Welcome back everyone to another chapter of Uzumaki Rider. First things first, the authors want to thank you guys for giving this story such a positive response. We didn't expect things to go as well as they have, and seeing so many people enjoying the work makes us want to work that much harder for you guys. Second, Happy Halloween everyone! While we couldn't dedicate an entire chapter to it, the holiday will play a role in coming chapter. Speaking of which, this one is going to focus more on different characters plotline's, which will soon merge with Naruto's. Some of you guys have made some predictions and even picked up on somethings in the story already. That's the kind of thing that's always great to see, and it should be fun seeing how everyone reacts to this chapter. We're glad we got it out to you before Halloween, though we can't promise the next update will be as quick or as long as this one. Thank you guys so much for reading and let's get started.

Chapter Soundtrack - Raise Hell: Dorothy

There was something oddly calming about a cemetery for Hinata. Most people seemed afraid of them, but the Hyuuga heiress had never been able to understand why. Sure, it was a home for the dead and all supposedly spooky stuff, but why would something like that be scary? A cemetery was a place of eternal rest, where people could sleep forever. People became ash and returned from wherever they'd come from. That was a beautiful thought in Hinata's mind.

She really did look peaceful there, sharing a bowl of ramen with her lost friend. It hurt Kiba to have break it up, but it's what had to be done, "Hinata-chan, are you almost ready? I'm sorry about rushing you, but like I said, there's something we need to talk about tonight."

"Why not talk about them here?"

If only it were that simple, "We don't know who could be watching, Hinata-chan. I shouldn't have to tell you that. It's safer back at the house. I hate doing this to you-"

Hinata knew her friend was right, no matter how badly she wanted to pretend otherwise, "It's fine, Kiba-chan. I'll be ready to go in just a moment…"

"Alright," Kiba said skeptically. There was something in Hinata's tone that warranted a little more concern, "Hey, are you okay? You don't seem like yourself."

"I'm fine…"

Her tone suggested otherwise, and Kiba knew it, "No, you're not. Something's wrong, and you're gonna tell me what when we get home."

"Kiba-chan-"

"Don't 'Kiba-chan' me," Kiba said with in soft tone, "You know I can tell when something's wrong, Hinata-chan, and when I find out what it is, I'm gonna do everything I can to fix it. Okay?"

Hinata could hear the concern in Kiba's voice. It really was sweet how much her 'husband' worried about her, "Okay, Kiba-chan. Let's go home…"

Mephisto carefully eyed the crowbar sitting on the table in front of him. It was the Wrecker's of course, and that poor soul now sat alone with a deadly demon in what looked like some kind of interrogations room. Unlike most interrogation rooms he'd been in, the entire place was made with bricks of bones separated by lines of burning brimstone. The heat had made the Wrecker sweat out more water than he ever thought was in his body, but that wasn't what had him concerned at the moment. That honor belonged to Mephisto's soul piercing eyes, which had been glancing between the Wrecker and his crowbar.

"This is a nice tool you got here. Real strong, isn't it? Where'd you get something thing like this, eh Wrecker?"

That was the exact question the Wrecker had been dreading, "It uh… was a gift."

"A gift, hm?" Mephisto asked. He moved his hand so that it was hovering directly above the crowbar. It began to shake before levitating a few inches off from the table. A small ring of fire appeared and began to rotate around the center of it. The single ring split into two, both heading across the crowbar in opposite directions. Like a layer of paint, the grey color of crowbar was stripped away as the rings made their journey. By the time they were finished, the crowbar's metallic facade was over, and it was revealed the the weapon was actually made from a strange kind of purple stone with a fluorescent glow to it. Wrecker gulped when saw the way Mephisto smiled at him, "This is one hell of a gift you've got here. Who gave it to you?"

The Wrecker began shaking in his seat, "I-I… I can't tell you."

That answer was enough to turn Mephisto's smile into a frown. His tone lacked any real emotion, and yet his quiet intensity was enough to make any being shiver, "You shouldn't lie to me, Wrecker. We both know you can tell me anything you want. You're just afraid of outing whoever your new boss is. Thing is, your boss ain't here right now. You know who is? One of the most sadistic men in any known dimension. With that in mind, here's what you're going to do… you're going to tell me who gave you that crowbar, you're going to tell me exactly why they gave it to you, and then you're going to thank me for not punishing you for that little fib you just told me. Do I need to repeat myself, Wrecker?"

"N-no sir, not at all," The Wrecker stammered. One look in this man's, no, this thing's eyes gave the Wrecker a pretty good idea of what he was capable of. If that burning inferno he saw Piledriver succumb to was just the act of some indifferent lacky, the Wrecker didn't want to see what the head honcho could do if he was pissed off, "I got it from Baron Mordo! He said it's made out of some kinda stone from another dimension! It was called something weird, like uh… shit, what was it?"

"The Dark Dimension," Mephisto growled, shaking his head, "I knew I'd seen this material before. So, the old sorcerer's working for Dormammu again. Isn't that wonderful?"

The Wrecker was lost, "Sorcerer? Dormammu? I ain't following you, man."

Of course the fool couldn't follow what Mephisto was saying. The Wrecker knew nothing of Baron Mardo's past with the sorcerer's of the Ancient One, or of Dormammu, the ruler of the Dark Dimension. Neither of those things mattered though. What Mephisto needed was to understand what role the Wrecker played in any of this, "Don't worry about it. What did Mordo want in exchange for the crowbar?"

