Chapter 12: Ancient Treasure

The man in the coat seemed a bit taken aback by Naruto's lack of knowledge about his identity, making him look a bit depressed.

"Can't believe you forget your classmates Naruto" said the man.

Kiba in turn stood by the man's side and said while pulling back the man's hood "This is Shino Aburame Naruto, can't believe you forgot how annoying he was!"

Naruto on his side scratched the back of his head "Oh right! Shino! How you been man?" not convincing anyone as he clearly didn't remember him at all.

"Anyway, you came here for the legendary thief then Naruto? The Federation has a unique chance to get one of the most infamous criminals and the best they send is the man who destroys everything in his path? I heard of your little stunt in Hysperia Majoris, had you done it right you would have been decorated but now every person on that planet whishes to skin you!" said a mocking Kiba to a fuming and annoyed Naruto as he went to take a seat on a table.

"You are only going to taunt me? Or do you have something better to do?" replied Naruto obviously not wanting to fall into that game again.

With a wolfish grin Kiba answered "Well, since we are old acquaintances, I was thinking we could team up for this one"

This took everyone except Shino by surprise, Naruto leant forward and asked in a serious tone "From what I remember you and I weren't exactly friends, why share the chance for glory? From what I do recall, you always wanted to call the attention and standout as much as you could with your skills"

Smiling Kiba replied "This is Shino's idea, not mine he is too shy to ask directly so I am doing the talking"

Shino coughed and added "It's not that I am shy, it's only that you always interacted better with Naruto. Let me explain, Vany may be trapped in this planet with the lockdown, but he chose a place where he can be a step ahead of us at all times. Foreign species are rare on these worlds and they stand too much among the Yaru given their build up, so he will see any bounty hunter coming from miles away. So our best strategy is to concert our efforts and find a way to locate him and corner him"

Hinata and Tayuya nodded in agreement with Shino's advice but Naruto slammed a hand and said "And how can I trust you guys? If I remember right, you two abandoned the academy a few months before graduation and no one saw you again. As far as I know you two just may snatch Vany for yourselves and leave us out of the glory!"

"And what other choice do you have Naruto? Do I need to remind you we were the best trackers of the class? Or that you were the dead last in every subject except hand to hand combat? This world is huge and Vany has evaded all sort of authority or bounty hunter in his three centuries of crimes. This is the best chance anyone has gotten so far to catch him, and the reward even split with every bounty hunter here is enough to retire at any age. I don't mind sharing it as long as we catch him" finished saying Kiba with a grin as he folded his arms and awaited a response from Naruto.

Naruto leant back and closing his eyes considered making Hinata and Tayuya wonder what would prevail, his pride or his small common sense?

Naruto opened his eyes and said "Fine, we work together, we share the reward and if you betray us I will make certain you will spend the money on reconstructive surgery!"

"Now we are talking! Aright Shino, share what we got" said Kiba inviting everyone else to seat at the table.

Shino's coat then shifted strangely and a couple of thin metallic arms sprouted from the coat's sleeves holding small retractable screens. In them a series of communication logs and other information was displayed "As we began landing procedures I sent my micro-bots to scour the city and attach themselves to the local communications network so I could have the city's entire infrastructure serve me. I have access to every security camera and registration log on the city so basically I know everything about everyone in this city, even as where they are standing at the moment"

Hinata and Tayuya were a bit freaked out with the alien machinery sprouting from under Shino's coat but were impressed with his proficiency in hacking the local systems. Hinata also wondered form which planet did this two hailed from.

"As a first step I managed to confirm that Vany or someone who fits his description effectively landed here about two Terran months ago and registered in the most luxurious hotel under an alias. He was unfortunate since a rookie officer identified him from the wanted posts delivered to every law enforcement agency. Vany went into hiding while the planet completely closed off and the Federation sent several warships to secure the entire sector" continued in his stoic voice as more arms sprouted and held more screens showing images of the Federation movements and the most recent footage of Vany's face and build up.

"Why the Federation took so long to post the news of his discovery?" asked Hinata.

