Chapter 7

Disclaimer: I own Naruto... on Ultimate Ninja 1-4, especially with Itachi

"Speaking/SHOUTING"

'Thinking'

"Summon/bijuu"

"God/Elemental/Spirit"

"Hashirama"

"Madara"

"Minato"

"Jutsu"

Naruto yawned. With his Kage Bunshin, he had managed to use the jutsu Deidara-niisan had given him, but the chakra-strings were still difficult. Naruto had high hopes for that on, he had some ideas that not only held incredible prank-potential, but could actually be useful in his career as a ninja.

His father and the others had thought that the jutsu given were a good cue to start his elemental training, and with that, indirectly Sasuke's. But the only problem was, they didn't know his elemental affinities. To solve that problem, Naruto was walking with Hokage-jiji, listening to him talk about the village and remembering old times. It was surprisingly interesting to hear what had been going on when jiji had been as young as Naruto was now. But eventually, Naruto cleared his throat.

"Jiji, can I ask you for a favor?"

Sarutobi smiled. "Of course Naruto, what is it?"

Naruto looked nervous. "Well, the Guardians" he tapped his forehead "said it was time to start with my training in elemental manipulation, but I don't know my element, so we don't know what to train."

Sarutobi raised a brow. Elemental manipulation at that age, while not unheard of, was rare. Then again, Naruto was not something you could call average either, something Sarutobi swore he inherited from his parents. He sighed, then he looked for something in his pockets. "I know I had it with me, now where...? Ah, here it is." He pulled out a slip of paper and gave it to Naruto. "Just channel your chakra into it, then we'll know."

Naruto shrugged and focused his chakra into the paper. What happened then nobody expected. A X-shaped cut appeared, cutting the slip into four pieces. One dropped to the ground like a rock, totally soaked. One crumbled to the size of a pea, as if an invisible hand had gripped it. One was blown away, having instantly turned into a fine powder. The last one caught fire, as if it had been soaked in oil.

Unfortunately for Naruto, the piece that caught fire was the piece he was still holding, and to make matters worse, the fire started right where he was holding it. With a hiss of pain, he dropped it. It had burned to ashes by the time it reached the ground. Sucking on his burned fingers, he looked at Sarutobi. "What happened?"

The Sandaime blinked. "You seem to have affinities for all five elements, and strong ones too. If I had to guess, I'd say Wind is your strongest, since it happened first. It probably has something to do with your tenant."

Naruto heard Kyuubi's voice. 'No, it doesn't. Unlike most other bijuu, I never focused on developing my elemental skills until I had a specialty, since I had a different power that was much better anyways. But I can't use it anymore, as it's sealing the... Anyways, your affinities have nothing to do with me.'

Minato spoke up. 'It may have something to do with us residing inside of you. My affinities were Wind and Lightning.'

Hashirama agreed. 'That is possible. As you know, I use Mokuton, so my affinities were obviously Earth and Water.'

Madara mentally shrugged. 'As for me, I'm an Uchiha. We have minor affinities to all five elements, otherwise our Sharingan would not be as effective. But my main affinity was Fire, weak secondary affinities with Lightning and Wind. My Earth and Water affinities were pretty much neglectable.'

Kyuubi spoke up again. 'Anyways, that little slip of paper told you that your affinities for all elements are strong enough to be trained. Still, I wonder about your other affinities. Ask the old man when you can do the actual affinity-test, seeing that those slips must be designed for on-the-spot-identification, like when less experienced ninja get into situations where they need elemental training to keep up with foes.'

Naruto had no idea what Kyuubi meant, but it sounded good, so he asked. "Um jiji, Kyuubi wants to know if we can do the real test, to see my other affinities."

Sarutobi blinked. "Real test? That is the only test there is." Then something dawned on he when he remembered what Naruto had said some time ago. "Or at least, that's the only test that hasn't been forgotten."

Kyuubi gaped. 'This has to be a joke! Ask him if the words force-manipulation ring a bell.'

They didn't. Kyuubi sighed. 'Okay Naruto, you will repeat my words just as I say them.'

Naruto nodded, then he started. "According to Kyuubi, there are five elements, Earth, Wind, Fire, Water and Lightning. Those can be mixed, creating sub-elements. However, there are also five forces. These forces, with a single exception, cannot be mixed and you can't have affinities for more then one force, with the exception of the before mentioned mix or certain kekkei genkai. Also, not everyone has a force-affinity, they're actually pretty rare, only one in five-thousand has one. Also, unlike elemental manipulation, if you don't have the affinity, then the force is forever out of your reach."

