I OWN NOTHING
IMPORTANT NOTE: Since the Castlevania franchise is rather big, I'll be honest and say I'm not following any Castlevania story for the sake of being original and avoid copy-pasting the dialogue from the games, though there might be some very familiar dialogue in parts in which I felt the temptation to use some infamous lines. Anyways, do excuse me if I didn't put your favorite characters/enemies/locations in, but this if my fic. Sorry, but I haven't played all the games, I played a few but playing all of them is impossible, and my memory's a bit fuzzy on some parts.
Secondary note: I just felt the need to write this because I fucking hate Kishimoto for the last moves he's been pulling, it's like he seriously wants me to hate him now. So, instead of shaking my fist at him for inhaling so much of Sasuke's imaginary dick, I decided to let out all of my hatred in this one-shot. My other fics will be updated more frequently when I manage to get rid of all of this hate, and now this is a good way to start: with a journey for Naruto to get the wisdom and strength to make Sasuke pay for his crime against every single religion for existing.
XXXXXX
"Power...? All this… bullshit... for power...?"
The bleeding husk of a blond boy struggled to say, clawing in the river he was in at the shore to get out of the water. So far he had arrived to a shoreline, but the bleeding, the burning and the deep hatred in him was burning his body's life. He was furious, he wanted to scream, to kill, rip apart and destroy. But he needed more to heal himself; he needed to actually think, to find a way to defeat every single one of those who betrayed him for some bastard to have all the glory that this almost dead boy deserved. With a great deal of effort, he turned himself on his back to regain his breath, showing to the skies his torso almost ripped apart and yet breathing.
"I won't die... You hear me... I won't... Until I..." blood escaped his lips in a cough. And yet, despite his body weakening, the drive moved him to try to stand up.
"There he is!" cried several shinobi carrying the Leaf emblem, this were ANBU. But rather than getting a medic-nin, they took out their weapons, "Time to end your life, demon! And then, all your power shall belong to the Sixth Hokage!"
Naruto, rather than cowering, smirked and used the last of his strength to lift up his right arm and flip the guys the bird, "Power... is all you... weak... pathetic... arrogant scum want!" the boy said, feeling the drive in his body to kill everyone making him stand up, "You... All of you... are leeches... sucking... the power... from everyone... just to feel better..." Naruto's eyes shone red as he struggled to stand on his feet, but he still got to put his arms up into fists, "I won't... die... until... I kill you all!"
Naruto did his best to charge while the ANBU dashed at him, even if he died, he'd do so only after they were all dead and Konoha burned to the ground. But, there was someone with better plans, "Hold still, boy!"
A large, thundering voice silenced even the dead, and the ANBU flew up into the skies as minced-meat. What Naruto saw next shocked him... It was Death, the Grim Reaper floating down towards him, a skeleton clad in a rich purple robe with his face covered by a hood and his hand gracefully cradling his scythe with its blade's edge coated in the blood of the ANBU.
"Humans, always rushing to my hands, without even trying to think twice." the reaper said as he stood before Naruto, towering over the boy and looking down on his dying body. "Your life has more meaning and power than you imagine, so try to avoid wasting it."
Naruto spoke with a heavy breath, "Are you... the shinigami...?"
"No, I am a force greater than his, I am his god... I am Death."
Naruto couldn't help but let out a chuckle, "Sorry... but I don't plan on dying... just yet..." he said as best as he could, readying his fists.
Death looked at Naruto, amused, "You'd fight even the God of the Dead? For what? Revenge?"
Naruto shook his head, "No... I want to stop them... to defeat those who ruin others' lives... the bastards who destroy… the lives of others for their stupid greed... To stop them from making others suffer..."
"And how will you do it, then? Your body's too weak, your flesh is tearing from your bones, and your blood is drying up." the reaper pointed out, readying his scythe.
"Then I'll come back, even if I must crawl all the way through Hell!" Naruto roared with all of his anger boiling him up and giving him feral power. He lunged at the reaper, and just as Death tried to intercept him, he received a powerful punch that shattered his lower jaw and took out three teeth. The reaper was amazed, this boy was dying and he managed to hit and harm him! However, he harmed him. The reaper grabbed the already weakened boy by the neck, and did something Naruto didn't expect, he laughed.
"That's the spirit I need, boy... Or should I say... Master?"
"The... The Hell...?" Naruto asked in confusion, trying to regain his breath from the blood he lost.
Death nodded, and if the Reaper could he would have grinned, "To each thing its own time, however, I have a castle that needs a master, and a king who needs help to return... Tell me, boy, are you truly that obsessed in having the power to rule mankind, even to the point of eradicating its vermin? Are you desperate enough to throw away your humanity?"
Naruto actually chuckled at him, "Desperate...? I was never even seen as a human."
"Good enough." Death said as he brandished his scythe and stabbed its blade into Naruto's gut, making the blond gasp at the sensation. It wasn't pain but... something else, "You have a second chance, don't waste it, Master."
XXXXXX
A bad memory flashed through Naruto's mind: his supposedly reformed "friend" stabbing him from behind, taking all the glory of killing the Juubi, and then the cries of Naruto's true friends running to his rescue, all of them silenced by the same man who laughed cruelly and told him just one thing:
"This is power. But you shall never know, because you weren't born with it."
And then, rather than finishing the job, he decided to make Naruto suffer and throw him down a river, tying him up with spiked chains before throwing him in the current. The next order had been for ANBU to search for him and kill him before he took the control of the Leaf, all to further mock Naruto's memory. Then he'd extract the Kyuubi from him to become more powerful, showing his true colors once and for all. Naruto had been beaten, ridiculed, even dishonored, and, worse of all, he had been on the first row to watch how everyone who showed him even the tiniest bit of love or respect were killed so Sasuke could rule the Leaf.
"No…" Naruto had said, grinning at Sasuke, "You don't have power… You have nothing." He had been standing at the edge of the cliff, the waterfall a few steps away, "You want power because you know you are NOTHING without it. You are too weak to get power through real effort, because all your power came from copying the jutsus of others and exploiting your bloodline all the time. You killed my friends because you are AFRAID of them telling you the truth, you need those assholes in the council to make you feel better instead of telling you that your stupid bloodline is proof that if it weren't for having your false power to get new abilities every five seconds without any effort, you'd be… no… you're already NOTHING!"
And, with those last words, Naruto jumped off the cliff. At that moment, he swore he'd make everyone pay, the council for spoiling Sasuke and making him rule a nation he didn't deserve, the ninjas who faked being his friends only to kill whatever few people really cared for him, but mostly the sons of a bitches who dared to steal everything from everyone just to satiate their ego. All the while, he couldn't help but laugh at Sasuke's hurt ego before hitting the water and letting the currents take him away.
"Naruto, if we don't survive this…" Kurama started, but the blond chuckled.
"We will survive this…" Naruto corrected his only remaining friend.
"No… At least, one of us should survive." Was all the fox said, before calling to a real god, "If any of you can hear my prayers… Then at least let this boy live so he can have his vengeance. If you do, you can have my soul so long as this boy can make that fucking village burn to the ground!"
Little did the Kyuubi know that someone actually heard him.
XXXXXX
And now, here he was… drowning.
"Fuck!" was the smartest word that escaped Naruto's lips as he grabbed an edge and pulled himself out of the water. So far, he discovered a few things. He was in a closed room made out of gray blocks and stones, possibly from a castle's dungeon, he had been tossed in a pond, and he was staring at the Grim Reaper himself standing before him.
"Did you enjoy your bath?" Death asked amused, still a bit sore at the loss of his teeth. Naruto got out of the pond he was in, only to realize what he had been drowning on, blood. Before he could ask or say anything, the blond was forced to flip backwards to avoid the scythe's blade coming for his neck. "It'll just be a moment of pain, boy, and then you will be the master of this castle. Not that you'll be there to know about it."
"What are you talking about?!" the blond asked as he got ready to fight. He was still drenched on blood, and clad only in his old and worn orange pants with his black muscle shirt, and walking barefoot. The blond felt really disgusted about the blood covering him from head to toe and practically gluing his hair to his scalp, giving it a spiky mop-like style.
Death stared blankly at the betrayed shinobi before thinking things a bit more thoroughly, "Do you even know who you are and how you got here?"
"Yes, I am Uzumaki Naruto, betrayed by my own village so a power-hungry idiot could have his whims done." The blond said as he got ready for action, but while keeping a stern glare he also had a million questions, 'What the Hell is this all about? First he calls me Master, now I'm healed but drenched in blood, and he then wants to kill me…What the Hell is going on in here?'
Death chuckled, "No… You are the vessel for my master and old friend, Count Dracula, the lord of this castle, Castlevania." He readied his scythe, in case Naruto attacked, but gave things a few more thoughts, "Perhaps a little trip will help to prove if you deserve to be the count's vessel."
"And what makes you think I'll go through your games?" Naruto said defiantly, "I've got to stop a bastard from getting even more power mad."
Death cackled, "So, don't you want to help him?" he asked, raising his hand to show a blood red orb with black beady eyes that stared sadly at the blond. "And to think your friend gave his life for yours, allowing you to live even when every other Jinchuuriki would have died at having their Tailed Beast taken out…I must commend you on surviving, I'd expect nothing less of the count's vessel."
Naruto soon felt anger like never before, "What are you doing to my friend?!"
Death chuckled again, "If you want your power back, you'll have to face every single one of the castle's elite guardians." The Grim Reaper crushed the orb in his hand, making it disappear. "I've also taken care of making sure it's a fair fight, for us. Your chakra, all of your power resides now in Kurama's very soul, if you want it all back you shall try to find me at the throne room."
And before Naruto could reply, something grabbed him from behind and dragged him back into the pond. Now the blond discovered that the pond was a well, and that it only went deeper and deeper as blood started to get in his mouth and lungs.
The next morning, a small village found a drifting blond floating down the river, covered in bloodied clothes.
XXXXXX
"Ugh…"
"Oh, good, you are awake." Said someone to the blond. Naruto struggled to open his eyes as he looked around. He was in a simple room, wooden floor, a desk, a chair and nothing but an oil lamp illuminating it. The former Leaf shinobi rested on a simple bed, wearing a white set of pajamas with warm sheets making him feel more at home than anything else could. For a moment he wondered if everything he saw was a dream. He shook his head, of course it couldn't be a dream, he still felt the taste of blood in his mouth, and he couldn't sense Kurama anywhere.
The man who had spoken to him was a doctor, clad in a brown suit with matching shoes, a white tie, a black buttoned shirt, a white lab coat, a stethoscope hanging from his shoulders and a worried face. He was certainly not from the Leaf, not with who called the shots right now. The man seemed to be in his forties since he had brown hair and beard with several grey shades, looking intently at the boy through his glasses as he examined him.
"Boy, you are lucky to have been found by my daughter." The doctor chuckled as he examined Naruto's breathing and heartbeat.
"How long have I been out?" the kid asked.
"For a few days, Naruto." the doctor replied, making Naruto's eyes widen.
"How did you-" the blond asked, but soon the doctor replied by showing him a wanted sign with Naruto's picture on it. There was a huge reward for bringing him alive to the Leaf so he could be executed, and, wouldn't you know it, the whole thing was orchestrated by the new Sixth Hokage.
"Don't worry, I'm not with them." the doctor said before walking to a wall and opening a small window. He then helped Naruto stand up, letting the blond lean on him to look outside. Naruto was soon disgusted. In the middle of the night Leaf shinobi plagued the whole village. Houses had been either burned down or were occupied by ANBU and shinobis of Chunin and Jonin ranks. The villagers were forced out of their own homes and then interrogated by the shinobi, who when not getting any answers on Naruto's whereabouts started to beat someone.
"Why don't you tell them where I am?!" Naruto almost shouted, trying not to give away his and the doctor's position.
"Because none of us like the idea of those bastards winning." The doctor said, closing the window and then guiding Naruto back to the bed. "Those shinobi have been terrorizing us for a while, they even took my wife prisoner…" the man sighed and took a seat at the desk, "It's only been a few days, but they're expanding to other continents of the world, even to this one where there's no chakra… Hell, chakra was a fairy tale until those guys arrived." He chuckled bitterly, pinching the bridge of his nose. "I… I honestly couldn't believe shinobis would go this far for someone, but then again, we are one of the few villages who don't believe that the new Hokage, as they seem to call their leader, should be in charge of things. Sadly, the others who have agreed to him were forced like we are right now."
Naruto looked down at his own hands, before speaking up, "I'll need some clothes and a map to Castlevania."
The simple mentioning of the castle's name froze the doctor's blood. He turned to the kid, stuttering, "Y-You… H-How do you know of s-such a thing?" the man stood up, taking off his glasses to rub his face, "First shinobis attacking us when we haven't gotten attacked in years by those monsters… and now you… you want to go to the castle of Count Dracula? I… I… I need a drink." The doctor walked to the bed and looked down to pull a bottle of brandy, "Do me a favor and don't tell this to my daughter, I only keep it when I get news like this."
Naruto let the man gulp down a good part of the bottle, and had to admit he was impressed that the doctor looked still conscious after emptying the bottle in one go. So, he had to ask, "Why are you afraid of Castlevania?"
"That castle… Well…" the man threw away the empty bottle and grabbed his glasses to rub his eyes as if he had sand in them. He then looked in his desk and pulled out an old, worn map, "Back in the day when the count was at the throne… Monsters would come by and attack our village. But every so often a hero would go and challenge him… However, time after time the count would return from the dead, so the heroes had to go and plan a way to seal the count's soul and prevent him from resurrecting… Details were never explained, but for a good amount of years the count hasn't attacked. Last time I was a kid, still four and I saw the first of the monsters at the count's command… If it weren't for whatever few heroes we had with us…"
Naruto didn't say anything, he had a lot to think, 'A method to contain the count's soul… and Death said I was… What does it all mean?! Am I related to Dracula or something? If I am linked to the count, then how does that relate to Death? Ugh, doesn't matter, I need to get Kurama to take care of the Leaf and make sure they stop torturing others. Then I'll ask Death anything I need to know.' He turned to the doctor, "I need to get to that castle, there's more than a good chance I can defeat the Leaf should I go in there."
"Why can't you fight them now?" the doctor asked, motioning to the wanted poster, "If they're willing to offer this much money for you, then please tell me you can kill every single one of them on the spot by blinking." He was obviously desperate, not that Naruto would blame the guy, his wife was taken prisoner by the Leaf.
Naruto sighed and repeated himself, "If I want to have a chance to face them, I need to get to that castle, so I'm gonna need three things then, a map to Castlevania, clothes, and a weapon."
"Daddy!"
Before the doctor could reply the sound of a young girl's voice called for him, the man growled, "Listen, Naruto, please stay here and try not to make any noise, if anything happens there's a trap door beneath the bed, it's a small wine cellar but we've been using it to hide you when the shinobi came here." The man took out his lab coat and threw it on his desk, adjusting his glasses as he went down.
Naruto looked at the map on the desk, and without thinking twice he grabbed it. Just as he thought, the map did lead to Castlevania. But there was more… inside the desk was something he also needed, a weapon. It was a beautiful chain whip, the links were all bladed and the handle was made of silver with the butt of the handle ending in a sharp stake. Before he could try to find out how or why would a doctor own something like this, there was a loud crash downstairs. Naruto grabbed the whip and did his best to stay on his feet, feeling his muscles still asleep after so much time in a bed, not to mention his current lack of demonic chakra.
"Let me go!" cried that same female voice. Naruto looked down the stairs to a little seven year old girl with brown hair held in a ponytail by a simple purple lace, wearing a purple dress and struggling against an ANBU.
"Don't you dare touch h-" the doctor tried to stand tall and shout, but was back-handed by an ANBU.
