The Legend of Gaia's Sennin

by The Engulfing Silence

Flung into a world of technology and fanatasy, bitter at the loss he suffered during the Fourth Great Shinobi War, can Uzumaki Naruto find happiness in Gaia?

12. A3 C12: Chasing Tifa

The Legend of Gaia's Sennin

Phase 1: The City That Never Sleeps

Arch 3: Trouble Arises

Chapter 12: Chasing Tifa

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Naruto frowned as he and Aerith tried to catch up to Cloud. He had to give credit where it was due. Despite that oversized butter knife on his back the guys could run. They made one turn after another, large mounds of junk and twisted steel blocked everything save a single path upon which they ran, essentially creating a road. Soon, all around him, he noticed signs etched into metal. Some were propped up against the side of the road, others on metal plates simply lying around. Wall Market. He ran down into a tunnel ahead, a giant segmented tube. Inside, it was paved and modified into a road that the carriage, and Cloud, must have followed. When the two of them emerged on the other side, they skidded to a stop.

Ramshackle houses and dilapidated shacks grew out of the walls like caves in a cliff face. All around him were busy shops and glitzy scenery, a flashy bazaar set up against the wall as a sort of trading hub between sectors. The scene was abuzz with activity. The dirtied denizens of the slums perused stalls and wares, browsing among tents and shacks set atop dirt mounds and hills of metal. In all directions, signs and advertisements of all colors burned forth, covering the area in a dizzying jungle of neon light.

Naruto frowned as he tried to pick out Cloud from among the many shoppers. Really, how hard could it be? How many people had spiky blond hair besides him and Cloud? Perhaps it was difficult because of the dozens of stalls and hundreds of people that blocked his view. Nearby, he heard one heckler call out to passerby, dressed all in dusty brown.

"Earth shattering Materia in the palm of your hand! Come by Teel's for a taste of power!"

Across the way, a red-haired trinket salesman called out interestedly to a young man and his pretty girlfriend.

"That's quite a looker you've got there, my boy! Take her to the Don's place and you'll score a bundle!"

Insulted, the girl stormed off into the crowd. Her boyfriend followed, trying desperately to console her. The young man turned, shooting a glare at the shopkeeper. With a shrug, the merchant ignored him and looked back to his stash of goods. He resumed moving various baubles into a vaguely aesthetic assortment. Nearby to Naruto and Aerith, a grungy man with oily gray hair started rummaging through a garbage can, clearly hoping for a free meal. Naruto sighed.

This place was the Wall Market, and it was quite possibly a place he hated more than any other. It was a place Naruto avoided whenever he could, and it would be wise to accomplish what they came to do and leave as quickly as possible.

"Do you see Cloud?"

Aerith shook her head as she stood on her tip toes, a hand raised to hover over her eyes as if it would help her lock onto Cloud.

"No, it's impossible to see anybody over this crowd."

"Ugh... it really shouldn't be this hard," Naruto complained, feeling a bit put out. He was taller than a good majority of the people in this crowd, and even he couldn't see the familiar spiky mop they were searching for. "How many people besides him and I have spiky blond hair."

Aerith managed an amused smile as she continued her search.

"You two are pretty unique in that respect." She frowned as she moved back down onto her heels. Looking over at Naruto she said, "I don't think we'll be able to find him from here."

"I was afraid you'd say that." He sighed. Naruto looked over at her, his eyes conveying how worried he truly was about entering this place with her. "Stay close to me, ok? This isn't the kind of place you want to get lost in."

Aerith giggled lightly. An attempt to ease the tension. It worked, somewhat.

"Don't worry, I'll stick close to you."

Naruto smiled a little, even if he didn't like the thought of taking Aerith into a place like this. While it was rare, he had traveled into Wall Market on occasion. While other slums were rundown, but filled with nice people who often helped each other to survive, there was no such camaraderie in this place. It was a dog eat dog world here. Survival of the fittest as it were. With gangs and cutthroats and rapists. It you weren't careful in this part of the slums, you were liable to find yourself thrown in a ditch, your throat slit and your cold corpse left to rot.

He tightened the grip of his left hand. The feel of his sheath brought comfort to him. If nothing else, Naruto was confident in his talent to fend off any bastard who might get some not so bright ideas. Most of the people here were violent, but there was no real talent in any of them. In a place like this, Naruto couldn't be afraid to let some of his killer instincts take over.

His right arm slid around Aerith's waist, surprising the girl and earning a slight squeak. Normally such an act would have been one of intimacy, but right now all he was thinking about was keeping her close enough so no one could try anything. He pulled her close enough that she was forced to place a hand on his chest as her head came into contact with his shoulder.

"N-Naruto."

He looked down to see her staring up at him, a slight blush on her face at the possessiveness he was displaying. His eyes softened, just a little, and he gave her a warm smile.

"So we don't get separated," he said by way of explanation. Aerith, after a moment or two seemed to accept this. She smiled at her, then let her head rest against his shoulder. To further make herself comfortable she nestled herself against his torso, one arm sliding around his back while the other was pressing firmly against his right pectoral. They looked like a couple out for an evening stroll. Taking a deep breath, Naruto waded into the crowd.

"Woooaa-hoooh!" The vender from before said as his locked onto Aerith, a lustful smile taking shape on his face. Not used to nor liking the look, Aerith attempted to hide herself in Naruto's chest. The man looked at Naruto with a smile. "Quite the pretty one you've got. You know, if you take her to Don's you'll be paid a hefty some for her."

Naruto's reaction was instant and, unfortunately – for the man in front of him – far less restrained then he wanted it to be. He glared at the man with a look of such utter contempt that just his icy gaze alone would cause someone to shrink back in fear. However, Naruto was also bearing his fangs to the man, long, sharp canines that gleamed in the low lighting. Add in the killing intent he sent the fools way and it was a wonder the vender hadn't pissed himself.

"I suggest shutting that mouth of yours right now," Naruto hissed, his voice cold, dangerous. It spoke of violence about to be committed upon the one his tone was directed towards. If words alone could kill, the vender who had earned his ire would have already been dead. "If I hear you saying something like that again, especially about my girl I will rip your cock off and shove it so far up your ass it will come out of your throat!"

The man's eyes widened as he stared at the blond. His knees shook and soon, so too did the rest of his body. His breathing came out labored. He wanted to look away from Naruto, who was radiated a cold killing intent at him, but for some reason couldn't. If he did, he was sure he would die. Strange energy began leaking out from the blond, purplish black wisps of smoke that surrounded him. A figure formed out of the smoke, appearing behind him. It was vaguely humanoid, but with no legs, wearing a tattered white robe that was ripped and frayed at the ends. The robe was held together by a crisscrossing of chains. A purple mask covered it's face, a demonic visage of death and gloom. Two eye holes with no eyes, nothing but black holes that seemed to suck in all life stared at him. The vender felt as if he were staring at death itself.

"I-I-I-I'm sorry!" He squeaked, his voice terrified on the verge of hysterical. It brought some attention from the people around him, but most didn't care enough about the daily lives of others to pay too much attention, and they went about their business seconds later. "I-I'll never... never again! I promise!"

"Good!"

And just like that the aura of death that had been suffocating the vender disappeared. The demonic visage that had appeared to be death incarnate was gone, and there was only the blond man and the girl his arm was wrapped around. Nothing else. It was almost like he had imagined it. But then, why was he shaking so much?

Naruto continued on, wading back into the crowd. He used his free hand, the one with his Ōkatana in it, to gently yet forcefully push people out of the way. For those who were too stubborn to move, the aura of 'fuck with me and you die' that he projected and sent their way made them want to get away from him as quickly as possible. The few idiots who were dumb enough to cast their lecherous eyes at Aerith received a concentrated, albiet, less powerful dose then the one he gave the vender, of killing intent. Less powerful simply because he didn't stop to blast it with them like he had that man.

Aerith didn't even pay attention to the other people around them after they had left the vender, terrified beyond belief and ready to piss his pants. Her eyes were on Naruto, who was looking far more irate then usually. She was concerned, naturally.

"What did you do to that man back there?"

"Killing intent," Naruto answered gruffly. "Simply put, it's an aura of chakra infused with the intention to kill, maim, or otherwise hurt. It could be focused or widespread, weak enough to cause slight discomfort or strong enough to induce images of death. Regardless of focus or strength, the feel of the Killing Intent produced is different from one person to the next and from one situation to the next. For some it could be tinged with bloodlust, for others it may be laced with hatred, rage, determination, confidence… the different emotion used will invoke a different feeling for the one you are using it on."

"Is that what you did?"

"No," Naruto shook his head. "My killing intent is different from everyone else. Unique, I guess. When I project it, I am not infusing my chakra with the intention to kill. I am infusing my chakra with the certainty that whoever I am using it on is already dead, they just don't know it yet..." He paused, looking uncertain as he searched for the right words. "It's a bit difficult to explain. But when I project my killing intent, it is with the absolute certainty that I can kill my opponent no matter who they are or how strong they are. So I suppose what I project could be called a killing certainty."

