"Talking"

'Thinking'

Disclaimer: I don't own either Naruto or Bleach

Konohagakure no Sato, one of the five great villages and one of the runners for the strongest, had recently been dealt a devastating blow. Ever since the Hyuga incident tensions had been even higher than usual between Konohagakure and Kumogakure, but they'd managed to avoid any major incidents for some time. However, as they say all things must eventually come to an end. Four years to the date of the Hyuga affair Kumo launched an unprovoked, unseen surprise attack against Konoha.

Things had gone well at first. The Leaf had held their own and were managing to push back their invaders, but it was for that reason that gave the Sandaime Hokage, Sarutobi Hiruzen, pause. Kumo was Konoha's rival for strongest of the five villages, and had two jinchuuriki at its disposal; one of which had full control of his beast. However neither of the jinchuuriki nor the Raikage were fighting at all. In fact, his sensors were only able to pick up the chakra of one jinchuuriki even in the area. But what Sarutobi was unaware of was that Kumo decided to try an experimental plan. The Raikage sealed himself within his villages treasure, the Kohaku no Jōhei, and had his assistant at the ready.

As the Kumo forces were pushed back the jinchuuriki that had been absent had made its appearance at last. With that as a distraction the Raikage's assistant, who was able to transfer objects at the speed of light, sent the Kohaku no Jōhei to the battlefield when given the signal. The legendary pot appeared in the middle of the fight, close to Sarutobi who moved to deal with the jinchuuriki. As the Hokage was familiar with the pot he was expecting a sealing, but was shocked when one Kumo-nin unsealed something instead. The Raikage, though disoriented, knew to act fast lest he lose the element of surprise. When he touched the ground he used his Raiton no Yoroi (1) to boost his speed and attacked.

Caught by surprise at not only seeing the Raikage appear but also at his speed, Sarutobi had no way to put up a guard in time. Shinobi from both sides would later swear that for a single instant, time itself seemed to stop as they saw the Raikage with his charged fist impale the Hokage. With his deed done the Raikage retreated for the moment, since being sealed and unsealed had not only disoriented him but drained his chakra as well. Kumo thought the battle would be easy after that, but they didn't count on the raw fury the Konoha shinobi would posses after what had transpired. With great effort Konoha was able to repel their invaders that day, but at a great cost. Sarutobi Hiruzen, the Sandaime Hokage, had died.

This was a great tragedy and a heavy blow for the village, but one man saw this as an unparalleled opportunity for himself. With Jiraiya and Tsunade out of the village and being in the middle of a war, only one man was capable of taking the title of Hokage. This was what Shimura Danzo was able to convince the daimyō of, thus gaining the title he so longed for. Plus, in his haste to escape the Raikage left behind the Kohaku no Jōhei, something Danzo planned on taking full advantage of.

Hokage Tower

"Are you sure about this Danzo? What you're doing could cause the end of Konoha." Mitokado Homura asked his longtime comrade.

"He's right Danzo, there is no point in doing this. All you're doing is wasting the life of a possibly powerful future shinobi. You know the boys heritage as well as we do, so why waste that potential?" Utatane Koharu asked her new superior.

Danzo glance at his two advisors with his lone eye for a moment. Truthfully they were two of the few people he'd actually let stand by his side, at least in public. While he knew they had Konoha's best interest in mind, he also knew neither one of them would do what was truly necessary when it came down to it. Like now.

"There is nothing to worry about. While it's true the boy has a great lineage, he has yet to show even the slightest bit of skill in the ninja arts. Furthermore Kumo has two jinchuuriki that can use their beasts, one of which has full control over it. We need the Kyuubi jinchuuriki to fight them on equal grounds, and Uzumaki Naruto isn't up to the task. As unfortunate as it is, Konoha comes before the life of a single child" Danzo spoke from his seat at the Hokage desk.

Homura and Koharu shared an uneasy glance before Homura spoke up. "But extracting the Kyuubi seems a bit much. Finding another host would take time, not to mention subduing the Kyuubi once it's free will be a task in and of itself."

Danzo didn't miss a beat. "The Raikage was kind enough to have left the Kohaku no Jōhei when he fled. That will be able to hold the Kyuubi while the sealing for its next host is prepared."

"You already have someone in mind? And is the Kohaku no Jōhei enough to hold the power of the Kyuubi?" Koharu asked. Danzo nodded in the positive.

