Hey hey hey my dear readers what´s going on?^^ First off, I want to thank all of you for your favs, follows and reviews that you left behind for me to read. It´s truly refreshing to read your opinions on my story and I´m truly happy that you still like it. The story has already over 26 k views and that´s pretty awesome hehe. I´m sorry that it took so long but as I already told you, I didn´t have much time during the two weeks off from university (at least I managed to translate every day a bit) and I wanted to bring the chapter out before the end of the month.

I warn you right away, you can expect the eight Chapter in July as I have exams in June and much needs to be done (I´ll try to finish roughly 40 to 50 % of the chapter before the exams start so that you don´t have to wait much afterwards, but it´s going to be a very long chapter as it will feature two lemons).

Questions & Response Panel:

plums: Yeah it was quite a heavy fighting chapter, but so will this one be … the next one will be much less fight, only the first part. As for Konoha deaths, there is still much to come, I mean I only finished roughly 10 to 15 % of the story and there is still much place for stories I need to tell. So patience my friend … it will take some time to bring things in motion.

As for your question, I kinda don´t know who this Ringo is? So I can´t give you a straight answer^^.

luffyxrobin-luffyxnami: Glad you liked the lemon scene and there will be many more to come, although when there will be a NarutoxFemKyuubi one, she will not be a fox … I´m not into bestiality, Kisara will remain in her human form and as already described when she first appeared, she has no ears and tails like she has in so many other Fanfics. Personally, I don´t like those features so yeah … but Kisara knows that Naruto had already accepted her as a friend while she was in her giant fox form, but that won´t do much if the demoness wanted an actual relationship with her warden. The Bijuus history will come in further chapters.

Twin Fangs of Chaotic Insight: I´m glad for your review and that you like my story. And no need to apologize for your constructive critic, after all it helps to make the story better. I understand what you mean, after all Azriel always seems to come out as victor so it can happen that you may lose interest in the story. In fact, Azriel seems to be quite a mystery to all my readers hehe … that´s good! None of you seem to know who exactly Azriel is … if you knew, you would understand why he is able to simply crash Naruto's thoughts and actions … why he is so almighty in his steps … why he easily managed to imprison Kisara … Azriel will remain a mystery on which piece by piece light will shine on during the following chapters.

But nevertheless, I took your critic to heart and slightly changed some scenes in this chapter. But I need to tell you that the central conflict of this story doesn´t turn around Naruto´s and Azriel´s struggle and who remains in control (although I understand if you think so because I made it look like that). No it goes much deeper … I truly don´t wanna say much more. But rest assured, I´ve taken your advice to heart and more will come in the next chapter, which will have a major turn of events.

Kupo prodigy: A yes Azriel … many of you, in your reviews and per PM, are asking me about the mysterious person. Many of you think that he will be a formidable opponent for our Naruto … but what is he truly? What do you think he is hehe … there will be quite some surprises for you by the end of the story. Yes, Azriel has great influence over Naruto and soon you will know exactly why … and as you say, the women in his life hold a great place in his heart so … ah no, come on I can´t just tell you everything … just let yourself be surprised hehe.

GundamWing-00-Seed: Glad you liked the chapter as well as the lemon (the reviews were all quite positive in that regard). Always try to give you the best possible chapter. As for my lemons, yes they will be always quite long and detailed, especially since I try to bring in their feelings and not just have them mindless sex hehe.

The Shadow of Kami: Well I have to say it is a dark story and there will be many dark elements present in future chapters. But I can understand your point of view, what happened to Kyuubi wasn´t exactly what you wish for one to actually happen. The Shinobi world is a dark place full of death, lies and horrors, especially during the wars and I agree it has nothing to due with age. The matter with Kyuubi will soon be resolved, but there will be quite some other elements in my further plans that surely won´t please you. All I can say that it may be worth continuing to read the story.

RandomWriter21: Thanks for the praise, I do my best to give you an awesome story!

SilverFox118: Why thank you for the wonderful praise, although personally I don´t consider it a masterpiece (well not yet at least since it isn´t finished and much needs to be corrected). Nevertheless, I appreciate it and I´ll hope to give you a truly great story in the future. As for the showdown, well just look at this chapter.

Guest (03.04.2014): Glad you like my story, although I need to say that this won´t feature a dark Naruto, more a Cold Naruto. But the story will still be dark, so expect many terrible things to happen hehe.

PillPushr: Thanks man for the further corrections, I know I can count on you hehe. I already updated the corrected sixth Chapter and when the next chapter (which is the last of my German story) will be uploaded, I´ll take the time to revise the other chapters. After all, I wish to make a good story for my dear readers.

YuukiAsuna-Chan: Thank you for the nice reviews. As for your first comment, well I don´t really know what you mean if Naruto will be a different person around his lovers. He will be sort of as he will show more of his true emotions among them. After all, the only persons he truly care for are the women he loves and the few friends he managed to gain. But I keep it in mind^^.

More lemons will come in the next chapters and as for Kyuubi-chan, next chapter will take care of it. As for your question about how it is possible for Naruto to have gained the Sharingan, all will be explained in the next chapters (although, I already left some clues in the last chapter and this one).

George Double U: Sorry to say but Konan will not become one of Naruto´s lovers. The Harem was already decided when I first started the story and will feature six women. Most of them you already know, namely Yugao Kurenai Fuuka Mei and Kisara and the last one was also already introduced. There will be no more, because the story tends to fall if there are too many women. With the length of my story and the background of each one of Naruto´s lovers, I can give them all enough screen time and show their importance to the Namikaze.

Enjoy!

I don´t own Naruto … if I would, then Naruto wouldn´t believe that a world without hatred could be possible … we all know it can´t be. I also don´t own Bleach, Devil May Cry and One Piece.

Chapter7: Losing yourself

One week later, border region between Hi no Kuni and Ta no Kuni

The lone hawk gave a shrill cry while graciously stretching it´s wings in the upcoming wind. Quickly, it´s eyes found the forms of four small persons, who stood near a cliff. Not finding any prey, the uninterested predator continued the flight, towards the cloud-covered sky.

For a long while, Sasuke watched the hawk until it finally disappeared on the wide horizon.

His black eyes stopped to watch the on going sunset; his black chin-length hair blew in the strong wind while two hair bangs framed his face. His clothing consisted of a white long-sleeved shirt, which the young teen kept open to show his upper body. Proudly, the Uchiha crest could be seen on his back. In addition, he wore dark-blue pants with black open Shinobi sandals and a short blue-grey battle rock, which was tied to his waist by a purple rope belt. Black forearm protectors as well as a black sheath for his Kusanagi, which he kept tied to the rope belt, completed his appearance.

Roughly a week ago, he had finally killed his Sensei. A good time to strike as Orochimaru´s health and body became weaker with each passing day and he was quite vulnerable … to weak to be considered a real threat. The Hebi Sannin probably would have tried during the following days to take his body, to finally gain the Sharingan he so long had dreamed of. But the weakened Sannin was not a real challenge, after a quick fight the win was his … the rest of Orochimaru´s Chakra was sealed inside Sasuke´s Juin.

Finally, after three long years of training … his revenge would come.

The Uchiha glanced over his shoulder, musing his three companions.

Shortly after Orochimaru´s death by his hands, the Uchiha heir quickly searched through the former Hebi Sannin´s hideouts for suitable allies. Hoozuki Suigetsu was the first to follow him … even though he did it quite reluctantly.

Suigetsu originated from Mizu no Kuni, but because of his Hiden to turn his body into water, Orochimaru captured him for further experiments. Therefore, he took the news of the Sannin´s death with a pleasant smile. The former Kirinin was of average height, with a skinny but muscular body. He wore a purple sleeveless shirt with grey pants and black sandals. A belt was wrapped around his waist, carrying several water bottles and a simple Katana. As it was common for his Clan, he had shoulder-length white hair, purple eyes and pointed teeth. Suigetsu at first didn´t want to follow him, but the moment Sasuke told him his target, the Kirinin quickly agreed to his plan. After all, the Uchiha slayer was partnered with Hoshigaki Kisame and to achieve his dream, to collect all swords of the Seven Swordsman of Kirigakure, Sasuke with his own ambition came on a right time.

Karin, a former Kunoichi and subordinate of Orochimaru from the Southern Hideout. The young woman had long red hair and matching crimson eyes with brown glasses on top of her nose. Her outfit consisted of black shorts, a long-sleeved lavender overall that showed her belly button, black sandals with high stockings. Karin followed him after some ´convincing´ from his part … probably due to the fact that she was in love with him. Annoying yes … however, her sensing abilities as well as her impressive healing Chakra would be quite useful for his quest.

The last member of his team … Juugo. A tall robust Shinobi with short spiky orange hair and red-orange eyes. He was clothed in simple dark-brown pants with matching sandals and a purple pullover. Juugo was … a special case. On the one side, he had a special Kekkei Genkai, which was the basic form of Orochimaru´s Juin, giving it´s wielder more Chakra and strength. On the other hand, that brought some … unwanted problems for Juugo, as he had a natural peace-loving personality but sometimes, his violent side would come out, ready to kill everything that dared to stand in his way. Therefore, the original Juin wielder didn´t want to leave his prison when the Uchiha asked him to follow him. Still, Sasuke managed to control Juugo´s outbursts of rage … now that he wasn´t a threat for his companions, he decided to join Sasuke´s cause … also because the young Uchiha reminded him of his deceased and only friend Kimimaro.

All three wore the same black cloak as the Uchiha offspring.

Finally, Sasuke turned around, staring with cold but determinate eyes at his team.

"Now that we are all assembled … good … after Orochimaru's death, you are no longer bound to him! Your life is in your own hands now … but I called upon you to help me in my task!"

The former Otonins listened with mild interest.

"My target … is Uchiha Itachi from Akatsuki … but to achieve my ambition, I need help! We will form a new team … Team Hebi … and we will find him … and kill him! Then, each one of you can go their own way."

Suigetsu grinned while Juugo and Karin nodded.

"Very well … Team Hebi … move out!"

For a last time, Sasuke looked at the sunset. ´Very soon Itachi … soon I´ll have cleaned the Uchiha name from your despicable actions … yes … you will die by my own hand … as will you … Naruto!´

Four days later, Hokage´s office, Konohagakure no Sato

Sighing, Tsunade rubbed her forehead, as the Senju was already plagued by heavy headaches for several hours now. Unfortunately, they didn´t lessen with the newest information she received.

"We have a … situation!" The Godaime Hokage looked at the present Shinobis with serious eyes. "Roughly two hours ago, we received an interesting piece of information … Orochimaru was killed … killed by Uchiha Sasuke." Only a short flash of sadness and regret could be seen in Tsunade's and Jiraiya´s eyes, the Gama Sannin standing on her right side.

Surprise and bewilderment gleamed on the Konohanins faces. Although, the strict voice of their Kage brought them out of their stupor.

"I really can´t believe I´m saying this…." One could clearly hear the distaste in Tsunade´s voice. "… but it was decided, on insistence from the Elders, the Civilian Council and the majority of the Shinobi Council, to find Uchiha Sasuke and capture him … the Sharingan is a too valuable asset for the village and we can´t let it out of our reach … we ´need´ to obtain it once more! You were all assembled to take part in this mission!"

The blonde Sannin glanced at her subordinates.

Hatake Kakashi, one of her bests, looked seriously at his leader. To her surprise, he didn´t have his nose in one of his cursed Icha Icha books, as his attention was more focused on one of his former students, who betrayed Konoha three and a half years ago.

Yuhi Kurenai only watched with gloomy eyes, totally unimpressed by the mission. Tsunade guessed that the young woman had other thoughts on her mind … namely her godchild Naruto, who shouldn´t be captured on sight anymore … but killed on sight.

Uzuki Yugao, one of her best Anbu Captains, stood motionless and silently in the row. The Kunoichi was in her Anbu gear, although she wore a Jonin flack-jacket instead of the Anbu chest armor, her Neko mask was also missing as it wasn´t an official Anbu mission.

The Senju could understand the two women, understand their feelings … she knew very well that despite the crimes the Nukenin had committed, both of his girlfriends still hold feelings for him. And they weren´t pleased with her, knowing that the Senju had accepted the Council´s decision … even though her hands were tied in that matter. She couldn´t overrule the whole Council … not yet at least.

Inuzuka Hana, heiress to the Inuzuka Clan and Konoha´s best veterinarian. Her three Ninkens sat calmly next to the young woman, ready to track down their target. Hana with the help of her companions would be able to follow the Uchiha´s trail.

Aburame Shino, heir to the Aburame Clan and former Genin under his Sensei Kurenai. Just as the rest of his Clan, Shino always wrapped himself in thick clothes … even Tsunade had some problems to recognize the Clan members. The young teen wore black pants and matching sandals, tied together with white bandages; a black-grey jacket with high collar and a dark-green knee-length cloak with hood, covering his hair. The Godaime could only see black sunglasses and the Konoha Hitaiate on his forehead. Two years ago, he was promoted to Chunin and thanks to the Hiden of his Clan, he is known as an excellent tracker. The insects of the Aburame Clan could serve as scouts and fighters. Together with Hana, the teen would be able to operate on an even larger scale … especially since his two other team members weren´t at disposal.

Haruno Sakura, Chunin and Tsunade´s second apprentice next to Shizune. The Senju didn´t like to send the girl on this mission, although she knew how much it meant to the pink-haired Kunoichi to bring back the youngest Uchiha heir. Kakashi and Sakura deserved this chance to bring Sasuke back to the village.

"Jiraiya will accompany you on this particular mission."

Kakashi lifted his visible eyebrow. "I wonder why Jiraiya-sama is necessary for this mission? Orochimaru is already dead and won´t stand in our way."

"Jiraiya, if you may."

"Hai hai" The Gama Sannin walked in front of the six Shinobis, his serious gaze shifted over them. "Our target is as you were told Uchiha Sasuke, to capture him and bring him back to the village. As my spies reported to me, he formed a team after Orochimaru´s death to pursue his own ambition … Uchiha Itachi, his older brother."

"Yes that makes sense, killing his brother has always been his main goal." The Copy Ninja nodded. "To get revenge for his Clan."

"Hai and therefore … it would be quite the advantage to find Itachi before he does … you can already guess why … Sasuke is still young and easily manipulated … whereas Itachi, well our dear Council isn´t exactly pleased with him…."

Hana began to speak. "Find Itachi? That means we´ll have to fight Akatsuki … are you truly sure about this Jiraiya-sama? Each one of them is worthy of being an S-rank … fighting one of them, alone to capture one could be impossible!"

"Hence why you have me gehehe!" His lustful gaze traveled over the Inuzuka´s body, earning a dangerous twitch of hers and the other women´s eyebrows. The Sannin swallowed hard when he felt Tsunade´s piercing glare on his back. "Ma ma Tsu-hime … hehe … I´ll give the search party the necessary fighting power … even Itachi would need some effort to bring me down and I have far more experience than him … and…." Abruptly, Jiraiya´s eyes became hard. "… should he cross our path, I´ll be your only chance to survive!"

All the assembled Shinobis immediately knew of whom he was talking about. Yugao and Kurenai lowered their heads in shame.

Coughing, Tsunade regained their attention.

"The mission is clear, you´ll head out this instant!"

Bowing, the team said their goodbyes and disappeared per Shunsin. Jiraiya already leaned on the open window ledge.

"Jiraiya"

The Gama Sennin remained silent.

"And … try it Jiraiya … I beg you … please try to reason with him…."

The white-haired man looked saddened down at Konoha.

"Yes … it´s the least I owe Minato and Kushina…."

The next second, he had already vanished.

Five days later, one of the Uchiha hideouts in Hi no Kuni

Naruto quickly walked through the imposing dome of the hideout, straight towards the stone throne on the end. Leisurely, the Jinchuriki sat down on the throne, letting his curious gaze wander over the building.

After several seconds, black smoke appeared in front of him and a shadow creature bowed respectfully to his master. The Namikaze looked at his subordinate.

"You know the order I gave you … find Uchiha Sasuke and bring him here … lead him to me … make sure that he comes here unscathed … and … avoid the other members of Akatsuki, especially Zetsu."

"It will be done Azriel-sama!"

Quickly, the creature vanished, letting it´s master alone in the darkness.

One day later, several kilometers away from the Hitsio village, Hi no Kuni

"SHINNE YOU DAMN UCHIHA!"

Sasuke coughed globs of blood at the cold floor. His whole body was covered in bruises, his Chakra as good as spent. With tired but determinate eyes, he glared at his opponent.

Several meters to his front laid a blond-haired Nukenin from Iwagakure no Sato, leaning against a tree. The Akatsuki also had grave injuries, which only lead to a fierce battle. Deidara smiled maniacally at his opponent as he tore his shirt off and loosened the seams of his mouth on his chest. Smiling, he fed the last remaining piece of clay to the hungry mouth.

In vain, the Uchiha heir tried to rise to his feet. His eyelids finally fell, consuming him in darkness.

At first, the search went without any problems. His team split up to comb through the area for information. As he travelled alone through the wildness, he was attacked by an Akatsuki duo, this blond-haired Iwanin and his partner, a weird guy without the typical Akatsuki cloak. It came to a fight between him and Deidara while his partner vanished from sight.