Aerith's gaze turned slightly worried, concerned. Not for herself, she knew Naruto would never hurt her, ever. But concern for him. Naruto didn't like killing, she knew he had been in a war in his home world as he had told her about it, and she knew that her friend had seen so much death it turned him off to the act of killing. He would if necessary, she knew that, but she also knew it was a last resort kind of thing.

Which of course, would explain why she was worried.

"Why would you do that?"

At the sound of her soft voiced, the worry in it unmistakable, Naruto stopped. His body freezing for a moment before he started walking again.

"I couldn't stand the thought of what he suggested," Naruto said softly, his eyes looking straight away, unwilling to let his wavering gaze be seen by her. To let her know just how much these thoughts scared him. "I have never met the Don personally, but I've heard many things about what he does to the women that are sold to him. Some of them are far too horrible to even mention. If he does even half of the things I've been told, then killing you would be a mercy compared to leaving you in his hands."

He sighed, returning back to his original position as he resumed walking.

"Just the thought of you being at that man's mercy makes my blood run cold."

Naruto was stopped for a second time. Aerith halted their progress, forcing him to use his quick reflexes to keep from tripping her. He felt her hands move, placing themselves on his shoulder and turning him around. Naruto looked down at his feet as his body was turned to face her, refusing to meet her gaze. Aerith frowned, leaning forward so she could get look him in the eye, frowning even more when for some reason, she couldn't. He was seven inches taller then her, it shouldn't even be possible to keep his gaze hidden from her by staring at the ground for Gaia's sake!

"Naruto. Look at me."

When he refused to as she asked, Aerith placed a hand under his chin and forced his head to tilt until he met her eyes. Beautiful, emerald green orbs stared into glowing sapphire. She held his gaze, searching. For what, even she wasn't quite sure. There was a lot that could be seen in those eyes. It was the one place Naruto was completely vulnerable. His body language might be able to hide what he was thinking and feeling, but his eyes could not. They were more expressive then anything she had ever seen. An open book to those who knew him. Whatever it was she was searching for, Aerith seemed to find it, for a beautiful smile made it's way to her face.

The next thing Naruto knew was the feeling of a pair of soft, warm lips being pressed against his cheek. He was confused, shocked even. One second, Aerith was staring at him, piercing into his soul with her eyes. The next, Aerith was leaning up on her tip toes and placing her moist, pink lips on his cheek.

Naruto shuddered. Her lips were so soft against his skin, a silk yukata that slid over his flesh. Warmth seemed to spread throughout his body, starting at the point where her lips were firmly planted and quickly engulfing him. He felt many things, shock, surprise, astonishment, to name a few. Above and beyond that he felt elated, happy, ecstatic. There was an electric shock where Aerith had kissed him, sending jolts of pleasure through his body. Her kiss, it was different from every other kiss he had received. He had been kissed many times, and kissed quite a few girls. None of it compared to this. Nothing. And he couldn't help but wonder what it would be like if she were kissing him on the lips instead of the cheek.

She pulled back, much to Naruto's disappointment. But when she smiled at him, he couldn't find it in himself to complain. Or even think about complaining. Her smile was so beautiful, resplendent. It could light up even the dreariest of places. It was his light. One of the few things in this world that could wash away all of his regrets.

"Thank you," she said, her smile remaining her face as she returned back to his side and began moving. Aerith had to drag him with her for the first few seconds while his mind rebooted. Eventually, after he managed to restart his fried brain, Naruto started to walk under his own compunction. The crowd soon thinned as they reached the less populated area, and it was there that they found Cloud.

He was staring at a large building ahead. He stood at a cautious distance from its entrance, peeking at the structure from behind a faded red vending machine. In front of the building, bright pink fluorescent lights blinked on and off, casting an intermittent glow of blinding magenta throughout the area. Aerith and Naruto looked at each other, before moving up to Cloud who noticed them and gave a sharp nod of acknowledgment. They didn't have to ask why he was here. Tifa must have come this way. The trio simply stood there, inspecting the building from a distance.

The neon lights gave the building an illusion of nonchalance and flamboyant character. But, watching closely, Naruto could detect more going on beneath the facade. Around the exterior, well-built men in closely cropped suits and dark glasses busied themselves playing cards and talking amongst themselves, pretending to be occupied as they clandestinely kept a close watch on the area. At the entrance, a small group of young women were escorted inside by a few of the men in suits, their scantily clad bodies eliciting hoots and calls from the men nearby.

Suddenly, Naruto, Cloud and Aeris flinched as a loud bang erupted close to them. A trash can rolled aimlessly down the path, kicked over by a staggering and drunk old man. With a gap-toothed smile, he made to follow the girls, his arms open wide as he advanced. Near to the entrance, a man with a solid black mohawk spoke into the base of his palm. Immediately, two of the guards with the group of women doubled back. Without warning, they swiftly grabbed the drunk's arms with sudden force. Ignoring his loud complaints, they took him into an alley around the corner. Naruto grimaced as he heard muffled thumps and the sound of metal on bone. He glanced at Aeris out of the corner of his eye and then gave a mental sigh of relief. She seemed not to hear it.

Aeris turned to him, her face and eyes beginning to light up in understanding.

"Is this the kind of place I think it is?"

As if to confirm her suspicions, a passionate and melodramatic squeal cascaded out of a window from far above. Immediately, Aeris' face turned red. At the same time, the guard who had spoken into his cuff spotted Cloud, or Naruto, with their bright hair it was hard to not to see at least one of them. Perhaps he even saw them both. The man walked forward to confront the trio. Naruto quickly placed himself in front of Aerith, on guard as Cloud walked forward to confront the man with a blank stare. The man put a hand up in front of them.

"This is the mansion of Don Corneo, the most powerful man in Wall Market. He's not into men, so I hope you plan on selling this girl here. If not, then leave. Otherwise, I'm going to have to call my boys over and beat the crap out of you."

As Cloud's glare turned icy, Naruto shivered, and not with the cold. His entire body began shaking as he clenched his fists, the sound of the sheath of his Ōkatana groaning came from his left. Aerith looked down when she heard the sound, but promptly forgot about it when she saw blood beginning to leak out of his other fist. It was clenched so tightly his finger nails were beginning to dig into his flesh. Realizing what was about to happen she grabbed him by the arm. He looked at her sharply but she ignored the glare for now and turned to look at their other companion.

"Cloud!"

Said ex-SOLDIER turned, looking at her. He had a frown on his face but she gestured to Naruto, then him and finally her, before gesturing back towards the street. Cloud seemed to understand a moment later. He nodded, and then began moving towards them as Aerith forcefully dragged Naruto along. When they stopped a few seconds later, Aerith grabbed Naruto by the face and forced him to meet her eyes.

"Calm down."

Two simple words, but they had an immediate effect. Naruto closed his eyes, taking a deep breath his body relaxed. His shoulder slumped slightly, the muscles in his arms visibly un-tensing as her soothing, melodious voice washed over him. When he opened his eyes again they were much more clear then before, no longer tinged with bloodlust.

"What's with you today?" Aerith joked, trying to lighten the mood. However, it was in poor taste at the moment.

"I have... bad experience with rapists." Naruto closed his eyes and shuddered, his mind reliving memories he didn't want to. The Elemental Nations had never been a pretty place. Aside from the constant on and off warfare the land had suffered throughout the years after the Shinobi Villages were formed, the amount of bandits that littered the countries was astounding. During his training trip with Jiraiya, and many times after that he had run across many bandits camps. Many of them possessing women they had captured in villages and passing caravans they had raided.

Naruto could still remember the sights he had come upon when he ran afoul one of those disgusting places. He remembered seeing how the men, dirty, rotten, unclean men with rotting teeth and the smell of not having washed for months, raping the women they had captured. He remembered hearing the cries of the women, pleas for help that were so hopeless, because who would be out there, that far from civilization?

The mind of a young boy, shinobi or not, is not ready to see these kinds of sights. When Naruto had first seen it, he had been thirteen, just in the start of his training trip. It had left it's impression, scarring his mind in ways he likely didn't even know. Since then, the memories of that first sight haunted him, and the more bandit camps he ran across the more his hatred for the kind of people who could force themselves on another person grew. In time, he had come to hate rapists of any kind so much that even the mere mention of was enough to set him into a frenzy.

Was it irrational? To possess such hatred against something? Maybe. But Naruto had always been one who was ruled by his emotions. While the war may have forced him to think with a cold logic, it had never, could never, change the core of who he was. And it had never been in his nature to turn a blind eye when someone was in such blatant need of help.

Aerith's eyes widened, an expression of horror crossed her face.

"Oh Gaia! I'm so sorry Naruto!" The man in question opened his eye to look at her, his expression turning quizzical. Aerith was in hysterics as she tried to apologized. "I didn't mean – I mean you never told me –"

"Aerith, what are you talking about?" asked Naruto, staring at her with a quizzical frown.

Aerith stopped in mid sentence. She looked at him aghast, but soon leaned in to whisper in his ear.

"I didn't know you had been..." She trailed off, unable to finish. Naruto blinked, nonplussed for several moments as he tried to figure out just what in the hell the girl was talking about. It took him a second before realization set in, and when it did his eyes promptly widened.