"Far as I could tell, he wanted to off some people with it," The Wrecker answered with a shrug, "He told me he'd give me a crowbar that could bust through anything, including bank vaults and Iron Man's suit, and in exchange, he needed me to beat somebody to death with it whenever I robbed a joint. The Ghost Rider stopped me before I could do it though, so I never got see what would happen if I went through with it."

Mephisto was partially responsible for that. He'd felt some kind of power was at play in his home world a while ago, multiple sources of it in fact. The closest one to his Rider had been in LA, which was why that was one he sent Naruto to fetch, but there was spikes of this strange energy all across the world, meaning the Wrecker probably wasn't alone in his endeavor. Whether or not the idiot knew it, he had partners. It made sense when Mephisto thought about it. Mordo was smart; he'd know better than to concentrate whatever he was doing in one location. Something like that would rouse too much suspicion. Spreading it out made the whole affair much less notable, especially if murder was involved. There was only one possibility that may explain to Mephisto why Mordo would work with fools like the Wrecker in order to people killed with such a particular kind of weapon. Dormammu needed souls, and Mephisto knew how Mordo was providing them, "They're using weapons forged in the Dark Dimension to siphon souls back into it. Dormammu's trying to make himself stronger, probably so him and his lackeys can make a run at the Sanctums again… and he wouldn't bother with something like that unless he was confident something had changed that turned the tables in his favor."

By this point, the Wrecker was utterly lost, "Hold on, who's Dormammu? And why's Mordo working for him? And what are Sanctums? And-"

"That's enough," Mephisto cut him off, "To put it simply, Dormammu is an interdimensional being who controls the realm known as the Dark Dimension. He's nearly unstoppable there, not that he couldn't already do some damage in our realm, not to mention the fact that time is meaningless inside of it. For millennia, he's been spreading his influence to absorb more and more dimensions into his domain. The Sanctums are the only thing stopping him from doing the same to ours, and frankly, the fact they're maintain by Strange and his sorcerer friends is the only reason I put up with the sorcerers to begin with. As for Mordo, well he betrayed the sorcerer's a long time ago. He could be after revenge or something more. Don't know, don't care if I'm being frank about it."

The Wrecker only blinked in response, "Ya lost me again."

"I don't particularly care. That little tidbit was more for me to straighten out my thought anyways. It's time for you to go home, Wrecker."

"So… you're not gonna kill me?"

A sinister smile danced across Mephisto lips when he answered, "No, I'm just going to wipe your memory of ever meeting me. You could be useful down the road, so killing you would be an awful waste. I'll just give the worst headache known to man instead."

The Wrecker tried to protest, "Wait, you're gonna wipe my-"

"Bye-bye, Wrecker," Mephisto cut him off, making the villain vanish in flash of flame and puff of smoke.

With that fool gone, Mephisto could refocus his thoughts on what he needed to do next. There was no way he could let Dormammu waltz into his home dimension and just tear the place apart like that! Not a snowball's chance in hell! Mephisto needed manpower to make sure that wouldn't happen, but Naruto alone might not be enough. More riders would be ideal, but where was Mephisto going to find them? Someone already trained in combat would be ideal, since that would mean all they would need to be taught were the Ghost Rider parts of their powers. It might be even better if Naruto himself had a vested interest in training this person, consider that would almost certainly making the training period go by faster. Of course, both those things needed to come in the package of someone willing to sign a contract with Mephisto. A person like that was going to be hard to find though…

"I don't think there's anyone in entire world who fits that bill," Mephisto said to himself. He almost felted defeated, until a wicked idea popped into his head, "Well, maybe no one in this world anyways."

Hinata was beginning to feel helpless in her life. There wasn't anything particularly bad in it when sat down and thought about things. In fact, things had been going quite well all things considered. She had recently made jonin, her typically reserved father seemed confident in handing the clan over to her when she came of age, and it looked as if she might actually stand a chance at abolishing the Caged Bird Seal. Best of all though, she'd found a way to get through the bullshit that was a political clan marriage that didn't result in her marrying an asshole. All of that didn't change one simple fact thought: there was no fire in Hinata's life.

"Honestly, Hinata, I don't what to tell you. That's never really been a problem for me. Working for the clan's always been enough for me. Well, that and keeping an eye out for my best friends, anyways."

They Hyuuga heiress smiled a bit at the last part of Kiba's sentence. Akamaru gave a small bark of approval as well. Hinata was currently sitting on the bathroom floor, leaning up against the tub Kiba was bathing in. Kiba had always been good to Hinata from the first moment they'd met, and their friendship had lasted well beyond that. Of course, they may have had something to do with the fact Hinata was one of the few who knew Kiba's dark secret, "In all fairness, Kiba-chan, you've also got something else to distract from any of the thing I worry about. Hiding your true self from everyone takes up a lot of your time."

