A.N- Thank you so much for all of your support. I was amazed by the response that you guys gave to this fic. I hope I will be able to make this fic live up to your expectations.
Me? Own Naruto? You're kidding, right?
~~~X~~~.
Opening her left eye a little to peek at her surroundings, she immediately regretted it as the light falling in her pupil intensified.
'What happened, how did I get here?' Raynare thought wearily.
The experienced fallen angel, was now standing at the top of a high cliff after having gotten up on her feet. She found herself mesmerized by the site before her, down from the cliff, she sees what appears to be a passel of articulate and beautiful looking traditional Japanese buildings stretching for miles and miles ahead, followed by an equally vast assemblage of plant and animal life that was surrounding the town, creating a perfect immingle between nature and technology.
This was something that Raynare could honestly say that she had seen before. It was well known fact that modernization and nature could not subsists together, one of them will always try to overwhelm another. However, it seemed that the situation was different here as the everything was in balance with each other. Truly, this place was more than remarkable and if anything, this place seemed like heaven more than earth if you asked her.
However, it was only a split second later that Raynare, with a startling realisation, concluded that she might indeed have travelled to the afterlife. The last thing she remembered was, a cloaked man staring at her with the ethereal purple eyes of him, before she blacked out and awakened in this place.
"N-no way! I...It can't be possible! I can't die! How...how did this happen?" Raynare exclaimed hysterically. She didn't want to die so early, she still has a dream to make true.
"You're not dead, Raynare." a deep and cold voice sounded from behind her, a voice that sounded familiar to Raynare.
Raynare, startled, instinctually activated her light spear and twirled around with a swinging left arm, her hand grasping the light spear tightly as she attempted to pierce through the enemy's midsection. But unfortunately her attack was facilely stopped as her wrist was suddenly in the tight grasp of the hands of a young boy, who she now recognized as her savior.
The said man had little pale skin and straight medium length blonde hair that were parted slightly more to the right side, and due to this his right eye was partly visible. He adorned a lean face and purple rippled narrow eyes. His attire consisted of full sleeved black shirt, narrowed black pants with bandages around his shins and matching shinobi sandals. He also adorned a long sleeved black cloak with a red interior, a chin-high collar and red clouds emblazoned on it.
"You..." Raynare whispered wide eyed.
"Raynare, looks like you're finally back to your senses" the man now standing few feet away from the fallen, said in an impassive tone.
Raynare didn't heard anything as she was lost in her own world of thoughts. 'He's standing in front of me. What should I say to him? How should I thank him for saving my life' After ruminating for a while, she slowly took a step forward and was about to hug her savior but quickly stopped herself when she heard his next words.
"You don't have to do anything to thank me Raynare, after all I had my own reasons to save you." the man stated calmly, surprising Raynare.
Many emotions surged inside Raynare after she heard her savior's words, sadness and betrayal being the most potent of them all. ' So he just saved me so that he could use me afterwards' thought an utterly sad and broken Raynare, doing her best to keep the tears that were swelling in her eyes at the bay.
"Looks like you have finally realized the situation in which you are in now, and remember your refusal to accept the truth will not change the reality. You are at my mercy Raynare, if I want I can easily erase your existence and seeing how your current life is, there would be no one who will mourn over you" the man said rhetorically, which earned him a sad look from Raynare.
Raynare looked down again, as she knew that this man was right. With her mother gone, what reason did she have to stay with the fallens? Sure, there was Azazel and the others, but they were busy with their duties now. They would soon be going out on solo missions and she would be left behind, forgotten. That was the last thing she wanted, but it didn't look like there was anything she could do about it.
"What do you want with me?" Raynare asked in a timid tone, afraid from the man who was standing in front of her.
"I want you to join my group Raynare. Your abilities as a fallen are amazing and will provide a great boost to the group" he answered simply, causing Raynare to release a surprise gasp.
'He praised me. He thinks I'm useful.' Raynare thought in felicity, completing forgetting the previous words of her savior.
