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[Caterpillar] Chapter 25 - The Date
🕑 Added 2023-12-30 00:14:30 +0000 UTC"So this is what an interstellar map looks like!" Wonder Woman said.
On the large screen of the supercomputer in the control room, there were countless clusters of stars crammed in together. She did not know where to look.
"It's a rough map of the 28 galaxies of the known Universe. There are countless galaxies out there but the Green Lantern Corps operates only in 2 large galaxies - Milky Way and Andromeda - and the dwarf galaxies in their proximity. So when you hear your Green Lantern teammate talking about the 3600 sectors of the known Universe, that's what he's referring to: Milky Way, Andromeda and their satellites." Naruto explained.
When he zoomed in on the map of the spiral of the Milky Way galaxy on which the Sol System was located, she said startled:
"Wait, all those tiny dots were solar systems?! I thought they were planets!"
"Of course not, dummy," he snickered and chided her but in an endearing manner. "They're planetary systems or, as you would call them, solar systems. Milky Way alone has hundreds of billions of stars and for every star, there are at least 2-3 planets. Can you imagine what it would be like to have a map with all the planets?"
"How are the Green Lanterns capable of protecting such an immense area? There are only 7200 of them!" she asked. She had been blessed by the goddess Athena with wisdom but she had not exactly taken any astronomy classes on Paradise Island. In regards to cosmic awareness, she was not much different than other people.
"There may be trillions of stars in these 28 galaxies but there are extremely few systems with planets that can sustain life. Most of the sentient species in the Universe require similar conditions to live as the Earthlings: a not-too-high gravity, oxygen, water and a gentle climate. Of course, there are plenty of exceptions too but, generally, that is the case. There aren't that many inhabited planets. Most planetary systems don't have even 1 planet that could support life in them. But it's true that the Green Lanterns are stretched too thin for them to have any real impact in preserving the peace. Otherwise, intergalactic wars like the one between the Thanagarians and the Gordonians would not exist. The most that the Lanterns can do is to just oversee their home planets - like John Stewart does - and band together against threats that could potentially harm the well-being of entire galaxies. Against someone like Darkseid for example."
Wonder Woman was listening to his words with rapt attention, practically drinking the information. She had been outside of Earth on several occasions before so she was not a complete greenhorn, but she still lacked essential knowledge about the Universe at large.
"Look at you, teaching others about the universe. I almost can't believe you were the dead last in the Academy." Kyuubi said teasingly from the side.
Naruto chuckled and rubbed the back of his head.
"True, I was never good with theory and all that stuff."
"But you seem to know what you're talking about." Wonder Woman pointed out.
"Well, how else could I search for my homeworld without learning the shape of this world? I was forced by the situation to learn. But it took me a long time to learn how to handle technology and interstellar travel."
He zoomed out the map back to normal and asked her:
"Well then, where would you like to go?"
The lost look on her face made both Naruto and Kyuubi laugh.
"Hm, maybe the question you asked her was wrong." Kyuubi said and then asked Wonder Woman: "What would you like to do? We can go anywhere and do anything. We can visit ancient civilisations, we can go gambling or we can have life-threatening trips through deadly environments too if you want something spicier."
Naruto grabbed the fox by one of his large ears and said in annoyance:
"Oy, you tryin' to steal my date or something?"
Wonder Woman giggled at them.
"I'm not exactly sure what I want to do. I mean I usually fight crime. My work with the Justice League takes up all my time." she said and Naruto and Kyuubi who had been on the verge of starting a brawl both stopped and turned to look at her.
"You don't have any hobbies?" Kyuubi asked. "For example this idiot loves fishing, eating ramen and he used to care for plants too when he was younger. He's great at gambling too."
She crossed her arms awkwardly, aware of how unusual her answer had been. She was no different than a workaholic. She had spoken like someone who was obsessed with their job and had no social life at all.
A tick mark appeared on Naruto's forehead at Kyuubi calling him an idiot but he let it slide because at that moment he was more worried about what Diana had said.
