Sorry for the long wait, guys, but for some reason this was really hard to write, but hopefully that won't be the same for the next one :p Anyway, please enjoy.

14: Red Lightning

Ay growled under his breath at the news he'd just been given, "And we're sure that the boy is right one?" He asked, "From what we've heard about him from our spies following Raiga, the boy had a different Doujutsu?"

Mabui nodded, flipping through the files on her clipboard, "It is indeed the same boy, Raikage-sama, but it would seem the surviving spy reported that he saw the boy's eyes change into something else, and from the glow, he surmised it to be the Byakugan, and possibly a more advanced version. He wasn't sure as Tsunade of the Sannin was present, and he didn't want to risk being captured."

Ay nodded, "A smart move, and I'm sure Gin and Naoko's party is more than up to the task...did you say that he was with one of the Sannin?"

Again Mabui flipped through her pages, "Yes, it appears as though he's traveling under the protection of Jiraiya, the Gama Sennin, along with two other apprentices in tow, one being a young Chunnin resembling the Yondaime Hokage."

Ay's interest was peaked at his, "That's interesting. I suppose it's possible that he may have had a son, given how close he was to the Red Death...right, that does it! BEE!" Ay bellowed, causing the poor secretary to cover her ears.

Almost immediately, there was a loud commotion outside as the hulking figure of the Raikage's sworn brother entered through the window, "Yo, Bro, your call shook the walls, ain't no need to be bustin' my b-"

"ELBOW!"

Bee was dropped by a reverse elbow strike from his brother, "How many times have I told you to knock of the rapping!"

Twitching, Bee groaned, "Ain't no test...bro's blows are the best...ow..."

Mabui hid her smirk behind her board as the pair's antic threatened to make her laugh, "Raikage-sama, why summon Bee-sama?"

"Because I want him to go back up Naoko's team," Ay said as Be got to his feet, "If this gaki's got an advanced Byakugan, then there's no way I'm letting it slip through our fingers again. Not even if the legendary Toad Sage gets in the way!"

Bee groaned, "Aw man, that old plan? Sheesh, Dude, all this thievin's rude."

"Speak normally, Bee," Ay said, "I didn't understand a word of that!"

"I'm saying that I don't like this," Bee said, scratching the back of his head, "If that kid's as strong as you think he is, then Konoha ain't gonna sit by, and let the kid fly."

Ay huffed, "They wouldn't dare risk a war with us, not with the invasion leaving their village weak as it is."

Mabui sighed, "He may have a point, Raikage-sama, Konoha is not as weak as you may think it is."

"For once, I don't care," Ay said, "If they deem the boy worthy enough to fight for, then so be it. Let them come! By the time they get here, maybe some of the willing women will be pregnant."

"..." Bee looked at his brother, "Dude, that's sick...the kid's just what...five?"

"Nine," Mabui said, "He's older than we thought."

"Good," Ay said, "Now, Bee, I know you don't like this, but this is an order. You don't have to harm the boy, just keep Jiraiya off Naoko's tail long enough for her to get here. Their a good twenty-four hours away if the message is anything to go on."

"Naoko-chan be quick as lightning. With her Swift Release, we won't have to worry in the least!"

"Be that as it may, I'd rather you go and protect her as well. We don't have many Swift users, and losing her would be a big blow for us." Ay said, smiling as he was about to dangle the proverbial carrot, "And you might want to go anyway. Gin's message stated that one of Jiraiya's apprentices is in possession of the Kiba that Raiga kept before he died."

Now Bee's interest was peaked, "Bro, you tellin' me that some li'l babe's got the Lighting Blades?"

Ay slapped his brother on the shoulder, "Go gett'em, Bee."

"You can count on me, Wheee~!"

=x=

Neji ran as fast as he could to try and keep up with the kunoichi carrying his apprentice. But the kunoichi herself was far ahead of him, and gaining ground as she ran. Never in his life had he seen someone as fast as this woman!

"Coward!" Neji shouted in an attempted to slow her, "Will Kumo risk war with Konoha just for the Byakugan once again?!"

The kunoichi looked back at the young Hyuuga, "What war? From what our sources say, this boy isn't even part of Konoha!" She grinned from far ahead of him while Ranmaru struggled, "He's fair game to anyone that wants him!"

Neji cursed his speed, pushing as much chakra into his legs to propel himself forward. Suddenly though, he felt a blast of monstrous chakra washing over him, making him stagger. The Kumo kunoichi wasn't spared as the malicious chakra washed over her as well, pausing her flight as she turned back toward the source.

