disclaimer: You know it already.

This is a continuation of "Another Calling". If the other other crossover won't be plain as day halfway, the last word will cement it.


Another Calling, part 2


Chad and the Quincy had their weapons at the ready even as the portal hadn't fully opened. To think that so quickly after the sealing of Aizen, the Arrancar would mount another attack on Karakura?

"Easy, I'm not here to cause mischief," a reassuring voice said as someone stepped out of the Garganta.

As the gate to Hueco Mundo closed behind him, the two defenders of Karakura took a good look at the new arrival: instead of the white ensemble most Arrancar were known for, he was wearing an orange jacket and black pants. His Hollow hole was likewise nowhere to be found, but that wasn't what the two ryoka found odd.

Despite his wildly orange hair (kinda reminded them of Ichigo) and slitted purple eyes, the new arrival exuded no malice whatsoever, instead wearing a truly happy smile on his face - and his reiatsu exerting a firm, but gentle pressure on the two of them. The eyes, plus the six whisker marks on both sides of his face gave his smile a rather vulpine quality.

"If you guys don't mind, would you please accompany me to the shop of Urahara Kisuke?"


"So, that's why," the proprietor of the Urahara Shoten said. "I'd never expect anyone to defeat Kenpachi that easily, but apparently, you've been doing your homework, Naruto-kun."

"Yes," the orange-haired Arrancar named Naruto answered, "which brings me here. You have a few specialized gigai, right? Strongest reiatsu limiters in your arsenal, plus an emergency soul transport to Las Noches should the gigai take a mortal injury?"

"Everything's here, according to your specifications. I do believe we haven't stumbled upon the topic of payment..."

"...but that won't be necessary," a female voice continued. "You realize your sojourn into Soul Society has somehow opened their eyes, do you not?"

Naruto shook his head. "There was only one objective in my mind at that point. Well, four, if you're willing to be technical about it."

"Ah yes, Yoruichi," Urahara replied, "Word around the campfire is, Kenpachi-taicho has started training with Unohana-taicho. Shunsui-taicho is back in the training fields too. If I were you, Naruto-kun, I would not want to return to Soul Society, those two will want their rematch."

"Maybe... when things have quieted down back in Las Noches, I'll take them up on their offer," Naruto answered with a chuckle. "Tell Kenpachi-san I had a lot of fun battling him."

"Will do," the former Shinigami captain said, "by the way, you do know that a Hollow spending enough time in proximity to a Shinigami's reiatsu becomes a Vizard, don't you?"

Naruto nodded. "It's one way Hollows evolve to Arrancar. Say, you don't mind providing escorts for my... predecessors, in a way, for when they'll be in this world?"

"What would your... colleagues be doing here, anyway?"

"Not just them," Naruto answered with a smile, "I'll be going back to school, too. Oh, and here's your payment."


Time passed in the Human World as Uzumaki Naruto and the four Arrancar he freed from the gut of Zaraki Kenpachi took to life back in the human world quite easily.

The two Senju brothers took it upon themselves to learn urban planning and management, intent upon taking those skills back with them to Las Noches for expanding and renovating the city of Arrancar... and the athletic teenager tasked to look over them learned a few things from the two former Hokage, too.

Sarutobi Hiruzen, on the other hand, took up modern educational theories, as he had started a school for younger Hollows that evolved to Arrancar earlier than usual. As it turned out, he looked after the rather flighty girl appointed as his bodyguard more than the other way around.

Namikaze Minato read up on military organization and leadership, to build a force to defend Las Noches from Hollow attack. The Quincy found him an odd mix of traits - at school and in training, he was all business, but out of both, he was perhaps an even bigger dork than Ichigo Kurosaki.

Lastly, Uzumaki Naruto went to high school, because he had made the same mistake in his afterlife as his previous life. Besides, if he wanted to be the best mayor Las Noches ever knew, he had to know how to be a mayor, and the orange-haired youth seemed a little surly, but was friendly when you got to know him.