Kiba groaned at the memories of everything she'd had to do today alone to hide the truth from citizens of the Hidden Leaf. Yes, she. The young boy who'd quite possibly been the most brash, crude member of the rookie nine was in fact a woman. This was something she'd been hiding essentially from the moment she was born, and it had been hidden for one simple reason: the sake of her clan. In a nutshell, the clan had gone through a massive overhaul after the death of Kiba's father, who had been the clan head at the time, during the Kyuubi's escape. Tsume had the right to take over the clan in her husband's stead, but the majority of the council had been heavily traditional and weren't too keen on the idea of a woman taking over. From the second Tsume took over, they were trying to find a way to force her out and have the next male in line become the clan head. It was up to Tsume to find a way to stop them from giving away her children's birthright. Being several months pregnant, she was able to convince just enough council members to vote to hold off appointing a new clan head until her child was born and the gender was revealed. Most of the clan had held Kiba's father in high regard, and wished to see his bloodline remain at the head of the clan. Things got rather complicated when Kiba was born a girl, but Tsume had a backup plan for that as well. Until the older, more traditional members of the council passed on and were replaced with enough people who realized a woman could lead a clan just as well as a man, Kiba would be presented to the world as a male.

That had come with it's own set of challenges, most of which weren't too bad when she was younger as he feminine features could be hidden with baggy clothes, that grew increasingly difficult to manage as the years went on. Puberty was a tough time in particular, as her curves became too prominent to hidden by a simple sweatshirt. The girl had to live in an almost constant henge, and even under that was an elaborate setup of clothing designed to make her look just boyish enough for her to run somewhere safe without anyone noticing in case something were to happen. It had been trial to say the least, and there had been more than one close call that nearly resulted in the whole thing crumbling down, but Kiba had managed to keep the act up long enough now that only one council member needed to be replaced before the whole charade could be dropped. For Kiba, that was an event that couldn't arrive too soon.

"Hinata-chan, I love you, but please don't remind me about all that bullshit right now. This is the one place in the Hidden Leaf where I can relax and be myself. All I wanna focus on while I'm here is warm water and helping you, okay?"

"Alright, if that's what you want," Hinata replied, "Honestly though, I'm not sure if there's anything you can do. It's not the kind of problem you can just get over in one night."

Kiba nodded as he rubbed a washcloth across her face. She was a real knockout without her henge on, looking and sounding an awful lot like her mother. The warm water helped her think, bringing her back to the time when Hinata's world view had slowly began to change, "Hm… Hinata, I'm gonna ask you something, and I need you to be honest with me. Is this about Naruto?"

"Yes and no," Hinata admitted, searching for the proper words to explain herself, "It's not necessarily about Naruto-kun himself, not exactly anyways. I know I loved him, at least as much as some my age was capable of anyways, but that alone isn't enough to make me feel like this. It's just… well, Naruto-kun kind of represented something for me. I'd watch him train all the time, and day after day, knockdown after knockdown, he'd always get up and try again. The kind of determination he had inspired me I guess, that and the fact that you couldn't get him to back down no matter what the circumstances. If Naruto-kun thought something wasn't right, he was going to stand up and say it, no matter what the consequences for him were. That kind of thing was actually how we first met. He was protecting me from a group of bullies, even though he had to know he never stood a chance against them. It didn't matter to Naruto-kun; what mattered was that he saw someone who needed help. What do you do with something like that?"

"Uzumaki was his own beast alright. I always thought he was kinda cute, but I never did anything cause you liked him way more than I did," Kiba said with a nod, "Did I ever tell you how hung he was? Seriously, when I had to use the boy's locker room with him back in the day-"

Hinata's entire face went crimson, "Kiba-chan! Not the time!"

"Hehe… sorry."

In her heart, Hinata knew Kiba was only trying to lighten the mood with a little humour. She couldn't get too mad at her, "It's fine. The point I'm trying to make is, if someone with the determination and heart of Naruto-kun couldn't make a difference, what chance does someone like me have, or anyone have for that matter?"

Kiba hated seeing her friend in a state like this, "Hinata-chan, don't be so hard on yourself. You've already made plenty of difference, especially in my life. I don't know what I would've done without you. Everything I've been through, from my first crush to the the council pressuring me into finding a wife, you've been there. Not to mention the fact that you're a hell of a shinobi in your own right and you're killing it with all your clan work. You're incredible, Hinata-chan, even if you don't know it."

"Thank you, Kiba-chan, but I can't take credit for all of that. The political marriage was for both us. I didn't want to marry some dick from a high family anymore than you did, your situation was a little more volatile than mine. I guess I am proud of what I've done for my clan and how far I've come as a shinobi though..."

"You should be," Kiba told her friend as she reached for the bath stopper on the other side of the tub, "I can't just sit around and watch when you're in a mood like this. We're going down stairs and I'm gonna make you some cinnamon buns."

Hinata started shaking her head when she heard the bathwater washing down the drain, "You don't have to do that, Kiba-chan."

It was too later. Kiba was already drying herself off and stepping out of the tub, "You're right; I don't have to, but I want to. Doing things that makes you happy makes me happy. So, we're going to go downstairs, I'm going to make you sweets, and we're gonna spend the rest of the night telling funny stories to try and cheer you up. Got it?"

"Yeah, I got it," Hinata giggled. She was grateful to have a friend like Kiba around. There weren't many people she could rely on as heavily as she did her Inuzuka 'husband.' It may have been a fake marriage, but there was real love within it, an odd love that had grown from their friendship. Neither woman was ready to commit fully to the act, but they couldn't deny they had an understanding of each other that went beyond friendship. Although it wasn't without it's trials, "If you want some funny stories, how about our wedding day? Never thought in a million years that my first kiss would with you."

Kiba snorted with laughter, "Oh man, that was so weird. Not bad I guess, but I couldn't get out of my head that it was you I was kissing. Just kinda awkward, ya know?"