"Because they brought an entire brigade to search the cities of the planet, and place guards around the valuables of the Yaru. But after two months of searching they gave up and decided to move in external help. I have records showing where the most thorough searches were conducted and where are the most likely targets for a thief of his repute" replied Shino.

"So we search the smaller towns then?" asked Tayuya.

"No, we go to the cities and places already searched. Vany is king among thieves, its logic to think that few would look again in place where others have already conducted a thorough search; so it's safe to assume he managed to evade capture and stood put in one place, preferably close to his target as he has never shied away from a challenge" continued Shino.

"Why would he do that? His likely targets are all under tight security" asked Naruto as he pushed away some of the screens he wasn't even looking at.

"Don't you remember anything about criminal psychology? Vany is the most daring thief in history, a man who managed to steal a piece of Madara Uchiha's DNA won't be scared by a few Federation guards. Besides he is in this for both the thrill and the treasure, for some reason none of Vany's stolen goods have resurfaced in private collections, mafia raids or black market bust, he keeps everything he has stolen in a secret stash. He isn't looking for wealth he is always in pursuit of a new target" replied Kiba with a mocking smile as Naruto coiled back a bit ashamed of his lack of knowledge about criminals.

"So what do we do? I don't think we will have better luck searching for Vany than a thousand soldiers" asked Tayuya not very enthusiastic after hearing just how good was Vany.

"We better track down his most likely target. When he goes for it, he will be at his most vulnerable moment. He won't be alone, but transporting the treasure so he will be slow and worried about an escape route" said Naruto finally understanding Kiba and Shino's strategy.

"Exactly, other museums and places had tight security but never expected anyone would dare to try and steal something from them, they never saw it coming, but this time we will be waiting and if we cant's catch him then no one in the universe will" continued Kiba.

"Any target comes to mind?" asked Naruto.

"From what I am seeing, Vany has a predilection for historical objects of great value. But a closer look and investigation shows that the objects he seeks contain information of some sort, perhaps on ancient knowledge or the leads towards his next goal. Vany doesn't pick random objects from what I gather with this information" said Hinata drawing everyone's attention as she navigated the screen on Shino's mechanical limb.

"Wow, that was fast Hinata!" said an impressed Tayuya as Hinata unknowingly went through the screens incredibly fast and her eyes shifted positions at an even faster rate.

Tayuya's comment broke Hinata's concentration and let go of Shino's screen. "What?" said an spooked Hinata as she went back to normal.

"You just went through a ton of information and processed it with a professional's expertise!" said an awed Kiba.

"It takes a considerable thought to deduce Vany's objectives, but seeing it from that perspective it give Vany a motivation for his crimes and the places where he strikes" continued Kiba.

"What do you think Shino?" asked Kiba only to see something he had never seen before in his long years working with the stoic man.

Shino was red faced and had further retreated into his coat hiding away every one of his mechanical limbs.

Kiba then got close to Shino "What's wrong buddy?"

"S-S-She touched my extensions! And very gently too!" said an embarrassed Shino.

"No way…" thought Kiba as he couldn't believe Shino would feel embarrassed over some touching his mechanical exo-skeleton.

"You are telling me that turn you on? I have tried to drag you into strip clubs and the like and not once did you ever showed any hint of being interested in girls! And all it takes is a girl touching that thing? God I wish I had known before, it was very awkward to pick up girls with you around, even when they wanted to go out with you!" excitedly whispered Kiba as Shino further retreated into his coat.

Kiba just laughed and let go of his friend but Hinata worried if she had said anything wrong and placed her face right in front of Shino's while bending a bit showing a bit of cleavage to the embarrassed man "Did I do something wrong? I acted without thinking and touched your things without permission, I am so sorry!"

Shino just got all red and a bit of steam came out from his coat making Tayuya jump back totally freaked out

"Y-Y-You didn't do anything wrong! You actually used it properly and with care, I am honored someone cares for treating technology right!" exclaimed Shino in an ever decreasing voice.

Hinata didn't manage to hear right and got closer to Shino making a small explosion sound within his coat and a some smoke com out, as he stumbled unconscious to the ground.