"You think I was the one who was raped?" Naruto's almost choked on his own saliva at Aerith's wince, which was quickly followed by a look of sympathy. "Aerith it's not – not like that." Her expression morphed from sympathy to curiosity, her brow furrowed. "I was never raped, however, I've... seen a lot of others get raped." He paused, sighing, then took a deep breath. "Where I come from there were a lot of bandits who would... capture, women, and use them to pleasure themselves." As he spoke his voice began growing softer. "I was 13 when I ran afoul my first bandit camp and saw them... saw the kinds of depraved things humans could do to each other. Seeing something like that at such a young age, it leaves it's scars, wounds that simply can't heal. Ever since then, I've hated rapists with a passion."

Aerith looked at him for the longest time. Everything around them seemingly disappeared and all they could see was each other. After a few seconds, which felt like hours, Aerith moved. She wrapped her arms around his torso and buried her face in his chest.

"I'm sorry," she murmured softly, her voice was almost impossible to hear over the din of noise and bustle in Wall Market. "I had no idea any of that had happened to you..."

"It's not something you should feel sorry about," Naruto sighed, his arms engulfing the much smaller girl in a hug. He rested his cheek against her head, taking in the comfort of her body against his, the soothing scent she possessed that pervaded his nose and calmed him down. "I didn't tell you about some of the more... vile acts I've seen humans commit upon each other. You couldn't have known... and truth be told I didn't really want you to."

Aerith tilted her head up, forcing Naruto to remove his head from atop of hers, and rested her chin against his body as she looked into his eyes.

"Why?"

"As you said when we first met, this is a chance for me to start anew." Naruto smiled slightly, his eyes softening. "I didn't want this kind of baggage carrying me down. I wanted to live my life without having to worry about past horrors. I wanted a new life... with you."

Aerith's breath caught in her throat. Could those words mean she thought they meant? What she was hoping they meant? What she wanted them to mean? She stared into his eyes, beautiful orbs of the deepest blue glowing in the low lighting. There were so many emotions in those eyes... and a hint of something else, something she couldn't identify. Whatever it was, it made her feel... different then usual, hot.

"Naruto..."

Aerith tilted her head up, eyes fluttering closed.

"Aerith..."

Naruto began to lean his head down, drawing his face inexorably closer to hers.

"Ahem!"

Startled, the two jerked back from each other as a knee-jerk reaction. Turning as one, they looked at their third companion who was decidedly annoyed at the pair, not only for getting all sappy at a time like this, but also for completely ignoring him. With his arms crossed, Cloud glared at the two.

"I hate to interrupt your moment, but could you two do this later. Right now, we need to think of a way to get inside."

Naruto sighed, slowly pulling away from Aerith, who didn't react, embarrassed as she was. He closed his eyes and took deep breaths, trying to find his center again. It had been so long since he'd done anything truly serious, even breaking into Shinra headquarters had never been this austere. And he couldn't just henge his way into this building... not yet, at least. He also needed to make sure he wouldn't fly off the handle like that again. Now that he was thinking more clearly, his loss of control over his emotions embarrassed him. As a ninja, he was always supposed to be in control, always calm, cool and collected, thinking fifty moves ahead of everyone else and having contingencies within contingencies. He needed to regain that, his shinobi instincts. A few moments later, Naruto opened his eyes, the orbs no longer a warm blue, but a glacial look as his mind began analyzing possibilities.

He looked at Cloud, who seemed shocked by this sudden and dramatic shift in him.

"The first thing we need to do is gather whatever information we can on Don Corneo."

---

LGNS

---

The shack could hardly be called an inn, yet that was just what it was. A wooden sign dangled weakly from the top of the lamp post nearby, its letters corroded and blackened by years of exposure to the pollutants of Midgar. The corrugated steel of the outside walls could be seen through flecks of peeling brown paint, as if it was shedding what was left of its humanity. Naruto, with Aerith holding him, her right arm wrapped around his torso as she snuggled against him, and her left hand firmly holding his hand, fingers laced together, walked in. He used his free hand to open the door, slamming it to one side as they strode in. Cloud followed just a few feet behind them, cautiously glancing around the room, a single hand on the hilt of his sword.

Within, a long and dark steel counter split the room in two. Behind it, a fat and grizzled bartender scrubbed a glass with a metal sponge. He seemed not to acknowledge their entrance, murmuring to himself as they approached. A menagerie of ripped bar stools sat against the counter, all unoccupied except for the one furthest away from the doorway. That seat was occupied by a drooping middle-aged man deep in his cups. A pale blue cap adorned his head, pulled almost completely over his eyes, long ragged grey hair scattered across his back. He gazed over at trio as they entered, his eyes reddened from either lack of sleep or too much drink.

Naruto looked down at Aerith, then Cloud.

"I want you two to get that booth over there in the corner." He motioned with his free hand to a small booth located in a corner darkened by the lack of lights in an already lowly lit room. "Watch out for possible signs of trouble while I gather some info on Don Corneo."

This was standard procedure in the Elemental Nations. When working as a group in an intelligence gathering session, one person would always gather the information, while the others watched their backs in case their snooping didn't go unnoticed. Teamwork was the key.

"Ok."

Aerith let go his hand, her arm slid from around his waist, and she slipped away from him, following Cloud who had merely given him a nod before moving towards the booth. Naruto walked over to the bar, casually sitting down next to the unkempt man. Out of the corner of his eyes he saw Aerith and Cloud sitting in the booth. Aerith was watching him while Cloud's eyes roamed everywhere, observing the entire room. That was good, the ex-SOLDIER seemed to know the drill in these situations.

Grabbing the bartender's attention, he silently motioned for the man to give the regular a drink. As the grizzled man turned, Naruto pulled out several coins and placed them on the table. Sliding them over towards the man he was sitting next to. The middle-aged man pocketed the coins hurriedly, not even bothering to count them as he shoved them into his jacket pocket. He then looked at Naruto expectantly, waiting for the blond to tell ask his question.

"I want to know everything you know about Don Corneo."

The bartender placed a beer down. Drinking deeply from his new glass of swill, the middle-aged man glanced surreptitiously at Naruto. He whetted his lips for a moment, eyes darting around before relaxing.

"He owns Wall Market. He is Wall Market."

Naruto didn't say anything, he knew this mans type. They loved to create suspense, he would draw this out for a while, testing the waters to see how much Naruto wanted this information before telling him. It was a standard practice used to gauge the people they were handing their information to. The man took another quick swig.

"He's an infamous dilettante, a man who dabbles in what I call illegal. Drugs, prostitution... you name it. Y'see Wall Market was all his idea. It's his own little domain, a trading hub between sectors that rakes in loads of dough from those wanting an escape from the slum life of Midgar's underbelly. And he makes a pretty penny from each and every transaction that goes on here. Protection money, y'see. And this has gone on for years... decades even!" The man took another drink, "But y'see, now... now he wants to settle down and is in the market for a bride. So he's havin' pretty girls from all sectors parade themselves before him in the hopes that they'll get picked. A life with the Don would be demanding, but it would be a life of luxury compared to all this."

He gestured around him lazily with one arm. The wall behind him was covered in decayed photographs and filth. The bartender glared at the man with milky eyes glazed over with age and infirmity. The drunk leaned closer to Naruto, his breath exuding a foul aroma of cheap beer. His eyes skittered from side to side, as if he was about to share some melodramatic secret. Naruto frowned, but didn't react otherwise. The man whispered loudly, his rancid breath passing across Naruto's senses.

"Rumor has it that he is in cahoots with Shinra."

Naruto measured the man for a moment, and then placed some more coins on to the table. The man gazed at them greedily.

"Y'see, the Don has information that Shinra wants, so his regulars have been replaced with Shinra guardsmen as part of the deal, for protection. At least... that is what the rumor on the street is. Seems pretty apparent to me."

It made sense, Naruto concluded to himself. Those men he had seen guarding the mansion had definitely not been your average run of the mill cutthroat. Their stances, the way they had acted, the tactic of having several men standing to the side acting like they were messing around when they were really keeping an eye on everyone there, all of it had screamed professional. That would make things more difficult, but nothing they couldn't work around.

Tossing a few more gold coins onto the table, Naruto smoothly rose to his feet. When Aerith saw him stand, she tapped Cloud on the shoulder, getting his attention and pointing to Naruto. He looked over at his fellow blond, their eyes crossed paths and Naruto nodded his head towards them, then gestured towards the exit. Cloud nodded back, and he and Aerith stood up, and made their way to Naruto as the shinobi exited the building.

When they arrived outside, Naruto was waiting for them. Aerith walked up and placed her hand in his, smiling sweetly at him as her other hand went to his arm. Naruto relaxed under her touch, allowing himself a moments peace before turning to Cloud and gesturing for him to follow. They moved through the street, making their way to a spot that was far less crowded. Thankfully it was getting easier, though that may have something to do with the giant sword strapped to the ex-SOLDIER's back. Naruto led them into a small back alley that was abandoned, a few tipped over trash cans that were rusting with age were all that stood. The place was abandoned.

