Chapter 10: War and Peace.

"ARG. The extraction seems to take forever! Furthermore, this extraction seems to require more chakra and concentration than usual, hmm."

The Leader glared at Deidara. "Shut up and concentrate on the jutsu! According to my brother, it takes three days and nights. We are almost done. Another 6 hours and it will be over."

Kisame's distorted laughter filled the room. "That sounds good. This brat has caused more than enough troubles for us. Or what do you think, Itachi-san?"

Itachi was silent for a minute before he answered "Yes. He has caused troubles. But hopefully it will be over soon."

But that wasn't true. He sincerely hoped that Kakashi would make it time. He doubted that Kakashi ever would forgive him if Kakashi even suspected him for not trying hard enough to delay the extraction. Only one thing had gone according to his plan. Nor he, Kisame, Zetsu nor The Leader would be able to join the fight when Kakashi arrived. And, ironically enough, it was The Leader himself that had ensured that.

The Leader was getting pissed. "Enough with the chitchat! Just concentrate on the jutsu already! Besides: The chakra barriers I created around aren't just there to prevent you from moving around as you like. They will also ensure you one day of rest after the extraction and they provide you with extra chakra while we extract the Nine-Tails. So stop your irrelevant chitchat right now, and just concentrate on the jutsu!"

They all nodded and closed their eyes in concentration. Itachi knew that he couldn't do anything to make the extraction drag on. If he did, The Leader would notice right away, due to those cursed barriers. And he couldn't contact Kakashi because of the barriers, as The Leader would notice that as well. Itachi knew this, because when they were introduced to those barriers, The Leader had felt that his chakra had been disturbed. That disturbance had been Itachi trying to contact Kakashi. Back then Itachi had suggested that the disturbance was because the jutsu had been unstable. The Leader had gotten so mad at Itachi, that he punished him for hours afterwards. But Itachi had convinced The Leader that his jutsu was unstable because it was the first time he used it. And The Leader had never mentioned it again. And Kakashi hadn't tried to contact Itachi afterwards.

The Leader was glad that his voice was distorted. Otherwise the other might have heard his unease.

Deidara was right about one thing. For some reason, this did require more chakra than Pain had told. The difference wouldn't mean much if the ones present was to fight when this extraction was done. Besides; he supplied the ones present with chakra through their rings, so they didn't lose more chakra than usual. But The Leader wasn't sure whether this difference was because of the seal on Naruto's forehead or it was because they were so close to the man who eliminated Pain, Konan, Kakuzu and Hidan.

-Flashback start-

It was raining. The place was in a deep ravine and a river ran just 2 metres away from him

"Not... cough…a chance… We… cough… never stood a chance… urg… cough… against him. His powers were… too great…"

The Leader knelt down beside Nagato's real body. He supported his brother's head and placed it in his lap. He wiped the blood away from his brother's mouth. His voice was barely a whisper. "Brother… Nagato… who did this? Tell me his name and I will revenge you!"

Nagato slowly turned his head towards his brother. A sad smile swept over his face and he spat up some blood. "Dear Sagato. My dear little brother. But… hark... don't… cough… be such… a fool. You're strong… cough… perhaps even stronger than me… but… against him… you will lose. The gap in strength and experience are too great. Even the combined forces of my six realms… cough… and Konan's, Kakuzu's and Hidan's abilities weren't enough."

Sagato locked Rinnegan eyes with Nagato. "I think I understand what pain is now. I just found you and now I'm losing you again. I will continue your way brother. I will show the world what pain is."

Nagato slowly raised his hand to stop his brother. "I don't have much time left. Before I die, I must tell you what happened and what to do. And when I'm done... cough... when night comes… you must flee this area. Take the rings with you. Lead the Akatsuki to its goal."

Sagato nodded. He didn't like it, but he had no choice. If Nagato really insisted to use his last breath telling him this, he had to listen. "I will do as you say brother."

Nagato smiled. "Excellent. I will tell you what… cough... happened."

(Editors note: Nagato coughs a lot during his narration. But I will write it as another flashback, without his coughing to make it more flowing. Remember you have to picture the old realms when mentioned.)

-Nagato's narration start.-

They were walking on the bottom of a deep ravine. The dark river was flowing violently towards the north, which was the direction they walked in.

Hidan cursed. "ARGH! Where the fuck are we?! This place stinks like a fucking dunghill! I hope that this dickhead you're talking about is worth this fucking stench!"

God Realm cursed under his breath. "Be quiet Hidan. This guy is more than worth the stench. If he joins our ranks, we will achieve our goals faster than you can even imagine. And you better be quiet. Otherwise this person will put an end to you."

Hidan merely shrugged. "Ah come on now. Let that dickhead try. And what if he refuses?"

God Realm looked at Konan. He could see that she was nervous. Even now, he still wondered whether it was smart to come here. After all, the person they were seeking had had his conflicts with Madara in the past. And Madara had told him to be careful around this person, since he wasn't likely to be pleased about getting his doors darkened by Madara's allies. "If he refuses, we will force him."

Hidan laughed. "That sounds good to me! That fucking cocksucker will regret he made me walk through this stench. Even Kakuzu's detours are pleasant compared to this."

Kakuzu sighed. "Moron. If you want to achieve something in your life, you need money and the will to get them. Even if means you have to endure unpleasant things. For example; I've to team up with an idiot."

Hidan was about to give Kakuzu an angry response, when God Realm held up his left hand. "We're here."