Composing herself a little Raynare looked in the rippled eyes of her savior and smiled gently. "What is the vision of your group" Raynare asked him excitedly.
"To bring peace to the world of Supernatural" he answered bluntly, and sat down on the edge of the cliff, letting his one leg hang out while resting his elbow on the other.
After hearing her savior's words Raynare's former expression of excitement now tuned into one of horror. " You want to mess up with Three Great Factions" Raynare yelled in fear and slight concern for her savior. She may not be the best sensor around, but could easily tell that the man in front of her is a normal human and if he wants to bring peace to the supernatural world, that means only thing and that is, he wants to fight with the Factions.
" Not me...us." Naruto corrected her rhetorically. " Akatsuki will bring salvation to this world. And you Raynare, will help the Akatsuki in this task. You want to prove your worth, then prove it by helping Akatsuki and in exchange I promise you that you will never be alone again." Naruto said the words with such conviction that all Raynare could do was, nod her head dumbly at his words and somehow she knew that he could see her nod even with his back facing her.
"Over here."
Raynare blinked, looking at her savior. He was sitting on the left side of the edge, as if offering room on the right. This thought was confirmed with a hand gesture as the man beckoned her forward. Raynare did so, taking a seat beside the man.
Naruto leaned forward slightly, so he was sitting upright. Raynare, who was already in that position, glanced towards the direction to which Naruto pointed.
"Tell me what you see out there." he said, "Among the buildings on the far side of the village."
Raynare blinked, before leaning forward, kneeling as she squinted ahead. She scanned the the traditional buildings, trying to spot anything out of the ordinary.
"Nothing much except the traditional Japanese building, large farms and mesmerizing flora and fauna." Raynare said slowly, "And the place has been built so whoever who lives here don't ever have to go anywhere else for food and supplies."
"Very good." Naruto replied, nodding in agreement, "And down there?" pointing to the other side of the town.
Raynare casted her gaze towards the other direction and gasped because what she saw shocked her to her very core. The other side of the town was complete opposite from the rest of the town, as the other side was literally nothing more than just a Graveyard, consisting of uncountable tombs, soil that was painted red with the blood and several decayed tree.
"It's so…" she began, but found herself unable to finish the sentence. Naruto nodded, finding her answer acceptable.
"Do you know, what is that?" he asked Raynare, gazing out at nothing in particular.
Raynare shook her head in negative while still not looking away from the battered town.
"Down is the town that once provided food and shelter to the now nearly extinct race called Nekomatas. This town used to flourish and thrive. People who lived here were very kind and generous beings, they liked to live their lives away and cloistered from the rest of the supernatural world. They wanted peace and safety for their children and that's why they built this small town in human world. They were so engaged in their life that they forget one most important thing, that no matter how much far they go, devils will still lurk in the shadows for them." Naruto stopped for a while before continuing again.
"And on one calamitous day, devils invaded the small town and massacred the whole Nekomata race. They slaughtered every living being that came into their sight, not caring if they were innocent or not. Those who were lucky enough to escape from the slaughter, were soon hunted down and were turned into slaves or breeding stocks in female's case. The greedinesss of the devils turned this town into nothing more than a graveyard." He finished with a nonexistent scowl on his face.
Raynare was in disbelief. It was just the mental image of what Naruto had told her that ran through her mind. It was an unfathomable cruelty, she almost didn't want to believe that devils were capable of doing something evil like that. "Can't we do anything to those devil?" she asked, stunned by the selfishness and atrociousness of the devils.
"No, there is nothing that we can do to that Faction..." Naruto replied. "And that's the reason why I need you Raynare, this town needs its revenge, the wandering souls of the innocent people wants justice for their pain. I made a promise to them that I will avenge their souls and you... you Raynare could help me in this, and by joining my group, you will finally be able to prove yourself." Naruto said, broking the contact and turning his head up to the sky, watching the clouds move around.