"I have a few in people mind, and the pot was a personal treasure of the Rikudō Sennin himself. It will be able to hold the Kyuubi." Danzo stated, no doubt at all in his speech. "Now if you two don't mind there are many things I have to do right now and think over carefully."

Easily hearing the dismissal, the two elders bowed to the Hokage and exited the room. Now by himself, Danzo spun in his chair and looked out at the village. His village.

'What fools.' Danzo thought to himself. 'Whether we're fighting at the moment or not, we are always at war. Being the strongest village ensures that we will always be a target and I'll make sure we're always ready, the new Kyuubi jinchuuriki will ensure that. And with the host being from my Root division not only will my emotionless soldier have better luck at controlling the beasts power, but it will be loyal to me and me alone.'

Finishing his thought with a chuckle, Danzo spun back around. Looking at his concealed and bandaged right arm he let a smirk appear on his face.

'And even if there are problems, I'm now more then capable of dealing with them myself.'

Later, unknown location outside of Konoha

"What's going on? Where am I and who are you guys?" A young blonde haired boy frightfully screamed at his captors.

Uzumaki Naruto had no idea what was going on. One minute he was in his home mourning the loss of his grandfather figure, and the next thing he knew everything went dark. When he finally woke up he was being held by two men in masks, surrounded by more guys in masks, and some creepy guy that had bandages wrapped around his right eye and used a cane was leading them through what looked like the forest. Needless to say the seven year old was scared out of his mind.

The creepy guy leading the group turned to look at the boy, shocked that he was already awake. The surprise quickly faded as he refocused his attention in front of him once more.

"The answers to those questions have no meaning to you. And even if I were to answer them it would be pointless. Once we get to our destination, you will die." Danzo told the boy. There was nothing in his voice as he said that, knowing he was speaking a fact.

Naruto's eyes widened in fear when he heard that. His struggles increased even more then they were before, but it made no difference. One young boy had no hope of breaking the hold of two Anbus.

"Die! Why am I going to die? What are you going to do-?" He wasn't able to say anymore since one of the Anbu holding him decided to silence him with a light blow to the throat. As Naruto sputtered and coughed, Danzo figured he'd give the boy the mercy of knowing why he was about to die.

"You are going to die for the good of the village. Your death will allow Konoha to prosper like never before and allow the roots of Konoha to spread all over the world."

"How?" Naruto was barely able to wheeze out. None of this made sense to him. He was just a kid, how could him dying do anything like that.

"It's not you per se boy, but what you contain. Sealed within you is the most powerful of the Bijuu, and with its power I will create a soldier... a weapon like no other." He boasted. He had no reason to sugarcoat it. The boy was going to die and all the shinobi present were loyal only to him.

"A Bijuu? What's a Bijuu and how is it inside me?" Naruto wasn't sure he wanted the answer, but at the moment the only things he felt were fear and confusion. If he could get rid of one of them it would make him feel somewhat better, even if only a little.

"A Bijuu is a tailed demon of immense power, and the strongest is contained within you. The Kyuubi no Yoko was sealed in you on the day of your birth. It is for that reason that you've always been alone." Danzo said without any sympathy at all.

Naruto didn't realize he'd not only stopped struggling, but breathing as well. "I have a demon in me?" It was spoken in barely a whisper

Danzo came to a stop and held up a hand. Everyone stopped at the motion, and as he eyed what was before him a smirk appeared on his face.

"Not for much longer boy."

In front of the group was a very large clearing. It had sealing symbols surrounding the entire open area that branched and spread towards the middle of the glade. In the center was the Kohaku no Jōhei, as if waiting to perform its duty for its new master. With the exception of that there was nothing else there, entirely void of even rocks on the ground.

"Wha-" Before Naruto could even finish the word he was stopped.

Danzo suddenly turned around faster then he seemed capable of given his frail appearance, and lashed out. He lifted his cane, and as it ascended a blade slide out from the shaft and glinted in the setting sun as it reach its apex. And just as quickly as it rose it fell, right at the young blonde. The blade struck the center of his head, just within his hairline, and as it descended it was angled so the blow went through his right eye, finishing at his cheekbone.

