(An)Hey guys, something vitally important was pointed out by the reviewer TheOnlyKing, and going back I can understand why. That last chap was so light hearted I'm kinda disappointed in myself, don't get the wrong impression, this fic will be dark, it won't be fun and games and people are going to die, Naruto won't be the same person he is now, however I do stand by the fact that the first kill would have an effect on a ten year old child, as I just can't see any conceivable way (through training or otherwise) that would let a person kill without mercy (unless I make them a complete psychopath) this will change, my fic will not be based around some rubbish that love is power.

This chapter isn't to bad, but it's definitely moving in a better direction.

Thank you for reading and I hope I don't scare people away, I'm trying to bring human emotions and characteristics into this fic. And a traumatic event can change even the most steadfast of people, so watch out. There's no sunshine and lollipops here.

Please check out my latest fic, got big plans for that one.

Chapter 7: For whom the bell tolls.

After a pleasant weekend, Monday was bound to roll around, and Naruto found himself standing in the office of his Kage, Tiger stood to the man's right, being one of his most trusted guards, he stood at attention beside weasel and a group of 15 shinobi.

The Hokage took a long pull from his pipe, savouring the taste of tabaco and mint, before heaving a sigh in their direction.

"Team Delta, commander weasel" his tone was sharp and authoritative, his men snapped into salutes and stood before him "you have been issued a mission to the border of Kiri and Konoha, the fighting has escalated and they are in need of reinforcements, do you accept?" His tone was daring, almost as if he wanted someone to refuse, just to show the others the consequences.

Weasel took a step forward, and bowed deeply to his Kage "team Delta will accept the mission, Hokage-sama."

The old man nodded in approval, handing over a small scroll, and waved of the men standing before him "dismissed" there was a flicker of movement and they were gone.

Naruto reappeared in the ANBU base, making his way towards his commanders office, seeing that he was the last to arrive, he silently took his place among his comrades, at attention before his commander.

"This mission has a minimum requirement of two months active leave" weasel began "it's off the books, with only the Hokage and higher ups in the know, we are to defend the borders from a force of an estimated two hundred Kiri nin, no one is to know where you are going. Questions?"

A woman to the right of Naruto stepped forward "sir, I was not aware we were having skirmishes with Kiri, why now, and why is it classified?"

Itachi nodded at the woman "it's been kept of the books by Hokage-sama, a team on patrol was found slaughtered a few months back near the border, a team was sent in for diplomatic purposes, but after three weeks and no contact, we moved a team of ANBU into Kiri. Their bodies were found hung in a public square, with their eyes gauged out and fecal matter spread over the bodies."

The fist of the woman next to him tightened dangerously, and everyone could feel the KI leaking from her "Hai, when do we leave?" Her voice was frozen.

"You have an hour to prepare, meet at the West gate" weasel waved his hand in a dismissive gesture "and remember, no one knows where you are going."

He received salutes from the entire squad, before they flickered out of sight.

Naruto

He opened the door to his house silently, it was early morning and Mito should be at the academy, he sighed as he realised he wouldn't be that lucky.

"Hey, Onii-san" Mito waved at him lazily, still in her sleeping clothes and seated at the table, playing with her breakfast.

"Shouldn't you be at school, Mito?" He asked a bit desperately, not really wanting to put up with her antics.

"Hai, hai, I just wanted to hear how it went.

He nearly sighed, she wouldn't like this "I have been deployed, I leave in an hour"

"Seriously?" She inquired "that was fast" she yawned here, and looked totally uninterested "so how long till' you to get back?"

"Two months" he spoke quickly, knowing what was coming.

She nodded her head in acceptance, before her eyes shot open and she sprung to her feet "two months! What the hell! Why are you go…"

"Mito" she was cut of sharply "it is the order of the Hokage" he spoke softly, hoping to calm her.

She slammed her hands on the table "where the hell are you going for to months?" She asked desperately.

"I cannot tell you" his answer seemed to infuriate her further, as she got up and moved towards the door.

"Come on! We're going to speak to the Hokage about this!" She had a fire in her eyes.

"Mito" his voice was low, and could have cut diamonds with its sharp intensity.

She recoiled as if he had physically struck her, staring at him in shock.

"Onii..san?" She asked slowly, unsure of what to say to her brother that was giving her such a cold look.

"I have been deployed" he stated simply "not only would going to the Hokage now make me look bad, it also paints a bad picture for any commander you may serve under in future. Insubordination is a black mark in any shinobi's dossier."

She nodded slowly, not used to her brother when he was like this, she took a deep, shaking breath "ok" she stared at him seriously now "I understand"

He nodded as he moved toward his room, planning to pack everything into a bag and then seal it into the scroll that was commissioned to him.

His sister followed him, probably trying to spend as much time with him as she could before he left. He smiled softly, he would miss her.