Sarutobi gulped. This could topple the entire ninja-world. But true to his title as 'the Professor', he couldn't resist wanting to learn more. "What are those forces?"

Naruto winced. "Kyuubi was getting to that. There are Time and Space, these two can be owned simultaneously and form the only sub-force, Dimension. The other three forces are Gravity, Void and Death. Kyuubi says he'll answer questions now."

Sarutobi focused to get his thoughts in order. The Kyuubi was a kitsune, and kitsunes were tricksters. If Sarutobi assumed what Kyuubi had said was true, then this had all the potential to revolutionize the world of shinobi. Or was it just bringing it back to its old glory? Kyuubi said he'd answer questions, but he never said how many. He needed to be careful. He decided on his first question. "Death? You mean that they control death?"

Naruto listened to Kyuubi, then he shook his head. "Death is just an overview. They called it that because the topic seemed to fit. While there are some instant-death-techniques, they're really advanced. Shiton mainly focuses on three things: necromancy, souls and curses. Before you ask, Souls means using souls as weapons, or directly attacking the souls of an enemy. A experienced Shiton-user can pull out your soul, simply by directly touching you and pulling it out. Necromancy doesn't restore life, it controls the dead to do your bidding, though temporary resurrection is possible. And curses is self-explanatory, it casts curses on someone, usually leading to death, though other results are possible."

Sarutobi rubbed his beard. "What about Void? Manipulating... Nothing? How does that work?"

Naruto took a moment, then he replied. "Void is in essence indeed nothing. However, vacuums don't exist very long, do they? With the Void-element, you can drain others of their strength, their chakra, or anything else. Also, the true masters can create the Void, reducing all to nothing. Also, looking into absolute void can break weak minds, as humans were not meant to gaze into a realm where not even light or darkness exists."

Sarutobi nodded. That final stage of mastery was scary indeed, especially if it could be used on a wide scale. To be able to make an army vanish, it was a humbling thought. He looked at Naruto. "Does Kyuubi know how to make that force affinity-detecting paper? And does he know how to train those that have them?"

Naruto focused. "Kyuubi says he knows how to make the paper, though he needs certain things, some can be brought, and some he must get himself. As for the force-training, he says that he doesn't know too much, but he knows were to get more information. The only catch is that we need a force-user of that affinity to reach the source for that information. He says the next question is the last he'll answer."

Sarutobi thought about it. "Can he make some of that paper for us?"

Naruto was silent almost half a minute, then he looked into Sarutobi's eyes. Naruto's irises were red with slitted pupils. "I thought you'd never ask."

A week had passed, Naruto had managed to get a second slip of chakra-paper, despite its according to Kyuubi inferior quality, and given it to Sasuke. After all, why should he be the only one who learned to use elements? Naruto had already decided to learn those that Sasuke could use as well last, so they could compete without making the other one look bad if they made it first, after all, different elements, different exercises, different time to get them done.

Sarutobi had told Naruto that affinities sometimes didn't develop until one was twenty, to which Kyuubi said bullshit. According to the fox, affinities were determined at birth, the only thing changing is how strong these affinities get. Originally weak affinities could grow incredibly strong, but originally strong ones could just as easily wither until it was really weak. Kyuubi described it as being similar to muscles. They built up naturally for a while, but once it reached the natural peak, if they weren't used, they degenerated. Granted, it took much longer than with muscles, but if you don't use them, they'll eventually weaken.

Sasuke's affinities were Fire, no surprise there, and to their amazement, Lightning. Both affinities were equal in strength, seeing as the paper had crumbled and caught fire at the same time, though Naruto was a bit peeved when he saw that in Sasuke's case, the flames started at the side that was the furthest away from Sasuke's fingers. Sasuke had decided to train fire first, since it was not only his clan's affinity, but they had lots of jutsu and tips to train it in his clan's archives. Lightning would eventually turn into a problem, as there weren't many, or any for that matter, Lightning-users in Konoha. The only one was Kakashi-niisan, and as ridiculous as it sounds, despite having copied over a thousand jutsu, the only truly effective Raiton he knew were the ones he made himself, the Chidori and its stronger brother, the Raikiri.

Minato knew a few, ranking somewhere between mediocre and not bad, really, not bad, kudos, but again, nothing really mind-blowing, as Kumo and Konoha hadn't fought on the same side for a long time. While Kumo of course didn't have a monopoly on Raiton, it was still the best place to go to find some. So learning actual Raiton-jutsu would have to take a backseat for a while, until the other ones' were on a good level. They would still train the element, to make sure the affinity didn't wither away.

