow string to follow him. And before he could blink, he was whipped back into the cake. “Hehehe.” Pinkie poked the white stuff that now covered Naruto, who found it hard to talk. “Hmmm! Yep. One too many marshmallows.” She placed a hoof to her chin, and whispered to herself. “Perhaps ten bags were a tad too much. Maybe more love next time... ooh, or maybe, just maybe... I should add a banana to it.” “...” Naruto mumbled. He opened his mouth, but the marshmallows kept it glued closed. His eyes narrowed at Pinkie, but that smile... he sighed. He couldn't stay mad at her. But, he was currently stuck on the counter. Maybe Konohamaru would just happen to be walking by and notice his predicament? Nah, with what he pulled earlier, the young Sarutobi would leave him to his marshmallow-y death. “Mmmmmhssminf,” he tried to say. Apparently that was mouth-full speak for, “Pinkie Pie, help me.” The Pink Mare just giggled, unable to understand him. She merely took it as him liking her new confectionery masterpiece. She was partly right. Naruto couldn't deny it was delicious. Though to be fair, he had more pressing matters to deal with, such as his inability to break away from the giant ball of marshmallow. “Hey,” Pinkie said. “Save some for me!” Opening her mouth impossibly wide, she took a great bite of her invention. It wasn't until she tried to pull back that she realized Naruto's predicament. She tried her hardest to break free, but like a sling-shot, was rocketed forward into the stallion, sending them both flying into the back wall, crashing and falling to the floor as the pots and pans hanging from the rack on the wall collapsed onto them. “Hmmmm,” Naruto groaned, mouth still glued shut. Opening his eyes, they shot open far wider and faster when he realized his mouth was now stuck to not only a hunk of cake, but to Pinkie Pie's mouth as well, their lips bound by the sticky treat. Despite being a pony, Naruto was still very much a male, but found it very uncomfortable kissing his pony friend. It was just so...awkward. Granted, not the most awkward kiss of his life, but definitely up there. Blushing, he tried to pull apart from Pinkie Pie, who was try to speak, though muffled by both the cake and his own mouth. Despite her pink coat, there was a very distinct blush upon the mare's cheeks as well. Looking each other in the eyes, Naruto banged his hoof on the floor three times, to which Pinkie responded with a blink. It wasn't too hard to figure out what he was getting at. Again, he knocked on the floor, once, twice, and on the third time, each pulled themselves as far apart as possible, stretching the marshmallow until it threatened to finally come apart. Unfortunately, it couldn't back up those threats, as again, the cake snapped back, slamming the two's lips together and causing them to collapse on the floor, Pinkie on top of the now severely dazed Naruto. As he shook his head, and by extension Pinkie Pie's as well, he began to hear what sounded like suppressed giggling. The two shifted their eyes to the door, where both Rarity and Applejack had entered, giggling like school-fillies at their predicament. “Well look what we got here,” the farm mare said, still laughing, despite a slight blush on her own face. “He went from a Shinobi, to a Pony, and now looks like he's a little love-bird.” Naruto's blush deepened and he tried to speak, but all that came out still was unrecognizable muffled noise. “They do look rather...sweet together,” joked Rarity. First it was Konohamaru and her sister to poke fun at, and now this. She'd never let the shinobi live it down. Applejack leaned in closely to speak. “I can get y'all out of this, but you'll have to take those bits I owe you.” Naruto growled, but begrudgingly nodded. He just wanted out of this situation as quickly as possible, despite the hit to his pride. Nodding to Rarity, Applejack moved behind Naruto, throwing a lasso around his waist. The fashionista on the other hand levitated Pinkie with her magic. “On the count of three,” Applejack announced. “One, two, THREE!” Pulling with all her might, as well as with help from Naruto, Applejack tried to free the stuck blonde from Pinkie Pie, who was being telekinetically forced back by Rarity. After what in mere seconds felt like eternity, the Marshmallow holding the two together finally came apart, flinging Naruto and Pinkie Pie across the room for the third time that morning. Luckily, at least this time, they were separate. Unfortunately, the problem then became how to get rid of the marshmallows in their mouth, the bizarrely sticky thing keeping Naruto and Pinkie Pie's mouths stuck shut now, rather than too each other. Amazingly enough, Pinkie actually had the solution for that one. Naruto suddenly found his mouth wedged open by a funnel, watching as Pinkie Pie dumped...hot chocolate in his mouth? She poured in quite a bit before guzzling some herself. It did its job, easily melting the sticky mess and freeing their jaws. Gasping, they each collapsed on the floor. “Oh yeah,” Pinkie said as Applejack dropped the bits in front of him before leaving, her mission finally accomplished. As long as she or Rarity kept this a secret from Konohamaru, Naruto would begrudgingly take them. “Definitely need to add a banana to that cake...Banana-Marshmallow goodness.” As she licked her lips, seemingly having forgotten the whole ordeal, Naruto just stared at her in a combination of confusion, and acceptance. Rolling his eyes, he dropped back to the floor.