"What did you do on Themyscira when you weren't training or praying to your gods?" Kyuubi pressed on.
Naruto patted the fox on the head to stop him from bothering a very uncomfortable-looking Wonder Woman. Then, he took her hand in his and said kindly:
"Don't stress yourself over it, Diana. We have one whole week to find out what you like to do. We'll definitely find a hobby for you! And I know the perfect place for it."
⁂
Half a day later, Wonder Woman had a look of awe at the sight that could be seen through the cockpit's window: there was an enormous man-made structure in the form of a hexagonal star, dozens of miles wide. Hundreds of spaceships of all sizes were flying towards the star-shaped structure but despite the high influx of visitors, there were so many spaceports to receive them that there were no queues at all.
"What is this place, Naruto?"
He smirked at her curiosity and said:
"You said you don't know what you'd like to do so I thought this is the best place to find out: Genesis Stadium."
"A stadium? How can a stadium be so immense? What kind of events does it hold?"
"It's holding matches for the most popular sport in this galaxy. But even if you don't like sports, there are many other things to do. This is basically a space-city with millions of people living in it. There are parks, restaurants, shopping malls, hotels, clubs, cinema theatres, casinos, an amusement park and there is even a small forest."
Wonder Woman involuntarily smiled at his contagious enthusiasm.
"You put a lot of thought into it."
He scratched the back of his head and grinned.
"But of course. This is going to be our first date. I'm going to take you everywhere and we'll try out everything until you find something you like! Believe it!" he said with conviction, missing the grin that suddenly appeared on Kyuubi's face when he heard his old verbal tick resurfacing. It was very rare to hear it nowadays. It only popped up when Naruto was particularly enthusiastic about something.
Once they got closer to the immense construct, Naruto grabbed the controls of the ship and steered it manually to land on one of the many dry docks of the space-city. Something like a cylinder was extended from the main building of the spaceport to the door of their ship - no different than how it was done on Earth with aeroplanes sometimes - to allow the three of them to enter the city of Genesis Stadium directly, without needing to put on spacesuits.
Thin but tall looking robots greeted them in the spaceport's building and after a rigorous check-up, they were allowed entrance in Genesis Stadium. But when the automatic doors slid open and they exited the building, entering the actual space-city, their sight went white and the three of them were blinded for a few moments as a few dozen blitzes of light went off at the same time.
"Oy, oy, give me a break..." Naruto groaned when he recovered his eyesight and took in the scene in front of them. A large group of reporters were snapping pictures crazily and yelling questions at the same time, trying to talk to the three of them. If it was not for the 10 robots securing an open square in front of the door, they would have been trampled and mobbed by the reporters. "What's the meaning of this, old man?"
"Ohoho!" someone laughed boisterously and came to Naruto, grabbing his hand and shaking it vigorously. "You told me you're going to visit on such a short notice that I didn't have time to prepare anything special."
"This is more than enough. I only gave you a heads-up so those guys from the Flux Society won't get their panties in a bunch like the last time. You didn't need to get an army of reporters to see us."
The man in question laughed out loud at his crude words. He was a rather large human-looking being with a big belly but his wide back and shoulders made him look imposing. He was bald, he had a sharp and well-trimmed beard and a red optic device covered one of his eyes. His elegant black and red clothes and the golden medals pinned on his chest spoke of his high status.
"It's good to see you again, Mr Uzumaki! Come, let's talk over breakfast!"
⁂
"Wow, you're a hero in this galaxy?!" Diana said in wonder after their breakfast with the old man that had greeted them. "You've never told me that!"
"I'm not a hero. I'm a mercenary. M-e-r-c-e-n-a-r-y!" he said half-annoyed. "I got paid handsomely for my services. I didn't do it out of the goodness of my heart."
"A simple mercenary wouldn't be treated as an honoured guest by one of the richest and most powerful men in the galaxy," Kyuubi said snidely and laughed.