Five hours later

They had been running for a while now, there was a palpable tension in the air and weary glances were cast his way, obviously uncomfortable and weary of his presence. The fact that he was so young garnered the attention of most.

Captain Weasel called a halt to the proceedings, sending five men to set up a perimeter and keep watch, before turning his attention to him "tomorrow we continue South East for approximately two days, whereupon we shall reach the border of Fire and Water. Be prepared, for you shall see the cruelty of humanity"

If Naruto was confused by these words, he didn't show it.

With Mito

The school day had just ended, sitting through these boring lectures was beginning to fray her nerves. She honestly couldn't wait for the academy to end, so she could become a real Shinobi. Just like her brother.

That thought caused her to frown further, despite the state in which he returned every night, namely, bloody and exhausted. She couldn't help but feel slight envy that he was being trained by such a well respected group as the ANBU, of course, he was never allowed to tell her just what that training entailed, it irked her somewhat, knowing he was advancing so quickly while she was left behind. But she knew these thoughts were petty.

He had joined the black ops unit out of necessity, not choice, and he had helped her greatly with her taijutsu and chakra control, allowing her to contend for first place against Uchiha Sasuke. A talented boy with a fan club a mile long, she'd imagine it would be the same for her, if not for one simple fact.

'Kyuubi'

The thought of the great beast sealed within her navel brought a shiver down her spine, that night she had spoken to the beast, was one she would never forget.

Despite offering to strike a deal with her, it had been entirely vague as to what that deal would entail. And even more evasive with the facts of the night it was sealed, saying things like 'you will find out when ready' or 'I do not wish to break your pitiful mind with things beyond your comprehension.'

So in other words, it was just blowing hot air, and insulting her. she wouldn't be surprised if it was just lying to get out of its cage and had proceeded to tell it such.

It had laughed at her. Laughed! And she would never forget it's words, said with such assurance and pity she sometimes wondered if it would have been best to accept the deal.

'The day will come, the day you will need my power the most. And on this day it will be denied, for if you cannot listen to mere words, how will you ever hear the call of your own anguish?'

She had woken suddenly after that, with her brother beside her and her heart racing, she would never consider that a dream. It made far to much sense and it was far to real to be anything but reality.

But those words, those words would haunt her for many years.

Hiruzen

He sat, staring out at the village. The village he had sacrificed so much for, the village that had taken his wife and child, and the village that spat on the memory of its heroes. Despite all this, he loved it with his whole heart, the children playing in the streets while the parents watched over with a smile, the market writhing with activity and shouts of people selling their wares.

This is what made the village what it was, so peaceful and ignorant, so happy to go about their lives while the Shinobi died, while other villages were slaughtered in mass. He briefly wondered if this was how Hashirama had envisioned the future, he knew the man's dream was to make sure every child had a decent childhood, without death and violence, he had wanted to spread this philosophy over the world.

But after all that work, things hadn't changed much, if anything, death had just become more organised.

He sighed at that, knowing these dark thoughts did nothing, despite having taken so much, he was still willing to give what was left to the village he loved.

The next day

They has just finished resting, the camp was covered and their passing untraceable. The shifting of his comrades did not escape his attention, most were still casting glances his way. Besides the captain, not a single person had spoken to him, he didn't care much however, he wasn't here to make friends. He would have welcomed a conversation, but it wasn't immediately necessary.

Their captain spoke with a Dragon masked agent, their words unheard to the rest of the group. Before nodding as the man fell back into line.

"We have just received word that one of our outlying bases we have stationed in Kiri has been attacked, I plan to double our pace and reach the shore by midnight. After which a small barge will pick us up on shore and take us to one of the islands where the main base is located, this will also be your only rest until we reach camp. questions?"

He received none, amd they were sprinting through the trees a moment later.

undisclosed location

"How are the troops faring, Aou?" A woman with ankle length red hair queried.

"Most demoralised, Mei-sama. The recent losses have caused many to question weather it is still possible to win this war." A man with a spiky blue mane and an eyepatch over his left eye spoke.

The woman sighed, feeling no need to comment. She had guessed as much already, but one could always hope.

"Very well, order the men to hold position. We cannot lose that factory."

"Are you sure that is wise, Mei-sama? Surely there…"

"Aoi, do as I say."

"Hai, Mei-sama."

Team Delta

They had just recently disembarked from their three hour long trip across the waters of Kirigakiru. Thay had wasted many hours traversing the vast waters around the nation, but it was unavoidable, as even Jounin level ninja tire after a few hours of water walking. They needed to be fresh and prepared once they reach land, as there's no telling what could happen between that and the base.

Itachi had spoken with the team, encouraging them to be more accepting of his presence, pointing out that he had also been young in age when he joined the black ops. This had at least stopped the glances, but still no one approached him.