"So it looks like we've got a bit of a problem..."

Naruto started as he began explaining the situation to Cloud and Aerith. They both listened, the ex-SOLDIER kept his gaze impassive. Aerith twirled a lock of shiny brown hair in her hands.

"... So there you have it," Naruto said with a finish, running a hand through his hair. "The Don's apparently looking to marry. Tifa is likely inside to try and be that girl so she can pry information on Shinra out of him."

Cloud nodded. If Don Corneo was working for Shinra that would make sense, though how Tifa found out was another story. A frown marred his face, and while it was the only outward sign of his emotional disposition that he gave, it was clear that he was worried about his childhood friend.

"I suppose we could break in..." he said pensively. "However, that would cause a big commotion. It may even bring Shinra down on us."

A giggle escaped from Aerith. The two blonds looked over at her, eyebrows raised in almost identical expression, which just caused Aerith to giggle more. The pair of blonds looked disgruntled. She smiled, then shrugged as if she knew something they didn't know, looking pleased with herself about something.

"You have an idea, Aerith?" Naruto asked quizzically, raising a single eyebrow.

Aerith smiled, shrugging as her left foot began making circles on the ground.

"Well... what if you two dressed up as women to get inside the mansion?"

Cloud looked at her like she had lost her mind.

"What?"

Aeris tried to stifle a giggle, failing utterly.

"It's the only way!" she said, obviously entertained.

"No, no way!" Cloud shook his head, crossing his arms as if to ward off the very idea of him dressing up as a woman. "Not gonna happen!"

"Oh, why not?" Aerith's smile was of the cat that ate the canary. "I think you'd make a very pretty girl."

Cloud began coughing, trying futilely to hide his growing blush. How could she even suggest he do something like that? He shook his head adamantly. There was no way, no way he was going to dress up like a girl. Even if it was the only way to get inside. He opened his mouth to tell her that, but was beaten to the punch by Naruto.

"I think it's a good idea."

"What!?"

Cloud spun to stare at his fellow blond, his eyes incredulous. Naruto saw the look and shrugged.

"We need to get inside, right? But the only way to do that is to be a woman, or one of Corneo's guards. Unfortunately, all of the guards are already inside, which means the only thing we can do is disguise ourselves as women to infiltrate the mansion."

"A-And your ok with this?" Cloud asked, his mind reeling. How could anyone, especially someone like Naruto not have any problems dressing up as a girl? It just didn't make sense, and he was now starting to get a headache just thinking about it.

Naruto shrugged.

"Cloud, you might be an ex-SOLDIER, but I'm a ninja. I've done plenty of things in my life that I didn't like. Do you think this is the first time I've been forced to dress as a girl so I could infiltrate some rich snobs place?"

That brought Cloud up short. Even Aerith was looking at Naruto in surprise.

"You mean you've done this before?"

"Mmhmm," Naruto nodded. "I've done it twice. The first time I had to dress up in order to infiltrate the mansion of a noble who had dealings in the slave market and assassinate him. The other time I had to get caught by the same black market so I could destroy it from the inside out and free the slaves they were set to sell." He saw the looks he was getting, Cloud looked at him like he had grown a second head, while Aerith was frowning. He shrugged. "As a ninja, we're often called upon to do things like this."

Cloud was still on the fence, that much was obvious. He needed a little push.

"Don't you want to find out if Tifa is safe?" asked Aerith, looking at him with large, puppy dog eyes. "She's your friend isn't she?"

Cloud tried to look away, even his inexperienced mind could tell those eyes were dangerous. Yet for some reason, her gaze was drawing him in. He found it impossible to look away. "I... well... yes... but..." His will slowly eroded. In the end, he could do nothing but sigh, his shoulder slumping. "Fine."

It was for Tifa. That's what he told himself.

"Great!" Aerith smiled at him. "Then let's go. Operation: Turn Cloud into a Girl is now commencing!"

"Urk!"

---

LGNS

---

The shop was very basic. Old and worn, much like the rest of the buildings that could be located in the slums. Yet where most shops and bars would be covered in stains and rust, corrugated with age, it was clear the owner of this store took care of the place. The walls were clean and rust free, painted in a light cream color that soothed all those who entered. The floor was made of a tiled dark wood, polished to a shine. In the center of the shop was a large purple rug with a darker purple square patch in the center, it followed a pattern after that with the next patch outlining the square being a lighter purple, followed by the darker purple again. To the immediate right of the door was a counter with a cash register next to the wall farthest from them, several papers littered the table and there was a red stool behind the register. Dozens of racks lined the walls, covered in dresses of all shapes and makes, a cornucopias amount of color and frills that bedazzled the eyes. It was actually making Cloud dizzy just looking at all of the dresses.

"Good evening, how may we help you today?"

A slightly plump woman with a bright smile greeted them. Her light orange hair was covered by a purple cap, several strands stuck out in various ends giving her a slightly messy look. However, her immaculate blue and purple suit told them this was just how her hair was. A blue long sleeve dress shirt that acted as both shirt and skirt covered most of her body, similar to a tunic, with a brown belt buckled around her waist. Her pants were a dark purple, capris that flared out slightly at the ends. Her outfit was finished off with a pair of brown boots.

"We're looking for a pair of dresses," Naruto took the lead, speaking to the woman and gesturing to Aerith and Cloud. The woman looked at Aerith, nodding slightly as she sized her up. Then her eyes turned to Cloud and bulged. She looked back at Naruto with an expression that if Naruto had to place a name to it would be baffled incredulity. He chuckled.

"I know what your thinking, how could such a tough looking guy want a dress? Right?" the woman nodded and he smiled some more. Turning her around, he placed a hand in the center of her upper back and leaned into to whisper. "The truth is, my friend here has always wanted to see what it was like to dress up as a girl. Call it idle curiosity."

"I... see..." The woman clearly did not see, but said that simply for lack of having anything substantial to actually say. However, she recovered quite admirably and straightened up before turning to Cloud. Aerith had gone off to one of the racks and was now looking at some of the dresses. "Well, since you are going to be more difficult to find something nice for, we'll start with you."

Cloud blinked, then gave Naruto and the woman a look that said he really didn't want to be here. However, Naruto just smiled.

"I'm sure she'll find something nice for you to wear."

Cloud gave him a withering glare that, if looks could kill, would have slaughtered Naruto on the spot. The shinobi being pierced with that gaze just grinned as the manager of the store grabbed Cloud by the arm, forcing him to stop his glaring as he was pulled off by the woman. Naruto chuckled a bit, a large grin on his face as he watched the ex-SOLDIER go from extremely angry at him, to incredibly embarrassed as the manager began sizing him up. Really, this was just too amusing.

With Cloud's attention being occupied by the manager, Naruto walked over to Aerith. As fun as it would be to watch his fellow blond getting a feminine make over, he didn't want to utterly embarrass the man... too much.

"Found anything you like?"

Aerith turned to face Naruto, a light blue dress in her hand. It was a spaghetti strap that stopped just below the knees. The dress was cute, but very basic. She held it up against her body, imposing it upon her as she asked, "what do you think?"

"It's nice, but too basic," Naruto determined as he looked at it. He gently took the dress out of Aerith's hands. She pouted but he didn't pay attention, instead placing the dress back down as he began searching for another one. "Plus the color is wrong for you. With your hair color and skin tone, red or pink would go much better."

A teasing smile made it's way to Aerith's face. She leaned over Naruto shoulder as she watched him go through the dresses.

"You seem to know a lot about fashion."

It was an idle comment, but Naruto didn't miss the teasing tone of her voices. Rather then be embarrassed he smiled.

"When I first had to infiltrate a nobles mansion as a woman, one of my friends, who was an expert on infiltration and assassinations, helped me by... expanding upon my sense of fashion." Naruto took a moment to shiver. The person who had helped him had been, surprisingly enough, Anko. Most people would never think that a woman like her would have good fashion sense, especially when they considered what she was wearing. It was a surprise for Naruto to learn that, while she didn't like dressing up, she was even more of a fashion guru than Ino. He also remembered how she played dress up with him as the doll during their excursion. Never had he been so embarrassed in his life.

Aerith frowned. She had been told more about his past in the last few hours then the entire year she'd known him. At least, she was being told more about his job as a ninja. While she would never judge Naruto based on his past, it bothered her to hear about how he had assassinated people. There was just something wrong about the thought of the friendly and upbeat blond killing in cold blood.

"How the hell do you put this thing on!?"

The startled exclamation drew Aerith's attention out of her inner thoughts. She and Naruto turned to the source, a distinctly male voice in the changing room. Cloud was no where to be seen, making it obvious who was in there. Naruto snickered as he walked up to the changing room.

"Need any help?"

"NO!"

"Ok, ok, don't get so uptight. I was just offering. Hurry up and come out so we can see how you look."

A growl escaped from inside the changing room, making Naruto's smile widen. There was a frantic amount of rustling, the zipping of fabric, and several loud curses, then silence. A few seconds later the curtain to the changing room was pushed away, revealing Cloud in a dress.

