Chapter 22 - NK
Naruto's head turns towards the sound. The fight didn't help him before to distinguish anything but now... It's faint but he can see someone strapped on one chair inside the machine wearing a suit similar to the ones some of the zombies wear. He screams again and there's blood on his arms as he tries to move away from one that's trying to move closer.
Naruto doesn't care about the pain anymore, he wills his body to move. His legs feel like jelly as he stands up and his hands tremble as he tries to grab one kunai from the five he has left inside his pouch. He jumps to the ground and falls awkwardly, shoulder meeting cold stone, before he grunts in pain.
He takes a sharp intake of breath, one step forwards, and looks up. The man has noticed him. His eyes are wide open and Naruto doesn't know if he's realized he's not a zombie. Not that he cares because apparently, his fall has caused him to distract enough for a zombie to take advantage of it and bite him on the chest.
A sense of foreboding fills him and he can't think anymore. He calls whatever chakra he has. It's Kurama's, he faintly notices. It's not enough to form his cloak but enough to make his skin glows a slight gold. His legs bend to jump but it's too late. Other zombies take a hold of his arms and keep biting him, not caring about the fire licking on their skin.
Even if the chakra surrounding his body is not enough for a cloak, his slight connection to Kurama still makes him gain the ability to feel others' emotions. It's not as profound as the time he touched Sasuke's hand but he still can sense the terror and panic. The worse is the resignation as if it doesn't surprise him to be in that situation. Deep hopelessness is inside him.
How many more, he thinks. How many more are as scared as this man?
It was stupid to think that the only things in this world were those zombies. It was stupid to ignore—Fuck, how many more? How many men, women… Are there kids outside as afraid?
Naruto knows he can't save him and even if he feels so powerless, he doesn't move. He's rooted to the ground, not moving his eyes away from the man. In the same way, the man's eyes don't leave his. He's scared and Naruto doesn't want to leave him alone.
Tears fall from his eyes but he smiles, trying to pour all the reassurance he can into that one gesture and convey how sorry he feels while his eyes flare with determination, promising help. Not to him; he's already late, but he can still help. The man opens his mouth but one bites him on the neck and gurgles are the only thing that comes from him, blood escaping from his mouth.
He waits until the man's eyes are blank before he falls to his knees. Tears keep falling and he doesn't stop them. Because they're for the man whose name he didn't know but would have liked to know. Maybe he was good, maybe he was an asshole. It doesn't matter; no one deserves to die hopeless.
He needs to find Kurama and Sasuke. He needs to return to his world. And he will, but until they meet, until they find a way to go back, he'll try to help.
- Kurama -
"I hate humans. I really, really do," Kurama grumbles lowly enough for no one to notice as he sees the discussion unfold in front of him. Sophia is still sleeping in one of the rooms and the male teenager is on the upper floor, near the stairs, listening to the conversation going on at the table. Never growing in volume, even as the intensity increases.
Perhaps it has something to do with the ability he has, he thinks. Being able to detect emotions and changes of mood can be advantageous when one needs to deal with other sentient beings because, in spite of one learning how to erase their physical responses to lie better, Kurama still knows what one truly feels.
The downside is that they can be quite overwhelming.
He has forgotten how extremely emotional human beings are even if they try to hide it—especially if they try to hide it. That's one of the primordial reasons he avoided humans when the biju were recently created and his father introduced them to others so they could create bonds. He was a good child, the kind to do whatever his father told him to do and even more. However, it wasn't the same that time. Kurama always kept his distance even when those first years his Father's idea of union worked. It just was too overwhelming being around humans. He wanted to, tried to, but... Father never mentioned it and there wasn't either disappointment in his eyes, or negative emotions coming from him; his father understood and loved him.
And then he died and everything went downhill.
The distance he maintained helped him when everything got worse and humans became more afraid of them as time passed and their height increased. They became demons in their eyes and treated them that way, giving them titles that fitted their pictures of them. Their names went forgotten until… They started coming for them.
The name of the man responsible for his capture makes the hatred dwelling inside him raise.
He can detect emotions, create them anew and induce others into feeling what he wants. He can make others feel hatred towards their kind, it could create wars with ease—his ability is the most dangerous of his brethren and was given to him because of that. However, that never stops his ability from affecting him, because, in the same way, his ability influences him, too.
It's because of his Father's trust in him to be responsible enough with this power he's never tried to do anything. And now because of Naruto, too, it seems.