Hidan jaw dropped. They were standing in a huge valley in the ravine. The cliffs were towering on every side of them; in fact they was so tall that they couldn't see the top. And the light from the moon and the stars only barely reached down here. The only light that enabled them to see anything came from rows of torches on every rock wall; even in the river was there torches. The river flowed in a giant lake that had it shore about 2 metres away from a huge wall. The wall was about 450 metres away and was about 30 metres tall and it reached from rock wall to rock wall. About 400 metres. The only 'weak' point was a massive iron gate, placed in the middle of the wall. Behind the wall, they could see an enormous fortress made of black stones inside a huge cave. The only way to enter the cave was a 60-75 metres tall staircase, starting from the bottom of the opposite cliff. And as far they could see the entrance was blocked with another gate made of the same iron.

Konan gasped as she scanned the rock wall.

God Realm turned his head towards her. "What's wrong?"

When Konan spoke, her voice was barely above a whisper. "Look… look at the gate. And then look at the rock wall."

God Realm narrowed his eyes. Then he realized. "I see. The castle isn't inside the cave. The cave is just the entrance. The rock wall itself is the castle. Or at least the outer wall."

The other Akatsuki members narrowed their eyes. God Realm was right. The gate filled the entire entrance. And on the rock wall they now saw something that could resemble windows. The last window they could see was to be located about 200 metres above the landing where the staircase ended.

Hidan whistled. "This must have taken fucking much hard work to build."

God Realm nodded. "The Village hidden in the Dark. Also known as Darkos. Let's go. We have an appointment I would hate to miss."

They reached the first iron gate. Now they noticed some weird inscription covering the entire wall and gate.

Hidan narrowed his eyes. "What the fuck is that gay-language? What the fuck does it say?"

God Realm narrowed his eyes as he read. "I don't know what it means. Anyway, we need to remove that gate. Kakuzu, you know what to do."

Kakuzu nodded. He hardened his right arm and thrust his fist into the gate.

BBBBAAAAANNNGGGG!!

The gate didn't budge an inch. Kakuzu frowned. "Impossible. My hand… it hurts. This isn't any ordinary gate. Hm? Can you hear it too?"

They all heard the sound of a cloak rustling in the wind. But they couldn't locate the sound. Then God Realm looked into the sky and smiled. "It seems we don't have to knock down the gate. It appears that we are about to be greeted by the landlord himself."

They all looked up, just as a person flew over the top of the wall. They all jumped backwards so that they stood on top of the water, just as the person landed in front of the gate, without making a sound.

They narrowed their eyes as they eyed the newcomer. He was about 1, 80 metres tall and his shoulder was broad. His skin was the same colour as a corpse. He looked like he was in his middle twenties. He had long black hair that was arranged similar to Neji's and Itachi's. His eyes were completely red, except for the pupils. They were merely vertical slits, but the black slits were completely visible against the red. He was wearing a long black cloak that reached the ground. His nails were something between black and blue.

God Realm nodded. "I see the rumours about you are true. Your appearance is just as scary as the legends say. You must be Dracula. Or perhaps you prefer The Night Lord. The other names you go by, I believe, are Lord of the Night, Lord of Darkness or The Dark Lord."

Dracula looked at the people before him. His voice was completely emotionless. "Impressive. You know that many of my names. Black cloaks with red skies imprinted on them… you must be members of Akatsuki. What do you want? Why did you come here?"

God Realm merely nodded. But before he could speak, Hidan cut in. "Enough with the small talk, you freaking shithead! Do you know what kind of stench we've walked through to get to this fucking dunghill?! And what the fuck does that freaking inscription means?! Do you know…"

Hidan trailed off when Dracula slowly shifted his gaze towards him. But his voice still lacked emotion. "How rude. You would do better if you didn't interrupt the grown-ups' talk."

God Realm looked sternly at Hidan. He had to admire Dracula. No one had ever made Hidan shut up by merely looking at him. He would have to be careful, unless he wanted a fight right away. He waited until Dracula turned his attention back to him. "I apology for Hidan's manners, or if you will, lack of manners, Lord Dracula. It wasn't his attention to insult you. However, I'm curious myself. What does that inscription means?"

Dracula took a quick glance at Hidan before returning to God Realm. "It's the slogan of my clan. It says: Death is Life."

Hidan mumbled something under his breath. Dracula glanced at him, before he continued. "But what do you want here? I believe you're the leader of this organization, am I right… Pain?"

God Realm frowned slightly. But he remained calm. "Correct. Allow me to introduce some of the members. The sole woman in the Akatsuki is…"

"Konan. The guy with the mask is Kakuzu. And the cursing idiot over there with the scythe is Hidan."

Konan was startled. Her voice clearly revealed that. "You… you know our names? But we haven't even…"

Dracula smiled a little. But the smile didn't show any emotions. "I just have to look at you. Your eyes reveal everything. So does your chakra. It's hard to keep secrets from me. But Pain; it's about time you tell me why you've come. I doubt that you came all the way here just to chat."

God Realm frowned even more. He looked at the other Realms. If Dracula could tell a person's name just by looking at him, then perhaps he could tell the person's powers too. Madara hadn't been kidding. Dracula was dangerous. He held his sigh and bowed. "We've come to make a request."

Dracula raised an eyebrow slightly. "And that request would be?"