Naruto sighed in defeat. The old man who had invited them to have breakfast together was none other than Duke Maddox, the leader of Technoid, the most powerful economic and military organisation in the Zaelion Galaxy.
"Oh come on, stop being so grumpy!" Diana said and took his hand and hers. "Tell me, tell me, how did you get so famous here? What did you do?"
"One of the generals of Duke Maddox betrayed Technoid and almost started another galactic war four years ago. I was hired to assassinate that man before things went to hell completely. I saved Technoid's image and the duke's prestige."
Wonder Woman looked at him in doubt. It sounded a little too underwhelming. It was not enough for someone to be hailed as a hero.
"He forgot to say that he also reversed the Ice Age on a planet that Technoid had almost destroyed several years before. And he did it for free." Kyuubi added.
"It's not as awesome as he makes it out to be," Naruto said and he made sure to glare at the smirking fox. "Technoid's scientists had been trying to harness a new form of energy. An accident happened and the natural energy cycle of the planet was thrown into chaos which, in turn, triggered an Ice Age. I only had to regulate the cycle of the natural energy of the planet. It took me a few good months but it wasn't all that difficult. I just happen to be a master at manipulating natural energy because I am a Sage. That is all."
At his words, Diana mirrored Kyuubi's grin.
"Aww, our cute little mercenary is embarrassed." she kissed him on the cheek and giggled. "You shouldn't be. There's nothing to be ashamed of. If anything, you should be proud!"
Then, she went ahead and pulled him after her.
"Come, you promised you'd show me all kinds of interesting things!"
Naruto gave up on pretending he was annoyed and let himself get dragged by the enthusiastic woman holding his hand. Seeing her innocent smile and her curious eyes as she looked in amazement at their surrounding made him smile too. But, in Wonder Woman's defence, for an Earthling, the space-city of Genesis Stadium was truly amazing, like a city out of a sci-fi movie. Futuristic-looking buildings, holograms for ads, flying cars and suspended gardens. It was beautiful.
'No one on the streets here would believe me if I told them that she is several thousand years old.'
Her happiness and enthusiasm for seeing new things were so pure that she looked like a teenage girl instead of an old and seasoned warrior. She was so cute that Naruto could not bear it. Discreetly, he pressed on one of the buttons holding his black cloak tied around his neck. The button's outer layer parted to reveal the lens of a tiny camera. She was so precious that he was going to capture every single moment of it.
⁂
"My goddess, you look like you want to eat me! Are you ok?" Diana said and chuckled.
"Huh?!" he said unintelligently but then he quickly added: "I'm perfectly fine. Absolutely fine!"
The princess went back inside the changing room to try another outfit. Kyuubi, who was sitting on the bench next to Naruto, lazily opened one of his eyes and said:
"Stinking pervert."
"Can you blame me?! She's already drop-dead gorgeous but when she came out wearing only that, I thought my heart stopped for a moment."
"Hng. Whatever." Kyuubi said and closed his eyes back, trying to take a nap. He had no reproductive organs or sexual desires like other living beings because he was a chakra beast. He could not exactly understand Naruto's fascination with Diana's appearance.
Unbeknownst to them, however, Wonder Woman had superhearing too. It was not to the level of a Kryptonian's superhearing but it was definitely more than enough to hear their words perfectly despite being in a different room. A hue of pink appeared in her pale cheeks and she looked at her reflection in the mirror. She cupped her breasts with her hands, lightly fondling herself. Then, her hands trailed down her slim waist and her curvy hips. A confident smile appeared on her face and a mischievous look in her eyes.
'If that's his reaction when I'm wearing an ordinary bra and panties... What if I put on something a little more risque?'
She let out a soft giggle.
'I can't wait to see his face!'
She went to the console in the changing room and interacted with it, scrolling through various clothing items. Seconds after confirming her choices, the clothes she wanted to try on were delivered to her through the opening at the side of the console. It was almost like ordering from a vending machine on Earth.