Hinata yelled and flailed around scared she just had killed the poor Shino but Kiba placing a hand on her shoulder said with a playful smile "Don't worry, he will be fine, he just had a lot to deal with…"

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After Shino recovered and got his systems back on line the group exited the Federation's garrison and decided to make way for the local Yaru government office. At the exit of the building a large white dog with cybernetic implants met with them and immediately started to interact with Kiba who seemed to understand everything the dog barked at him.

Naruto explained to Hinata and Tayuya that Kiba hailed from Canya, world covered in long grasslands where the locals developed several canine like features and a symbiotic relationship with the several canine species that thrived on that world. Their history was full of great moments where their faithful Canyan hounds always appeared, from their first flight to their first encounter with humanity whom to their delight also had a close relationship with their own dogs.

Canyan technology developed to a point in which both the humanoid and the canine started to understand each other and cooperate for everything they did. Eventually Canyans saw that through technological advancements they could expand the life span of their partners and even integrate some of their own sensory functions with them creating a true bond of life and experience.

Canyans have earned a well trusted position in the Federation as their contributions have led to improve security forces, law enforcement agencies and rescue efforts in all kind of situation. They were hailed as heroes after their brutal defense of an important telecommunications array during the forming of the Uchiha Pact over three hundred years ago.

On the other side Naruto remembered that Shino was a Tentonian, a rather reclusive but advanced species which developed in an insect dominated planet. They were the only humanoids on the planet as the rest of the mammals on the planet were prey to gigantic and terrifying insect life forms.

Their species, in order to survive such a cruel environment started to mimic the insects and soon enough managed to subdue them and use them to further develop their own species. One of their main particularities was that even from ancient times; the Tentonians had started to create mechanical limbs that would help them with their everyday tasks making them very much alike to the insects that inhabited their home world.

Over the pass of centuries and given their love for mechanical and technological trinkets they were contacted by humanity to join the Federation. This opened the gate for the Tentonians to learn everything about the advanced robotics of other species and apply it to their own technological innovations which led to every Tentonian having their own set of exo-skeletons made with a native resilient but flexible metal. This in turn further weakened their bodies making them support operatives, more than front liners.

Hinata and Tayuya nodded in eager interest as Naruto relayed his accounts of the other two species, after all he did picked some things about others. You never know when you will need to know their weaknesses…

As the group made way for the Government office the dog went over to Hinata and though the creature was rather imposing Hinata didn't flinched and instead petted the dog earning happy powerful barks from the dog.

"The name's Akamaru, he has been with me since I can remember and has gotten me out of many problems. If you like him that means you are a most caring and wonderful person" said Kiba with wise pose.

"Still pulling the puppy trick? Don't you think he is too big already for that?" said Naruto in mocking tone making Kiba growl and get on his face with a challenging smile.

But before the two could get back on it Hinata said "Really Akamaru? Alright, hope the guys don't get jealous" and just like that gave a small kiss to Akamaru's nose.

Kiba and Naruto were left frozen as Akamaru passed them by with Hinata by his side. Tayuya saw them and laughing said "You could learn a thing or two dickheads!"

Naruto and Kiba got depressed and followed the others into the building.

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Once inside the government office the group was attended by a young female Yaru who almost ran upon seeing the imposing figure of the visitors but after being scolded by her superior she went back and apologized.

They asked about who might know more of the Yaru's ancient relics to which they were pointed to the Lore Keeper, an ancient title given to those who care and record Yaru's history from ancient times.

The group then was directed to the Vault of Memory which was something of a museum or a school for those willing to listen to the long and often boring story of the Yaru, across fifty thousand years of recorded history. As they traveled Akamaru registered every scent possible as Kiba explained it would help them locate a strange scent when close.

The Vault was a rather plain building made of incredibly thick stone, steelwork and simple architecture, having as a goal, to last for as long as the Yaru exist. The place was filled with ancient looking scrolls, old paintings of various styles and ruined tools.

To their encounter came the most old looking Yaru they have seen so far, he was dressed in green ceremonial robes and walked with a wooden staff in the shape of the overgrown bulls the Yaru used in days past to plow the fields.

"Rare to see anyone visiting the Vault, especially off worlders; Tell me how can I help such fine guests?" said in a weak voice the old Lore Keeper.

