Chapter 34: An Avatar, A Demon, and A Rat
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The next day, Sewers Entrance
"The coast is clear," Mako said as he signaled the rest of the Team Avatar with his hand to come closer. It was a cloudy morning in Republic City, and the tension could be felt in the atmosphere. Our heroes went up the stairs and reached the upper level of the sewers near the docks. Bolin had a spyglass with him, and he used it to search for any indication of Equalist or United Nations activity.
"Once the United Forces arrive, we need to be ready to help in any way we can," Korra said as she kept looking at the foggy sea.
Mako kept looking as well until his gaze caught up to the sight of a fleet coming their way. "They're here!"
"Alright, the reinforcements are here, but how are they going to reach the docks with our Equalists friends here?" Asami asked. "I doubt that their presence will be taken lightly by Amon."
That was when Naruto noticed something. "Hey, now that you mention it, where are the Equalist airships? They're usually here to remain guard all day to watch any incoming ships, but I can't see them anywhere. I doubt that they took a day off."
Mako rubbed his chin in deep thought. What Naruto just said was actually true. In his excursions to the outside with Korra, he noticed that there were always three or four Equalists airships around, day and night, non-stop. Bolin himself volunteered to look for information dressed up as a chi-blocker, but that was a big NO-NO. They argued that his body build didn't resemble one of a chi-blocker. That much was true, as his earthbending nature gave Bolin a bigger and broader body built in comparison to the Equalist chi-blockers, who were generally leaner and slightly taller than him. Though in reality, the rest of Team Avatar knew Bolin was not the best man for a spying job simply because he 'had a nag of getting into stupid situations,' as Mako told Korra and Naruto the night they went looking for him.
But at the same time, they didn't want a pouting and grumbling Bolin around, so Asami had the ingenious idea of naming him the official 'Hideout Guardian' of the group and tasking him with the protection of the base in case of any incoming attack. The title alone was enough to make Bolin perk up as he proceeded to swear an oath of protecting the base. He even named Pabu his second-in-command of the whole thing. That was enough for everyone to know that he was happy.
With a similar thought in his head, Mako took Bolin's spyglass and looked at the docks that were supposed to be under custody. "There are no Mechatanks either," he said in confusion.
Naruto shook his head. "Something isn't right. I think Amon is trying to lure them here."
"It sure looks like it." Korra agreed.
BOOM, BOOM, BOOM BOOM
Team Avatar returned its sight to the sea, where numerous explosions could be seen and heard. The United Forces fleet was being attacked with underwater exploding mines, causing panic to emerge between the troops.
"I knew it!" Naruto exclaimed.
Without thinking twice, Korra jumped into the water and started diving, using her skills as a waterbender to help her swim faster. When she got near the ships, she heard a buzzing sound in the air approach. Naruto, Asami, Bolin, and Mako also heard it as they looked around for the source of the sound coming towards them. Using the spyglass, Mako looked up at the city's buildings where the sound seemed to be coming from. What he saw was definitely not good. Up in the air, two groups of seven Equalists planes were approaching the United Forces fleet. To make things even worse, the underwater mines had severely damaged the ships' machinery, meaning they were practically stuck in their places for the time being.
"Where does Hiroshi finds the time to create new evil machines?" Bolin asked, puzzled.
"Beats me," Mako commented as he couldn't help but agree with Bolin.
Just when things couldn't get worse, the Equalists planes happened to be equipped with missiles. With the fleet stuck, the planes started shooting missiles while the ships countered by firing their gun turrets as well as using earth discs to shoot the planes down. However, it was clear that the Equalists had the upper hand. The gun turrets the ships had were designed to hit big targets, not small and fast-moving things like planes. As time passed, the Equalists had a few losses but were holding up much better than the United Forces fleet, which was slowly starting to sink.