This battle demanded everything from him, but he was able to trick the Iwanin with Genjutsu … although it cost him his last bit of Chakra. He didn´t gather any information about his brother or Naruto from Deidara, who only laughed when he heard the names.

And now, in the end, he seemed to die, together with the Akatsuki.

Greedily, Deidara´s chest mouth devoured the clay, countless fine black lines spread on his body and meet right above his heart. His body started to fade away.

"This will be my ultimate art, un." More and more lines appeared. "This explosion will leave a scar on this world … I´ll become part of my own art hahaha!"

A black ball formed on the place of his heart until the whole body of Deidara had faded away.

White beams gushed out of the ball.

"Then art … art is an explosion…."

"KATSU"

The close area was swallowed in one huge and devastating explosion, spreading over several kilometers.

Deidara died with the firm belief that he had killed Uchiha Sasuke.

But he never noticed the black smoke, which enveloped the young Uchiha as well as his abandoned Akatsuki ring.

Fifteen hours later, Uchiha hideout, Hi no Kuni

Patiently, Naruto drummed his fingers on the stone armrest. Just moments ago, one of his shadow creatures had contacted him … they had found the last Uchiha … and promptly needed to save him from Deidara´s explosion.

Tze pitiful … the Namikaze really expected a bit more from Itachi´s Ototou and his years of training under the Hebi Sannin. And then, he couldn´t even win against Deidara without getting himself killed. Truly disappointing.

The Jinchuriki glanced at the ring, which he juggled in his left hand. While Deidara blew himself to dust, his loyal servants managed to bring the Akatsuki ring to safety. Pain would surely be quite pleased that they could use the ring for further means … now it only needed a new member for the Iwanin.

But that wasn´t his problem.

Sasuke was on his way. And he was out for revenge … in firm belief that he would meet his brother here … oh how big would his surprise be the moment he noticed that instead of his ´beloved´ big brother, he would meet the one who also killed his Clansmen on that faithful night … and then killed the first slayer.

He couldn´t await it.

His Mangekyo Sharingan glowed unholy in the darkness.

Three hours later with Team Hebi, few kilometers away, Hi no Kuni

"Wait Sasuke! Don´t push yourself so much … pant … at least slow down a bit … pant…."

The black-haired teen overheard the protests from his fellow members as his feet carried him faster and faster through the branches of the forest. His team had already problems to keep up with him.

"There is no time Karin! He waits for me … after all those years … finally … I´m catching up to him…."

Despite the protests of his team, Sasuke fastened the pace.

He couldn´t let this chance go wasted.

After he awakened from his unconsciousness, he was greeted by the sight of his older brother, looking down at him with cold eyes. His first impulse was to attack him, but pain and exhaustion kept him on the ground. His hateful eyes bore into the slayer´s ones until the older Uchiha started to dissolve into black crows. Still, the teen managed to acquire the location.

The old deserted Uchiha hideout in the heart of Hi no Kuni.

Quickly, his team found him and Karin started to heal him. After some hours of rest, they set out.

´Itachi … soon your time will come … and then our Clan will finally be avenged … with your death!´

For tow hours, the four Shinobis sprinted through the landscape before they finally saw the imposing dome of the hideout. With a determinate glare, Sasuke walked past the entrance gate, closely followed by his team. His ambition … it was so close.

Darkness reigned in the huge building as not a single ray of sunshine penetrated the old stonework. Slowly, their eyes accustomed to the darkness, the Shinobis channeled some Chakra through their eyes to see better in the dark. Sasuke walked towards the end of the room, his Sharingan having already made out the outline of a person sitting on the throne.

A strong Chakra increase captured the ruin in it´s grasp and forced Team Hebi to their knees. Sasuke, Suigetsu and Juugo fought desperately against the pressure while Karin almost fell unconscious. But as abrupt as the pressure came, it disappeared again.

Dry laughter filled the old hideout.

Sasuke´s eyes widened … it almost seemed familiar. The other members of Team Hebi grew nervous, a cold shower ran down their spines.

"Y-you … who are you…."

Silence followed … but it lasted only seconds. "Long time no seen … little Sasuke hehehe!" Slowly, the darkness cleared and gave sight to the stone throne … and one grinning Namikaze Naruto.

Sasuke´s Sharingan started to glow even more hateful.

"Uzumaki … Naruto…."

Meanwhile in a secret cave, Kawa no Kuni

Silently, the holograms of the remaining Akatsuki members appeared in the small cavern. Pain´s hard eyes shifted over the assembled.

"Deidara is dead."

A small laugh came from Kisame´s hologram. "Another member we lost, huh? First Sasori and … Itachi … hmm who killed him?"

"Uchiha Sasuke"

Snorting in annoyance, Hidan gathered the other´s attention. "That little kid … tze I kinda expected more from one of our members … I bet that idiot blew himself up…."

"He was one of us … his death won´t be in vain … but it was the price for his foolishness … not waiting for Konan and going against my orders to confront the Uchiha." The blue-haired woman didn´t bother to say more.

"Mmpfh … one member less who costs us money!"

"Kakuzu you fucking bastard … your babbling about money drives me nuts … I should kill you now!"

"Silence"

Pain´s piercing and cold voice brought the members out of their own thoughts. "Itachi´s Ototou deprived us of a useful ally … Zetsu … where is he heading now? With Itachi´s death, I don´t know what his plans are now."

"Sasuke doesn't know of his brother´s death … Naruto seems to confront him as he lures the young Uchiha right in his grasp … Sasuke´s life is on death´s edge…."

Pain stared at his childhood friend, deep in thoughts. "I see … then we let Naruto take care of this situation … he already managed to dispose of Itachi, his little brother won´t be a problem for him … but just in case…." The Rinnegan wielder glanced at the last Akatsuki member.

"Fuuka … head out to your partner and assist him … I fear he won´t be fighting just the Uchiha."

The Uzumaki woman flinched slightly, her eyes looked at the ground.

"Hai … Pain-sama."

With Naruto and Sasuke, Uchiha hideout, Hi no Kuni

Coughing blood, Sasuke lifted himself to his feet. The Uzumaki´s kick was truly powerful, his ribs still hurt like hell. With hateful eyes, he glared at his opponent, who stood only few meters in front of him.

Briefly, he glanced at the dead bodies of his former team.

Everything went so fast.

One moment of inattentiveness cost him is whole team.

And Naruto took merciless advantage of it.

Even his Sharingan had trouble to tell apart a Bunshin from the original. The Kage Bunshin sitting on the throne only grinned smugly while Sasuke impetuously stormed ahead. The grin never left the blond´s face as he disappeared in a cloud of smoke.

Then, he heard screams behind his back.

Karin was the first. Her cries of pain died under the torrent of blood, which escaped her lips. The Jinchuriki had appeared behind her and rammed a Kunai right through her stomach, shortly followed by another one in the heart. The Kunoichi died only seconds later as she fell to the ground.

Suigetsu reacted quickly.

But it didn´t make a difference. Leisurely, Naruto caught the Kirinin´s sword with his bare hand. Quickly, Raiton Chakra travelled through his body and numbed Suigetsu´s body. Grinning, Naruto tipped his right index finger on Suigetsu´s chest, a white beam of lightning pierced his heart. The white-haired Kirinin couldn´t even liquefy his body due to the Raiton Chakra and died immediately.

Only Juugo and Sasuke remained. They immediately dashed towards the Akatsuki. The Uchiha heir reached him first and went to punch him. But not even his Sharingan could keep up with Naruto. Not a second later, he felt heavy pain coming from his chest. Naruto´s kick sent him backwards, crashing violently against the stone floor.

Juugo tried to use the moment of distraction and activated his Juin. Swiftly, his skin darkened and his left arm transformed into a strange mutation with sharp claws and thorns, which covered his forearm. Juugo roared insanely.

With a weak snort, Naruto caught the Otonin´s powerful punch without even batting an eyebrow. He was only slightly pushed back.

The Juin user laughed even more insane. "Shinne … SHINNEE!"

"JUUGO LOOK OUT!"

The Otonin looked surprised at his opponent, noticed too late the blue swirling ball in his left hand.

"Cho Rasengan"

The Namikaze pushed the Chakra ball mercilessly against Juugo´s chest. The Otonin cried painfully as the Jutsu tore right through his body. Seconds later, the Rasengan imploded and unleashed it´s power. Juugo was brutally thrown backwards, crashing against the hideout´s wall where he sunk to the ground.

Naruto turned his attention back to the Uchiha, who slowly came back to his feet.

"I presume that those three … won´t be of any use anymore, neh?"

"Tze"

Naruto glanced briefly at the dead woman. "Such a shame … but I always thought that family is quite overestimated these times … and I truly have no need for them…."

The blond-haired man laughed. "Ma ma … after all those years … let me take a look at yourself little Sasuke … iie you aren´t so little anymore I guess … it seems the time under that Hebi idiot did quite a few wonders to you … hmmm … you truly look like your brother…."

Sasuke balled his hands to fist, clearly furious as his Sharingan eyes bore into the amused eyes of the Uzumaki. "Naruto … I didn´t think I would find you in this place … but it doesn´t matter … after Itachi, you would have been the next to die…."

"Hoh?" The Jinchuriki raised one of his eyebrows. "Still so full of hate I see. Itachi did truly a number on you with his Tsukuyomi … it worked quite well, his little experiment hehe!"

The teen gritted his teeth. "What do you know … you have no idea … of all the pain and sorrow that Itachi … and you … caused me … I only live for my revenge on the Clan … I … I won´t rest until my Clan was avenged…."

Naruto´s eyes darkened for a brief moment. "I can understand you more than you think … little Sasuke…." His words were nothing more than a whisper. His cold eyes glared at the Uchiha.

"So you want to kill Itachi and myself, huh? Avenge your Clan, huh?"

Sasuke only grunted in disdain, the hatred in his Sharingan eyes was already the answer.

A weak grin sneaked on Naruto´s face. "An understandable goal … after all we did to you and Konoha … but I fear for you … hehehe one of your goals is already forfeited…."

Sasuke narrowed his eyes. "What do you mean?"

"Hehe … it may interest you that Itachi-nii is no longer walking among us…." Naruto´s grin became even wider when he saw the shocked look on the young Uchiha´s face. "… I killed him weeks ago!"

Sasuke tensed abruptly, his mind racing about the even said. His brother … his nemesis was already dead … and killed by his best friend … the one who also helped in the extermination of his Clan … the black-haired teen swallowed the lump in his throat.

"W-what did … y-you say…."

"Hai … your brother dared to stand against me … and no longer … no longer do I tolerate resistance against my person … even though I admit that he managed to give me my hardest fight till now … tze … may his soul … rest in peace…."

Naruto wrinkled his forehead in amusement as he felt the Chakra increase coming from the young Uchiha.

"… bastard…." His Sharingan glowed in anger. "… you dare … he should have died by my own hand … Itachi … he should … HE SHOULD HAVE FOUND HIS DEATH THROUGH MY HAND! I SHOULD HAVE BEEN THE AVENGER OF MY CLAN … it was … my ambition … my fate…."

The Namikaze shook his head, clearly disappointed. "Foolish little child … you know absolutely nothing … nothing about your Aniki and the many sacrifices he had to make…." His impassive eyes never left the shaking form of the Uchiha. "… he loved you … far more than anything else in this world … more than his Clan … his village … even more than his own life … he gave everything for you … he became a Nukenin and an outcast…."

"W-what do you say?! … Itachi … slaughtered my Clan to test his own power … you should know that … Naruto … you helped him in that night…."

"Tze" The Namikaze took a deep breath. "You truly have no idea … you don´t know the truth about him … tze I still don´t know what he told you that night … or how he wanted it to end … his illness only gave him limited time…." Coldly, he glared at the furious and doubtful eyes of Sasuke. "Itachi didn´t tell you the whole truth, huh? It was … his mission … for Konoha´s sake, he killed your Clan … till the last man … only you survived … as he couldn´t kill his little Ototou…."

"Lies … all lies! Itachi was a killer … he killed my Clan without remorse … without regret!"

Naruto started to laugh sinisterly. "Hai … he may have killed them … but … he didn´t enjoy it … I on the other hand … I enjoyed every single second as another Ningen of your pitiful Clan was slaughtered by my very hand…."

The Akatsuki grinned smugly, knowing very well that the Uchiha heir wouldn´t let that one slide off.

And he didn´t.

Impetuously, Sasuke stormed ahead, drawing during his run Kusanagi from it´s sheath and delivered a fast vertical slash, ready to cut the blond man down.

Leisurely, Naruto caught the strike with his left hand. He grinned weakly when he saw how the desperate Uchiha tried to free himself from his grip. But his grin vanished as Raiton Chakra travelled through the blade. Immediately, the Bunshin disappeared in a cloud of smoke.

"W-what?!"

"Never lose your calm in battle … it could cost you your life!" A cold voice resounded behind the teen. Before he could turn around, he already felt a painful kick, which sent him crashing against the cold stonewall. Before the crash, Sasuke managed to catch himself, performing a backflip and landed on his feet, channeling Chakra through them to stick on the wall. Coughing blood, he glared at the Namikaze, who calmly mused his Katana, which he had lost during his flight. Yawning mockingly, he grasped the weapon and threw it at the Uchiha. Kusanagi embedded itself a few centimeters away from Sasuke into the wall.

"At least try to entertain me a bit more … Gaki!"

Gritting his teeth, the Uchiha formed several hand seals. "Katon: Gokakyu no Jutsu" Quickly, Sasuke spat a big fireball at his opponent. "Suiton: Teppodama" The Namikaze in turn reacted instantly and spat a water bullet at the incoming Katon Jutsu. Both collided and covered the close area in thick steam.

Seconds later, the Uchiha heir shot with drawn Katana from the thick steam screen. With a weak snort, Naruto parried the blow with his own Kunai, noticing moments later another threat from the corner of his eyes. Two big Fusha Shuriken flew to him from two directions. "Tze" The blond Nukenin pushed Kusanagi as well as his wielder back, turning his attention to the incoming Shuriken. "Futon: Kazekiri no Jutsu" The wind scythe cut through one of the projectiles like it was butter, the remaining two halves falling to the ground. Quickly, Naruto turned around. Sparks flew into all directions the moment his Kunai made contact with the rotating blades of the Shuriken. Sasuke made use of the opportunity and appeared behind his opponent. He dashed forwards, ready to pierce the Namikaze´s unprotected back.

Only few meters separated him now from the Jinchuriki as the black-haired teen channeled his Raiton Chakra, through a thin wire, into the Shuriken and sent the blades under electricity. Grinning, he brought his Katana in position.

Not finding resistance anymore, the Shuriken cut through the Kunai. But before the deadly projectile or Sasuke´s sword could pierce him, Naruto vanished from his sight. Sasuke´s surprise nearly cost him his life, only in the last second did he manage to channel Raiton Chakra through his Kusanagi and parried the Fusha Shuriken. It took him some effort before he was able to throw the projectile to the side.

"Futon: Renkudan" The Uchiha barely evaded the incoming wind bullet. Landing on safe feet, he felt the Chakra of his opponent behind him. "Raiton: Chidori Nagashi" Lightning travelled through his body and created an electric field. Crying in pain, the Kage Bunshin disappeared.

The floor underneath him broke apart and Naruto delivered a powerful hook to the Uchiha's chin. Sasuke was thrown backwards, but he quickly caught himself and landed several meters away from the Uzumaki.

"You still have a long way to go … little Sasuke."

"Shut up … Katon: Housenka no Jutsu!"

Playfully, Naruto avoided the hail of small fireballs and dashed forwards. The Akatsuki quickly reached him, but the Uchiha only stretched his right arm out. "Sen´ei Jashu" Several snakes shot from his sleeve at the incoming Namikaze, who grinned tiredly. "Raiton: Purazuma Boru" The snakes crashed against the protective field and disintegrated into many pieces. Seconds later, Naruto had already reached his opponent. But he went straight through the Uchiha, who faded away. Surprised, he felt an enormous heat behind him, but it was too late. A huge fireball turned him to ashes.

Satisfied, Sasuke stared at the flaming inferno. "Genjutsus were always a specialty of the Uchiha Clan."

"Indeed … but the illusions of your dear Nii-san were far better!"

Shocked, he Nukenin turned around, glaring at an uninjured Naruto. "Bunshins are truly a blessing, don´t you think so?"

"Tze" Quickly, the Uchiha formed several hand seals. Before the Akatsuki could react, two big white snakes erupted from the ground beneath him and wrapped him in a painful grip. Curiously, he mused the animals until he heard a high chirping sound. He found Sasuke´s own gaze while dazzling lightning gathered in his right hand. "Raiton: Chidori Eiso" Naruto widened his eyes as a spear made of pure lightning shot from Sasuke´s hand and pierced his heart. The last Uchiha grinned victoriously, but his mood quickly dropped when the supposed Namikaze dissolved into black smoke.

"What´s this?!"

