Quick note: I've had to go through this chapter a few times, and rewrite a lot of the first couple of pages. I blame myself for a lot of the mistakes I've made, not the fact that I don't have a beta.

Chapter 13: The Mall, Saving the Few DEAD PT 2

xxx

Last time:

As the flames died down, Naruto turned to them. "We must move now. We don't have time for fear, or questions." He then pulled one of his pistols out, and fired at them. The bullet moved passed Asami, and hit another one of the abominations that had just moved around the corner of a restroom hallway.

"Move." He said again. Causing them all to begin following him once more. They were halfway to the West Exit, and they were growing far more afraid of their savior, than the abominations that were just like Zombies.

Now:

Hanzo sighed, as he watched a few more of 'Them' fall. 'This is getting pretty boring…' He then heard Rika's voice through the short-wave radio. "Path is clear driver. Saeko just cut down the last few." He grunted before pressing the button to reply. "Rodger. Keep it that way in the back. Moving to West Exit now." He then put the Reckoning in reverse, and kept an eye out through the mirrors.

He pushed another button, and spoke to Naruto. "You copy, Boss?" He asked, though saw another bright, fiery light in the mirror; that was inside of the mall. A few moments later, Naruto responded. "We are nearing the door. Tell Jack to be prepped, we got some old company joining the party." Hanzo responded, but paused afterwards. 'Wait a moment… What does he mean by that?'

He then relayed the message, and Jack sighed before responding. "Well, fuck. I'll keep an eye out. Rika, if you see any large skinned dogs, aim for the neck; make sure the shot destroys the spine. If any others start showing up… then only the boss can deal with them for right now." Rika responded in an affirmative, and Hanzo raised an eyebrow. "Something you not telling us Jack?"

Another sigh came from the Mummy-like man*. "If Boss says it's Old Company… We are more than likely seeing creatures from that damned cave." Hanzo's eyes, as well as everyone else's widened at that.

Naruto fired another round from his black pistol, piercing through the skull of another one of the Undead. The group still following him, and getting even more unnerved at his calm demeanor. The teenager of the group of survivors kept glancing at the back of his head, still wondering how he could shield himself from her strange power.

'It's almost like he has known others with this power… Maybe he…' She then approached him after he spoke through his small radio, though it was a few moments after he had roasted another one of those creatures. "Excuse me." She began, keeping pace with him; as well as the young officer of the group.

"I know that you have questions, young lady. You may ask them when we reach the Reckoning, where you all will be safe." She nodded, and glanced at Asami. The young officer appeared to be in confusion, and she could tell that Asami was wondering how this Teen was a part of the fabled Hayabusa. 'Maybe there are more like me, in this group?'

They then saw the exit, with only a few of 'Them' near it. Naruto stopped and sighed, before seeming to blink out of existence. He then reappeared in the same spot after a second, and continued. The Undead in the area, suddenly fell into multiple pieces. Not even a glimmer of light could tell anyone how fast he moved, or what sword slice was made first.

This made all but the young psychic shiver, and grow even more nervous. They kept moving, knowing that he was at least protecting them from the Undead. They approached the door, just as Death's Reckoning backed up with the ramp starting to lower. They also saw a teenaged girl with purple hair slicing through another one of 'Them,' and noticed that she was wearing an altered Schoolgirl outfit.

One of the group gasped, recognizing the girl, and her husband squinted to see better. "Busujima-san!" Was exclaimed in a whisper. The group then exited the mall, but Naruto stopped. "Saeko-chan. Please get these people inside, and have Shizuka-chan look at this young lady's hand. I have a few… nuisances to deal with." He then turned back into the mall, while Saeko nodded.

He gave one last command to Rika, before disappearing fully into the building. "Make sure the secondary barracks is opened for our new guests, and tell Hanzo to go ahead to the outskirts of the city. I'll be along shortly." Saeko frowned, before noticing Rika give her a nod to follow him. She then did so, before noticing Rei, and Saya moving with her.

Rei's eyes had a burning determination in them, and Saya's appeared resolute.

Souichiro frowned, as he saw his daughter follow Saeko, along with Rei. He turned his gaze to his wife, and noticed her smiling slightly. "… May I ask for the reason you're joyful? You do realize, that she could die in there, correct?" His wife glanced at him, and responded. "She is in love, Souichiro-kun. She is a big girl, and can handle herself."