Naruto screamed out as loud as he could, but that was all he was able to since he was still being held by two Anbu. As he tried to thrash about, Danzo re-sheathed his blade and looked at his handy work. The cut was very deep, probably down to the skull itself, but that's exactly what he was aiming for. Slowly, very slowly, crimson red chakra could be seen in the wound. It was barely there and was hard to see with all the blood, but there was no mistaking that chakra.

"Place him in front of the pot and prepare the extraction." He ordered.

As expected the orders were carried out without question. Normally this process would take time if done carefully and correctly, especially with the seal the Yondaime Hokage used. But thanks to the small amount of chakra that was trying to heal the boys wound, they now had an easy way to grab onto the beasts chakra without fighting the seal itself. With the Kyuubi's chakra on both sides of the seal, and with both sides fighting for the same thing it would be a much easier task to set the beast free and over power the seal. Granted he still had a big task in front of him, but now it would go much smoother.

Naruto didn't know what was going on, all he knew was pain. Tears were spilling from his one good eye as he covered the other one with his hand on instinct. He didn't know why this was happening. First the old man dies, and now some other old man attacks him and plans on killing him. Fighting passed the pain he tried to stand, he had to leave. Too bad it was never meant to be.

If he thought he was in pain before, what he was experiencing now had to be hell itself. Every fiber of his being burned with a pain so intense it was as if a raging inferno had been lit within his small frame. He felt like that man was slashing and stabbing every part of his body, both inside and out. He felt like his very life was being pulled from the pores of his body. So focused on the blinding pain that filled every corner of his thoughts he wasn't able to tell how long it lasted. Whether an instant or an eternity, he wouldn't have known the difference.

When the pain finally stopped assaulting him he was left in a numb trance. He couldn't focus on what was around him, everything looked hazy and unfocused. He didn't dare move for fear of the pain returning, but he could faintly hear a loud roar and a pressure. The pressure didn't last long, and the roar seemed to fade into the distance as well. He was vaguely aware of someone by his side before he let the darkness that was eclipsing his vision take hold.

Unknown place

Danzo was busy contemplating on what had just recently transpired. He'd been able to extract the Kyuubi, and thanks to his implanted Sharingan was able to very briefly stop it. However that short moment was all that was needed to seal it within the Kohaku no Jōhei and complete the first step in his plans. What he didn't expect was for the now former jinchuuriki to live through the extraction.

He'd heard from Sarutobi that Kushina was still alive after the Kyuubi was freed from her, but she had been weakened to the point of being on deaths door regardless. Plus she was a powerful kunoichi with strong chakra, for a child to survive the same process...

"The Uzumaki blood runs strong in his veins." Danzo admitted out loud.

He knew of the Uzumaki's incredible longevity, but he couldn't believe it'd allow someone to survive a Bijuu extraction. On the other hand the only jinchuuriki the Uzumaki clan have always had have housed the Kyuubi, and that demon was now at half strength thanks to the Yondaime. Though even with its Yin chakra forever sealed away it was still without a doubt the strongest Bijuu. As he continued to think along those lines it became clearer just how the boy survived.

'Perhaps having to only pull the Yang chakra from the child, along with his heritage allowed him to escape the Shinigami. He survived where others died because it was only half the chakra of the beast and because of the great vitality his clan possesses.' As he thought that an idea came to mind.

'I was going to hold him regardless, but it's always a good idea to have contingency plans. Should anyone ever find the boy, I can say that because of this he can be a backup host. Should one fail to tame the Kyuubi and if for whatever reason the Kohaku no Jōhei should fail, I now have a suitable container.' A small smile worked its way to his face. 'Yes, that works nicely.'

Hearing footsteps coming down the corridor he was in he stood up from his seat and waited for the person to come into view. It didn't take long before Danzo was able to see one of his operatives come into view with Uzumaki Naruto thrown over his shoulder. As they got closer Danzo turned and opened the cell door that was to his right. This cell was in isolation, one only the Hokage and his most trusted agents knew about. Danzo stepped aside and allowed the man to unceremoniously dump the blonde hard on the floor. The hit seemed to wake the boy up, and as the Root Anbu left the room to stand guard Danzo approached the child.

"I doubt you're able to speak with how loud and long you were screaming during the unsealing, so just listen to me boy."

Seeing the blonde glance at him with his good eye as he groaned in pain, Danzo continued.

"This cell will be your new home now. I've had timed seals placed in here that will unseal food at certain times three times a day, and enough to last a lifetime. Truthfully I did not expect you to live through this ordeal, but in the end it worked out better this way. Now you can serve Konoha as a backup host should the need ever arise. Feel honored that I'd give you the privilege of once again holding Konoha's greatest power."

