Opening his eyes, Naruto took a deep
breath as his eyes took in the dull, flashing red of the warning
lights. They were approaching the surface of the planet. The young
blonde looked to his companions with a smirk. For a few moments, he
lamented the fact that at the moment he was here, about to leap into
the unknown, instead of back home, working toward becoming the
Hokage. But that only lasted about ten seconds before he remembered
just why he wasn't. “Hey Tin-Man, you ready for a fight?” he
asked, turning toward the yellow robot, who was at the moment placing
his head upon his shoulders.
“Naruto, please refrain from
referring to the robot as 'Tin-man,” the mechanical figure replied.
Naruto wasn't sure how a machine could sound annoyed, but being from
the world his new companions called 'Legend,' the blonde ninja wasn't
well versed in the technology of the off-worlders. “I am neither
made of Tin, nor am I a 'man' in any biological sense.”
“Relax, Bucket,” Val said. Naruto
looked at the team medic as she spoke. Valerie 'Val' Wolski. Word
among the rest of the hunters was that she was a spy. However, all
the ninja had learned so far was that the young woman was a great
fighter, and a great healer as well. She knew her way around a
medgun. Good thing too. The training simulations were brutal, and if
what the colony records stated were true, these...things they were
going after were just as brutal, if not more. “It's just a
nickname,” She continued as she ran a last minute check on her
medgun. She'd need it. Naruto had refused to wear a jet-pack...or a
parachute. She had never been to Legend. Nobody had for nearly a
century. Just going there to recruit meant Cabot had broken nearly a
dozen galactic laws. The place was called Legend for a reason. It was
a forbidden world. No records. Only rumors. But if Naruto was an
example of the people there, she thought she might know why it was
forbidden. The people there were totally insane.
“I'm aware of the implications,”
came the robotic rebuttal. Bucket was the ship's computer, placed
within a modified repair-drone chassis to act as a support fighter
for the team. He was one of the first off-worlders Naruto had met
when Cabot had come to his planet, and thus the blonde was more
comfortable speaking with him than the others, despite his coldness
at times. “I was merely remarking upon the inaccuracies of it.
Nothing more.” Naruto rolled his eyes. If the robot would have had
an ass, the blonde shinobi was sure there would have been a massive
stick shoved up it. Despite his disdain for their reliance on tech,
Naruto still slipped an emergency pistol into the holster on his hip,
before strapping a Combat Shotgun, generously given to him by
Parnell, to his back. He would have shrugged off the personal shield
generator, as he was told he would have to use it sparingly anyway
due to it needing to recharge periodically. However, he figured he
should at least make some concessions.
After all, Cabot was his boss for the time being, and had made him
the first shinobi ever to leave the planet.
Turning to the
final two members of the current drop squad, Naruto began to
furiously pet the trained Trapjaw companion owned by the Trapper,
Maggie. “What do you think, Daisy?” Naruto asked, chuckling when
the dog-like animal began to lick his face affectionately. “Should
Bucket lighten up?” Cocking her head and letting out a small whine,
the Trapjaw just went back to licking the shinobi. “I'll take that
as a yes.”
“You sure you
don't want a parachute, at least?” Maggie asked, beginning to ready
herself for the jump and subsequent drop. “It's a long way down.”
Naruto just smiled, before gripping the rail near him, preparing to
make the leap himself. Maggie was a woman of few words. She came off
as cold, and abrasive. But Naruto knew it was an act. Beneath that
rock hard exterior was a kind, compassionate person. There had to be,
with the way she doted on that Trapjaw of hers.
“I'll manage,”
he replied. Val just shook her head and sighed.
“I
get the feeling you're going to make my job more difficult than that
monster down there,” she said as the locks disengaged on the bay
doors, which opened up revealing what was indeed a very
high drop. Naruto just made a face, sticking his tongue out at the
combat medic, before taking a flying leap, turning backwards in
midair to give the others a quick, cocky salute before gravity took
hold. The other hunters wasted no time in exiting the drop-ship as
well.
They watched as the
blonde plummeted, nothing to slow his fall. Val flinched as she
watched him grow nearer and nearer to the ground. Even Daisy averted
her gaze so as not to watch the splat. Naruto though began to channel
chakra into his arms and legs, using it to strengthen his muscles and
bones and absorb the shock. His landing on all fours shattered the
platform beneath his feet, putting a dent and numerous cracks in the
structure as he slammed down with great force. He was standing by the
time the others gently descended to his level.
“Holy shit,
Blondie,” exclaimed Maggie, taken aback by the casual way Naruto
had shaken off the impact. “When Cabot said he got us a ringer, I
was a bit skeptical...especially considering your age...I just hope
you're capable of taking a hit from this Goliath like you took
hitting the ground.” Naruto just rubbed the back of his head.
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