But right now, Naruto was standing in front of the Hokage and an old man, who jiji introduced as Kokami. Kokami was apparently a paper-master, meaning he could create the paper to create the chakra-analyzing slips. Kyuubi's voice rang inside of Naruto's head. 'Here I have to do the talking, and I need control of your body too. Don't worry, those stupid Guardians can lock me away instantaneously if necessary.'

Naruto nodded and relinquished his hold. Kyuubi took over and Naruto's irises turned crimson. Then he spoke. "Now old human, I've heard the old man say that you make the paper out of a tree grown with chakra. Please tell me there's more to it than that."

Kokami nodded. "My code forbids me from giving away all secrets, but I can say that the best paper is gained from the Bansho no Ki (Tree of All Creation)."

Kyuubi nodded. "At least you haven't forgotten everything."

Kokami nodded. "We have tried several things, but the only thing that worked was cutting a young tree before the bark hardened beyond what can be cut down and use the heartwood."

Now Kyuubi stared. "You're kidding! I don't believe this! First of all, you need an old tree, the older the better. And secondly, the heartwood? The wood isn't meant to channel chakra, so of course it only works with what isn't completely formed yet! You could just as well make that paper out of infants, the effects would be the same! To make the paper correctly, you need an old Bansho no Ki, one that I know is around here somewhere, and you don't use the wood, you use the leaves."

Kokami stared at him. What this demonized boy had just said didn't fit with anything he'd learned. He decided to voice the biggest problem in what the demon had said. "The leaves? The Bansho no Ki is a tree that absorbs chakra from its surroundings. Full grown trees can easily reach a hundred feet or more, and a full-grown tree absorbs all chakra it makes contact with it, and its bark is harder than diamond. It can't be cut by any shinobi-or non-shinobi-means. You can't even tree-climb it, seeing it absorbs the chakra your using to stick immediately, making you drop like a rock. The leaves grow in heights starting at eighty feet, how would you get the leaves?"

Kyuubi rolled his eyes. "By doing the correct ceremony, how else?"

Now Sarutobi decided to speak up. "Perhaps it is easier if you show us this ritual?"

Kyuubi nodded. "Lead the way, I'm not sure where the tree is. Ever since you founded this village, all the landmarks are gone. You even changed the layouts of the mountains."

When they reached it, Kyuubi nodded. "I remembered it being in a hidden valley within mountains, but I didn't expect it to be the mountain you carve you leaders' faces into."

Kokami nodded. "It wasn't found until after the village was founded, and attempts to remove it failed miserably. So, how does this ceremony work?"

Kyuubi looked at them. "For that, I need a blade. A dagger, even a kunai would be enough, but I need a sharp object."

Kokami looked at him. "The bark is harder than diamond, the only thing you could cut with it here would be us."

Kyuubi rolled his eyes. "Just give me a kunai, I won't use it against you."

Sarutobi nodded and gave the kunai. Kyuubi raised Naruto's right hand, then slashed the palm.

"What are you...?" Sarutobi started, but then he paused. Kyuubi had formed a cup with the cut hand, the blood forming a small puddle in the palm, before dipping his index-finger in it and started writing a complex seal on the bark. He dipped his finger three more times before the seal was complete, yet it barely took five seconds.

Kyuubi healed the palm, shook off the blood and placed all ten fingertips on the seal, letting chakra flow into it. "This ritual is complex. The blood needs to be fresh, the seal must be drawn in under ten seconds and the chakra must come from the owner of the blood. The chakra is used by the tree to regrow what it gives, the more you give, the more you get. If everything is done right, we should get results in a few... well this is unexpected."

Above their heads, a figure had begun to materialize in a gale of flower-petals. It was a woman with long hair in the color of fresh grass that was flowing in a non-existent breeze. Her skin was dark, having the color of tree-bark, yet absolutely smooth. Her D-cup bust and hourglass-figure were accented by a short kimono that pictured forests and clearings. She was barefoot, not that she seemed to need shoes as she floated above them, laying on her side. When she opened her eyes, they were of a dark-green coloring. She chuckled, her voice sounding somewhat like wind passing through treetops. "Now this is interesting."

Kyuubi bowed. "I had not expected a spirit to appear, much less you, Kimori-sama (Kimori=Tree-Forest. Not very original, but I didn't have any better ideas)."

Kimori chuckled. "I was curious. It has been a very long time since anyone used that ritual, much less with blood and chakra that were of one yet four, and a demon's youki in addition. And what do I find, the Kyuubi-jinchuuriki. I must say, this is fascinating."

Sarutobi had trouble not to get a nosebleed, and Kokami wasn't faring any better, but the Hokage finally spoke. "Kyuubi, who is that?"