After his little speech he made his way for the door, but stopped when he was under its frame. He took another glance at the boy, who was still looking at him with his lone eye. Danzo was able to see all the pain he was feeling, but he also saw unbridled hate reflected at him. Danzo merely shook his head and left the child with the last words he'd ever hear from another living being in his life.

"Do not hate me young one, hate those that did this to you. Hate Sarutobi for never training you to harness the power of the Kyuubi. Hate your father for only sealing half the Kyuubi's chakra into you, making it easier to survive the ordeal. And hate your mother for giving you the ability to live a long and strong life." He finished without looking at the downed child.

He then walked out, shut the door behind him and locked it. Without a look back he began walking to the exit of this place, his subordinate right behind him. Looking at him Danzo spoke.

"You look like you have something you want to say." He said. The man merely nodded his head and Danzo gave him permission to speak.

"Won't anyone ask questions about the boy Danzo-sama? For a jinchuuriki to just disappear is odd." The man spoke in a monotone voice. Danzo chuckled at the question.

"No, no one will ask questions about a former jinchuuriki. The boy had no friends at the academy and he distanced himself from the teachers by pulling pranks on them." He paused for a moment here to collect his thoughts.

"The shinobi won't care since the Kyuubi will have another host to use its power; the only exceptions being Jiraiya, Tsunade, and Hatake Kakashi. Jiraiya and Tsunade are out of the village and Jiraiya won't be back for sometime. As for Kakashi, he is a shinobi that knows to follow orders, so he is no threat either. And the only civilians the boy knew, the Ichirakus, are being dealt with as we speak." Danzo finished.

The Root operative nodded in understanding, but had one more thing to ask. "Why keep him alive? The reasoning you gave him was different then what you appeared to have in mind before Danzo-sama."

"That reason is simply. Do you have what I asked for?" Danzo asked as he stuck out his hand.

The man nodded and handed a vial over to the Hokage. Danzo looked at the full vial that had a red liquid inside before a smile appeared on his face.

"Think of it as an experiment."

After saying that he pocketed the vial of blood and made his way back to his tower. No one ever stepped foot within the place that held Uzumaki Naruto again.

Cell, unknown time

'How long has it been since I was first locked away in here?' Uzumaki Naruto thought to himself.

Time had passed, just how much was anyones guess. Dust had settled over everything, including Naruto himself. After so long he'd stopped trying to break the door down. He eventually gave up moving all together. There was no light to determine what time it was or how much had passed. He hadn't even seen himself since that day, let alone anything else.

However, like Danzo said so long ago, food always appeared. It was the only light he'd see. A brief flash of it appearing that lasted less then a second before nothing once again closed in around him. He'd tried to stop eating at one point, let himself starve and die, but he was unable to. His survival instinct refused to let him die before his time was up, but Naruto just saw it as himself being a coward.

'After all, all beings that live fear death. We try to stave it off, but it eventually catches us no matter what we do. Death and time, the only two things in this world that are absolute.' He thought to himself.

It was all he could do, just sit there and get lost in thought. All to pass the time till deaths cold grip clutched his soul. And that's how it was. He sat and thought, surrounded by darkness and forgotten by all. But as he sat there he could feel it, he could feel time marching slowly on.

'I was all alone before, and I still am. Forgotten by everything, not even that man has come to check on me. I used to think that loneliness was the worst pain that could ever be felt, but I was wrong. Loneliness is an undeniably painful thing, but even that is nothing on the pain I feel now. To be alone is to have the option and chance of eventually finding someone to care for, someone to call a friend or love. Even when you're alone you can still have hope, and that can give you strength and a small reprieve.' He paused here as he thought of the pain he felt now.

'But to be forgotten, to simply sit here and rot away with no hope and wait for death. That is hell. To know you've lost without ever having a chance to fight. To know that no matter what you do or what you try, it will forever be hopeless before time itself.' A dry, hoarse chuckle escaped his throat. The first sound to escape him in years.

'Forever, what bullshit. That is only a word people use to hide their fear of death, of aging and rotting into dust. Everything that begins must end, and everything that has an ending postpones it for as long as it's able to. However, in the end all it can due is age away into nothingness and be forgotten within history. Forever...eternity... just made up words that don't have a meaning. Everything ages, everything dies, and everything must eventually submit to this law. Time is the strongest and most absolute power death has. It stands in the way of every living being. The only question is when will it come for you?'