Raynare ruminated over Naruto's offer. The idea of proving her worth was enticing and his promise to never leave her alone only made the offer more enticing and undeniable. She while being a fallen herself will still not hesitate to kill her own kinfolks if it was necessary to prove herself and avenge the death of the innocents, after all she herself knew what it feels like to be alone.
A sudden question then popped in the mind of Raynare. "But why me?" she asked in confusion.
Naruto knew that while the question was really simple but its answer was very complicated. If not recounted in right manner , it may lead to a loss of a potential future member of the group. So taking a deep breath he began to answer. "Because we are same Raynare. Our background, our personalities, and our experiences of pain, all three of these things make us similar to each other. Elite peoples like in the factions stick together and help one another to get richer and stronger. Then why is it that we, the humans and low supernatural beings, the outcasts, the ones who really need each other's help, always ignore one another, why is it that we are so willing to stomp over each other to get to the top. Wouldn't we all be better if we helped each other out?" Naruto finished his statement with a serious look, while Raynare looked at him in awe. She had never seen a man who can play with the words like he do, even Azazel, the greatest talker and manipulator of Fallen Angels is nothing in front of him.
Naruto was now noticing the expression of Raynare and couldn't help but feel a bit satisfied that his plan has worked. "I will confess to you, this was not my initial intention." he said, in an even less formal tone, "I had planned on simply using you as an another of my subordinates. However, during our first meeting, I saw something in you I almost didn't believe. You know well, a pain that I have experienced very well. I saw the pain of loneliness in your eyes. I have felt what it is like. As such, I am incomplete, that's why I need people who greatly understands the pain I have felt, so that my goals may truly be justified. So Raynare-san, I ask you, will you help me?" Naruto asked with a dead serious expression that surprisingly suited his ever stoic face.
He then abruptly stood up from his position and went over to Raynare, as he held out a cloak to her and waited for her response.
Raynare not wasting a second quickly grabbed the cloak and flung it over her shoulders. "I accept your offer..uhm.." Raynare mumbled with a big invisible question mark on her forehead.
"Pein..." Naruto introduced himself with the alias of his fellow clan member.
Raynare nodded her head and bowed slightly to him. "Hai Pein-sama".
'I will prove myself to you Pein-sama' thought a determined Raynare.
~~~X~~~
Unknown Location.
From a perch high above, a man sat on what appeared to be the edge of a lofty cliff. His black and slight spiky hair were blowing in the wind and were looking more caliginous due to the darkness of the night. He was watching the town below expressionlessly, his purple, rippled eyes studying the visible architecture with complete disinterest.
"It appears that our mission was successful." he said, in a clear tone, "Raynare, of Fallen Angels , willingly complied."
"I see." replied a woman's voice, from few distance beside him "What is she capable of ?"
"She is not a high ranked Fallen, she is still a low level female who has very less experience. She has no ties to anyone in her group, and it appears that the Fallens themselves don't trust and value her. It would seem leaving was an easy option for her."
"If she is only a low level fallen, then she will need time and more training." the woman said, stepping out into the light. She looked at the man with her midnight blue eyes, her stoic persona almost completely believable. Her long azure blue hair and cloak were flowing freely in the wind, making her look like more of an angel.
"You are correct." the man agreed, glancing at her over his right, "It will take some time."
"Do we really need someone that weak like her?" the woman asked, her brow creasing.
"If you recall, we were once weak too." the man replied, turning his head forward to the town once again, "And don't worry about her, according to Ophis she has an unparalleled potential and will be a great addition to our group."
The woman watched the man for a moment longer, before nodding and turning away.
"And Juvia." the man said, "Make sure she is treated right and do not anything that will make her feel alone. The power she possesses currently can easily obliterate any mid to high class devil."
"I understand... Naruto." Juvia replied, without looking back, but the irritation was easily visible on her face.
"This is going to take some time." Naruto muttered. Then he slowly stood up and started walking to a particular direction.
'Time to visit Ophis'.
Underground Base.
Knocking twice, he heard a sharp "Enter" from the resident of the room. Naruto, or as he was known as Pein, entered the dark room quickly and silently. He then walked over to the center of the room and looked at the seat that was situated unusually high from the ground.