Korra was still in the ocean and was doing her best to change the tide of the battle by waterbending ice picks and throwing them at the enemy. She was able to hit some of the planes, but they just kept coming. As she kept waterbending against the Equalists, she saw a man falling from a ship. The man appeared to be unconscious because he didn't attempt to swim. Thus he was starting to drown. Korra dived into the water once more and caught the man underwater. She recognized the man almost immediately from the newspapers.
General Iroh of the United Forces.
The now-identified man wore white pants and a red jacket with its left sleeve torn. He had black hair and golden eyes, much like Mako. Besides some bruises and small burns on his arm, Iroh didn't seem injured. In fact, he was starting to move his head and open his eyes, signs that he was starting to wake up from his unconsciousness. Wrapping the General's body with one arm, Korra made her way to the surface. Once she got there, both she and Iroh coughed and gasped for air, making Korra realize how much time she had spent under the water.
"It's ok now. I got you." Korra said reassuringly.
General Iroh coughed some more. "Avatar Korra?" he weakly asked. When he realized how close he actually was from drowning, the General gave the Avatar a small smile. "You saved my life. Thank you."
Korra nodded and used her waterbending to push them out of the battlefield. While she was doing this, she couldn't help but feel frustrated. They had just lost an opportunity to take back Republic City. Once again, Amon had outsmarted them.
Sewers Hideout
"I was prepared to deal with Amon's Mechatanks, but these high-speed aircrafts." General Iroh said as Korra used her waterbending healing abilities to treat the General's injuries on his left arm.
"I know. Every time we think we have an advantage, Amon outsmarts us."
Bolin nodded. "No matter what our plan is, he always has a better one."
The General sighed in moderated frustration. Even if he was one of the youngest Generals of the United Forces since its foundation, he was just as tranquil and collected as the veterans of the army. As the leader he was, he had the obligation of remaining calm and not falling into panic, evaluating the situation, and coming up with a strategy with whatever resources he had. "Amon is winning so far." he started to say. "But we're not out of the fight yet!"
"I like this man's confidence!" Bolin exclaimed before making a pause. "So... how are we not out of the fight yet?"
'Why, Bolin? Why do you have to be so... Bolin in times like these?' Naruto mentally whined.
"A second wave of reinforcements is on the way." the young General said as he stood up. "But I need to warn them. Do you still have a way to get a message out?" he asked Korra.
Korra smiled. "I know just the man for the job."
Little did Naruto know, the man for the job his second girlfriend was talking about was none other than...
Gao, their crazy/wise host. Well, he could honestly say he didn't see that one coming.
As Gao connected two cables to an old-looking but apparently working message machine, he turned to face General Iroh. "And who would be the receiver of this secret message?"
"Commander Bumi. A second division of the United Forces."
The bare name of his other uncle was enough to make Naruto's eyes go wide in surprise. He would've never thought uncle Bumi would get involved in this mess. But then again, uncle Bumi was known for getting himself into situations that qualified as 'extravagant,' or so did uncle Tenzin used to say.
"Tenzin's brother?" Korra inquired.
General Iroh nodded. "Yes. Bit of a wild man-"
"Bit of a wild man? That's some understatement right there. The guy is basically the definition of crazy." Naruto said. The statement made the General cocked an eyebrow in amusement.
"You might be right, Naruto, but we need his help," Iroh mused. He knew the blonde from the three times Naruto had visited The Fire Kingdom.
"Crazy or not, he's the bravest commander you'll ever meet." General Iroh concluded.
"Alright, this old lady's ready to go," Gao said. "What's the message?"
"Fleet ambushed and destroyed by Equalists aircraft. Retreat to Red Sand Island until my signal. Do not approach the city until you receive the all-clear." the firebender informed as Gao tipped all down. Minutes later, the message was sent.
Using a map and an improvised table, General Iroh started to explain his plan. "Now comes the hard part. We need to ground those aircraft; otherwise, Bumi's fleet will never be able to retake the city."