That last thought was directed at himself. Having thought these thoughts before, Naruto can say he was prepared for death. In fact he welcomed it, but that was the thing about aging. You didn't get any choice about anything. You aged and only time could say when your pendulum swung its final swing. You couldn't decide how long you lived, how you died or where, for it would come at you like the shinobi he once desired to be. Silent and unseen. And as much as Naruto wanted to live, sitting in his cell and slowly rotting away wasn't living.

'Hehehe... I can feel it. It's finally here, at long last. Perhaps it's the part of me that wishes to continue living, but I can't help it. That man, whoever he was, I swear that somehow, someway I will kill him. Maybe if we meet in death I can have my revenge, but one way or another I will get it. Even if my time is up.'

With that last thought, Uzumaki Naruto departed from the world of the living.

Hueco Mundo

Waking up was always a disappointment to Naruto because it meant that he had another day to rot away in his cage of despair. This time however, feeling something besides concrete beneath him filled him with something he hadn't felt in a lifetime... hope. Pushing himself up he opened his eyes and took in his surroundings, being able to see something for the first time in decades.

The landscape though left much to be desired. A seemingly endless white desert stretched out as far as he could see. The occasional sand dune stood out among the rest of the flat desert, along with a few small white trees. Looking up he was able to see the starless black sky with a crescent moon hanging overhead. It was a barren place that looked like only the strongest could survive in, but as Naruto felt a breeze hit him he realized he actually felt happy... he felt free. Despite that happiness though he couldn't help but feel that something was wrong. It was as he looked down at the sand at his feet that he realized that something was wrong... wrong with him.

He had changed. In the place of Naruto was something that had a vague humanoid shape. It was very large and bulky in size and was pitch black in color. Its feet had no digits on them, looking like he was wearing boots. His hands had three claws on each hand, and spikes were running up his arms from his wrists to his neck. These same spikes also ran down the sides of his stomach and legs all the way to his feet. A thick tail sprouted from his tailbone that was as long as he was tall. However the two most notable features were the hole that was in the center of his chest, and the mask on his face that took the form of a human skull that had a crack the same place were Naruto had his scar. It was colored white, the only thing on him that wasn't black.

Looking himself over Naruto couldn't stop the questions from coming out of his mouth. "What's happened to me? Where am I?"

It was then that something overcame Naruto. It felt wild, untamed, beastly. Whatever it was it took control of him and threw his body to the ground. Lucky for him that it did, for not a second later something passed over him. Jumping back to his feet Naruto looked at his attacker.

It appeared to be a large canine like creature. Its silver fur was spiked out and looked like needles, and its claws and paws were red in color. It had three tails that split off at the ends. The mask it wore looked like a smirking dog or wolf. It too had a hole, his in the center of its back.

As he looked at this creature Naruto felt a hunger well up from deep inside him. He'd never felt it before, but it was to strong to ignore. Running on pure instinct Naruto ran for this other creature with the intent to kill. Making a lunge proved useless, until he spun around and made use of the tail he was surprised he knew how to use. The tail hit its mark, causing the canine to skip on the sand a few times before quickly getting back to its feet.

This time it didn't wait for Naruto to attack it and ran at him. Naruto was able to dodge relatively easy, but the tails gave him some trouble. He dodged the first one, but got hit by the other two. But before the third tail got out of distance Naruto grabbed it and swung his adversary over his shoulder. His foe hit the sand hard and seemed to be stunned for a moment. Naruto didn't let it go to waste.

Jumping on top of the wolf like creature Naruto began raining down punches on it. Every blow was harder then the last, until one blow to the mask actually seemed to crack it. Feeling the hunger rise to even greater levels, what Naruto did next surprised himself. He bit into his foe. Lost to hunger and instinct Naruto continued to feed on his defeated enemy long after it stopped struggling. When he was finally finish his meal he stood back up and looked over the landscape once again.

He wasn't sure if it was from the foe he just ate or his mind drudging up information that he obtained when he died, but things began falling into place. He was in Hueco Mundo, a world for lost and burdened souls that gave into their negative emotions upon death. He was a monster, just a creature from a nightmare living his own. A pain filled, hollow laugh escaped from behind his mask.

