Chapter Text
May I Present?!
A Dramatic Telling!
One where the stars aligned!
Is it the truth?
Or is it a mere fabrication that I have masterfully woven?
My dear audience, you are my witness to this tale about myself!
And the person who rescued me from my deepest sorrow.
Where am I?
Everything was so dark. Hazy. He couldn't make out a thing!
And it was so heavy! It felt like a heavy weight lay on his chest! It was as if the air around him was holding him down. It wasn't as intense as the gravitational pull she had placed upon them, but it was noticeable. He was tired.
He could move. Not well, but he could. Huh? My… Ah, that's right. Lost my arm fighting Sasuke. …Hm? Where is he?
He could make out several lumpy figures despite the hazy darkness around him. Somewhere shadowy. Some were translucent. Others were… Glowing blue crabs? What in the world? Wait a second…
Am I floating?! Am I in water… and breathing?! I have so many questions! The prevailing one is how?!
And where am I? I was not underwater when I last checked! Naruto’s senses came alive, his irises turning golden as the wrinkles beneath his eyes shaded orange. He took in his surroundings despite his exhaustion, closing his eyes and reaching out around him. However, he did not like what he was reading. Huh?! What is this? Where the hell am I? I don't sense anyone I know around!
Once he had a sense of his bearings and orientated himself, Naruto swam to the ocean’s surface. Taking in the serenity of the view, he calmly floated as he recounted what had happened. Okay, the last thing I remember… was Sasuke and I were lying in the remains of the Valley of the End. I didn't hear him say it… I know something changed inside him. But if I'm not there…
Wherever he had ended up, he needed to find his way back. That much was obvious. He wouldn’t know if the change in Sasuke would stick without ‘em present. He had to see it through until the end.
“Hey, Kurama?” Naruto openly spoke to his partner, unworried about whether anyone had overheard him or not. No one was nearby anyway; he honestly didn't care, even if they were. He was absorbed in his situation. “You have any ideas about where we are? I can't sense anyone at all! Barely got any chakra to use, and… hey, buddy? You there?”
After an entire moment without a response, Naruto scrunched his face. While he hadn't been on excellent terms with the Nine-Tails until recently, he filtered kindred spirit with him. So for him not to answer…
Clearing his mind, he searched within for his presence. Exhaling, the sweat building on his brow evaporated. He was there… he was just sleeping.
“Forgot how much all this took out of you… You gave just as much as I did.” Naruto muttered in relief before chuckling. “Take all the time you need to rest. I got this.”
“Now, let's figure out where I am.” Naruto frowned as he gazed over the sea and waded within. Thankfully, the currents were calm, so he could just tread water. Didn't want to burn chakra unnecessarily. He still felt like he was on fumes…
“Yet all my wounds are mysteriously healed.” Naruto scowled before wincing upon glancing down and seeing his arm drifting in the salty seawater, blood still seeping into the water. “Most of them anyway… I wonder if I can try and regenerate it once I recover enough of that chakra?”
Sighing, taking his mind from that thought. At the moment, his standard chakra supply was running dry… That one wasn’t gonna be ready any time soon… Shaking his head at that thought, he looked around to see what was nearby. He saw what looked to be a land mass nearby. One on each side. Was he in a channel?
But something peculiar caught his attention. He squinted toward the landmass on his left. There was a massive bridge connected to it and led… To… Was that a city?
“Fancy city…” Naruto muttered, slowly wading toward it tiredly. “Ugh, this is gonna take forever…”
“Hey! Are you okay over there?!” A voice echoed from behind, stopping Naruto and causing him to drift and turn slowly in the water.
To see a large boat slowly approaching in his general direction. How did he not sense them coming? He was tired, sure… And nearly out of chakra… And really focused on getting to the city…
Naruto scowled momentarily, seeing a young, extravagantly dressed blonde woman standing on a boat's deck and waving at him. Maybe sneaking up on him was a little easier than he thought. Shaking that thought off, he waved with his left. “Could use a ride… Really tired here.”
“Sure thing! Must be out on a late adventure! Silver, pull the ship closer to help our dear friend out, would you?” The woman warmly greeted Naruto as the ship began to drift closer. She reached for him as an elderly man with silver hair stepped beside her. “Don’t worry, Melus, I can handle this… Get the medical kit immediately!”
“It’s not that bad… Oh, I’m in a pool of my own blood.” Naruto began before grimacing. He had been so self-absorbed he had not noticed the crimson stain of water around him. “Yeah… Now it makes sense why I am so tired… Been losing a lot of blood.”
“If I remember what Sakura told me, I think it has something to do with how salt water cleans wounds?”