God Realm glanced at Hidan, making sure he wouldn't do or say anything stupid. He then returned to Dracula. "We request of you that you join our ranks. We request that you join Akatsuki."

Dracula looked at each of the members. Then he gave a little snort. "Join Akatsuki? Wear clothes like that? I tend to decline your request." He chuckled slightly when he saw Hidan's confused expression. "To put it simple for the idiot over there: it means 'no'."

Hidan freaked out. (Editor's note: Like when he was fooled by Kakashi in the anime) "What the hell?!?! I'm going to kill you, you fucking asshole!! I will…"

Dracula stared at Hidan again, causing Hidan to fell silent. This time a hint of anger could be heard. "You didn't learn your lesson. When the grown-ups talk, the kids should keep quiet. One warning for you, Hidan: Keep using that language in my presence, and I will put that big mouth and head of yours up into your ass. And now I will warn all of you: Leave this place. You're not welcome here."

God Realm glared at Hidan. He would pay for this later. But right now they had other things to worry about. He looked at Dracula. "Lord Dracula. Perhaps you will reconsider. I ensure you this: If you join our ranks, we would bring peace to this world faster than even you can imagine. I only want to bring peace to the world"

Dracula tilted his head to the right, looking at the Akatsuki member and the six Realms very carefully. Then he laughed. They all tensed. God Realm spoke. "What's so funny?"

Dracula stopped laughing, but a trace of smile could still be seen on his face. When he locked eyes with them, it felt like the blood froze in their veins.

"I simply find it quite funny that you claim that you only want to bring peace to the world, when you're allied with guys who absolutely don't want peace. An idiot, who became 'immortal' through a religion my brother Jashin founded over 3500 years ago. Jashin died for the second time about 3400 years ago. I know that, because I was the one who killed him. But it appears that his rites survived. What a pain in the neck. I know that you will lose that immortality if you're prevented from performing the rituals that the religion demands. The guy with the mask, Kakuzu, has five hearts. One for each element. He is about 91 years old. The extra hearts are some he has ripped out of strong opponents' bodies. And by doing so, he expand his lifespan. You, Pain, or should I call you Nagato, posses the Rinnegan. The Eye-jutsu that allows you to utilize all six of the primary elements. I remember those eyes. The first wielder of the Rinnegan was a good student. But when he turned against me, he paid the prize. I admit that you are special though. To have six bodies under your control through those chakra receivers are quite impressive. And that they can use different powers are quite a feat too. Konan over there can turn herself into paper. Your skill and abilities are impressive. However… they won't be enough to defeat me."

They were all startled. This guy saw right through them; and with one glance he discovered their powers. Hidan was the first one to speak. "You got to be freaking kidding me! You can't kill Lord Jashin!! He is a god, you asshole! And you can't kill a god!"

Dracula let out a small sigh. "Idiot. Don't speak of things you don't know anything about. Jashin was a mere ninja. Although, I admit he was strong. He and I were the strongest within our clan. I killed him because I wanted to test my powers. I didn't care about his experiments that led to your religion. But it appears some fools found the notes and made it into a religion. There is so much you don't understand. Gods don't exist. And if they do, they won't help you. No matter how much you pray for their aid, they won't help."

God Realm could see that Konan was shocked. And her voice made it evident, as it trembled when she spoke. "You're wrong. Pain has advanced to be a god. You can't defeat him in battle. No one ever has and no one ever will."

Dracula slowly turned his head towards Konan. He narrowed his eyes. "Really now?"

God Realm frowned. "Your powers are disturbing. This won't be as easy as I hoped. But she is right. I'm a god. I've become a god through pain."

Dracula merely snorted. "You? A god? I don't think so. You still have so much to understand."

Pain was, little by little, getting pissed. But he hid it well "And what would that be?"

Dracula smiled. "As a god, you should be above human desires. But you aren't. A look at your organization, its members and its goal is enough for me to realize that."

Pain was real pissed now. But he was still able to hide it. "And what is that supposed to mean? I don't understand. I want to bring peace to the world."

Dracula shook his head. "Wrong. You don't want peace. But of course you don't understand. After all; you're only a human.

Pain couldn't hide his anger as God Realm glared at Dracula. And his voice had risen. "Then tell me: Are you a god? Are you above human desires? Make me understand."

Dracula chuckled before he went serious. "No, I'm not a god. But I don't desire the things most people do. I will try to keep this as simple as possible. The three things humans desire the most are money, power and immortality. If you want to bring peace to the world, you've to nullify those desires in every living person in the world. But you can't do that. You say that what you want and desire is to bring peace to the world. That isn't correct. What you truly desire is nothing more than power. Why else bother capturing the Bijuu?"

God Realm frowned. "What you say makes sense. However: It's necessary to capture the Bijuu in order to attain peace in the world."

Dracula shook his head. "But you still desire power. Therefore you are nothing more than a human. It doesn't matter whether you desire a thing as a mean or you desire it as a goal. Or that is the case with power. You want to obtain power, so that you can create a weapon that wipe out an entire country in an instant. And it's true that the world will feel common pain and the war will stop. But, as I'm sure you're aware, the pain will diminish as time passes. And soon you will have to use that weapon again. And again and again. And when you finally obtain the peace in the world you desire so badly, the entire world will have been destroyed. Is the peace really worth that? That is the first scenario."

God Realm frowned slightly. "And the second scenario?"