Kyuubi looked at him. "Show respect mortal, you are in the presence of a being that is my equal, perhaps even my superior. Before you is Kimori, the ruler of all plant-spirits, or perhaps you better understand if I call her the most powerful of all wood- and plant-elementals."

Sarutobi's eyes bulged. He knew of elementals, spirits of elements, equal to demons yet very different. Elementals existed the five main-elements and every sub-element, even acid, not to mention light-elementals and darkness-elementals. They lived inside of their own realms, yet they could use their element as a gateway to this one. Here, they could easily exist outside of their elements, though slightly weakened. They didn't use jutsu, nor had they any need to since they could control their element to a degree impossible to mortals. It was said that a mid-level elemental could go toe-to-toe with a kage, the high level ones rumored to be strong enough to beat a legion of kage-level opponents. Rumors of elemental rulers existed, they were said to possess the strength of lesser gods, and being seen as demigods themselves. If this woman was one, she could destroy Konoha with but a wave of her hand, especially if you considered Konoha was built right inside of her element.

Kimori smiled. "You need not worry, Hiruzen Sarutobi. I have no intention of harming your village. In fact, I somehow liked Hashirama Senju, who spread my children in this world. However, they have seen some fairly unpleasant things as well, done to the child Kyuubi is moving and that takes very good care of my children, and while I normally do not involve myself or them, I reserve the right to bring whoever I feel like to his just punishment.."

It was clear that when Kimori talked about her children, she was talking about plants in general. Of course, being the elemental of the only element that is actually alive, the bonding was much closer.

Kyuubi snickered. "It's not like they could stop you, even if they wanted."

Kimori nodded. "True. However, I feel it only polite to inform them beforehand. I dislike my children being hurt or taken away for no good reason. But I recall that you have fulfilled the ceremony, so here is your reward."

With that, fresh leaves started to rain from the top of the tree, landing in Kyuubi's arms. Eventually the heap started to grow beyond he could carry, so Kyuubi gave control to Naruto for a moment so that he could create a few clones to help with this load. After having showed every single leaf in the clones' hands, Kyuubi took the control back. "Now, I hope the papermaker knows how to to turn leaves into raw paper-mass? I'll need some other ingredients, but they're all pretty common, or should be at least."

Kokami nodded. "That I can easily do. Also, there is something I'd like to show you. It has been in my family for centuries, so long that we have forgotten what it's for, but we know it was important." He pulled out a wooden box and opened it. Inside was a smooth piece of smooth wood, absolutely strait with rounded edges, as thick as a broomstick and as long as a pen.

Kyuubi's eyes widened. "Yes, this is very important, it's called a distributer. You see, the shape of the real paper is not a small slip like what you made, but a loop with three slips three times the size of the ones you use sticking out of it, all the same distance from each other. To actually do the test, a piece of wood like that one was put through the loop, then the chakra was channeled into the wood, which then spread it in a way that each of the slips could show something else. The one on the right shows all elemental-affinities the person has, symbolizing it by how much of the paper is affected. The one on the left showed the force-affinity, or in rare cases, the two force-affinities. Finally, the one on the top shows something else, whether the person is a physical- or a mental-type. Both don't require you to change your chakra's nature, but they have a major impact nonetheless. The Yamanaka use their mental energy to walk into the mind of others, while training or the Eight Gates are easier learned by people with a physical-affinity. Here, it's not unheard of for someone to have both affinities. But now I believe we have some paper to make. But before we make it, swear on the pain of death that the secret of how to make this paper stays between you, me, your successor, but only after I have agreed with him, and others that I deem worthy, who will also be required to make the same vow. But before you make a hasty promise, I feel the need to remind you that while we can no longer sense her, Kimori knows all that happens in forests or in the near vicinity of plant-life, so she will be our witness and should you break your vow, she will be the one to punish you. Should that happen, you will never again be able to be within a fifty-foot radius of a plant without being in mortal danger."

Kokami nodded. "I vow upon the pain of death, my honor as a paper-maker and my life that I will hold myself to your conditions." As soon as he finished, a vine with a small flower at its end grew out of the ground, growing until it was at Kokami's neck, before leaning on him, leaving a faint, flower-like mark on his throat. The vine then shrunk until it was nothing but a small flower between the roots of the mighty tree.

Sarutobi nodded. "I believe it's time that we return so that you two can bring something back to the world, or our village for now, that hasn't been seen in centuries."

Kyuubi nodded. "But the amount of paper created that way will be very limited, since the only distributer we have is in that old man's possession and those things are a pain to make. For now, the only ones who should take the test are you if you want, the kid, considering that's the only reason I'm even doing all this, and since the brat won't shut up until I agree, eventually the Uchiha-kid. Now let's get this over with, I want to sleep."