It was a dark purple dress with beaded crystal embellishments adorning the fluttery, split sleeves of a gorgeous jersey column defined by an Empire-waist seam, flatteringly subtle gathers and a high side slit. It was actually a very nice dress, beautiful even, however...

"You need boobs," Naruto stated without shame. "And a wig, that hair ain't gonna cut it if you want to look like a woman."

"W-What!?" Cloud shouted, his face turning beet-red. Naruto shrugged.

"You heard me. Now, the question is; how can we make it look like you've got boobs."

Cloud began to sputter indignities, but Naruto ignored him as he studied the blond in the dress. Aerith had also walked up to them, and was the one who seemed to have an idea on what to do.

"Why don't we just find him a really big bra and stuff it?"

"WHAT!?"

Naruto ignored Cloud's shouting as he nodded.

"That's a good idea. His dress doesn't have a V-neck so it will be easy to hide the fact that his breasts are fake. Unless someone tries to cop a feel..." Cloud's mouth fell open and his eyes went wide. Naruto chuckled and waved a hand up and down in front of his face dismissively. "Don't worry, I doubt any of the thugs will touch you since Corneo will want first dibs." Cloud sputtered even more, making Naruto grin. "And he won't even get to see you in the dress. We only need to infiltrate the mansion and find Tifa."

Despite Naruto words of reassurance, they did very little reassuring and Cloud continued protesting. Naruto and Aerith didn't bother listening as they grabbed several bras and forced him to go back into the changing room and try them on. Eventually, they decided on having him wear a D-sized cup, since it would give him enough curves to hide the decidedly male shaped torso. It would also keep people from staring at his muscled arms. By the time they had finished, Cloud had a chest size that rivaled Tsunade Senju, a blond wig with flowing long hair and a light amount of make up that Aerith and Naruto had forced him to wear. He was also glaring at the smiling pair.

"Your enjoying this, aren't you?"

"Now what makes you say that?" asked Naruto, smiling in a way that let everyone know that Cloud's accusation was spot on. He looked his fellow blond up and down for a moment before nodding approvingly. "You'd make a good woman."

"I hate you."

Naruto just laughed the comment off as Aerith went into the changing room with her own outfit. There was a bit of light rustling, nowhere near as much as when Cloud went in, and a small amount of muttering. When she came out a moment later Naruto, and Cloud, were forced to pick their jaws up off the floor.

The dress Aerith had chosen was a bold red in color. An evening gown with a mermaid style Satin and Chiffon dream design. The heart shaped neckline and tank straps had been beautifully accented in Swarovski crystals, accenting a tantalizing view of her cleavage, showing just enough to leave you wanting more but not enough to look sluttish. The crystal pattern was mimicked in the beaded embroidery of the empire waist band. The curve hugging Chiffon was clinging down the bodice and over the hips and thighs to cascade into a softly vertical pleated skirt at the knees, showing off Aerith's womanly curves while not actually revealing any skin. Her outfit was finished with a pair of red-heeled slip-on shoes.

She wasn't wearing any make-up. But Naruto didn't think she needed it. If anything, the use of make-up would detract from the natural beauty she exuded. It would mar Aerith's already flawless face.

Aerith covered her mouth with a red-gloved hand, giggling as she saw the twin expressions of shock and awe.

"Well? What do you think?"

"You look..." Naruto had to swallow as he found his throat suddenly dry. He licked his lips in an attempt to wet them. For several seconds he found himself speechless. Another giggle from Aerith brought him out of his stupor and he finally managed to find his voice. "I don't think there are any words in this life or the next that can truly describe just how incredibly beautiful you look."

Never let it to be said that Naruto didn't know how to give a compliment. His words were the perfect thing to say in the circumstances. Aerith's cheeks lit up in a light pink blush, somehow accentuating her already startling beauty. She looked away, raising a hand to her face in an effort to futilely hide her flushed cheeks.

"T-Thank you." For a few moments there was nothing but silence. If crickets had lived in the slums, Naruto was sure they would have been chirping. When the tension cast by the silence was so sick you could cut it with a rusty spork, Aerith sought to break it. She looked back at Naruto and, with a mild blush still staining her cheeks, asked, "so now we need to get you a dress so you can infiltrate Don Corneo's mansion too."

Naruto smiled, grateful for the change in topic. His eyes gleamed with the light of a prankster as he said, "oh don't worry about me. I've already got it covered." Aerith raised an eyebrow but before she could say anything, the orb in Naruto's arm began to glow and the blond muttered, "henge."

His body began to shimmer, small ripples forming around him. A change started happening. Naruto hips began to widen, his bust grew larger, as well as rounder, while his waist got thinner. The hard, masculine angles of his face softened, becoming rounded. His eyes became narrower, his nose softer and more curved and his lips became fuller. The once spiky locks became a long, flowing main of beautiful gold hair that shone and sparkled brilliantly, even in the low lighting of the store.

The clothing on his body also shifted, the pants unraveling and growing into a skirt that covered his, now her, knees and had twin slits running down the side that stopped high up on her thighs. The shirt attached itself to the skirt, now forming a sleeveless dress that had a large V-cut that went down to her navel, showing off great amounts of her luscious DD-cup chest. The dress was form-fitting, showing off every curve of the now female Naruto's body. She looked at the stunned Aerith and Cloud – the store manager had surprisingly passed out from a massive nosebleed, which made Naruto wonder about the woman's sexual preferences – and giggled.

"Hello, Aerith, Cloud, I'm very pleased to make your acquaintance. My name is Naruko, please take care of me." The woman's voice was lyrical, a soft and melodious sound that held a seductive edge to it. Cloud shuddered and was forced to turn around, suspiciously covering his nose. Aerith on the other hand, walked up to Naruko in a daze. She raised her hands and roughly groped the blond woman's chest. Naruko let out a shocked, yet throaty moan. "Ahhhn... A-Aerith... don't be so... ah... don't be so rough."

"I can't believe it," Aerith muttered as she fondled and groped the now female Naruto's chest. She looked very annoyed for some reason, a reason Naruto discovered a few seconds later. "These... these are bigger then mine! And firmer..." This was so not cool. Not only was Naruto the most handsome male she had ever met, but his female form was ridiculously hot too! How was that fair?

It took a while, but eventually Naruko managed to get Aerith to stop groping her breasts. When the brunette did stop, Naruko transformed back into Naruto under the claim that three hot women walking around in Wall Market is like asking to be raped, and he didn't want to have to deal with a bunch of lecherous men. Unfortunately for Cloud, he was forced to stay in dress. Much to his annoyance.

"Alright, Cloud, Aerith, I need you to hand me your weapons?"

"What?" Cloud blinked. He must not have heard him right.

"You heard me." Naruto held out his hand towards the sword Cloud was now carrying in his hands since he could no longer carry it on his back. "Your weapons. We won't be let inside the mansion if we're armed."

Aerith handed over her stave easily enough, however, Cloud seemed to have some issues letting anyone that wasn't him even touch his sword. It took quite a bit of effort on Naruto's part to convince the other blond to part with his weapon. He did have to wonder just why Cloud was so protective over the buster blade. Naruto had never grown attached to any of the weapons he used, except for his Ōkatana, which had been a gift from one of his senseis. Perhaps that overgrown butter knife held similar sentimental value.

Once he had managed to get Cloud to part with his sword, Naruto withdrew a scroll from his right hip pouch. Placing it on the ground he unrolled the scroll to reveal a sheet of parchment paper with what looked like glyphs of some kind. Thousands of running lines and symbols dotted the sheet, the intricate patterns spreading outwards in a circle centered around a large symbol that Cloud did not recognize. Naruto placed both the buster blade and stave on the paper and pressed his hands into the sheet, channeling his chakra. There was a puff of smoke and both Cloud and Aerith's weapons disappeared.

"W-What just happened?" asked Cloud with a surprising stutter, right before glaring at Naruto. "What did you do?"

"Relax," Naruto rolled his eyes as he rolled up the scroll. "I simply sealed your weapons into this scroll. Once we successfully infiltrate Corneo's manage I'll be able to bring them back out."

Cloud blinked.

"Sealed?"

"Um! Fuīnjutsu," Naruto said, nodding. "The art of sealing. It's a talent that my people possess. Those characters you saw on the parchment are kanji that I use to create what is called a containment seal. Essentially, I'm creating a separate dimension within this scroll where I can store items and weapons and the like."

Cloud was surprised. That was actually an incredibly useful ability. He could only imagine how much equipment he would be capable of carrying if he had that ability. It also told him a little bit about Naruto. If he could seal their weapons, then there truly was no telling just how many items and weapons the shinobi already had sealed somewhere on his person. That was a truly frightening thought. It was then Cloud noticed something else.

"Wait, where'd your sword go?"

"I already sent it away." Naruto waved a hand absently as if to ward off questions. He he had decided to use his fists for this, as he didn't want to have it out and accidentally kill someone in front of Aerith while in a fit of rage. He would never forgive himself if he let her see what kind of monster he could become given the right circumstances. "Now let's go."