Dry laughter filled the hideout. Quickly, the black-haired avenger turned towards the sound´s source. He narrowed his eyes in anger. Naruto sat on the throne, completely calm and with a big grin on his lips. He clapped his hands. "Not bad Koso … it may have taken you a while until you managed to beat my Oni Bunshin, but still … not bad."

"Bastard … stop playing around and fight me seriously … Raiton: Chidori Senbon!"

The Uchiha immediately shot countless small Raiton needles at the Jinchuriki. Softly, the Akatsuki shook his head. "Young and careless … Meiton: Kurouzu!" Soundlessly, the lightning needles disappeared into the black barrier, but Sasuke made use of the moment. In a few seconds, he appeared behind the throne, channeling Raiton Chakra through his Kusanagi and slashed right over the stone throne, cutting it in half. But his opponent wasn´t there anymore.

Only with difficulty could his Sharingan track down the Akatsuki. Snorting, he glared upwards to the ceiling, where the blond man was standing, Chakra flowing through his feet.

Sasuke performed his next move and inhaled deeply. "Katon: Goryuka no Jutsu"

Immediately, he spat several big fireballs out, which took the shape of dragons' heads. Roaring, they reached the ceiling and crashed right through it. Then, the damaged part of the ceiling broke apart and the Katon Jutsus flew directly into the sky. Quickly, the Uchiha followed the Namikaze, who had evaded his Jutsu and made use of the hole to reach the roof.

Arriving on top of the hideout, he looked at his opponent while the sky slowly darkened as rain clouds gathered.

"Your aim was kinda off, neh little one." Naruto grinned weakly. "Tze" Sasuke didn´t bother to reply. Slowly, he freed his arms from the white shirt, which softly floated to the ground. Curiously, the Akatsuki lifted one eyebrow when he felt the increase of Chakra. Light red patterns spread from his neck over his whole body: his skin darkened, his hair became longer and took a dark-blue color while a black four-point star appeared on his nose. His eye apples had also darkened, leaving only his red Sharingan active. Abruptly, tow big hand-shaped wings shot from his shoulder blades, waving dangerously in the strong wind.

Naruto only grinned in amusement. "Orochimaru´s Juin, huh? This could get … quite interesting…."

"Your death is imminent Naruto!" Hand seals were quickly formed. "Katon: Ryuka no Jutsu" Several small fire dragons came to life and were spat at the Namikaze. But the Nukenin was easily able to evade them and only the surrounding forest around the Uchiha hideout caught fire.

Ducking underneath the last fire dragon, the Jinchuriki gathered Chakra in his mouth. "Suiton: Mizurappa" Sasuke beat his wings and pushed himself in the air, evading the concentrated jet of water. "Futon: Kami Oroschi" Naruto sent a strong wind vortex at the black-haired teen. Itachi´s brother once again beat his wings and avoided the deadly wind. Then, he flew straight towards his opponent.

During his flight, he drew once more Kusanagi from it´s sheath. Just on time, Naruto sidestepped as the blade pierced the roof. The Uchiha grinned. "Raiton: Chidori Koken" Raiton Chakra travelled through the Katana and into the concrete. Seconds later, the roof started to crumble and countless lightning chains shot in a 360° angle around Sasuke in all directions.

"Tze … Meiton: Kurouzu!" Before the deadly lightning could reach him, a darkness wall encircled the Akatsuki and sucked the Raiton Jutsu in. The moment the Uchiha heir wanted to pull his Katana out, three Kage Bunshins appeared around him, each with a drawn Kunai. "Jagei Jubaku" The clones threatened to pierce him as suddenly, three white snakes shot from Sasuke´s body and took hold of the Bunshins. Smoke spread around the Sharingan wielder as the snakes enforced their stranglehold.

Sasuke left the cloud of smoke with a backflip and spotted his opponent. A light-blue rotating ball took shape in his right hand. Landing safely, Sasuke made the hand seals for his own Jutsu. Stretching his right hand to the ground, Raiton Chakra gathered in the hand, the noise of thousand chirping birds resounded across the roof.

Both Shinobi dashed towards each other. In just a few seconds, they had crossed the distance and stretched their respective Jutsu against the other.

"RASENGAN"

"CHIDORI"

Both techniques collided, creating several strong shockwaves. With all his might, Sasuke pushed his Jutsu against his opponent´s one, but he quickly felt that he was losing control. The Akatsuki grinned widely while he channeled more and more Chakra into the swirling ball.

Moments later, Naruto gained the upper hand and the Rasengan imploded. Coughing globs of blood, the Uchiha heir was brutally thrown backwards while his Chidori vanished. He crashed violently against one of the pillars on the roof, but his wings managed to absorb the crash at least partially.

Quickly, he eased himself out of the small crater and sprinted the pillar upwards. Arriving on the top, he looked down at his opponent, who only seemed curious. The black-haired teen chuckled.

"I had never thought to use this Jutsu against you … however, it seems I doesn´t have a choice in the matter…." Naruto raised one eyebrow as the Otonin stretched his right hand to the dark sky. "The preparations … are finished…."

Slowly, rain started to pour over the landscape while lightning graced the stormy sky and smashed into the ground around the hideout. A heavy storm crossed over Hi no Kuni.

Further small sparks gathered in Sasuke´s right hand. "This Jutsu should have been my trump card against Itachi … but now that you have killed him and robbed me of my ambition … Naruto … you will feel the entire wrath of the sky!"

The Uchiha shot his Chidori right into the sky. All of the lightning gathered in the storm clouds. A thundering roar resounded over the landscape. A creature made of pure lightning emerged from the dark clouds and glared at the Jinchuriki.

Sasuke insane laughter filled the air. "Speak your last prayers Naruto! Even you won´t be able to dodge this Jutsu!" The teen was so engrossed in his laughter that he didn´t notice the grin on Naruto´s face … as well as the weak Raiton aura around him.

"Shinne Uzumaki … RAITON: KIRIN!"

The elemental force reared one last time, only to storm with tremendous speed onto the earth. In less than a millisecond, the beast had reached the Namikaze.

Only to fade away in less than a second.

Sasuke blinked … and blinked, needing several seconds before he understood what had happened right before his eyes. His ultimate Jutsu … had vanished without doing any damage. His shocked gaze remained on the Jinchuriki. "W-wh … WHAT HAVE YOU DONE?!"

Naruto started to chuckle in amusement while his Raiton aura faded away. He smoothed down his wet hair. "Oh Koso … you should have seen your face hehe … didn´t your almighty Jutsu have the desired effect, huh? Too bad … you didn´t prepare yourself enough little one … after all, one should always know the strengths and weaknesses to our Ninjutsu, neh?"

Confused, Sasuke narrowed his eyes. "What are you talking about?!"

"Tze … children these days…." Chuckling, he stared at the Otonin. "Tell me Gaki … did you create this Jutsu on your own … or did you learn it from one of Orochimaru´s Jutsu scrolls?" The shocked expression on Sasuke´s face was already answer enough. "Just as I thought … Orochimaru did take some of Konoha´s Kinjutsu scrolls with him … that annoying Hebi bastard … truly a shame…."

"How do you know about that? ANSWER ME?!"

Annoyed, Naruto rolled his eyes. "Do you truly think … that I wouldn´t know the weaknesses of my own Jutsu! Who do you think created Kirin in the first place! That was me Koso! I created it years ago … before I left Konoha … I was so proud of it, but that old fool of Sandaime classified it as Kinjutsu and forbad it´s use … tze … but what that fool didn´t know … I hadn´t told them everything about the Jutsu … I kept Kirin´s weaknesses for myself … for exactly this sort of situation hehe!"

"Impossible! Kirin hits in less than a millisecond … one cannot escape a natural lightning strike!"

"Indeed … but the preparation for this powerful Jutsu takes it´s time … Katon users can accelerate the process and heathen up the sky to produce storm clouds … and even then, one must be a Raiton user to control the natural lightning in the first place. No one can dodge a natural lightning, that is true … no one has the necessary speed and reflexes … but it´s quite a different case if you fight other Raiton users Koso … it´s enough to wrap yourself in Raiton Chakra … the moment Kirin came down, your Raiton Chakra which controlled the Jutsu was overwhelmed by my own and allowed me to take over … of course this only works if the target knows what to do and even then, his Chakra needs to be stronger than the one´s who casts Kirin…."

Sasuke gritted his teeth, his anger bubbled inside him. In less than a second, the Uzumaki had neutralized his best Jutsu … this humiliation … he … an Uchiha was taken for a fool … this couldn´t … this couldn´t be allowed!

"You bastard … just die already … WHY WON`T YOU JUST DIE ALREADY UZUMAKI?!" Channeling Chakra into his feet, the Uchiha jumped right at his opponent.

Naruto sighed deeply. "Impetuous indeed…."

During his jump, Sasuke performed several hand seals. "Katon: Gokakyu no Jutsu" Clearly bored, the Akatsuki gazed at the incoming fireball. "Suiton: Sujinheki" A high and thick water wall rose in front of him and intercepted the Katon Jutsu. Suddenly, the Otonin appeared behind the blond man and went in for a strong kick. On time, Naruto back-flipped into the air and delivered his own kick. Sasuke´s Sharingan foresaw the attack and blocked it. Skillfully, the Namikaze caught himself with his hands on the ground and him kicked once more in the stomach. Coughing, the Uchiha was catapulted backwards, not quite expecting the power behind the kick.

Sasuke landed on his feet while his right arm turned into a snake and shot right at his Kusanagi, which was still stuck in the roof. The snake bit on the hilt and withdrew back to it´s caster, the sword safely in his snout. Amused, Naruto watched on as the snake transformed back into his arm. "This world doesn´t need another Hebi bastard."

"Tze" Raiton Chakra travelled through the blade as the Sharingan wielder dashed forwards. Grinning, the Akatsuki sprinted towards the teen. The black-haired Otonin brandished his sword. Naruto only brought his right hand to parry.

"Futon: Kaze no Yoroi"

Abruptly, the wind increased and the Jinchuriki was completely enveloped into Futon Chakra. Seconds later, he parried the lightning enforced blade with his bare hand. Shocked, Sasuke noticed that he couldn´t cut through the appendage. The Nukenin grinned sadistically. Then, his Kusanagi broke in two halves. Before Sasuke could react, his opponent made use of the gap and delivered a powerful slash right to Sasuke´s chest. The Uchiha screamed in pain as the Futon layered hand caused a major long cut over his torso. As the Akatsuki prepared another attack, two white snakes suddenly shot from the Otonin´s body and snapped at him. Just on time, the Jinchuriki managed to jump backwards, even though the animals would surely not have been able to penetrate his wind armor.

But better not taking any further risks.

Breathing heavily, Sasuke came to stand still. Carefully, he touched the nasty injury. Pain erupted and shook his entire body. ´Damn … I don´t have the Chakra anymore to shed my skin … just barely enough to hold Orochimaru´s Chakra at bay….´

"Got some problems Gaki?"

Snorting in anger, he glared at his opponent. That damn grin on the Uzumaki´s face drove him nuts. One last time, he formed some hand seals.

A big white snake burst from underneath the blond´s feet and wrapped around him.

Raiton Chakra gathered in his right hand and sent sparks in all directions. Suddenly, the Chidori started to darken, the usually white-blue Chakra shifted to a grey color while black lightning poured out.

Sasuke immediately raced off, his hateful glare only saw the immobile Akatsuki.

"HABATAKU CHIDORI"

Grinning victoriously, he stretched his arm out, ready to pierce the Jinchuriki with his Jutsu once and for all.

Klang

Shocked, Sasuke stared at the black shining bones, which caught his destructive Jutsu effortlessly. Hissing, his snake, which kept the Namikaze in a vice grip, disintegrated in a matter of seconds. Even his enforced Chidori was cancelled without doing any damage.

"W-wha..t?"

Chuckling, Naruto hided his eyes from the black-haired avenger. The white-black layer surrounding him started to extend and increase rapidly in power as slowly several new ribs manifested protectively around him.

Finally, Naruto´s gaze went to his opponent, as his Mangekyo Sharingan glowed unholy in the darkness. "Finally … a chance to test my new eyes … neh little Sasuke…."

Not finding any words, Sasuke stared into the Dojutsu of his Clan. Swallowing the lump in his throat, he regained his voice.

"H..how can … can this … be possible?!"

"Just one last gift from Itachi-nii … and … the only reason why I even bother myself with your pitiful weak ass Gaki!"

The Uchiha was still at a loss of words, just staring blankly at him.

Smiling, Naruto pointed to his right side.

Unconsciously, Sasuke followed the sign. Not a second later, a huge bone fist crashed against his left side and broke him every single bone in his left arm. Coughing blood, he was thrown away and crashed on the hard stone roof until the power behind the punch clung off. Crying painfully, the teen nearly succumbed to the tremendous pain that blurred his senses and mind. Even the high pain tolerance of his Juin seemed useless.

Satisfied, the Akatsuki cancelled the Susanoo´s ribcage. He hummed a soft tune. ´That went better than I expected … if I hadn´t seen Itachi use it so often during our fight, this might have taken a while to learn … still, I don´t have mastery over it yet….´ Naruto gritted his teeth as a sudden jolt of pain travelled through his body. ´Although the pain still hasn´t lessened since my training, but it is to be expected….´

"Ba..stard" Slowly, Sasuke tried to lift himself to his feet, but heavy pain shook his body and nearly drove him to unconsciousness. Still, he couldn´t give up … not without achieving his revenge!

Finally standing on his wobbly feet, he tried to forge Chakra, but he noticed with shock that his reserves were completely dried out. Suddenly, a dark presence within him emerged and invaded his mind. ´Free me Sasuke-kun … yes … free me from this prison … I can help you to kill him kukuku … your revenge … your ambition … only I can help you achieve it Sasuke-kun….´ Screaming loudly, the Uchiha heir touched his neck. His Juin glowed in a deep red and started to trash around. Then all of a sudden, a big white snake shot out of the cursed seal.

Naruto raised his eyebrows in surprise, not because a snake had appeared but because the animal had a similar appearance to Orochimaru … it seemed that the Hebi bastard managed to turn his body into a snake … disgusting indeed. The snake hissed in satisfaction. "Thisss isss it … arrigato Naruto-kun … thanks to your little fight, Sssasssuke-kun hasss usssed all of hisss Chakra … and now … I will claim your body!" Hissing, Orochimaru dashed towards the Akatsuki while he greedily opened his razor-sharp snout, ready to devour his future body.

´Tze … you truly have fallen … Orochimaru….´ Naruto slowly walked straight towards the snake, closing his right eye. Blood flowed in fine lines down his cheek.

"Amaterasu"

Abruptly, he opened his eye and looked at the snake form of the once proud Hebi Sannin. Seconds later, the former Otokage was swallowed by a sea of black flames. Hissing painfully, the snake trashed around as the flames started to eat his body, his furious eyes glaring at the Jinchuriki.

"Pitiful" Leisurely, Naruto walked right past him in Sasuke´s direction. He didn´t look back … not even when the black flames died out and proclaimed Orochimaru´s end. Nothing remained of him … not even ash that the wind could have blown away.

Sasuke hesitantly pulled himself upright … or at least tried to. Casually, Naruto noticed that the teen was back in his usual form … Orochimaru´s Juin being entirely destroyed by his Amaterasu, just like it´s creator.

Few feet separated the Akatsuki from the Uchiha before he stopped. "Tze" He delivered a powerful kick right to the teen´s chest. Crying pitifully, the heir was thrown several meters backwards.

"So weak … Sasuke … I´m truly disappointed in your performance … I expected much more of you … and to think that you wanted to kill Itachi-nii … he would have outclassed you even with his heart disease!" Shaking his head, he walked towards the downed formed of the once proud Otonin. "To think … that he wanted to save your pathetic life … and even now, you still condemn and hate him … without even knowing his true self…."

Brutally, he grasped the black-haired teen´s neck and lifted him up effortlessly. His cold eyes bored into the boy´s tired and hurt eyes, the teen had difficulty to even stay conscious. "To think … that Itachi-nii pleaded me to take care of you … what a misjudgment on your behalf, my old friend … but … fear not … you will soon see your little Ototou again…."

Silently, several shadow creatures emerged from the ground behind the Akatsuki and stared greedily at their master.

"Now … little Sasuke … I will show you the truth behind your Nii-san´s actions … how he truly felt … and you will feel his pain…." Finally, Sasuke stared into the Namikaze´s eyes. "Tsukuyomi"

The avenger opened his mouth to utter a silent scream, but no tone left his throat. His body started to struggle and trash around, but Naruto´s vice grip held him in place. The Jinchuriki grinned cruelly while his victim suffered immeasurable mental pain … his Mangekyo shinned in anticipation as Sasuke´s Sharingan started to change.

"This is it … hehehe … oh how much Itachi misjudged me in the end…."

Sasuke didn´t even realize that his Sharingan evolved to the next step, his mind overwhelmed by the pain and memories. "Hehe … what most of the Uchihas didn´t know … there is another method to awaken the Mangekyo Sharingan … yes … either you train for countless years or you kill the person closest to you … no … the third way … the Sharingan can also evolve through inconceivably mental pain … hehe … unfortunately, the wielder becomes mentally unstable and unfit for further duty … the price was too high to pay…."