"Until you give us any clues of where the Demon Brat is, you'll never see your family again, old man."
"But we don't know where he is!" the doctor shouted, trying to get back only to be kicked down.
"Daddy!" the girl cried, before turning to the shinobi, "That Uzumaki boy is not here, how many times must we tell you?! You already took my mommy, why don't you just leave this village already?!"
The ANBU back-handed the girl, "Shut up! It's the Rokudaime's order to find that monster and send him back to he can have his power and then kill him! You just have to be a pretty little girl and obey!"
The ANBU holding he girl grinned, "Besides, I bet you'd like to have fun with real men."
Naruto had enough, he swung the chain whip and strangled the ANBU, the bladed links digging into the elite shinobi's flesh with ease. And despite having no chakra, Naruto was very strong, with a quick and swift yank the ANBU's head flew clean of his shoulders. However, he was still having to get used to his new state, which meant that this probably wasn't such a good idea.
"RRRRRAAAAARRRGRRAAAAARGHH!"
Everyone froze as they heard the terrifying howl of a demonic beast. The other shinobi started to scream in agony and horror. Outside in the moonlight, there was a giant humanoid shape, howling at the moon with its jaw dripping from Leaf shinobi entrails and blood. Naruto's jaw dropped at the sight of the fearsome creature...A minotaur! It must have been about twelve foot tall, it was clad in a loincloth, carried a large halberd and while its body was covered in burn marks from fire jutsus and slashes from several weapons, it stood proudly as it held the torso of an ANBU and ate it. The monster suddenly sniffed the air. It turned to the rest and noticed the terrified ANBU holding the girl, staring at it in horror. It growled menacingly and turned towards him. It took off in an incredible dash of speed despite its size and started running after its target. The ANBU, showing his worth, threw the doctor's daughter to the ground before the beast and took off running. But before the ANBU got too far, the minotaur threw its halberd at it and impaled the shinobi.
"Alyssa!" the man cried as he ran to his daughter.
As the good doctor saw the great beast running towards him, Naruto's eyes widened in horror. As it got closer, he could feel that same feeling he had when watching Haku die, horror, pure horror, "Oh no, you won't!" He whipped out his weapon, getting the beast in the eye and making it furiously turn to him. "I won't let you hurt these two." The blond said as he cracked the whip on the ground.
He quickly dodged to the side as the giant monster dashed at him. Naruto watched as the creature began to circle back and grabbed its halberd, with the impaled ANBU in it. The minotaur took off the shinobi's head clean off with a large bite before walking towards Naruto. He dodged to the left and lashed his "borrowed" whip on the creature's side, causing it to growl in pain and stop. It glared menacingly at Naruto, its dark, soul-less eyes piercing into Naruto's very being. Naruto glared right back and whipped the creature again, so hard that it showed the bone of his ribs. Black blood oozed out of the half-ox's body, like tar. Suddenly, the Greek mythological creature threw its halberd at the blond. Without thinking, he ducked to the left and landed on his back. Before he could even blink, the large monster was on top him and about to stomp on him. Naruto rolled to the side and used the stake-part of the handle of his weapon to stab the monster in its ankle. The creature stumbled on its only good leg but soon fell flat on its knees.
Naruto acted quickly, he jumped at the beast and climbed up towards its head. The minotaur tried to shake the blond off at the same time it tried to get up. Naruto managed to throw his whip and wrap its chains around the monster's neck before starting to pull back to either asphyxiate or behead the monster, whatever came first. The minotaur trashed around as best as it could to try to punch Naruto away from itself, but soon with its last dying breath the minotaur collapsed down into the floor as a lifeless husk.
"So, the whip made for the Belmont House… it really works…" the doctor said, trying to regain his composure, "Alyssa… Please, get me some herbal tea ready." He said to his daughter, guiding her home before turning to Naruto, "You need to come with us."
Inside the house, Alyssa smiled gratefully at the heroic blond as she served him his drink as her father and Naruto sat in the living room, "I want to thank you for saving my dad and I. And with the shinobi dead by that minotaur, now we can finally move out once we get mommy and the others out of jail."
"What do you mean move out?" Naruto asked curiously.
The doctor sighed, "Sorry, but we helped you, and if the Leaf knows about this they will try to get to you by us. Not to mention the deaths of their shinobi would anger them."
"But it wasn't your fault, it was that cow's, and mine!" Naruto replied.
The doctor took a sip of his tea, "Boy, that village has turned into Hell, and the Rokudaime's the Devil." He took a second sip to calm his nerves, "Listen, whatever few villages tried to oppose him ended burning to the ground. It's been just a few days since he got the power of the Fire Country backing him up, but the number of corpses littering whatever remains after he and his shinobi are done is already on the five digits."
"And what of the other Kages?" Naruto asked.
"They were all betrayed as well, I heard. Due to the alliance the Rokudaime is now also the ruler of their countries, after the bastard killed them in cold blood." The doctor then chuckled, "One good thing… He'll never have a legacy." Naruto gave him a questioning look so the doctor elaborated, "The bastard tried to have children of his own, however the first one he tried to force to carry his spawn was the Mizukage. She made sure he'll never have children ever again with the last flame of her life."
Naruto nodded, feeling sad about the Mizukage and what could have happened had she not fought back, but if she died fighting to protect her innocence and got away with it, then she must be happy in the after-life. But now, he had some questions, "To bring the bastard down I need to enter Catlevania, and this whip… It's no ordinary weapon, is it?"
The doctor sighed, "No, it isn't… It's a relic made by my grandfather, he created it for an old friend of his… It's a family promise to guard it until someone who can wield it to protect the world from darkness raises… Usually, I'd have thought my grandfather a lunatic, but years ago, when I first and last saw the count's minions as a kid, I lost my father, so my grandfather returned to his job as a blacksmith to proudly make weapons to battle the count. But one day, a young man from a family of vampire hunters just asked for the greatest whip my grandfather could make, and when he returned triumphant from the count's castle, he returned it to us and asked my family to guard it should the count rise again."
The blond held the whip tightly in his hands, "Well, since there seems to be someone even worse than Dracula trying to get power, I will need it to enter Castlevania and find a way to stop Sasuke once and for all."
The doctor nodded, "Then I'll be your guide."
XXXXXX
After setting his wife free and leaving her secured at home with his daughter, the doctor brought in a simple cart, pulled by a young and strong mare with a brown coat and white mane. The horse stepped on her hooves, anxious to get moving. Naruto rode on the back of the cart, looking around as the villagers started to pack their things in their own carts to get out. It seemed they really wanted to put as much distance between them and the Leaf as possible. As soon as Naruto entered, he was handed clothes from the doctor. While the carriage galloped in an instant, Naruto put one his new clothes. He did take time to look out of the cart from time to time, they passed a forest, and soon got into a fog. He could also hear the mare, the horse's initial enthusiasm seemed to die as they approached their destination.
Once there, Naruto stepped out in his new clothes, a black jacket with a high collar, black baggy dress pants with a belt designed for his new whip, black working shoes and a blood red buttoned shirt with its collar popped up. Just as Naruto started to walk towards the castle, the doctor called to him and handed him a pair of black leather gloves, which Naruto thanked since the entire area felt very cold, and handing him some strange vials filled with sparkling clean water.
"That's holy water, it's an old traditional way to protect ourselves from the darkness of Hell, use it wisely, my friend. If the count's castle has come back to life, then at least be prepared." The doctor said, nodding at the blond as a farewell and returning back to his family.
"Thank you." Naruto said loud enough so his new friend could hear him. He grabbed his spiky mop of hair, ruffling it a bit. It seemed his hair had grown quite longer. It was now reaching to his chin and it was more tamed now, it still sported some spikes but not as many as before. The whiskered youth could only look at the castle, and boy oh boy was it big.
The whole structure was easily about three times bigger than the Leaf, and every single corner was covered in fog, but the fog around the forest was far thicker than the fog inside the castle's walls. There was a bridge that guided him into the large gardens, and the moon provided very good light despite the fog. This place was obviously defying nature, and yet, it made him that more determined to get Kurama back, make the Grim Reaper learn some humility the hard way and then defeat Sasuke once and for all.
Naruto cracked his new whip into the ground and stepped forward with determination burning in his eyes. He trekked for what seemed like half an hour, and before he knew it, he found himself in a graveyard. He looked at all the graves around him, every single one of them were opened. "This can't be good." He stated. As he passed through, he swore he had heard a faint groaning sound. "Alright... who's there?" He started walking faster. He looked around for anything suspicious, when hands punched out of one of the graves, as rotten decaying bodies started to get out. They groaned as they looked at the blond and moved slowly towards him.
"Great, as if the fucking Edo Tensei wasn't enough." He lashed out his whip and ripped off the first zombie's head. He could hear the bones cracking and watched as blood rocketed from the neck and body before the body fell, lifeless as it should be. He looked behind him, and saw that more were trying to surround him.
Naruto cracked his new whip again, feeling almost natural as he held it tightly, "Good, time to get me a challenge."
Unknown from him, the shadows had eyes. Death looked at the blond along two of Dracula's best. One was a stunning red headed woman with large voluptuous breasts, a finely shaped derriere, large bat wings protruding from her back, and nothing on her body but a sexy bustier, elbow-length gloves, and thigh-high boots, she wore her hair in a sort of bun, with white flowers arranged amongst it, she was Elizabeth the Succubus (1). The other woman standing opposite to her had chin length blackish blue hair, and wore an ornate and elaborate outfit resembling torture or bondage gear, spiked armlets and neck attachments, a short bustier that only covered the sides of her truly massive breasts, boots with fishnet parts, blades for heels, and a giant iron maiden like attachment to her left arm with a blade on it. She was Carmilla, one of the loyal followers of the count (2).
"For a mere human who lost his power, he's rather brave." Carmilla chuckled into her hand.
Elizabeth was more intrigued, "And to think he's carrying one of the whips of that accursed family. Irony doesn't know its ends."
Death nodded, "The minotaur at least got his attention, we made sure he was found by the one guarding the whip, all we have to do is see if he deserves to be the count's vessel."
XXXXXX
Naruto had somehow entered the castle after lashing out his way through zombies. The first thing he could commend was its beautiful gothic architecture and how well it was kept despite the desolation of the entire area. He gripped his whip tighter, a weapon made for a hero to vanquish evil, if he could, he'd have laughed at how cheesy it sounded and try to brag about it, but now he had a mission, to save his friend.
Before him, on the second floor and looking down from the stop of the stairs, was a portrait of who the blond presumed to be the count, his name engraved in a golden plate: Vlad Tepes the Impaler, a man clad in a black armor with long black hair and in need of a shave. The man's eyes and simple aura emanated power beyond what a normal human could show with just their presence, and behind him several corpses could be seen, impaled on large poles and laying on a large road behind the count as if acting like an exhibition of sorts. But it made the blond that much more eager to show Death that he wasn't like this count.
"Death, you better listen to me!" the blond shouted to the large lobby, looking at the stairs that led to a balcony with several doors leading to different wings. "You can try to take me down and steal my soul, but when I get out of this castle, I'll be a victor!" Naruto declared as he walked in the castle. "Your count, Dracula or Vlad or however he's called, he's related to me, isn't he?" he asked, trying to get an answer out of the God of the Dead, knowing he had to be listening, "When I take Kurama back, I will make sure you answer me some questions, so you better get ready!"
Finally, someone appeared. From the ceiling a large spider the size of a tank dropped down. The bigger difference with normal spiders was that this one had a body seemingly made of rocks and flames while its two front legs seemed to end in scorpion-like pincers (3).
"Hah! A mere child like you, defeat Death?!" the spider cackled, "Idiot! To do something like that, you'd need to surpass the count himself, to be a god! You're nothing but a human without power, just a disappointing catch."
Naruto, having seen other larger animals speaking to him with such superiority complex, wasn't even batting an eyelash as he cracked his whip on the ground, glaring at the spider, "A friend needs me, for that I will surpass any god who comes my way!" The large arachnid replied by lifting its head and opening its huge jaws, letting loose a fire ball as big as the blond. Naruto dodged by rolling to his side and once on his feet lashed at the gigantic fiery spider. The fire monster used its pincers to deflect the whip, but it winced as the darkness-slaying weapon managed to crack its shell. The betrayed shinobi smirked, "Still disappointed?" he asked while cracking his whip on the floor.
"That weapon… A Vampire Killer?" the spider looked at Naruto intently, and if it could, it would have smiled, "Interesting, it seems my new catch shall truly be worthwhile. Try not to die too quickly on me, boy." The arachnid lifted its backside, and soon it unfolded into a large scorpion tail, revealing molten lava beneath the monster as if that were what truly passed by as his flesh. The arachnid grinned more, "I am Phantom, one of the guardians of this castle on behalf of the count. If you are to be the vessel to the count, your might must be tested… But that doesn't mean I can't cut loose and get real nasty!"
Phantom lashed its tail at the blond, who barely managed to duck under it as he charged the large spider-scorpion. The blond lashed at it again, aiming at its legs to make it lose its balance. Phantom saw this and slammed his pincer on the chain, nailing it to the floor and leaving Naruto open for his other pincer. The black-clad youth didn't know how his brain worked at that millisecond, but he jumped onto the pincer while pulling the whip's handle as much as he could and used its stake part to stab right through the rocky armor. Phantom let out a pained wail and started to trash around, freeing Naruto's weapon and allowing him to jump off the pincer.
"You insufferable insect!" Phantom roared.
"Isn't that like insulting yourself?" Naruto asked as he readied his weapon, looking for any opening his eight-legged opponent could have.
"Idiot, I'm an arachnid, completely different!" the spider shouted back as it stomped on the ground, forming pillars of lava to shoot straight into the air from the ground, approaching Naruto.
The only good idea one could have right now was to run, and that's what Naruto did. He had no powers, his victories now were partly because of luck and mainly because he found a way to fight these monsters. Once Phantom tired himself of sending pillars of molten rock after the blond and burned a good part of the floor, he saw in amazement how the human youth charged at him. The blond aimed down and to the side, wrapping the whip around the arachnid's pincer. Phantom grinned as he yanked on the chain, pulling Naruto closer to him with a swift movement and into his open jaw, ready to blast him into ashes.
But he watched in shock as Naruto let go of the whip, using the momentum to manage a forced landing on Phantom's back. The spider started to trash around like a mad bull to shake the blond off, but Naruto held on and reached into his pocket, slowly praying, "Please, let this work."
Before Phantom could think of anything, his open mouth swallowed something, a vial of holy water.
The next couple of seconds, the entire castle shook with Phantom's agonizing screams as the holy water caused steam to fly out of his body which started to cool off, the fiery limbs turning black and cold while the tail and its limbs retracted, leaving the spider cuddling into a ball.
Naruto took his whip by its handle from the ground, managing to unwrap it by giving it a gentle yank. He turned to the large spider and cracked his weapon on the ground, "You and I need to talk." Was all the blond said to the defeated monster.
"W-What? You're not going to finish me off?" the shocked arachnid managed to gasp through the pain it was in.
The blond started to wrap his new weapon on one hand, careful not to cut himself with the bladed links of the chain, "I came here to find my friend and some answers about why did Death come for me."
Phantom was shocked as he noted one thing from what the blond said, "What about your power?"
Naruto sighed, "Yes, I'd also like that back, but for now I just want to make sure my friend is safe, and then I'll ask Death some questions, whether he wants to give me back my chakra or not will be a problem I'll solve when needed, even if I must fight him." He then looked intently at the arachnid before him, "Unlike you, someone I need to fight truly doesn't deserve any mercy. If you value your life, I'll give you a piece of advice, keep the shinobi and mostly their leader out of this castle because he is someone far more disgusting than anyone could ever imagine and he won't stop until getting what he wants."
