Hello everyone, here's the newest chapter of the "Ronin" story. Enjoy! I apologize in advance for the quality of the chapter: my inspiration is still somewhere far away, but I felt that shan't keep you waiting for the update any longer... I'll try to update my other "Naruto" stories soon as well, but I will promise nothing as writing right now isn't easy for me, thank to those awful writer's blocks... At least writing updates for the existing stories - I have started another project which will take place once I finish writing "Ronin" (it's more than 70% complete at this point): I'm going to write a "Freezing"/"Naruto" crossover. With an unusual pairing. =) But it still will have to wait as I plan on finishing this story first...
* Review response:
miner249er, XoreandoX, TheDemonKingNaruto, Naginator, fanficreader71, Umbra8191, grimangel163, roboguy45, Akira Stridder, alchemists19, The-lazy-bum, Garuda 1 Talisman, jafr86, sh8ad8ow, griffin blackwood, Knives91, Sandaime Hokage, DEBob19, Ronin Kenshin, warriorx559, kiyomos, chm01, pyro357, Polar-Bear-King, Olaf74, thank you for your reviews, folks!
RasenShuriken92, what can I say: vampires like to fuck too. =)
Wyrtha, Slytherin's Pimp, yes, you are right: I have one such meeting planned. Three guesses when and with whom.
Highvalour, as a generally strong fighter, who uses a sword (THE sword).
BowTechsniper, yeah, I got. 100mm cannons are cool.
deadal, live his life like he wants to. Having girls loving him, included.
Nero Strauss, I have no plans for Kisame yet (and, likely there won't be a meeting between them), but Naruto will meet another very strong and well-known swordsman soon.
ogihcI ikasoruK, they'll graduate in seven months actually.
xNamikazeKyuubix, Elemental Dragon Swordman, no Akasha isn't in the harem yet (per se, of course). She'll become an official member soon, though.
Toa Naruto, *smiles while adjusting the plans for the future chapters*
nxkris, Naruto will spend some more time in Kumo, but, ultimately, he will become a jounin in Kiri.
Still Not Dead Yet, if I remember correctly, I have answered you via PM.
Dante siegfried 888, 11 really, 16 by body, 20-something by his mind.
Also, thanks for 525+ reviews total and 900+ favorites.
* Jutsu list:
Shunshin - (D-rank) Body flicker - 'Teleportation' technique.
Kage bunshin - (A-rank) Shadow clones - creates physical non-elemental copies of the user. Chakra is split evenly between the user and the clones.
Disclaimer: I DO NOT own Naruto or its characters. I do not own Rosario + Vampire II (First part too, actually), from where the name Akasha Chisen (Bloodriver) comes, either. And, of course, I don't own Red Eyes either - Naruto's nickname in the bingo books comes from this manga.
"speaking"
'thinking'
"speaking of the higher beings / jutsu / Naruto while using Kyuubi's yoki"
'thinking of the higher beings / Kyuubi and Akashi talking to Naruto in his mind'
written message
Chapter 12: Peacemaking and research
Naruto moved through the Hidden Mist village, heading to the Mizukage palace to report the success of his mission. Then he would have to stop by the armory to place the Kiba swords into the Armory storehouses, before heading 'home' for some rest... He wasn't sure what Mei would want to do him next, but if he was to stay in the village for the time being, he planned to see what he could find about the art of sealing the ninja library of Kiri.
As the Kyuubi jinchuuriki approached the palace, guards at the doors bowed to him, before letting him in. Quickly getting to the top floor where the Mizukage's office was located, the red-eyed swordsman looked around and, seeing that there was no one else waiting for an audience, went into the village's leader's office. Like he could have expected, Mei was busy going over the stacks of various documents the bureaucrats of the village were producing for her to sign. Of course, as soon as he entered her office, the red-haired Kage looked up at him.
"Welcome back, Naru-chan." She greeted warmly, though, the blond was sure that were he anybody else, he would have been threatened with a death if he didn't leave immediately. "I take it that your mission was successful." It wasn't a question: she believed in him so much that she was sure he could not fail. The Kyuubi jinchuuriki merely nodded in response, before producing a scroll from his cloak. He unrolled it on the free space of Mei's table, before unsealing the swords. The redhead picked one of them and examined it: while she wasn't that about weapons – she favored ninjutsu, especially those that melted or burned her opponents – but it was not that difficult to tell that the swords were real. "Very well, Naru-chan, drop them at the Armory, section C, will you? And be at home tonight, I'll give you the mission payment. Personally." Shrugging off at her attempt of telling him that she would ride him tonight till she was too tired to move anymore, the Kyuubi jinchuuriki sealed the swords back into the scroll before saying:
"By your leave then." He was about to shunshin out of her office, when Mei stopped him.