It was a lonely night. She had just watched the most fantastical play in the Opera Epiclese. Ah, she was only but a moment away from participating in the play! She must have the script! It needed several improvements, and it would be genuinely magnificent!
She was not prepared to return to the Palais Mermonia. She was not ready to call it a night, so she separated from her entourage and stayed late to chat with the cast and play members to learn more about the tale. It was wonderful! But alas, it was not to last. She had a full schedule tomorrow with meetings with her adoring fans and the people of her nation that she desperately cared for.
She wished she was alone… But Neuvillette hardly allowed her to be unguarded. She was the Archon, after all. The only alone time she had was in her quarters… Or when she requested time alone when she needed a moment.
“Ah, I have a meeting with Zuria penned in for tomorrow.” Furina pursed her lips with a pen, looking down at a notebook filled with her scribblings, glad that Clorinde was ignoring her murmurings. Softly smiling, glancing up and over the edge of the ferryboat she traveled upon, looking upon the oceans of her grand nation. With a somber glisten in her eyes, she sighed as she glanced upon a boat in the harbor and hung her head. “I must ask her about Lescot’s health.”
“Loneliness Syndrome, huh?” Furina blankly stared at the notes she had written before closing it, looking onto the ocean she had watched rise for five hundred years. “Such a terrible fate… Yet here I stand, alone, with no recourse to turn back the tides. Swallowed by the tidal waves of despair and regret as hope fades and my people die.”
“When will this end? When will I be left by my lonesome to sit on my tear-stained throne with no one besides me?”
He had not anticipated waking up in the morning in a small fishing town in a swampy oasis in a crater… And to wake up in a ship at its base! That was pretty interesting!
Naruto could tell it was morning, even if the light within the town was low and self-sufficient. People were out in front of stands, selling fish and random junk… He honestly couldn’t make out what it was they were selling… He could even see the two servants of the fancy lady patrolling through the town on the rickety bridges… Really could use a fix there.
“Well, better get started on figuring out where I am,” Naruto muttered, grimacing as his right bandaged stub moved and his body autonomously attempted to run his hand through his hair. “Ugh, that’s gonna be annoying for a while… Can’t wait for that power to regenerate.”
“Or get some new clothes…” Naruto squinted, looking at how shabby and torn his gear was. Not that it was to be unexpected. He had been fighting for several days, but a sigh escaped him. “I love my outfit, but when trashed up like this and with no idea where the heck I am… Gonna need something different for a while.”
“Wait!” Naruto stumbled forward as he heard the elegant blonde’s voice call out to him, attempting to stop him. Turning toward her, she came to a stop, panting before him. “You should still be resting! After losing so much blood, there is no way you should be up on your own! The doctor I called in from Fontaine hasn’t even arrived to check you out yet!”
Smiling warmly at the young woman, Naruto lightly chuckled but shook his head. “I thank you for what you have done, but I’m good now. Trust me. A good night’s sleep was all I needed to close up that wound. So I’m good to go now, see?” Naruto patted his right arm with a grin, having felt it patched up after their work and Kurama’s chakra instinctively working through the night when he woke up.
Naruto looked mildly amused at her shock as her crystal blue eyes widened. His regenerative abilities have shocked many people over the years. It never got old. But he didn’t have time to soak in the surprise, for he had more important matters, so with a sigh, he shook his head. “Besides, regardless, even if I wasn’t in the best of conditions, I can move, I gotta go. I need to figure out where I am and get back home.”
“Get back home?” She blinked several times, a frown slowly creeping onto her expression. Crossing her arms over her chest, her eyes narrowed. “So when we found you, you are telling me you don’t know how you ended up in the middle of Fontaine?”
“I just learned the name of this place, so thank you!” Naruto quipped, placing a hand on his hips. “A lot of things happened before, and some of that is hazy… but none of that would have led to me waking up and breathing at the bottom of the sea. I had to orientate myself and swim to the surface, and well, you kind of found me from there!”
Her step stuttered, and her eyes went wide as her hands dropped. Naruto wasn’t surprised as he still wasn’t sure how he arrived here but suddenly glistened as her eyes darted over him as if she was studying him. It was almost unnerving… “You were breathing under the ocean… Without a Vision?”
“Huh? Is that special?” Naruto pursed his lips in confusion. He had thought it was just something special about the water here…
“Never mind about that! Will circle back to it!” She snapped her fingers, her eyes sparkling intently. “You said you didn’t recognize where you are but weren’t doing anything that would have led to you being somewhere you shouldn’t be?”