The lava arachnid examined the blond, before turning its head to one side, "Up there, in that wing of the castle, there rests-"
*Crash!*
The sound of glass and rock breaking was followed by the sound of shinobi storming in the castle. All of them were from the Leaf, and their eyes said they only wanted murder. However, they also looked worse for wear. Some missed chunks of flesh, as if someone had tried to eat them, others were very wounded. It seemed they had a run in with the zombies, because there seemed to be several incomplete squads.
Phantom growled, "It seems there are uninvited guests… Your name is Naruto, isn't it?" he asked the blond, getting up as best as he could, "Leave these insects to me. Inside this castle there's the answer to your prayers, get to the throne room and you shall be able to slay these nuisances."
"So, playing with your fellow demons now, you bastard?! It doesn't matter, we shall cleanse the stains you left in our village, for the Rokudaime!" one of the ANBU barked before running at the blond. Phantom blocked his path as best as he could, for he was still hurt from the holy water, but that didn't stop the shinobi, "Outta my way, you freak- Oh, what the?!"
Phantom could have grinned right there and then, "Oh, it seems my children are hungry." He said in merriment as smaller, dog-sized versions of him jumped down the ceiling and walls to start devouring the ninjas. "Go, Naruto, my family and I can take care of these posers and get a nice meal out of it."
The blond nodded and started to run, despite not getting the answers he wanted, it was better than nothing, and he seemed to have made a new friend in this castle. That was all he could ask for. That and that one of the spiders took its time eating a shinobi's face, but he'd have to miss it to find Death. And if the Leaf was hot on his heels, he should hurry because those bastards would stop at nothing to kill him now before trying to get Kurama's power all for them no matter what.
XXXXXX
Death stood alone in the darkness of his quarters, looking at a small crystal orbs in his hands that showed him the uninvited shinobi trying to barge in Castlevania. And far behind them, occupying another conquered village far away from the castle was Sasuke, waiting for Naruto to be brought to him along Kurama. The god was disgusted to say the least, not only did these mortals dare to invade Dracula's castle, they had the gall to think they could take what they wanted just like that by treating their fellow humans like they were dirt. He might agree that humans are nothing but dirt, but he could commend those who at least gave him a challenge.
"Perhaps some humility shall be taught." The god said, before turning to Elizabeth, "It seems Dracula's new vessel could use some help… besides, I'm sure he misses his friend."
The succubus smiled, "Shouldn't we save the best for later? There are several monsters that could help him become stronger, and the shinobi are still far behind him thanks to Phantom and the zombies."
Death turned around, towering over the low level demoness, "Those ninjas are far greedier than you think. They'll stop at nothing until getting what they want. I know, I've reaped many innocent souls thanks to their current leader. Or did you forget who brought you back from oblivion itself so you could serve your master one more time?"
Elizabeth looked down, this time acting submissive as the god not only had a point but he held the leash here. "Alright…"
"Good, if Phantom's orders were correct, he should be arriving soon to one of your chambers."
XXXXXX
"Whew...this place is weird..." Naruto said as he tried to find a lead to the throne room, checking door after door in a large and empty corridor with doors everywhere around the linear red velvet carpet. Soon, he found something that did shock him, "Huh?!" Naruto had stumbled upon a very dark room that held a giant ominous purple crystal, as he walked towards it, it glowed brightly, and then in a blast of dark light he disappeared. There was a feminine chuckle in the darkness of the room, before two glowing eyes closed in pleasure. Naruto reopened his eyes to find himself among a crowd of frozen villagers from the Leaf, all of them chanting something and holding weapons above their heads.
Our hero froze, his eyes shrinking in rage as he ran forward, stopping in front of a small blond child being beaten by the frozen villagers. "Who is behind this...?" he asked to the darkness, "This is my past, isn't it? Why show me this?! Why make me remember those miserable days?!" he barked, really hating someone trying to play mind-games with him. It was bad enough the traitorous Uchiha thought of himself as a god by doing this stuff, but someone messing with his memories was almost as infuriating.
However, his anger disappeared at the sound of a loving, caring voice, "Naruto-kun, my child...why do you continue to fight for such selfish beings, such hateful villagers? Why not take revenge on them for your suffering?"
He felt his heart skip a bit as he turned around, "M...Mom?"
Standing protectively in front of his frozen child self was a beautiful red headed woman wearing a stunning green dress with an apron underneath, her kind eyes staring lovingly at his, and a kind smile on her face, she pointed to the frozen villagers around her, words like "demon" and "monster" on their lips, Naruto looked at them with emotionless eyes, truth be told...he was here for answers from Death, and wanted to stop whatever evil deeds the god had any way he could, and revenge was something he'd take care of that later, right now he just wanted to find the one manipulating the castle and shove his scythe up where sunlight never shone.
But, here she was, the first person to actually care for him, "Mom...why are you here...?" He asked Kushina far too confused.
The woman smiled sadly at him, "I'm sorry I couldn't come any sooner, Naruto-kun, but I'm here now. I will always be with you, I have been ever since I put my chakra to protect you from the Kyuubi. And together, we can take revenge for their crimes...Take my hand, and we'll sow the seeds of the Leaf's destruction. And repay Minato for his sins and crimes towards us." But she was shocked when Naruto backed away from her, Kushina, his mother. She tried reaching out imploringly towards him, and then frowned sadly when he didn't take her hand, "What's wrong? Don't you want to come with me?"
The blond looked the woman over, frowning, "Nice try...you're not my mother. She's in the afterlife, even if I wouldn't be surprised she came back to life to destroy the Leaf for what they did to me. If you wanted to impersonate my mother, you needed to act more like a tomboy." He said slowly, getting his whip ready while looking very angry at the impersonator.
"Ohohoho...you're good...You could even be as intelligent as Lord Dracula, Naruto-boya~!" The image of his mother smiled lasciviously, and then transformed into a near naked woman like being. "I'm Elizabeth, the Succubus, loyal retainer of Lord Dracula, and sinful temptress of men." Two bat wings spread wide, a bun of beautiful red hair with a large group flowing behind her back, white flowers lodged in the bun, breasts that had doubled in size with dusky full nipples, a rounded beautifully shaped buttocks that had the fullness of a woman's figure, a beautiful black embroidered bustier, gloves, and leather boots, and sharp looking nails that glittered as the woman placed a hand on her cheek with an enticing smile, looking amused by Naruto.
He jumped back away from the crowd and cracked his whip angrily, "Why did you tempt me?! What do you gain from it, Elizabeth?!"
"Oho...? Already on first name basis, boya? I tempted you, because despite what you think otherwise...your soul is blackened by darkness and hate, you're not fighting for THEIR sake, you're fighting for your own. Lord Dracula could use a man like you, one whose loyal to himself, and wants revenge on those who have wronged him...let me be your comfort Naruto-boya, let me ease your suffering and give you a taste of pleasure. The temptation of the night will offer you so much more than the feeble world of day might..."
She gasped when the whip nearly got her on the face, managing to slice her cheek and leaving a small but deep cut that bled down, "Good offer, but no. I got a lot to ask Death, and I won't serve Dracula, even less become his vessel. I won't allow you to sway me into being little more than his puppet. Elizabeth, stand aside or I WILL strike you down."
The succubus' enticing smile quickly disappeared as she wiped the blood off her face and snarled angrily at him, upset that he rejected her so easily, no man could resist her, and this one would be no different! NO ONE REJECTED HER! She flew into the air, then extended her claws in a stabbing motion, flying around and trying to impale the blond headed whip user with her nails. He dodged from side to side, waiting for a moment to strike, his blue eyes following her as she flew through the air, then the moment she stopped, he let her dive at him.
Just as Elizabeth was about to impale him with her nails, the blond dashed at her and then went down, skidding like a baseball player desperately trying to reach a base. She missed him and her guard was open. The blond smirked as he pulled his whip and lashed at her, getting her right in her torso and leaving a large gash in her stomach, also ripping her bustier in two. The succubus sucked up the paint and tried to fly up, only to find a vial of holy water in Naruto's hand. She wouldn't risk it against such a powerful magic of light, she dashed backwards. But, with or without chakra, Naruto was just relentless when fighting. He dashed after her and shot out his whip around her leg and slammed her onto the ground violently. Before she could react, he dashed at her and threw the vial right into her wound. She cried out in fear and pain, mostly the second, as he held her down and lifted the stake up.
But… tears… there were tears flowing from the agonizing succubus' face. Her skin was sporting black marks from scorching, blood escaped her lips, and the pain she was in was making her unable to hold back her tears. He held back the final strike as she quivered in terror, more tears coming to her eyes as she didn't want to die here.
"Please...mercy! I beg of you!" She cried out, holding her pained, burned stomach, making him stare at her quietly, tears hitting the ground as she twitched, "...If I die here, in the dream world, my soul would be lost for all eternity... Please… Just… Spare me… I already suffered that fate once; Death only brought me back to be part of your test… Please… I don't want to pass through that again…"
Naruto looked at her, trying to find out if she was lying, if it was all just an act but… She wasn't, she was actually truly frightened. He sighed as he put his whip down, "I'm tough, but I'm not so cruel to do that to you...Elizabeth. Get out of my sight, and never come at me again, or I won't be so kind as to spare you."
She nodded, the world faded back to reality, the burn marks she received were still there, making Elizabeth hold her chest and stomach from the pain she was in. Naruto actually felt guilty, he took off his jacket and wrapped it around her body. Elizabeth was in awe at what she saw, looking at him turning around and walking off, feeling shocked she called out to him pleadingly, "Wait...! Why...why did you spare me? Don't you think I might attack you from behind?"
Naruto shook his head as he put his whip on his belt, "No. I don't think you will. I learned how to read people, and I...well, I'm a sucker for beautiful red heads." He sighed at that while rolling of his red shirt's sleeves up to his elbows for better mobility, he felt cliché for saying that, but fuck it, he was being honest, "See you."
He walked off, Elizabeth clutched his jacked tightly; no one had ever shown her such kindness before. Not Dracula, not his wives, not Death, no one; she was just a lowly succubus, and yet here was someone who spared her for no reason except for their own kindness. Instantly making up her mind, she followed after him, making him tilt his head curiously, "Naruto...I...I'll gladly help you...you spared me, it's the least I could do." She looked down, feeling strangely both comfortable and uncomfortable at the same time.
Naruto just chuckled to himself, the blond headed ex-ninja looking up at the ceiling with a sigh, then turning around and nodding at Elizabeth, "You can come with me. But first, I'll need you to answer me some questions, Elizabeth." He walked off, making the red-haired succubus eagerly fly after him, feeling safe and secure in his presence. Unknowingly, Naruto had gained his second devoted follower that night, Elizabeth having fallen in love with him, if unknowingly at first. She'd serve him until the end of time.
"By the way, Master. Here's something for you." She said, handing Naruto a very familiar red orb.
"Master?" Kurama asked his blond friend curiously.
Naruto could only stand there, and gape like a fish as he tried to find out what was going on, before he finally started asking questions, "What's going on?"
Elizabeth smiled, "As you may know now, you are Dracula's vessel. Death has been looking for a proper recipient for the count, and if possible also a new servant to Lord Dracula's cause. I am sad to say I don't know the details, Master. However, one thing I do know is that in Dracula's last battle, his opponent was aided by a shinobi clan, the Uzumaki Clan, your clan."
"So, I was chosen out of revenge?" the blond asked curiously.
"Heh, that's the life story of every Jinchuuriki if you think about it." Kurama the Demon Orb said from his floating position over Elizabeth's hands, positioning himself before her large bosom.
Naruto had found some answers, but at the same time came with more questions. But for now, if the Leaf was after him, he could use the help of his furry friend. "Let's find the throne room before any Leaf shinobi gets there, if there truly is power there for me to stop them, I shiver to think what they could do if they got their hands on it."
The succubus nodded, she may not know all the details, but as someone who could feel the desire of man's heart she felt sickened by the shinobi plaguing the castle… Speaking of them. "They're getting closer, Master. It seems they are circling around Phantom to get here."
Naruto nodded, but had something to say first, "Thanks, but could you please skip the whole Master thing? It… It just makes me feel odd. Just call me Naruto, it's all I will ask from you."
Elizabeth nodded with a small grin, "Ok… Naruto."
XXXXXX
As Naruto raced through Castlevania, now being well aware of the new uninvited guests, the Leaf had been hot on his trail ever since villagers captured by the shinobi were forced to speak of the blond young man's whereabouts. In the end, they spoke of Castlevania, but told the ninjas to give up because Naruto was probably dead. While the shinobi wanted to cheer for that, they knew Naruto wouldn't die so easily. However, Sasuke was far greedier; he knew that Naruto wanted something from that castle.
"That idiot wouldn't go to some dangerous, cursed place without a reason." He said to the council before him as they were together in a small village near Castlevania to discuss Naruto's capture as well as find new ways to expand their rule over the world. "If the stupid dead last thinks he can achieve more power, he's sadly mistaken. Whatever lays in that castle, it doesn't matter what it is, I want it." he said to his shinobi and the civilians of his council, all of them chosen by their loyalty to him as he looked down at their kneeling forms, "I want all of you to steal Naruto's last hopes, and then bring him to me so I can show him that I have everything he could never hope to achieve."
Death, however, watched it all with merriment in his eyes, "Stupid human. You think you can surpass the power of a god above gods? At least the Belmont family had class and determination, all you brat have is whims." The god said as he appeared in the middle of the meeting, terrifying everyone beyond reason.
But Sasuke was furious, "Who are you?! How dare you speak to me that way?! I'm the Ro-"
In one second, Sasuke was brought down to his knees while the rest of the shinobi in the room fell dead instantly, the god's scythe covered in their blood and already reaping their souls, "As I was saying, you're nothing but a brat. At least that Uzumaki boy was able to stand before me and fight back." he said in a perfectly acted indifferent manner while trying hard not to laugh at the pathetic being before him, all to add salt to the injury in Sasuke's ego, "Naruto is the rightful heir of the castle, and his power shall far surpass that of gods. You're welcome to try to stop him... But for that, you shall try to surpass death itself, and trust me, that shall be your stupidest choice."
"Shut up! I'm an Uchiha! I twist fate to my whims!" the arrogant Hokage barked, but the fact he cowered, inching back into his seat didn't make him menacing at all.
"And yet, you tremble before me... or rather, at the idea of Naruto surpassing you because that boy can surpass me, and I'll be delighted to see what punishment my master will bring on you." the reaper, content with himself.
The Elders, however, were outraged, "How dare you compare the Hokage to that demon?! We gave that brat the Kyuubi, that's the only reason he could fight at all!"
Death chuckled, "And yet, you should think about this… That boy entered the castle all by himself, and without any chakra he managed to defeat the guards at the entrance while your ninjas keep on littering the gardens with their corpses… However, I think I shall make thing more interesting for him…" he started to approach Sasuke, trying hard not to laugh, "Tell me, boy, what are you without your bloodline, without your chakra, without any of the techniques you copied from the thousands upon thousands of men, women and children you murdered to get this power?"
Homura growled, "Are you an idiot, he's an Uchiha! What does it matt-"
Death's scythe bathed itself with more blood, before he truly wished to show someone a smile, for his would have been the most wicked, terrifying and cruel smile anyone could ever see. "I'm just thinking, child. Still your tongues… and tell me, you stupid fools… Who… no, what do you think you are without your power?"
Sasuke just had enough, "I'll show you power! Ammateratsu!" he cried, determined to burn the skeleton to ashes… only to gasp in shock as he reached to his face and found out that nothing happened. Death stood right where he was, but no dark flame had appeared like it should.
"M-My Byakugan!" cried a Hyuuga council member, who had been put there after most of the clan had been executed because of Sasuke wanting to put people in their place.