However, he would have to take a breather from his studies for a moment, as his mobile phone began ringing. With a sigh, Naruto picked up the phone, specifically made by Urahara for communication between Las Noches and the human world, where he was currently studying for finals.

"Uzumaki here," he said.

"It's Harribel," the voice replied back, Naruto's eyes widening as he caught the heavy undercurrent of fear in the Arrancar's voice. "You need to come back now. Bring Namikaze-sama with you, too."

"Dad?" Naruto asked. They never asked for his father unless...

His eyes darkened. "Tell me everything. Now."

She did.

As soon as the line went dead, he dialed another number.

"Namikaze."

"Dad, it's me. We've got trouble."

Click.

With a flash of yellow light, the gigai holding the Arrancar Namikaze Minato appeared in Naruto's study.

"Garganta ready?"

Naruto nodded, and before anyone could blink, the two gigai crumpled to the floor as the two Arrancar sped back to home, to take care of today's newest crisis.


Uzumaki Naruto, the current mayor of Las Noches, was standing on the dunes of northwestern Hueco Mundo, finger to the wind, eyes with square pupils, feeling for the reiatsu signatures of his subordinate's subordinates.

Something about the odd reiatsu flare right before the fraccion's aura fizzled out bothered him greatly, more than the fact that he had to run interference while his father - it kind of ticked Minato off that Naruto still referred to him as Yondaime-sama during formal occassions - would warp in, pick them up, and warp right back to Las Noches' infirmary via his trademark Flying Thunder God Technique.

There was something in the reiatsu that seemed... equal to his. Almost as if the Vasto Lorde lurking in the northwest sands of Hueco Mundo was a jinchuriki like he was... almost, but not quite.

The idea that maybe this Vasto Lorde-class Hollow could evolve into an Arrancar in the same way he did escaped him as he remembered the names of Harribel's girls Friday.

Apache, Sun-Sun, and Mila Rose, Naruto thought. Nice girls, though a bit too impulsive. Jiji has his hands full with them during his lessons. I hope I wasn't that bad when I was a kid.

He grinned as he sifted through older, happier memories. Not that being the mayor of Las Noches was all grim and dark, but sometimes nostalgia colors your frame of thinking...

...there.

He found their reiatsu signature, and upon dispelling his zanpakuto's ability, hefted his sword and took off in a Sonido.


Uzumaki Naruto saw them - lying on top of one another, bleeding from superficial cuts, with only Apache conscious enough to communicate with.

"I heard from Harribel. What happened?" Naruto asked as soon as he was in visual range. Because who or whatever attacked them could strike at any time, Naruto had a very limited radius from where to emit his reiatsu, but as soon as he did, the three Arrancar responded.

"Rumors... monster... investigate... Vasto..." she whispered as a trickle of blood ran down the side of her mouth. Internal injuries. Whoever did this to Harribel's fraccion is dangerous. No wonder she asked for Dad.

"I know," Naruto replied, reassuring her. "Help is on the way." I'll need to draw the rumor... wait, did she say rumor? If that's the case...

He took up a stance and faced the night sky.

...I'll have to draw it out myself... with the language all Hollows know by heart.

"I'm already here!" Naruto shouted to the night. "You want a fight, don't you? I'm here, I'm willing, I'm ready. Don't bother with those three, they're small fry. Let me get them out of here, then we'll have the fight you want. Come on!"

Minutes after his declaration, a heavy pressure descended upon the desert sands. In their state, the three fraccion would have been crushed and blown away completely by it, but Naruto was there, neutralizing it with his own reiatsu flare. His eyes narrowed as a winged horror strode into view, the swirling sands partially obscuring it: grayish wings sprouted from its shoulders, yellow eyes leveled at him, one misshapen arm dragging a gigantic sword along the sands of Hueco Mundo as it took measured steps towards Naruto.

"That's right, I'm here to fight you. They're not your enemies now, I am. Stop screwing around and let them go. I'm more of your match; don't deprive yourself of the chance. Come on."