"Actually there is something that I to inform you about." She said in the tone that indicated she wasn't that pleased with whatever was the reason of that. "An emissary from the Fuuma clan arrived two days ago, seeking to ally the clan with Kirigakure no Sato." Quickly thinking about what about this could have upset the red-haired kunoichi so much, Naruto came to a conclusion that this emissary was Kagerou, and Mei-chan was simply afraid that the other beauty would take him away from her... "And she was seeking you out for some reason." Yep, that must have been Kagerou-chan.
"I'll see what I can do about that." The red-eyed swordsman replied without showing any strong emotions: he didn't need nor want his onee-chan turned lover to strap him to her bed for a couple of days just because she was afraid of losing him to another woman. "If that's all, I go drop by the Armory then." At her nod, he disappeared in a swirl of wind and some mist. Reappearing on the street, right in front of the entrance to the Mizukage's palace, Naruto started walking towards the Armory...
He arrived there some fifteen minutes later, and went straight to the jounin in charge. This jounin happened to be an elderly man, already in his sixties, with some battle scars on his body to prove that he had seen wars other than the bloodline purges. And while this man was working for Yagura, he himself didn't have anything against bloodlines, so he was let to continue his ninja duties, which by now was making sure that the other had all weapons and other supplies they needed.
"Greetings, Uzumaki-san." The elderly jounin greeted. "I was told by Mizukage-sama that you will be bringing the great Kiba swords to my storehouses." Naruto nodded.
"That is correct." Producing the sealing scroll from his cloak, the Kyuubi jinchuuriki unsealed the swords, before giving them to the other shinobi. The elderly jounin picked the Kiba swords and examined them, finding them to be in pristine condition like they were almost a decade ago when Ringo Ameyuri got them.
"Very well, I have them placed in the Armory storehouses until their new wielder is selected." The scarred jounin said. "I thank you, Uzumaki-san, for doing a great service of bringing them back to the village." Nodding, Naruto wished the man a good day and left the Armory to look for Kagerou: he needed to sort out the things between her and Mei as soon as possible.
Finding the green-haired kunoichi of the Fuuma clan wasn't that hard: while he himself wasn't a Kiri ninja, he had a lot of rights in the village, including the right to see hotel registries and the likes. Plus the village was still recovering from the final battle of the civil war, and only three hotels were currently working... He found Kagerou in the second hotel he 'visited', "the Golden fog", and, once he got the number of the room she was staying in from the maitre d'hotel, he went there in hopes of making the first step in resolving the situation between two beauties.
Once he reached the door of Kagerou's room, Naruto knocked. There seemed to be no reaction. Hoping that she was there wand was just sleeping or something, the Kyuubi jinchuuriki knocked again, this time harder... Several seconds later he heard the green-haired Fuuma kunoichi walking up to the door.
"Who's it?" She asked, sounding like she really was woken up by him knocking on her door.
"It's me, Kagerou-chan..." Naruto wasn't given a chance to finish as Kagerou opened the door and pulled him into her room and hugged him. The blond gladly returned the embrace, and for some time they stayed just like that. Then Kagerou, in a moment of boldness, rose on her toes – she was a bit shorter than the blond swordsman in her arms – and pressed her lips to his. He eagerly returned the kiss, and for several seconds they stood there lip-locked... Finally, breaking the kiss, Naruto also stepped out of her embrace: he was here 'on business', after all. "Mei-chan told me that you have arrived here while I was away on a mission." He said.
"Mei-chan?" The green-haired beauty asked, her eyebrow raised questioningly.
"Mizukage-sama otherwise." The Kyuubi jinchuuriki elaborated.
"Oh." Kagerou breathed out. "She had informed me that you were ...inaccessible when I arrived to the village two days ago." She said, before adding quietly: "And she seems to have problems with me." Naruto nodded.
"I know. But you must understand, Mei-chan was my adopted nee-chan before the bloodline purges reached our village. And after that, for years we thought we lost each other, and, right now, she is a bit too possessive of me as she's afraid of losing me again." The blond made a pause. "I'm neither blind nor stupid, I know that you have feelings for me that go beyond just a friendship, but Mei-chan sees that too, and so you are her rival for my affection and love." The green-haired girl looked at him with 'puppy eyes'.
"Do... do you like me, Naruto-kun?" She asked almost in a whisper. Naruto was silent for several seconds, before answering.
"I like you, Kagerou-chan, a lot, but... you know how I grew up? I'm not sure which type of love I do feel towards you." He said, trying his best to get out of this potentially killer question. It seemed to work, as the green-haired kunoichi relaxed a bit, though she was still standing really close to him, as if she was afraid he would evaporate if otherwise.
As Kagerou had mellowed out, Naruto slowly changed the topic from from their relationship to the reasons why she returned to the Hidden Mist, and how they were to work to for an alliance of sorts with the Fuuma clan... Of course, he also promised her to talk to Mei-chan to make it clear to the redhead that Kagerou wasn't there to steal him from her – hopefully this will stop the hostility the Fifth Mizukage felt towards the Fuuma girl...