The last steps had proceeded fairly smooth, Kokami now knew the seal and what to do to make the paper, and Naruto, who was back in control of his body, was standing before the result of all their effort. The distributer was slid into place, and Naruto placed one hand on each end and channeled his chakra.

On the right paper, it showed what was already known, that he had affinities for all five elements, through here, a quarter of the paper fell to the floor in shreds, while the rest of the paper equally showed the other elemental effects.

The paper on the top split, one part simply wrapping around itself until it was essentially a snake of paper (wrap an empty candy-wrapper back up and keep going for as long as possible. It'll eventually look like |, imagine that), while the other one folded itself to a pyramid, symbolizing Naruto had both physical- and mental-affinities, which wasn't that rare, as one in fifty had both.

Now the left side was the truly interesting part. First it turned yellow, as if it were incredibly old, then it formed five folds, making it look like a row of stairs.

Inside of Naruto's head, Kyuubi smiled. "It seems your affinities are both Space and Time, and judging from the reaction, they're strong affinities. With training, you'll be able to master them, and the only existing sub-force, Dimension. How... intriguing. If someone has an affinity with Death, a pitch-black spot will appear on the paper, the bigger the spot the stronger the affinity. Void-affinity causes the paper to fade away. And with Gravity, one half of the paper will become heavier while the other one becomes lighter. The bigger the difference, the stronger the affinity. Anyways, I'm going to sleep for now, wake me if something important happens."

The used paper was destroyed with a Katon, and Sarutobi decided that for now, that was all the tests they would do for now, in order to keep things under wraps. Sasuke would get to take the test when he made genin, Sarutobi would take it when he had some free time.

Naruto yawned and decided to follow Kyuubi's lead and hit the sack. After all, he had training with Sasuke tomorrow.

Sasuke, who had managed to ignite a branch with his chakra, looked at Naruto, who was cutting the plucked leaves of the same branch, actually doing it himself instead of using his Kage Bunshin for a change. They had been friends for over a year now, and Sasuke decided it was time to share his biggest secret with his friend. Something Itachi had told him on that fateful night, something he hadn't shared with anyone. "Hey Naruto, can we talk?"

Naruto looked up, and immediately turned serious when he saw the look on Sasuke's face. "Sure."

Sasuke nodded. "Thanks. It's not really something I can tell you, it's something you have to see with your own eyes. It's at the Uchiha-compound."

Naruto raised a brow. Madara had mentioned that there was something there he wanted to pick up, but after that fateful night, he never mentioned the issue again. Was this connected? "What are we waiting for?" he asked.

Sasuke smiled sadly. He knew that what Naruto would find could very well end their friendship, but Sasuke felt Naruto had the right to know.

Naruto looked around. He hadn't been here in a year, yet the atmosphere hadn't changed a bit. The Uchiha-complex gave off the feeling of a graveyard. Naruto shook his head. "I don't know how you don't go nuts in here. If it wasn't for me, you'd probably be an antisocial emo with a god-complex by now."

Sasuke looked at him. "I get the emo-part, this place has had the atmosphere of a tomb ever since the other survivors moved out to forget what happened, but why the god-complex?"

Naruto grinned. "Because there would be nobody to kick your ass when you start to go mad with power. You'd drown in your delusions of grandeur if it wasn't for me pulling you back into reality."

"Shut up." it was true though, Sasuke had had a few phases where, intoxicated by a recent achievement, he had started to act superior. Naruto usually smacked the back of his head and the issue was over. Sasuke didn't want to think of what he might become if nobody stopped him before it was too late. 'Probably arrogant. Very, very arrogant.' he told himself. Then he lead Naruto to where he wanted him.

Naruto was surprised, to say the least. "The Uchiha's meeting-room? The place is empty, what do you want to show me here?" he asked.

Instead of answering, Sasuke removed the floor-mat, then a section of the wooden floor, revealing a ladder leading into a dark hole. He started climbing it down, and Naruto followed him.

The lower room was pretty dark, but Sasuke lit an old oil-lamp. Now that Naruto could actually see what was around him, he saw they were in a room about half the size of the one they had come from. But unlike the upper room, this one was filled with scrolls. There was a map of the village, with markings neither boy understood, and a few open scrolls which were coded. Essentially, they had no idea what the Uchiha had been planning.

Sasuke glanced at the papers, having already spent hours unsuccessfully trying to make sense of what he was seeing, and turned to one of the racks filled with scrolls. This one obviously hadn't been looked through in a long time, as the scrolls were covered with dust. With one exception. A small, inconspicuous scroll in the very back seemed to have recently been opened, as it was dust-free.