His purple eyes flashed crimson.

"Let's dance, already."

He got no warning except for the Vasto Lorde opening its mouth before soundlessly charging, the sword in both its hands now as it swung.

Fast, but Naruto knew how Hollows generally operated. It was always the initial frontal attack, designed to intimidate opponents and thus ending the fight quickly. He grunted and used Sonido to flank the Hollow, unsheathing his sword and using his "surprise attack" to swing the Hollow's attention around, the winged creature blocking his powerful but telegraphed strike and readying a riposte of its own.

"Yondaime-sama, do it now!" Naruto shouted, and with a flash of yellow light, the three Fraccion were gone.

A frustrated swing against Naruto's guard was what came next, and the sheer force of the blow sent him rolling along the dunes. As he pulled himself up, the hairs on the back of his neck stood up as he brought more reiatsu into bear to level with his opponent.

Shouldn't the monster be screaming? Naruto asked himself, but could spare no more thoughts, as the monster was onto him, raining blows at incredible speed despite the sheer size of the sword it carried.


In Las Noches, everyone was on edge and awaiting news of the battle as their blonde Information Officer was seated cross-legged on the floor.

"How's Naruto doing?" a goateed man said as he entered the room of sensors.

"He's holding his own well enough, Sarutobi-sama," Namikaze Minato said. "Turns out the legends these Arrancar were whispering about were true... this Silver-Winged Horror is indeed of the Vasto Lorde class..."

"...but my son's stronger."

"How do you know?" Harribel asked.

"Because of who he is," the former Yondaime Hokage enigmatically answered.


It was easy enough to goad the Silver-Winged Horror into gradually using more power - by calling on just a hair over its power, Naruto managed to keep the fight close while dictating the tempo of their battle. However, as Naruto guessed correctly, the Vasto Lorde grew stronger, faster, and fiercer as the battle raged on - slowly but surely, the wings began to shrink as the Hollow's reiatsu began to condense and stabilize...

...Just as I thought, Naruto mused with a smile as a hazy form began to materialize from within the monster even as it attacked. It's just the same case with me - I'll need to call enough reiatsu for my Resureccion Segunda, and the resulting mix of Shinigami and Hollow power will complete its transformation to Arrancar.

Meanwhile, a thousand miles away, Urahara Kisuke was grinning. "I don't believe it," he muttered, "Naruto knew. One wisp of its power and he knew. I think he's trying to evolve the thing he's fighting into an Arrancar."

"Is that a bad thing?" Yoruichi asked, her voice distorted because of her cat form.

"Bad?"

Urahara's grin turned malevolent, almost as if he knew some private joke.

"It's going to be hilarious."


Back in Hueco Mundo, the monster seemed to know what Naruto wanted to do, thus the Hollow was on him, swinging even stronger, faster, and more skillfully, such that he could barely get a strike in.

Such strength and control! For a Vasto Lorde to be this poised in battle... what could this thing have been in life for it to be like this in the afterlife?

The question remained unanswered between the former Nine-Tailed Demon Fox and its wielder, as he called on more of his own reserves of power to even with his opponent.

Sleek nodachi met gigantic two-handed sword in a shower of sparks and reiatsu, and for a moment, Naruto gaped.

Is this... Hollow smiling at me?

The beast got the advantage of that exchange, flinging Naruto back easily. However, the Arrancar didn't waste a moment, resheathing his sword and taking up an iaijutsu stance, meant to redirect his opponent's momentum and use it against the humongous sword it wielded.

The last bit before Hollows of this type stabilize completely is a big release of reiatsu. Even I remember how I became an Arrancar. A fight, my opponent tossed a fuckhuge Cero at me, and after the smoke cleared, I was Uzumaki Naruto again.

The orange-haired swordsman grinned, and his soul cutter let out an exasperated sigh.

You always go for overkill.

Don't you like that?

One's taste for... extravagance wears thin after so long. Especially now, that I am managing your power, compared to our time in the living world.