---

LGNS

---

Naruto, Cloud and Aerith once again made their way to Don Corneo's mansion. It took a bit longer this time, namely because Cloud and Aerith were attracting a lot more attention with their clothing. It took Naruto constantly releasing his killing intent to everyone minus Aerith and Cloud to keep away the men that were too lecherous for their own good. When they got to Don Corneo's mansion, Naruto took a moment to head into an empty alley and henge into Naruko before they all went up to the man in the front.

"Excuse me," Naruko said in her lyrical and seductive voice. Being the only person with experience in infiltrating an enemy fortress, they had decided she would be their spokes person. The guards turned their gaze towards the trio of women, their eyes promptly widening, blushes staining their faces and drool beginning to dribble down their mouths. Naruko adopted a demure look, fluttering her eye lashes at the nearest guard as she sucked an index finger into her mouth. "We're here because we heard Mr. Corneo was looking for a wife. Do you think you could let us in?"

None of the guards were actually capable of talking, they just opened the doors and ushered the pair inside. The interior of the mansion was considerably extravagant, especially when compared to the rest of the slums. The floor was dark varnished wood paneling, a circular rug with red coloring and a golden Naga, a wingless dragon with an elongated serpentine body. Several pieces of artwork lined the walls, paintings and pottery. A staircase with a deep red finish and golden metal plates around the railings led to the second floor, where even more paintings were sitting. It was a stark contrast to the gritty, horrible conditions of the slums.

"Ah, more ladies coming in the hopes of becoming Mr. Corneo's wife."

A man who looked to be in his mid thirties wearing an extravagant black butlers suit with crisp edges and penguin coat tails stood before them. Naruto immediately noticed that this man was not a butler by profession, the way he moved, that predatory stance and the gleam of barely contained violence in his eyes told Naruto all he needed to know about this man. He was a fighter, a hired thug. He eyed the three, nodding in approval as he looked them over. Naruto had to consciously keep himself from leaking killing intent when the man eyed Aerith. He was just thankful most of the mans attention was on him.

"Come, I shall show you where the other ladies are waiting."

Naruto, Cloud and Aerith followed the man up the stairs. They passed by several doors before being led to a staircase leading down into another section of the mansion. With a grand gesture, the butler pointed towards the staircase, making it obvious they were to go down.

"I shall soon be informing Mr. Corneo of yours and the others arrival. Please wait in there and do not go wandering around."

They all nodded and went downstairs, Naruto taking the lead. The waiting room was just as extravagant and gaudy as the reception area they had been in, with lounge chairs with plush red pillows and golden decorations. The carpet was a deep crimson coloring and extremely soft. Several women were waiting around, some in groups, some alone, others were sitting and still some were standing. All of them however, were waiting for the same thing.

Except one.

Tifa was rather easy to spot, standing in a corner with her arms crossed and a look on her face that said she really didn't want to be there. The dress she was wearing was all black with a fitted Princess cut style that was both daring and elegant for formal affairs. The empire bodice featured a sweetheart neckline with a single short sleeve, accented by delicate Lace embroidered beadwork that draped from the sleeve, across the bust line and down one side. The Lace appliqué held the delicate Lace skirt in place above the thigh high front split. Her black heeled tops finished the ensemble. Next to Naruko, Tifa had the largest bust there.

"Tifa!"

At hearing her name called, Tifa turned around and spotted a beautiful blond woman walking towards her with a smile on her face. Following was an equally attractive brunette with startling green eyes. Cloud was not following. There was no way he could let Tifa see him like this.

"Wow, Tifa, when you dress up you really dress up!" The strangely familiar yet alien blond woman complimented. Tifa's only reaction was to frown.

"Excuse me, but do I know you?"

"Ah! Muu, Tifa," Naruko pouted, crossing her arms under her chest. "I can't believe you forgot who I am. I mean, sure, we haven't seen each other in a month but that should be no reason for you to forget me."

Tifa's frown just deepened.

"I'm sorry, but I have no idea who you are." She looked the blond up and down, even she, with her figure, couldn't help but feel a bit of envy at the woman's figure. "And I'm positive I would remember you if we had."

Naryko just giggled.

"That's because your not looking in the right spot." Deciding to give a hint, Naruko ran a delicate finger over her whisker marks. It took a few seconds, but when Tifa connected the dots her eyes widened.

"N-Naruto!?" She shouted in shock. The yell drew the attention of every other girl in the room. Most just looked for a second, idle curiosity playing on their features, before determining that whatever caused Tifa to shout was none of their business and turned back to what they were doing. Namely, waiting. A few girls sniffed derisively in their direction at the unrefined manner in which she spoke. They turned their noses at Tifa, who ignored everyone else to the exclusion of the person in front of her.

Naruko giggled.

"Took you long enough, Tifa. However, when I'm in this form, I'm Naruko, not Naruto."

Tifa frowned. Coming down from her shock she was thinking more clearly and was now curious about the blond's words.

"This form?"

"Mmm!" Naruko nodded emphatically. "I have a materia that let's me transform into anything I want, whether that be an object or a person." It was how he was able to sneak into Shinra headquarters so often. Instead of simply hedging into some random stranger, Naruto now often transformed into some of the people he knew that worked for Shinra. Normally after sneaking something into their food so they would fall asleep for the rest of the day.

Many an employee had been fired because of him.

"I see..." Tifa said, simply because she wanted to say something, but didn't know what to say.

Aerith decided to make her presence known.

"He's actually a girl while in this form too," she pouted. "He has bigger breasts then me."

Hearing Aerith's voice, Tifa turned to her and blinked, as if just now noticing the woman.

"I'm sorry, and you are?"

"Aerith."

"Ah! Your Naruto's um..." She trailed off, seeing the reproving look on Naruko's face. The fact that a hot girl now had the piercing eyes did not make the look any less intimidating. Chuckling a tad sheepishly, Tifa continued but changed her words. "Friend, he's told me a lot about you."

"Oh?" Aerith raised an eyebrow, looking curious. She looked over at Naruko who was decidedly not looking at her. Smiling, and feeling she could get a little payback for his words at the park and not telling her about Tifa, said, "what exactly has he been saying?"

Before Tifa could even open her mouth, Naruko butt in.

"Now is not the best time for this conversation." She turned to look at Tifa. "We're only here because Cloud saw you and was worried."

"Cloud?" Tifa's eyes lit up, a hopeful expression that caused the two to take a step back. "Is he here? Is he alright? Where is he?" Naruko and Aerith both pointed over to a young woman in a purple dress with glowing blue eyes much like Naruto's own. She looked decidedly uncomfortable, her eyes looked over towards Tifa's and then looked away just a quickly, a blush suffusing her face.

Tifa looked at Naruko.

"That's Cloud?" At Naruko's knowing grin Tifa began snickering. "Oh! Oh this is... I never thought I'd see the day when... when Cloud dressed up as a girl!" Cloud must have heard her because the blush on his face increased to epic proportions. The man looked like he was in perma-blush mode.

"Aww, don't poke fun at him," Naruko said, though it was clear she was having fun at Cloud's expensive as well. Beside her, Aerith coughed into her hand so she wouldn't also laugh. "He was really worried about you, you know? He even dressed up as a woman just to make sure you were ok?"

"And I'm very... grateful!"

Tifa gasped. It took her a while, but eventually she managed to get her emotions under control, though the gleam of amusement in her eyes never left. She walked up to Cloud, whose eyes widened when he saw her. Stopping in front of the mortified blond, she smiled, slightly mischievous and slightly heartfelt thanks.

"Thank you for caring about so much to do... this." She gestured to Cloud's dress, snorting a bit at the end to hide another laugh. Cloud gave a stiff nod, but didn't say anything.

"Now then," Naruto said as he and Aerith walked up to them. "Since we've gotten all of that out of the way, why don't you tell us what possessed you to come here. Surely you know the kind of person Don Corneo is?"

Tifa nodded, looking away, unsure. Naruto saw this and realized it was likely because he and Aerith were not members of AVALANCHE. Tifa may like him well enough, but she certainly didn't trust him. That meant he would need to lay his cards on the table first.

"I already know that you and Cloud are working for AVALANCHE," he said, shocking Tifa. Naruto didn't let her say anything, however, as he continued. "And I can already guess that the reason you are here involves the knowledge that Don Corneo is working with Shinra. Am I right?"

It was clear that Naruto was right judging from the look on Tifa's face.

"Wha – but – how?"

"I'm just awesome like that." When he received three deadpanned stares, Naruto shrugged. "How I know doesn't matter. The point is that I do know and I am willing to help you." He savored the surprised look on the young woman's face. Unintentional or not, he could count this as a successful prank. "But I can't do that if you don't tell me what your up to."

For a long moment, Tifa was silent, mulling over the idea of letting Naruto know everything. She knew Naruto, maybe not that well due to how rarely they ever saw each other, but she did know him. And there was something about the blond... she didn't know what. But for some reason, Tifa just felt like she could trust him. It was her gut instincts and that feeling that ultimately made her tell Naruto and the others everything she had found out after AVALANCHED destroyed their second Mako Reactor.