"Good day to you sir, as you probably can guess we have come for the purpose of catching the famous thief Vany; but given the nature of this criminal's behavior we believe our best chance to catch him is when he comes to get what he wants" replied Hinata in the most courteous tone possible knowing that none of her companions would have the proper skill to properly address an erudite.

"Yes I have heard about this thief and the bounty hunters they brought to catch him. Let me tell you young lady nothing good comes to the Yaru from the people who inhabit the stars beyond the twin suns; they brought us misery and slavery fifty thousand years ago and they brought us decadence and forgetfulness about a thousand years ago" said the man referring to both the Star demons and Humanity when they each came from the skied to greet the Yaru.

"I am sorry if our presence offends you in any way but unlike the bounty hunters out there, me and my companions work for the law and our duty is to catch this thief before he gets what he wants" answered Hinata hoping to make the Lore Keeper a collaborator instead of an obstacle.

"Fine young lady, what can I help you with? The many relics and scrolls of the Yaru barely have any value beyond our worlds, I can't conceive what this thief may want from us?" said the Keeper as he took a seat while assisted by Hinata.

"We have analyzed Vany's methods and targets, and have come to the conclusion that he seeks objects of historic relevance but also contain a large amount of information. To what purpose does he steals what he steals is still a mystery though. He is known for a couple of very daring thefts and suspected of thousands more across the galaxy in three hundred years. We believe with certain confidence that Vany's next target should be something similar" explained Hinata while giving a mug of tea to the Keeper.

"Mmm, I think I understand young lady. But most of our scrolls speak only of local incidences, our history with the rest of the universe began a thousand years ago but we have barely changed since then, the only significant change has been in entertainment and the machinery lent to us to increase the size of our harvests" replied the Keeper as he did his best to remember any significant.

Hinata also gave it a thought, Vany wouldn't want records of harvests and local incidences of the Yaru across millennia he would want something else.

"Unless he seeks information about the Star Demons…" whispered the Keeper with fear in his voice.

"We have heard about them but so far we have little information regarding that legend" answered Hinata knowing that it may be speaking of Naruto's people.

"You only heard the digested part of it young lady for some things are better known by a few…If this thief is truly looking for information about the Star demons then he must be stopped at all costs!" exclaimed the old man getting agitated.

Hinata grew alarmed over the Keeper's behavior and turned around to se her companions who to her relief and something of disappointment were looking at the various objects as she continued with her debriefing.

"You mean that Vany may try to steal the Scroll of the Beginning? Hinata asked, remembering the words from the Garrison.

"Maybe, but not the one at the central museum, that's a trinket to lure tourists and show to kids. If Vany is as good as his reputation then he probably knows that the real scroll is not even a scroll, but a massive and ancient logic machine…" said the man raising Hinata's interest further.

"A logic machine? You mean like a computer?" Hinata asked.

"Yes but old as our history and as sophisticated as anything the humans may build, for it has been working for over fifty millennia recording everything that happens on this world automatically, we the keepers have been watching over it since it was brought by the Star Demons. My ancestors were trained to use them and keep them running, the only one still working is the one from this planet as the others were forgotten and eventually destroyed when the Star Demons left and never returned" continued the man.

"And why do Vany may want it? He can't steal it and the information in it only regards the Yaru and their chronicles?" Hinata asked trying to figure out Vany's goal.

"That's true but it also has the accounts of the Star Demons as they enslaved our population for a thousand years. And the most important thing is that the Logic Computer was linked to the ones from the Star Demons, when they left the link was shut down and so it has been our purpose to keep that link shut or at least be warned for when they return. If Vany is a knowledge hunter he may be wanting to know about that, if for some reason that link is reestablished then, I don't really know, maybe the demons will return or nothing may happen. Still it's a risk we can't take!" finished saying the man as he went back to the backroom from where he came.

Hinata stood back on her feet and saw that her companions were still distracted browsing over the many trinkets of the Yaru. Still she managed to catch Naruto staring at her intensely, something told her he had listened to it all and shared the same worries as she.