"I… I can't gather any chakra!" one of the members of the shinobi council cried as he tried to make a jutsu with several hand-signs, getting no result.
Death cackled, "So, tell me, Uchiha… What are you now?"
Sasuke gritted his teeth and grabbed his chokuto, dashing at the god to slay him down. But he was far too slow, without chakra he barley ran at normal human speed. His chakra-less sword was easily swatted away by Death's scythe, who easily read the traitorous Hokage's moves while the Sharingan-less Uchiha was unable to see or comprehend what was the Grim Reaper doing until he got back-handed by the large skeleton.
"W-What did you do?!" the terrified snake asked, still trying to sound important.
Death wished to have the ability to smirk, "I am getting some justice done, seeing as the other gods never thought of punishing you… If you want your power back, then all you have to do is kill Uzumaki Naruto. That is, if you can survive traveling through the castle and then facing him." And with that being said, Death disappeared into a dark portal, leaving Sasuke fuming.
"What are you idiots waiting for?!" he barked at everyone in the room, "Get in that castle and bring me the loser! I will go in, so you all better get ready for a war against the dead-last! Once you find him, you better not kill him; I shall be the one to deliver the finishing blow!"
The shinobi nodded, but mostly because they wanted their chakra back.
XXXXXX
"There he is!" cried the shinobi as they stormed into the castle through the windows of the large hall.
Little did they know what Naruto could do now. The blond grinned as he grabbed his mop of hair and slicked it backwards, giving himself a more feral look similar to Vergil Sparda. He cracked his whip as he looked intently at the shinobi, showing that his eyes turned from their deep cerulean to a deep blood red. "How about I show you what a demon is like?" he asked before dashing at the shinobi, lashing his whip wildly at them.
In a split second, the first ninjas approaching him stopped moving, the first one grabbed his stomach, soon his pants went wet with his own blood. The shinobi who were back watched in shock as their comrades fell down sliced in two from a clean lash. However, the whip was different; it was covered in wind chakra. Naruto then grinned at them, cracking his whip and slicing the floor cleanly, like a knife would to hot butter. Elizabeth watched everything with amusement, had he had this power when he first fought her, she'd have been down instantly.
"W-What are you doing, you demon?!"
"What's the matter? You can't expect to hunt a fox without him trying to either out-smart you or fight back, I honestly prefer the second." Naruto said as he moved the handle up, as the bladed links of the chain whip turned into a blood red color that moved the chain to the blond man's will. "Speaking of foxes, my friend is dying to kill you all!"
Naruto threw his whip forward, the bladed links moved forth like an arrow, stabbing one of the shinobi right through the abdomen. The former Leaf shinobi pulled the traitor towards him while his free hand formed a Rasengan. He almost laughed loud and cruelly as the ninja's face was obliterated by the orb of pure energy. The rest of the shinobi charged as one at him, which Naruto replied by charging back at them.
"Did you really..." Naruto started, feeling his anger boiling more and more as he sliced one shinobi vertically in half, "...think that you could..." he lashed at his side, getting two ninjas diagonally bisected around the torso, "...control me like a puppet, you..." he kicked through a water bullet spat from a nearby Jonin before grabbing him by the neck, and then breaking it, "...stupid humans?!"
As Naruto let the last shinobi fall, he swung his whip around and tied it to his belt before moving forward, "Either you missed me, or something's up." Kurama said calmly to his friend.
"We've got to find a lot of answers in this castle before I kill Sasuke. Since he's sending his pets after me, it makes it all the more easier when he doesn't have anyone to hide behind and has to face me." Naruto tightened his fist as he glared at the bloody ribbons that used to be ninjas, "I will get to the throne room, Sasuke can send all the shinobi he wants, I'll kill them all, and when he is forced to face me I will have his skull decorating this castle's entrance."
"Heh, you really are the perfect vessel for the count." Elizabeth said with a smile, "Betrayed by what one believed in, his former comrades turning on him, his own beliefs resulting in bastards taking everything he loved away from him, and now that determination to make mankind pay." She flew down to the blond, examining him, "Dare I say it… you're exactly like him." She did her best to stifle a giggled, 'Though much less rough and far cuter.'
"Is that why I was chosen to help Dracula come back?" Naruto asked curiously.
Elizabeth shrugged, just as clueless as he was, "I can't tell; only the count's right-hand man, Death, could. But if we're going after him, then I am afraid it won't be easy."
"The guy's powerful, that much I already know, but if I know something it's that I'm too stupidly stubborn to die." He then walked off with the succubus flying after him, "Besides, I'm one of the luckiest bastards in this world, if you bet on me I'll make sure to not let you down." Elizabeth smiled at that, he wasn't modest but he knew he was powerful and recognized the threat he was facing. However, he proved to be smart too, "Also, I think Death really wants to face me."
"Why is that?" the redhead asked.
Kurama calmly observed the situation along his host, "So, you sensed it, huh…? It's been plaguing my mind for a while but, while you're good enough to kill everything you meet should you put your mind on it, we should have at least faced some challenge when these fuckers saw us fighting all out."
The blond replied to both his tenant and follower, "The shinobi have no chakra, they seem to actually have lost it. They were terrified when they saw me using my own chakra… I can sense a person's essence with Kurama's help and a lot of training I went through, so I can tell that these Leaf bastards had not even a miserable drop of chakra in them… Either Death wants to make sure they don't pose a threat to me, or he just likes stealing chakra."
"That dusty sack of bones has always been like that." The succubus said, tapping her chin with a finger, "His power is great, thought it pales in comparison to Dracula's. Death is a real god, and what he says goes. So if he thinks you are a vessel for Dracula, someone who not even him could keep in the Underworld even if he wanted, you need to think what you're capable of yourself, Naruto."
*Thump!*
The two, or three if you count Kurama, looked at the end of the hall where the sound of a very heavy footstep echoed. "Any idea of what it could be?" the blond asked as he adjusted his leather gloves.
Elizabeth tightened his jacket on her body as she started to feel cold, "Something far stronger than me, for sure. Low demon or not, whatever is behind those doors needs to be very powerful to make me feel cold."
XXXXXX
The place was cold as if it were the Ninth Circle of Hell. After passing through several doors, facing a few monsters with ease thanks to his chakra and demonic powers fully restored as well as the help of a lovely and rather capable succubus who was healing rather well, Naruto entered a new wing of the castle.
As Naruto and Elizabeth entered, they found themselves staring at the dozens upon dozens of ice spikes. Ice and snow populated the entire place, which upon closer inspection turned out to be a gigantic library. Shelves covered the walls, filled to the brim with books while the statues decorated the room. Naruto was thankful of Kurama in him, otherwise he might not be able to withstand this cold, and Elizabeth was grateful for the jacket. The books were old but very well kept despite the cold atmosphere of the library. And before him, in a desk of elaborated ebony crafted by very skilled hands was a simple oil lantern illuminating the place. Just as Naruto gave his first step forward to the desk, he could feel something had changed in the library.
"Master!" Elizabeth cried as she extended her claws and sliced at the air and something. He turned around to see she had shredded an old book to pieces. He heard the wind moving behind him and growled as he punched at another book flying like a bullet at his head. Soon more and more books shot from the walls and started to spin in the air around them.
"Any explanation for this?" Naruto asked his partner.
"This castle is a house for darkness, which includes spirits." Elizabeth said as she spread her wings and used them as shields for her and her master while being careful not to let go of his jacket. Not only was she fond of it, but the damn cold was getting to her bones.
And, just as quick as it happened, it ended.
"I see you're enjoying each other's company." said a voice that really irritated Naruto.
"Death." the blond said to the Grim Reaper, who wished to smile at the sight of the demonic red eyes the blond possessed.
"So, you became one with your demon friend. Good... But, to make Elizabeth follow you, that was something I didn't expect." the god said as he looked at the low level demoness. "You'd betray Lord Dracula for this boy?"
"No." Elizabeth said softly, "I am not betraying anyone. We succubae are born free and meant to be free. Dracula accepted me here, I served him, yes, but he let my have my own freedom. You, on the other hand, I have no loyalty for you."
"Did you forget who broke the rules over life and the underworld to bring you back?" Death asked in a growl.
Elizabeth smiled, "Not at all, but since I was allowed to have as much freedom as I wanted by the real master of this castle, I guess I can choose whose side to be in. Besides, if you think about it, since Naruto is his vessel, I'm not betraying the count."
The god was truly starting to lose his patience, but a quick glare from Naruto who stood protectively in front of Elizabeth calmed him down, "Very well, it seems the boy may truly be fit to be Dracula's vessel. No-one else could command such loyalty."
"Who said I'd be his vessel?" Naruto almost barked, "I came to this castle to find answers and a way to defeat the Leaf."
Death chuckled, "Is that it?" Naruto kept his glare, but for a moment doubted himself, which Death took to his advantage, "I can see it in you, even sense it... You have so much darkness in your heart. You wish to have power to destroy that village and stop its corruption. You want to raise anew, reborn to take control of this rotten world... You may not know it, boy, but despite your so called righteous goal, you are still dewlling in the darkness. Have you gone blind to it because of your goal, or have you actually accepted it?"
Naruto replied by lashing at Death, forcing the god to block the now crimson whip with his scythe. He was shocked when the red chains moved on their own free will and managed to yank his weapon from his hands in a swift motion. However, Naruto didn't charge or kept on with the attack, he held his whip forward, the living crimson chain floating around him, wrapping itself protectively and yet threateningly, like a snake ready to bite its predator once cornered.
"I will defeat the Leaf, that's the end of the story." the blond stated in a menacing way, "I will have mercy on you if you step aside and answer my questions. Why did you choose me to be Dracula's vessel? How is my clan related to him?"
Death tried hard not to cackle, so he replied, "Why did I choose you? That's simple... You're no ordinary human, oh no... Yes, your clan did help to defeat and seal Dracula, however, the method they used made resurrecting him impossible. Unfortunately, the darkness needs a king, someone to rule over it... Someone who once held a pure, powerful heart but then was betrayed, having whatever purity in his soul tainted by the cruelty of mankind... Yes, boy, that is why I chose you, because you and the count are far too similar it's almost hilarious when you think of the irony. However... You just aren't Dracula's vessel... You are his heir."
"W-What?!" Naruto, Elizabeth and Kurama asked in shock.
Death cackled, "Your clan not only helped to slay Dracula... They sacrificed themselves to do so, by sealing his soul in them!" Death held his hand up, and Naruto felt his heart skip a bit, bringing him to his knees, but something... something was waking up... "Yes!" Death howled, "There it is, the soul of my old friend and master! Resting within you, waiting to rule the world! You see, Uzumaki Naruto, you are basically Dracula's spawn, his power, blood and soul flows within your very being. You don't just want to defeat the Leaf, you want the power to make an example out of them to the world."
"Shut up!" Naruto shouted as he started to get up with Elizabeth's help, tightening his whip, "I'm not Dracula! I will never be like him! You and your master prey upon the weak, just like the Leaf!"
Death chuckled darkly, "Oh, but are we truly the bigger evil? The count just looked for food, his victims were more out of need than anything else. But your village... no, humanity... They are conscious of their actions, and yet commit the most horrible of crimes and atrocities. Trust me, compared to them, Dracula is a saint. And he is the savior this world needs."
"Mankind doesn't need a savior who tortures them!" Naruto barked, cracking his whip and getting ready to fight. Something just snapped in him, something that burned in him with power and the sheer will power to defeat Death. "Humans, monsters, demons, it doesn't matter who or what they are, anyone who preys on the weak will fall by my hands!"
Death gasped, "Wait... That determination, that power... that blasted will to never lose!" he stepped back, 'The Belmont House... So, they aren't dead... Those bastards still hunt the count even from the afterlife... This may prove a problem.' he raised his hand, his scythe reappearing on it, "Very well, boy, it seems you are far more than meets the eye... I will wait for you at the throne room, if you want your soul, there are more battles for you to go through."
And with that, the Grim Reaper flew up, leaving Naruto with the answers he looked for, but not the answers he wanted. "Alright... So, I must pretty much fight for my soul now, huh?" he asked to the air.
A comforting hand landed on his shoulder, "Naruto, there's no way you could lose your soul." she said reassuringly, "There was once a time I was slain, I was forever trapped in Oblivion, but even then, in the void of nothingness, I still managed to exist in that terrifying darkness. Whatever happens, you can't actually disappear for real, if you lose to Death, I will bet on you to find your way back to life and face him again, as many times as you need to."
Naruto managed to smile a bit, "Thanks... I guess that since I'm a sore loser, I may as well go all out from the start."
Elizabeth smiled as she flew and landed on his back, enjoying his warmth and letting him enjoy her assets pressed on his body. "But, if you do defeat Death and keep your soul, then that'd mean this castle would be yours." she said, breathing hotly on his ear, "You wouldn't want to feel lonely on it, would you?"
The blond blushed massively, but remained calm enough to chuckle, "Heh, thanks... But we're still in enemy territory and there are stupid ninjas who I don't want to have laying their eyes on you."
Elizabeth giggled, "Sorry, I'm a succubus, it's just part of my nature."
However, she was shocked when he turned around and kissed her tenderly on the lips, smiling softly, "Just hold that thought, ok?" he said before walking to the next door with the redhead succubus riding on his back, thankful he couldn't see her blushing.
XXXXXX
After their encounter with Death, Naruto and Elizabeth passed through a hall filled with enchanted, living armors of knights and soldiers from different eras. It seemed that more than a castle this place was a museum. The rich red velvet carpet led to a portal outside, a simple arc in the wall that gave access to a large balcony where a cold breeze entered, creating a ghostly howl in the walls. The instant Naruto set foot on the carpet the armors raised their weapons and marched from their stands into the expensive cloth to face the blond whip wielder.
"Outta my way!" Naruto roared as he pulled one arm back. The knights charged at him with their weapons ready for blood, but Elizabeth knew who'd win ever since she saw the glimpse of a blue orb of pure energy in Naruto's hand. Three seconds and one Rasengan later, the armors were sent flying out of the hall and into the balcony where they all laid in pieces and unable to pull their limbs back together.
Once outside, Elizabeth smiled at the moon and stretched her wings before taking flight, "Ah... How long has it been since I enjoyed the light of the moon?" she asked herself while letting her wings enjoy the cold wind flowing around them. Naruto smiled and decided to let her enjoy herself, as well as rest and sit on the balcony, leaning against a wall. She still wore his jacket, but it didn't seem to bother her wings at all when soaring the night's sky. It was quite a sight, and not because of her beauty though that helped a lot. The fog and the moon shone in a beautiful setting of shadows that accompanied by the succubus made it all look like a masterpiece of art in a portrait.
As soon as she started to fly lower, he asked, "So, where to next?"
"Well, since we're outside, I can take you flying to the throne room directly." the redhead said with a smile as she stood before her master.
"Having fun?" asked a new female voice. The two turned to look at a beautiful woman who was literally standing on thin air. She just floated above the darkness below the balcony. She was a beautiful pale-skinned woman with her dark azure hair reaching her chin with one bang covering her right eye, though showing the marks under her eyes like black tears. She wore an outfit similar to Elizabeth's, but instead of it being black hers was blood red: a bustier with spikes around the opening that exposed the skin between her breasts and part of them, thigh high boots with sharp blades on the heels, elbow length gloves with blades at the wrists, a spike covered choker protecting her neck, and a gigantic shield strapped to her left arm shaped like an iron maiden on one arm with an enormous blade the size of a torso popping from her wrist. What called Naruto's attention was the large, sharp and yet thing canines exposing themselves from her smiling lips. Carmilla the Vampire had arrived in all her glory, looking down at the duo before her with a smirk.
"C-Carmilla!" Elizabeth said in shocked terror.