"Yeah, I do," Hinata agreed. She let Kiba exit the bathroom so she could head to her bedroom and get some clothes on. After a moment of quiet contemplation, Hinata called to friend, "Kiba-chan, if we're gonna be talking about things tonight, one of those things should probably be what we're gonna do about the deadline."

"I said funny stories, Hinata-chan," Kiba called back, "That definitely doesn't count."

Hinata wasn't laughing about it either, but that was beside the point, "We can't keep putting it off. We're supposed to conceive a child within the next year or we breach both clan's marriage contracts. If we don't think up something soon-"

Before Hinata could finish, Kiba popped out in front of her shorts and a baggy t-shirt and threw a hand over the girl's mouth, "We'll get done eventually. There's a good chance we'll have to bring somebody else into the fold to do it, but we'll take care of this. Not tonight though. Tonight, we eat, drink, and laugh. Okay?"

Kiba pulled her hand down, allowing Hinata to ask, "When did we add drinking to the list?"

"Just now. You got a problem with that?"

"Not at all. Just don't get too handsy when you drink too much tonight."

There were just too many good responses for Kiba to pass up. She started to tease Hinata as they, accompanied by Akamaru, made their way down stairs, "Aw, that's no fun. Aren't you the one who's been saying you've got some 'urges' you wanna work out? Maybe I could help. After all, I wanna please my 'wife.'"

Hinata started blushing, "Kiba-chan-"

"And it's not fair to taunt me with that body of your's. Seriously, you're like a goddess."

The more Kiba spoke, the redder Hinata got, "Please, you're embarrassing me."

"Aw, I didn't mean to do that. What do you say we go upstairs and I'll apologize. We just can't be too loud. Akamaru might think I'm in danger if I start screaming too much."

That remark, along with fact that Akarama barked in confirmation, was enough to earn a laugh from Hinata. This was going to be interesting night. More interesting that she realized in fact…

The night had been going well so far Hinata and her 'husband'. Kiba's cinnamon buns had been fantastic, they'd had some good sake, (even sharing just a touch of it with Akamaru), and stories flowed like water. Nice, relaxing, and nobody was too drunk yet. For Hinata, this was just about a perfect night, and she was more than happy to end it there.

Everyone was sitting at a circular kitchen table, the dark oak matching the natural decor that Tsume loved, when Hinata stood up from her chair and said, "Okay Kiba-chan, this has been fun and all, but I think we'd better call it a night. We've both got things to do tomorrow, don't we?

"Aw, come on Hinata-chan," Kiba pouted, not ready to end their story session, "I didn't even get to tell you about the merchant I was hired to protect the other day! He looked so good, I almost thought about dropping my henge and trying to convince him I was a civilian girl so I could just jump his bones real quick!"

"We really need to do something about your repressed urges, Kiba-chan… what happened to that toy I bought you last week?" Hinata asked with a blush. Normally a Hyuga would be against visiting such establishments, but with her friend's urges and the difficulty in a 'man' purchasing such items without raising suspicions, sacrifices must be made.

"I don't know," Kiba answered honestly, "Maybe Akamaru buried it in the yard again. I swear sometimes it seems he's the one trying to get us in bed together the hardest."

Akamaru barked and wagged his tail. There was a big soft spot in the pup for Hinata, one that had been there since the day he'd met the Hyuuga heiress. She was one of the few people outside the Inuzuka clan who fully understood how smart Akamaru was, and treated him as more than a giant plushy. Sure, at the end of the day Akamaru had many of the same quirks and ways of showing his emotions that a regular dog did, but he was more than just a pet. Hinata appreciated that, and in return, he appreciated Hinata.

However, the exceptional pup and all of his idiosyncrasies weren't what need to be focused on at the moment. That would be getting to bed, which Hinata fully intended to do, "Well, Kiba-chan, staying up longer won't solve any of our problems, so I'm gonna go get some sleep. You're welcome to do the same if you'd like."

"You really aren't any fun anymore, Hinata-chan," Kiba grumbled, her eyes following the girl as she pushed herself away from the table and made her way out of the room. Hinata took a left out of the room and exited Kiba's view… only to return within it a few seconds later when she stepped to where she'd first turned. There was a small, circular mirror just as standing high on the wall where she'd stopped, and the Hyuuga heiress was staring into it intetly. Too intently for Kiba's liking to be exact, "You see something in there you don't like? Do you have some shit on your face or-"

"Kiba-chan… come here."

"What for?"

Hinata didn't have time to explain, "Now, Kiba!"

"Alright, hold your horses," Kiba grumbled, jumping up from the table and walking over to the same mirror Hinata stood at, "I'm sure whatever it is, it can't be that… bad."

Whatever train of thought Kiba had before she looked into the mirror was gone now. Her thoughts were occupied completely by what she saw in what should've been the reflection of she and Hinata. Akamaru could sense some kind of tension in the room, so he hurried over to the two girls. Using his back legs as support, the dog went upright, using his front legs to support himself on the wall, and looked into the mirror that had his friends so transfixed. He began to growl and bark the moment he saw what Hinata and Kiba already had.

There was a man in the mirror, one none of them recognized. He was grinning like a cheshire cat, and everyone in the room could've sworn he was looking right at them. They'd find out exactly who he was soon enough, though Naruto could've told them who it was if he were there. Naruto would've begged them to run too, but it was too late for that. The man in the mirror close his eyes, took a deep breath, and opened them again, releasing a blinding light that made everything vanish in a sea of white...