Satisfied, the former Konohanin glanced at the newly created Mangekyo. "Mmmh … such a shame for you … you will never be able to bath in the power of these eyes … my person, on the other hand, could really use them to their fullest … and because Itachi-nii transferred his Mangekyo through our blood link … mmh … our eyes will be perfectly compatible … hehe … you truly placed too much hope in me Itachi…."

Carefully, he brought his free hand to Sasuke´s right eye, his fingers taking hold of the eye apple. "And now … they are mine!" Feeling a sense of satisfaction, he removed both eyes and mused them in his hand, ignoring the heavy pain that felt like all of his cells were burnt. Thoughtlessly, he threw Sasuke to his side.

"Feast on his pitiful soul … or that what´s left of it!" The small Onis quickly shot at the unconscious Uchiha.

Naruto´s fascinated gaze remained on the pair of eyes … his new life insurance. Satisfied, he smiled as he heard the painful cries and screams of Sasuke´s soul, which his loyal subordinates tore into countless shreds.

"Gomen Itachi-nii … but you believed in the wrong person…."

In the meantime, somewhere in Hayashi no Kuni

Tobi stooped in his tracks as an uneasy feeling bubbled inside him. ´What is this feeling … hmmm … something … something went wrong….´ The masked man briefly glanced at his collection of Sharingan eyes. He balled his hands to fist.

"Should something have happened … should my assumption been proven correct … that damn Namikaze has disposed of my new test object … tze … I should have made my move sooner … Pain won´t be able to protect him this time … I tolerated his actions for far too long now!"

Seconds later, Tobi vanished through his Jikudan.

In the meantime, Tanzouku, Hi no Kuni

Being curious, the three Ninkens sniffed their path through the lively streets of the trading city. Suddenly, one of them pricked up it´s ears and barked loudly.

"They found it!" Quickly, Hana came with her team. Softly, she patted her Ninkens as they barked her the news. Briefly, the Inuzuka woman widened her eyes, but regained her composure before the others could notice. Her serious gaze shifted over to Jiraiya. "My Ninkens have found Sasuke´s scent, he probably is two days marches to the North."

Silently, the team headed out. Hana sunk into her thoughts. ´This is without a doubt Sasuke´s scent … but the other one … it strongly reminds me of Naruto-kun …only much stronger and darker … I … I have a very bad feeling about this….´

The next day, a small village to the West of the destroyed Uchiha hideout, Hi no Kuni

Slowly, Naruto got up and sat on the bed´s edge. Carefully, he touched his head with both his hands, more precisely his eyes. A simple grey bandage covered them, a consequence from the recently happened operation.

"Careful Azriel-sama … you shouldn´t strain yourself too much … your new eyes aren´t in good shape yet!" Obediently, a shadow creature kneeled in front of the Namikaze, gazing with worrying blood-red eyes at it´s master.

Naruto dissolved the warning with a simple wave of his hand, a weak grin on his lips. "I can feel it already … this new power inside me … simply wonderful … hehe Itachi´s Ototou had his use after all … although not in the sense that my dear brother had meant it to be hehehe…."

"Azriel-sama" The Oni hissed weakly. "Ningens are on their way towards the old hideout … my brothers reported me that they were seven in number … one of them … is the Sannin Jiraiya…." The demon flinched fearfully as it felt the potent Chakra rise from it´s master.

"Jiraiya, huh?" He balled his left hand to a fist. "Interesting … I assume … a meeting with my dear godfather … would be appropriate…."

"Still, you should rest some more master … you aren´t yet ready for this battle!"

Naruto was silent for a while.

"… for the moment…."

The Jinchuriki smiled darkly as his dark aura spread out.

In the meantime, Mizukage´s office, Kirigakure no Sato, Mizu no Kuni

Krach

Mei raised her right eyebrow in surprise. Carefully, she placed her warm beverage down and looked to where the sound came from. A simple photo of Naruto and her decorated her desk that was usually overflown with paperwork. It was taken before Naruto left after the civil war´s end, of course on Mei´s insistence. The picture always managed to bring a smile to her face, knowing that she was finally together with the man she loved … even though her fiancé was out on his journey.

But now, the picture conjured an uneasy feeling.

Troubled, the young woman swallowed the lump in her throat. A long tear covered the glass, where Naruto was usually seen. Carefully, the Terumii heiress traced her delicate finger over the tear and flinched back. A small cut spoiled her usually flawless skin.

Small blood drops fell onto the desk. But it didn´t bother Mei much.

She turned around, gazing down on Kirigakure from the window, even though her village was currently shrouded in thick mist.

Mei´s eyes became dull.

´What´s happening to you … Naruto-koi….´

The next day, Uchiha hideout, Hi no Kuni

"Seemed like quite the heavy battle, huh?" Jiraiya only nodded, Kakashi was right … whoever had fought here … it must have been a huge and ruthless battle. His vigilant gaze travelled over the ruins of the former hideout.

"Hana-chan, are you sure that Sasuke´s scent is still here?" The Inuzuka woman turned towards Kurenai. "Hai … the scent is still present and fresh … he hasn´t left the area yet!" The Genjutsu Mistress became quite restless. Something was still in the air … and it was familiar. She briefly glanced at Yugao. The Anbu just nodded imperceptibly, even her best friend had noticed it.

"Wuff"

The Konoha team tensed immediately. Hana´s voice resounded across the ruins. "We … we have found our … target guys!" Quickly, the remaining Shinobis gathered next to the Inuzuka and her Ninkens.

What they saw took their breath away.

"SASUKE-KUN"

Sakura jerkily rushed at the last Uchiha´s side, who laid on the cold ground. Salty tears escaped her eyes as she saw the mutilated and defiled body of her love. Immediately, the young Iryonin tried to heal the lifeless Uchiha … even though she knew that it was in vain.

Uchiha Sasuke was since long dead.

Kakashi mused his former apprentice with sad eyes. ´… Sasuke….´

Hana swallowed as she looked at the many wounds. She hadn´t yet seen something like this in her whole life. For Shino it was the same, but his cloths and sunglasses didn´t allow to see his facial expressions.

Kurenai and Yugao remained calm. During the war, they had seen similar horrors and by the way … they didn´t really care much for the young Uchiha … they only felt sorry for his mother, Uchiha Mikoto … one of the few Uchiha, who had actually been very nice to talk to.

Jiraiya mused the dead Uchiha with impassive eyes. He narrowed his eyes when he looked at his face. "His eyes…." That drew the other Nins attention. "They … are gone … stolen or something like that … even though his body was already scavenged by the crows, the wounds on his eyes are much too clean…." Kakashi frowned, it was worse than they feared.

"So in the end, we can´t even recover the Sharingan … this mission is a failure!" Yugao turned her head to look at the Gama Sennin. "What should we do now Jiraiya-sama?"

"We should take the body with us … there can still be some secrets that others may be able to coax out of it … we shouldn´t take more risks … but Tsu-hime won´t be pleased…." Kakashi nodded, turning his attention to his last remaining apprentice. "Sakura … it´s enough … he won´t be coming back … you should have realized that by now…." The pink-haired teen only sobbed more.

Kurenai looked at the Chunin with compassionate eyes. "Can we find out who was the one responsible?" Hana furrowed her eyebrows, clearly nervous about something. "Well … there is a second scent, although very weak … the battle was probably fought days ago … after all, the crows already scarfed down some flesh from the body … so we won´t be able to track it down. And … I truly don´t want to encounter this person … I haven´t felt such a powerful aura and scent yet … it´s just terrifying…."

Worried by the news, Kakashi gazed at the Sannin, who calmed him with a simple nod.

Several small insects flew from all directions towards the silent Aburame. "My Kikaichuus only picked up small amount of Chakra … whoever fought here … the Chakra makes them nervous … it would be logical to not engage this foe!"

Silence reigned once more.

Suddenly, the three Ninkens sniffed furiously before they put their tail in between their legs. Surprised and also disturbed by their behavior, Hana patted her companions to calm them down. "What did you guys smell … have you picked up a tra-…." Abruptly the Inuzuka interrupted herself as a familiar scent reached her fine nose. Her eyes widened in recognition while her body started to tremble.

Worried, Kurenai quickly put one hand on the young woman´s shoulder. "Hana-chan?"

Kakashi narrowed his eyes. "I have a very bad feeling about this…."

The moment the words left his lips, a mighty and suffocating aura settled upon the area. Desperately, the Konohanins tried to remain on their feet … or in the case of both Chunins to even stay conscious. Jiraiya had himself quite well under control, followed by Kakashi … but the remaining Nins had problems to withstand the pressure. But as sudden as the aura came to be, it vanished seconds later.

The Shinobis breathed a sigh of relief, but they froze when a familiar voice resounded across the destroyed landscape.

"I congratulate you … not many can handle my aura so well … but on the other hand ... I didn´t even radiate most of my Chakra…."

Quickly, the Konohanins turned towards the voice´s origin … and froze once more.

The cold eyes of Naruto bored into the surprised and frightened eyes of his former ´comrades´. "It has been quite a long time … hasn´t it … neh, my dear Konohanins?"

Kakashi quickly broke from his stupor and shifted in his combat stance. He immediately lifted his Hitaiate and showed his Sharingan to the world. Shino followed his lead, even though his Kikaichuus informed him to flee at once. Sakura only glanced at the new threat, her eyes still leaking fresh tears while she desperately clamped the dead corpse of the Uchiha in her arms to shield him.

Kurenai, Yugao and Hana only stared bewildered at the Uzumaki heir. First tears started to gather in the corner of their eyes, they never thought to encounter Naruto on this mission … even if it was a possibility given their target. But something froze the Kunoichis on their spot … something in the Nukenin´s eyes sent a cold shiver down their spines … such coldness and void in his eyes … they had never seen him like that before. Hana glanced at her Ninkens, which slowly retreated back … whimpering all the time. The Inuzuka could understand her companions … the power Naruto radiated off was unrivaled … not even Jiraiya-sama came close to it.

The Gama Sennin was the only one who remained calm and didn´t shift into a fighting stance. He mused his godchild with keen eyes … the godchild he saw for the last time fifteen years ago. Jiraiya couldn´t avert his gaze … Naruto reminded him so much of his student … he was like Minato … at least from the appearance because … his former apprentice did never have such emotionless and cold eyes … and of course the strange whisker marks on his cheeks.

Sadness and regret was clear on Jiraiya´s face. So much … so many things could have been avoided if he hadn´t let himself be told out of raising his godchild … but hellas … Sarutobi-sensei made it clear that travelling all the time around the nations wasn´t a way to raise a child. It was his duty … and he failed … he failed Minato and Kushina … surely they would be disappointed in him … not that he could blame them. Maybe … all of this could have been avoided.

"… Naruto…."

"Jiraiya" Spitefully, the Jinchuriki spat his name out, but the Sannin didn´t lose his focus. "I didn´t believe that one could fine you outside of an Onsen for once … and even on a mission for dear old Konoha … tze … I wonder what happened … are your … researches not your greatest duty anymore, huh?" Naruto spat on the ground.

"Naruto … I … damn this is truly awkward … I don´t even know what to tell you in the first place … a simple apology probably won´t do it … I was never there for you…." Quickly, the blond man interrupted him, chuckling bitterly. "You can keep you apologies for you … I don´t need them … I never did … since long I found myself at ease with the fact that my own godfather had more important things to do than take care of me … or at least to come look for me sometimes … I … I since long gave up hope to be someone important to you…."

The white-haired man only gazed at his student´s son, his eyes betraying the sadness he felt to see the young man now in this state.

"N-naruto-kun?" Hesitantly, Yugao stepped forward, but froze instantly when Naruto´s cold glare shifted over her.

"Yugao" His piercing cold voice bored deeply into her soul, making the Anbu to take back several steps. "What … what happened to you … Naruto-kun?" Kurenai stepped next to her friend, trying to calm her down but deep inside her, she was in the same boat … shaken and afraid of this new man. She never had seen the man this way.

The Akatsuki snorted in annoyance. "Ningens change in the course of their life … I´m not the naïve man you knew all those years ago … to believe I was ever important to someone, then … then in the end every one I hold dear turns their back on me and opposes me…." He balled his hands to fist, banishing the thought of Itachi from his mind. "… never again … yes … never again will I fall for these … worthless feelings again … only disappointment awaits one … tze … to think I ever had the chance for a simple life, but it seems that was already too much to ask … it doesn´t matter anymore…."

Kurenai bit her under lip.

"H-how can you say that … you know that´s not true Naruto-kun! We were always there for you … we still want to be…." The Jinchuriki just shook his head. "No … there was always something missing … it was only a naïve dream of me…."

"Naruto we can sti-…." The hollowly chuckling Nukenin immediately interrupted the Sannin. "You can save your breath Jiraiya … you wanna make amends for your sins … for dear old Konoha, huh? You can forget that … Konoha since long had this coming … just too bad that their little weapon doesn´t follow their orders anymore … tze … you know Jiraiya … in the academy they always told us and praised this Will of Fire and how Konoha was our family … they lied all the time Jiraiya … something like family doesn´t exist in the first place … not that I care anymore … I never had a family to begin with and…." He glared coldly at Kurenai and Yugao. "… I will never need a family!" First tears fell onto the ground. Even though Shinobis were meant to control and never show their emotions, it was … hard to hear those words from the man they loved.

"I would not shed a tear should Konoha burn to ashes!"

Jiraiya and Kakashi tensed as they heard his words. Their hard gaze never left the Nukenin.

"Then you don´t leave us with a choice Naruto! I won´t allow that Minato and Kushina sacrifice was in vain … they sacrificed themselves so that Konoha could survive…."

Naruto snorted in disdain and closed his eyes. "So old Konoha finally decided to get rid of me, huh? Took them long enough if you ask me … and I just had to kill some pitiful Konohanins for that…." Kakashi interrupted him with a dangerous undertone. "Careful with your next words Naruto … Asuma was a far better Shinobi than you will ever be … he and all the others you have killed were far better persons than you could ever be!"

The Akatsuki grinned. "Indeed … Asuma … Shikaku´s little child … Kotestu and Izumo … all those other Konohanins that died by my hands … so sad indeed, but … I feel no regret … no pain as I killed them … not even as I killed my own brother…."

Slowly, the Uzumaki opened his eyes.

"… yes … Itachi´s death didn´t sadden me … that naïve fool…."

The assembled Nins hold their breaths as they stared into the Jinchuriki´s eyes. Kakashi narrowed his eyes, his voice trembling. "H-how … Mangekyo Sharingan?!"

Naruto chuckled dryly. "Surprised? Hehehe … I suppose the sight is quite … worth seeing, neh?"

"Sharingan?! But you are no Uchiha Naruto-kun!" Hana mused the Jinchuriki in bewilderment.

"Indeed I´m not from that despicable Clan … at least not quite … but this was a last gift from Itachi … with his last breath, he passed on his Mangekyo to me … probably one last measure to protect Konoha as he couldn´t win against me."

Kurenai swallowed nervously, thinking back to her former teammate. "You … you killed Itachi … why?"

"But of course I killed him! He dared to stand in my way … and I won´t tolerate anyone who dares to rise against me! In fact, you should thank Itachi … Itachi´s whole life only resounded around Konoha´s survival and wellbeing … he turned against me, saying that I became a threat for his precious Konoha … tze … he died pitifully … without achieving anything…."

The Konohanins still had a hard time to believe that Itachi … one of the strongest Konohanins and Nukenins was dead … killed by his best friend and brother in all but blood. Yugao noticed a small slip. "What … what did you mean with … last measure?"

"Ah yes my dear Yugao … the Mangekyo Sharingan is without a doubt a mighty weapon, but … there is a price to pay … with each use of the Dojutsu, your eyes become weaker until they lose their light … Itachi-nii surely thought that I would fail to realize it in time … to eliminate me as a threat, but he didn´t know that I knew more about his Clan´s Dojutsu than most … a compatible Mangekyo could completely restore my eyesight for all eternity … but therefore, one must be related by blood…."

Slowly, the Konohanins realized where this was going. Sakura clenched her hands to fists as she looked down at Sasuke´s dead and mutilated body.

Naruto smirked darkly. "Fortunately for little old me … Itachi had a little blood brother … our little Sasuke-kun … hehe it only required mental torture to awaken his Mangekyo and then I could take possession of it … poor Sasuke-kun on the other hand didn´t survive our little fight … but there will always be a need for sacrifices, don´t you thinks so?"

"YOU BASTARD!"

Abruptly, the young Haruno rose to her feet and gathered Chakra in her fists.

"Raiton: Byakurai"

A white beam of lightning effortlessly pierced the girl´s chest. Surprised, the Iryonin gazed down … before she fell forward.

"SAKURA" Kakashi rushed to the side of his last living apprentice. The attack came quick and without warning. It took the others some seconds before they realized what had happened. The women looked disappointed in his direction.

Kakashi carefully laid the pink-haired girl on her back. He sighed in relief when he noticed that she was still alive … but she breathed heavily, spatting globs of blood out and … she seemed paralyzed. No tone escaped her bloody lips. "Easy there Sakura … everything is going to be alright!" Quickly, he turned his head to look at the blond man, glaring dangerously. "That was … uncalled for Naruto!"