"Fufufu... It's been so long since I've had a decent fight, Elizabeth." she whispered in a sensual manner as she looked at Naruto who instantly stood up when Carmilla arrived. "I might go all out and really enjoy myself on this youth, but it wouldn't be fair if there were interruptions."
One gigantic arm grabbed on to the succubus, squeezing her tightly and causing her to scream in pain and causing Naruto to charge at it. Another arm shot from the darkness below Carmilla to pull its owner up to the balcony. Holding Elizabeth was a giant with a single glowing red eye, his other eye permanently closed. As soon as its only eyeball posed on the blond, the giant let out a blast of energy at the blond, who jumped out of the way as a huge explosion rippled underneath him and blasting the floor apart. Naruto soon saw the giant's free arm coming his way, so he used his Hiraishin to teleport right on the giant's shoulder. Using his chakra sure helped a lot, mostly when walking on a trashing giant.
Carmilla sighed, feeling disappointed, "Balore, you're supposed to take the succubus away, not fight him." she told the giant, wondering if he understood her or not.
But the giant didn't pay her any mind as he swung his two gigantic fists in an attempt to crush Naruto violently, he lashed at the first one, using his wind chakra to create a deep gash right into the muscles. As Balore roared in pain and tried to punch him with the arm holding Elizabeth, Naruto jumped at her, wrapping his whip on the giant's wrist to swing like Spiderman. Once on the giant's hand he raised his whip and used the stake end to stab at its thumb, right in the nerve.
Naruto succeeded in freeing Elizabeth, who flew out of the now opened hand. However, he barely had any time to block a kick from Carmilla. The vampiress smirked at him, "Not bad at all, boy." she said as she formed a dark purple orb in her hands, releasing its energy to blast Naruto. Due to standing on the hand of a giant that tried to shake him off, Naruto barely had time to think of anything and he simply jumped up above the blast. But to his dismay he was open for Balore's second hand, ready to squeeze the life out of him for what he did.
"Up you go, Master!" Elizabeth said as she grabbed him from his arm-pits and lifted the blond up.
"Thanks a lot!" he said with a bright smile before narrowing his red eyes at Balore's only one, "Take me to him, it's time to finish this!" he said, his partner nodded as she charged right at the giant. Naruto swung his whip and lashed the giant across his open eye. The ocular orb blew up as gore and blood splattered the now blinded giant's face. The monster howled in agony as he tried to swat Naruto like a fly, which thanks to Elizabeth he currently resembled one.
Carmilla bit her thumb, "Fine then, how about this?" she asked rhetorically as she summoned more dark orbs and threw them at the duo. Elizabeth maneuvered around the shots and the giant's hand with great agility while managing to hold Naruto by the waist rather than the arm-pits so he could fight back. Once she had her arms around the lower part of his torso Naruto now had more mobility for his arms, and in very good timing for an orb was about to strike Elizabeth. He lashed at it, sending the ball of dark magic flying back at Carmilla who barley dodged it.
"After her!" Elizabeth said as she raced after the vampiress, but a swing from Balore's arms stopped her and forced the redhead to fly up. She groaned, "We can't pass with that giant in our way, he'd destroy the entire castle trying to find us."
"Then we take him out first." Naruto said before getting a past idea flashing in his mind, "Elizabeth, throw me down!"
"What?!"
"Trust me, I've done this before... Well, not exactly like this but close." he said with determination in his eyes.
The redhead groaned, "Here goes nothing." she said as she threw the blond at the giant.
Naruto quickly formed his all too familiar crossed-finger hand-sign, summoning a shadow clone; before Balore could hit any of them, the clone lashed at his neck with the real Naruto following soon after. The two used their demonic chakra to move the chains and make them intertwine with each other in a knot. They managed to land on Balore's shoulders, and after quick nod to each other they raced down his back with their chain whips still on Balore's throat. The giant gasped for oxygen as the bladed chains started to cut the oxygen as well as his flesh, right into his Adam's apple. Carmilla watched with intrigued, almost morbid fascination as Naruto strangled the giant to death. Balore tried to unwrap the chains on his necks, but with his fingers being too big and the chain far too thin for him to grab, it was a couple of seconds before his breath never came back and he fell, dead.
Naruto dispelled his clone and jumped up with a hand skywards, which Elizabeth grabbed to pull him up into the night's sky. At the thunderous thud of the giant's corpse hitting the floor, Carmilla couldn't help but chuckle, and she actually clapped, "Not bad, not bad at all... I may have more fun than I ever thought with you." She then looked down at the succubus, "Though I must say I wanted him all to myself." With that said, she flew higher and turned into a swarm of bats.
"Let's get to the throne room and end this once and for all." Naruto said stoically to his partner who nodded and, after once again adjusting themselves to have him being held by his waist, they flew around the castle.
XXXXXX
They ended up flying above a bridge which led to a majestic tower, a clock tower with a large clock signaling that midnight was getting close. The bridge was open to the cold wind of the night and its stone block path shone with the moon. There was a door connecting the bridge to the rest of the castle, and on the other side was a set of stairs that led to an elaborate gate, which Naruto more than presumed led to the throne room.
"Be careful." Elizabeth whispered softly into his ear, "This castle changes through the ages, it never stays the same, but if there's one thing that has never changed is that what lies beyond those doors means the end of someone's life."
"Sounds good to me."
As the two landed, they turned at the sound of that voice, looking at the door that gave access to the castle. It was the doctor, the same man who had helped Naruto. But there was something wrong with him. He was a mess, his hair was ruffled and covered in sweat and grease, he was missing his brown coat, instead he had a simple brown vest which probably had been hidden underneath the coat, and his black shirt's sleeves were rolled to his elbows. The most important things to note were three, one, his entire wardrobe was covered in drops and splatters of blood that was still fresh, his glasses' left lens was broken and he carried a large crossbow that rested on his right shoulder with a familiar purple lace tied around the handle.
He chuckled, "I shouldn't have, I really shouldn't have helped you, Naruto." The doctor said, looking at the blond with a look he knew too well. Hatred, it was a look of void, a far-off stare that didn't look at nothing, just trying to find something to release the rage within. The doctor adjusted his glasses and chuckled, "You know, before being a doctor… I was a man of the church, serving God until I fell for the most beautiful, caring woman I ever met. I then studied to be a doctor but still prayed for the best of the world. And, wouldn't you know it, God was kind and gave us a daughter… But soon, the Devil tries to ruin the purity of those who believe." The man aimed his crossbow at the blond, "And you, all of you… You are Satan in disguise, trying to tempt me into sinning!"
Naruto quickly lashed as an arrow was fired at him, slashing it in half, "Doctor, snap out of it! What happened?!" he asked, terrified of the poor man's change from a caring, carefree person to this… this lunatic.
The doctor growled, "I have a name, boy! But it's a name a devil like you shall never know!" the man growled as he lifted his crossbow and glared at the red-eyed blond, "And you… You devil ruined my life!" he shouted, truly furious, "My wife… My daughter… Give them back!" the man ran at Naruto and took out two vials, but the blond could see they weren't filled with holy water but some strange liquid. He and Elizabeth jumped and did so at the right time, for the vials exploded and fire shot up on the ground. The doctor got madder, "Your stupid shinobi got to my village, they tortured everyone once word about you being back to life was out!"
Naruto gasped, now connecting the dots, "Then… Your wife and Alyssa-" he was cut short when having to duck under an arrow.
"They are dead! And don't you dare say my daughter's name!" the doctor roared, "They were killed as examples of what would happen should someone not answer them! Examples!" the man loaded several arrows, unaware of the succubus flying behind him due to focusing on the blond until she slashed at his back, "Ack… you… you foul temptress!" the man shouted as this time he really took out holy water and tried to throw it at Elizabeth, but his hand was caught by Naruto's whip.
"Elizabeth, don't kill him!" Naruto said quickly, making the redhead stop dead in her tracks before reluctantly nodding and flying away from the man, unsure of how to act with someone trying to kill her and her master without killing him. The blond growled, "Doctor, listen to me! It wasn't anyone's fault but the Leaf's!"
"Shut up!" the doctor grunted as he tried to free his arm, while readying his crossbow singlehandedly, "I am going to end your reign of darkness, you devil! But don't worry, that bastard of the Rokudaime is next! So at least you can die with a clear conscience!" and, with a roar of anger and pain, the man yanked his hand off the whip, but not without peeling it off its skin. He gritted his teeth, "This is nothing..." he said to convince himself while aiming at Naruto.
"Naruto, he's lost all reason! You have to-" 'No, don't you dare say it! He's not like the Leaf!' "He's turned into the Leaf! Don't you see?! It's the same cycle of hatred all over again, if you don't stop him now then he'll turn like Sasuke, just looking for more and more targets to kill in order to try to satisfy his endless rage!"
"Die!" the doctor roared, but the blond quickly lashed at the arrow once again. The enraged man growled, holding his bleeding hand to his heart, "I won't lose… You hear me?! I won't lose!" he loaded another arrow, "The villagers and I went through Hell and back in this castle to find you! You won't make their deaths be for nothing, I won't let that happen!"
Naruto growled, "Listen, death is always pointless. What you're doing is nothing but become a monster yourself!"
"I know… I know, alright?!" the man cried as he kept on firing arrows that Naruto kept on deflecting, "I was lucky that the shinobi lost their chakra… I don't know how or why, maybe God finally got tired of them. The villagers and I were able to kill them… And then, I remembered who the cause of all of this was: you!" he finally got tired of missing and ran at Naruto, grabbing a knife from his vest and wildly swinging at him, "We stormed this castle together to defeat your evil and the cruelty of the Leaf! Each and every single one of my friends died to stop the suffering you created! But I still live…"
Naruto managed to grab the arm swinging the knife, pushing it back as he tried to reason with the man before him, "Yes, you are still alive. Do you think your wife and daughter would want to see you like this? Even if you killed me, you'd never have them back, and if you killed Sasuke, it'd still be the same as now. Please, don't become like him."
"No!" the doctor cried as he struggled with Naruto, "I lived because my family, my friends and God want me to strip your evil from this world!"
And then, the doctor jumped at Naruto…
It was over instantly. Naruto had his eyes wide, his mouth gaping and out of breath as a warm liquid rolled from the knife's handle and into his gloved hands. The doctor fell backwards, his glasses flying off his face once his head hit the ground and bounced. On the man's chest was the knife, piercing his heart.
"W-Why…?" the doctor asked, looking defeated at the blond, "I… I… I just wanted… to hug Alyssa… to play with her… to kiss her mother… to… to be with them…" a tear rolled down the man's eye, "Oh god… I'm sorry… I'm so… sorry… sorry… so sorry…" he extended his hand to Naruto, "I… I'm sorry… I… I don't want to… to hate like that again… I'm sorry…" the man spit blood, but with his last strength he did his best to extend his arm to his crossbow, trying to reach the purple lace that once held his daughter's hair, "P-Please…" he begged to Naruto. The blond nodded stoically and untied the purple cloth from the weapon and handed it to the man, who could finally smile, "T-Thank you…Alyssa… Daddy… will play… wi…th…you…"
And then, the doctor, a man whose name Naruto never knew, was finally relieved of his suffering by the demonic youth's hand. Naruto kneeled down to close the man's eyes, not saying a word. He soon felt a hand on his shoulder, making him welcome its warmth, "Naruto…" Elizabeth said softly, trying to find something to say but she really couldn't. She was a succubus, she drained life out of her prey, what could she say?
"Let's go, Elizabeth." Naruto said softly as he got up, "It's time to end the nightmare Sasuke started." And with that, he walked to the throne room.
XXXXXX
Naruto and Elizabeth stepped in the next room. It was a gigantic clock tower. The quiet chimes of innumerable instruments making him feel at ease. Gears and engineering at their finest decorated the entire place, making it very beautiful both inside and outside. Elizabeth was there to remind him when she moved to the side.
"I am sorry, Master." The redhead said, looking down, "I… I can't go on. If I were to fight here, I am afraid I would die."
Naruto remained silent for a second as he thought what the problem could be, "Are they really that strong?"
The succubus nodded, "Sadly, yes. I am no match for them, well, unless they were asleep." She looked at Naruto worriedly, "You defeated me without your chakra, I guess that says the difference in power to the ones you will face. Both Carmilla and Death are the closest to Dracula in power, and trust me when I say you have never faced enemies like them."
"But that doesn't mean you can't be useful." Naruto said, "If you know them, then do you have any tips to face against them?"
Elizabeth nodded, "Carmilla is a vampire. She is very strong, agile, fast, and can heal herself. Don't let her bite your neck or she'll feed from all your blood. She even possesses some powerful dark magic of her own, and has been competing against Death to be Dracula's right-hand man… I mean, woman." She then smiled, "However, despite how strong vampires are, they have several weaknesses to balance their attributes. First of all, holy objects, they can't stand holy water, crucifixes, or silver. Second, a stab to the heart is a sure way to kill them, as well as decapitation. There are other ways, but I don't see you equipped with garlic or sunlight."
"Garlic?" the blond asked with a raised eyebrow.
"Please don't ask, I'm not good with the details." She then looked at him and smiled, reaching for his face to plant a gentle kiss on his lips which he returned eagerly. "For good luck." She said with a soft smile. He nodded and walked forward, his whip drawn and ready to face Dracula's top henchmen.
"Ohoho...! You're really going to this, boya?! You're really going to try and test me, Carmilla, in my master's own castle? You've got quite a lot of nerve...and guts, too badly I'll be pulling both out of your corpse while I drain you of your delicious blood!" Naruto skidded to a halt when listening to that seductive and sensual voice as well as the click-clack of the shoes of the woman in front of him. Carmilla had basically materialized from the shadows with a malicious smile as he held out his whip, cracking it with a harsh glare aimed at her face. Carmilla looked sternly at Elizabeth, "Do not thing I didn't hear you, little succubus. I shall enjoy my fun with you after this fight." She then looked at the blond with a smile, "But from you I'm expecting some fun, usually my food never satisfies me in anything."
"I came here to get some answers and stop the cruelties people like you and the Leaf create." The blond said sternly.
"Hmm… I see, so Death was right, you do have some Belmont blood on you…" the vampiress said with an amused smirk, putting a hand on her chest where her un-beating heart was. "Oh, to taste that blood… I am torn apart, boya, and it's all your fault…" she smiled at him, "Ah, to serve my master and help him come back to life through you, or enjoy the blood of our mortal enemy… I guess I can do a bit of both."
"Belmont?" Naruto said, looking at the whip in his hands, "So… To stop Dracula from resurrecting again, they not only used the help of my clan… They united with it."
"And their blood runs through those delicious veins of yours and in that exquisite heart." Carmilla said, trying hard not to lick her lips, "And all so Dracula could be sealed inside your blood, the blood of an Uzumaki… But no worries, he shall resurrect, time and time again to show mankind their place."
"Mankind's not yours to toy with!" Naruto barked, "You may be a vampire, Death may be a god, and the Leaf may think of themselves as gods, but it all comes down to the same: you all drain the life of others for your whims."
Carmilla chuckled, wagging a finger as if to teach a child, "In that you are wrong… I do it out of my need to feed, I need blood to keep on existing in my undead life. Death reaps the souls of others because it's his duty. But the Leaf, or rather, all humankind? Oh, they're such a bore. They always fight for the slightly differing ideals, and then what? They kill each other and become worse than real demons. If you ask me, I think it's obvious who the lesser evil is here."
"Yes." Naruto said, covering his whip in his and Kurama's chakra, making the chains glow a bright golden, "However, it doesn't matter what you say to me, I've made my mind."
"Hoho…? And what is it you have in mind, my boy?" the vampiress asked, feeling her hunger raise.
"With this whip in hand I shall stop the likes of the Leaf, even if I must become a demon myself." He then stepped towards her, "If it means that no more people suffer like my friends did, so be it."
