A/N Here is the next chapter, enjoy!

"So, to summarize, two mysterious people have replaced Hanzo the Salamander in ruling Ame, and there are massive gatherings of forces in Iwa?" Naruto asked, looking at Neji. He received a nod in reply.

"Do we know anything about these mysterious replacements of Hanzo? Appearances? Abilities? Rumors?" Jiraiya questioned.

Neji spoke up again, "We did not catch a single glimpse of them during our surveillance. They isolate themselves at the top of one of the towers. The villagers seem to revere them, frequently referencing the 'Angel' that is their savior. When I used my byakugan to view the tower, I sensed numerous chakra signatures. Seven of the chakra signatures were identical, and the last one was different. I do not know what conclusion to draw from this," Neji finished.

"I see, I think I will take over surveillance of Ame and see what I can discover. If there are large forces gathering in Iwa, it would be beneficial to send you four with Naruto to obtain more information. Agreed?" Jiraiya asked.

"I'd suggest sending TenTen or Rock Lee back to Konoha in the meantime to report our findings so far. I'd like to utilize Neji and Hinata's byakugan during my scouting of the Iwa forces," Naruto replied. "As far as which one of you goes, I think TenTen might be a bit more tactful in relaying the details. Any objections?"

"None from me, it is a sound choice. TenTen, take this scroll with you, and deliver it to Tsunade when you give your report. You should leave immediately. We will get some rest and dive into this temple in the morning," Jiraiya said, detailing their plans for the immediate future. TenTen rose silently, taking the offered scroll and left in a swirl of leaves.

As the remaining ninja settled in for the night, Naruto claimed first watch. In truth, he never did sleep much lately anways, so he might as well get some use out of his restlessness. Something felt different tonight, however. A sense of foreboding was sinking in on him. As the time dwindled by, he couldn't seem to shake the uneasiness. In his mindscape, Kurama assured him he couldn't feel anything of the sort, but Naruto could tell the fox seemed anxious. Chalking it up to the impending war, he retreated from his mindscape and settled for watching the small fire crackle away.

As he was nearing his time to swap watch duty, his blanket seal was tripped, alerting him of an unwanted presence. Naruto woke Jiraiya with a shake. "My outer perimeter was just tripped, I'm going to check it out. Keep watch for me," he told the Toad Sage, disappearing in a flash of red.

Naruto appeared in the trees behind the intruder, taking note of his black cloak with red clouds on it. 'Akatsuki… damn.' He put his ANBU mask on and activated his eyes. Prepping incapacitation seals on his hands, he dove at the intruder while applying a blanket genjutsu for cover.

His seals hit the mark, however just as it was applied, the enemy dispersed into a murder of crows, focking away and reforming infront of Naruto. Naruto unsealed a kunai and switched his incapacitation jutsu for his chakra bleed jutsu. 'I can't mess around with Akatsuki members, I'll have to end this quickly,' he thought.

As Naruto took stock of his opponent, nothing would have prepared him for what he would see. The man had a long sword in his right hand, lightning crackling along the blade. His hair was pitch black and fell wildly to his shoulders. In his eyes were the mangekyo sharingan.

"Sasuke?" Naruto questioned. As an answer, Sasuke dove at Naruto, weaving handsigns as he swung his sword. Naruto dodged backwards, avoiding the crackling blade, but was greeted with a large fireball. Thinking fast, Naruto threw his kunai into the flames, flashing away a second later.

He had timed it perfectly, appearing within striking distance of his opponent. Naruto slammed his hand into Sasuke's stomach, and imbedded his kunai into Sasuke's right leg. Before he could apply another seal, his instincts screamed at him to get away. Leaping backwards again, his eyes went wide as Sasuke encompassed himself in a purple cloud of chakra, slowly taking the form of the upper body of a samurai.

'Susanoo… shit.' Naruto thought to himself. He began channeling Kurama's chakra, covering himself in the cloak as tails started to form behind him. As the 5th tail began to take form, his opponent dropped his Susanoo and sheathed his sword. Confused, Naruto dropped his chakra cloak and sealed his mask away.

"I thought it was you, but I wanted to make sure," Sasuke spoke. "Get over your shock, I have some important things to discuss with you." Naruto shook off his stupor and approached, keeping his guard up incase this was a ruse.

"You needn't be on guard, I have no further desire to fight you. I simply needed to verify it was indeed you by bringing out your nine-tails chakra," Sasuke explained.

"Alright, then explain why you are wearing an Akatsuki cloak, but not attacking me. I'm sure you're aware of the threat I pose to their plans," Naruto countered.

"I am working with my brother, aiding Konoha from inside the organization. Come, let me tell you about the past few years of my life. Maybe that will help you understand," Sasuke said, taking a seat by a tree.

"So in short, you were with Orochimaru for a while, killed him, found your brother, joined the Akatsuki with him, and are now looking for a contact within Konoha to relay information to?" Naruto asked. "What made you change your mind about your brother?"