"Hoh" Bored, the accused man lifted his right eyebrow. "Eliminating the Iryonins first is the most basic form of warfare Hatake … there is no need for further explanations, neh? Your chance at survival has just drastically fallen…."

Sighing deeply, Jiraiya shifted into battle stance, briefly glancing at their downed medic and cursing his own lack of attention. "You truly left us no choice Naruto … as much as it pains me to recognize it … there can be no hope for you … I won´t let Minato´s and Kushina´s sacrifice be in vain … I … we will stop you … even if we have to kill you here!" Kurenai´s and Yugao´s eyes still shined with tears, but the two women went moments later into their own fighting stances … even though hesitantly and doubtfully. Shino followed his superiors' lead and kept his eyes on the Namikaze.

Hana on the other hand hurried to Sakura´s side, her three Ninkens in tow. Kneeling down to the Chunin´s other side, she channeled her Iryo Chakra into her hands. Carefully, she placed them over the hole in Sakura´s chest. Kakashi thanked her with his famous eye smile. "Thank you Hana … I let her in your care!" The Inuzuka smiled in return. "Hai she´ll make it, she´s strong after all!"

One last time, the Copy Ninja gazed down at his student. Then, his eyes hardened and he walked next to the Gama Sannin. He glared at his Sensei´s son. The blond Nukenin had already caused too much pain … there was no place for a second chance … he couldn´t forgive the young man. He stole a furtive glance at the two remaining Kunoichis. He could clearly see the shaking forms of Kurenai and Yugao. It must be hard for the two of them.

Naruto´s dark laughter snapped him out of his thoughts.

"Hehehe … kill me you say … truly interesting … interesting indeed … hehe … oh poor old Konoha … seven of your Shinobis will never again see your splendor because…." Naruto´s Chakra increased to dangerous highs. "… each one of them will die by my own hands … that I swear…." The Jinchuriki smirked darkly, startling the Konohanins even further.

Gritting his teeth, Jiraiya´s own Chakra rose to match his opponent's one. "Don´t overestimate yourself Naruto! You may be strong, but you fight against all of us … Konoha since it´s founding has produced many good Shinobis … those who always carried the Will of Fire inside their hearts … just as Sarutobi-sensei told us!" The Akatsuki grimaced darkly when he heard his old mentor´s name once more. "And by the way Naruto … it may be true that you´ll kill some of us without remorse … but … could you really claim the same for Kurenai and Yugao? Could you truly kill those two, they who loved you since years and still do? No Naruto … I don´t think so … then somewhere deep inside you, there is still a gleam of your old self!"

The Namikaze remained silent as the words sunk into his mind. He glanced at his two girlfriends, the cold and hatred in his eyes cleared slightly. The two women looked at him, hope in their shining eyes as they saw the hesitation swelling in his eyes.

"I … I can´t…." But the momentary warmth quickly left his eyes again, buried underneath the hatred that radiated off his azure-blue eyes. The Jinchuriki raised his voice, deprived of every emotion.

"Yes that may be true … I love Nai-chan and Yu-chan … but … for the world I intend to create, there is no place for such useless feelings as love … and as such, I will now rid myself of that foul emotion … with your death … Kurenai … Yugao … I will find freedom … the bond between us will be torn apart … yes … and then finally … my hour will come…."

Jiraiya and Kakashi narrowed their eyes in disappointment.

"N-nar..uto..-kun" Salty tears now dripped onto the cold ground. Yugao´s heart bled as she drew one of her Katana´s from it´s sheath, gazing at the Nukenin with hurt teary eyes. "So … there is truly no other way … huh … Naruto-kun?" Shaking, Kurenai rubbed her tears away. "Then it will … it will truly end this way … with your death Naruto-kun … iie … the Naruto we loved died a long time ago … didn´t he … Naruto-kun?"

His Mangekyo Sharingan shinned unholy. "Yes … that fool died a long time ago … and you will follow him shortly!"

Jiraiya didn´t cast his eyes of his godchild. "I see … so you choose your path … listen up everyone, this gets serious now … he won´t show us any mercy … mmmh … Kakashi, Yugao and myself will engage him first and try to weaken his defense … Shino, Kurenai … you two will give us cover and take advantage of every gap in his defense … and don´t lose your concentration … his Mangekyo is a terrifying weapon!"

Naruto grinned weakly. "Let us begin!"

"Katon: Gokakyu no Jutsu" Kakashi quickly spat a huge fireball out. Naruto mused the Katon Jutsu with a small smirk, evading the Jutsu in the last second with a simple sidestep and caught the powerful punch of the Gama Sennin, who had appeared right next to him. "Tze" Swiftly, the Namikaze pumped Chakra into his arm muscles and pushed the white-haired man back. Just on time, he performed a backflip and avoided the horizontal slash from the Anbu´s sharp sword.

Landing safely, the Nukenin was immediately bombarded by another one of Hatake´s Jutsus. "Katon: Housenka no Jutsu" Effortlessly, his Mangekyo Sharingan foresaw the trajectory of the small fire projectiles and could dodge them. Naruto went straight to the offensive. "Futon: Atsugai" The Akatsuki created an enormously strong shockwave, which rushed towards the Copy Ninja.

"Doton: Doryu Heki" Quickly, Kakashi slammed his hands on the ground and a big thick earth wall rose to protect himself as well as Kurenai and the others. The Futon Jutsu mercilessly crashed against the wall, which nevertheless could withstand the pressure.

"Mmmh" Naruto swiftly drew a Kunai from his cloak and parried Yugao´s blade. Coldly, he gazed at the teary eyes of his girlfriend. "Foolish to attack me alone … Yugao!" Both Nins engaged in a ruthless Kenjutsu battle, but the Namikaze managed to hold his ground against the experienced Anbu veteran. Although, he couldn´t quite take the offensive with his small Kunai, as he always needed to parry another slash of Yugao´s Katana to maintain his defense. The weapons clashed once more.

Small drops of sweat dripped down the purple-haired woman´s face. "You truly are an excellent Kenjutsu master Yugao … but still not good enough!" Putting more force behind, Naruto pushed his Kunai against the blade and lifted himself into the air. Now headfirst in the air, he channeled Chakra into his Kunai and struck. But the Anbu woman reacted immediately. Chakra flew through her Katana and she could parry the enforced stab.

"Good reaction!" In mid-air, Naruto prepared to kick his opponent. Yugao needed to loosen her grip on her blade and intercepted the kick with her forearm. The Kunoichi quickly noticed painfully that the Nukenin had quite the strong kick. The force behind the attack threw the woman several feet backwards, but she managed to regain her balance. "Hadan" Yugao sent two Chakra blades at the blond Nukenin.

"Tze" Naruto ducked underneath the attack the moment he had landed on his feet. The blades flew over his head. Out of reflex, he glanced to his left side.

"Rasengan"

With amazing speed, Jiraiya shot with a brightly shining Chakra ball at his godson and slammed it against his side. But instead of Minato´s son, only a thick tree branch was smashed to pieces.

Attentively, the Sannin scanned the area.

"Futon: Dai Daitoppa"

Behind the white-haired Sannin, a huge wide-scaled gust of wind built up. "Suiton: Sujinheki" Kakashi rushed to his rescue and set up a high water wall. Jiraiya then gathered Chakra in his mouth. "Doton: Banri Doryu Heki" Swiftly, the Sannin spat a generous amount of mud at the earth wall, which rose directly behind the water wall. The Futon Jutsu crashed against the dual defense without penetrating it.

Grinning, Naruto watched on as his Jutsu crumbled, crouching silently on a tree´s branch. Just as he wanted to resume his attack, he noticed countless small insects around the forest. He narrowed his eyes in curiosity and tried to sense his opponents´ Chakra, but he quickly noticed that his sensor abilities were being disrupted. ´Mmmh … I see … Mushi Jamingo no Jutsu, huh … this could become quite the problem….´

Just on time, the Akatsuki jumped into the air, as seconds later the tree on which he had sat was burnt to a crisp. High above the forest, he mused his opponents. Hana was till busy trying to heal Kakashi´s apprentice while Kurenai gave her cover. Kakashi, Jiraiya and Yugao prepared another attack, but his attention wasn´t focused on them. His gaze fell upon the lonely standing Aburame, several feet away from his female Sensei. ´So it´s the Aburame after all … I need to dispose of him first!´

Leisurely, Naruto spat a water bullet at the incoming fireball and made use of the cloud of hot steam. Quickly, he created an Oni Bunshin and retreated deeper into the forest, trying to avoid the many insects on his way.

His Bunshin quickly formed the necessary hand seals. "Futon: Kamikaze no Jutsu" Dense Chakra gathered in his open hand palms and fused into several huge vortexes, dashing with tremendous speed to the ground. Jiraiya, Kakashi and Yugao skillfully evaded the incoming tornados, but therefore they were pushed away from the rest of the group.

Seeing his chance, Naruto prepared another Jutsu. "Suiton: Rekku Suigeki" He spat countless water spears straight at Hana, Kurenai and Sakura. "Mushi Kame no Jutsu" Before the deadly Suiton Jutsu reached the group, thousands of small Kikaichuus flew around them and formed a protective rotating dome. The water projectiles crashed against the living shield without penetrating it.

Naruto´s Bunshin gracefully landed on the ground, gazing at the insect wall with mild interest. "Now then … Raiton: Byakurai!" Grinning, he shot a white lightning beam at the distracted Aburame, who still had some problems to uphold his protective Jutsu. Quickly, his grin faded away when the Konohanin was hit directly and collapsed into many Kikaichuus. ´I see … Mushi Bunshin, huh? I should have known … Aburame Clansmen are always careful with their enemies … the kid is good for his age!´

Out of reflex, the Nukenin ducked underneath two wind blades, which were sent at him courtesy of his Anbu girlfriend. His gaze fell upon Jiraiya and Kakashi, who both formed their own Jutsus.

"Kakashi … give me some fire!"

"Gama Yudan" The Sannin spat a huge torrent of oil out of his mouth, but that wasn´t all. "Katon: Endan" Kakashi´s fireball inflamed the oil and provoked a true inferno.

"Tze" The Jinchuriki was quick to react. "Suiton: Baku Suishoha" At the last moment, the Namikaze spat huge amounts of water out to counter the raging inferno.

Hot steam enclosed the battlefield.

From the corner of his eyes, he saw Yugao with drawn Katana storming in his direction. But his Sharingan told him that this was just an illusion. ´Genjutsu, huh? Where will you strike Nai-chan … or not?´ Curiously, Naruto lifted his head. Above him, thousands of Kikaichuus flew in the air and shaped into a small meteor.

"Interesting…." Hastily, the Akatsuki avoided the hail of insects, which fell down on him with amazing speed. "Tze … this is truly annoying!" Even with his new acquired Dojutsu, it was difficult to evade all the small insects, especially since they were still alive and could change their trajectory even during their flight. Some of them grazed his cloak and inflicted small cuts. "Enough of this! Futon: Kami Oroschi!" Naruto hurriedly created a strong vortex and sent it out against the Aburame´s Hidden Jutsu. The small Kikaichuus were immediately swept away and cut to countless pieces.

But Naruto let himself be distracted.

"Doton: Yomi Numa"

"What the?!" Naruto´s disturbed eyes looked down, noticing the swampland directly underneath his feet. He furiously glared at Jiraiya, who smirked cheekily. "Bastard…."

The Jinchuriki made his next move until his sight started to blur. ´Genjutsu?´ Quickly, his Sharingan saw the changed Chakra flow in the air and with enough Chakra, he cancelled the illusion. He noticed quite annoyingly that Shino made use of his Sensei´s distraction and sent out his Kikaichuus to attack. Several insects landed on his body and the Namikaze felt that his Chakra was being drained.

"Raikiri"

The Akatsuki realized the nearer coming Copy Ninja, his self-created Raiton Jutsu rustled in his right hand. Channeling Chakra into his feet, the silver-haired Jonin ran on top of the swamp without sinking in. Seconds later, Kakashi pierced the blond´s chest with his Raikiri.

Coldly, he glared at his old Sensei´s son. "This ends now Naruto!"

Blood leaked out of the corner of his mouth, his hollow eyes shifted over the present Shinobis. Kurenai and Yugao had averted their gaze while their forms trembled every now and then. Jiraiya was the only one who looked at him, sadness present in his eyes. But the mood dropped instantly when the Jinchuriki started to smile.

"Neh Hatake … still falling for the same old trick hehe!" The Copy Ninja widened his eyes. "Shit"

Smiling, the Oni Bunshin disappeared in a cloud of darkness.

Jiraiya reacted first. "Doton: Dojouheki" Quickly, a dome-like earth wall rose and protected Shino from the deadly sharp wind blade, who threatened to cut him in half.

"Too bad … thought I would have gotten him with that…."

Immediately, the Konohanins went once more into their battle stance while Naruto leisurely walked out of the partially burnt forest. "You are a good team … with good reflexes … especially you Jiraiya!"

Embarrassed, the Gama Sannin scratched the back of his head. "Hehe … there is still enough strength in these old bones of mine … I´m not so easily to kill by a brat like you!"

"We´ll see dear godfather!"

Yugao wiped the tears from her eyes, even though he was now their enemy she was still glad that he was alive. Then, she tightened the grip on her sword. "Naruto-kun is as good as always … and he is still careful." The Genjutsu Mistress nodded in agreement, she knew that the man was difficult to trick and she in fact hadn´t believed that they had gotten him earlier on.

"Ready for round two, huh?"

Without further words, the Akatsuki rushed at the group. Kakashi and Jiraiya followed the example and intercepted him mid-way. A heavy Taijutsu battle followed shortly after their clash. Both Konohanins immediately went into the offensive and covered the Nukenin with punches and kicks. Still, Naruto managed to hold his ground despite their ruthless assault. Grinning, he blocked and dodged every single try from his two opponents to break his defense, but the blond man quickly shifted to attack instead. He felt that the two Konohanins were starting to get restless and nervous. Without Sharingan, it would have been quite difficult to hold his ground against an elite Jonin and Sannin in a straight Taijutsu battle.

Graciously, Naruto ducked underneath Jiraiya´s punch and delivered a strong kick to Kakashi´s stomach. Coughing, the Jonin was thrown backwards. Quickly, the Sannin removed himself from his godchild and retreated back. The blond Jinchuriki felt an enormous heat building up behind his back.

"Katon: Karyu Endan" Yugao took advantage of the distraction and spat a strong jet of flames out. Roaring, the flames formed into a dragon´s head.

"Tze" Rapidly, Naruto performed his own Jutsu. "Raiton: Purazuma Boru" His electric bubble caught the full force of the Katon Jutsu. Still, the enormous heat caused him some trouble, even his cloak started to burn partially. "Suiton: Teppodama" He quickly spat a big water bullet at his Anbu friend. Yugao escaped the attack with a daring sideways roll, forcing her to cancel her Jutsu.

The danger being averted, his protective sphere disappeared while he dashed towards the Aburame. Quickly, he drew a Kunai and threw it at the Chunin. "Kage Kunai no Jutsu" The lone Kunai immediately multiplied into several hundreds and hit the unprepared Aburame. Silently, he the Mushi Bunshin dissolved.

"Tze … should have expected that." Leisurely, the Jinchuriki ducked underneath Kakashi´s Raikiri, turned around and punched the Jonin straight in his stomach. The Raiton Bunshin dispersed and unleashed it´s electrified tension. Thanks to his Sharingan, Naruto saw the Bunshin´s strange Chakra flow and channeled his own Raiton Chakra through his body to shield himself.

Effortlessly, the Akatsuki overwhelmed the clone´s Raiton Chakra and resumed his rush towards the real Aburame, who had appeared next to his Sensei. Per Shunsin, Jiraiya turned up on his way. Snorting in annoyance, the Uzumaki drew a Kunai once more and channeled his Chakra through it.

"Kuchiyose no Jutsu"

In a cloud of smoke, a near two-meter tall dark-red colored toad appeared, several armor plates decorating it´s skin. Naruto wasn´t impressed and stabbed at it, but his surprise was great when the animal parried the weapon with his forearm armor plates. Quickly, he backed off with a backflip and closed his right eye. Jiraiya widened his eyes considerably as blood leaked out of his godchild's closed eye.

"Amaterasu"

Black flames incinerated the summon´s body. Crying in agonizing pain, the toad disappeared in a cloud of smoke.

The Sannin was snapped out of his musings as Naruto stormed out of the smoke screen. Just on time, the white-haired man noticed three Kage Bunshins of the Namikaze appearing around him. All three clones quickly casted their Jutsus. "Futon: Kazekiri no Jutsu" Three sharp wind blades shot from their open hand palms.

"Ninpo: Hari Jizo" Jiraiya's usual spiky hair lengthened considerably and encased him in a protective cocoon. The wind blades ineffectively clashed against the Sannin´s steel hard hair. Seconds later, several hair needles shot from the cocoon and pierced the Bunshins.