“Well, it shouldn’t have.” Naruto lifted his left hand and rubbed the back of his neck, tilting his head awkwardly at the woman. It was almost like she was trying to solve a mystery. So perhaps this was someone that could help him… Or had the resources to do so, given her attire. “Can’t count out the possibility. There was a lot of crazy stuff happening, but mostly, everything had been settled by then. We were back in our world, and the dimension-hopping had long since ceased…”
“Dimension-hopping?!” The elegant woman nearly choked, startled at Naruto’s revelation. Her eyes then sparkled more brilliantly and with far more vigor than before. “Okay, you must start from the beginning! I was already considering taking your case when Melus patched your wound, but now, assuredly, the Spina di Rosula is on the case!”
“Oh, where are my manners? I am Navia!” Navia presented herself and placed her hand on her hip with pride. “Now, let's come inside and discuss your current predicament and how we may be able to assist you!”
It was strange… Her appointment with Zuria was now. So where was she?
Sitting upon her lavish loveseat, Furina looked despondent. It was not often that she stood up. She could not recall the last time someone had missed a meeting with her. Even if someone became sick, they still made it, and she excused them and rescheduled a vacancy with them. She did not want any of her people to feel unwelcome. It was her job to make them feel she was their Archon. It was her role, after all. She would play it to the very end.
So, for someone to not arrive at a scheduled meeting… Something was wrong. And it worried her.
A knock on her door had perked up immediately. Perhaps she was just late? Maybe she had to stay longer for her son alongside their doctor to help with his condition…
“Come in.”
“Please forgive me. ” A voice she was not expecting spoke and entered her chambers. “I know it was not who you were expecting. I come bearing ill news.”
“Neuvillette?” Furina’s eyes glimmered before her head shrunk, gazing up weakly at the Iudex. “Ill news you say… Dare I ask what has happened for you to come to me to deliver such woeful omens?”
“It has to do with your daily visits with the people, I’m afraid. With Zuria in particular.” Neuvillette stood before her purposely. While his tone was dutiful, a sense of regret was sensed within. “I wish this information had arrived sooner, and I sincerely apologize… She will not be arriving, I’m afraid. This morning, as she slept, her son made his way to the channel… His body was found shortly after she woke.”
Furina’s body tensed at his words. Tears welled with her ducts. She closed her eyes and turned her away before she slumped forward. “I see… Could you—cancel the rest of my appointments for the day? I will reschedule them as soon as possible.”
“It’s already been done.” Neuvillette nodded, gazing upon the sullen Archon. “The rest of your schedule for the evening has been cleared, and the receptionist is working on rescheduling your appointments. Focusing on your well-being is paramount. Your people will understand.”
“Thank you.” Furina forced a modest smile up for Neuvillette for hanging her head. She then stood up, approaching the door with a hitch in step. “I have a lot on my mind…”
“Allow me to call Clorinde…”
“No…” Furina shook her head, her hand tracing the grand door within her room in the Palais Mermonia. “I need time to sort myself out… To think.”
“Very well.” Neuvillette moderately bowed. “Take your time. However, be aware that if you are gone for too long, I will have Clorinde fetch you. With the House of the Hearth’s actions through the rest of the world, it cannot be understated that leaving you alone…”
“I am aware of the ongoings in the rest of the world, Neuvillette.” Furina's tongue was sharp as her gaze bored into his. “I will take care and return when I’m ready.”
“Until then, I will take my leave.” She opened the door, and with a snap, it slammed shut behind her.
Storming away, attempting to repress the building tears and wanting to stream down her cheeks, all Furina wanted to do was scream. Why did she have to put on this act? Five hundred years in, and it still hadn’t come to an end… When would all end?
She was so tired.
Having come to the Court of Fontaine, Naruto was baffled. The food here was so salty! It was good. And the sweets were to die for… But why was everything so salty?
He shook his head. He was letting the taste of the food distract him. Taking a bite out of the cake Navia had made, pleasantly surprised as they had been at the hotel for quite some time at the opera house, Naruto frowned as he looked at a map Silver had procured for him. This was definitely not the Elemental Nations. He had no idea where the heck he was now. Teyvat?
This was new.
“Okay, well, this opens up so many more questions.” Naruto groaned, glaring at the map before throwing himself back in his chair. “Dammit. …Did I fall through another dimension portal she opened after our fight? But she was sealed away! Her powers should have been cut off!”
“I cannot say. From your story, it does sound like a possibility.” Melus, with his hands held behind his back, nodded. He then obediently turned to Navia and lightly bowed. “Ah, my lady. Would you like some more Fonta? Or shall I set the kettle and brew some tea?”
“Tea sounds lovely with the cakes I just made.” Navia smiled and nodded. Melus quickly got to work and pulled a kettle… from somewhere… Navia turned her attention to Naruto. “It is interesting. If you came to this world from a rift from another world… I have to wonder why it opened at the bottom of the sea.”