"After you fell, we all went back to Sector 7," she said, looking over at Cloud to let him know she was talking about his fall from the Mako Reactor Bridge. "When we got there, everyone was acting strangely. The people in town kept giving us hooded glances, steering clear from us as we headed to Seventh Heaven. For some reason, everyone was scared of us, scared of even being near or associated with us. Barret didn't like that. I tried to keep him calm. He went along with it at first, and let everyone do what they wanted without exploding at them. But once we got to Seventh Heaven, one of the regulars pointed us out to someone watching from afar. There was a man in the shadows, a man who looked completely out of place among the dirtied people of the slums. We discovered very quickly who he was. An agent of Don Corneo, the most prominent man in the slums, overseer of Sector 6."

Cloud nodded, his face thoughtful and calm as he listened. Naruko was already putting the pieces together, coming up with a theory that would be proven true with Tifa's next few words.

"Eventually, Barret couldn't take it. He determined to get to the bottom of it, as only he would. He marched right up to the man and fastened his gun arm on, slowly and deliberately. The man looked completely unimpressed. In fact, he stared right at Barret and lit a cigarette, as if to provoke him. He thought he was untouchable. When Barret pressed him up against the wall and roared at him, asking what his problem was; the man spat in his face. He said that we would all be sorry; he said that Don Corneo knew. He said that we were doomed. However, what Corneo knows we couldn't get out of him with any threat or injury. So I came here."

"I see," Naruko said, nodding as Tifa turned to look at him. "You wanted to get the information straight from the source, possibly even find out whether or not he betrayed you to Shinra."

"Yes, that's right," Tifa said, looking at him strangely. However, she shrugged her thoughts on the blond off, figuring she could learn more about him later. "Barret told me to leave the lech alone. But what the man said really bothered me."

"Which is why you decided to dress up like that," concluded Cloud. Tifa nodded.

"I made it here, but I was in a bind. I couldn't figure out how to get into the complex, how to get past the guards. Then I watched and overheard. Corneo was looking for a bride. Every day he would gather a group of girls, choose one of them, and then... and, well..."

She looked away.

"Anyways, I figured that the best way to get inside was to be one of those girls."

Cloud nodded while Naruko said, "that would make sense. However, now that you have me, Cloud and Aerith helping you out you no longer need to worry." Naruko form shimmered and before anyone knew it, Naruto was standing in her place again. Before surprise could set in with the other women, he pulled out the scroll containing Cloud and Aerith's weapons. Unrolling it in mid-air, Naruto bit his thumb on sharpened incisors and smeared his blood across the seal. There was a brief glow, a puff of smoke, and suddenly Naruto was tossing Cloud his buster sword and Aerith her stave.

"Kage Bunshin."

Three clones phased into existence beside him. By now all of the women were alerted to them, but before they could do anything such as scream or run away, one of the clones blocked the door while the others slapped silencing seal tags along the walls.

"I want all of you to be quiet!" Naruto shouted above the now clammering voices of scared women. It didn't work at first and so the blond continued. "Should all of you cooperate with us I can guarantee your safety. However, if you keep yapping I can promise that you will all be thoroughly humiliated by the end of tonight!"

The women soon quieted down and looked at him, fear mixing with anger.

"Good," Naruto said, nodding his head in satisfaction. It was always nice when people listened to you. "Now then, unfortunately, none of you will be meeting with Don Corneo tonight. You see, we..." he gestured to himself, Cloud, Tifa and Aerith. "Have an appointment with him that can't wait. Therefore I would ask all of you to wait here for the next two hours or so." Truthfully it wouldn't matter if they tried to escape, Naruto's clones had already set a powerful locking seal on the door that would only unlock if chakra was released into it, or two hours had passed. And considering he was the only person capable of using chakra like this, only he would be able to unlock it.

The women soon began shouting again, claims and threats filled the air but Naruto ignored them as he turned to his two stunned companions. Aerith was not in this category because she was no longer surprised by the things he could do anymore.

"Cloud, I've got your normal outfit right here. You and Tifa, if you have your original clothing with you, hurry up and get dressed. The sooner we get to Don Corneo the better."

---

LGNS

---

It wasn't long after Cloud, Aerith and Tifa got dressed in their normal outfits that they had taken off. Leaving the room and making sure that his seal was in place, Naruto led the others back up the staircase. He took it slow, not wanting to rush out head first and possibly run into one of Don Corneo's guards, or worse, Shinra. It was a good thing he did to, because when Naruto stuck his head out, he could see the man in butler garb coming out from a large and intricate door with gold and red patterns. Likely where Corneo was.

Leaning back in, he turned to look at the others.

"Just leave this to me. Henge."

Naruto, back in his Naruko persona walked out of the staircase, drawing the butler's attention and ire.

"I thought I told you to wait with the others."

"I'm really sorry," Naruko apologized demurely, appearing both contrite and sexy as she fluttered her eye lashes at him. "But I needed to go to the restroom and couldn't find one down there."

"Ah," the man looked miffed but understanding. He sighed, turning around. "Very well, follow me and I shall lead you to one."

He had just turned around when Naruko launched a punch at the man's head. The blond's initial thought that this man was a fighter turned out to be true. The butler sensed the attack coming and spun on a dime, his arm coming out to block the blow. However, Naruko had a sense of triumph when the butler/hired thug winced, clearly having not expected the hit to be so hard.

"I should have realized you were here for an alternate purpose," he said, jumping back to gain some distance between him and the blond. "Your movement is far to graceful to be anything other then a warrior."

Naruko smirked, his form shimmered and the thug was caught by surprise when the blond female changed into a spiky-haired man.

"You're right, I am here for another purpose."

With that said he charged the man. His left fist lashed out, a straight jab to the solar plexus. It was blocked, the thug using the flat of his hand to push it away. A retaliation strike was sent his way but Naruto easily dodged it, his body smoothly shifting to let it pass him by. He positioned himself perfectly, allowing him to move in past the man's guard to go in for a direct strike that would not be blockable. But the thug seemed to be smarter then he looked, because the man jumped back instead of letting Naruto come in for a hit.

"You're quite talented," the thug complimented, making Naruto smirk. A smirk came to the other man's face, however, making the blond frown. "However," he pushed a button on the side and soon several dozen guards burst in through various doors and secret panels in the walls. "You are also hopelessly outnumbered. Give up and I will make your death quick and painless."

Naruto cursed silently. While he had kept himself in shape, it was clear that his fighting capabilities had gotten rusty. Even his occasional scuffle with the Turks had been nothing more then playing pranks and joking around to throw them off balance. It had kept them from being able to react, since they didn't know what to do in the situations he had thrown them in. But aside from his initial encounter with Reno and Rude, he hadn't gone head to head with anyone for a long time.

Thankfully, he wasn't alone. Before anything else could be said, Cloud rushed out of the stairwell, buster sword in hand. He swung the large blade ferociously at the first thug near him. The man had been facing Naruto and thus, didn't even see the attack coming as he was smacked with the flat end of the blade. The man was sent flying, crashing into a wall hard enough to break bones and leave a dent.

Naruto used the distraction provided to rush the thug in butler garb. The man saw him and reacted with astounding speed. But Naruto was not in the mood to play around. He channeled chakra to the bottom of his feet, his form blurred. The man barely had time to even widen his eyes as Naruto appeared before him, jabbing him with a quick, brutal strike to the throat. The man fell onto his back, clutching at his wind pipe as Naruto's attack had cut off the flow. The blond paid the man no more heed, six other guards were charging right at him.

Aerith and Tifa had already left the stairwell and were following Cloud in his wake as he fought against three of the guards. Jumping onto the railway, the coverall wearing female ran across and vaulted off. During her descent, Tifa twisted her body, flipping through the air and landing a heel drop on a surprised thug that Cloud had been fighting. The man was out like a light, and the distraction allowed Cloud to drop one of the other men by smacking him away with his blade.

Several thugs on the ground floor had pulled out guns. Cloud and Tifa were forced to duck when the sound of machine gun fire filled the places their heads had been just seconds prior. Aerith, still unnoticed by the majority of guards, began twirling her stave. She focused on her materia, letting them draw upon her chakra as flames ignited along one end of her weapon. Rushing up to the railing, she swung the stave and released a large blast of fire that exploded in the center of the enemy formation. The destruction it caused not only left a large scorch mark in it's wake, but the few guards that hadn't been killed outright were sent flying into walls and pottery, either killed from the impact or would be killed later by blood loss. It was the first time Aerith had killed a human, and she would have been devastated were she not so resilient. She could cry later, when she was safe in Naruto's arms.

Naruto was keeping pace with the six men that attacked him, using a combination of trickery and tactical positioning so that no more then two thugs could try and hit him without hitting each other. He wove himself around one persons fist, then grabbed the arm that had attempted to jab some kind of electro-rod into him and redirected it towards the outstretched fist. The man who sent the punch pulled back with a hiss. Another thug, this one with a pair of wicked looking claws came in, his left arm outstretched as if in an attempt to slash his face off. Naruto, finishing his maneuvering, feet sliding as he threw the arm of the man holding the rod over his shoulder. There was a loud shout as the man soared through the air. He crashed into the other man, not only sending them both down but destroying the railing as they were sent crashing into the first floor.