Jiraiya was surprised that Naruto hadn´t used his clones opening and resumed his attack on the Aburame. "Damn"

Kurenai stood protectively in front of her student, knowing that the young teen was his target. She quickly tried to cast her illusion, but the Akatsuki didn´t gave her much attention as he was forced to parry the horizontal slash of Yugao´s sword with his own Kunai. ´Damn you Yugao!´ With more force behind, he pushed the Kunoichi off before he caught himself with his hand on the ground and kicked the Anbu straight in her stomach. Coughing, Yugao lost her concentration and lowered her defense. Abruptly, Naruto rose to his feet and gathered Chakra in his free hand. Yugao widened her eyes in fear as she saw how the beautiful but deadly Rasengan took form.

Not hesitating in the slightest, he sent the Chakra ball right at Yugao´s unprotected chest.

The purple-haired woman widened her eyes, as did the other Konohanins.

"DON´T DO IT NARUTO!"

"NO"

"YUGAO"

Kakashi dashed forwards, as well as Jiraiya, but they knew that they couldn´t reach them in time. ´Don´t do this Naruto! You´ll regret it for the rest of your life!´

All seemed to happen in slow motion. The futile tries of her fellow comrades to come to her rescue … the closer coming swirling ball … everything seemed to stop for the young woman.

Slowly, she closed her eyes. She didn´t want to see her death … her death by the man she loved.

Squelch

She heard the sound of blood flying in the air, the sound of metal piercing flesh. But she felt no pain.

Opening her eyes, she widened them slowly after. The sight, which greeted her, made her lose her words in her throat. She wasn´t the only one.

Naruto stood calmly in front of her, the menacing Rasengan still swirling in his hand, only inches apart from her chest. But what made him stop was the Kunai, which was stabbed in his forearm … his own Kunai.

Yugao raised her gaze and stared at the blond man´s face, which was distorted in pain and confusion. Then it hit her. Naruto had stabbed himself in his forearm, cutting his muscles to stop his move.

"N-naruto-kun", she whispered softly, momentarily forgetting that they were still in a fight.

Kakashi quickly appeared next to her, grabbed Naruto´s wrist and directed the Rasengan into the ground. Making use of the dust screen, he took hold of his former subordinate and brought her to safety. Landing next to Kurenai, he helped the Anbu to her feet, her startled gaze still lingering on the cloud of dust.

Seconds passed before the dust finally cleared. The Akatsuki still stood on his former location, right in front of a small crater that his Jutsu had created. Slowly, he rose to his full height, although his hair shadowed his eyes. Carefully, he pulled the Kunai from his bloody arm, throwing it carelessly to his side. Painfully slow, his healing factor came to be and started to close the wound.

"That … was unexpected…." Naruto´s raspy and deep voice resounded in the area, gaining the others´ attention. The Jinchuriki slowly lifted his gaze, his cold eyes once more glaring at the Konohanins. "A futile attempt … this doesn´t mean anything … they will still die in the end…."

The Jinchuriki interrupted his low speech the moment he noticed that countless Kikaichuus approached from all sides. "Mushi Dama" Shino immediately directed his insects at the Nukenin. In less than a second, Naruto was completely covered by them. Greedily, the insects started to feed on his Chakra.

Calmly, Shino watched on as his Kikaichuus made their work, but he suddenly became nervous. "Something agitates them … poisoned Chaka?!" Surprised, the Aburame watched as his insects fell lifeless off the Nukenin´s form.

Naruto took a deep breath. "Annoying little creatures … Chakra drainers, huh? Too bad … Aburame … but Youkai is pure poison for all those who aren´t Jinchurikis!" His deadly glare once again fell upon his prey.

"You´re alright Yugao?" Kakashi briefly glanced at the Anbu, who was still startled by her near death experience. "Y-yes … I´m … I´m alright, but … he would have killed me … he truly could have killed me there…." The Copy Ninja didn´t retort, his eyes focused on the Nukenin. ´That was too close … if he hadn´t stopped himself, the attack would have killed her … Naruto … you still feel something for them … fight against it … as you did all those years ago … you even went against my order to save her so … find the power to resist … I won´t let you kill them, you will regret it … I can´t let you live my life….´

Kurenai´s usually shinny eyes glowed in sadness. ´Naruto-kun … why?´

Yugao sobbed once more as she gazed at Naruto´s cold uncaring eyes … nothing was left … none of the warmth she had seen before. She tightened her grip on her Katana.

"Kuchiyose: Gamaguchi Shibari"

The Shinobis were startled out of their thoughts the moment they heard Jiraiya's shout.

Beneath the Akatsuki, a light-red sticky tissue formed. "Hoh?" Slowly, the Nukenin´s feet sunk into the tissue as several small tendrils bound his legs. Grunting in disgust, Naruto rolled his eyes.

"Gomen Naruto … not once has someone managed to escape from Gamaguchi´s stomach…." Giving it a test, the Jinchuriki tried to free himself, but it only served to sink deeper into the sticky tissue. "Tze"

Behind him, Shino appeared who calmly flew on a cloud of his insects over the tissue. "This fight ends now Namikaze-san." Calmly, the Nukenin gazed at the Chunin, who took some suppressing Fuins from his pocket. "I see … a good idea little one!"

"Futon: Hanachiri no Mai"

The attack come sudden and without warning. A strong vortex made out of petals hit Shino with full force and dragged him away. The Konohanin cried in pain as more and more cuts were delivered to his body while his clothing was partially shred to pieces. Then, the Futon Jutsu lost it´s power, the injured and unconscious Aburame was thrown hard to the ground.

"SHINO" Kurenai immediately hurried to her student, noticing with relief that he was still breathing.

"NARUTO-KUN"

The Jinchuriki glanced at the source, his partner dashing out of the forest and looked at him with worried eyes. "Yade yade" Carefully, Naruto summoned the black flames of Amaterasu, which quickly ate through the sticky material. The blond Nukenin freed himself from the Jutsu and jumped to his partner.

Not hesitating, Fuuka ran to him. "Naruto-kun … you´re alright?" The Uzumaki bit her under lip as her love interest didn´t answer her. "Nar…." Suddenly, Naruto turned towards her and grabbed the woman roughly by her neck. Effortlessly, he lifted Fuuka off the ground, not caring that the Uzumaki struggled in his grasp and that tears gathered in her eyes.

"Na..Narut..o..kun" Desperately, the redhead woman tried to free herself from the Jinchuriki´s iron grip, but it was in vain … the blond man only seemed to hold her tighter.

"Did I ask for your help … Fuuka? I already warned you once … stand in my way and I kill you … it seems my warning was fruitless…." True to his words, he tightened his grip on Fuuka´s neck, making it nearly impossible for her to breath. Her shaky hands went up to his hand while her eyes started to lose their shine.

Just as he wanted to end it, his eyes widened. His grasp loosened and Fuuka once again could breath fresh air. Then, he threw her to the ground, away from his weakly shaking form. Naruto shook his head several times, all the while musing his hand … the hand that nearly killed his fellow Uzumaki.

Then, he turned his attention to the Konohanins, who made use of the distraction to regroup.

Fuuka´s hurt and fearful eyes quickly gazed at the Namikaze, carefully rubbing her sore throat. Sobbing weakly, the Uzumaki closed her purple eyes. ´What … what is happening to you … Naruto-kun….´

Carefully, Kurenai laid her student next to Sakura, who was still being healed by Hana. Kakashi and Jiraiya frowned deeply as they glanced at the Kunoichi wearing the cloak of Akatsuki … and how brutally Naruto threw her away. As it appeared, the Namikaze didn´t want aid in his battle … which he declared quite loudly. But Yugao and Kurenai saw something else in the redhead´s eyes … the woman looked with the same eyes at him as they did … and that didn´t suit them.

Kurenai narrowed her eyes as she stood next to the Anbu. "This … I don´t like this Yugao-chan!" The Kenjutsu Mistress only nodded in response.

Naruto´s cold voice snapped them out of their thoughts.

"Enough of this child´s play … I already wasted too much time … mmh … it may be time to … test my newly acquired abilities…."

Immediately, Jiraiya´s alarm bells rang and he hastily jumped back, behind Kakashi and the two Kunoichis. "I have a really bad feeling … Kakashi, Kurenai, Yugao … you need to gain me some time…." Hurriedly, he pulled his mesh sleeves up, bit his thumb and smeared with his blood fine lines next to his eyes and cheeks. Finally, he pressed both his hand palms together. "We won´t survive if we don´t give our all in this fight … five minutes … then I´m ready!"

"Hai Jiraiya-sama!" But Kakashi wasn´t so confident. ´Easier said than done … I already used over half of my Chakra … Shino is out of the fight … only Kurenai and Yugao are able to continue the fight.´

Snorting, Naruto glared at his godfather with cold eyes. "One last try, huh? Tze be as it may … then let´s see what the legendary Gama Sennin of Konoha has to offer … but first…." His Mangekyo glowed dangerously as he glared at his two girlfriends and Hatake. "… first … we dispose of the weak!"

Kakashi tensed nervously. "DON´T LET IT TOUCH YOU!" Just on time, the Kunoichis reacted and jumped to their right, the Copy Ninja evading to the left.

"Amaterasu"

In mere seconds, a sea of black flames swallowed their former location. "Shit" Even Jiraiya needed to jump back in order to escape the raging inferno. The enormous heat made it quite difficult to breath, even from distance. With worried eyes, Jiraiya gazed at the spectacle. ´I pray … that they will hold out long enough….´

Kakashi quickly regained his composure. "Katon: Dai Endan" He inhaled deeply and spat a huge fire bullet at the Akatsuki. Naruto only mused the incoming fire threat with bored eyes, crossing his arms over his chest.

A loud explosion resounded in the close area as the fire bullet hit it´s target, black smoke and dust filled the air and blocked their view on the enemy. Kakashi remained prudent, his eyes narrowing as the dust cleared, giving sight to the supposedly injured Akatsuki.

His as well as the young women's eyes widened as they saw the Nukenin, without a scratch or burn … an unholy black-white layer enclosed him as well as a thick spin with matching rib bones, which protected the Jinchuriki like a second skin.

"What … what is this for a Jutsu?!" The Hatake narrowed his eyes, having a terrible feeling about what was coming.

"Foolish Hatake … I already told you … I´m done with you!"

Quickly, the Jonin performed a long row of hand seals. "I see … how will you dodge this … Raiton: Raiju Hashiri no Jutsu!" Lightning gathered in his hands and took the shape of a big Raiton wolf. Roaring, the beast stormed at Naruto.

"Tze" Clearly unimpressed, the Uzumaki let the lightning beast reach him. The Jutsu ineffectively crashed against Susanoo´s outer shell. Still, a short grin sneaked on his face while he enjoyed the Copy Ninja´s shocked expression. "Ninjutsus are useless … nothing can penetrate this defense!" ´At least nothing from this world … Yamato on the other hand … well that´s another story hehe!´

Kakashi swallowed hard as he saw how shoulder blades formed above the ribcage, a right bone arm followed shortly after, armed with four sharp claws. ´This means bad news….´

"Kurenai" The woman briefly glanced at her childhood friend. "What Yugao-chan?" The purple-haired beauty frowned. "Try to use Genjutsu … he needs to be distracted … if you can keep him inside your illusions, then maybe his Jutsu will collapse…."

The Genjutsu Mistress just gazed at the threatening form of Susanoo with unsure eyes. "Easier said than done … Sharingan can easily see through Genjutsu … Kyuubi not to forget … but … we should give it a try … we don´t seem to have any other options!" Several hand seals were already formed.

"Magen: Jigoku Goku no Jutsu"

Immediately, Naruto noticed the changed Chakra flow in the air. Interested, he lifted one of his eyebrow´s. ´So they try Genjutsu first, huh? I see … show me what you´ve learned … neh … Nai-chan!´ Casually, he saw that his Susanoo had disappeared before he felt an enormous heat. "Hoh?" Grinning, he gazed at the sky, as a gigantic fire meteor came down onto the earth. The heat became quickly too much to bear, starting to burn the whole landscape … Naruto could already feel the pain … could feel how his skin melted slowly.

Quickly, he dispersed the illusion with a strong Chakra output. His surprise was great as he found himself in a deep stinky swamp. Suddenly, several spiky tendrils shot from the morass and wrapped themselves around him. ´A two-layered Genjutsu, huh? Nice Nai-chan … but not good enough….´ Kurenai manifested in front of the Namikaze, a lone Kunai in her right hand. Shaking, the young woman pointed the weapon at his neck. "Please give up … Naruto-kun … don´t make me do this … not to you…."

"You underestimate the Sharingan…." Before Kurenai could retort, the tendrils around the Nukenin had vanished. Not hesitating, he rammed the Kunai in the woman´s stomach. Pain swelled his very body as the woman exploded in a cloud of pink petals. The sharp petals bore deeply into his body. Gasping in pain, Naruto sank to his knees.

Behind him, Kurenai emerged, gazing at the man she loved with hollow eyes. "I am not without reason Konoha´s Genjutsu Mistress … the Sharingan is only a tool…." A cold breath brushed her neck and startled her. "And I say it once again … don´t underestimate the Sharingan…." Before the black-haired woman could react, her sight went black while her body became stiff and unable to move. A black-white gigantic demon appeared in front of the paralyzed Kunoichi. The last thing she saw were two clawed hands, which started to crush her.

Only some seconds had passed in the real world when Kurenai started to scream in horror and fell to her knees, gasping and whimpering weakly.

With a snort, Naruto turned his eyes off the broken Kunoichi. He noticed just on time how two hands came from underneath the ground and grasped his ankles. Quickly, the Uzumaki channeled Raiton Chakra through his body. Screaming, the Kage Bunshin beneath him dispersed.

"So foolish…."

"Konoha Ryu Mikazuki no Mai"

Naruto looked to his sides, seeing two of Yugao´s Kage Bunshins with drawn Katana dashing at him. But the Akatsuki knew this technique, knowing that it couldn´t hurt his ghostly warrior. The clones slashed their blades against Susanoo´s outer ribs without leaving a single scratch. Ignoring the Bunshins, he looked at the sky.

Yugao came down from the sky, a Katana in both hands. "Hiryu Kaen" The Kunoichi slashed with amazing speed, the high-speed cut creating two sparkles, which quickly caught fire. Two great fire snakes saw the light of day and rushed at the Nukenin.

"Impressive swordsmanship display…." Briefly, the Akatsuki glanced over his shoulder. "Suiton: Suiryudan no Jutsu" Kakashi made use of Yugao´s attack and prepared his own Jutsu. A huge water dragon shot right at his back.

"I said it once … it´s useless…." Both Jutsus mercilessly crashed against the outer bones of his warrior. Yugao´s Bunshins dissolved as Susanoo had to endure the entire force of the two elements. But the attack remained fruitlessly.

Several seconds passed before both Jutsus lost their power. Yugao landed graciously on the ground and dashed towards the Nukenin, channeling Chakra through her two blades. The swords clashed with the steel hard bones, without penetrating them. "Gomen … Yu-chan…."

From the corner of her eyes, the Anbu noticed how the ghostly warrior lifted his arm and balled his hand to a fist. Just barely, Yugao managed to parry the incoming fist with her blades, but she wasn´t prepared for the enormous force behind Susanoo´s punch. Brutally, the Kunoichi was thrown backwards, groaning in pain as she crashed on the ground and slid several meters over it.

"One down … so … where is the last one…." Quickly, he located the Chakra signature. "… hiding is useless against a sensor … Amaterasu!" Kakashi barely avoided his certain fire death. Black flames completely erased the tree on which he had sat. He landed on safe feet, having put some distance between them.

Naruto chuckled dryly. "Excellent reflexes … as expected from Konoha´s famous Copy Ninja … however … what does your defense has to say…." In Susanoo´s open palm, a blood-red substance took shape, quickly forming into a three-bladed Chakra mass.

"Yasaka no Magatama"

Wit tremendous speed, the Chakra mass was shot at the silver-haired Jonin.

With widened eyes, Kakashi looked at his imminent doom. ´Shit … I need to use it … even though I already passed my limit….´ His Sharingan merged into another form.

"Kamui"

Naruto lifted his eyebrows in surprise while his Chakra projectile vanished inside of a swirling distortion. He smirked weakly. ´Interesting … so Hatake managed to awaken the Mangekyo in the end, but….´

Gasping for breath, Kakashi was forced to his knees, that last Jutsu having consumed all the Chakra he had left. Unconsciousness became a threat as his sight started to blur.

Making use of his opponent´s weakness, Naruto dashed with his activate Susanoo at the weakened Jonin. The ghost warrior balled his hand to a fist.

"SHINNE HATAKE!"

The Nukenin laughed darkly as Susanoo´s fist reached the Jonin.

´Obito … Rin … Sensei … I´m sorry…´ He gazed tiredly at his death.

But it didn´t came.

Naruto widened his eyes in surprise as Susanoo´s arm was smacked away. Abruptly, the Namikaze stopped in his tracks and frowned. "Now this is quite the interesting turn … still … it seems your preparation has finally come to an end, neh … my dear godfather!"

