Back again! How's everyone doing? I'm doing great because I found out this story got 5000+ views. Sure that's not many compared to a super popular story, but this is nice to see. Nevermind that for now. Time to start the chapter. Oh and since someone reviewed to choose option 1, I'll go with the main route first, then the branches within the main route, then the bad end route. And then finally the gag end route.

Disclaimer: not mine

Chapter 10: Unexpected reunion

"Oh no. You're coming with us whether you like it or not. I can't trust to leave you in the streets when you know people are looking for you." Naruto's eyes literally ignited miniature suns, and Ragna was slightly afraid of the blonde in front of him. All the blonde knew was that Ragna would get caught at some point during his adventures, so he didn't want to see his friend run into trouble. Plus he wanted to catch up with him. There was a lot to cover.

"I'll go later." The Grim Reaper insisted as an answer.

"NO." Was the stern reply. Naruto dragged his friend by the collar and headed for the exit along with a starving Taokaka. There was nothing the SS-criminal could do to his friend when he's like this. At first Ragna thought it was his demanding voice that compelled to follow his orders, but he could confidently say that it was Naruto simply being Naruto that got Ragna to follow his stubborn friend. Heck, Naruto was Ragna's only friend. The Rabbit possibly could be thought of as a friend…if she wouldn't insult Ragna all the time. Thinking about said 'Rabbit' irritated the white-haired man, seeing as his ego was brutally beaten by the constant insults Rachel used. She even dared to use the 'Amputee' nickname on Ragna. While it was effective, Ragna found it easier to cope with the insult after the years. Now…the damn Fox has to come up with the 'lolicon' insult? Was it because of the Rabbit? That had to be it. He hadn't hung around anyone remotely loli-like except for her. As to why Rachel takes the form of a loli, Ragna didn't know. Not even Valkenhayn, Rachel's butler, knows why she takes the form of a young girl. Ragna's thoughts jumbled up because his head hit the ground.

"What the hell was that for?" The man was obviously irritated. His answer was given to him in the form of a different colored jacket. "A jacket?"

"You're walking out in your clothes that describe you in the wanted posters. Why haven't you gotten a disguise?" The blonde demanded. "Seriously. These people may be blind, but that doesn't mean you can stroll around in your flashy, blood red jacket for everyone to see." The blonde scolded his friend. "Though if I was a ninja, I'd probably wear something non-ninja like in color. I might've worn orange." The blonde mumbled. Ragna raised an eyebrow to the last sentence.

'Where'd that come from? Ninjas…?' He gave up figuring out what his friend thinks and took the jacket. It was cerulean and fit perfectly. It didn't have any intricate designs on it. Just that it was cerulean or a shade of blue in color. It looked good on him. Give him a katana and the desire for power, he'd be like this half-demon Naruto saw in this demon-slaying action game he played as a kid. He forgot his name though. What was it…? It started with a V? Ah nevermind.

He turned to his friend asking, "Look good to you?" A thumbs up. Naruto waved his hand towards him, signaling to follow the blonde. "How about you, Tao?" She grinned like a madman, and she climbed on Ragna, inspecting the new jacket.

"It looks great on nya." The Kaka replied with glee. She would say more, but her stomach hogged the conversation.

"Hurry up you two!" Naruto yelled to his distracted friends.

-Beast's Den-

"Hey guys, I'm back!" The restaurant owner announced to his staff. The blonde was greeted with a big 'Hi.' But before the owner could go to his kitchen, Teuchi came to the blonde owner. Wondering what the man wanted, the blonde asked his elder employee.

"Something wrong?" He asked the tall and old ramen chef. The chef was serious about something. That meant something scold-worthy. Something like that meant nothing good for the owner.

"Where are the ingredients?" The owner's eyes widened, showing he forgot such a thing. Seeing this was his fault, Naruto awkwardly chuckled. The intense stare didn't help the blonde explain the situation. Curse that Ragna for showing up like he did. If he didn't show up, this wouldn't have happened to him at all. Well…time for plan R to commence. R= Rush.

"I…forgot." He dashed off. "I'll get it right now!" He made no chance to be interrupted and left the restaurant.