...when the group could see again, they were no longer in their home. Instead they stood in a place that could only be described as empty. There wasn't anything in site around them, with the exception of a grey floor their feet rested on. Kiba was the first to speak after taking a brief glance in front of her, "Someone mind telling me where in the fuck we are right now?"

"I believe I can handle that ," A smooth voice behind them said, making the girls and the dog spin around to find the man from the mirror standing before them, "Hello, ladies. My name is Mephisto. Sorry about the abrupt way I called you here, but time is of the essence."

Before Mephisto got out another word, Akamaru began to growl and bark at him. Kiba took notice and narrowed her eyes, "Akamaru doesn't trust you… that mean I don't trust you either, fuckface."

"You're just as brash as I thought you'd be," Mephisto muttered before glancing over at Akamaru, "And I'll give the dog this; he's a good judge of character. I'm here to make Hinata an offer. It's an offer that's going to do wonderful things for me, I'll admit that much, but you'll be gaining an awful lot yourselves too, I assure you."

Hinata took a couple of steps back, not liking the feeling of even being in the same proximity as this man, "Hold on. We still don't even know who you are. All we've got is your name. We're gonna need a little more than that."

These girls were really going to drag out this whole process. Then again, that was probably for the best. It meant they were smart enough for them to be worth Mephisto's while, "I, Miss Hyuuga, am a being born in the fires of the my dimension's underworld. Over the centuries, my power has grown, making me strong enough to have influence in worlds outside of my own. Needless to say, there's plenty I can do for you if you're willing to work with me."

"What exactly do you mean 'your dimension?'"

Mephisto chuckled at Hinata's ignorance, "Oh, it's always fun dealing with dimensions so much less advanced than my own. You see, my dear, sweet child, there are worlds well beyond your own, more than you could ever imagine. Some differ from your own only slightly, others have changes that'd make your head spin. One of those dimensions is the one I came from… and it's also the one where your beloved Naruto still resides."

Now he had Hinata's attention, "What are you talking about? Naruto's dead!"

"In your world maybe, but I snatched up his soul and gave him a new life in mine. However, he's going to be in grave danger soon, facing something I don't know if he can handle on his own. I need someone to help him, and that's where you come in."

Kiba didn't like what she was hearing, "Are you fucking with me right now? Do you really expect us to believe all that? What proof do you have?"

Another good question, but it was also one that got on Mephisto's nerves. He'd had a long day already, and the idea of explain himself to these green as grass fools wasn't all that appealing. There was a way to expedite the whole process though, and Mephisto intended on using it, "Let me put your minds at ease, girls. Look into my eyes for moment."

"Oh, this just keeps getting better," Kiba groaned, but she had to admit, she found herself compelled to do as the man had asked. Not to mention the fact that if he planned on hurting them, he probably would've done it already. Both she and Hinata looked into the stranger's eyes and found themselves experience something beyond words.

The world around the girls flashed into a sea of white light once again, but this time it felt as though the entire process was in fast-forward. They would see a new world for a split second, less than a second in fact, and then BAM, they'd be in another. This happened hundred of times, giving Hinata and Kiba glimpses of worlds different from their own. It was almost enough to make them go insane, or at least it would've been if Mephisto wasn't controlling the process so carefully. Whatever this was, it wasn't an illusion. Both girl felt the locations they were in, felt it right down to their bones. This made it all the more mind boggling when, for the tiniest of moments, they got a peek at someone who was supposed to be long dead… Naruto Uzumaki, riding down a road on a device they'd never seen before. A motorcycle of course, but they didn't know that.

Mephisto pulled them out at the moment, leaving Hinata and Kiba's heads spinning, "So, ladies, do you believe me now?"

"Okay… that was terrifying," Kiba replied, rubbing her temples with her hands, "Just terrifying enough to make me think you might actually be able to do what you say you can. That doesn't mean we can trust you though, especially when we don't even know what kinda offer you're making Hinata!"

With a snap of his fingers, Mephisto summoned a line of flame about eight inches long in front of him. Like paper from a printing press, a contract flowed from the line, one similar to the version Naruto had signed before, "This contract is all the trust you're ever going to need. It states each of our duties to one another quite clearly, and it insure you'll be able to see Naruto once again… and possibly even save his life in the process. Oh, and there's a few other little goodies in there as well. For example: Kiba, I'm sure you're tired of this dress-up game you have to play everyday for the sake of your clan. I may not be able to do much in your world, what with all restrictions that come with using my powers in other dimensions, but even I can give a heart attack to the last old geezer that's preventing the council from instating a female clan head permanently."

Kiba was both thrilled and terrified. On one hand, this guy could help her clan out in a big way… on the other, he was diabolical enough to know Hinata had a hard time turning down something that could help a friend, "A nice offer, but I don't want Hinata-chan doing this for my sake."

"Who said it would just be for you?" Mephisto asked with a wicked grin, "I can do things for her other loved ones as well. Is she worried her poor, stuck up cousin Neji might die alone? I can influence him to ask out that pretty little teammate of his he's been eyeing so fondly. Tenten, was it? And as for her baby sister, Hanabi, I can influence your father into making her the clan heiress once you leave, and the contract insures that I have to come back and influence the council into removing the Caged Bird Seal once she's in control. Think about that, Hinata? Think about all the good you can do with just a stroke of a pen. Granted, you'll have to work for me, but I assure you, even that work will bring joy to a lot of people."