He grimaced at that, or at least that is what Hanzo thought. "Damnit…" Was his only response, though it was quiet enough for only his wife to hear. She smirked at him, and placed her hands on his cheeks and giggled. "Are you so distraught that you can't play the standard Father Card, my love?" She smirked as he sweated a little. "No… But he could easily lose me my job…" He said for those around him to hear.

Hanzo chuckled, while Jack entered the bridge. "Nah, the Boss won't do that. He'd rather throw you into the sun, instead of playing some cloak and dagger shit to make your family lose pay." Jack said, which made everyone glance at him. Even the recently arrived Kagaro, raised an eyebrow.

"Are you telling me that he has a Shuttle, capable of flying close enough to the sun?" Mira asked the Mummy-like man, still feeling like she knew him from somewhere.

"Nope. He can literally throw you, hard and fast enough, to fly into the sun. He could, also very likely, blow up half of the earth… With only a snap of his fingers." This made them look at him, as though he were crazy; all except for Hanzo. "He's got a point." The driver said.

Mira turned to Hanzo, and skeptically asked what the others were thinking after those words. "What, is he a God, or something?" Rika entered the bridge while she asked that, and chuckled. "If not a God, then he is the closest thing to one." Was her response, before she turned to Jack.

"The survivors have been placed in the secondary Barracks, while the youngest is being checked by Shizuka. Cut her hand on glass, apparently. No bite marks." The gunner nodded, and turned to leave the bridge. He didn't notice how the newest members of the group were looking at them with widened eyes.

Mira frowned, and looked to Rika. "How is it possible for one man to hold such power?" She asked the sniper. Rika shrugged, before answering with another query. "How is it possible for the dead to return to life, only to feed on the living?" Rika then turned to Hanzo, as he started to drive out of the mall's parking area. "There are many questions, that neither humans, or science can explain. All we know, is that Naruto has seen the end once before. War destroyed his home, and it was against someone who tried to bring Hell onto the battlefield." She then turned away from them, heading back towards the secondary barracks, on the other side of Death's Reckoning. "He is the only known survivor." She said in parting.

Naruto walked towards the hallway that would lead to the First Floor Security, and Maintenance Center. He almost stopped, but kept walking with a sigh. "You three… You should have stayed with the others." He spoke, just loud enough for the three girls to hear. They turned the corner to the hallway he was heading towards, and kept following him.

"We aren't leaving, Naruto-kun. We decided to follow you, even if you go walking through hell." Saya huffed, after saying that. Rei, and Saeko nodded, waiting for him to either tell them to go back, or let them go with him. Saya narrowed her eyes, thinking that he would make them go back, but widened them when he just shrugged.

"Don't say that I didn't warn you. We will be heading into the Maintenance Tunnels, it will be extremely dark… and could contain things far worse than 'Them.' So be ready." He almost grimaced at allowing them to follow, but put any feelings aside. He knew that he might need their help, if what he thought was correct.

They continued for a few moments, before Naruto stopped, and sighed. "Keep your heads in the game, and don't try to fight everything down there. Move calm, and as quiet as possible. No need to waste energy with the standard grunts of this pandemic. If we find any of the other enemies, let me deal with them." He then moved again, turning down a hallway that was labeled as 'Security, and Maintenance.'

The three girls nodded, though Saya raised an eyebrow. "What other enemies?" She asked, as Naruto slapped one of the undead into a door handle. Its head caved in from the action, which made Saya, and Rei grimace.

Naruto sighed again, and stepped around one that was trying to get inside of the camera room. The noise from that room was attracting it, and he wouldn't waist energy. "Saw two, same as the low levels from that cave. It's been a little while, but I recognize them. Large, almost horse sized, skinless dog appearance… They are stronger than most humans, faster than a track runner, but just as stupid as these things." He back-handed another of the undead.

Saya frowned, but listened. "They have low level instincts, almost like a caged wild, and feral, animal. They aren't very intelligent, but are smart enough to recognize when something is better than them." He sliced through a group of three zombies that were moving towards them. Saeko smirked slightly at the three falling into multiple pieces from one attack. A blush beginning to form on her face.

The four continued down the hallway, a few turns here, and there, before coming to a door that was locked. This door was surrounded by a larger group of the undead. Rei tensed as she recognized one of them. "Mrs. Yuki…" Naruto grimaced at her tone, recognizing the sadness as a type of survivor's guilt.

He sighed, before whispering to her, a small amount of comfort, but mainly a command. "The only thing we can do for them now, is to put their souls to rest… Take the shot, Rei. We'll deal with the others." Rei hesitated for a moment, but nodded and raised her rifle. Her arms slightly shook, and the sight of the weapon jumped with the movement. The barrel was also shaking.