Fear washed over her and her charge as Ranmaru activated his Byakugan on instinct to seek out the chakra's source himself.

"Oh, you've got to be kidding me!" The woman sneered, "One of those rats was a Jinchuuriki?!"

"What's a Jinchuuriki?" Ranmaru asked.

Naoko looked down at the boy who had stopped struggling to search for the irate source, "Gaki, if Kumo's Jinchuuriki are anything to go on, then you don't wanna know!" She said as she turned to flee, forming the boar sign, "Jinton: Mueisho!"

Neji, momentarily forgetting the chakra burst, cursed again as Naoko's form blurred. "Dammit!" Without another thought, he was in motion.

=x=

Tayuya had hauled Naruto back onto the bank without a problem. But the moment she tried to revive him, his eyes shot open, red as blood, and slit like a cat's as a massive burst of chakra had come from him. Jiraiya, still downed from the poison, looked up in shock as Naruto shot to his feet, "Naruto, don't do it!"

"What the - "

Jiraiya needn't have worry. Naruto re-summoned his blades, and shot off at blinding speeds in the direction Neji had chased the Kumo kunoichi. "Wait!" The old sage called after him, but Naruto was already long gone. "Kami dammit all!" He growled and struggled to his feet, "Tayuya, we need to go after them! If they're after Ranmaru's eyes, then they'll have a larger force waiting to intercept them!"

He received no answer from her. He turned and saw that the girl was still rooted to the spot she had been when she pulled Naruto out of the water. She was staring off in the direction that her friend had gone. To Tayuya, Naruto looked at her for a fraction of a moment without the blue eyes she'd come to know and trust, but with red eyes slit like a cat's. His face, normally bright and smiling, was scowling in a feral snarl as he'd taken off after them.

"Jiji...what the fuck...just happened..." She stammered out, turning slowly to their sensei, "That couldn't have been Naruto, right? He's...he's never looked at me like that..."

Jiraiya sighed and rummaged through his pockets before producing a small bottle, "I think you should sit down, Tayuya-chan...I've got some explaining to do."

Shaking out of her daze, Tayuya moved over to him while he drank down the contents of the bottle in hand, "Damn, Tsunade sure knows how to make this stuff taste nasty!" He grimaced, "Alright, Tayuya-chan, I'm going to ask you something, and I want you to answer truthfully; what do you know of those that are called Jinchuuriki?"

Tayuay blinked for a moment, "That's...what people call others that have a Biju inside them, right?" Jiraiya nodded. "But what the hell does that...Oh, kami, Shithead's a - "

"Jinchuuriki," Jiraiya finished. "Does that change anything between you two?"

=x=

"I thought I told you to hold still?!" Naoko snapped to the wriggling child. While well out of range of the young Hyuuga, the Kumo kunoichi was not keen to let that Jinchuuriki get too close. Ranmaru was doing his damnedest to get free of the woman's arms.

"I'm not going anywhere with you!" Ranmaru shouted, activating his Byakugan, and molding it into the Tenseigan. Naoko was stunned, but the boy never let her say another word. "Kaiten!" Rotating his body rapidly, Ranmaru ripped himself from her arms, much to the shock of the Jinton user. While using the Tenseigan, Ranmaru and Neji had discovered a new chakra point. Unlike the others, this one was unique in the fact that is completely shut down the chakra system for hours on end, leaving the opponent weak, and virtually helpless against an experienced opponent.

And it was located in the pit of the stomach, where the chakra well was located. Using a chakra infused palm against the woman, taking her by surprise, Ranmaru struck the point awkwardly, causing more damage than was needed, but it served the purpose. Naoko fell.

Ranmaru and the Kumo Kunoichi went tumbling from the trees where Ranmaru did his best to right himself and take off toward his friends once more, but Naoko had enough strength left to give the boy a violent kick and sent him careening into the forest, crashing against the ground before she herself fell. Ranmaru, young as he was, was fortunate not to witness the woman's fate as she fell, unable to right herself in time before she crashed, her neck at an awkward angle.

The young Byakugan user, however had the wind knocked out of him and staggered to his feet, holding his side as a blinding pain shot through him. "M..my ribs.."

The boy's eyes changed back to their usual grey hues as he took in his surroundings. Naoko's body lay broken a few yards away, making him shiver and thankful that he had managed to come out of it slightly unscathed.

They were far from camp, thanks to the swift user, and far from help. Ranmaru activated his Byakugan once more and scanned the area, hoping to find someone nearby. He found what he was looking for...unfortunately.

There were no Jiton users among them, but there were plenty of other reasons to worry. More to the point, none of them were his friends.