Carmilla simply opened her arms enticingly, licking her fingers lustfully, before disappearing in a flash of movement. Naruto flipped back as her right leg crashes where his head just was. Elizabeth taking to the air and staying clear of this fight as it was beyond her for the moment. Naruto leaned backwards frantically as Carmilla's left leg whipped past where his head just was, a dagger nearly slitting his throat neatly. Carmilla shot her left fist forward with a quick spin, Naruto twirled his whip around into a solid ball which he used to block her punch. The vampiress cried out as the whip's bladed links were made of silver, burning her flesh, yet he bore the major brunt of pain and injury as she was still strong enough to send him rocketing forward, impacting a wall, and leaving a body sized crater in it.
He fell to the floor, gasping for breath as Carmilla simply rips her burned skin off and smiles seductively as it rapidly heals again, leaving pale unblemished skin in its wake, "Oh dear, you're such a naughty human, aren't you? Hurting a lady with a holy whip? Tsk, tsk...I'm the one who WHIPS HERE, BOY!" She said lustfully, and then snapped angrily as she grabs her device, before she shot forward the absurdly fast blade directly at him. The blond youth rolled away as it hit the wall and with a loud clink of the chains attaching the blade to the device, the weapon rocketed back to Carmilla, leaving only an even bigger crater where he just was. Wiping a bit of blood from his mouth, Naruto licked it up, then ran towards Carmilla, his whip shot out and wrapping around her blade as she rocketed it forward again. He used the momentum of the blade shooting forward and his own flip towards her to send himself flying into the air towards Carmilla.
Skillfully spinning his whip around him again, he lashed forward just as Carmilla got her blade back. She flipped back, laughing arrogantly until she screamed, her right leg having been Naruto's target all along, not her body. He pulled violently, making a large cut in her flesh with the bladed links and pulling himself forward. Carmilla watched in shock as her opponent held an orb of spiraling pure energy in his hand that he instantly slammed into her. She screamed out as the Rasengan crushed her and sent her flying into the sky.
However, Naruto knew it couldn't be that easy, and he was right. Carmilla groggily stood up, regenerating her leg and body, standing awkwardly before she sent the blade rocketing forward once more. Naruto dodged to the side and cracked his whip once, twice, thrice, and then six more times at the vampiress, which makes Carmilla laugh madly as she dodged all of the lashes and gets in close to him. She punches him in the gut, making him cough up blood, which made her eyes glow with pleasure, then she kicked him in the face, surprisingly he dodged just in the nick of time letting her blade nick his face instead of outright skewering him.
She pouted, "Why must you make this so hard on you? Once Lord Dracula resurrects, he will surely enjoy torturing your village. Not to mention, he'd surely love to have your as his minion with how well you're doing." And then she licked her lips, "Or you could become my playmate, for this is the first time I enjoy myself for my food."
'She's related to Anko, no questions asked.' Naruto thought as he tried to find an opening. So far, this woman was matching him in speed, strength and was far more agile. "Sorry, lady, I like to be on top of things."
Carmilla chuckled, "Oh, but I can teach you many pleasures." She just smiled in amusement, and walked over to him, her bladed high heels clicking across the floor. "What makes you think you can beat me? Others have managed to face me before but have fallen, even if they knew all the methods to defeat me. And yet, none of them were able to satiate my appetite."
"Well, I'm just a sore loser, I guess. I'm not the kind who likes to fall easily." The blond said as he tensed, ready for anything.
Carmilla had to admit, she was intrigued by this one young man, his determination, his will to fight and, mostly, that attitude of his. Naruto knew he could very well be way over his head, and yet he decided to fight with his all no matter what could happen. He was also able to resist her. She had to admit, she could really admire this human. 'Hmm... I may as well ask Lord Dracula to let me keep this one...' She took a pose, wiping her armed arm at her side and then moving her hand forward to motion Naruto to come closer. "Well then, boya, care to show me how strong you really are?" she smirked before licking her lips once again, "Let's get to the fun..." She once again disappeared in a blur of speed.
Naruto quickly turned to his side and saw a fireball coming at him at dangerous speeds. He managed to dodge in time and faced her, only to see a swarm of bats coming at him. He ran and dodged as they came after him to bite off his flesh while lashing at the ones who got too close for comfort. He charged at the vampiress and swung his whip as hard and fast as he could. The beauty of the night shifted into mist to avoid the attack. "She's smart..." he grumbled as a half-reluctant compliment, and then rolled away to avoid the blade of her gauntlet.
Carmilla had to admit, she was getting more and more impressed with each passing minute. 'He may have the power of a demon in him, and yet he chooses to fight me fair and square while still going all out… Hmm, I really want this pet...' She retracted her blade and charged at the blond.
Naruto heard the movement of the wind behind him and quickly turned around. Carmilla came right at him, with her arm back, ready to skewer him. He couldn't jump away before she could stab him. She knew it, she had won! She could finally enjoy some real blood, however, the fight did disappoint her.
And that's when he disappeared in a flash of golden light.
"W-Where is he?!" she asked, looking around for him, until bladed chain wrapped itself around her neck and kept her in place while someone walked slowly behind her, pulling on the chain to make sure she didn't break free. To her good luck, her choker prevented the whip from, ironically enough, choking her. She then saw Naruto walk in front of her, holding the silver stake of his whip up. She couldn't help but smile, "So… This is it? At least, I served my master." She closed her eyes, waiting for the final blow… but it never came.
She slowly opened her eyes to see Naruto with a half-reluctant face unwrapping he chain around her neck. "M-Master!" Elizabeth cried in shock.
"Just leave..." Naruto said to the vampiress.
Carmilla gasped, "Why?"
Naruto shook his head, "Do you really want to live like this? To blindly serve someone and die for them?" he asked, remembering a similar situation, "There was once a beautiful ice maiden who gave her life for a demon… I saw how she wasted her life just to feel useful… I can't fight you seriously, not like this."
"Master, are you truly alright?" Elizabeth asked as she flew down.
Naruto nodded, "I'll be fine for the time being, and please, drop the master thing." He then looked at Carmilla and whispered something in Elizabeth's ear.
Carmilla stood frozen on the ground, looking at the back of the man who spared her life just because he was actually kind… She could feel something strange in her chest, and yet couldn't tell why. Her heart had never beaten before, so why was she feeling this strange warmth?
"He is strong, isn't he?" Carmilla heard Elizabeth speak, "Whatever happens tonight, whether he wins or loses, you have to admit, he's one to leave an impression."
Carmilla chuckled, "I'll give him that. So, why aren't you following him?"
Elizabeth sighed, "This is his battle. He will fight for his own life and soul, he said so." She looked as Naruto entered the next room, "This is a fight he wants to win all by himself and for himself."
The vampiress chuckled, "Humans… they are so foolish and yet so… amusing."
XXXXXX
The next and final room was what Naruto had wanted to find, the throne room. It had a large corridor that led to a majestically elaborated ebony seat; a red carpet crafted from the finest cloths directed him to the small stone stairs where the throne sat atop. Stained glass windows gave the room a mystical atmosphere. The entire decoration was, like the rest of the castle, gothic, but this one room had an imposing power that made Naruto want to be on the throne. However, he had business to take care of. Said business stood right before him, floating at the side of the throne.
"Death!"
"Ah, so you finally arrived." The god said as he walked down the stairs to greet Naruto, "So, do you really have questions to ask me, or are you just trying to justify your thirst for revenge?"
"Neither." Naruto replied firmly, "I came here because of myself. If what you said is true and Dracula is sealed in my blood, then I won't lay down and let him use me."
"Not like you have an option, boy." Death said quietly, "Do you know what that Uchiha did after the war was over? Yes, he did kill your friends and anyone who could have ever loved you. But, he also killed everyone with Uzumaki blood in their veins." Naruto gritted his teeth in anger, "Yes, boy. That's the reaction he wanted. However, it also made things far easier. You see, you are the only living being with the blood that has my master's soul sealed."
"So, you tried to kill me, but that does merit the question, why give me back Kurama and strip the Leaf of their power?" the blond asked.
"Because, if the master were to return, he could have used the body and the power of someone like you, in other words, whether you live or die, boy, the master will return to this castle." Death said as he hovered up in the air. "Mhmhmhm! I must admit, I'm impressed, not many men can outwit Elizabeth and dominate her in her own realm of dreams... Nor can many men tame and defeat Carmilla at the same time. Just who are you, Uzumaki Naruto? A man pretending to be a monster? Or a monster barely pretending to be a man? And yet, while being so similar to the count, you show the just side of a true Belmont, most impressive..." and then, before Naruto can even blink, the scythe hurtled towards him with several smaller ones rotating around it in an orbit.
Spinning his whip rapidly until he seemed to split it into nine different whips, Naruto managed to deflect and send back the sharp instruments of murder, "Sorry, but I don't plan on losing, not even to the god of death! I said I will get out of this castle a victor, and I never break my promises. Death, tonight you and your master will fall by my own hand!"
Death gave a 'tsk' in irritation, "How impressive, you're a bit stronger than I first imagined...no mater! I'll destroy you, one way or another, boy! There need not be TWO masters in this castle!"
Landing on the ground, then throwing off his robe to reveal a green battle outfit, Death grabbed his scythe and calmly moved his hand down its length, the weapon tripling in length until it resembles a staff more than a scythe, then a blade positioned on the opposite side to its primary one appears, giving the weapon a bizarre duel blade. Death spun the weapon around skillfully, and then lunged forward, the whiskered blond frantically blocking it as both fought in the majestic throne room, two different women of the night hoping for Naruto's victory over the indomitable Death outside this room. The blond would have a far harder time against Dracula's right hand man than he could ever imagine. Because almost no man, can triumph over the Reaper, but Naruto wasn't like other men however, and he knew in his heart he'd win this fight, somehow.
"I needed to see if you were really strong enough to be the master's vessel, and boy was I pleasantly surprised by the fact you actually dared to fight back against me, thus I had to test you out." The Grim Reaper shouted, brandishing his weapon with grace, "Now, show me if you really deserve to be Dracula's vessel, Uzumaki Naruto!"
The god charged, but was forced on the defensive as Naruto wildly lashed at him with his whip covered in his golden chakra, "If you wanted a vessel for him, why wait until now? Why make so many people suffer? Answer me, Death!" Naruto disappeared in a golden flash and appeared behind the reaper, who was once again forced on the defensive by lifting his scythe up and block an axe-kick from the blond before slashing at him while Naruto used his enhanced senses to avoid the blade.
"You really want to know? Fool! I just had to wait!" the god shouted before flying back and summoning more sickles, which flew after the blond, "The instant it was known that my master was sealed, I knew someone would try to resurrect him. Why do you think your mother's village was gone? Who do you think was behind it? It was none other than fools thinking Dracula would reward them."
Naruto gritted his teeth as he dashed at the god, lashing at the unusual projectiles, "And you want me to believe you didn't have a hand on it?"
Death cackled as he brought up his scythe and blocked a lash from Naruto, struggling with the blond as the whip's chain was wrapped around the god's weapon, "Do you really think mankind needs another reason to hurt each other but power? Why do you think they seek my master? Mankind shall always look for him because, in the end, he is their savior. Whatever their motives, Dracula is their only savior. He shall resurrect and rule over the humans and teach them to stop wasting their lives!"
"Bullshit!" Naruto cried as he yanked on the whip to throw himself at the god, making Death grunt as he used his staff to block another kick, "Dracula's nothing but a delusional man if he thinks mankind is so easy to control!"
"Still your tongue, boy!" the god roared as he pushed Naruto back and slashed at him, making Naruto block the blade with his whip's chain by holding the handle and the chain in one hand respectively. His left hand did get some cuts from the bladed links, but it was better than getting a scythe to the face and his hand would heal quickly. "I am the true immortal of this world. I am Death, for crying out loud! I've seen humans throw away their lives for the most stupid of reasons, and all for causes that would soon be forgotten to benefit another!"
"Then I'll guide mankind towards a better tomorrow!" Naruto roared as he stepped forward, pushing the god back, "I won't be like the count or like the Leaf, I will be there to make sure this world doesn't have real monsters like Sasuke roaming around even if I must become a demon! I will spill the blood of those who are beyond forgiveness! And I will defeat you!"
Naruto kicked Death square in the chest, unwrapping his whip as both now got some distance between each other. The god grunted but charged at Naruto, who charged back. Naruto lashed forward, but Death was quicker and ducked underneath the whip's chain. The god instantly went high and delivered a fatal blow on Naruto's heart, his scythe's blade poking through the whiskered blond youth's back.
"And with this, the master shall return to his throne." The god cackled.
"Wanna bet?"
Death truly needed eyes to widen in order to show his shock when the Naruto on his blade poofed away in a cloud of smoke, revealing a vial of holy water that was sliced cleanly in half by the god. The blessed liquid soon splattered Death all over his face and chest, making the god howl in pain. The god held his skinless, fleshless face, as he could feel it burning from the holy power in the water. He looked up when a shadow approached him from the ceiling, it was Naruto dive-bombing at him with the whip's stake in hand.
"GRRAAAAAAAAAHHHH!"
The pain the god felt was incomparable when Naruto broke the upper left side of his skull. But the blond didn't finish there, he dashed at the now kneeling god, "It's over!" he lashed at Death at lightning speed, creating a blur all around them as the golden chakra added the pain needed to harm the god. Wind formed around the blurs of gold, creating a small shield of wind, a sphere of raw power shown by the gales following Naruto's movements before he slowed down for a second, "This is the end!" and with that, he gave one final, hard lash at the god, sending him flying onto the ground, landing hard on his back.
"How's that for a foolish boy?" Naruto asked as he held his whip's chain wrapped in one hand, pulling on it like a lion tamer.
"Ugh… Very impressive, boy…" the god grunted, using his staff to get on his knees. "I don't know what pains me most… the wound you gave me, the fact I was beaten by another descendant of the Belmont House, or that you gave me the best fight I could enjoy without using your full strength."
"I've been saving my strength for my final battle." Naruto stated.
"Heh, if it's against the Leaf, then you should know that I took all their chakra away."
"Yes, I know, a friend told me." The blond said stoically.
Death was perplexed, "Then who do you wish to fight?"
Naruto stared at the god with determination in his eyes burning brightly, "Your master. I want to fight Dracula."
Death was now even more perplexed, "W-Why?! How?!"
"If Dracula's soul is sealed within the blood of my clan, then I want to face him." The blond said dryly, "If what you said is true, if this castle tells me anything, it's that Dracula is someone very powerful. However, he got your loyalty, and that of every single living being in this castle. I want to know, by myself, if Dracula is a true savior. I wish to fight him… Should I fall, he'll be back and rule the world in darkness, but he will at least destroy the Leaf. Should I win, I will make the Leaf and their Hokage pay for their crimes, and guide mankind so no more people have to suffer even if I must kill those beyond redemption."
Death stared at the young man before him, and was surprised when he offered the god a hand to lift him up. The Grim Reaper chuckled as he accepted it, "Very well, Uzumaki Naruto… You truly are like the count, and yet, you hold the morals and the will of a Belmont with the determination of an Uzumaki… If the master had been alive now, he would have welcomed you with open arms."
"I hope to find that out myself." The blond said.
Death nodded, lifting a hand which glowed with a dark purple energy, "I will awaken the count's soul for you. You will feel as if you are in a deep slumber, but when you wake up, you shall meet my old friend face to face."
Naruto raised his hand to briefly stop the god, "Just a quick question, the final one." He said calmly with a small smile, "What kind of man was the count? He has been sealed in my clan's blood all this time, I wish to be evened when meeting him and know about who he is and was."