Dracula sighed. "The other scenario is just as bad. When people see what power that weapon has, they will want it for themselves. Sooner or later, you will be killed and the weapon will be stolen and the thief will utilize the weapon to his or her own gain. And then the new wielder will get killed or lose the weapon and the new wielder will do the same as the previous wielder. And so it continues. The point is, the result won't change. The world will be destroyed. You say that you became a god through pain. Then you should understand the pain of solitude. And believe me: you will feel lonely if you use that weapon in your quest for peace. Whether it will be scenario one or two, the result remains the same: Your quest for peace will lead to the destruction of the world."

God Realm got a really dark expression on his face. An expression that promised death. "Then how do you suggest that I bring peace to the world? By nullifying all humans' desires? It seems that it's the only option left."

Dracula merely nodded. "You're right. Heh. The only problem with that is that by doing so, is that humankind would cease to exist. And let me tell you why: It's the desire that pushes humans through their lives. It's what gives them the strength and drives them forward. If that desires disappears, a human wouldn't be able to survive. He needs the desire in order to attain his goal. If he can't obtain his goal, he won't have any purpose. And without a purpose… you've have no reason to exist. I don't expect you to understand this. After all… you are only human." He sighed. When he spoke, the murderous intent was evident. "Enough with the chitchat. Konan.: If you fight me, you will die. But it's up to you to decide what you do."

God Realm spoke before Konan could say anything. "She will fight. But she won't die. You will."

Dracula narrowed his eyes. "So be it." Before any of the Akatsuki or Realms could make a move, Dracula formed a series of hand seals. His speed was so fast that they only saw the last one. The bird-seal. "Water Element: Fivefold Water Dragon jutsu!"

Five dragons of water (like the ones Zabuza and Kakashi created) rose from the water and attacked. God Realm repelled the one going for him with his shinra tensei. And Hungry Ghost Realm absorbed the one coming at him. But the others had to jump out of the way. But before they hit the water again, Hungry Ghost Realm and Hell Realm disappeared.

God Realm narrowed his eyes in confusion. "What??!!"

CRRAAKK!!

They all tuned around so that they faced the rock wall from where they just came. On the wall was Dracula and two large holes on each side of him. Then with one swift move, Dracula pulled out Hungry Ghost Realm. He looked at the Realm before he tore it into two halves. Then he did the same with Hell Realm. A moment later, Dracula stood on the water in front of them. He chuckled. "Two down. No more absorbing my jutsu or reviving the fallen. And yes; your chakra reveals everything."

Pain couldn't believe it. All of the bodies could see each other; yet, Dracula had moved so fast that none of them had seen the incoming attack. And now two of his two bodies were out of play. Then he thought up a plan. He would make Animal Realm jump back and Human Realm attack.

God Realm shouted, trying to hide his disbelief of what he seen so far. "Kakuzu and Hidan: Do your things!"

Hidan jumped backwards so that he stood on the ground before the gate. He cut his hand and made the symbol on the ground with the blood. Then he looked at Dracula and smirked. "You're done for, you dickhead! Say goodbye, you worthless shithead! Let's go, Kakuzu!"

Kakuzu armoured his hands and arms as he charged. He and Dracula went into a fierce taijutsu fight, causing waves to rise every time they separated and met. Dracula deflected Kakuzu's right fist, spun around and delivered a kick to Kakuzu' chest, sending Kakuzu about 200 metres through the air. Kakuzu hit the rock wall and vanished from sight as he continued into the rock. Now they noticed another thing. Dracula didn't wear sandals. He wore black, light leather boots.

Dracula swiftly took a turn, grabbed Human Realm's left arm and tossed him into the other rock wall.

"Yahooo! Oy Shithead! You're mine!"

Dracula turned around, but too late. Hidan's scythe hit his left arm, ripped the sleeve apart, and draw some blood. Dracula cursed, caught the scythe before it was completely past him, twisted the robe around his left wrist and pulled. The force with which he pulled, came as a shock for Hidan. Hidan was lifted from the water, and dragged towards Dracula with incredible speed. As Hidan pulled out his stick, Dracula clenched his right hand. The punch hit Hidan square in the face, sending him flying towards the gate. Hidan hit the wall with a loud thump and slumped down. Dracula tossed the scythe into the wall, right beside Hidan's head.

"Summoning jutsu!"

Dracula looked up and smiled as he saw the gigantic bird dive down at him. He made a chain of seals. "Fire and Wind Element combo: Dragon Breath jutsu!"

One gigantic spurt of flame was blown towards the bird. The spurt of flame wasn't big to begin with, but once it passed out between Dracula's right index finger and thumb, it expanded until the end of it filled 40 metres in diameter. The bird had no chance of avoiding it and got hit while it was 50 metres away. Dracula smiled and narrowed the space between his fingers, and by doing so, increased the intensity of the flame. The bird disappeared with a loud "puff".

Dracula turned around and saw Human Realm reappear and out of the corner of his eye he noticed that Demon Realm was preparing for attack. He made another series of hand seals. "Lightning Element: Titan's Lightningbolt!"

The Akatsuki members' eyes widened as they saw the rotating sphere of lightning-natured chakra form in Dracula's right hand. But when they saw it, it was already too late. Dracula threw it at Demon Realm, who didn't have time to dodge. The jutsu hit Demon Realm right in the chest.

!!!!!!!!!!!