Kakashi gazed at his savior with tired eyes. "Jiraiya-sama" Indeed, the Gama Sennin has come to rescue, but the Jonin felt that something about him was different. He closed his eyes in relief, it seemed they had stalled enough time for the Sannin.

Naruto´s curious gaze fell upon the white-haired man. ´Mmmh … his aura has changed considerably … it´s far stronger and more … peaceful … interesting … but his appearance has also changed slightly … and those two toads on his shoulders….´

"Good work Kakashi … it took a while longer than expected, but now … I take him on, you can rest some time Kakashi…." Jiraiya´s famous smile came to life as he posed arrogantly. "My enemies fear me … the women love me … keep your breath, then I am the gallant … JIRAIY…."

"DON´T SHOUT IN MY EAR!"

Two small fists crashed against his cheeks and halted him in his speech. The Sannin wanted to cry miserably. ´Why Kami-sama … please tell me why someone always needs to ruin my poses? What did I do….´

Disappointed, Naruto shook his head, all the while musing his opponent. The man hadn´t changed much, apart from his large nose with warts, the white goatee and smaller eyes. But the two toads on his shoulders gathered Naruto´s attention. Both were probably summons of the Gama Sennin: the toad on his right shoulder wore a dark-green coat, obviously male and already quite old … the frog had a small white goatee, big bushy eyebrows and his hair was kept in a light Mohawk … his yellow eyes stood in contrast to his light green skin. The toad on his left was female and had the same eyes, but another skin color: face and stomach were light green while the back as well as head were purple. In addition, the frog had many fat warts and wore a simple high-collar cloak.

Naruto grinned weakly. It seemed he could get some more amusement.

Hana breathed a sigh of relief, having already feared that Kakashi would have be killed … she knew that Naruto would have gone for the kill. The Inuzuka was busy healing her friend Kurenai, who was still very weak and distraught. The Sharingan seemed to have caused quite the damage.

"Wuff" Smiling, Hana turned her head to the side, one of her Ninkens had lifted Yugao on it´s back and brought her to the only available healer. "Thanks Mashiro … lay Yugao-chan down, right next to Sakura-san!" Her thought drifted towards the only two Chunins of the team … both had suffered heavy damage … especially Sakura … even though all her healing, the pink-haired girl´s life was still at risk. If she didn´t receive Tsunade-sama´s healing in the next hours, she might very well die. Shino wasn´t in such bad shape … he was only short on Chakra and suffered countless small cuts, but his blood loss was under control.

Quickly, the heiress swallowed a soldier pill to restore her Chakra reserves. Much needed to be done.

Cursing, Jiraiya rubbed his right cheek. "Is it already too much to ask … just on time … just one time I want to actually finish my super introduction…."

"Why have you summoned us Jiraiya-chan?" The male toad looked at him, interest visible in his eyes. "I hope for you Koso that you have a good reason … I already had our supper ready on the stove!" The purple colored frog grumbled in a disapproving tone.

The Sannin chuckled. "Gomen ... Pa … Ma … but the current situation needs my full strength … without Sennin Moodo, I won´t be able to win!" Fukasaku only lifted one eyebrow, shaking his head with a sigh.

"You should finally learn to do it alone Jiraiya-chan … it´s time to master Senjutsu once and for all!" Shima nodded with a grumble. Curiously, she looked around until her eyes caught sight of the Akatsuki. Her eyes widened in recognition.

"Koso … that … that is…."

Fukasaku followed her gaze, his surprise being great. "Minato-chan's child … Naruto-chan … what´s the meaning of this Jiraiya-chan?"

The white-haired man breathed heavily. "Naruto already left Konoha years ago … and joined Akatsuki, a criminal organization … I still don´t know their true goal, but they are after the Bijuus … it´s too complicated to explain now…."

"Bijuu? I see … that doesn´t sound very good … so … he is our enemy, huh?" The Sannin nodded hesitantly. "Hai … he … he´s not like Minato … or Kushina … I fear he will cause great disaster if we don´t stop him now … and as his godparent, it is my duty to do so…." Shima looked compassionately at him. "Koso"

Shima glanced at her husband. "Shouldn´t Minato´s child be the … the child of prophecy?" The male toad closed his eyes, deep in thoughts. "Mmmh … either the savior of this world … or it´s destroyer … to think that it came to this…."

"I should have taken care of him … I could have prevented all this from happening … and now … I think I´m forced to kill my godchild in the end…." A lone tear fell to the ground. Fukasaku sighed deeply. "That doesn´t matter now … he choose his path and we´ll respect it … you´ve chosen your own … Minato-chan wouldn´t want to see his child like this … Jiraiya-chan … it needs to be done if he doesn´t listen to reason!"

The Gama Sennin kept quiet, musing the Nukenin until his eyes hardened. "Hai … we don´t have a choice … he already chose to walk the path of darkness…."

Naruto laughed spitefully. "Hehehe … long have I awaited this moment … my dear godfather … I will enjoy it … how the life slowly fades out of your eyes … you will suffer immense pain … a fraction of what I had to endure during my life…."

Worriedly, Jiraiya as well as his two summons watched on as Naruto´s Susanoo became bigger: the left arm manifested, as well as the skull of the ethereal warrior … the skull of a true demon: razor-sharp teeth, four eye sockets and a horn on each side of his head. A threatening sea of red-black flames glowed in the four eye sockets and the nasal cavity.

Shaken to her very core, Fuuka fled into the destroyed ruins of the once proud Uchiha hideout. As far away from the battle as she could possible get. The Uzumaki knew that the Sannin´s death was imminent. As natural sensor, she had felt Naruto´s aura … an aura, which she had never felt before.

An aura of darkness and void … the Chakra that the Jinchuriki radiated off laid heavy and choking in the air. He resembled a demon … a powerful demon … nothing reminded the redhead woman of her love.

Only darkness.

Fuuka bit her under lip, full of despair. "Naruto-kun"

The said blond-haired man grinned cruelly at his opponent. "Show me what the mighty Sannin of Konoha has to offer … Jiraiya!"

"You leave me with no other choice then…." His look hardened while the white-haired man took a deep breath. "Senpo: Goenkyu" The Sannin spat a huge fireball out, having nearly the fourth to fifth seize of a normal Gokakyu no Jutsu. The swath of fire burnt everything on it´s way, the enormous heat making it hard to even breathe.

Grinning, Naruto let his Susanoo intercept the Katon Jutsu. His warrior easily caught the fireball with his right bone hand and simply crushed it. A strong shockwave shook the area the moment the great fireball was destroyed.

Jiraiya made use of his attack and appeared on all fours behind the Jinchuriki. "Senpo: Kebari Senbon" Faster as the eye could blink, his hair mane came to life and shot countless sharp hair needles at Susanoo´s back. Naruto noticed his opponent´s Chakra signature moments later. ´He´s fast!´ Thousands of small hair needles crashed against the spine and ribcage of his Jutsu. Small cracks started to appear, making the Namikaze frown.

The Sannin mused the extent of his Jutsu´s damage with a frown. ´This is bad … Kebari Senbon is my fastest attack with the most widest range … and it almost didn´t do any damage! What kind of Jutsu is this?!´

"Jiraiya-chan" Fukasaku´s voice snapped him out of his musings. His godchild only glared at him with bleeding eyes. "SHIT" Just on time, the Gama Sennin jumped in the air, the black flames of Amaterasu swallowed his former position.

"Koso look out!" With widened eyes, Jiraiya saw Susanoo´s fist coming down at him. But Shima reacted faster. Channeling Senjutsu in her tongue, the wet and slimy appendage shot right out of her mouth and wrapped around the ghost warrior´s arm. The small toad brought Jiraiya out of reach, evading the attack effectively.

He landed safely several meters away from Naruto. His inner alarm clocks rang as the hairs on his neck stood up.

"Yasaka no Magatama"

The Konohanin disappeared in a swirl of leaves. Not a second to late, then a Chakra projectile slammed into his former location.

Even Naruto´s Sharingan couldn´t keep up with the Sannin´s speed. Before the Akatsuki could react, Jiraiya appeared right in front of him and delivered a powerful punch. "Kawazu Tataki" With all his might, the Sannin punched the outer ribs of Susanoo with his open palm.

Perplexed, Naruto saw how the bones slowly started to crack. Seconds later, the entire force behind the punch was unleashed. The Namikaze felt a mighty shockwave coming from the Sannin´s punch. "Tze" Surprisingly, the Nukenin together with his Susanoo was thrown backwards.

It took him some effort not to fall on his back, but to remain on his feet. Leading Chakra into his feet so that the Jinchuriki stopped to slide over the ground. Even Susanoo´s claws dug into the ground to withstand the force.

Finally, the Akatsuki came to a stop.

The Namikaze softly rubbed his neck. ´That was … dangerous … the old fool is fast and strong … even I can´t allow myself to engage him in a straight Taijutsu battle … tze … as if I´m fighting Gai all over again….´ He briefly glanced at the damaged rib bones of his ethereal warrior. ´I´m impressed that he managed to damage my Susanoo´s outer layer with pure strength … that form and Chakra he took … this Sennin Moodo increases his abilities to unknown highs … mmh … Susanoo´s first form might not be able to withstand more … I don´t have a choice but to try and force more out of it … let´s see how Sasuke´s Mangekyo fairs in direct combat … even though I couldn´t do much training with it….´

Naruto increased his Chakra level. On each of Susanoo´s elbows, another arm manifested before muscles and skin started to spread over the skeleton. In both his left hands, a huge almost invisible shield appeared, the Yata no Kagami. In his right under arm, an orb of black flames of Amaterasu came to life before they focused into a black liquid sword, made out of the flames of the strongest fire Jutsu. Finally, Susanoo was clad in a traditional Samurai armor: chest-, shoulder- as well as forearm plates took shape. The demon head disappeared in a Tengu like mask, but the four glowing eyes could still be seen out of it.

Jiraiya swallowed hard. "That … doesn´t look good…." Quickly, the Sannin performed a set of hand seals. "Pa … Ma … fire and wind if you may!"

"Senpo: Goemon"

Hurriedly, the Konohanin spat a huge torrent of oil out. Shima on the other hand spat a jet of fire out and inflamed the oil while Fukasaku blew a strong wind, further sparkling the fire wave.

Snorting, Naruto watched on as the combination attack came closer. It seemed as if the swath of fire covered up the whole horizon.

"Meiton: Kurouzu"

A wall of pure darkness rose from the ground and stood protectively in front of his creator. Greedily, the flames licked the wall until they were finally absorbed into the eternal darkness.

Before Jiraiya could react, several black tendrils shot from the ground underneath his feet and wrapped themselves around him. Fruitlessly, the Sannin started to jib at the tendrils, but he couldn´t free himself.

Naruto smirked smugly. "Let´s give this a try … Enton: Yasaka no Magatama!" The Amaterasu orb swirled around before several small Chakra masses shot from the orb and hit the Sannin head-on. The elder man screamed in pain as the black flames slowly started to turn him to dust.

Seconds later, the Kage Bunshin disappeared in a cloud of smoke.

Naruto narrowed his eyes. "I see."

Immediately, the Jinchuriki felt the Chakra of his opponent behind his back. Jiraiya dashed at his warrior´s back, ready to crush it this time with all his strength.

Naruto only smiled. "Enton: Kokuen no Tate"

Black flames covered Susanoo´s armor. Jiraiya widened his eyes, as he couldn´t stop his rush anymore. Fukasaku reacted almost immediately and spat a condensed jet of water right at Susanoo´s back.

Because of the water´s force, Fukasaku could easily stop the Sannin´s movement and at the same time, the toad could catapult them away from the Akatsuki. The Konohanin breathed a sigh of relief, but suddenly the ground behind him cracked open and a big black tendril shot at him … impaling him right through his stomach.

Naruto enjoyed his godfather´s shocked expression, but his smile quickly faded away as the supposed Sannin turned into mud. "Doton: Bunshin no Jutsu … so where is the real one, huh?" Quickly, his sensor abilities had spotted his opponent.

The Nukenin gazed at the sky.

Jiraiya came down from the sky, but that didn´t disturb him. What disturbed him more was the meter thick gigantic Rasengan, which the Sannin had formed. Snorting, he brought his Susanoo in position, ready to intercept the strong Jutsu before it could hit him.

"Senpo: Cho Odama Rasengan"

Just on time, Naruto delivered a powerful slash with his Amaterasu sword, hitting the giant swirling ball before the Sannin could reach him.

Strong shockwaves crossed the battlefield as the two forces collided.

Both sides concentrated on their respective Jutsus, trying to overpower the other one, not wanting to lose a single meter of ground. Jiraiya quickly channeled more Senjutsu, which Fukasaku and Shima constantly gathered, into his Rasengan. Naruto only enforced his sword with more black flames.

But after several seconds it became quite clear that no one could gain the upper hand.

Naruto frowned until a smirk sneaked on his face. Slowly, he stretched his right arm out at Jiraiya´s Jutsu. "Meiton: Burakku Horu" Darkness poured out of his open palm and flowed Susanoo´s arm up, joining with the Amaterasu sword. Then slowly, the Rasengan was clouded by darkness.

Jiraiya felt how he slowly but steadily lost control of his Jutsu. It only took a few seconds before the usually light-blue Chakra ball was completely covered by darkness.

Jiraiya only blinked … and his Rasengan had vanished … simply vanished in thin air … without leaving a trace. Thrown out of his composure, he fell forward.

"SHINNE"

The blade made of black flames cut right through the Sannin while the flames quickly consumed both halves of his corpse. Immediately, the Kage Bunshin dispersed in a cloud of white smoke.

"What?!"

"Doton: Doryudan no Jutsu"

The Akatsuki casually noticed as a dragon made of mud and earth took shape and dashed right at his left side. "Tze" Quickly, Susanoo lifted it´s Yata no Kagami. Roaring, the earth dragon crashed against the ethereal shield, but the attack didn´t cause any damage. Piece by piece, the Doton Jutsu was sucked into the shield until it had completely vanished.

Jiraiya made use of his distraction and appeared several meters away from his godchild. Before the ghostly warrior could launch a counterattack, the Sannin slammed both his hands to the ground.

"Doton: Chidokaku"

The ground underneath the Nukenin´s feet broke up and a square expanse of ground moved high in the air. The earth block rose several feet in the air until it suddenly stopped. However, Naruto as well as his Susanoo was propelled further in the air.

"Ma now!"

"Already at it Koso!" Once more, Shima´s tongue extended and shot out of her mouth … right at the unprotected underside of the ethereal warrior. Gritting his teeth, Naruto felt how the slimy tongue wrapped itself around his left ankle.

Then, the pressure increased and the Jinchuriki was pushed downwards … out of the protective confine of his Susanoo. "Shit" The tongue loosened it´s grip while Naruto tried to form several hand seals, but he didn´t come far.

"Ninpo: Ranjishigami no Jutsu"

Jiraiya´s mane extended and took the form of a widely opened snout with sharp teeth. Before Naruto could finish his Jutsu, the hair beast had reached him and secured him in a vice grip. "Bastard … a if this could bind me for long!"

Susanoo let out one last deep cry before it vanished from their sights … now that it´s summoner didn´t feed it anymore with Chakra.

Jiraiya gazed hollowly at him. Shima and Fukasaku also seemed to sad as they looked at Minato´s child … knowing that he had to die. "Gomen … Naruto…."

Blood leaked out of the corners of his mouth as the Namikaze was pierced by dozens of steel-hard stakes in the deadly embrace of the hair beast. Slowly, his movements started to come to an end until he just hang lifelessly in the hair mane.

Silence once more fell upon the usually deserted area.

"To think that Minato-chan´s child would end like this … truly a shame…." Shima only nodded at her man´s words. "Yes a pity indeed … he should have saved this world from the darkness … but in the end, he was also swallowed by the hatred … succumbed to the darkness that spread across these lands … he should have followed his father´s footsteps, but not like this … maybe we were too naïve … a Jinchuriki like him … would have never been able to see the good of this world…."

"Na...naruto..kun" Yugao fell to her knees, tears were dripping on the cold ground as she gazed at the lifeless form of the only man she came to love. Her sobs became heavier and louder as she realized … he was dead … truly dead … he had left her once more … but this time to a place where she couldn´t follow him. Kurenai felt the same, hiding her teary eyes behind her hands as several sobs left her throat. "W-why … why did it have to … end like this?"

Kakashi only closed his eyes, sending a silent pray to the son of his old Sensei.

Distressed, Hana fondled her Ninkens soft fur. Even the strong Inuzuka heiress had trouble to keep the tears at bay, even after all those years and even if he never had reciprocated her advances, it was hard for her to see his death.

Suddenly, her three Ninkens started to growl softly.

"Our work here is done Jiraiya-chan!"

The Sannin gave a short nod. "Hai I thank you two very much for you…."

"KOSO"

All eyes immediately fell upon the Sannin. A blood covered Katana jutted out of his stomach.

Hold by none other than Naruto Namikaze.

"You have overestimated yourself … neh Jiraiya?" He smoothly pulled Yamato out of the Nin and kicked him hard in his back. Groaning weakly, the Sannin landed several feet away from his team. Coughing ropes of blood, he raised himself to his elbows and gazed at his godchild with half-lidded eyes. "H..how?"