The sound of heels clanking on the floor alerted Naruto and he raised his head. But when he looked up, his mouth fell open. The outfit she was wearing was way too provocative. The floral-lace black bra pushed her already large breasts up and made them look even bigger, bow lace panties covered her special place, and the garter belt around her waist could not hide the sculpted abdominal muscles beneath. When his eyes trailed down and saw the way that her thigh-high stockings were digging into her meaty thighs and how her tall high heels flexed her calves... it spelt his demise. He forgot how to breathe. His face became red from the lack of oxygen and a trickle of blood fell from his nose.
He brought one hand to his nose and the other hand started snapping pictures with his device at an insane speed.
"Earth's digital porn of you is honestly amazing but this... THIS IS THE REAL THING!" Naruto said but his voice sounded so funny due to him pinching his nose that Wonder Woman burst into laughter. However, she did not forget to put on a show. Turning around, she bent down slowly and gave him the most erotic sight that he had ever seen in his life. The device fell from his hand and he looked at her wide-eyed.
"Ah!" Wonder Woman said startled when in the next moment, his arms wrapped around her midsection from behind.
"You're doing it on purpose, aren't you? How much do you think I can take before I lose control?" he whispered in her ear.
A shiver ran down her spine and her heart palpitated at the hunger in his voice. But she was not going to back down then.
"What makes you think that's not exactly what I want?"
Luckily, each changing room was separated from the rest of the shop but it was still a public area on which other people could spy. It was not the place for a couple to do intimate things.
"You're making it really hard for me to take things slow."
Diana smiled smugly and turned around in his arms. Seeing how self-satisfied she looked, Naruto felt provoked deep inside to wipe that confident smirk off her face. She was trying her hardest to seduce him and he was trying his hardest to resist her advances. It was almost like an unspoken competition. She never missed a chance to tease him.
But in the end, he held himself back. He broke the hug and put some distance between them. He consoled himself with the thought that it was not only him that wanted her badly. The efforts she was putting into seducing him showed him that she wanted him just as much. It filled him with confidence...and happiness.
"Mark my words, princess, I will get you back for this, ten times over. I promise. And I never go back on my word."
She smirked at him confidently and her sensual lingerie further enhanced that feeling.
"Oh, trust me, I'm counting on that."
⁂
A group of people of several different races were all gathered in front of 2 lanes in a bowling alley. There were over 50 people and more were gathering. The reason for that? Two humans, a red-blond man with 3 pairs of darks scars on his face and an athletic woman with black hair tied in a long ponytail, were in the middle of a competition like they had never seen before. The two of them had thrown the bowling ball over forty times until then but every single time, they had a strike, knocking down all 10 pins. Some people even started to film them with their devices. Naruto and Diana were both experts at wielding weapons and thrown projectiles. In their hands, a bowling ball was no different than a dagger. Even after half an hour of intense competition, they could not determine a winner.
⁂
Towards the evening, Naruto and Diana were sitting at a table on the terrace outside of a bakeshop, eating cake and drinking soda. Naruto was having a fruit cake; he did not like things that were too sweet. In comparison, the princess had a very sweet tooth. She was eating a chocolate cake with caramel topping.
Diana leaned on the backrest of the chair and looked at the people walking on the boulevard. It was not the Earth, nor was it Themyscira either. The street was filled with people from all kinds of races, alien to her. Humanoid beings with grey skin, short people with green skin and just one eye, others with blue skin and webbed ears and so on. They all looked strange to her but they lived in peace, not throwing glares at others. Then, there were vehicles and hoverboards flying above the street without emitting any gas or noise and very large screens or holograms displaying ads or relaying news reports. It was like a Sci-Fi utopia.
"It's beautiful."
Naruto put a hand on top of hers and lightly squeezed it.
"There are many other places in the Universe, just as beautiful as this one. I wish I could show them to you one day. I wish we could visit them together."
Diana raised his hand to her lips and kissed it lightly. He looked at her very surprised by her gesture.
"Thank you," she said.
He took her hand and imitated her gesture from before, also pressing his lips against her knuckles.