The shockwave, sound and light from the explosion was enormous. A pillar of electricity rose 100 metres up in the air, sending bolts of lightning in every direction, creating huge craters in every single rock wall. Almost. For some reason, the bolts never flew across the wall. God Realm dodged and repelled as many of the bolt as he could. Then he noticed. The pillar was just broad enough to envelop Demon Realm. Then he was swallowed by the 50 metres tall wave of water that the shockwave produced. He was hammered into the far end rock wall from the gate, and then dragged towards the gate again before he got up to the surface again.

When he got up, he saw that Dracula was fighting with Human Realm. Pain wondered how long God Realm had been underwater. God Realm looked towards the gate. He frowned. As he suspected, not even a drop had crossed the wall. He saw that Konan reappeared too. She was coughing up a lot of water. A rustling sound made him turn his head around. He saw Kakuzu come out from the rock wall, and he saw those masks loosen themselves. However; three of the masks shattered. Only Kakuzu and his water mask-creature remained. And Hidan was still unconscious. And it appeared that Animal Realm had been hit by some of those bolts, because only the head remained.

Dracula had engaged Human Realm in a violent taijutsu fight. They dodged, jumped, ducked, punched and kicked. Dracula grabbed Human Realms right arm by the wrist with his left hand and made a twist. Dracula's blow with his right palm hit Human Realm square in the chest. God Realm eye's widened as he saw that the inside of Human Realm was blown through Human Realm's back. That, and the fact that the entire backside of Human Realm was blown off too.

Dracula turned around to face Kakuzu. And now they saw an emotion. Murderous intent was visible in his eyes. He smiled.

"I've got to admit. You give me more exercise than I've had in a long time. Not since Madara Uchiha and his little brother Izuna tried to fight me, right after I helped them to obtain their Mangekyou Sharingans by making them drink a little of my blood, I've had a fight where I had to become just a little serious. Back then I didn't know that my blood would cause Madara to become one of the strongest sninobi ever known. Madara summoned the Nine-Tails. Poor fool. He didn't knew how to control it properly then. Furthermore, he didn't know that the Nine-Tails originated from me. About 3500 years ago, I was more cruel than I'm now. Normally, this cruelty is connected with my Bloodline limit. But the Bloodline limit's power in me was so strong that it threatened to tear me apart from the inside. I finally came up with a solution. But it took me five years to perform the jutsu the right way. During those five years, I killed one man, one woman and one child each night. It was necessary for me in order to survive. I needed their blood. I killed some of them because they simply were there. Even today, I don't regret what I did. Anyway, I got the jutsu right. I almost emptied myself for blood. The blood gathered in nine puddles. The largest of the puddles became the Nine-Tails. After that, there weren't any more problems with my Bloodline powers. Whoops, I think I got sidetracked there. The Nine-Tails wasn't exactly pleased to see me again, and frankly, I wasn't happy to see it either. Anyway, I was happy to have a fight with those three. I was forced to fight with almost everything I got; and I hadn't been forced to that since Jashin. When the Nine-Tails took the flight, Madara and Izuna realized that they couldn't win. And I let them flee; even though I could have killed them and the Nine-Tails, I still allowed them to run away."

God Realm looked at Dracula, with disbelief in his eyes. Then he snarled. "Perhaps you realize this: If you had killed Madara and the Nine-Tails back then, the Hidden Leaf Village wouldn't had been attacked and the Fourth Hokage would most likely still be alive. After all: Madara attempted to destroy the Leaf Village by using the Nine-Tails as a weapon. "

Dracula merely snorted. "I couldn't care less about the Leaf Village. Or the Fourth Hokage for that matter. What on earth made him, his wife and one of his students think that they could get away with stealing the scroll where 'Reanimation' and the 'Death Reaper Seal' jutsu and their use were instructed, is something that still remains a puzzle to me. I placed a curse-jutsu on that scroll, making sure that anyone who touch that scroll or read or use any of those jutsus will be punished. Severely. The Fourth Hokage died when he sealed the Nine-Tails into his own son, his wife was hit by a lethal disease of the blood. But for some reason, my curse won't reach that pest of a student, a boy called Kakashi Hatake. I think I will have to hunt him down myself. The Third Hokage died when he fought a boy called Orochimaru because he used that sealing jutsu. And Orochimaru was punished by losing his arms because he used 'Reanimation'. Tsk. He took the credit for inventing that jutsu, when it in reality was me who invented those two jutsus. And as far as I'm concerned, the Leaf Village has locked that scroll away."

God Realm frowned. But Konan had caught on to something. "Wait a second. You say that you're the origin of the Bijuu?! And that you killed your own brother for the second time?! Just who or what are you?! And just how old are you?!"

Dracula laughed. "You aren't stupid, little girl. Not stupid at all. But you ask unnecessary questions. I'm a ninja. How old am I? Hm. I think I was killed when I was between 26-25 years old. And that was about 3500 years ago. Frankly: I don't know how old I'm."

Konan was in shock. "But … what? You… was killed… over 3500 years ago? But… how can you be here then?"

Dracula chuckled. "That is my secret. The only thing you know to need is that I'm going to kill you all. But I guess it can't hurt to tell you this… my body don't decay."

Kakuzu suddenly spoke up. "Hate to tell you this, but that scroll wasn't stolen by the Fourth Hokage. You see, I've seen it. I saw the First Hokage carry that scroll. I fought him for it."