“That is one of many questions I have… I can only hope that Sasuke can warp to me. I can feel him, but I don’t think his technique works like that. If I recall correctly, I think he needs to see where he’s going. He got locked in a different dimension than us once but could return as he saw where he needed to go.” Naruto frowned, ruffling his locks.
“Fascinating!” Navia’s eyes gleamed momentarily before she shook her giddiness of learning of another world from her mind and focused back on the mystery. “I dare say this is quite the pickle. I do wonder if it has anything to do with the Abyss.”
“Abyss?”
“It’s a toxic realm from within our world. I'm afraid not much is known about it outside of scattered research throughout Teyvat. It continues to be one of the most unsolved mysteries of our world, and it is likely why Madame mentioned it since at the deepest points of the sea, it would likely connect to the Abyss.” Melus shook his head as the kettle whistled, and he began to pour a cup of tea for Navia.
“So I need to look into it if I want to get back home,” Naruto sighed before placing a hand on his hips, preparing to get on the road. But glancing over at the trio, he mildly. “Gotta any idea of where I should start looking for information on that?”
“Well, I would say talk to the Adventurer's Guild since they deal with a little bit of everything.” Melus furrowed his brow.
“They also would be an excellent place to settle in for your stay and earn some Mora while you are here. Could always use some cash while here, and they are always looking for capable applicants.” Silver added on.
“We’ll search for some leads through contacts on our end.” Navia smiled back before nodding, understanding he was anxious and wanting to search for leads. “The few I can give you would send you to Sumeru and the Akademiya or the Library in Mondstadt, but I think it would be wise to stay here for a while since you appeared here.”
“Yeah, if I came here, the likely cause of my arrival is to be here.” Naruto agreed before flashing his patent smile as he jumped up and stretched. “I can’t thank ya enough! I’m gonna get out of your hair for a while! Gonna search on my own end for a while!”
“Don’t act like a stranger. Come back to our headquarters after some time to see if we have any leads. The Spina di Rosula is here to assist!” Navia waved as Naruto headed for the exit of the opera house. “We won’t let a case like this rest until you return home, understood!”
“Ya, I got it!” Naruto grinned and returned the wave. “With determination like that, I cannot give it my all! It’s what I’m known for!”
“So I ain’t gonna get shown up, ya hear!”
She was destined to be alone. There was no escaping it. Everyone would drown, and she would be the only one that would remain.
The death of one of her citizens always hurt… Five hundred years, and it never got any easier. But this one hurt more than others. The child had Loneliness Syndrome. That was something she could sympathize with. No one really knew her… Understood her. She had to put on this act to protect her people. To save them.
And it was all pointless, for they were fated to die. She only had to hope and believe in her plan, and maybe she would be all alone. But she was alone now.
“Meow?”
“Huh?” Furina stopped in her tracks as a cat crossed her path. Its tail flicked up, glancing up at her playfully. “Uh, hey there… Hey, now!”
Furina laughed loudly as the cat rubbed against her leg, circling around her before sitting on her foot. “What are you doing? Are you hungry?”
“Meow!”
“I don’t have food for you! Go home!” Furina giggled at the silly cat as it continued to purr and rub against her. “Hey, stop it! I don’t want to play… Oh, fine!”
The cat playfully bounded away through the street as Furina chased after it, laughing aloud as she did, unaware she had left the safe confines of the streets and into the alleys. But she had quickly caught the cat, and as it purred in her grasp, she caressed its spine and laughed as it nuzzled against her. “You idiot! I don’t have anything for you! … Ah! Who are you?!”
Fear consumed her as a slender figure in a mask dropped before her, slowly approaching her. Their hand extended toward her ominously. What did they want with her? She had nothing of value on her?!
Tripping over her feet, failing to get away, the cat yowled as it scurried out of her grasp and down the alley. Furina trembled as the figure dauntingly approached her. “I don’t have anything! Please don’t hurt me!”
She didn’t stop. She continued forward! She was mere inches from here! What did she do to deserve this?! No! Why did it have to end like this? All she wanted was to protect her people! Why did it…
“Get away from her!” Her heterochromatic teardrop eyes flickered.
Before her, a young man with a single arm and tattered clothes stood with his back to her. And the terrifying woman that had been approaching her was flung through the alley, painfully skipping off the cement. She left cracks in it every time she hit, yet she recovered well enough and landed in a three-point crouch.
Her black irises with red-crossed pupils stared curiously at the young man before she suddenly disappeared in a blur without another word. Fear still gripped her heart as the young man turned to her, clearly upset, but covered his agitation with a bright and genuine smile. “Sorry about that. Just saw it happening and came to help as soon as I could.”
“Name is Naruto. What’s yours?”