"We'll have many more days like this one in the future. Still, the day isn't over. Not yet."
"You have something else planned on?" she asked with a smile.
"Apparently, we are in luck. Every four years, this city holds the 'last 16' matches, the final phase of Galactik Football tournament. It's the most popular sport in this galaxy. Basically, everyone is obsessed with it. Duke Maddox invited us to the match this evening. He booked tickets for us, in the VIP booth."
Looking at the intelligent wristwatch on his hand, he added:
"Actually, we should get going soon. The stadium is enormous, it can hold tens of thousands of people. It might take a while to get in."
⁂
"Wow."
It was the only thing Diana could say after they entered the stadium. It was the largest building that she had ever been into. The interior was shaped like a bowl and it was thousands of feet in diameter and height. It was humongous. The green pitch floating in midair in its centre did not cover even a tenth of the building's total width.
"Mr Uzumaki, Mrs Uzumaki. I'm glad you could make it! Welcome!" Duke Maddox greeted them energetically and made both Naruto and Diana smile wryly at his words. They had told him that they were together but they had not given him too many details about their relationship. The man in question assumed that they were married. Coincidentally looking at each other at the same time, Diana quickly stole a kiss from him.
The old duke chuckled to himself at their behaviour.
"Ah, young love."
'I'm old enough for you to call me grandpa/grand-grandmother.' Naruto and Diana unknowingly thought at the same time in amusement.
"Love is nice but Galactik Football is even better! Behold!" he said and opened his arms wide when the first team was brought on the pitch by a flying platform. They were 6 deathly-pale white humanoid beings wearing black costumes. At their centre, there was also a human man, making a rather stark contrast with the rest of his team.
In comparison, the other team that arrived on the pitch was homogenous, all 7 players having the appearance of muscular humanoid lizards. They were wearing white and blue costumes.
"I don't watch sports; I've never had time for that. But it looks like the soccer on Earth, just with fewer players." Wonder Woman said.
"Mhm, most of the rules are similar. But you'll see what is different soon."
And true to his words, it was just a few seconds after the whistle signalled the start of the match that Wonder Woman turned to look at him wide-eyed.
"Soccer with metahumans?!"
The movement and actions of the players on the pitch were way beyond a regular human's capabilities. They were jumping to dozens of feet in the air, sprinting at speeds that were hard to follow with the naked eye, and kicking the ball so hard that it looked like it was shot out of a cannon. Furthermore, the black-costumed players could teleport across the field while the humanoid lizards were extremely powerful and fast and they could use a green-coloured energy to momentarily freeze their opponents.
He chuckled, satisfied at her reaction.
"They're using an energy called 'the flux'. The people of this galaxy have developed an ability to use a tiny portion of the natural energy of their native planet. It's a little similar to what I do but there are many differences too."
At that, Duke Maddox turned in his seat to look at them and chuckled.
"A few years ago when Mr Uzumaki first came in this galaxy and used his powers, the Flux Society tried to arrest him. They thought he was someone who broke the law when they sensed his power."
After that, the duke turned back to watching the match with great attention. The black-costumed team was his favourite - the Shadows. He was rooting for them but he was worried because their opponents, the humanoid lizards - the Xenons - were the favourite to win the entire tournament, not just that match.
"It's illegal to use what they call 'the flux' because about 2 decades ago, a great war caused a lot of death and destruction. Many planets were destroyed in the conflict because of their weapons of mass destruction which used the flux. When the war ended, all the living beings in the galaxy signed a treaty to forbid the use of the flux in anything else besides sports. It was to prevent a similar calamity from ever happening again." Naruto explained to Diana in a quiet voice.
After that, the two of them stopped talking and paid attention to the match. Even Wonder Woman was absorbed in it despite that she had never watched a soccer game on Earth from start to finish. Galactik Football was way different. The use of superpowers and the metahuman-like abilities of the players on the field made it look spectacular and exciting.