The keeper returned and gave Hinata an object enveloped in fine green silk and told her that it was the key to the real Vault where the Logic machine was interred. The Keeper told her to try and catch the thief but that is needed they could destroy the machine, better to lose a data base which was already printed than summon the old tormentors of this world.

Hinata just made one final question "I am sorry if this offends you but why do you trust us with this? We are off worlders and we may not be trustworthy"

"Girl, with age, you learn a couple of things about people the moment you see them besides you belong to that Justicar's retinue right? Years ago I met one and though he was a giant pervert who even sought some of our women, he helped my people a lot with a band of corrupt Federation officers and some counselors. If there is anyone to be trusted, that is a Justicar!" said the man offering a smile to Hinata who replied with one of her own.

As Hinata walked out, the entire group fell in line with her though none spoke much since, in their own waysm they have heard everything the old keeper said and had many different thoughts about it.

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The Keeper's small trinket turned to be some sort of device of strange design and sturdy composition making it somewhat heavy for its size but of rather simple use. The silk in which it was enveloped turned out to be a map with the location of the real Vault where the Logic machine was stored.

The group was discreet when asking for transportation as apparently a lot of bounty hunters have begun to make their own questioning and had reached similar conclusions as to what may drive Vany to act, fortunately most of them stuck to museums and security deposits where valuables were stored, others who seemed more proficient in their insights had taken to guard monuments and libraries with ancient tomes. But there were a significant amount of them overseeing the exits and communications of the city hoping to get a lead and perhaps snatch Vany from another bounty hunting party.

Shino had managed to disable the security cameras and alter the logs so their exit wouldn't be noticed as they left using an all terrain truck that would take them to their destination. To their surprise, Tayuya could drive even these old rusty powerful trucks with ease so Naruto thanked again for making her his multirole pilot.

The travel would take them around five hours so they would be expecting to reach the location by nightfall at best. Hopefully Vany would still be having problems to locate the place and figure out what to do with such a device as an ancient computer, though Naruto did mention that even if Vany located the place, it would probably take him a lot of effort to get in; the last comment made everyone curious as to why would Naruto make such an affirmation to what he just said that it was a hunch though Hinata noticed how Naruto moved his fingers over the device.

Naruto observed the device with something Hinata identified as akin to nostalgia or longing; she wanted to ask Naruto but the loud cramped vehicle made for a poor environment and Kiba and Shino have been very quiet since leaving the Vault at the city. There was something suspicious in those two though she didn't think they intended any harm to them, whatever it was it would reveal itself in due time; for the time being sleeping seemed like a good option.

Five hours later…

Hinata was awakened by the sudden lack of movement from the truck as Tayuya signaled that they were on location and the truck needed to cool down or else it wouldn't be able to carry them back.

Shino confirmed that no one followed them so they were safe to operate in the area but to their surprise the only thing they found was a large boulder like formation in the middle of nowhere. The group dispersed to look for something akin to an entrance but not even Kiba or Akamaru's senses managed to point an entrance.

Naruto just walked towards the boulder and placing his hand next to it his body began to emit pulses of energy lifting dirt and dust around him.

This was the first time in a long while that Hinata saw Naruto's psionic powers but this time she was capable of feeling the intensity and size of it. But the truly terrifying part of it was that Akamaru was whimpering in fear while hiding behind an immobile Kiba who watched the sheer power being unleashed to clear the area.

The other thing that made Hinata nervous was the look on Naruto's face it was without a trace of the laughing Justicar she has grown accustomed, instead it was like sculpted on a stone as the power flowed out of him in those blue pulses.

After several minutes of pulsing the entire area was cleared and everyone went surprised as they noticed that they were standing on top of a metallic surface with several unknown carvings on it. The boulder had cracked and it showed something similar to the shaft of a really old elevator and a standing panel with an empty slot.

Naruto unwrapped once more the metallic device and slid it into the slot of the machine while pressing a few buttons.

At first nothing happened but the panel lit up and a loud shifting noise made everyone get on guard; soon enough a platform erupted from the shaft and a small rail allowed people to get on.

Naruto didn't flinched at all and stepped on the platform and addressing everyone else with an authoritarian tone he commanded "Get on…"

Hinata turned to see at Tayuya who gulping down her worries nodded back to her and went to the platform. Kiba and Shino nodded to each other and also got on board.