"My brother and I fought for a long time when I finally found him. When I was about to kill him, I realized he had been going easy on me the entire fight. He was losing on purpose. I stayed my hand and upon further inquiry, he revealed his side of the past years. As I had nothing left to strive for, and I couldn't return to Konoha, I decided to join him in aiding the village as a rogue ninja." Sasuke explained. "As for the contact, it has to be you, it can't be anyone else. Your isolated nature and solo missions will make it easier to get you information. As a sign of goodwill, be wary if you go to Iwa, there are two Akatsuki members there who are very dangerous. Kakuzu and Hidan. They are rumored to be immortal. Do not engage them if you don't have to. I must be going, however, we aren't supposed to be away from our partners for long," Sasuke warned as he stood to leave.

"Wait, what do I tell the Hokage, or Sakura?" Naruto asked.

"Nothing. Let them believe I am dead, it will be better that way," Sasuke replied, before he left in a swirl of leaves. Naruto was about to leave, when he noticed a Konoha headband stuck into the tree Sasuke was leaning against. It had a slash through the symbol, the sign for a missing-nin. With a sigh, Naruto sealed it in his storage seals, and headed back to camp.

As Naruto walked back through the archway into the courtyard, Jiraiya could sense something was off. Naruto never walked back, he would always use his Flying Thunder God technique to avoid any tails. Jiraiya tossed the redhead a quizzical glance, and received a nod towards the temple entrance in reply. Jiraiya got the silent message, and rose to make his way towards the temple.

Naruto made his way over to Hinata, lightly shaking her awake. "hmm-huh? Naruto? What's going on?" she questioned.

Naruto put a finger to his lips, signaling her to speak quietly. "I am going to investigate the ruins with Jiraiya, can you take the remaining watch shift?" He received a nod, and with a swift kiss on her forehead he made his way to the temple entrance.

After wandering further inside, Jiraiya stopped and turned towards the redhead. "So, what, or who did you come across?"

Naruto sighed as he leaned against the opposite wall of the corridor. He unsealed the headband and tossed it to Jiraiya. "Sasuke is who I ran in to. He is part of Akatsuki, helping his brother in aiding Konoha from inside their organization. He also had an interesting story about his past few years…" Naruto started as he dived into a shortened version of Sasuke's life after leaving the village. "He has requested that he stay 'deceased' on record, and that I be his contact to funnel information about the Akatsuki. I did not give him an answer, but I doubt he would have accepted no as an answer anyways. This is a rare opportunity to gain a crucial edge on the true enemy in the coming years," Naruto finished.

Jiraiya stayed silent for a while, processing the information he just receieved. "I am going to leave this decision up to you. As for my two cents, I can't imagine any reason why he would be deceiving you. On an unrelated note, while we are here, lets see what we can find out about your lineage eh?" Jiraiya said, turning and walking further into the temple.

As the pair ventured further into the ruins, light became harder and harder to come by. The air also seemed to become damper the further they travelled, and the path was on a gradual decline, descending into the earth. After a few minutes, the cracks in the earth above the passage faded away, requiring Jiraiya to light a torch for visibility.

Shortly after the natural light sources disappeared, the passage curved to the right and began a sharper descent. As they continued down, the walls started to display peculiar runes. "Jiraiya, do you know what these runes are, or where they originate?" Naruto asked, running his hand along the wall.

"I do not recognize them. All I can tell is that they are ancient, long lost runes. We should continue with caution, it doesn't look like anyone has been here for quite some time." Naruto nodded in agreement, removing his hand from the wall and venturing further into the depths at a slightly slower, guarded pace.

The corridor curved to the right several more times as Naruto and Jiraiya descended into the depths of the temple. After what seemed like 2 hours of walking, a dim green glow emerged from far ahead. Quickening their pace slightly, the duo emerged from the tunnel into a vast cavern with green crystals in the roof, glowing dimly, providing an eerie lighting to the room. The walls were covered in a more complex version of the runes that existed on the walls in the corridor, and there were a few cubby holes in the back side of the cavern. In the center of the cavern a shallow pool of water surrounded a large statue of a woman. She had her head bowed, and large dragon-esque wings emerging from her back. Her hands were held in front of her naval, with one hand below and one hand above a yellow orb.

Naruto ventured from the exit of the tunnel and further into the cavern, heading towards the statue. After crossing two thirds of the distance, he realized Jiraiya was missing. Turning around he found Jiraiya still inside the tunnel. With a questioning gaze, he receieved the reply "I can't cross the threshold of this cavern. I'm not sure why but these runes are preventing me from continuing. An invisible barrier seems to be erected. Since you can enter the cavern, I'm assuming it has to do with your lineage."

Naruto sighed, but nodded before turning around and continuing his way towards the statue. As he reached the edge of the water, he could make out the details of the yellow orb in her hands. It was an exact replica of his eyes. Naruto moved to cross the pool, but as he stepped forward the water turned from a clear blue color to a deep, bloody red. Reconsidering his actions, he withdrew his foot and began to walk around the pool. As he distanced himself from the pool, the water, if it could be described as water, turned back to a clear blue.