There was a look in Hinata's eyes that Kiba didn't like. Honestly, the guy's offer sounded great… which is exactly what made Kiba so suspicious of it, "Work for you? What, are you planning on whoring her out or something?"

Mephisto rolled his eyes and shook his head, "Of course not. She'll be bringing me the souls of some nasty individuals, that's' all. If she wants to indulge the sins of the flesh, she can do it on her own time."

"I… I want to do it," Hinata said all of a sudden, "I want to sign the contract!"

"That a girl," Mephisto bellowed, "I knew you wouldn't be selfish enough to turn it down. Just give me your hand, and I'll get the process moving."

This was bad, really REALLY bad! All Hinata think about was all the good she was going to do for the people she loved. This bastard was almost shaming her into doing this! Kiba tried to reached out before Hinata's hand to could reach Mephisto, and Akamaru tried to snap at the man too, but it was useless. Mephisto raised up his hand, five sharpened fingernails on all five digits of it, and slashed them away, cutting both Kiba's hand and Akamaru's snout. The sharpened fingernails dripped blood, some of which unintentionally hit the contract Hinata was ready to sign. Kiba was nearly out of time, "Hinata-chan, hold on! You're not thinking straight! Everything this guy says sounds nice, but he's not giving you all the facts! I know you're doing this to help everyone else, but you've got to worry about yourself too."

Hinata couldn't hear Kiba. Her friends words were nothing but white noise. All the Hyuuga heiress could think about was those she loved getting everything they had ever desired. Her hand reached Mephisto and he took, slicing Hinata's thumb with his fingernail. Once blood began to ooze from it, he lead her hand down to the contract at let her do the rest. Hinata signed her name in blood, hitting the drops of Kiba and Akamaru's blood along the way, and sealed her fate. Mephisto couldn't have been happier, "Wonderful… I'll see you on the other side."

"Hinata-chan," Kiba cried out, but it was too late. The contract transformed into a ball of purple flame that hung in the air before shooting towards Hinata. A white light began to overtake them, and everything soon started to vanish, "No! Hinata-chaaaaaan!"

When Hinata regained her senses and the white faded away to reveal the new world, she found herself in a place that almost felt familiar. It was an overgrown forest, filled to the brim with pine trees that stretched far into the sky. The whole place smelled of fresh air and maple sap. This was the kind of place where Hinata could enjoyed a peaceful night by herself… that is, if she had been by herself, "Kiba-chan? What the hell are you doing here? And Akamaru too? What the hell's going on?"

Kiba and Akamaru were both laying on a pile of dead pine needles, groaning to themselves. They pushed themselves up off the rich dirt and Kiba said, "Ah man, my head's killing me. What the fuck just happened? Hinata, what are we doing here?

"That would be partially my fault. Partially yours too, but I'll admit it's partially mine," The voice of Mephisto rang in everyone's head. It terrified the hell out of them at first, but after everything they seen today, adjusting to a simple voice in their head was rather easy, "You blood was still on the contract when Hinata signed it. While she's the only one who gave her signature, and is thus the only one bound to me, the contract was meant to pull the essence of anyone who touched it into this dimension. A minor error. Nothing much I can could do about it now though. Let it roll off your back and focus on what's coming towards you next…"

"What's coming at us next?" Hinata echoed, "What's that supposed to mean?"

A massive roar would be her answer. It felt entire forest began to shake around them as the footsteps of a massive beast began to grow closer towards them. Poor Akamaru didn't know whether to growl or whimper. The sound of trees being knocked over could be heard in the distance until the beast who'd be approaching them finally came into view. Kiba went pale the second she saw it, "Oh this is not gonna end well…"

Standing before them was a massive, fur-covered humanoid beast with fangs and razor sharp claws. It was nearly eight feet tall and covered head to toe in muscles. There was a rage in the creature's crimson eyes that would make most men either. Mephisto sounded off again in the girl's minds, "That big, pissed off son of a bitch would be Wendigo. He's your first target, Hinata. Do me a favor and try and bring him down without killing him. No biggie if you can't though. The important thing is have some fun with your new powers..."

" Are you fucking kidding me?" Hinata asked before Wendigo began charging at them, "Dammit, what new powers are you talking about?"

Kiba did what any good Inuzuka would do when their friend was in danger: rushed in to defend her. She lept into the air and tried to get her tunneling fang going, intent on tearing this thing apart, "Alright, fur-face, let's see how you handle this!"

Another roar left Wendigo's mouth. Kiba came hurly towards him, trying to get her body spinning fast enough to create the flying drill her family was famous for. She found herself unable to muster up the usual power for some reason she did not yet understand, and the attack was barely at half power. Wendigo smacked her away the second she got close, sending Kiba hurdling into a nearby tree. Hinata watched as her friend smacked her back onto the unforgiving bark and then landed on the ground below, knocking the breath out of the Inuzuka. The Hyuuga heiress had no intention of just letting the beast do something like that to Kiba, so she got into her fight stance, "Leave her alone, you monster!"

"Grrraaahhh," Wendigo cried before charging towards Hinata. The girl waited for him to get close, letting the monster take a swipe at her before she did anything. Hinata ducked under the attack and went right for his pressure points with her Gentle Fist style. It was enough to send the beast reeling back, if only for a second. In no time at all, Wendigo shook off the attack and snatched Hinata by the throat before she could react. Hot breath pour onto Hinata's face as the monster roared, "Gggaaaaaahhh!"