"Hey Naruto, how did you knew all this was hidden here?" asked Kiba trying to lighten up the sudden serious mood.

"Justicar business…" growled back Naruto not interested in even speaking to the Canyan.

"Naruto?..." timidly asked Tayuya, but when Naruto directed her his intense stare she directed her gaze to her feet and remained silent.

Hinata on her side had a lot of things going through her mind, she had by now guessed that the Star Demons probably were Naruto's ancestors and they probably left this whole still functioning installation behind. Still this behavior was all to strange even for her, she had begun to fear that just being close to Feranian objects were enough to warp Naruto into the feared monsters the Yaru still remembered.

But Naruto's gaze was full of concentration and somewhat close to worry. On the other hand Kiba and Shino stared at the amazing structure of metal that surrounded them as they descended deep into the earth.

Finally the platform stopped sharply making everyone but Naruto almost fall from it, apparently the technology was still functional but it didn't meant it ran smoothly.

Naruto descended and quickly went to a side of the room disappearing from everyone else's sight. Shino pulled out several mechanical arms with lights on them shedding a powerful white light on the room.

The room was very dusty and everything that stood from the ground was covered with long white sheets decorated with several Yaru scriptures. From what Hinata gathered the most repeated words on them referred to pleas of mercy and secrecy.

A loud bang made everyone get on guard and draw out their weapons, but as they wondered about the source of the noise, amber lights on the roof and the walls illuminated the room revealing its contents fully to its visitors.

Naruto came back at a hurried pace and started to pull off the sheets covering the structures beneath them, but seeing so many of them he barked at the others "Remove the sheets!"

Tayuya jumped to it while Kiba and Shino started to do the same more hesitantly fearing the place could be rigged to explode. Naruto went from one uncovered structure to the next lighting up everything back to light and to Hinata's surprise every machine was answering correctly despite the ancient looks.

It didn't took long for every machine within the room to be operating anew and transmitting data between each other, every light was on and several doors had opened. The air has also started to feel fresh indicating that the whole installation was working properly.

Naruto was now standing in front of the main machine scribbling away on it with uncharacteristic ease as everyone else just stood there watching at the screen and the unknown symbols and the few words their translation nano-machines allowed them to understand.

The words referred to food shipments, supply lines, revolts, high fathers and battle fleets; none of this terms meant anything to them, except Hinata who did recognized the Battle fleets, the home of the Feranians. This was indeed a Feranian structure and apparently it went back to life as one of its children had come back to reclaim it.

Naruto saw the screen one last time and stretching his back allowed a long sigh to escape his mouth "Man was I worried! Good thing this place has so little on it!"

Hinata and everyone else went a bit confused as Naruto apparently was back to his old self and pressing a few buttons as he was finishing his own inquiries.

"W-W-What was all that you dickhead?" asked an enraged Tayuya as small tears threatened to leave her eyes. Hinata knew that Tayuya was just relieved to see Naruto back to his old self and not that soulless walking powerhouse.

"Hah hah, sorry about that Tayu chan, everything is alright. We should worry though about laying a proper trap for that Vany guy" said Naruto in his usual easy going attitude making Tayuya nod rather happily as she went about to see for good hiding spots and places to locate sensors.

"Say Naruto, what did you just do? You seemed to be rather familiarized with this technology, is it Feranian?" asked Shino while scanning the entire place.

"Yeah, but nothing great, just an abandoned computer used for logistics; I feared it might have been something else and I would have to blow it sky high and make a run for it out of this world" said Naruto casually as he got about to power down the machines.

Before Hinata could get close to Naruto and have a word with him, Akamaru let out a loud howl as several of his implants flared in lights and warning signals.

At this everyone got to Akamaru as Kiba said "Get on guard! We've got company!" making everyone form a defensive circle with a varied assortment of weapons or short ranged instruments.

The air started to smell of ozone and before long, lightning bolts started to strike the interior of the metal coated installation. The lightning bolts started to focus at the center of the room and a ball of light formed as one last flash blinded everyone.