'Hmmm, so it seems I can't cross the pool. Maybe I'll find something in these cubbies along the far wall,' Naruto thought to himself. As he neared the back wall, he took notice of the three nooks. Each one was covered with a transparent crystal, functioning as a protective glass barrier hiding the contents within. Behind the crystal in each nook was a single scroll on a simple stand. Naruto studied the runes surrounding the scrolls, but couldn't discern any sort of instruction or meaning.

'Guess I'll go back to the statue, I don't want to spring a trap by forcing through the crystal.' Naruto ventured back to the front of the statue, and pondered his options. 'Mybe if I cast a blanket genjutsu to make it appear as though my body is stationary I will be able to cross the pool,' he reasoned. Activating his eyes, he cast the blanket genjutsu, but before he could move across the pool he caught movement in his peripherals.

The wings of the statue had started to move, curling in around the figure of the woman. As they moved to form a protective barrier around the statue, the yellow orb in her hands lit up, glowing a bright, vibrant yellow. The wings closed in around her, and the glowing ceased. Naruto stayed frozen, not daring to move in case something became hostile. He waited for several minutes before the statue moved again. As the wings unfurled, the woman lifted her head and opened her eyes, revealed blood red orbs lacking a pupil. The yellow orb began glowly lightly and rose to float above her head.

Despite the ominous visage of the statue, Naruto felt no need to flee or defend himself. It was an odd feeling, almost like his instincts had abandoned him. Before he could take action, the statue moved again. The woman brought her arms down to her sides, and opened her mouth, revealing a pair of sharp incisors. "You, who carries the Gaze of Azaiya, spill your blood into the pool so I may record your existence." The voice was feral, but distinctly feminine.

Naruto stood stalk still for several minutes, waiting on any other sudden developments from the statue. When it seemed as if nothing else was going to happen, he unsealed a kunai and held it to his left hand. 'Well, here goes nothing,' he thought, slicing his right hand and dripping blood into the water. As the blood hit the water, it turned red again, before slowly turning to the same vibrant yellow as the orb floating above the statue.

"Your bloodline holds true, Naruto Uzumaki. I welcome you to the cavern of Azaiya, I am its guardian; Keiyara. I have remained here in slumber, waiting for the next holder of the Gaze of Azaiya to arrive. Remove your garments and cross this pool, I will reveal the truth about your eyes," the statue spoke, stretching its hand out towards the redhead.

"Gaze of Azaiya? Is that the name of my dojutsu?" Naruto asked. No reply. He sighed before beginning to remove his clothing. When he had completely stripped down, he cautiously waded into the pool. As he slowly crossed the water, he noticed that it was only ankle deep. Reaching the statue, he placed his right hand in its outstretched left hand. As the blood from the kunai slash on his hand touched the stone of the statue, the stone started morphing, turning into flesh. "What is going on? Why are you changing from a statue Keiyara?" Naruto asked.

Without answering his question, the statue slowly continued to change from stone to flesh. Keiyara brought Naruto's hand up to her mouth, placing the wound on her lips; she began to drink the blood. This seemed to accelerate the transformation from stone to flesh. Ten minutes passed before Keiyara removed Naruto's hand from her mouth. "The first ritual has been completed, let us engage in the second," she spoke, as she pulled Naruto towards her.

Keiyara pulled Naruto tight against her, keeping her hands on the sides of his face. Naruto took notice of her lack of clothing as well as something strong being wrapped around his waist. Looking down, he noticed a long, black tail coming from Keiyara's back holding him in place against her. As he looked back towards her, he also noticed her eyes were no long a solid red, but resembled a blue version of his own eyes. As he gazed into her eyes, he seemed to lose control of his body. His arms fell limply to his sides, and she held his head in place with her hands. "Open your mind, and all shall be explained," Keiyara said cryptically. Her eyes flashed blue, and she locked her lips with Naruto's. As she kissed him, her wings folded in around them, shielding them from view. The yellow pool of water began to churn and bubble, before it rose and surrounded the pair in a tight ball of water.

Jiraiya watched on, helpless and shocked at the occurances within the cave. He couldn't hear anything, but he ahd just watched his pupil strip down naked and turn a statue into flesh. A gasp pulled him out of his stupor, and beside him he found Hinata with a hand over her mouth. As he looked back into the cave, He watched as the womans wings covered Naruto and the yellow liquid rose to encompass them.

"NARUTO! NOOO!" Hinata screamed, she lunged forward, but was caught by Jiraiya.

"You can't enter, these runes prevent anyone without his blood from entering. We will have to wait and hope for the best," he explained. Hinata simply nodded, sitting down against the tunnel wall with a defeated gaze on her face as she stared into the yellow ball of liquid that had just swallowed the person most important to her.

A sobering realization sank into her being as she watched the liquid churn and bubble around the shadow of Naruto and this mystery dragon woman. She was weak, and she needed to become stronger if she wished to continue by Naruto's side.

A/N Alright, that's a wrap for this chapter. Hope you enjoyed it, and more will be revealed in the next chapter. As always, drop me a review or a PM and let me know what you think so far!