Meanwhile, Naruto noticed a small, altar-like podium that held multiple scrolls, one of them opened so that everyone could see it. What peaked Naruto's interest was that it was signed with Madara Uchiha. Just above the signature, there was a short sentence written. Naruto looked closer and deciphered the letters.

It said: Looking underneath the underneath is a must for shinobi, but a true shinobi looks underneath that as well, just to be sure.

Madara chuckled. "Before Konoha was founded, it was custom in the Uchiha-clan to end one's writings, no matter if a letter, a report or something else, with a phrase of advice. It wasn't always important, I recall my father putting down the advice: When on a mission to protect someone's cattle, always remember to drink upstream from the herd. Others' were better, I recall Izuna writing: Remember, a kunai to the head is never too good for your enemy. But I'm mildly surprised they put my scroll on display, they were sealed away when I left the Uchiha."

Sasuke took dustless scroll and handed it to Naruto.

Naruto unrolled it, and to his shock, he found that it was a basic description of the Mangekyo-Sharingan and what you had to do to get it, kill your best friend. He looked at Sasuke, who was biting his lip. "Itachi did it. He killed his best friend to gain the Mangekyo. After reading this, I also understood he tried to put me under the Tsukiyomi, which would have probably broken me. I don't want to hurt you Naruto, I just think you have the right to know this. I don't want you to learn it from someone else and think I only befriended you for the Mangekyo's power."

Naruto looked into Sasuke's eyes, which held a dejected look. Then he smiled. "Well shit. Who would design a power like that?" Then he smiled. "Sasuke, since you were honest with me and told me something that could have endangered our friendship, I'll do the same. You probably noticed that most of the village doesn't like me, right?"

Sasuke nodded, it was pretty hard not to. He had entered the academy, and ended up in Naruto's class, much to both their joy. After that, Sasuke had noticed that almost all teachers tried to sabotage Naruto. They would send him out on important lessons, which Sasuke would later summarize for him, ignored his questions, not that Naruto asked many, and as a short peek on Naruto's sheet on an exam-day had revealed, he was given different, much harder tests. Whenever Naruto walked through the village, Sasuke noticed glares and disgusted looks. But he had no idea why.

Naruto cleared his throat. "You probably know what happened on October 10th, eight years ago?"

Sasuke nodded. "The Kyuubi attacked and was killed by the Yondaime."

Naruto shook his head. "Kyuubi is not only a demon, but a bijuu. Nothing humans can do will kill it. The Yondaime did the next-best thing, as he sealed it away. But objects would break, animals would be controlled by it and adults wouldn't survive the strain to their chakra-system. The only thing that stood a chance to contain it was an infant."

Sasuke's eyes widened. "Your birthday is October 10th. You don't mean...?"

Naruto nodded. "He sealed the Kyuubi inside of me."

Sasuke remained silent for a moment, then "So they hate you because your the seal that holds Kyuubi and they associate you for their loss?" Naruto nodded. Sasuke's eyes narrowed in disgust. "Idiots. They're all idiots. Oh kami, let it rain brain, for in this village, many are walking around without one."

Naruto blinked. "So, you don't hate me?"

Sasuke looked at him. "Sure I hate you. You're annoying, loud, for some reason always a step ahead of me, always getting us into trouble, what's not to hate?" Then he grinned. "But do I think less of you because of the Kyuubi? No, I don't."

For a second, both were silent. Then they smiled at each other, their friendship now stronger than it ever was.

Naruto looked at Madara's scroll again. "What I'd like to know is why that scroll is there. From what I can tell, there are seals that keep it from being destroyed or moved away more than ten feet, but why present it like this? I mean, Madara Uchiha was called the traitor of all traitors, so why display something he wrote?"

Sasuke looked at the scroll. He hadn't thought about it, but now that Naruto mentioned it, the question was justified. Why display a traitor's work? A glance revealed that the message wasn't anything mind-blowing either, just a short report on his actions as clan-head. The only thing that stuck out was that line above the signature. While Sasuke knew about the old-time tradition that justified that line's existence, but something about it just screamed HIDDEN MEANING!!!

'Lets see. Looking underneath the underneath is an old phrase, and it seems that it just means that you should triple-check everything. But let's associate that with us. We looked underneath our feet, underneath the mat, and then underneath the floorboards to get here, so we quadruple-checked and reached this secret room. Wait, that doesn't make sense. Why give a clue that can only be found at the destination? Let's try this gain. We looked underneath the floor beneath our feet, checked underneath the underneath to get here. Then if we looked underneath that...' With that thought, Sasuke dropped to the floor, looking for some hidden switch. Finally, he grabbed under the scroll-holder, and felt something give away beneath the pressure of his fingertips. He pushed, and moved back as the altar and part of the wall moved forward, before sliding to the side and revealing another opening.