Another man tried to come up behind him, but with Naruto's keen spatial awareness the blond was more then capable of jumping back. He spun, lashing out in a reverse heel kick as the man had charged him. It was sidestepped, and the thug continued on, but was unprepared when Naruto used his incredible speed and reflexes to shift onto his other foot and launch a high kick at the mans head. It connected, the head snapping back, breaking. The thug fell onto his back with a dull thud, unmoving.

The sound of a gunshot rang out. Naruto, his senses telling him the bullet was fired at him, tried to move out of the way. He was only partially successful, moving just enough that instead of hitting him in the chest it hit his shoulder. He turned to see the last man he had been fighting had pulled out a gun that was aimed at him. The thug had a smirk on his brutish face. His finger began pulling back on the trigger. As if in slow motion, Naruto watched as the man made to shoot him, only to be clobbered in the head by a metal stave from behind. The man's eyes rolled in the back of his head and he fell face first to the floor, a loud, meaty thud followed by the crack of his head smacking into the wood tiling.

Naruto walked over to Aerith, who was holding her stave and shaking a bit as she looked at the man she had smacked over the head, as Cloud and Tifa cleaned up the other thug. He could see she was holding herself together, barely. He swept the girl into a hug. She didn't resist, encircling her own arms around his torso as her body shivered. Naruto placed a single kiss on her hair.

"How are you feeling?"

"Not good," Aerith admitted. Better then she had been seconds ago now that she was in his comforting embrace, but still not good. "But I know I can't get all emotional right now." She raised her head to look at him and gave a brave smile. "Don't worry about me, I can't wait until we're out of danger to freak out."

Naruto smiled. He had always admired Aerith for her resilience. The young woman had an iron will. He placed a kiss on her forehead and then let go of her. Moving back he looked at Cloud and Tifa as they walked up to him and Aerith.

"We need to find this Corneo guy, get the information your looking for and get out of here. The commotion we just caused is sure to bring Shinra down to see what's going on."

---

LGNS

---

Naruto kicked the ornate door in, the chakra enhanced attack blowing the entire thing off it's hinges and flying into the room where they crashed against the opposite wall. He strode in, his gaze taking in the scenery, large office with a red rug that had golden embroidery outlining it and green twin dragons entwining each other in the middle. Large golden statues of various animals lined the walls, with a cabinet filled with liquier on his left, a large desk in the center covered in nicknacks of all kinds and an articulate divider behind that made up the room. In short, it was gaudy, expensive, distasteful, and just what Naruto would expect from a man like Don Corneo.

"Who the hell are you people!?"

In the center of the room was a large man, make that a very fat man, his blond hair in an unusual wavy-mo hawkish style where only the center had any hair. On the left side of his head was the tattoo of a heart with an arrow going through it and the words love written above it. His red coat with fur lining looked like it was designed to show off his wealth. Underneath it he wore blue jeans and a white button up shirt with the first several buttons undone to show off an expanse of chest hair.

"Who we are doesn't matter," Naruto replied to the fat man's bluster, his voice cheerful. "What matters is that you have information, and we want it."

"I see..."

Quicker then Naruto expected from such an obese man, Corneo pulled out a gun – a six shooter revolver – out from under his desk. However, as fast as Corneo was, he was nowhere near as fast as Naruto. The blond's hand blurred, a flicking motion as his chakra summoned a shuriken into his hand, which was just as quickly tossed. It hit the gun before a single shot could be fired. The gun was thrown out of Corneo's hand, the man letting out a yelp of surprise. In the time it took for him to finish screaming, Naruto was already there, a kunai in his hand and pressed against the man's throat.

Don Corneo froze, his eyes wide in terror as he began to realize the situation he was in. Naruto gave him a cold smile, pressing the kunai deeper and drawing a bit of blood, just to let the man know he was being serious.

Corneo whimpered.

"Now, Corneo, you'll be answering a few questions for us, won't you?"

Corneo would have nodded, but doing so would have more then likely slit his throat. So he just settled for talking.

"Yes, yes, I'll tell you whatever you want! Just please don't kill me!"

Naruto smiled, people like Corneo were so easy. They talked a big game because they had money, but when it came time to step up to the plate they ended up falling several thousand feet short of the mark. They didn't know what to do when shit hit the fan, and just like right now, where Corneo should have said nothing – because Naruto couldn't kill the man without getting that information – he caved. Granted, Naruto would have ended up torturing him, but that was besides the point.

"Tifa."

"Right."

Tifa visibly took hold of how startled she was by the blond's quick movements. He had acted with more skill and talent then she had ever seen in her life, his reflexes were top notch and his fighting ability was on par with Cloud's. Maybe even better. She was beginning to regret not gathering more information on her friend, they could have used his help in AVALANCHE.

She shook her head, now was not the time for self-recriminations. She stopped besides Naruto, her new arrival catching Corneo's attention. Even in his situation, the man couldn't help but rake his eyes over Tifa's long, athletic legs and large chest. It made her shiver in disgust.

"Your assistant in the Sector 7 slums, what did he find out?"

Corneo gulped.

"...I made him find out where the man with the gun-arm was. But that's what I was ordered to do."

"By Shinra right?" Naruto smiled when he saw the man's eyes widen in surprise and fear. "Who in Shinra ordered you to find this information?"

"I-I can't tell you that!" Corneo squeaked. "If I do I'll be killed!"

"If you don't tell me what I want to know you'll be killed!" Naruto snapped, surprising those around him. Not wanting to waste any time with this man, he sent a burst of killing intent towards the man. Once more the hovering form of the Shinigami, the God of Death, appeared behind the blond as he begun leaking blackish purple energy off his frame. Corneo's eyes widened, pupils dilating as he began to shake uncontrollably. "Now tell us who!?"

"It was Heidegger!" He squeaked.

"The head of public safety and maintenance?"

"The very one!"

"That makes sense." Naruto flicked his eyes over to Tifa. "Heidegger is the one in charge of the Turks, as well as the normal army of Shinra. I also know that sometime in the past few years he gained control over SOLDIER."

Tifa nodded, thankful for the information but also curious on how Naruto knew so much. She turned back to Corneo and glared.

"What is Shinra up to? What are they planning?"

This time, Corneo needed no prompting as he said, "Shinra is trying to crush a small rebel group called AVALANCHE and want to infiltrate their hideout. And their going to crush them... literally. By breaking the supports holding the plate above them."

The news shocked everyone, even Naruto. Breaking the supports on the plate would not only kill the members of AVALANCHE but all of the people in the slums, as well as those on the plate. The death toll would be catastrophic, easily in the thousands. Tifa rocked on her heels in shock.

"Break the supports!?"

You know what's going to happen," Corneo said breathlessly, his wide eyes flickering from Tifa to Naruto every few seconds. "The plate'll go PING and everything's gonna go BAMMM! I heard their hideouts in the Sector 7 Slums. I'm just glad it's not here in Sector 6."

Tifa shook her head, almost as if she didn't believe what she was hearing.

"Their going to wipe out the Sector 7 Slums!?" She turned her attention to Cloud. Naruto kept an eye on Corneo to make sure he didn't try anything. "Cloud, will you come with me to Sector 7?"

Cloud nodded.

"Of course, Tifa."

"We'll come as well," Naruto said, gesturing to him and Aerith who nodded in agreement. Tifa looked surprised.

"You will?"

"I can't in good conscious just stand here while Shinra commits mass murder just to get rid of a few insurgents," Naruto replied, the expression he had once worn during the war coming to his face. It looked like his peaceful life may be well and truly over, but Naruto couldn't just stand by and do nothing. "So I'll help stop them. As for you!" The blond growled at Corneo, who squeaked in terror as the shinobi turned icy eyes on him. "If I even catch a hint of you snooping into our business, I will make it so that you will begging for death by the time I'm done with you!" The man couldn't nod fast enough. Naruto pulled his kunai from Corneo's neck and nodded towards Tifa. The four of them made their way towards the door, only stopping when Corneo spoke up.

"Just a second!"

Cloud glared at the man.

"Shut up!"

"Now wait, it will only take a second." The four paused in spite of themselves. He might have more information they hadn't thought to ask, after all. "How do you think scum like me feels when they babble on about the truth?"

Naruto frowned, there was something in the man's question that set him on edge. Cloud shrugged.

"They're sure they'll win."

Corneo smirked.

"Bingo!"

Naruto realized what was happening just a second too late. Corneo pushed a button hidden on a gold statue of a dragon on his desk. The floor beneath them opened up and Naruto, Cloud, Aerith and Tifa all fell into darkness.

---

You should all have noticed the slight AU from the Naruto canon. I have no clue if Naruto actually witnessed bandits capturing women and using them as sex slaves, and I understand that it's a very cliched plot device, but I figured what the hell, might as well use it.

I got nothing to say about this chapter. I'm running on borrowed time, namely my works time. So until next time.

Pokemaster12 out.