Mako thought about something for a minute. "The planes appeared to come from this place," he said as he pointed to one of the edges of the map where a mountain was placed. "The airfield must be somewhere over the mountain range."
The General nodded at the information. "Everyone get ready. We leave at dawn." And with that said, everyone left the tent. However, when the Team Avatar and General Iroh took their first steps, Korra stopped.
"Wait!" she called. "I'm sorry, but I'm not going with you tomorrow," Korra said, making the rest of them stare at her in clear disbelief. "I'm sick and tired of running from Amon. It's time I face him."
"It's not a good plan. We need to stick together." the young General said as he shook his head.
"I'm not waiting for him to hunt me down!" the Avatar shot back with clenched fists. "My guts are telling me to end this. On my terms."
Naruto took this as his cue to intervene. Trying to muster all the luck he could, the Airbender approached Korra. "Look, I get it that yo-"
"Save it, Naruto. I'm not changing my mind just because you asked me to. I'm doing this, and I'm doing this alone." The blonde didn't know why but he had a terrible feeling about this. A flash of Republic City passed through his eyes. He quickly rubbed his eyes, just a dream, he thought.
"Korra, this is not a mission you should be handling alone." the young General tried to argue.
The Airbender suddenly took a step forward. "She won't. I'm going with her."
Korra stood there with her mouth hanging for a second before she regained her previous composure. "I didn't ask you to come with me!"
"I know, but I'm going with you whether you like it or not," Naruto stated. Korra was about to retaliate, but Naruto beat her to it. "Save it, Korra. I may not be able to change your mind, but you're not changing mine. If you have any problems with that, we'll discuss it when this whole thing is over. But I am not letting you go to Amon's claws just like that. You either come with me, or you're not going at all." he said with a facial expression, so dead serious Korra hardly recognized him.
Letting out a huff, she turned back and faced Naruto. "Don't be late," she said as she stormed off to her sleeping place to cool off. She felt so angry and frustrated at her boyfriend. It was almost suffocating. Why couldn't he see it? Why was it that Naruto couldn't see that she wanted to keep him out of harm's way? She was the Avatar, not him. Naruto had absolutely no responsibilities towards Republic City. She did. As a matter of fact, why didn't he join Tenzin and the rest of his family to go somewhere safe? Wasn't he an Airbender as well? Korra did want to be near Naruto, but not when she was about to do something that was probably going to put him in danger. Even if she didn't want to say it out loud, the mere thought of Naruto getting hurt or worse was enough to send shivers down her spine.
'Naruto, you are such an idiot.' Korra thought bitterly as her hands started to shake.
The blonde turned fully to Asami, who quickly hugged him, her arms around him, holding him tightly as if he would disappear.
"Be careful," Asami said, concerned to his ear; Naruto smiled, trying to reassure her that everything would be alright. The blonde kissed her lips; she quickly returned it with as much passion as she could muster.
"I will return to you. I promise."
Morning
Naruto and Korra were putting on their Equalists suits while discussing their infiltration plan. Naruto immediately notices Korra's bad attitude toward him. The girl ignored him and wouldn't talk to him, and when she did, she would just interrupt him rudely. Knowing better than to argue with her, Naruto stayed quiet as Bolin and Mako approached him.
"Be careful out there," Mako warned Naruto as both males shared a one-armed hug.
"You too," Naruto replied.
"Hey, I was thinking that when this whole thing is over, why don't you join us in the next Pro-bending championship?" Bolin asked after pumping fists with the Airbender. "Imagine the Fire-Ferrets with an Airbender on the team. We would be totally unstoppable!"
Tenzin's nephew stared at him with a blank expression. "You do realize that's pretty much impossible, right?"
"Huh? Why?"
"(Sigh) Bolin, you're one of my best friends, but sometimes I can't help but wonder what's going on inside that head of yours," Naruto said.