They were perhaps five minutes away from base, or at least if the continuous twitching of his captains hands were to be believed.

Breaking through the last of the foliage, they came across a few tents spread over easily evacuated points, with perhaps ten men guarding the perimeter.

He said nothing as they approached a nondescript tree, seemingly one of many, but with a wave of his hands and a few muttered words the captain had dispersed the allusion over the true entrance, a simple trapdoor that led underground, wide enough for only two people walk side by side.

He knew there must have been more exits, as this was more than likely the least defended, for if any enemies were to come this way, limited movement would allow the shinobi inside to attack with a simple fire technique, made all the more powerful by the narrow walkway.

It opened up and his suspicions were confirmed, two shinobi snapped to attention upon seeing his captain. Or at least he assumed they did, they were walking side by side in pairs of two, with the captain bringing up the front, so he couldn't actually see, being second last as he was.

They continued until the room opened further, allowing them to spread out and be welcomed by the thirty or so shinobi that were present, weasel had ordered them to rest, before being whisked off behind locked doors, which he assumed to be the command and intelligence room.

His team was led of without much fanfare, they were told they would spend the night in a room that housed four, although by the size of it, it would be a close fit.

He was actually impressed by the base, a powerful earth style user must have carved it out. And looking around the small room in which sat two other men and one woman, he knew that comfort was not in mind when the place was made.

There was tense silence in the air, more than likely due to his presence, he couldn't blame them though, he was an unknown. And in this world, unknowns tend to get you killed.

There was shifting from the Horse masked man in the corner opposite his, before he seemed to come to a decision and slowly reached up to remove his mask.

His face was average, forgettable and common, more than likely used to his advantage, he smiled disarmingly, but there was an unmissable bitterness as spoke.

"Names Koga Hachiro, gaki" he placed the mask by his side and shifted around, trying to get some level of comfort against the stone wall.

The woman moved next, slowly sliding her cat mask off her face as she turned to him "Uzuki Yugao" she inclined her head towards him.

The man to his right seemed hesitant, and after the mask was removed he understood why, most of his face had been burned away by a fire technique. A grotesque smile seemed to be permanently plastered to the right half of his face.

"Mamoru" the man rasped, it seemed he'd taken a breath from whatever technique was launched at him.

He slowly moved his hand to his own mask, slowly sliding off the design of a hawk, this moment would decide whether or not they could work as a cohesive unit.

"Uzumaki Naruto" his voice was soft as he revealed his face to the others. Mamoru's hand moved to his face as he rubbed his cheeck, where he got it wasn't much of a mystery anymore.

Koga seemed genuinely shocked, Yugao had tilted her head as she scrutinised him, and the burning gaze of Mamoru seemed to bore into his skull, but it was surprisingly the scarred man that spoke first.

"Called it" he spoke quietly as Koga handed him a tidy sum of money, Yugao made no move as she continued to stare and Koga seemed put out on having to part with his money.

Naruto stared quizzically at the man "you bet on my identity?"

The man smiled at him, although its seemed to be more of a grimace on his scarred face.

"I don't pass up free money kid, you suddenly drop off the radar a few years back and now we got a new recruit that was either a midget or a prodigy, wasn't to hard to figure out."

He nodded slowly, surprised that he was receiving no animosity from these people, Yugao seemed to pick up on his thoughts as she spoke.

"We hold no spite for what you contain, we all knew the fourth personally and thinking his seal anything less than perfection would be an insult to his memory."

Naruto nodded again, he never understood the seemingly godlike reputation the fourth had garnered, he was just a man, a dead man. He knew that he was supposedly one of the best shinobi of the last one hundred years, but the devotion shown by most was unnerving.

Koga smiled "since we're all going to be working together, why don't we tell each other our fields of expertise? If only for the gaki's sake."

Yugao nodded "I specialise in Kenjutsu and close quarter combat, I know a few fire style techniques and have basic tear 2 sealing knowledge."

Mamoru spoke next "I specialise in strategy and earth style ninjutsu"

Koga smiled as he continued "I've got some impressive lightning style ninjutsu and I'm one of the best genjutsu users in the village" he spoke as he rubbed his thumb under his nose, obviously proud of his skills.

"I am a close quarter specialist, focusing on taijutsu, I also posses a single A-rank wind style jutsu with five supplementary B-ranks"

The others wore impressed faces, obviously not expecting someone so young to be able to use such a powerful Fuuton jutsu.

"Well then" Koga nodded "best to get some sleep, i have a feeling we only have a few hours" they all nodded and tried to get as comfortable as possible against the hard stone, weary and anxious for the days to come.

one week later

It had been far to quiet for Naruto's taste, the tension was mounting and he felt like he was about to snape, thankfully the Captain seemed to notice he and the other three had formed something of a bond over the last few days, and he was deployed with people he knew he could count on to have his back.