She sighed, before her arms stopped, and focused on her breathing. A few seconds after, she pulled the trigger. Despite the bullet moving near the speed of sound, it appeared to be slow to her. The flash was not accompanied by a roar, the weapon was silent. Yet Rei still imagined the ring of a bell, announcing to the world that someone was dying.

The others didn't notice her turmoil, as the bullet pierced through the undead woman's skull, and blew rotten flesh and grey matter all over the door. Naruto, and Saeko moved, both slicing through the undead, while Saya readied her own pistol.

The creatures were made quick work of, and only three more shots were fired into the small number of enemies. Saya's pistol was louder than Rei's weapon, but was still silent enough to not attract any more from beyond the hallway.

Naruto nodded, and turned to Rei. She was nearly as still as a statue, as her arms were shaking again. Her breathing was quick, and short, while her eyes were wide yet glazed. Naruto sighed, and approached her. "Rei-chan." He whispered, as he put his hand on her shoulder to offer support. He grimaced as he noticed her only tensing more, and fell to her knees with tears flowing like a river.

"I-I… I k-knew her. S-she was a single mother, t-that l-lived down the street from us." Rei's gasping rose a bit in speed, and her shaking picked up slightly. "H-her daughter, w-went to the school… that Ta… Takash-shi's mom works at." Saya looked down at her words, and clenched her teeth. She remembered Takashi, and still hated that their childhood friend had died.

Rei continued, ignoring the others. "S-she was… was kind, a-and helped when m-my father was… w-was nearly fired for… i-investigating the Shido f-family. I-I was h-held back a year from t-that a-asshole's son. S-Shido-sensei was a v-vile man." Naruto nodded, as did Saya, while he squeezed her shoulder slightly.

"Rei-chan." He spoke, in a tone that he remembered his own sensei once used for a civilian. "You don't need to worry, or be distraught. I'll make sure that it never happens again. I cannot stop others from falling in this sickness once infected, but I will ensure that our group makes it through this." He then kneeled, to look her in the eyes, and took his goggles off.

His eyes made her gasp. One being a blueish purple, and the other a glowing crimson. The other two also gasped, but they could tell that his eyes were conveying a warm promise to them all. Rei then hugged him, after a moment of gazing into his eyes. "I-I still believe, t-that he k-killed Takashi-kun… I-I am grateful t-that you ended him. N-Naruto-kun, pl-please promise me… Promise me, that you won't die."

Rei's voice was muffled, as it was spoken into the coat he wore, but they could still hear her desperation. Naruto sighed quietly, and wrapped his arms around her. His eyes gazing at the other two, who had moved behind her at the start of this small episode. His eyes glowed brighter when he spoke again. "I cannot promise that I won't die at some point…" He felt Rei grasp him tighter, but did not wince.

"But I promise you all, that there is nothing that can stop me right now, from living for you all." Rei grasped him even tighter after his words, and the other two could see his resolute determination. They knew that he wouldn't break his word, or that anything could make him break this promise. Saya, and Saeko, both blushed from his gaze, and his words. They felt a warmth coming from their hearts, and Saeko's new blade glowed slightly.

It felt like he was speaking directly into their souls, and Rei finally looked up from her spot against his chest. He turned his gaze to hers once more, and smiled. She felt her face heat up at the sight of this small smile. She then forced her own mouth onto his, and held his own in an intimate caress. It was desperate, and he could tell that she needed it. The other two nearly growled, but could also feel that it was needed. Saya frowned, but also felt a heat rise in her lower abdomen.

The kiss lasted for a few more seconds, before Rei pulled away from the blonde. Her eyes were clear now, though there were still a few tears in them. Her breathing was calmer as well, and her cheeks were flushed slightly. 'I love you!' She tried to convey through her eyes, as well as seeing if he would keep his promise.

Naruto nodded to her, and then stood up. "Let's get this over with, and get out of this hell hole." He spoke, while his eyes said that all of them would talk later.

A being chuckled in the darkness. The room it sat in was pitch black, the walls were made of dirt, and the chair it sat on was made of the bones of many people that tried to survive in the mall above it. The being's breathing was ragged, and sounded almost like a dying person. Its chuckle was low, and dark.

"Let us see if you are still strong enough to cause us fear. Uzumaki, the last time we saw each other, you put the fear of death into me… Can you still do that?" The voice sounded like an elder woman that was on the edge of death. The being then cackled, while starring at the doorway it had dug out for the person it wanted to meet.