At the center of all that activity stood a man sustained by mechanical limbs like those belonging to Shino though they were much thicker and in black. The man was encased in a power armor of sorts and a large backpack still emitting small lightning bolts.

Naruto's eyes grew wide and before long launched himself at the intruder, but the man used one of his mechanical limbs to swing away Naruto with ease.

"Where are your manner's boy?" said a robotic voice as his mechanical legs stomped the ground turning to address the other hunters.

Hinata moved quickly to check on Naruto while Tayuya opened fire furiously with her auto pistols only to have her bullets deflected by a strong kinetic shield covering the mechanical abomination.

"Seriously, youth these days is so disrespectful!" said again the man unleashing a powerful blast of energy that sent everyone flying against the walls.

The man didn't seemed to lose time and quickly got to the main computer that Naruto just finished tinkering with, and to everyone's amazement he started to navigate through it with the same ease as Naruto's.

Naruto saw this as he was being helped back to his feet by Hinata while the rest started to recover from the blast. Naruto's eye grew wide when a large icon was displayed on the screen and in a heartbeat he had pushed Hinata aside as he had begun to run towards the man with his gauntlet glowing intensely.

The man's smile grew widely as one of his mechanical limbs was about to insert itself in a slot of the machine only to gasp as a powerful strike from behind smashed his face against the screen which amazingly didin't shatter.

Naruto's gauntleted hand was buried within the back pack of the man and quickly enough lightning bolts started to strike the room once again. The man rocked around violently trying to get a hold of Naruto, but the young Feranian didn't let go and remained firmly attached to his back trying to get his hand out of the back pack.

"Naruto!" screamed Hinata as she got a really bad feeling as she dodged the lightning bolts.

"We have to get him off his back!" screamed Kiba as he had to take cover with Akamaru behind another structure.

Tayuya was about to jump close to the thrashing beast but was pulled out of the way by Shino's mechanical limbs before a lightning bolt struck her "It's too dangerous; We have to use other means" coolly said Shino trying to get an idea and keeping Tayuya still as she tried to get free.

"Let me go! We have to help him!" said Tayuya as she couldn't get off from Shino's grip.

To Hinata's horror the lightning bolts started to concentrate and strike Naruto who screamed in pain but remained alive and conscious. Naruto opened his eyes and caught sight of Hinata as she tried to get close.

"Blow this place up! Was all he managed to say before he and the robotic beast were engulfed in lightning and disappeared in a loud explosion of light leaving a burnt mark on the ground.

As quickly as it had begun it was now over, some amber lights were blown, there were several burnt marks on the walls and some of the machines. The main computer was still displaying the icon that the beast had managed to acquire; closer inspection revealed that the icon was actually made by countless smaller symbols of alien nature. The large icon had a similar shape to that of some sort of animal's skull.

But the group ignored this for the moment and got close to the large burnt mark on the ground, Hinata nodded for Kiba and Shino but both had already conducted searches for Naruto's whereabouts and grimly made her understand that they got nothing.

She carefully observed the place wanting to have her eyes work again but the sight of Tayuya's form kneeling in the center of the mark got her attention first.

Tayuya whispered softly "He is gone…but he wanted me by his side…he left me behind…he lied to me… HE IS GONE!" turning her last words into a shrieking scream that made everyone cringe with pain as it raised to a supersonic note.

Akamaru and Kiba wailed in pain as their enhanced senses made them more susceptible to such attacks while Shino placed his hands on his ears and dragged his companions away from the desperate horned girl as her cry kept going.

But Tayuya went silent as Hinata delivered a carefully placed strike to the base of her skull making her go unconscious with tears on her eyes.

Hinata also had tears running down her face but she had one last order to carry on, time for tears and mourning would have to wait a bit longer.

AN: I am back baby!

Hello everyone! First than anything I apologize for the terribly long time it took me to update this story but so much has happened in the past months. New computer, new job and a new story kept me very busy.

I promise to update more regularly but juggling three stories it's more complicated than it sounds as I am currently writing the first chapter of my fourth story. Inspiration can be a bitch sometimes!

I will do my best to keep this story updated more often though it will be a challenge.

Hope you like this new addition and remember…

Read, Enjoy and Review!