"Order 16 is ready!" Teuchi would scold him later. Right now, he had a job to do. Though it was relaxing to see his boss make a mistake. 'I'll let this one slide.' Meanwhile, Taokaka devoured yet another Taokaka special. The meals were being made as fast as she was done eating them. Many of the chefs grew tired of this situation, but it was a nice change of pace.

It would be an hour later when the blonde restaurant owner returns with the ingredients his chefs need to cook, and it would be during that time Ragna would attract trouble to himself. Sure Ragna didn't mean to attract attention, but when you have white/silver hair, you tend to stand out of the norm. His height doesn't help him blend in either. The jacket Naruto gave him? Worked…for a bit. Actually, it worked like a charm, but Ragna's hair and height gave desperate bounty hunters the evidence they need to challenge him. They weren't wrong, but the man wasn't going to tell them that. So here we are at the start of an inevitable fight…inside Naruto's restaurant.

"Don't you dare mock us with that stupid disguise, Bloodedge!" a hunter yelled. "I'm gonna get that money, but you're the reason I don't have it yet." Another blared at the white-haired man. Ragna feigned ignorance, and it seemed to convince some of the men…but it backfired. There was no way out of his situation, and he was prepared to take out his sword if need be.

"I suggest you stop this foolishness now, hunters. We have a rule in this place: NO FIGHTING." A voice came from behind Ragna. The voice was from Gaara, and he seemed as mad as Naruto would be right now. "If you continue this stupidity of attacking a customer out of suspicion, I WILL force you all to leave." The beastkin's threat loomed overhead and many considered it until-

"Yea right! I'm not risking my chance to nab the Bloodedge." The result? Hunters became more determined to fight Ragna, and they showcased their weapons to prove that they're serious about it. The Tanuki beastkin's eyes narrowed. He was reluctant to fight in the restaurant, but he had no choice in the matter. The man sighed. He was willing to give one more warning before throwing them out.

"If you want to keep your limbs intact, or your lives for that matter, then you should follow my suggestion and leave now." The redhead threatened again. He put his hand out in an open palm, readying to release his sand. The smarter hunters obeyed and left the restaurant, while the local hunters warned their rivals that the beastkin would follow with the threat. Gaara smiled at the actions of the local hunters. "Those who leave now won't be punished." Thankfully, the groups of hunters leave, revealing the stubborn few who choose to stay and fight. The 'Bloody Tanuki' was ready. He would crush the hunters' bones and chest and pulverize the life out of them while enveloping them in the redhead's sand. Gaara's method of killing would be gruesome, but he did warn them to leave.

'Sorry about this Naruto.' The Tanuki thought. "SAND TSUNAMI!" The sand rushed out of the gourd it was contained in like water. The Tanuki restrained the attack to try to not damage anything, but he did. Five tables along with their chairs were swept away by the sand. Part of the wall was damaged too. Gaara winced at the damage he caused that he didn't want to happen. At least the damage wasn't like what he thought it'd be. He thought the attack would blow the entrance off. Even so, Naruto would lose a tail crying over the damage caused to his restaurant.

Back to the action, the hunters were dragged out of the restaurant entrance by the powerful and swift wave of lively sand. Gaara needed to thank his brother for teaching him how to use his armagus to its full potential. He was insane during training though. However, as insane as he was, Shukaku was a caring brother. He had a strange way of showing it that's for sure.

The hunters recover under the small dune of sand that pinned them to the ground. They groaned in pain because the sand felt like hitting a wall at full speed. Patches of sand rose up, forming sharp, deadly, spiral spears. They were aimed at the hunters with deadly precision and accuracy. Gaara was going for the kill as he brought his hand down to kill the downed hunters.

"Gaara! Stop!" The voice of Naruto enters Gaara's ears, and immediately, he stops his attack, and the spears and dune of sand retreat back into Gaara's gourd. That was a close call because the spears were a mere inch away from piercing the hearts of all the hunters. The blonde huffed as he reached the redhead. He was carrying the numerous bags of groceries of ingredients for the chefs. One strange thing though… he was more relieved than angry. That was a good sign to Gaara. Gaara didn't need to see the 'Beast King' come back until a long time. Many men were near death during training with a furious Naruto, and Gaara didn't want to experience the hell those men went through even with his auto-defense.

"What happened here? Why are you trying to kill bounty hunters?" The hunters groggily stand up, and as soon as they got their bearings, some run away out of fear of the other beastkin joining the fray. Others ran away because they got the message Gaara was trying to tell them. The ones remaining yelled at Gaara.