Naruto blinked. 'That was unexpected.' He stated.

Madara chuckled. 'That boy has a good head on his shoulders. I didn't think either of you would get it, but I can live with this surprise. Anyways, what I wanted to get is in there. There are no traps, just a short set of stairs, so go in. and take some light with you, looks like nobody's been in there since I left.'

Naruto looked into the darkness. "i think we should take a lamp or something."

Sasuke followed Naruto's gaze. "Good idea." He grabbed it and carefully took the lead, carefully checking every stair for a hidden trap, but as Madara had stated, there was nothing.

The room they entered was small, hardly bigger than Naruto's living room. This room held less scrolls, but a few weapons instead. Naruto saw Katana, tantos, daggers, throwing knives, sickles, bo-staffs, halberds and even an ax. Madara looked through his eyes.

'Now where did I put it? It was somewhere to the...'

But Naruto never heard where it was. Suddenly, he had a ringing in his ears, and before he knew it himself, he had spun on his heels and headed to one corner of the room, grabbing what was before him. "Sasuke, you mind if I take this?" His voice sounded strange in his ears, as if someone else had spoken them.

Sasuke shrugged. "Sure, help yourself." He was busy going through the scrolls.

Naruto blinked. "What the hell..." he muttered.

'...just happened?' finished his father.

Hashirama spoke. 'I once had a similar experience. Weapons like the one you're holding are more than lumps of metal. They have their own will, their own souls. The saying that it's not the wielder who chooses the blade, but the blade who chooses the wielder is more than an empty phrase. Apparently, the weapon you're holding chose you as its wielder. What kind of weapon is it?'

'It's the Shinigami no Hika (Dirge of the Death God), a very special sword. It belonged to Izuna.' Madara stated.

Naruto looked at the blade. At the first sight, it looked like a wooden sword, as there was no hand-guard and the hilt seemed to be made from the same material as the wooden blade and looked just like it. The only unusual thing was that the wood was pitch-black, but that may have been caused by the bad lighting. Then he realized that hilt and scabbard simply matched well and pulled on the hilt. The blade, just as black as the rest, slid out with a soft hiss, and Naruto was surprised at how natural it felt to wield it. It was as if the sword had been made for him. He heard Sasuke gasp and spun around, worried that a trap Madara had forgotten had sprung on his friend.

But Sasuke was physically fine, he was staring into a scroll. "What's wrong?" Naruto asked.

Sasuke pointed at the scroll. Naruto took a look. It was another scroll by Madara, but this one looked more like a diary or a personal notebook. Naruto read over it, catching parts like Both I and Izuna were chosen by the great god S%a&f$... the rest of the line was smeared, or While I use the black flames, Izuna opens the great whirlpool..., followed by a note of decreasing vision. Where was the shock?

'Probably three lines down.' Madara replied dryly.

Naruto looked, and saw what had shocked Sasuke. It was a short note, mentioning that the effects of the brother's Mangekyo were similar, despite that they had been gained through different methods. Madara had accidentally killed his best friend, but Izuna had found another way to activate it. Unfortunately, the description of how Izuna had activated his Mangekyo without killing his best friend was also smeared and unreadable.

Before he had a chance to ask, Madara spoke again. 'Yes, I know what Izuna did to gain his Mangekyo, I was the one who wrote that, after all. No, I won't tell you yet. Right now, that knowledge will do the boy no good, and it might cause him to make some foolish decisions that may cost him his life. I will tell you when the time is right.'

Naruto nodded to himself, then he looked at Sasuke. "Isn't that great? There is a way to get this Mangekyo, without killing! All we have to do is find it."

Sasuke blinked, then, slowly, a smile crawled up his face. "You're right Naruto. Shall we return to the surface, I could really use some fresh air about now."

Naruto nodded. "Sure. But maybe you should have a look around here too, to see if there's a weapon you like."

Sasuke nodded and for the first time, gave the weapons a good look. He went around, then he found something that seemed to call out to him. Eventually, he noticed a set of four identical daggers that seemed interesting to use. He grabbed the set and together, they left the hidden rooms, making sure to securely shut and hide the entrances. Afterwords, they decided to call it quits for the day. Both had many things to think about, and both had new tools they needed to familiarize with.

Naruto was training with his new sword. It really was pitch-black, the blade, the hilt and the scabbard. The blade just felt right in his hand, more like a extension of his arm rather than a separate object.

Madara spoke again. 'Naruto, we Guardians had a discussion while you trained, and we've made an important decision.'