Wendigo slammed Hinata onto the ground, sending pain coursing through the girl's body. She could've sworn she heard some bones break when she hit, "Ahhh! F-fuck… I can't…"

"Don't move, Hinata-chan," Kiba begged, trying to get to her feet. Wendigo heard this and turned towards her, "I can handle this."

The attacks had clearly hit the Inuzuka woman hard. She could barely stand, and Akamaru could see it. A desire to protect his master took over the pup, and he leapt in front of Kiba and began barking, trying to scare away Wendigo. It didn't work. Wendigo kept on walking towards them, murder in his eyes. Kiba tried to make a herself a man beast clone, but she couldn't do it. No chakra would come to her. Without her powers, she was at the mercy of the monster in front of her.

'It can't end like this," Hinata thought to herself, 'I can't have come to this new just to die in it… I… I won't! I refuse to! This thing ISN'T OVER!'

With a newfound strength, Hinata pushed herself up off the ground and grabbed the nearest rock she could find. She held it tightly in her fist and called to the Wendigo, "Hey, you! Big, hairy, and ugly! I'm not done with you yet!"

Wendigo turned towards her, ready to roar, but Hinata cocked her arm back and threw her rock before he could begin. The moment after that rock left Hinata's hand, something incredible happened. A purple flame began to engulf the pebble, a flame that grew and grew. It flew through the air until it was a full blown fireball that struck Wendigo dead-on, scorching his furry chest, "Gaaaahhh!"

"You want a fight, Wendigo?" Hinata asked in a voice filled with confidence. A layer of the same purple flame starting to coat her body, "Then you can get it from me!"

In a blaze of glory, Hinata's form changed completely. Her clothes had transformed into spiked high heeled knee high boots, leather pants, a black bikini top, a spiked collar, and a black bandana that covered her mouth and nose. Unlike most riders though, her form didn't turn completely skeletal. No, instead it glowed a purplish hue, with flaming hair to match. A chain fell from her arm, one covered in her purple flame. Hinata swung it with all of her strength and wrapped the chain around Wendigo's neck. She pulled it tight, cutting off the beast's air supply. This fight had taken a rather swift turn in Hinata's favor "How do you like that, asshole? I think it's time we end this thing, eh?"

Kiba couldn't have agreed more, and she refused not to be a part of it. She turned towards Akamaru, who'd been watching the entire thing with her, and gave her partner a nod. The dog knew what it meant. As a team, the two of them charged towards Wendigo, whose back was facing towards them, and lowered their shoulders. They rammed themselves into the beast, sending it flying towards Hinata, who held her ground right up until it was about to hit her. Once it was right where she wanted it, Hinata kicked Wendigo in the stomach and sent him straight up into the air with the chain still wrapped around his neck. Soon, the chain ran out of slack, and that was when the end would come for Wendigo.

"Grrrraaaahhh," Was the beast's final cry before the chain ran out. Hinata held on tight as her weapon reached its maximum tension and Wendigo's neck hit the back of the chain. Like a hot knife through butter, the scorched metal tore through the monster's fur and flesh, and it didn't stop until Wendigo's head flew clean off from his body. Both the head and body fell to the ground not long after.

"And that's how you kill a Wendigo," Hinata said with a smile. It was then that she realized Kiba was staring at her, for rather obvious reasons. She looked down at her new form and said with a sigh, "Well this is turning out to be an… interesting turn of events, huh?"

Kiba rolled her eyes, "Yeah, you can say that again. Gotta say thought, I am digging your new look. I mean, you were hot before, but now you're literally on fire."

"That's real cute, Kiba-chan," Hinata replied. Admittedly, she did feel like a badass right now. Yep, like a skilled, sexy, tough as nails badass. Her new powers really something… now if only she had some idea of what to make of all this, "This whole things has been crazy. Good thing I know the guy who can give us some answers."

That was when they heard a familiarly demented voice behind them, "That you do, Ms. Hyuuga…"

"Aw man, that ride was fucking brutal," Naruto groaned as he stepped into his hotel room. It had been a long day of almost constant riding, with only the occasional food or bathroom break to mix up the monotony. Laura hadn't liked it anymore than Naruto did, that much was obvious from the way she'd vanished into her room the second her riding partner got their card keys. The hotel they were staying at was nothing too fancy, but it wasn't a roach's nest either. Decent beds, fresh sheets, clean bathrooms, and plenty of place to gather supplies nearby. That was all they really needed, "Yep, I can work with this alright. It ain't even close to the worst place I've ever had to stay in."

Naruto laid on his crimson colored bed for awhile before deciding he should probably check on Laura and make sure she didn't need anything for the night. He jumped up, walked to his door, and opened it, letting the night air of Santa Fe, New Mexico hit his face. Once he doubled checked to make sure he had his key card in his pocket, he headed over to the room next to his and knocked on the door. There was no answer, "Laura, you in there? I just wanted to check on you one last time for the night. Everything good?"

Instead of a proper, vocalized response, what Naruto heard from the other side of the door was a level of snoring that you'd expect to hear coming out of a small bear. There was no doubt this was Laura's room though, which could only mean one thing. He thought to himself, 'Damn, she's already out. Guess it was a pretty long day. Huh… as long as she's out, guess I might as well check out the town and see if I can't take care of that. Not sure when the next chance I'll get it, and the feelings already coming back. I swear Mephisto's been making it worse lately… can he do that, actually? Eh, whatever. Let's go out and see what this town's got to offer.'

