The Summoner of Legends

Darkness wrapped around Naruto like an infinite shroud, so dense that the concept of time and distance seemed meaningless. He walked with uncertain steps, feeling the echo of his footsteps swallowed almost immediately by the bottomless void surrounding him. There was no horizon, no sky, no tangible ground to guide him. It was just him, drifting in that endless blackness. Minutes? Hours? Days? He couldn't tell. The solitude began to dig deeply into his mind, bringing with it the weight of a growing unease.

"This is a dream... it has to be a dream," he murmured under his breath, as if the sound of his own words might bring some logic to the chaos. But the void didn't answer. Only silence remained—cruel and unyielding.

Suddenly, something broke the monotony. A faint blue light began to flicker in the distance. Barely perceptible at first, its glow grew stronger with each passing second. Naruto stopped in his tracks, narrowing his eyes to confirm it wasn't just an illusion. The tiny glimmer pierced through the oppressive darkness surrounding him, stirring a strange mix of curiosity and fear within him.

—What is that...? —he whispered, this time without expecting a reply.

Driven by a primal instinct, he moved toward the light, feeling his heart pounding harder with every step. Anxiety tightened around his throat, but something compelled him to keep going, to uncover the truth behind that glow. As he got closer, the light began to take shape. It was a sphere of blue, floating in the air with an unreal serenity. It seemed alive, gently pulsating as if it were breathing. Around it, the immediate space started to glow softly, just enough to reveal the nothingness that surrounded him.

Naruto stopped a few steps away from the sphere, captivated by its beauty and strangeness. It gave off neither heat nor sound, but its very presence seemed to charge the air with an indescribable energy. For a moment, he felt as though the sphere was watching him, as if it were evaluating him. He extended his hand toward it cautiously, but this time he hesitated before touching it. There was something about that light that made him doubt, something that warned him it might not be wise to get closer. And yet, curiosity ultimately won.

Finally, his fingertip brushed the surface.

The moment he did, a blinding flash enveloped him entirely, forcing him to shut his eyes tightly. He felt a powerful vibration coursing through his body, from head to toe, as though he were being swept away by an invisible torrent of energy. A deep hum filled his ears, and his body lost all sense of weight. For a moment, he felt as though he had ceased to exist—reduced to a mere thought, floating in an endless void.

And then, suddenly, everything went silent.

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Elsewhere...

The dim light of the Batcave was interrupted only by the blue glow of the supercomputer's monitors. Bruce Wayne sat in front of them, his muscles tense and his face marked by fatigue. His torso was bare, thick bandages covering the wounds the creature had inflicted during their last encounter. The physical pain was intense, but what truly tormented him was the uncertainty.

For days, he had been trying to uncover the origin of that creature. On the screen before him, blurry images of the monster flickered alongside fragments of crime reports and incomplete analyses. Nothing fit. Everything pointed to the fact that this thing wasn't human, yet there was no solid evidence to confirm what kind of being it was. "A killer that feeds on fear..." he thought, recalling the monster's words. That night, he had come closer to death than he had in years. And he couldn't afford to let it happen again.

—Sir Bruce. —The calm voice of Alfred broke the silence, pulling him from his thoughts.

The butler appeared at his side, carrying a tray with a cup of tea and a bottle of pills. His elegant demeanor contrasted sharply with the tension and chaos that filled the cave.

—Perhaps you should consider resting. Your body won't recover if you don't allow it the time it needs, —Alfred said firmly, though his voice was laced with concern.

Bruce didn't respond immediately. His eyes remained fixed on the screen, scanning the same data over and over again. Finally, he murmured:

—I can't afford to rest. Not while that thing is still out there.

—With all due respect, sir, facing that monster in your current condition is not bravery. It's recklessness. If you insist on acting alone, you risk becoming its next victim, —Alfred replied, a touch of steel in his voice.

Bruce frowned and turned away from the screen. He knew Alfred was right, but the thought of involving anyone else was unacceptable. Images of his allies flashed through his mind: Robin, Batgirl... He couldn't risk sending them against such an unpredictable and dangerous enemy. Closing his eyes for a moment, he finally spoke:

—I can't ask them to get involved in this. They're not ready. They could die.

Alfred nodded in understanding, his expression grave but his tone steady.

—Then perhaps it's time to seek help beyond Gotham. There are people outside this city who could prove invaluable in a situation like this. It may be time to consider unexpected alliances.