"Come, Uzumaki. Come, and delve back into the darkness you nearly destroyed. You couldn't lock us away forever… All you can do now, is try to destroy us." It cackled once more, as a few of the other creatures growled, before heading towards the halls of dirt.

The group paused after entering the door. "That isn't in the plans for this mall…" Saya spoke, as they gazed at a large hole in the floor. The foundation was carved out to make a tunnel, and the only visible part was just at the beginnings of the dirt, due to the light from the mall's backup generator.

"No. It was carved out, by the same creatures I warned you of before. You can see the claw marks in the foundation stone." Naruto responded, and pointed out the marks he spoke of. "Use your flashlights, if you have them, and be warry. These beings are from before human-kind. They are basically the same types of monster you would see from tales of Ancient Greece, and Rome. Creatures that only the best of Sparta, or Demi-God's could slay."

Saya raised an eyebrow, while Saeko started to grin, and Rei sweat-dropped. "Are you telling us that those stories were real? Hercules, and others?" Saya asked.

"Yes. Those stories were true… to a certain extent. Hercules, and a few others, were the last children of the Greek Pantheon. The true last child of a Deity, however… was Jesus Christ himself. Ever since his crucifixion, the God's of every religious pantheon have agreed to never produce more Demi-Gods in this world. They have even agreed to never interfere with this world." Naruto responded.

"However, because of this, these creatures were able to escape their prison. Because the God's have taken their power from this world, these things were able to escape." He then sighed, grimacing at the words he spoke next. "The Goddess that has only ever been called Kami-sama, decided to break this rule, and called me here to try and save this world. Unfortunately, she couldn't give out details at the time."

Saya's eyes widened halfway through his explanation, and only got wider before the end of it. 'What?! Is he being serious?' She mentally screamed, feeling as if everything she had studied about recent history was a lie. 'Wait… if they are true, then… what happened to the bodies?'

"Naruto-kun… if what you said is true, then did all of the corpses of the Demi-God's go to their religions' heavens?" She asked, hoping that they wouldn't have to face an Undead Demi-God.

Naruto paused, and grimaced again. "Not all of them, the biggest sets of the ones who didn't were from Greece, Rome, China, and Japan. Christianity had only one fall, but it wasn't Jesus. His name was Reynard Brinningfield, and he was European in origin. His mother was a devout follower of the God known as Yahweh, or Jehovah as some prefer. He broke the rule about more offspring three times. The first was a Dhampir who went on to create the most famous Vampire Hunter family, the second went on to become a pope. The final, however, was a set of twins."

He paused for a few seconds. "They were named Wang, and Reynard. They were born at the end of 1989, to a Jennifer Brinningfield. Wang went on to follow his father's path… Reynard, however, fell into the same trap that all divine twins do. One will become the hope, and light of a certain path… while the other… will fall into darkness and become a monster. He is now known as Ray"

Saya gulped slightly, before she moved toward the tunnel. The others followed her, and Rei turned on the flashlight that was mounted to her rifle. Naruto however pulled a scroll out of his belt, and from it, summoned a torch that he lit with a small application of Fire Natured Chakra.

"This is where we walk into the darkness, and we fight against monsters that haven't been seen foe hundreds of years outside of one village, and two people. Do be careful, you three… I smell something that I never liked since I met it." Naruto warned them. "Let's go."

Xxx

Alrighty-then! Here it is. The final part of the last chapter. Yay! Woohoo! Now I'm going to say this to everybody right now. I have been having issues with my vision for the past 14-15 months, and the fucking big shot eye doctors don't really know what they're fucking talking about. So, I need to go talk to my primary eye doctor and get a pair of Prescription Glasses. I will say this now. Type-1 Diabetes sucks. Especially when you get to the lower and mid-twenties in age. It would have been nice if the damned idiots in Medical Care would have told me about this shit twenty fucking years ago! But no, they don't tell you shit until it happens. I've delt 76% of my current life with this shit, I can tell you now.

IT! FUCKING! SUCKS! MAJOR! GOAT! BALLS!

Anywhoses, enough with the rambling. The next chapter could be a little while, between writing, playing games, watching movies, and reading, all with deteriorating eyesight from extra blood vessels makes it hard.

I hope to fix that soon. Until next time, on Dragon-Ba, Wait! Lucifer Damnit! WRONG FUCKING SHOW!

Later everybody.