Naruto paused. 'I'm listening.'

Madara sighed. 'We have decided, and even Kyuubi agreed, albeit probably for different reasons... that it's time for you to make your first kill.'

Chapter 7 is done. Not much to be said, I worked on it until I liked what I got, I hope you do too. And I have to say, I find that a bit cruel. 99 reviews, just one more and I would reach 3-digits. But, this chapter should solve that issue, so never mind.

The entire process with the forces took longer than I thought, but I think it was somewhat worth it. I've seen some people work with things like death, void or gravity, but they never really bothered to explain why it exists. Just thought I should mention this, if anyone wants to use one of my ideas, by all means, do so. Just do me two favors. Tell me, so I can check out your work, and please mention it was my idea. Thank you.

I got the idea with the forces when I saw what Pein did in Konoha. As I said, I'm a person that likes answers to questions, like: Why can Pein rip out someone's soul if he touches them? Why can he absorb chakra? Why can he manipulate gravity? Especially the last one was always good for a few questions. I saw that a few writers made gravity the sixth element, but I don't like that, as it upsets the delicate balance the five elements have. They're all weak and strong against one element, what is gravity's weakness? What is it strong against? No, I decided that gravity had to be something that wasn't an element, and I remembered the chakra-drain-techniques, and asked myself 'What could grant such a ability?' And my answer was that they made a chakra-vacuum of sorts, that sucked chakra out of their enemies, making a void of chakra, so to say. I also noticed some author's giving Nibi power over death, and since that matches with Japanese folklore, I thought why not? And to those who might wonder, in my fic, Hidan's immortality has something to do with Death-manipulation, but it's complicated. His ceremony is a shiton-curse, but its a specialized one that only Jashinists can use. Space came from seeing what Tobi did, and time was the logical conclusion for the last force. Unlike elements, forces aren't weaker or stronger than others by default, they're all equal.

I made Sasuke reveal his secret to Naruto for multiple reasons. One, I felt that it would cement their friendship, since I'm making a good Sasuke. Secondly, I wanted Naruto to get the sword, and I didn't want him to just break into his friend's compound and steal from him, even if Saskue would never notice.

And no, that sword is not a Zanpakuto. It has special abilities, but those don't change its actual shape.

The elementals were a new aspect that I brought into my story, as this world of mine will have many non-human beings. I haven't decided yet how big a role they'll play, but just like fiends and demons, they exist and may become great support, of a fun fight.

Since we're currently at the topic of fights, next chapter Naruto will make his first kill, followed by his first butt-kicking, handed out by a non-human whose clearly superior to him.

Now to reply to my reviews.

To Monsay: 1. You'll see. 2. I haven't decided yet, but he might make it. 3. Never actually thought of that, thanks for the idea. 4. Nope, she'll be a complete and useless fangirl until halfway into wave. 5. Actually, Kakashi will make an occasional effort to train them, and leave a lot of interesting training to Naruto, read Kyuubi's knowledge. 6. I'll get to that soon. I'll only say this much, she survived giving birth.

To Jouaint: Again, thanks for your idea, I'll probably mention at least one of them next chapter. As for Kisame, he will be one of the last to be redeemed, but he might come around in the end.

To 8chill: Thanks for the advice, I actually had planned to keep the harem, should I make one, at three or four members. Anything else makes it far too unrealistic, and would make most relationships shallow, at least when I work on it.

To Talonspike: 243?! You have got to be kidding. 80 is going to be tough to write, at least very time-consuming. My chapters for this story are supposed to have between 5000 and 7000 words each, so let's calculate with 6000. Multiply that with 80, and you have 480.000 words. Tough, but possible. Now multiply it with 243 instead, and you get 1.458.000 words. I haven't seen anyone on this site who wrote a million words or more, and if there is someone, he has my deepest respect, and doesn't have a life. I think epic would be an understatement, whoever writes that is working on the Neverending Story. I'm not sure if normal books have that many words, but my guess would be no. Still, thanks for your review, but I don't think that this will have over a million words. I'm not trying to insult you or anything, but I just don't think that first number I realistic.

To Lord Edric: First of all, thanks for reviewing my stories. And in your reviews, there are three mistakes. Actually, Sasori's heart is all that's left of his original boy, so he still has it. He doesn't have anything but his heart as far as flesh and organs go, but he has a heart. Also, Sasori didn't kill his parents, they were killed by Kakashi's father Sakumo. You were probably thinking of those puppets Chiyo used, but those were normal puppets that Sasori made so that they looked like his parents in the photo he had, because he was lonely.

I think that's all for now, so

Please Review