"That man attacked us for no reason!" one of them lied unconvincingly. Naruto knew they were lying because Gaara only goes on a killing spree if need be. He wouldn't kill unless he deemed it necessary to kill. But he has his psychopathic moments like his brother. The last time Naruto saw the 'Bloody Tanuki' come out to play was during the Ikaruga war, and Naruto hoped that it wouldn't come out soon.

"Hmm… is that right? Well then…why don't we ask the employees what happened?" The hunters stiffened at the thought of their lie being found out. They were sweating bullets too. Dropping his bags of groceries, the restaurant owner enters his restaurant and sees the damage that plagued part of his restaurant. Naruto swallowed his rage for now to ask Hei, one of his employees to know what happened in the restaurant. The raven-haired man was shocked to be asked by his boss, but that really didn't matter at this point. Hei told his boss what happened in his restaurant to be in this situation, and as the truth came out, the bottled rage leaked out of him. Instead of yelling, Naruto smirked. But it wasn't his usual smirk. It was a malicious grin, baring deadly canines. His azure eyes transitioned to blood-red eyes. His hair became spikier, and his whisker birthmarks were defined to the point they look like slash masks on his cheeks. The blonde's tails lash out wildly, scaring the people around him except Gaara. The customers became even more scared when they saw the change on his face. Gaara sighed; he hoped to not see Naruto's NOL persona, but it's showing up now.

The Beast King has returned.

Said King turned to the hunters, showing the change on his face. His crimson eyes examined the hunters with great interest. There was nothing special about them. Average humans…what a joke, thinking they could beat Ragna. The intense gaze unnerved the hunters. Killer intent washed over the area, and it was bloodthirsty to the point where the air seemed unbreathable. The men try to to keep standing, but the pressure forced them to kneel.

"Oh? What's the matter? Can't get up? Let me help you guys." As soon as he said those words, his tails grab the men, and he throws them up more than ten feet in the air. He didn't stop their descent, and they impact was great, and the pain was paralyzing. The men gave pained cries over their injured bodies, but the King paid no heed.

"No tears now. Only PAIN!" The tails grab the men again, and he slammed them down the ground in rapid succession. The impacts create a rhythm as if the men were drumsticks and the ground was the drum. "You dare accuse my friend of attacking you all? I'll show you the consequence of framing the innocent!" The slams became stronger and brutal as the tempo increased. The crowd cringes at imagining the pain the hunters were feeling, but they believe that the hunters deserve the pain they were feeling. When the beatings stopped, the men were at Death's door, but weren't allowed to enter. They cried over the intense pain their bodies felt. They were paralyzed, bones broken, and possibly brain dead for some. All in all, they would stay in the hospital for the rest of their lives.

"M-mercy…" a hunter weakly pleads. His voice was ragged and raspy. The blonde calmed down, returning his eyes to the shade of blue they usually were. But even though he calmed down, he still held cold, unforgiving eyes that didn't fit his cheery persona. He grabbed the pleading man by the collar of his shirt.

"You disturb the peace, ignore my friend's warnings, and put the blame on him. You…ask for mercy?" The blonde asked in sincere disbelief. The once joyous eyes held unbound fury within them. Thankfully, the rage had been quelled. "You have no right to ask for mercy. Letting you die would be mercy, so letting you live will be your torture. All of you are paralyzed, and you all will live in the shell you call a body like that for the rest of your days." He spat the words harshly. He left, going in his restaurant. Ragna and Gaara followed.

"Pretty harsh there, Naruto." The fox stopped walking abruptly to sharply turn to the man.

"People were about to get hurt because of you!" Naruto pointed out the obvious truth. "You were almost found out, and THIS close to being caught.

Ragna chuckled. "Ironic right? I got found out in a disguise, but nobody guessed it was me when I wear my jacket." Naruto stared blankly at his friend. He was not amused at all by the situation. The man almost got caught and he's chuckling about it! Sure those guys were small fries, but still NOL reinforcements would come to help detain Ragna.

"This isn't a laughing matter, Ragna. You need to stay out of sight for a few days. We can't risk the NOL raising their activity levels just to suspicious of you." He was right. News spread fast in Kagutsuchi, and it's only a matter of time until a Major or Captain arrives to help finding Ragna. Ragna conceded defeat. He didn't want to fight officers, so he went along with staying in the shadows for a while. When the conversation ended, Naruto went to the break room to see if Makoto was still asleep.