Fine, I'll scale it just right, Kurama!

After a powerful iaido maneuver sent the winged Hollow backward, Naruto brought back his hand and started molding reiatsu in a practiced manner.

Back in Las Noches, the Yondaime quirked an eyebrow.

"Minato-kun, what's going on?"

"Sarutobi-sama, it appears Naruto's as much a chip of the old block as I am."

The two former Hokages grinned, and said at once, "Rasengan."

Apparently, the Hollow felt the rising reiatsu, and doubled back to its opponent, sword poised to hack off its enemy's head. In the moments after he had completed the molding, and saw the Hollow charging, he wondered, why was this Hollow going for decapitation all the time? Zabuza's weapon was a head cleaver; Yagura was a jinchuriki but not a Swordsman, and Bee didn't use a huge two-handed monstrosity...

...Was this even a jinchuriki?

It's in range! Kurama shouted at him, and the world kicked back to high gear as Naruto pointed the spinning red orb at his point-blank opponent, grinned...

"Cero Torbellino."

A huge explosion turned night into day for a few moments in the sands of northwestern Hueco Mundo...


Lillynette Gingerback stopped to look back at where that humongous release of reiatsu came from, and wondered what the mayor of Las Noches was up to.

She prayed that Naruto-kun would be safe, as without him, she and Starrk would not be around to enjoy the second renaissance of Las Noches.

"Lilynette!"

A yell shattered her thoughts, and she turned to the man wearing red armor.

"Yes, Hashirama-sama!"

"Don't worry about the Mayor. He's survived tougher fights on less. We've got our own job to do."

"A-all right."

Please be safe, Naruto-kun...


You feel that, swordsman?

Yeah, Kurama... I do...

Your little gambit has succeeded. It appears that Vasto Lorde has finally evolved through your use of that Cero. But...

But what?

Get down!

A wave of reiatsu even more potent than before blew the sandstorm away, nearly stopping Naruto where he stood. But just after a moment, the wave stopped.

Upon quickly jogging to the impact point, Naruto was faced with another surprise.

A woman wearing a gray dress was kneeling on the sand, the sword he had so much trouble with lying just beside her. Long blonde hair cascaded down to her waist, and when Naruto took a look at her face, he had to let out a gasp.

The intensity of her expression was only magnified by her pale complexion, but that wasn't what Naruto found odd.

His purple eyes were locked into silver ones.

"Uu-"

She put her hands up to her neck, only to find a hole.

"Uu- Aa- Eee-"

Her attempts to speak failing, she looked at her hands, only to see the same holes on each of her arms.

"Oo- aa- aaaa-"

A scream was about to erupt from a mouth that could not articulate anything but... and just at it began, along with another flare of spiritual pressure, the woman felt a hand on her shoulder.

Somehow, the same reiatsu she had struggled before her transformation had now felt... warm. Welcoming. Almost as if he knew, knew about her life... her life here, as changing into a Hollow turned her into something so powerful that most did not dare edge close to her.

"It's over. Come on, let's go home."

Only a single tear edging down each of her cheeks betrayed the relief she felt.

"You can use your reiatsu to form the air into sounds. I knew a Hollow who could not talk at first because he had the same hole in your throat. Try it."

We're clear, Naruto sent the message back home. And I'm bringing in a live one.

He could almost hear the cheers of his fellow Arrancar at another success.

"I... uh... I..."

"Takes some getting used to, but you'll get it easily. My name is Naruto."

He extended a hand to the former Silver-Winged Horror, and helped her up.

"What's yours?"

She pulled the collar of her dress up to cover the Hollow hole, and said her first words.

"Te... Te... Teresa..."


I do believe that what we have here is not a Sword of Damocles, but a Kill-sat of Damocles.

You may nominate me for a Vlad Tepes award as soon as I write what happens to the Vandenreich.

(Author's note: Yes, that is Teresa of the Faint Smile from Claymore.)