In the end, to Duke Maddox's chagrin, his favourite team, the Shadows, lost the game 3 to 5. He was so upset that he had not made much small talk with his guests after the match ended and he left together with his entourage right away. But for Naruto and Diana, it was just as well. They did not have any strong feelings towards the teams that had played on the pitch. They had just enjoyed the spectacle.
⁂
Later that night, dressed in only a pair of black shorts and a white t-shirt, Diana was standing on the hotel's balcony, admiring the city below. Duke Maddox had made sure to book them the best suite in one of the most expensive hotels in Genesis Stadium, on his money. It was the most luxurious place that she had ever been to. Naturally, the beauty of the view from the balcony was proportional to the exorbitant price.
"The view of a city in a technologically advanced society during the night is quite something, isn't it?" she heard Naruto's voice coming from behind. She saw him with two mugs in his hands, and he handed her one too.
"Hot chocolate. I noticed you love sweet things."
"Thank you." she smiled and gave him a peck on his cheek.
Just like her, he was also wearing casual clothes - a pair of grey sweatpants and a blue t-shirt. The two of them leaned on the railing of the balcony and watched the night view of the futuristic space-city together as they sipped from their mugs.
"We've tried quite a few things today. Did you find something you like?"
She adopted a thinking posture and started to count the things they had done on her fingers.
"We went to a restaurant, we went shopping, we played bowling, we went to a bakeshop, we went for a walk, then to a casino and tried the slot machines and we watched a metahuman soccer game too."
"It's called Galactik Football. Have some respect." he berated her jokingly and she laughed. "So, what did you like the most?"
"I loved shopping; especially your reaction," she said teasingly.
He poked her in the ribs with his finger and she jumped with a squeak, almost spilling her hot chocolate.
"Arara, princess, what a cute squeal you have~"
But then, he had to suddenly parry her hand as she attempted to do the same. In the next moment, their hands made a blur of strikes and parries, looking just like one of those unrealistic wuxia movies where they fought so fast that their hands could not be seen with the naked eye. Eventually, they ended up in a deadlock, both holding the other's hands. When they looked at each other they suddenly realized how silly they were acting and they burst into laughter.
Wonder Woman cleared her throat in an attempt to appear serious and continued to talk about their day from where she left off:
"The food at the restaurant was rather strange. I've never seen those dishes before. But the bakeshop was great."
"You can never go wrong with cake, eh?" he said.
"Indeed. Chocolate cake is the secret to happiness," She agreed and they laughed together. Wonder Woman noticed that in spite of how serious she was when she was by herself, whenever she was together with him, they spent most of their time laughing and grinning dumbly at each other. She did not dislike it. Not one bit.
"I also liked playing bowling, it was fun. But the next time we play it we have to give ourselves some handicaps because we're too good at it. You know, things like knocking down the pins blindfolded."
"Does Earth have bowling too?"
"Of course it does! You think we're living in the stone age or what?" she said with a pout. But one simple kiss on the cheek later and her pout vanished.
"Watching the football game was definitely a new and interesting experience and I loved our walk in the park. I love sitting and chatting with you as we watch the city during the night too... I think I love doing everything together with you..." Diana trailed off and sighed wistfully.
Her words made Naruto feel as if something was tugging at his stomach and he left his mug on the stone railing of the balcony. He came to her back and he wrapped his arms around her waist, embracing her from behind. He brought his head above her shoulder and kissed her on the cheek.
Wonder Woman melted in his embrace and leaned back against his larger frame, enjoying the way he pampered her. It was a new experience for her. She had never been spoiled by someone like that before. Until then, she had lived her life as a warrior, as an Amazon, as the Wonder Woman. The way that Naruto showered her with attention and affection made her giddy with happiness.
"This really was the best day of my life," she said and he hugged her a little tighter.
She turned around in his embrace and her arms came to his shoulders, hugging his neck and bringing his face closer to her. Their eyes closed and their heads tilted as their lips met in a tender kiss. Holding the other tightly in their arms, Naruto and Diana became drunk with passion and kissed each other romantically for a very long time.