Koga seemed to be a 'go with the flow' type of guy, Mamoru was stern and unwavering in his devotion to the village, but it was hard getting a lock on Yugao's feelings, she seemed high strung and anxious, and he doubted it had anything to do with the mission, or at least not directly.

They were currently patrolling one of the smaller islands, just South of the main island of Kiri, there had been no word on the base that was attacked. It seemed the higher ups were keeping things from them.

Mamoru stilled suddenly, causing the others to come to a stop 'enemies, 10' he was using ANBU hand code 'two clicks west, ETA three minutes'

They dove out the way and began laying traps, the order had come down just yesterday that tension was high between the villages, lethal force was authorised.

Naruto could hear his heart pumping, his hands were shaking and his body was trembling 'what's happening' he questioned himself.

His thoughts were cut off as a muffled thud was heard, a small group of shinobi had landed in the clearing, the obvious captain, for he strutted about as if he was nobility, moved toward the treeline "we know yer here" he grinned, a sickly sight to behold, yellowing teeth and ugly face compounding this fact "how bout"s ya just come on ou…"

His voice cut of as he took a step forward and the ground, shook beneath their feet, blood flew from the center of the blast and rained upon the clearing.

Naruto took off, moving as fast as he could, he managed to slit the throats of two other men before they had regrouped.

His heart pumped and his legs moved, his mind seemed to float away from him, this feeling….

He was brought back to reality by a kunai narrowly missing his neck. His own blade ripping the mans throat out in turn.

He twisted as he heard footsteps behind him, a man was moving through hand seals in a desperate gamble, one that did not pay of when Cats sword pierced his heart.

His gaze swept over to Mamoru, his right arm hanging limp and defending himself against two men, his body moved before he could stope it, a single bone ripped open his palm as he drove it forward, piercing the man's eye, one more push drove it through the brain, the other paused in shock, and Mamoru had already ended his life.

He heard a gasp from Cat, she was staring at him in slight shock, but couldn't continue as she defended herself against a flurry of slashes.

Mamoru nodded to him as he jumped of, going to assist Yugao, he knew there would be questions later.

A thud let him know he had company, he twisted as a white blur moved past his face, and gasped as his vision settled on his assailant.

Stark white hair stood out amongst the dull backdrop of Kiri, a single sword of bone rested in her hands, her clothes were a mess and she seemed starved, madness shone brightly in her eyes, they shook with such intensity and focus as she studied the sword he held in his own hands.

Her eyes finally moved to his, and a savage smile broke out over her face.

"Ma.." she whispered the word, half of it getting lost in the sounds of battle.

"What" Naruto whispered, still in shock over seeing her. Her eyes flickered over to where he had killed the man attacking Mamoru, nothing but a pile of ash.

"MATE!" She screeched as she lunged toward him, his shock not having worn off, he was unable to move as he was pinned underneath her, fingers clawing at his pants and shirt, desperate to get through the material.

She was moaning incoherently as his shock seemed to leave him, almost breathless.

"Mate! Mate!" She seemed absolutely thrilled, heedless of his thrashing, he was desperate now, throwing her arms away from himself, only to be pinned once more to the ground, despite her appearance, she was terribly strong.

He struck out as hard as he could, bringing his fist up into her diaphragm, she gasped, face twisting in a snarl as she brought her head down and viciously headbutted him, shattering his mask, stars danced in his vision as she once more pinned him, tearing his shirt.

She bit down on his neck drinking his blood, grinding into him and moaning, the previous battle all but forgotten to her.

He struggled further, not wanting to be defiled like this, she didn't appreciate his struggles, and threw a vicious fist across his chin, and his world exploded and the entire spectrum of sound shifted, a deafening shreek sounded in his ears. Her strength was no joke.

His protests became week as she shifted on top of him, delighted that he seemed to be cooperating, and a shadow filled the corner of his eye.

Chapter end:

Bet you weren't expecting that? What's going to happen to Naruto? Will he be able to get out of this?

We're always told about the savagery and near animalistic behaviour of the Kaguya clan, I wanted to bring this out and showcase what they might have been like, driven by instinct and battle lust (So after seeing Naruto use the dead bone pulse, its obvious that he is prime breeding material) After all, Kimimaro seems to be the exception to that rule, and why should he be the only one to survive?

Chapter wasn't to bad, as far as general violence and angst goes, but it will get there. it's definitely moving in a better direction than it was, expect grit and death.

This will not be the cliché Kiri arch where Naruto goes in, saves the day and comes out with a medal, so don't expect him to beat up Yagura and have Mei fall for him.

Im seriously trying to capture war and human emotion, Mei will not be a hormonal driven woman that only cares for marriage, she's going to be cunning and powerful, a general and powerful warrior.

So don't expect a happy ending here, this fic had just started.

(Sorry about that, seems the chap is good to go now)