"As you wish." Death said, "Dracula was a man once known as Mathias Cronqvist, a master strategist who was a true patriot and was unforgiving to those who opposed him and his land. He met a lovely woman, he was true to his heart… and yet, he lost it all. While he was away in a great battle I had to reap her soul due to a sudden illness, the count came back home to meet her, fallen and lifeless. In his despair and rage, the count refused God, becoming himself a monster who drank blood to live. He changed his name to Dracula Vlad Tepes and soon had many followers, myself included, who had given our backs to God. But soon, despite becoming a Lord of Darkness, he discovered that he still had a human heart and he fell for a woman named Lisa, who reminded him of his wife. However, mankind was never kind to those who are different from him, and thus assassinated Lisa for she had given birth to the count's son. Time after time, the count was faced by strong warriors descending from an old friend of his, the Belmont House, and time after time he resurrected. His goal is to make sure mankind knows its place, no matter how many times he must die."
Naruto closed his eyes, listening intently before nodding, "I can't say I fully sympathize with him… But I do understand him. However, I won't let him defeat me. A man who hungers for power and revenge isn't fit to be mankind's savior."
Death chuckled, "Let's see if you can hold your word, Uzumaki Naruto."
XXXXXX
Naruto opened his eyes to find himself in a bizarre world. He was surrounded by a strange mist all around him in a world only illuminated by a blood red moon in a starless sky. The ground was made just simple white rock that looked like marble. There were several trees decorating the place, despite being in a rocky ground, all of them dead, without any leaves and completely black, as if scorched into coal. And before him was a throne standing above a set of stairs. It was exactly like the throne room in which he had fought Death, but this one far too surreal, and with someone sitting on the throne.
"Dracula." Naruto said, making the man smile.
The man was exactly like the guy in the portrait, but his shoulder length hair was white as snow, including his beard. The man was garbed in elegant clothes, a black suit with ankle high black boots, a white cravat and a large overcoat with a red underside. His skin was as white as the moon, and his red eyes shone with a dark power that rivaled Naruto's new demonic eyes. He had the air of an aristocrat, but seemed in complete control of his emotions despite looking down on Naruto with superiority the blond was used to. He rested one elbow on the throne's arm, his cheek rested on that arm's fist, and his free hand holding a wineglass of what Naruto deduced to be blood.
"So, you decided to face me, huh?" Dracula asked as he lifted his glass as if for a toast, "Well met, boy!" he cheered, he actually cheered for the blond with a true smile on his face, "Tell me, Naruto, do you truly think you're better than any other human who has faced me? In the end mankind is nothing but a pile of insects trying to devour each other, they don't differ much from me except that I can cleanse this world with the searing flames of chaos."
"I beg to differ." Naruto said coldly as he readied his whip.
Dracula narrowed his eyes at the youth, "You withstood beatings, humiliation and blind hatred despite the fact you had been forced to side with that traitorous village, and in the end they betrayed you for the power of a traitor. Such irony and yet such insult, acts like those shouldn't be forgiven, and now that you acknowledged it, why do you wish to fight me?"
"I haven't forgotten that, nor will I forget how they treated me. However, mankind is not without redemption. I will lead humans to a better tomorrow."
Dracula growled, "Mankind has proven itself to be without redemption over and over again! What of that doctor you met? He wasted his life out of hatred like every single person you faced in this world!"
Naruto barked at the dark lord, "I know that, and that's why I will fight against you and anyone who oppress others, to make sure no-one has to suffer like he did! And at least, he was a true man and unlike the Leaf he did feel regret for carrying so much hatred! If there are more humans like him, then I shall protect them and make sure people like the Leaf don't taint them!"
Dracula scowled, "Foolish child, humans will hunt down the likes of you for their greed! You've seen the cruelty of their actions; your own flesh should remind you of the torture they put you through, not to mention how they played with your mind and heart to feel better about themselves! Trust me, I've seen mankind's true side, and truth is there's no end to the darkness of their hearts for they hold no limits to their corruption."
Naruto stared intently at the count, "I am not like you." He stated simply, "Unlike you, Sasuke and the Leaf, I will kill myself before I give in to my own hatred! The only reason I am going to stop the Leaf is because I will never allow evil likes theirs or yours to hurt anyone. Dracula, like the people who passed me their blood to wield this whip, I will defeat you for a better tomorrow!"
Dracula snapped, throwing aside his wineglass of blood, splattering blood and glass, "You fool! What is a man if nothing but a miserable pile of secrets? But enough talk, have at you!"
The vampire showed his true colors as he flew into the mist, disappearing for just a second before landing in front of Naruto, transformed into a different being. His skin absorbed his hair. His clothes were gone, while his body had grown at an incredible rate. His fangs tripled their size, dark black wings had grown from his back and his gaze became much more terrifying. Even Kurama grew afraid at the sight of this new enemy. Before the blond knew it, he was staring at a monstrous gargoyle with large blood red horns curving on the back of its head, whose burning eyes saw nothing but the blond before him, and whose claws only wanted to cut through the enemy's skin.
Naruto snapped himself and his friend out of their stupor, "Kurama, together!" The fox shouted, "Time to end this!"
The count watched as Naruto changed into a different being himself. Pure energy flowed from the blond boy as his body was engulfed in his and Kurama's chakra by using their full demonic power. Golden chakra wrapped the blond in a cloak unlike the others he had before. Now the count faced a dark bipedal fox-like humanoid. The creature had no tail and very few features like the wild mane of hair spiked backwards, black beady eyes, vulpine legs ending in clawed and yet still human feet, and two tufts of hair standing up like fox ears. The kitsune's eyes narrowed at Dracula's as he cracked his whip, which moved along his will.
"You accept the darkness and your demonic side. Good, very good, boy… Now, I shall teach you to forget your mercy!" the count started, first congratulating the blond like he would to a son, before he smiled and began to circle around the blond, while aiming his glare at the kitsune.
Naruto slowly moved to his right and kept a close eye on every movement the count made. The winged demon instantly attacked him, rushing at him. He swung his claws quickly at the kitsune's upper body, but the boy was quicker and managed to dodge every blow that came his way. Then, without any advice, the count unleashed a fireball from his hands that sent Naruto flying back. It was then that the count leapt high into the air and attempted to stomp the kitsune. Nevertheless, the blond got back on his feet with the injury healing instantly and was ready for Dracula's attack. The kitsune lifted his arms and grabbed the gargoyle's feet, keeping the vampire airborne while the ground beneath his feet gave way to a crater.
"Shut your trap!" the faceless kitsune roared from behind his chakra cloak and slammed the count on the ground. He then drew out his whip and lashed at the vampire.
Before the whip landed the blow, Dracula used his large wings to roll aside and take flight, now having the advantage as he hovered around Naruto for an opening. He tried to hit the blond with more fire balls again and again and didn't decide to give the whiskered youth a chance to counterattack. Naruto soon got tired of jumping from side to side and teleported with his Hiraishin. He appeared behind the demonic vampire and ran at him with a battle cry and his whip moving forward in a stabbing motion thanks to his chakra controlling it. The count growled and transformed into mist, letting the whip pass right through him. As the vampire flew high into the air, Naruto lashed once again at him. The vampire was temporarily confused since in his mist form he couldn't be harmed, until the whip started to spin around him like a tornado and sucking him in the vortex.
The count tried to escape from the whip, but was not quick enough and Naruto lashed again, this time towards the ground, with the force of the wind and a sudden airsick sensation Dracula returned to his gargoyle form and was slammed into the ground, hitting his head once. He fell on the ground headfirst, but quickly got up and gave out an enraged roar before dashing at the blond with panther-like agility. He then gathered dark energy into the palm of his left hand and unleashed a storm of fire balls at the kitsune. The blond managed to lash at the jets of flames, but they soon exploded upon contact with his whip and sent him flying back.
"Is this all your determination to be mankind's savior can do?" The gargoyle said in a low voice. "You are powerful, yes, and your services could be rewarded. Think about it, boy. I shall cleanse the world from idiots like the ones from the Leaf. All you need to do is give up your humanity."
"And you need to understand I'm a very stubborn bastard." Naruto answered.
"Hmm. I see that the Belmont determination is getting stronger every next generation." Dracula said with a cold laugh as his hands glowed with dark power. "That means my final battle with your clan will be the greatest battle of my immortal existence!" And so he leapt high into the air and fell on the blond with a mighty swing of his claws covered with fire. The kitsune managed to lash at the vampire's hands to deflect the attack and inflict harm on him, but all he got was a hook right in the face and a deep gash on the vampire's knuckles. Both combatants' wounds healed quickly before both glared at each other. This wouldn't be an easy fight.
They charged at each other, Naruto was more careful as he used his whip to parry the deadly blows of the vampire's claws that could easily rip off his head while Dracula growled as he forced his wounds to regenerate. The two were deadlocked in a furious series of lashes and slashes that didn't seem to have an end. Naruto looked like a combination of all kinds of knights, using his whip it as a sword, swift and hard hitting lashes aimed at the vampire with great dexterity as he didn't back down. Dracula on the other hand was a real monster as he attacked furiously and occasionally threw a fireball at the blond who either dodged or deflected it depending on the potency behind each shot.
Then an idea came to Naruto's mind as he grasped the hilt firmly and stabbed the count right in one of his swinging clawed hands, right through the palm. The downside to this plan, he was hit directly in the chest by the other claw. The count would have laughed, but his shock grew when Naruto glared at him and grabbed the hand that had stabbed him by the wrist and swung the large winged monster around and countered with a speed that was simply amazing: he reached out quickly and pulled the whip from the count's chest. Once the count hit the ground Naruto used his Hiraishin to teleport over him and try to stab him right in the heart. However, Dracula was quicker and grabbed the stabbing arm, keeping the stake away from his unbeating heart.
"I got to hand it to your mother's clan, boy… You Uzumaki's are really unpredictable." The count grunted, "But not strong enough!"
"W-Whoa!" Naruto was shocked as the vampire showed to be far stronger physically by lifting the kitsune up and throwing him aside into one of the trees, which quickly crumbled into splinters from the force. Naruto was thankful of his new chakra cloak healing him; otherwise his lungs would be punctured by his now healed broken ribs.
Suddenly, Dracula swung his fist down on the ground with great strength and made the floor shake violently, causing the rocky ground to crack in two and launch spike rocks at the blond. Naruto mentally grunted, that kind of strength easily rivaled Tsunade's, so Dracula was no joke. He managed to use another Hiraishin to disappear out of the rocky spikes of death's way and appear beside the vampire. Dracula turned back and leapt into the air as Naruto tried to deliver a powerful lash at his face. The dark lord flew away from the blond but was received by the whip, having a large gash on his chest that slowly healed back.
The golden kitsune's enemy once again got up into the air with rage in his eyes and unleashed two fiery skulls at Naruto. These skulls, unlike the fireballs, flew at high speeds and seemed to be homing projectiles. Naruto dashed away from them and just as they got too close he lashed at them, unfortunately the skulls were also highly explosive and sent him flying back. He rose up only to face another pair of fiery skulls headed right to his face. Naruto soon got the smart idea to use his Hiraishin over and over, dodging every single projectile, however it wasn't as useful as he thought for the skulls still followed him and now Dracula was attacking. A bit desperate and irritated, the blond turned around and took as much distance as he could with his whip's reach and lashed at the skulls. He got them to blow up away from him, but the shockwave did make him stumble from time to time. But now free of annoying fire skulls, the blond was able to duck under a swipe from Dracula's claws and try to stab him, but this time the vampire morphed into a swam of bats. The blond angrily lashed at them, forcing them to regroup away from him back into the large winged demon.
"Congratulations, boy!" he cheered, clapping with his clawed hands. "It seems that I can finally get a challenge and go all out..." as he finished saying that, the entire area turned darker and dark red fire began to burn from the count's hands.
"Heh…So, a challenge, huh?" Kurama softly muttered to his friend.
'It's okay, fox.' The whiskered youth assured his friend. 'If we can face a ten-tailed, city sized demon god, we can face this guy. Besides, he's barely hurt me.'
"But you have hardly hurt him as well..."
'But I have you on my side, I have Elizabeth waiting for me, and I owe the doctor and the others a proper burial. I am not going down.' he concluded, gripping his weapon with more determination.
"...I hate it when you are right." Kurama murmured.
"Now, a little demonstration of true power..." the vampire finally said as he began to fly high in the air. "Get ready!" he added and suddenly disappeared.
"BEHIND YOU!" Kurama cried to his friend. Dracula teleported right behind Naruto and punched the ground. The whiskered youth could only gasp in shock when he barely avoided a large pillar of fire by using a quick Hiraishin. The vampire then started to disappear and reappear everywhere as he flew around Naruto while trying to incinerate the blond with the flames of Hell while said youth used his Hiraishin to avoid being the first fox steak in the world.
After what had seemed to be an eternity, the vampire appeared in his throne, standing right in front of it as he lifted his hands up. The sky darkened even more, and Naruto looked up to see a large stream of blood raining down at the speed of bullets, and sure to have the same force of impact, causing him to get out of the way of the torrent of blood as best as he could while in the entire area blood poured like a monsoon. Sadly, Naruto was not as lucky as usual. The speeding bullets of blood managed to land such fierce blows that he could feel his bones cracking despite his chakra cloak. And just as quick, and brutal, as the attack came, it stopped. He fell on one knee, gasping for air, gripping his whip as best as he could with an injured shoulder. Seeing that the whiskered youth was weak, Dracula tried to stab him with his claws, but Kurama saved his friend by possessing the whip with his chakra and lashing right into the vampire's face, who fell right before Naruto. The blond quickly forced himself on his feet and without wasting any time, he jumped right at him and used his whip's stake to stab the dark lord. But it was a very short-lived moment of joy when Dracula used his wings to stop the blow.
"Why won't you die?!" Naruto asked, as he struggled with the count.
"I've lived through centuries coming back from the dead. It's obvious I would be reluctant to just go." the vampire replied.
Naruto did not let himself be driven away. They both struggled fiercely, trying hard to push each other's blades against them. Kurama decided to intervene; he controlled the whip once again, aimed and lashed at the dark lord, getting him right in the face. Naruto managed to stab the count in the chest, but missed the heart. The vampire let out a furious growl as he grabbed the blond by the neck and threw him aside.
"I'll end your pain and life, boy!" the Lord of Darkness shouted as he flew up into the air and started to gather dark energy into his hands, compressing it between his palms to create a highly condensed ball of pure dark magic.
Naruto soon mimicked the count, "I got a name!" the golden kitsune shouted as he formed his Bijuu Dama, ready to fire, "It's Uzumaki Naruto!"
Soon, the two unleashed their power. The entire area was covered by pure, raw energy in a holocaustic explosion the likes of several nukes. As everything was reduced to nothing but a simple smoldering crater, Dracula flew down, scorched and barely healing with one wing broken. He was forced to take back his human form, which was just as heavily harmed as he was now. However, he grinned at what he saw before him. Naruto was laying on his back, beaten, bloody and without his chakra armor.
"And now… the finale." The count said as he walked to the youth and lifted him by his shirt's collar, raising his right hand to form a pole of dark energy to impale Naruto with, "You gave me a good fight, child. Time to say good night."
The beaten Naruto smirked, "Good night!"
Suddenly, Naruto raised something in his hand. The confused vampire then cried in pain when a familiar vial was smashed right into his head, which caused the holy water to cover the count's face and burn him, making him let go of the bloody blond. Dracula barely had time to react as the real Naruto let out a rage-filled cry while holding his whip up with the stake aimed directly at Dracula's heart.
"How…? How can I be defeated again…?" the count gasped as his dead heart poked out of his back.
"You lost the moment you threw away your soul and friends for hatred." The bloody demonic blond replied dryly.