Dracula shook his head. "No, he didn't. What he carried was something that he wrote down from a dream. You see, I wanted to test him. I send him a dream, or nightmare, where he saw the death of his clan. Then I showed him that scroll; showed him how he could bring them back. He failed my test. Once he woke up, he wrote everything down. He and his younger brother only knew of 'Reanimation' because of a dream. And I still wonder how Minato Namikaze, the guy who became the Fourth Hokage, his wife Kushina Uzumaki and Kakashi Hatake got their hands on that scroll." He narrowed his eyes. "Enough talk. Time to end this. I guess I will show you some of my own jutsus. Jutsus that can only be used by my clan."

They all tensed. If he hadn't shown all of his powers yet then…

"Oy, shithead. Aren't you forgetting something? Or rather… someone?"

Dracula turned around. He saw that Hidan had regained consciousness and that he had licked some of his blood; because the colour of Hidan's skin had changed colour and so had his eyes. Dracula narrowed his eyes

Hidan laughed his insane laughter. "Now, die you worthless shithead! But first you gonna feel real pain. HAHAHAHA!"

Hidan pierced his manhood with the stick. Dracula fell down on the water. Hidan laughed "HAHAHAHA! That hurt…ouch.., right? Ouch… how.. aw… does… it feel… ouch… to know… aw.. that you… aww!... will die.. in.. ouch pa- WHAT THE FUCK?!!!"

Dracula was standing on the water, completely unaffected by Hidan's curse. Hidan couldn't believe what he saw. "WHAT?!... OUCH… HOW.. THE …AW.. FUCK… CAN YOU… STAND UP… AFTER THAT?! I PIERCED…MY DICK… THE PAIN… OUCCHH.. SHOULD HAVE… BEEN… AWWW… TRANSFERRED TO YOU…ARROUCH… TOO!"

Dracula chuckled. "As I told you earlier: My brother Jashin more or less founded that religion of yours. I know its strengths… and weakness. Look down, idiot."

Hidan looked down and he freaked out again. In stead of the symbol he had drawn, he now stared down at a smiling smiley. On its forehead was written: When you see this, you're in trouble… IDIOT!

Hidan looked up. Dracula had disappeared! Hidan cursed. "Where…ouch… did that… dickhead.. awww… go?! AND WHERE… OUCH… DID THAT… SMILEY COME… FROM.?!"

"Behind you… idiot."

Hidan spun around, just to come face to face with Dracula. Dracula had taken a stance and was ready for attack.

(Editors note: The stance resembles that of Neji's 'Gentle Fist: 8 Trigrams, 64 Palms. Except that Dracula has his index fingers, middle and ring fingers stretched."

Dracula smirked. "I don't need to use any hand seals to perform a jutsu. My chakra is enough. And now I will show one of mine jutsus. Demon Fist: 9 Trigrams, 251 Palms!"

Hidan was defenceless as the strikes hit him. "… 251!"

The last blow hit Hidan right where the heart is. He flew backwards. Pain's, Konan's and Kakuzu's eyes widened. Blood was pouring out of 20 points on Hidan's body with explosive force.

Hidan hit the ground, coughing up blood. His eyes widened when Dracula suddenly stood in front of him, glaring down at him. It was evident in Hidan's eyes that he knew this might be the end. "What… was… that? I've never… felt or heard of anything like this before."

Dracula send him an icy glare. "Simply put: With this attack, I block your circulation of blood wherever I hit. But on the same time, I heighten it. The 251st blow opens some of the blockades. The pressure in your veins will at that time be so high that the blood will find the nearest exit. In other words: There where the blockades are removed. In order to lessen the pressure, the blood will seek out the weakest points; those points are the places on your skin where I hit you. The last blow removes or at least loosens up 20 blocked points and the blood will, no matter what, find those spots and break through them. I thought something similar to the Hyuuga clan. But they attack your chakra points, not your circulation of blood." Dracula smiled. "By the way… do you remember my warning? I warned you about what would happen if you used that language in my presence. Well, you used that language… so you should know what is going to happen now."

Hidan's eyes widened. "SHIT! Don't you dare.. you… you…"

"Enough." Dracula pulled Hidan to his feet by the collar of his cloak and with one swift edge-of-hand blow, he chopped off Hidan's head. Dracula picked up Hidan's head with his right hand, while he held the rest of the body in his left. "Now… Goodbye, you worthless shithead."

"Don't d..mmmfflflfl!!!!"

Hidan's voice disappeared as Dracula, quite literally, shoved Hidan's head up into Hidan's ass. When Dracula saw the disbelief in his remaining opponents' eyes, he chuckled. "Don't worry. I used my chakra to manipulate some of his molecules. He didn't feel more pain than he had too."

"That's…mmmfl.. not…mmfflll true. Here… fucking stinks!"

Dracula sighed. "Seriously, doesn't this idiot ever shut up? Ahh, I got an idea." Dracula laid Hidan's body on the ground, and stomped on Hidan's stomach. One minute of silence. Then..

"HOLY SHIT! EWWW! I'm fuck…ing… eat…ing my.. own crap… here! It's… fucking…. disgusting!"

Dracula sighed again. "Seriously, what do I have to do to make this idiot shut up? Oh well. Doesn't matter. Kakuzu; you're next."

Kakuzu prepared for the attack. But he wasn't prepared for Dracula's next move. Red rays were fired from Dracula's eyes, destroying the remaining creature in an instant. The next thing Kakuzu knew, was that his chest had been pierced by Dracula's right hand. Dracula's hand was sticking out of Kakuzu's chest, clutching his heart.