Naruto had always hated college parties. The only reason he ever went to them was out of necessity. Constant flashing lights and the smell of ten different people's vape pens filling the air was far from his definition of fun. Still, that was where he had the best luck finding girls his own age, and that was what he was looking for tonight. There was nothing wrong with older women of course, in fact they tended to be more to his taste in terms of personality, but they also tended to take longer to court. As much as Naruto preferred not to think that way, he knew what he was looking for tonight was a simple hookup, and the best place to find that in Santa Fe was a frat party with girls his age. Luckily enough, it was a Halloween, which meant he'd have no trouble finding exactly what he was looking for.

He was standing on dance floor at the moment, or at least a living room the frat kids had emptied out and threw some speakers into in order to make a dance floor, leaning up against a wall while he tried to decide which girl he'd speak with. Naruto's search of drunken teenagers brought his attention to something else before long, the kind of thing he refused to ignore.

"I was just telling you how hot ya looked in that outfit. You don't have to be a bitch about it," A wasted frat slob in a police officer costume said to the young lady he was looming over, "Don't tell me ya come here dressed as like that and didn't expect to get hit on?"

The girl he was hitting on looked about Naruto's age, with black hair, brown eyes, and tan skin, (Naruto was fairly certain she was hispanic). As to the 'outfit' the frat boy referred to, well that was, (ironically enough), a fox costume. It was comprised of black leggings, a fake orange-white tipped tail, fox ears, and an orange leotard that hugged her curves. She looked good, no doubt, but she looked equally as pissed with the guy in front of her, "You can hit on me all you want, asshole but it isn't gonna get you anywhere. I'm telling you right now, I'm not interested! Fuck off! Oh, and by the way a girl deciding she want to look good for the night doesn't mean she wants to sleep with you, dumbass!"

"Oh fuck you! That's like setting a steak in front of a dog and getting made when they try to eat it! Girls like you really are a big, fat, cu-gah!"

That was on insult that would never be finished. Naruto was already behind the drunken moron, spinning him around to grab the college boy by his throat. Once he could no longer speak, Naruto said what was on his mind "You know I really hate that 'dog' analogy. If you train your dog the way you should, you shouldn't have any trouble stopping him from eating anything. All you have do is tell him NO! Now, seeing as you're not deaf, I'm gonna guess you heard this girl say NO, and just ignored her. That's a real shame… because it means I'm gonna have to do something that you can't ignore!"

Before the drunk idiot could so much as get his hands up, Naruto's fist shot out and decked him, knocking the college boy out in one swift motion. Naruto dropped him and started shaking his head, "And I thought college was the place you were supposed to go to learn something. Apparently manors isn't on that list, eh?"

"I guess not," The girl who was being pestered before answered, "I could've handled that myself you know?"

Naruto shrugged, "I'm sure you could've, but I wanted to knock the asshole out myself. I'm Naruto, by the way. Naruto Uzumaki."

"Ava Ayala," The girl replied. She looked down at her costume and let out a small sigh, "This thing isn't even that bad. I mean, it's kinda sexy I guess, but it was the best looking costume my friend had. She kinda dragged me here last minute…"

"Don't mind the idiot, you certainly aren't a bitch. In fact, I'd say you look more like a vixen. You don't think this thing was your fault, do you?"

"Hm, oh, not a chance in hell. I just can't believe how little it takes to make some guys think you want in their pants."

Unfortunately, there was a lot of truth to what Ava said, "Yeah, there's a lot of asshole in this world. You're costume does look nice though. Don't let that jerk ruin it for you. I kinda feel like I stick out since, I'm not wearing anything special."

Ava looked at his leather jacket and white t-shirt and thought out loud, "You've got kind of the whole biker thing going on. That's kind of costume."

"Okay, but am I the 'get drunk tear up the bar' kind of biker, or the 'I like the freedom of the road and don't wanna start anything' kind of biker?"

"You'd better be the second one, or you're gonna find out I'm the 'tear your throat out' kind of fox."

Naruto could already tell this was gonna be a fun night.

Ava talked with Naruto for hour and hours, sticking with each other until the party's end and even doing a little dancing before the night was over. The two of them really clicked with one another, more so than Naruto had ever expected the would. They were still right by each other's sides as they walked out the front door of fraternity house and down the nearby sidewalk.

There was a small smile on Ava's lips as they walked, along with a blush on her cheeks. In a small voice, she asked Naruto, "So… my place or yours?"

"I um… I don't know," Naruto answered honestly, "Look, I've gotta be honest with you and say that I don't even live around here. I'm just passing through and thought maybe I could find a one night thing at this party. If you really want to, I'm totally up for it, but I don't wanna trick you thinking I'm trying to start a relationship right now."

Ava didn't look disappointed, "Who said I was looking for anything? I'm in the right mood and I like you. All I want right now is to spend the night with a nice guy. Dating isn't exactly a priority for me right now. I've got… other things to worry about."

Something in Naruto's gut wanted him to dig deeper into that last bit of what Ava had said. It seemed like there was more there, and honestly, the way this girl composed herself lead Naruto to believe she was more than an ordinary college student. However, this wasn't the time for that sort of thing. Ava was a nice girl looking for some fun, (as long as the fun was with a guy she approved of), and Naruto intended to give it to her, "Alright, Ava, if that's what you want, then that's what you'll get. I think it's time for us to head back to my hotel room…"