"Ophis" he called out in an emotionless tone.
Up from her seat, Ophis looked down at her greatest ally, but kept her face clear of emotion. "Naruto. How did everything went with Raynare?"
Naruto was silent for a few seconds. "Everything went according to the plan. She reluctantly accepted my offer."
Ophis nodded her head, satisfied with the answer. "What about the Sacred Gear users?"
Here the irritation and anger was more noticeable. "They are monitored by every Faction, so it will be hard to make them join the organization, and If by any chance I'm unable to have them ." Naruto said, with no signs of any emotion on his face "Then I will simply need… strong followers."
"Followers?" Ophis repeated, with a slight tilt of her head. "You will build an organization? How do you expect to gain that many powerful followers?" she asked in curiosity. She knew his plan of bringing Raynare, but was still unbeknown to the fact that he wanted to create a real organization...just like her Khaos Brigade.
"These beings are attracted to power." the man replied, "The power to inflict pain upon their enemies. I need to bring some of those beings to stand by my side, and others will reluctantly follow."
Ophis nodded her head at him in an understanding manner. "That's good to hear." she said. "So do you have anyone special in your consideration?" Ophis asked, placing her elbow on the arm of her seat.
"Of course." Naruto replied monotonously, his eyes looking at her in disinterest. He had kept tabs on many individuals and a certain individual was able to grab his attention more than the others. "Valerie Lucifer"
"Don't be ridiculous, she's too much of a nuisance and will only hinder the progression of my group. Also she already have a team and that team works for me, so stay away from her." Ophis replied bluntly, looking away to hide her scowl. Naruto looked out at her from the corner of his eye, sensing her expression. He soon looked away, not caring to maintain the motion.
"You are many things Ophis, but the leader of this group , you are not." Naruto answered in a cold tone, while his purple eyes glowed ominously in the darkness of the room, "And if you keep thinking that I'm your puppet, then you will be the one who will face my wrath before the Factions. I don't care about for whom she works, all I know is that She's an interesting and powerful individual, and soon or later will join Akatsuki, whether you like it or not." Naruto stated and turned on his heels to leave the room.
"And where are you going now?" asked Ophis inquisitively, making Naruto halt in his stride.
Naruto didn't even turned around as he just looked over his shoulder. "There's a female Nekoshou spotted in the Hikone village"
"Oh" Ophis muttered, keeping her eyes on the retreating form of Naruto.
'You are really going to become something big, Naruto. I can't wait for that moment when you will reveal yourself to the world.' Ophis thought, looking surprisingly relaxed even after the threat.
~~~X~~~.
Hikone Village.
Several dead bodies can be seen littered everywhere in the Orphanage. The once lovely and beautiful building was now in ruins, while the remains of fire can still be seen around. The place stank of dead flesh and burnt wood. Two people were inspecting the house, checking for any survivors.
"Juvia, Do you see anything?" A man with unusual glowing eyes asked his companion.
"Nothing, Naruto-sama. They're all dead and I can't sense any chakra signature here. The only ones alive in this house are us. The one who had attacked the Orphanage must have killed the Nekoshou too" Replied a girl who had midnight blue eyes with same blue hair as she inspected the now burnt house.
"I thought that she would be safe for the time being, but looks like devils were already a step ahead of us." the man now known as Naruto said with a small scowl. "Come on Juvia, there's nothing to do here now" he soon added as he began to make his way to the exit.
"Hai Naruto-sama" Juvia said and started following her master.
Leaving the room and moving on to the exit, Naruto could feel his anger grow more and more towards the devils. He has just lost a potential member and again couldn't save these innocent beings who had fallen into the clutches of death due to those devils.
As they made their way to the exit the smoke seemed to be getting thinner and before long they could see all but their feet below their ankles as they came upon the form of a child lying in a small broken crib. All he had on was a white sheet which was wrapped around him tightly and was covered in red color. He couldn't have been older then a two year old. Sending regretful look to the obviously dead child for not being able to save him, he was about to leave the room when he heard a shrill cry coming from the child.