'Even in death nothing has changed. Trapped behind an object where the only thing I can really do is feed and wait to die. Even in death there is death. At least this time I'll be able to watch as the sands of time shift. I refuse to become someone else's meal, to suffer so another can ease the pain of this hunger. I'll fight to live, just so I can die of old age in the shifting sands of this desert. After all, time waits for no one. '

With that Naruto began his afterlife in Hueco Mundo. However, if he were to have looked down as he walked he would have seen that after each step, the sand never moved until a few seconds later.

Some time later

Naruto realized that much like in his life, he was unable to tell how much time passed as he struggled to survive. After his first meal he left the surface of the desert, having realized and felt that only powerful hollows roamed the desert underneath the dark sky. He made his way to the Forest of Menos where the lower class hollows and Gillian were. He spent a lot of time within the forest, fighting and eating other hollows. He never traveled to the human world to feed off human souls. He figured that the dead and the living should stay separated like they were meant to be. Besides considering his village had forgotten him, plus with the power he felt within himself he couldn't find it in him to go after such... lowly souls.

After eating so many other hollows they began to come to him. It became a free-for-all between the gathered hollows. Naruto eventually lost himself within the masses as he continued to feast, never realizing that they were all becoming one. Before he ever realized what was going on he found himself lost within a void of blackness. He could hear the wails and roars of the other hollows, but was unable to see them. That made no difference to him though, because the only thing he could think of was escaping wherever he was. He'd already spent a lifetime stuck in a dark prison with no hope of leaving, he would never allow that to happen again. It was that unyielding desire that enabled the newly born Gillian to proudly wear its human-like skull mask.

And so he roamed the Menos Forest. He ate all hollows he could find. Lower hollows or Gillians, it didn't matter to him. Whether he spent years, decades, or even centuries as a Gillian he wasn't sure. However, he would eventually see this as the worst time in either his life or afterlife. Even when Naruto was locked away he still had his thoughts, but not in this form. As a Gillian he was just a beast looking for its next meal and nothing more. Having lost everything before, losing his very thoughts was nearly unbearable.

He did get them back one day, the day he evolved into an Adjuchas.

After just evolving

Naruto looked himself over as he relished the feeling of free thought once more. His new appearance, while smaller then his previous forms, was still about ten feet tall. He was now wearing a tight hooded robe that reached his ankles and was pitch black in color. His hands were visible and now had four finger instead of three. From what could be seen he looked almost skeletal, but that wasn't true. Truth was he looked extremely malnourished to the point were you could see the outlines of bone very clearly. He also now had a wing that came out of his left shoulder blade, and somehow a scythe had materialized in his hand. His hollow hole was covered by his robe, and the majority of his skull mask was hidden by his hood.

When he was done taking in his appearance Naruto just starred at his hand for a moment, flexing and unflexing it. It was then he felt the reiryoku his new form brought him and decided to unleash it. Letting out a pulse of dark red reiatsu around himself, he was shocked by what he discovered.

Not only was it more powerful then he thought it'd be, but whatever the pulse of reiatsu touched began aging. It was hard to tell at first, but after a few moments it became more apparent. The giant quartz trees that surrounded him began to slowly chip away. Those chips slowly began turning into dust after they hit the ground. All Naruto could do was stare as the process stopped as the reiatsu faded from the trees.

"HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA"

Out of nowhere Naruto began to laugh uproariously. His head thrown back and arms wide, even the jaw of his mask was moving as if laughing. It lasted for quite awhile and Naruto didn't care who heard him. What he'd just discovered changed everything.

"Hahahahahehe... How amazing. I aged those trees, some parts to dust even!" He paused here. "I wonder?"

Looking up at one of the branches he picked one and threw his new scythe at it. It cut clean through with ease, and as it fell towards him Naruto raised his hand at it. As it continued it descent it slowly, but noticeably began to slowdown. By the time it reach Naruto's level it was as if it were moving in slow motion. A chuckle again escaped his mask as his hands began to shake. Not with fear, not even with happiness, but with elation.

"Incredible... how absolutely INCREDIBLE! I can move time! Even if to a small degree I can still control TIME! AHAHAHAHAHA!"

Once again he began to laugh uncontrollably. It was just to much for him. To someone who bowed down before time, as someone who utterly feared it, hated it, and respected it. To be able to control deaths greatest weapon, an absolute power, was incredible.