Before Ranmaru could hide himself, twenty or so Kumo shinobi landed in front of him.

"That's the kid," one of the men said, "Those eyes are a dead give away."

Another one laughed, "No joke, look what he did to Naoko," he said, giving the corpse a small nudge with his foot, "Dead as a door nail."

"Well, if he's got the Byakugan, then he's gonna be a little dangerous," a kunoichi said from the safety of the trees, "She probably let her guard down because he's just a little kid."

Ranmaru dropped into his Juken stance, "I'm stronger than I look." The boy bluffed, hoping to throw them off, "I can promise that I won't go with you easily." His voice was deceptively calm, even though his heart was beating like a rabbit's. Some of the shinobi seemed to get nervous, but the majority just laughed, welcoming the challenge.

"Bring it, Gaki," one of the larger men said, grinning as he sauntered forward, smashing his fists together, and sparks flying from the knuckles, "Ay-sama's promised a huge reward for those eyes of your's, so whether we bring you back as breeding stock, or just as an unsealed corpse, it won't matter."

The veins around Ranmaru's eye tightened, I don't have any choice, do I? He wondered before sighing to himself, and allowing his eyes to morph into the second state once again. "Then I might as well fight you with all that I have to offer," Ranmaru said, his resolve covering the quake in his voice, "Come on, then, because you're facing Ranmaru Kurosuki of the Tenseigan!"

Before his attackers could get over the shock of seeing the new Doujutsu's manifest, Ranmaru was on the move. Though nowhere near as fast as Neji when it came to combat, Ranmaru had learned well, and pushed his chakra into his legs for the added boost in speed as he attacked the nearest shinobi. "Hakke Sanjuni!" The boy roared out, striking the needed chakra points before turning to the next target.

Unfortunately, the remaining nineteen had gotten over their shock.

The all launched themselves at the boy, only giving him a small amount of time to get himself in gear before he was overwhelmed. "Kaiten!" Rotating as fast as he was able, Ranmaru blocked and parried each blow, sending them back to the ground.

As he slowed, he felt the massive drain on his chakra the jutsu, combined with the Tenseigan, caused. Three down, seventeen to go.

"Gaki's got some skill," one of the remaining shinobi said, "And those eyes...Ay-sama's gonna have kittens when he sees those!"

A kunoichi off to his left licked her lips, "We'd best take him back alive, who knows how strong a second generation Doujutsu from this one would be?"

Ranmaru grit his teeth, "I'm no one's cattle!" He growled and sped toward the offending kunoichi, aiming for the newly discovered chakra point. She grinned and moved to slash at him with her kunai. Ranmaru ducked under it, spun, and slammed a deadly two-palmed strike into her stomach.

"GREH!" A torrent of blood erupted from her mouth as she fell, splashing a stunned Ranmaru. She looked at him with blank eyes, "You...you little demon..." Something broke loose then; a fear he didn't yet know he had. He remembered seeing same splash from Tayuya as she was hit by Raiga's attack, and then again as Naruto impaled Raiga. And now it was on him. He had caused it to appear. He had just killed.

He knew it wasn't the first time he killed, but the rational part of his mind had been put on the proverbial back burner as the red liquid splashed onto him.

"Well, lookie there, the kid's shaking," one of them laughed, "He's scared!"

Ranmaru looked up at them, still dazed, and felt a familiar chakra signature approaching. One of the shinobi alighting in a tree, not paying attention to anything other than the boy in front of them, felt a cold chill run down his spine. "If he is scared, then so should you be." Said a cold, even voice from behind him. He turned, staring into blazing white eyes, "Hakke Hasengeki!" The powerful vacuum strike of the Gentle Fist hit him square in the back, sending him flying across the forest and into a another tree, splintering the bark and wood beneath.

Neji dropped to the ground in his fighting stance, glaring around him, "Now, your opponent is me!"

=x=

"Runt, you need to pick it up if you want to catch up to them," Kyuubi snarled as Naruto sped through the forest at speeds yet unknown to those without Jiton, "At this rate, they'll reach Kumon before we get a chance to bite them!"

Don't you think I know that, Furball? Naruto mentally snapped, I'm going as fast as I can, even with your chakra!

"A minor thing, just don't let up, even if you feel pain in a few moments," the fox said, much to Naruto displeasure.

"What pain?" He asked aloud.

"I'm opening up all of you chakra systems." Kyuubi explained, "While I cannot use all of the elements, I can use Fuuton, and Katon, which I can effectively combine at will. You will do this if we come up against one of my brethren."