Bolin thoughtfully rubbed his chin before smiling. "I'll take that as a compliment!" the earthbender said before approaching Korra. "Korra, Amon is a nasty dude. Be careful."
Korra nodded. "I will. Good luck out there. But if you're going into the mountains, you should take Naga." Korra said as she hugged her pet's head. "Please, take good care of Bolin for me."
Naga seemed to understand the message and licked Bolin's face in agreement.
Turning around to face Asami, Naruto spoke up. "Alright, Asami. Take care of yourself. And please, don't do anything unnecessarily dangerous."
Asami nodded. "I can say the same thing to you," she replied. A couple of seconds later, Asami gave Naruto a quick kiss before joining General Iroh, Mako, and Bolin, who were on their way. Korra scowled a little at sight but didn't say anything, her pride getting the better of her.
"We should get going," Naruto said to Korra. The Avatar grunted and started walking, followed by a very frustrated Airbender.
The walk to the sewer's exit was quiet and awkward for Naruto. It was obvious that Korra was mad at him, but he couldn't figure out the exact reason. Then his mind recalled something she said not too long ago.
"Promise me. Promise me that, no matter what happens, you will be careful. I don't care if something happens to me, but you will take care of yourself."
'Is that the reason why she's so angry? Because I'm getting myself into the line of fire? Damn.'
Before he knew it, they arrived at the Air Temple Island. Putting their masks on, the two benders climbed a rock and saw that the place was filled with Equalists.
"There's Amon," Korra whispered to Naruto while pointing to a large airship in the sky. True enough, Amon was entering the ship to take his leave from the island and continue his invasion.
"We must sneak into the Temple, release all the prisoners, and wait for him to come back. When he returns..."
"We ambush him," Korra said, finishing the sentence.
Korra and Naruto started walking through the entrance, checking their environment for any signs of hostile activity. Nothing seemed to have changed on the island except for the Equalists flags going around here and there and the people that were on the actual island. It was hard for Naruto to watch his home filled with people who wanted to end its very meaning, which was airbending. He was so distracted by his thoughts that he didn't notice the man approaching them until it was too late.
"What are you two doing here?"
A little startled by the sudden interruption, both Korra and Naruto turned around to see the one talking to them. It was none other than the nameless leader of the squad that attempted the first invasion of the island."We were just transferred, sir." Naruto said calmly.
"Well, you two are getting transferred again. Amon wants extra security in the Arena today."
"The Arena? For what?" Korra asked before Naruto could stop her. That kind of question would most likely raise some suspicion on the man.
And as a matter of fact, the leader narrowed his eyes. "The rally. You should've been briefed about this."
"We'll be there, sir," Korra answered with a bow. Naruto bowed as well, much to his own displeasure. Apparently convinced of the act, the leader turned around and walked away. Naruto and Korra looked at each other and nodded. They knew another way inside the Air Temple.
Once they were out of sight, the couple made their way to a secret tunnel Naruto discovered when he was a kid. The tunnel was small, so both of them were forced to crawl their way into the temple. At the end of the tunnel, there was a small door that led to a staircase. Once Korra and Naruto walked up the stairs, they found themselves in a small room filled with things like empty bookcases, old furniture, and other similar objects.
"Let's hide in the attic," Korra said as she pointed to a door. Naruto nodded and followed her.
In the attic, Korra and Naruto ensured they weren't followed and quickly locked the door. He turned around... and saw something he never expected to see.
Locked in a cell was Councilman Tarrlok.
"Korra, we... have some company."
Korra quickly turned around, thinking that her boyfriend was talking about Equalists. Imagine her surprise when she saw her once captor in chains, his usually clean clothes now dirty and his long hair messy. At first, she couldn't even recognize the man, but one look at his dark, narrowed eyes was all it took.
"T-Tarrlok?"
Note: The following Chapter, the story will move away from Canon, Huge Major Changes, and something bad will happen with Naruto.
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