"An absolute power that I can use." He spoke out loud.

As he moved to retrieve his scythe, he walked openly and proudly. After all, when you can speedup and slowdown the things around you, why be cautious? What did someone who could use an absolute power have to fear. It was right then that arrogance was born in Naruto soul.

Surface of Hueco Mundo

Much time had passed since Naruto had become an Adjuchas. He didn't know how much; not because he couldn't, but because he didn't see the point. What reason did a being who could slow and speed up the time around him have to keep track of it. He'd trained his powers to the point of the slow down always being active around him, and his overall prowess with the ability skyrocketed. But as his skills increased the arrogance within him grew in direct proportion. It became almost too easy for him to kill and eat other hollows, but he did out of necessity. The way he saw it he was doing them a favor allowing them to become a part of something so great.

It was a few centuries after becoming an Adjuchas that he reach the next level. The legendary level that all hollows strive to attain, Vasto Lorde. After attaining this level his appearance once again changed.

He was now human size, roughly five foot five and was reduced down to just his skeletal structure. His frame was draped in a purple cloak with a pitch black tattered fur collar around his neck area and the fringes of his cloak. He sported gold armbands on both wrists and his feet became white pointed-toe boots. His mask was now a full human skull that made up his entire head. His scythe had also changed into a slim double-bladed axe which he keeps in his cloak and calls Gran Caída. His hollow hole was hidden under his cloak.

After his evolution Naruto had noticed his power in manipulating the time around him had increased in power as well. The field in which he could slow things down and speed them up had increased in distance.

Naruto knew his power was great, being one of the few Vasto Lordes was proof of that, but he wanted more. For someone who used an unstoppable power surely deserved more. Death ruled over all things, and time was its greatest weapon. Time was also his greatest weapon, so shouldn't he too rule over all... all of this world... his world.

It wasn't long after he began thinking that that he ran into an Adjuchas one night. What transpired couldn't be called a fight, but the Adjuchas knew that running was just as futile as fighting was. If any hollow was unfortunate enough to run into a Vasto Lorde the only thing left is for them is death. However, the deathblow never came. As the Adjuchas looked up at Naruto he began speaking.

"You should feel honored, lowly hollow, that you even got to stand in my presence, but I have an even greater honor in store for you."

He put his axe back in his cloak as he looked down on his fellow hollow. It was easy to tell though that he didn't see him as a fellow hollow. He saw this creature as beneath him.

"You will gather other hollows. Whether they are Adjuchas or lesser hollows I don't care, but you will amass for me an army." He told the downed hollow.

"And if they refuse?" The hollow managed to get out.

"Bring them to me and I will show them my power. Bring a large group first, and then split up and continue gathering until an army stands before me."

"And then what would you have us do?"

"You will all begin to build my future palace. A palace fit for the King of Hueco Mundo." Naruto announced. His voice didn't waver for he knew he was going to be king. He already was, it was just a matter of spreading the word.

"And what is the name of my king?" The Adjuchas asked its final question with a bowed head.

"I am not just your king, but the ruler of all Hueco Mundo. I am Baraggan Louisenbairn." He said.

As he watched the Adjuchas run off to fulfill its orders Baraggan knew one thing as he looked up at he sky. With his powers he wasn't just a king.

'I am a God-King.'

Finished

1) Lightning release armor

In all honesty I have no idea were this came from. I was reading VulpineSnow's story To Sacrifice for Life, and in an authors note he said something about never seeing a Naruto turned Baraggan story. Then I started thinking how someone could pull that off and the damn idea would not leave me alone. I tried to ignore it but it kept gnawing at my mind until I said what the hell and just wrote this.

The beginning was slow, but that was me trying to get Naruto to somehow get some of Baraggan's beliefs down. Whether that and this start of the story are a success I have no idea, but it was actually fun to write. And while Naruto does have his time dilation field, he doesn't have Respira. I think that was an ability of his release, but he can extend his dilation field by pulsating his reiatsu, which has a short distance limit.

Not sure if I'm going to send Naruto back home or let him live through the war. I can go either way and am leaning towards sending him back, with his powers limited, but I'm going to put up a poll on my profile. The next chapter will be Baraggan's rise as God-King through the wars end, after which I'll decided where to take the story. Hope anyone reading this enjoys this random story I pull out of nowhere.

Peace