Kakuzu was in shock. "Too fast… how can you move so fast?"

Dracula merely chuckled. "Skill. And: those who are dead are above the rules of the living. That's all you need to know. Unfortunately for you… that only apply for the people in my clan."

There was a flash of green flames, and Kakuzu fell dead to the ground. Dracula stared at Konan with a hungry glimpse in his eyes, his right hand surrounded with green flames. "I look forward to taste the blood of you and your child, Konan. And I will taste it. But before that…" He turned his gaze at God Realm. "I need to take care of this troublesome one. Pain; I will show you why the Vampire clan from Darkos has been feared since ancient times. Let's fight!"

God Realm raised both of his hands and tried to use his jutsu to repel Dracula as he came at him. The force of the jutsu and Dracula's speed created a shockwave that made a huge wave arise. Then God Realm noticed. Not once since this battle started, had the fire burning in the torches went out. But he had to concentrate in order to keep Dracula at bay. At last God Realm succeeded in blasting Dracula away, into the nearest cliff wall.

God Realm turned towards Konan. "Konan, run away! You must inform Madara of what happened here! I will keep him here, but I don't know how much longer I can do it. Konan: We can't win this fight. He is too strong."

Konan nodded and made some wings made of paper. "Good luck… Nagato."

"You can wish him all that good you will… it won't help him. I'm going to kill him. And it won't help that you inform Madara. As we speak, he is on his way to meet his doom."

God Realm cursed as he watched Dracula reappear. "Konan, move it!"

Konan took off as God Realm used his jutsu to drag Dracula towards him. He pulled out a rod. Then, without warning, Dracula spun around in midair and delivered a kick to God Realm's head. God Realm flew through air until he hit the other rock wall.

"Death Element: Cage of Cerberus."

A sphere of green flames surrounded God Realm in an instant. Both above and, as Pain soon realized under the water. He watched as Dracula took off into the sky and grabbed Konan around the neck. He landed in front of the cage; he held Konan in a firm grasp in his left hand. She was gasping for air.

Dracula looked at her. "It's futile to fight against. My chakra prevents you from transforming into paper. So don't even try it."

He turned his attention to God Realm.

"And Pain; don't try to use your jutsu inside that cage. The flames will react on their own. But I must admit; you are strong. Those jutsus to repel and drag an opponent is quite impressive and useful. I know that you haven't used your jutsu called 'Chibaku Tensei'. However: Your jutsus' powers rely on the law of gravitation. They are quite effective under normal circumstances and against normal enemies. But against me, who can manipulate gravity, it is useless. By emitting chakra from my body, I can change gravity in diameter on about 2 metres. That enables me to hover in midair. And then, by releasing chakra from another point of my body, I can move. That's how I nullified your jutsu. I simply suspended gravity around me. In theory, you should be able to fly too. You have the required amount of chakra. But you can't fly unless you have excellent control over your chakra. The control required for Medical-ninjutsu is peace of cake compared to the control that is required if you ever are to fly. But now… It's Konan's turn."

Konan's eyes widened in fear. And with good reason. Dracula opened his mouth and his eye-teeth grew into fangs. A moment later, Konan screamed out in pain as Dracula's teeth pierced her skin near the throat. He drank and drank of her blood, until he had drained about half of her blood. A steady flow of green chakra started to flow from his hand, enveloping Konan. Pain soon realized that Dracula was keeping her alive.

Dracula looked at Konan. He saw the despair in her eyes. "You chose to stay. I've never shown mercy before, so why should I start now? When I killed all those men, women and children, I did it partly because I wanted to survive back then. You see, back then, blood was necessary me in order to survive and maintain my power. When I didn't kill them for fun or because they simply were there, I killed them for those reasons. Men for strength; women because their blood is sweeter than men. The children were merely a sweet. Now… if you would excuse me."

Konan screamed again, as Dracula increased the flow of green chakra to keep her alive. He sighed in pleasure. "Time for the last of your blood."

He bit her near the throat again and sucked out the blood; to the very last drop. Dracula tossed Konan's body away and turned to face God Realm.

God Realm's voice was filled with anger. "You monster. Other Akatsuki will come. Akatsuki will accomplish its goal. And when that happens… you will die."

Dracula shrugged. "I've nothing more to say to you. I will tell answer you face to face. Goodbye, God Realm."

Green flames consumed God Realm as the last syllable was spoken, leaving only the ring left and unharmed.

-End Nagato's narration-

"Dracula appeared in front of me one minute later. This is what he said to me. 'If it's a war Akatsuki want, it's a war they shall get.' He snapped his finger and those four rings appeared in a glimpse of flames. He said that Akatsuki …hark… needed a new leader and the balance of power needed to kept. He also… hark… said… that he was going.. cough cough… to hunt down… this Kakashi Hatake. Then… he broke… cough… every single bone in my body and tossed me down here. Every vein and organ in my body have been damaged beyond repair. Sagato… hark.. you must lead the Akatsuki. Goodbye.. hark… my brother."

Pain died in his brother lap. Sagato closed his brother's eyes. "Rest in peace… Nagato. I will make your dreams come true. And I will revenge you." He picked up the rings from the ground. "And I already know who the new members shall be." Then he burned Nagato's body with a fire jutsu and left.