Naruto's head shot around so fast that he was sure he had given himself whiplash and quickly made his way to the boy to take a closer look. When he was only a few feet away he was able to clearly see the boy. The child had a little tuft of black hair on his head and adorned a pair of beautiful blue eyes. Naruto could easily tell that the boy was going to dying at any second as he had already lost too much of blood.
Naruto was about to pick up the boy, but stopped when he saw him mumbling something. Naruto got a bit more closer to the boy so that he could hear him clearly, while Juvia stayed behind and was looking at her master with a sad look, knowing very well that behind his emotionless facade, her master was still a kind and emotional person.
"H-help... Oni-chan!... I-It hurts." the child mumbled faintly, stuttering due to the pain that was raging inside his small body. He then noticed the pain and sadness on Naruto's face, so he timidly raised his small hand and gently caressed Naruto's right cheek, all while giving Naruto a small smile, in order to hide his pain from him.
Naruto purple eyes never left the form of the child and his hands were quivering underneath his cloak as he was trying his hardest to stop the tears that were ready to fall on any moment. For the first time after so long his ever cold eyes were showing emotion and were shimmering due to the light that was being illuminated by the burning wood.
"Shhh... Everything is going to be fine." Naruto tried to provide solace to the suffering child. He then gently placed his hand on the forehead of the child and massaged it lightly in order to ease his pain.
The boy went still for a moment, enjoying every bit of the warmth that Naruto's hand was providing. But after a while he felt himself getting sleepy and tired, so he quickly grabbed Naruto's other hand and squeezed it between his arms and slowly closed his eyes. "Oyasumi Nii-chan" the boy said with peaceful smile, not noticing the drops of water that fell upon his cheek.
Juvia who was watching the whole scene couldn't control her own tears. She slowly walked over to her master and placed a hand on his shoulder to comfort him, but gasped when Naruto slapped away her hand harshly.
"M..Master!" Juvia called out, but got no answer as Naruto still kept looking at the lifeless body of the child.
"They killed him." Naruto whispered to no one in particular, while tears flowed freely on his cheeks. He gently shook the body of the child, in order to get any reaction, but much to his grief, he got nothing. He just kept on staring at the child for a while, before letting out a scream full of anguish and sadness.
Naruto soon composed himself and looked over to the child with a expression of resoluteness on his face. His previous eyes which were filled with love and sadness were now replaced by the cold calculating lavender-steel of the ominously glowing Rinnegan as he tightened his hold on the head of the child.
"Ningendō : Human Path"
Soon a bluish transparent human like form started transuding from the small body of the child, once the strange form was fully out, it was abruptly absorbed in by Naruto. Soon after the procedure, many images flashed through Naruto's mind as he watched every bit of the child's memory.
'Riser Phenex' Naruto thought with an emotionless expression on his face.He then turned over to Juvia and motioned her to pick up the body of the child, an order which Juvia reluctantly followed.
"Juvia" Naruto called out, gaining Juvia's attention. "Prepare the bodies of the Paths... It is time for the Underworld to know what true Pain is." with that said he left the building, while a shocked Juvia kept looking at his retreating form.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~X~~~~~~~~~~~~~~.
A.N- I hope you liked the new chapter.
Naruto is finally going to show himself to the rest of the world, and the reason why Naruto didn't save the boy was, because he still couldn't use the Naraka path as Rin'negan is still very new to him and he hardly could do any medical ninjutsu due to his large chakra reserves.
As for Juvia, well you all were saying that I should have a Konan like female for Naruto, who will support him in his goal. So here she is, the perfect supporter and the right hand of Naruto....Juvia Lockser.
Like, share and pls.. review.
If you have any suggestions or questions, pls PM me.
My chapters may contain some errors as I still don't have any beta reader. So if anyone wants to help me out, pls contact me.
Till then.
Goodbye!!.