The Nukenin raised one eyebrow in surprise, his Mangekyo Sharingan glowing menacingly. "How you ask … can´t you think of an answer for yourself … I just replaced my position with one of my Oni Bunshin I had created long before our little fight started…." Grinning, he pointed at the dissolving body of his clone. "But I´m quite surprised … Yamato doesn´t feast on your pitiful soul … so I wonder why…." He briefly glanced at the weakened toads on Jiraiya´s shoulders. "… mmmh interesting … it appears that their Senjutsu protects you from it … indeed quite the interesting and useful ability you have there Jiraiya!"

The Sannin didn´t reply while Shima and Fukasaku desperately tried to heal him with Senjutsu.

"But I feel the need to congratulate you … this could have truly ended bad for me … good for me that I´m still quite the prudent one." Smiling, the Jinchuriki shouldered Yamato. "Although … your journey has come to an end … still, you managed to amuse me for some time ... your deaths will be swift…."

Leisurely, the Akatsuki walked towards the downed team.

But suddenly, he stopped in his tracks. A small smirk sneaked on his face.

"Is it time for you to step into the light…."

Slowly, Naruto turned his head, gazing at the person with his activated Eien Mangekyo Sharingan, who appeared behind him.

"Tobi"

Let´s end it here folks! Hope you liked the Chapter and that it wasn´t to much fighting based, the next one will be less fighting. And as I already stated at the beginning, you can expect the eight Chapter sometimes during the month of July because of my exams. There will be also two lemons so the chapter will be quite long hehe.

And since the last two months, I kinda have a new idea for a story in my head and I´m not quite sure if I should start to write it down. Personally, I think I should finish this story first, but hellas that may take some years because still so much needs to be told (I only finished, well let´s say 15%). But I´m really unsure, especially since now the exams are coming up and other things … but I could at least tell you my idea. It would be a Naruto Highschool DxD crossover and since I recently started to watch Fairy Tail, it would include some of the characters. In fact, I already have the complete story in my head, minus the smaller details just like with this story, so here I give you a slight teaser if I should ever decide to write the crossover down.

A World worth saving

Hot steam filled the spacious bathroom as the glass door to the shower opened. A tall blond man stepped out, covered in countless drops of water. Sighing pleasantly, he quickly pulled a towel out of the shelf and drew his hair off. Wrapping the towel around his waist, the blond man gazed at the mirror right in front of him..

He sighed melancholy as he mused his appearance.

´So much changed these past decades … I've truly gotten old … all the pain and losses … I can hardly even remember my old life.´ Carefully, the man touched a nasty looking scar, which went straight through his left eye, degrading the otherwise handsome face. He winced as the memories came back.

Naruto took a deep breath before he steeled himself and left the bathroom. Entering his large bedroom, he walked straight to the large table next to his broad bed. Silently, he grabbed a bottle of brandy and poured some of the liquid into a glass.

Shaking his head, he took hold of the glass and stopped in front of the large window, gazing hollowly at the beautiful sundown. The late hour still sent some rays of sun into the chamber, casting wide shadows over the floor and walls.

´Beautiful … majestic … and yet so deadly … nature has sure given us such beauty to look upon….´ Taking a good gulp of the brandy, Naruto clicked his tongue, enjoying the cold liquor flowing down his throat.

´This world … is not ready yet….´

Pouring the last of his drink down, he sat on the bed, putting the glass back down on the counter. His eyes became tired, the eyes of a hardened warrior who had seen too much in his life … things he would never forget and haunted him even in his deepest dreams.

´It won´t be the same here … not as long as I still live….´

The blond-haired man didn´t show any signs of surprise when the door to his private chambers opened and someone stepped through, closing it once more. He could hear the soft sound of clothing falling to the wooden floor, only seconds later did the bed slightly start to shake as the person crawled onto it.

A small smile sneaked on his lips as two slender arms wrapped around his neck, pulling the rest of a warm naked body against his back. Naruto now smiled in content as he felt two soft pillows press against his back while the owner´s head rested on his right side, her warm breath tickling his ear and cheek.

His right hand came up to caress her arms. "May I presume that the mission I gave you was a success?" Naruto in fact didn´t even need to voice his question, as he knew that the woman was very eager and followed his orders without complaining.

She had never failed him since he first met her all those years ago. Not once.

The woman nodded happily. "Of course Naruto-kun … it took me some more time, but in the end … it was quite easy to gain possession…." Her soft and loving voice was like music to his ears, her warm embrace gave him the hope he needed.

His eyes became more determinate.

Yes … this was the path he needed to take.

"Wonderful … let me see it!"

The woman didn´t answer, she only stretched her left arm out. Naruto took the clue and stretched his own free hand out. A small, but heavy object fell into his open palm.

The former Jinchuriki brought the piece closer to his face, musing it with his eyes. It seemed like a simple unimportant polished stone, not bigger than his palm. The jewel was in a deep green color and even though it had been long since forgotten, he could still feel the power within it.

The number three was engraved in the jewel.

"Yes … a step closer to our goal … you did well … as expected … you never disappoint me."

The woman sighed happily, tightening her embrace, her face nuzzled into the golden shining mop of hair, taking in his scent. "What will we do now? Surely our presence will be noticed by the Three Factions with my action last night … soon they will come for us."

Naruto hummed softly. "Let them be … they are of no concern for me … a far greater threat will arrive in this world … very soon so … the pieces are starting to move…."

The two gazed at the last rays of sunshine.

"Yes … we need to prepare ourselves … this world won´t be ready to fight this war … no … the slaughter that will undoubtfully swallow these lands…."

"Is there no hope?"

Her question made him pause. It was the same question she had voiced … when he was still a human … a long time ago … he didn´t have an answer back then.

But now he had.

"Iie … as long as we stand and fight for this world … for our future … for all the people that had to suffer … we will fight the darkness that threatens to swallow this world … I won´t let it repeat itself … not as long as I still have some fighting sprit left in me…."

The woman smiled. She always did when she saw a fraction of his true self … she loved the man he had became … he still fought despite all that had happened to him and his world … he was a true fighter … a beacon of hope for this world, even though the humans and other races will never know of this. He was a person she never thought would come across her … and yet here she was … she was probably the only one who really knew him … she wanted him … and she would have him.

A father to her children should this world still live after the war.

She smiled even wider as she listened to his heartbeat.

"The remaining pieces are still needed…."

She only nodded. He chuckled weakly. "What would I be if not for you?"

Her delicate hand came up and grasped his chin, turning his head to face her.

Royal silver hair like he had never seen it before by any other person always caught his attention and made him stunned. Even though the sun had already disappeared on the horizon, her hair was still shining and casted some light across his bedchamber. Her matching silver eyes gazed lovingly into his very own eyes while her beautiful flawless face glowed. Her red-coated full lips formed into a pretty smile.

Yes, she was definitely one of a kind.

"I think we both know what the answer would be, don´t we Naruto-kun?"

He chuckled warmly, his right hand travelling through her beautiful hair and brought her head even closer to his. She didn´t resist.

"I would be sulking and pitying myself … yes … I would still be a nervous wreck if not for you…."

She hummed softly, already feeling his warm breath on her lips.

"We still have much to do…."

"True" She carefully traced down his whisker marks, enjoying how he slightly leaned into her soft touch. "We are few in numbers … and each one of the Factions as well as the humans will see us as threat … we are alone against this world and the looming darkness Naruto-kun!"

"Alone you say … that may be true, but far more powerful we are … nothing that we couldn´t handle … in the end, they are meaningless…."

The silver-haired beauty gave him the most radiant smile he had ever seen.

He smiled in response. Leaning forward, he planted a soft kiss on her supple lips.

But Naruto quickly broke the contact, smirking as she frowned in response.

"You seem quite eager, neh … my Grayfia-chan." The now named Grayfia hummed softly before she pulled his head closer, their lips once more meeting in a soft yet passionate kiss.

He could allow himself to enjoy this one moment of peace and happiness.

The time was closing up.

And there you have it! Hope you liked it … and damn now that I´ve written this small part, I´m kinda anxious to start writing it for true … not really a good timing…. Be as it may, how did you find it? I still don´t know if I should keep it strictly Naruto x Grayfia or if it should have some other women he loved. The story would feature a less colder, but still very manipulative Naruto who would do everything to achieve his goals. Bah I don´t even want to tell you much, but I´m quite positive that I will write it as a side story next to this one. I just don´t know when I would be able to upload it.

So after all, this I´m quite tired. Please leave reviews so that I can read your opinions, you can even PM me if you have more urgent questions to ask if it can´t wait for July. Ja Ne folks!

Author´s Note:

As you have noticed, I am taken quite a lot from Sasuke´s Mangekyo form for Naruto´s purposes. Even though I don´t like Sasuke very much, I can´t deny the fact that Kishimoto gave him quite awesome moves (although I nearly puked when he gave Sasuke the Rinnegan in the latest Manga chapter … and what does Naruto get? Another lame Chakra Mode … for Jesus Christ, give him finally a more serious Jutsu repertoire! And a brain to use if you please may!). Everything´s better than Naruto Canon….

Lexicon:

Gaki=Brat

Baka=idiot

Koso=Little Brat/Child

Teme=Bastard

Arrigato=Thanks

Ja ne=Goodbye

Gomen=Sorry

Shinne=Die

Hai=yes

Iie=No

Matte=Wait

Sensei=Teacher

Danna=Master

Shisou=Master

Daimyo=Feudal Lord

Tou=Father

Kaa=Mother

Aniki=Big Brother

Hime=Princess

Megami=Beauty

Koi=Love

Koibito=Lover/Sweetheart

Tenshi=Angel

Kami=God

Neko=cat

Kanji=Letter

Kyuubi no Youko=Nine-tailed Demon Fox

Nanabi/Sichibi=Seven-tailed Rhino Beetle

Rokubi=Six-tailed Slug

Gobi=Five-tailed Horse

Sanbi=Three-tailed Turtle

Nibi no Nekomanta=Two-tailed Hellfire Cat

Ichibi/Shukaku=One-tailed Tanuki

Ningen=Human

Ninken=Dog

Oni=Demon

Ojji=Old Man

Shinobi=Ninja

Kunoichi=Female Ninja

Nukenin=Missing Nin

Ninso=Ninja Monk

Hebi=Snake

Gama=Toad

Hitaiate=Forehead Protector

Hi no Tera=Temple of Fire

Akatsuki=Dawn/Daybreak

Ku=Void

Shu=Scarlet

Hi no Kuni=Land of Fire

Kaminari no Kuni=Land of Lightning

Mizu no Kuni=Land of Water

Tsuchi no Kuni=Land of Rocks

Kaze no Kuni=Land of Wind

Ame no Kuni=Land of Rain

Yu no Kuni=Land of the Hot Springs

Kawa no Kuni=Land of the Rivers

Uzu no Kuni=Land of the Swirling Pools

Ta no Kuni=Land of Sound

Bijuu=Tailed Beast

Youkai=Demonic Chakra

Katana=Japanese Long Sword

Enma Katana: Yamato=Devil´s Katana: Yamato

Wakizashi=Japanese Short Sword

Sanbi no Koromo=Demon Turtle Cloak

Rokubi no Koromo=Demon Slug Cloak

Kyuubi no Koromo=Demon Fox Cloak

Bijuudama=Tailed Beast Ball

Kai=Release

Bunshin=Clone

Kinjutsu=Forbidden Techniques

Kenjutsu=Sword Technique

Nitouryuu=Two Sword Style

Santouryuu=Three Sword Style

Taijutsu=Body Techniques

Ninjutsu=Ninja Techniques

Genjutsu=Illusionary Techniques

Fuinjutsu=Seal Techniques

Iryojutsu=Heal Techniques

Dojutsu=Eye Techniques

Kekkei Genkai=Bloodline Limit

Katon=Fire Release

Katon: Gokakyu no Jutsu=Fire Release: Great Fire Ball

Katon: Endan=Fire Release: Flame Bullet

Katon: Karyudan=Fire Release: Fire Dragon Bullet

Katon: Goryuka no Jutsu=Fire Release: Great Dragon Fire Technique

Kurai Katon=Dark Fire Release

Enton=Blaze Release

Enton: Kokuen no Tate=Blaze release: Shield of Black Flames

Enton: Yasaka no Magatama=Blaze Release: Eight Slopes Curved Jewel

Suiton=Water Release

Suiton: Suijinheki=Water Release: Water Wall Encampment

Suiton: Mizurappa=Water Release: Wild Water Wave

Suiton: Teppodama=Water Release: Gun Shot

Suiton: (Ni) Suiryudan no Jutsu=Water Release: (Two) Water Dragon

Suiton: Rekku Suigeki=Water Releae: Water Spears

Suiton: Baku Suishoha=Water Release: Water Colliding Wave

Futon=Wind release

Futon: Daitoppa=Wind Release: Great Breakthrough

Futon: Kami Oroshi=Wind Release: Godly Wind

Futon: Kazekiri no Jutsu=Wind Release: Cutting Wind

Futon: Atsugai=Wind Release: Pressure Damage

Futon: Hanachiri Mai=Wind Release: Flower Scattering Dance

Futon: Kamikaze no Jutsu=Wind Release: God Wind Technique

Futon: Kaze no Yoroi=Wind Release: Wind Armor

Doton=Earth Release

Doton: (Banri)Doryu Heki=Earth Release: Earth-Style Wall of Ten Thousand Ri

Doton: Doryudan=Earth Release: Earth Dragon Bullet

Doton: Chidokaku=Earth Release: Moving Earth Core

Doton: Dojouheki=Earth Release: Earth Dome

Doton: Yomi Numa=Earth Release: Swamp oft he Underworld

Raiton=Lightning Release

Raiton: Raiju Hashiri no Jutsu=Lightning Release: Lightning Beast Running Technique

Raiton: Purazuma Boru=Lightning Release: Plasma Ball

Raiton: Byakurai=Lightning Release: White Lightning

Raiton: Chidori Kokuen=Lightning Release: One Thousand Birds Explosion

Raiton: Chidori Nagashi=Lightning Release: One Thousand Birds Current

Raiton: Chidori Eiso=Lightning Release: One Thousand Birds Spear

Raiton: Chidori Senbon=Lightning Release: One Thousand Birds Needles

Raiton: Kirin=Lightning Release: Wrath oft he Sky

Youton=Lava Release

Futton=Boil Release

Meiton=Darkness Release

Meiton: Burakku Horu= Darkness Release: Black Hole

Meiton: Kurouzu= Darkness Release: Dark Spiral

Senpo=Sage Art

Senpo: Goemon=Sage Art: Bath of Boiling Oil

Senpo: Kebari Senbon=Sage Art: Hair Needle Senbon

Kage Bunshin no Jutsu=Shadow Clone Jutsu

Oni Bunshin no Jutsu=Dark Clone Jutsu

Kawarimi no Jutsu=Body Replacement Technique

Kage Shuriken no Jutsu=Shadow Shuriken Jutsu

Kuchiyose no Jutsu=Summoning Jutsu

Kuchiyose: Gamaguchi Shibari=Summoning Art: Toad Mouth Trap

Raiton Bunshin no Jutsu=Lightning Clone Jutsu

Doton Bunshin no Jutsu=Mud Clone Jutsu

Mushi Bunshin no Jutsu=Insect Clone Jutsu

Hadan=Rupture

Hiryu Kaen=Flames of the Flying Dragon

Konoha Ryu Mikazuki no Mai=Konoha Style Dance oft he Crescent Moon

Rasengan=Spiral Ball

Cho Rasengan=Big Spiral Ball

Raikiri=Lightning Cutter

Raikiri Nirentotsu= Lightning Cutter Two Sequential Crashes

Chidori=One Thousand Birds

Habataku Chidori=Black Chidori

Mushi Dama=Insect Sphere

Mushi Kame no Jutsu=Wall of Insect Jutsu

Mushi Jamingo no Jutsu=Insect Jamming Jutsu

Magen: Jigoku Goka no Jutsu=Demonic Illusion: Technique of the Mighty Hellfire

Sharingan=Copy Wheel Eye

Mangekyo Sharingan=Kaleidoscope Copy Wheel Eye

Eien Mangekyo Sharingan=Eternal Kaleidoscope Copy Wheel Eye

Tsukuyomi=Moon reader

Amaterasu=Heavenly Illumination

Kamui=Authority of the Gods

Susanoo=Tempestuous God of Valor

Yata no Kagami=Eight Span Mirror

Totsuka no Tsurugi=Ten Hands Long Sword

Sakegari no Tachi=Sake Cutter Long Sword

Yasaka no Magatami=Eight Slopes Curved Jewel

Kamui=Authority of the Gods

Juin=Cursed Seal of Heaven

Sennin Moodo=Sage Mode

Gama Yudan=Toad Oil Bullet

Kawazu Tataki=Toad Punch

Sen'ei Jashu=Hidden Shadow Snake Hands

Jagei Jubaku=Binding Snake Glare Spell

Hari Jizo=Needle Jizo

Ranjishigami no Jutsu=Wild Lion's Mane Technique