-Flashback end-

Sagato was pulled out of his pondering by Zetsu's distorted voice. "Enemies are approaching. They will reach the bridge within 30 hours. And they are fairly powerful. If we meet them at the bridge, it will be hard to escape this place. What do we do?"

The Leader looked at Zetsu. "Who are the enemies? And how powerful?"

"Two of them are Legendary Sannin; Jiraiya and the current Hokage, Tsunade. Some of the others are Asuma Sarutobi, Maito Gai and Kurenai Yuuhi. They are accompanied by a bunch of chuunin."

Kisame chuckled. "That beast again, eh? How delightful. I still need to settle the score with him and those annoying brats."

Sagato addressed Itachi. "Are there other routes that we can take?"

"We can follow the other passage. It will lead us to the Earth country. However; I don't know where The Night Lord has placed traps if we follow that road. The traps that we set off on our way here were only minor ones. Taking that road would be more than reckless. Zetsu; you didn't sense or see other enemies, did you?"

"No. The group mentioned are the only one."

Itachi closed his eyes and nodded. He was glad. Kakashi had slipped past Zetsu without being noticed. But he knew it would be a close call for Kakashi to make it in time.

The Leader was furious. Nothing seemed to go the way he wanted it. "Fine. We give them a delay. I won't take any chances. Itachi, Kisame, Murdgaki, Devalan and Shredkill: I'm going to need 35% of your chakra for the jutsu. You will have time to rest and restore your chakra inside my barrier. And I will restore your chakra with my own as soon as the jutsu end. So in case you have to fight before we assumed, you will be at full power."

Devalan laughed. "Sounds good to me."

Sagato closed his eyes and made some hand seals before he resumed concentrating on the extraction. "Get ready."

Naruto had heard it all. And in his mind, he knew that he was beyond help. But one thought was clear in his mind. "Pervy-sage… Grandma Tsunade… all of you… be careful."

___

BAAAANNNG!!

"ARRGRGGR! OOOWWWwww…."

"Incoming! Watch out!!"

BAAANGG!

Screams could be heard all over the village. Wounded ninjas and civilians were brought to the hospital every minute.

---

"Temari, you can't do anymore for them! They are gone! Leave them!"

"I can't leave them Kankurou! They're only kids!"

Kankurou jumped to Temari's side. "Temari, listen! Those 'grenades' or what the hell they are called aren't something to joke with! If you're nearby one of those when it explodes, you are as good as dead! I don't know how Root got their hands on them! But I know that I don't want to lose my sister! Gaara would most likely kill me if he heard that I could have prevented your death but didn't! Now, move it!"

Kankurou dragged Temari with him by the arm. Temari looked back at the three small bodies. They were a mess. Then she looked at their faces. Konohamaru, Udon and Moegi eyes looked lifelessly into the sky.

___

They all felt the shockwave. Kiba's nose twitched and his eyes widened in shock. Five scents had appeared out of nowhere. And they were close. "Everyone, stop!"

They all stopped. Tsunade tensed. "What's wrong, Kiba?"

Kiba took out a kunai. "Five scents appeared out of nowhere. Furthermore: One of those scents is identical to one of the scents that I picked up where Kakashi-sensei fought. I think we found them. I think we soon have to face Akatsuki in battle."

Tsunade nodded. "Let's go."

They reached a huge clearing. And they came to a sudden halt. Five persons stood in the middle of the clearing stood five persons in black cloaks with red skies imprinted on them. Jiraiya frowned. He recognized Itachi Uchiha and Kisame Hoshigaki. But he didn't know the others.

One of them was as huge as Kisame, perhaps bigger. His skin was more red than blood and his white eyes emitted more murderous intent than Itachi's and Orochimaru's ever had. His teeth were just as sharp as Kisame's. He was wearing a large scythe on his back; the blade was blood-red and with a strange glow. But what Jiraiya noticed the most was the horns on his head. White horns were pointing 30-40 inches right into the air and he had long black hair between the horns.

One of the others was clad in grey armour; although it was only something he assumed, since they only could see his helmet, hands and feet. On his gloves were 4 razor sharp claws made of steel, two on each glove. The claws started from the wrist and they ended about 16 inches from the tip of his middle fingers. Two red eyes without pupils stared at them from two holes in the mask.

The last one looked like a kid. He had brown eyes and tan skin. His hair was green with a trace of red in it. He was a little smaller than Itachi and he had an ear ring made of gold. His headband declared that he was a former ninja from the Rock Village. He smiled a blinding white smile, promising death to his opponent.

Jiraiya glanced at Tsunade and the others. He saw that they had assumed the same about their opponents. He turned his head towards the Akatsuki members. He frowned again. Did they really have to fight five of them? This wasn't something he had expected.

Coolio stepped backwards. But before he did, he gently nipped Tsunade's left ankle. She looked down. "What is it?"

Coolio ventured a quick glance at the Akatsuki members before he answered, making sure the Akatsuki members couldn't hear him. "According to Pakkun, it was Itachi Uchiha, the freak with the Sharingan, who caught the blond pup. He broke Naruto's shin. Just thought I should let you know."

Tsunade nodded. "Thanks Coolio. Now, step back while we deal with those guys." She turned her stare at the Akatsuki and narrowed her eyes dangerously. When she spoke, everybody in the clearing could hear her anger. "You can fight any Akatsuki member you want. Except for Itachi Uchiha. He is mine, and mine alone."

They all tensed. They were ready. The battle could begin.

End chapter 10