Bruce remained silent, pensive. He hated the idea of relying on others, but he knew that facing Nocturne alone was a losing strategy. After a few moments, he let out a sigh.

—If that thing reappears, I'll consider reaching out for help. But not until then. For now, this is still my responsibility.

Alfred studied his charge with a mix of resignation and concern. Finally, he gave a small nod and began to retreat.

—As you wish, sir. But do remember, even you have limits.

As Alfred disappeared up the stairs, solitude once again filled the cavern. Bruce remained in front of the computer, his eyes fixed on the screen while his thoughts churned restlessly. The wounds on his body ached, but what truly ate away at him was the sense that he was up against something far greater than he could handle alone.

In the dark silence, Alfred's words echoed in his mind, while the blue light of the monitors illuminated his grim expression.

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Back with Naruto…

A blinding light flooded his eyes, forcing him to squint as his vision adjusted. Slowly, the brightness began to fade, revealing a place entirely different from the void he had been in moments before. Naruto blinked several times, trying to ensure that what he saw was real and not some trick of his mind.

Before him stretched an immense hall of white marble, gleaming and polished to perfection, so reflective that it mirrored his figure like a glassy lake. The walls soared to impossible heights, adorned with intricate carvings depicting scenes he couldn't begin to understand. The reliefs showed human figures, monstrous creatures, and events that felt both ancient and alien—fragments of a story no one had ever told him.

The air was cold but not unpleasant; it felt clean and brimming with an indescribable energy, as if the place itself was alive in some way. The light illuminating the hall was soft and diffused, but it didn't come from any visible source—no torches, no lamps, no windows. It seemed to emanate from the very walls, wrapping everything in an ethereal glow.

However, what truly captured his attention was what stood at the center of the farthest wall: a massive stained-glass window that took up nearly the entire space. It was a masterpiece, its vibrant colors glowing with a life of their own, as if they didn't rely on sunlight to shine.

The stained glass depicted dozens of figures, each distinct from the others. Some were humanoid, others monstrous, and a few defied description altogether. Some faces were twisted with fury, others radiated serene calm, while a few bore expressions of pure malice. What unsettled Naruto most was that, even though he didn't recognize any of these figures, something about them felt hauntingly familiar, as though they were fragments of a memory buried deep within him.

As he tried to process what he was seeing, he noticed something else: holograms floating throughout the room. Each hologram was a three-dimensional representation of the figures in the stained glass, rendered in such incredible detail that even the folds in their clothing, the textures of their skin, and the cracks in their weapons were visible. Yet there was something peculiar about them: all the holograms were devoid of color, existing only in shades of gray, like incomplete shadows.

—"What… is this place?" —he murmured to himself, his voice echoing faintly through the vast hall.

He turned on his heel, scanning his surroundings for answers. That was when he noticed the two doors at the far ends of the room, one to his left and the other to his right. Both were identical: towering, imposing, crafted from the same marble as the rest of the hall, and adorned with carvings that mirrored the patterns on the walls.

For a moment, he felt an urge to move toward one of them, to open it and uncover what lay beyond. But something stopped him. It was a deep, instinctual feeling, a whisper in the back of his mind telling him he wasn't ready to make that choice.

He turned back toward the center of the hall, his eyes once again taking in the holograms and the stained glass. Everything in this place seemed designed to intimidate and captivate him at once. Naruto clenched his fists, trying to steady his breathing. The silence around him was almost unbearable, as if the hall itself was waiting for something from him.

He looked at the doors again, but this time he didn't take a single step toward them. Instead, he remained rooted in the center of the room, letting the weight of his uncertainty settle over him.

—"Where am I…?" —he asked aloud, his voice heavy with frustration and confusion.

The echo of his words reverberated through the hall, but no answer came. Only the same oppressive silence that had followed him since he arrived. Naruto closed his eyes for a moment, feeling his mind flood with questions he had no way of answering.

When he opened them again, his gaze fell once more on the stained glass. Even though he didn't understand the meaning behind the figures, something about them pulled at him, something that told him the key to understanding where he was—and what this place was—lay within those vibrant colors and unsettling forms.

And so, surrounded by the vastness of the hall, Naruto stood in silence, waiting… for something. A sign, an answer, anything that could unravel the enigma of this place.