She wasn't there. Only the hoodie Naruto placed on her was on the table. It was neatly folded, and on top of the cloth was a note.

Urgent mission. Sorry. I'll be back in a few days.

-Makoto

"Okay Mako-chan…" He smiled at the note. It smelled like chestnuts, just like her. It would be three days later until the searches dimmed down.

-NOL, Kagutsuchi branch-

3 Days later…

The two arrived at the branch. However, the place felt…void of life. Which was saying something since the NOL was searching actively for Ragna. The blonde felt a familiar presence in the building, and if the subtle cold air was a hint, then it was a very familiar presence. Prepared for a fight, Naruto readied Crimson Breaker. Yes I said Crimson Breaker. During the years as a civilian, Naruto was taught by his father and mother how to place limiters on his armagus. He came to know the truth about the weapon too, and why Kurama had died that day. Kurama, the best sealer in the village, even better than his parents, died because the power the weapon held was too much and containing such power would end in death, no matter how many seal masters were there. To show the true form of the weapon would end in death if one seals it. Uzumaki Mito, the original holder, died because she sealed the weapon into a magus form for her descendants to wield, and then his grandmother, then Kushina, and then Kurama wielded the weapon. Kurama somehow released that unknown form, and tried to seal it without knowing that the sealer would die as payment for being sealed. He didn't blame the weapon. Such power being sealed had to have a backlash, but it still upset him that his brother's blood, stained the weapon he wielded. Now learning of its truth, Naruto was determined to prevent the release of that unknown final form.

He also knew why Ragna was destroying bases. But as to why Naruto would help, it was only natural to help out a friend. Plus he hated the way the NOL acted the way it was now, so this will help in reformatting how the NOL operates.

"So…we going in yet?" Naruto asked Ragna, who was staring at the door for a really long time.

"Huh? Oh yeah. C'mon let's go."

When they arrived inside, Naruto's suspicions were correct, and nobody was there. Not a single living thing moved. No one was inside the building, except one man. The same man Naruto called a friend before leaving the NOL. He stood, leaning on a rail, waiting for someone. Noticing the new arrivals, he stopped leaning on the rail and readied his blade.

"JIN!" Ragna yelled in at the man who was identified as Jin. Jumping at the man, Ragna brings down a vertical slash, aiming to defeat him. The attack was blocked, the next too. They clash, showing no weakness in their eyes. Their swords meet, trying to get past the other.

"Long time, no see… brother. You too Naruto. How's Makoto?" Jin said to the one he called brother and his friend. Ragna's eyes narrowed.

"I don't have time for you, Jin! Let me pass." Ragna demanded to Jin. Jin quickly puts his attention back to Ragna, and releases the stalemate by pushing Ragna off him. Naruto stared at the sight before him. Both men were ready to fight, but why was Jin fighting his so-called brother? He didn't know what to think. Jin might be under NOL orders to hunt down Ragna, but then again, why would he fight a brother? Naruto had a hard choice. Stop his friends from fighting each other, or let them fight to resolve their brotherly conflict?

"Jin/Brother!" The two called out to each other while charging at the other.

"Hell's Fang/ Crystal Strike!" The gap quickly dissolves… and Naruto needs to choose.

Meanwhile, a snake inspects the battle before him along with a rabbit. "That damn anomaly is there again…" The snake said irritably.

"It's quite entertaining, this reality. Wouldn't you say so, Terumi?" The rabbit asked the snake. The snake nodded. "But this'll throw my plans off too much. And worked so hard on them to be just a pile of shit to that fox."

"But they are heading towards the cauldron, are they not?" the rabbit asked for confirmation. The snake nodded, still convinced his plans will fail him.

"But the journey there is where I believe the change will happen. Ouroboros is acting up a lot after seeing that fox."

"Only time will tell what's in store for this reality Takamagahara has yet to touch."

-Choose-

1: Let them fight.

2: Stop them.

Okay that's a wrap for this chapter. This one was a filler chapter to the events of the upcoming battles. Sorry about this but choose either option, and I'll be sure to show you a battle fitting for Blazblue.

Azure here, signing off!