"Ah… sarcasm…" the count chuckled, before remembering a phrase engraved in his head, "For what profit is it to a man if he gains the world and loses his own soul. Mathew 16:26 I believe…" he grabbed Naruto's shoulder, giving the blond a one-armed hug, "Listen… Mankind is cruel… You shall steel your nerves… to do atrocities beyond a demon's own work… to truly accept your darkness if you wish… to guide them… And if it takes you some blood… so be it… I shall leave behind someone who can be a true savior…Goodbye, Uzumaki Naruto…"
"Farewell, Mathias." Naruto said as he ripped the stake out of the count's chest, with his heart still on it. He watched as the man instantly turned to ashes and disappeared.
Naruto closed his eyes, and when he opened them, he found himself standing in the dark, before him was a goblet made of silver. He grabbed and looked at it, blood was filling it to the brim, and there was a single inscription on it:
"The blood is life."
XXXXXX
"Is he…?" Elizabeth asked as she stood before the throne. Naruto sat on the majestic seat, his head hung low and his body seemingly devoid of life. Carmilla angrily tapped her fingers against her iron-maiden gauntlet as she and the succubus waited for the blond to give a reaction.
"Here he comes!" Death, back in his usual purple garbs and with his skull now fully regenerated, said as he and the two ladies of the night watched as Naruto stirred. The blond lifted his head, and to their surprise, his hair was as white as snow, his features had become more elegant, more noble and manlier, and his blood red eyes shone with true power. The god fell to the temptation of his curiosity, "Master…?"
"Blood…" Naruto said simply.
"As you wish." Death said as he snapped his fingers, instantly a skeleton wearing a butler outfit raced to the room with a glass goblet filled with blood. Naruto drank greedily from it, which Death used to make his next question, "Who are you?"
The blond smiled softly, "I am… the master of this castle." He got up and walked to the two temptresses with a smile, moving his hand to the redhead to carefully hold her chin with his thumb and index finger, making her feel weak on the knees before this royal and handsome dark god, "Sorry, Elizabeth, but I will need my jacket back."
The succubus gasped, "N-Naruto?"
"Eu sunt Dracul…" the blond said, smirking, "Dracula wanted to continue his legacy… So, even if my point of view is different, I shall rule over the humans." He let the succubus help him put on his jacket, smiling at how close she pressed her body against his.
"So, the master left you as his heir?" Death asked, and instead of sounding disappointed, he seemed more surprised, "Well, this shall mean several things I shall adapt to… Master." The Grim Reaper bowed to him, followed closely by the two night temptresses.
Naruto smiled, "Master… Yeah, that has a nice ring to it…" he turned to the god, "Tell me, what's the Leaf's current situation?"
"They're about to reach the castle, My Lord." Carmilla replied quickly.
"Good, let them in."
"M-My Lord?" the vampiress asked in shock.
"Let them in." Naruto repeated simply, smiling at the sadistic vampire woman, "I want to see what you can do to make them feel only pain..." he then turned to the Grim Reaper, "And, I have someone who wants a little favor from you."
XXXXXX
"Give your face, demon!"
Leading the army of shinobi was Sasuke, expecting some resistance from the reports, but found the castle to be unguarded and quite open to attack as he and his loyal minions barged in. As soon as he entered the lobby he fell down to his knees and tried to fight back the urge to puke. Several, countless spiders were feeding off the remains of several shinobi that first got in the castle. He was terrified by their size and number, not to mention their shells seemed rather thick and without his chakra, Sharingan and just a simple sword he didn't feel like trying his luck with anything. So he grabbed a shinobi by the shoulders and forced him to go.
The bastard didn't even give two steps before Phantom jumped down the ceiling and made him shit his pants. The shinobi crawled back as Sasuke got out his chokuto, but was ready to jump and run away while letting the shinobi under his command die. That was all they were good for, he was an Uchiha, so he had to live to get Naruto's power and rule over the world.
"The master will be here soon." The large arachnid said, before turning around and taking half a torso from a corpse in a single bite, "And thanks for the meal." He said with a cackle.
"The dead last must be dead." Sasuke said to try to calm himself. "The idiot's too weak and pathetic to defeat these monsters."
"Oh, really?" Phantom asked with a chuckle, "How would you make you feel hearing that he defeated me without chakra?"
"You lie!" Sasuke barked to prove his superiority, but a fiery roaring spider made him shut up and step back.
"Shut your mouth, brat! I eat flies tastier than you for breakfast and they give some fight. Without your chakra you people have all been nothing but easy prey for me and my children." The fire arachnid snarled.
"That's enough, my friend." Said a soft, manly and authoritarian voice behind the arachnid. Naruto walked down the stairs, his clothes repaired and looking brand new, his whip hanging from his left hip, and his new look demanding respect and fear out of the shinobi who saw him, said shinobi quickly cowered behind their Hokage. "I see you came here a bit earlier than expected." Naruto said, holding one hand up in which he held a glass goblet of blood, "I still have preparations to make for dinner, then there's the problem with the garden, and I don't want to forget my new friends."
"Heh, you better enjoy your time here, loser." Sasuke snarled, aiming his sword at the blond, trying to be threatening, "You will die tonight, and the Kyuubi's power will be mine. But before you die, I want to meet your new friends… The women should do to carry the Leaf's spun, if not they'd make good slaves. Or I could make you watch them all being killed by my hand."
"Oh, is that so? Rude little one, aren't you?"
"You're not even an appetizer, boy."
Sasuke's blood froze in fear as his men cried in agony. Several of them were ripped apart by a succubus' sharp claws while another woman grabbed one of them by the neck and bit on it, draining him of his bodily fluids and instantly mummifying him. The powerless Uchiha fell flat on his ass in pure horror as he stared at the two temptresses. These women were Naruto's dream, but they were his worst nightmare right now.
Naruto smirked cruelly at the Uchiha, "So, what were you saying about my lovelies?"
"AAAHHHHH!" Sasuke bolted out of the door, completely horrified, 'No, no, no! I can't die here! H-How did he become the leader of those monsters?! Shit! I need to use the Leaf and plan how to steal his power and get my Sharingan back, and then I'll teach him-'
"Surprise, motherfucker!"
A large, red furred paw cut the Uchiha's path, he stared in horror at the Kyuubi no Kitsune, Kurama, who was biting on several of the elite shinobi while the rest of them were being eaten by the undead. The Uchiha lsot several heartbeats as hands shot from the ground and pinned him down. He was far too weak to fight back without chakra, and these rotting arms had a ridiculously strong grip.
"So, Sasuke…" Naruto started as he walked forward, "You know… I am truly enjoying my life now. I made new friends, met new interesting people, got to exciting places… and found a way to make you pay for all you did to me, my friends and those who didn't deserve to die because you were after me." He took out his whip, "First of all… this is for the doctor!" and with a quick, powerful lash Sasuke's right leg was ripped off, making he Uchiha cry in agony while the zombies, following the castle's new master's orders, started to devour the limb, "Second, this is for Alyssa!" soon followed the Uchiha's left arm, making him howl again and cry in despair and horror as the zombies chewed on his severed limb's flesh, "This is for her mother!" and now the Uchiha just had one leg remaining, "And, last but not least… this is for being a traitor!"
Now Sasuke was nothing but a limbless torso, howling in pain as Naruto waved at the zombies. One of them nodded, making Sasuke scream, "W-What are they doing?! Naruto! You bastard! How dare you do this to m- MMM!" the zombie had shoved his hand on Sasuke's mouth, and quickly and swiftly ripped off his tongue. Then, another one came around his head and plunged his fingers in the Uchiha's eyes to chew on his eyeballs.
Naruto nodded at a figure Sasuke couldn't see, "Boy, tell me, do you want to live?"
"Yes!" Sasuke gurgled out through mouthfuls of blood. He was far too terrified, not knowing what the zombies would do to him now.
"Good, then I shall grant you immortality, just the way you are…" the dark voice said, and Sasuke now recognized its owner: Death! "Yes, boy, you shall live, forever and ever… However, you shall live as what you are now, a meal for the undead with no arms, no legs, no eyes and no tongue so you don't harm anyone, walk over anyone, look badly at anyone or insult anyone… Oh, but you shall help everyone here, by being their meal." And soon, Sasuke felt as if he were in a deep slumber, before the zombies were told they could eat all they want.
As they took mouthfuls out of the agonizing torso, Sasuke's flesh regenerated instantly, however his limbs, tongue and eyes never returned. He had been cursed to live like this through all of eternity, being an infinite meal for monsters with an infinite appetite.
Naruto smiled at Carmilla as she and Elizabeth accompanied him to the throne room, "You have quite the imagination… I wish an old friend was around, you'd have loved to share torture secrets. But, first of all, thank you."
"It's my duty, My Lord… Hmm… It's gonna be hard getting used to that rolling out of my tongue." She said, taking a thoughtful expression while smiling at him.
Elizabeth took her favorite spot on her master's back, "What now, Master?"
"Now I think I'll let Kurama have his fun." he said, waving at the fox who was having a blast destroying the Leaf army and eating the soldiers, "He should be getting to the village this morning. We can try to catch up to him later and hunt down those who deserve an early demise."
Death stepped in, "I shall make preparations for any incoming battle in case hunters listen about this castle having a new master."
Naruto chuckled, "Fine… So, what can I do to pass the time?"
Death was about to reply, but soon Naruto was reintroduced to Elizabeth's lips before being introduced to Carmilla's. The god dead-panned, "There's that."
"I like it." Naruto said with a simple smile.
XXXXXX
(Seven years later)
Naruto smiled at the sight of his kingdom from atop his castle, as he floated over it with a good goblet of fresh blood for him. His rule over mankind, unlike Dracula's, was more subtle. A world where humans didn't fight was still far from his reach, but after taking the Leaf he had made a large dent. He was still hunted because of what he was now, and most people joined him out of fear than out of respect, those who did so to either betray him or get his power had been easily dealt with thanks to Elizabeth's succubae sisters using their charms on the fools before draining them of their life. He had learned to become a tyrant when discipline was needed, but a hero when the darkness rose in man's heart. He smiled at all he had accomplished after so many years. With his home town and the rest of the alliance's countries now under his rule, the new master of Castlevania had spent the next few years keeping order in the world no matter the cost, even charging through large armies and making examples out of them all by himself.
However, the human mind was far too closed to the things that are unusual and different, so it'd take him time to truly make sure he could carry on Dracula's legacy even if on his own more benevolent way. He sighed as he drank greedily from the goblet and flew back into his throne room.
"Daddy! Daddy!"
Looking down from his throne, Naruto was able to smile this night. A small figure with black bat wings flew at him and hugged the man's chest. She had her short red hair done in a small bun tired with a purple ribbon, wore a black frilly dress that looked to be from the Victorian era with an opening on the back for her wings, and her beauty would surely rival her mother's when she grew into a full woman, and he'd dare any man to look weirdly at her for he'd kill the bastard on the instant.
"What is it, Alyssa?" he asked, bouncing the girl on his knee. Even if she could fly she enjoyed this.
"I finally learned to make my first illusion! Look! Look!" the little girl chirped as she moved her hands up to her father and materialized a white rose in her hands before making it disappear.
He smiled softly and kissed her forehead, "Your mother's not teaching you the dangerous stuff yes, is she?" he asked, actually feeling worried.
"She says I'll cut flesh with my claws in no time." And his suspicions were right, much to his dread despite the little girl's smile of utter bliss and joy.
"So, how are the twins?" he asked, and to answer his question two set of fits barged in the throne room and they jumped from the door to his arms. He was glad the throne was nailed down to the ground or else he could have fallen. "So… Mina, Nina, how are you two today?"
Two girls in matching blood red dresses identical to their half-sister, but without the opening on the back for they had no wings, grinned at him. The two had their hair short and neatly kept, however the best way to difference them was that Mina had dark azure hair like her mother's and Nina possessed her father's former golden mop of hair. Fortunately none of them inherited his spiky hairdo.
"Mommy taught us a lot." Mina started.
"Today we used swords and daggers." Nina continued.
"But soon we moved to the chain and blades."
"And Mommy will teach us how to hunt soon."
He chuckled at the three pair of blood red eyes before him. Alyssa spoke next, "We also played with Uncle Kurama, and his fur is so fluffy!"
'I bet that easily annoyed him… Oh well, there's a village plotting to overthrow me according to the spies, he can enjoy a meal out of that.' The formerly blond man said to himself.
"And Uncle Death let us play with his sickles."
"We had a lot of fun using them to play."
"Yeah, but Phantom's children didn't seem happy."
"But their shells can't be broken by sickles."
'I guess I'll need to talk to have Phantom accompanying Kurama for food as an apology.' He then shook his head when listening to the clicking sound of his wives' high heels.
"Having fun, or are they tormenting you again?" Elizabeth asked as she held her daughter in her arms.
He smiled as she moved to her and kissed her, "I faced this castle's horrors, three little devilesses are a joy in my life."
Carmilla sighed, "I still wish there was more of a challenge for me." She then looked at the twins with a smile, "But, there are some perks." She smiled and almost purred with Naruto kissed her. She then whispered something in Naruto's ear, making him smile.
"Girls, there's some A negative blood on my room, treat yourselves." He said, and as fast as bullets the girls ran, well, Alyssa flew while Mina and Nina followed her closely.
Elizabeth closed and locked the door as Naruto sat on his throne and let Carmilla bite his neck, sitting on his throne's arm, drinking greedily from it and licking anything that slipped down her lips. Elizabeth sat on his lap and attacked the other side of his neck, making him smirk. Soon the women got more beastly, and so did he. Carmilla took off his jacket while Elizabeth ripped off his shirt, meanwhile he grabbed their bustiers' cleavages and ripped them off to expose to pairs of milky F-cup breasts with pearly pink cherries for him.
This was his Paradise.
XXXXXX
FIN
And that's my rap! Hope you guys liked it. One of the main reasons I made this fic, aside from my current hatred for Kishimoto's latest chapters and many issues I have to work with against that idiot, is because there is a serious lack of good and completed Naruto/Castlevania cross-overs. So I thought to myself to vent my anger against Sasuke, even if shortly, into this fic and make a one-shot for one of the franchises who marveled me with its gameplay and annoyed me with how freaking hard it was for my younger, newbie self.
Another problem I wanted to deal with is that, basically, you read on Naruto wanting revenge fic and you've read them all. So I wanted to make this one feel more like a real adventure than me bashing the Leaf and Sasuke. So yes, I put more effort into making this fic about Naruto having an adventure in the greatest enchanted castle in video game history rather than make every single paragraph about how much I hate someone/something/Michael Atkinson/X-Box ONE/Kishimoto's writing/Twilight.
I must admit, it feels great to finally finish a fic, even if it's a story like this one but, yes, it does feel good.
Also, to answer some questions:
1. Fan-name from yours truly and a friend. Based on Elizabeth Bartley, a beautiful woman rumored to have been a vampire.
2. Design from Castlevania Judgment
JudgmentJu. I know the Judgment game wasn't that good, even if the design is a fan favorite (I think, or rather hope so). Try to bear with it because most games she's in are much hated. Also, haven't played Lord of Shadows, so do excuse me for not including that look but, to be honest, I prefer the Judgment design, can you blame me?
3. Phantom from Devil May Cry, yes, not a Castlevania creature, but fuck it, it's my fic and I liked his boss fight.
4. I might make a lemon in my account on AFF for Naruto and his lovelies here.
5. Well, since this is done, I want to ask if you guys would like a continuation? Of course there's little to do with what happened, so I was planning that maybe in the future I could do a crossover with another franchise to this. If you guys have any ideas I'll hear them gladly, but if I don't make a sequel of sorts, well it might be best that this story found its end and doesn't let you guys hanging and waiting for more.
Swordslinger out!