Before Naruto could ask what that meant, a searing pain raced through his body, almost as if his very veins were being set on fire. "Wha-what the hell?!" Naruto roared, nearly losing his footing.

"Calm yourself," the fox chided, "It'll only last a few moments while my chakra heals the stretched tenketsu, besides, you should feel grateful, having two chakra natures at your age, let alone three is very rare." He said, almost gloating, "With all of your chakra natures awakened, you'll be much stronger than your average Jonin when you've learned to use the elements."

Naruto landed lightly on a branch to catch his breath while the pain ebbed away, "Yeah," he growled sarcastically, "And just so grateful!" As he rested, the Kiba were still sparking with the chakra he'd fed into them, small bursts of red lightning shooting out.

"Hey, hey, hey," a voice said from above, "Gaki, come to play?" Naruto looked up sharply, seeing a dark-skinned man in shades grinning down at him, the sheathes of multiple blades on his hips and back, "Best make way, 'cause them blade hold no sway in any way over me, Kirabi, see?"

The blond just stared at the man, a dumbfounded expression on his face. The Kyuubi was no better. "Did you understand any of that?"

Not a word.

"Uh, I don't suppose you'd just let me by, ne?" Naruto asked.

Kirabi sighed, "Man, dat ain't part of the plan," he rapped, "Ay-nii told me to keep you away from the gaki, see? But lemme lay this on ya; you gimme them fine Kiba, and I'll let'cha go like spring fev'a?"

That did it. No way in hell was Naruto giving up his swords when he'd worked so hard on his kenjutsu.

The blond dropped into a Horse-stance, hold either blade out at arm's length, "Uzu Hiden no Jutsu: Moetsu no Orochi!" Kirabi's brow raised at the name of the attack as Naruto's arms...became six?

"Ah, hell no!" The eccentric shinobi whipped all of his swords out of their sheaths, each one in an impossible place, his mouth, the back of his kness, elbows, giving him the look of a porcupine. "I invented this shit, ain't nobody gonna steal it!"

Naruto lept up at him, thrusting his left arms forward. The Hachibi Jinchuuriki grinned as he blocked all of the attacks at once. Naruto's second barrage of strikes was aimed at the vulnerable spots created when Bee blocked him, only to be blocked yet again.

The blond retreated to a branch not far away as Bee whipped around to face him, "Surprised?" He asked, losing the rap, "Sorry, Blondie, but you ain't the only one I've seen use that jutsu." He grinned, "I know how it works. It's a borderline Genjustu, moving your arms so fast it makes you look like you got six," he flipped, sheathing all but two of his swords, "Snake Fang Strike is an Uzumaki style, so I'm guessin' you be an Uzumaki, ne?"

Naruto growled, "Yeah, so what?"

Bee smirked, "So, this is gonna be goooood!"

"Dammit! I recognize that fool!" Kyuubi roared, "That's the Hachibi Jinchuuriki! Runt, channel all of my chakra into those blades, and use that Raiton jutsu!"

Not sure what else to do, Naruto did as he was instructed, and the Kiba glowed a dangerous red. Bee was again surprised, "That chakra...ah, man, just what I need..."

"Soryuha!" Naruto's cry rang out, but unlike the last few times he'd used the attack, with the Kyuubi's help, the Soryuha did not come out as a bolt of lightning. Instead, the head of a massive dragon roared out, followed by the snake-like body as it flew toward Bee.

"Whee!" He lept out of the line of fire as the dragon roared by, shattering the trees around it, only for it to turn around and give chase to the Kumo Jinchuuriki. Bee grinned, "Man that is some jutsu you got there, Li'l Gaki, it's making me go wacky!" He landed and thrust his swords out, one into the air, and one aimed directly at the oncoming dragon, "But lightning's my specialty."

As he said that, the dragon was drawn to the metal sword like a lightning rod, shooting through the man's body and up through the other sword, shooting into the sky.

Naruto grimaced at the red bolt shot high, gathering storm clouds around it. "Dammit."

Thunder rumbled as Bee gazed at him with a pleased smile, "Now, Mis'a Nine, it's show time."

Whew! Finally got done with this one! Sorry if the quality is bad, but I've had a rough time.

Kurama: Oh, sure, and you didn't start a new story that took off?

Me: Oh, come on Kurama! I can't help it and you know it!

Kurama: Of course I know that! I'm in your head!

Me:...How wrong does that sound?

Kurama: Tell me about it.

Preview:

"Ramnaru, run!"

"Neji!"

"Get outta the way!"

"Use it Runt!"

"RWAH! Update the damned Bingo Books!"

"Tayuya?"

"I'm...sorry."

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