After his meeting with Kagerou, Naruto headed to the ninja library, which thankfully wasn't damaged during the siege, as wasn't damaged the collection of books and scrolls it contained. If there was what he needed – the Kyuubi jinchuuriki wasn't sure, as Kiri's specialty was kenjutsu and water ninjutsu, not the art of sealing – than he would be able to access it... And, since it was actually past midday now, he decided just to look for what he'd need today, and start the actual research tomorrow. Akasha, no matter how much she wanted to be in the real world again, agreed to wait at least that much...
Like it happened in the hotels, he was welcomed to the library as a hero of the Hidden Mist village (even if he wasn't a Kiri ninja), and was given the right to browse through the entire collection housed there. Thanking the librarian for generosity, the blond swordsman disappeared among the bookshelves as he started looking for the scrolls on advanced seals...
Several hours and browsing through entire fuuinjutsu section later, he had found eleven scrolls that had a chance of having the information he needed. Unfortunately though, tonight he will not be able to study them – Mei's hints about her plans for tonight made that clear – thus he decided to ask the librarian to put those aside for him 'till tomorrow. The man was all to glad to comply with the request.
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"Mei-chan?.." Naruto asked as he raised his head a bit. The redhead that was draped all over him moaned something unintelligent in response, her mind still hazy from the pleasures of their sex. "Hime?.." He asked again, giving her tight sexy ass a squeeze to get her attention.
"Mm..." Mei moaned as she lifted her head to 'look' at her lover. "Something you need, Naru-chan?" She asked, while lazily pulling herself up against him a bit, her incredible breasts and pussy rubbing against his chest and stomach in a delicious way. He then pressed he closer to him, making her sigh contently, before leaning forward and capturing her lips for a kiss... "Mm?" The red-haired kunoichi 'asked' him again once they broke the kiss.
"Can I ask something from you?" The Kyuubi jinchuuriki asked. In response Mei slid a bit down and rubbed their crotches together, even if he knew that she wasn't up for another round, not yet at least... He shook his head. "I want you to make peace with Kagerou-chan. Give her a chance at least." The redhead pouted. Naruto continued looking into her eyes, till she gave up.
"Oka~ay..." She finally said. "But no promises." The blond sighed. Mei-chan was so stubborn at times... But at least she agreed to give Kagerou-chan a chance. He gave her another kiss as a 'thank you', before laying back down and allowing sleep to claim him...
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After reminding his red-haired lover of the deal they stroke the last night, right after he had finished fucking her through seven heavens of bliss, Naruto headed back to library to research ways of bringing Akasha to the real world... Hopefully, the scrolls he had picked yesterday will be of any help in this endeavor...
Since it was still an early morning when he left the house he shared with Mei-chan, the streets of Kirigakure no Sato were mostly empty, and the Kyuubi jinchuuriki could move without attracting too much unwanted attention to himself – even though everyone knew that he belonged to their Mizukage, he still had a number of fan-girls, who sometimes still were a problem for him... Arriving to the library, Naruto picked the scrolls he had asked to put aside for him from the librarian and, finding a quiet table in the corner of the hall started working.
After going through first three scrolls the blond swordsman found nothing that he could use: so far it seemed that all advanced seals that one could learn in Kiri were either self-repair or auto-replication or elemental sealing ones. Surely, those were useful, but there was so much more one could with fuuinjutsu than that... But Naruto didn't let that dissuade him and continued searching.
In the sixth scroll, he found the first array that might be useful for him there: this particular sealing array had strengthening chakra constructs as its purpose and was used in an attempt to recreate shadow clone jutsu sometime during the First Great Shinobi war. The attempt failed, but the array itself was working as it should be, so the Kyuubi jinchuuriki decided to copy it down. He will go over it with Akasha later on to see how it could be incorporated into the summoning he was trying to create... While, the vampiress wasn't as good with current type of fuuinjutsu as he was, she still was an unparalleled master of runic arrays, and was really good with weaving arrays together...
In the next three scroll there was a couple of useful seals, but none of those was of any good for his current task, so Naruto didn't pay them much mind at this point... In the pre-last scroll, though, the Kyuubi jinchuuriki found the array he was pretty much looking for: a seal that could bind spirit to a real and solid object. Of course, it needed modifications, so that Akasha would return to the sword (or to him) when her 'body' is destroyed either by a 'killing' blow or by using up all of the chakra it was made from, but the seal still was something of a cornerstone of the whole project.
Already having the bases for all of the arrays he needed for the project, Naruto looked through the last scroll, but found nothing useful that he didn't know there. Shrugging, he rolled all of the scrolls up and returned them to their places... He would have stayed in the library, brainstorming how to make a body for his vampiress, but he wasn't sure that the librarian would welcome twenty something of his clones, as well as the discussion they will have. So, instead, Naruto chose to relocate to the one of rarely used training grounds in the far corner of the village, where he will not be disturbed...
It took the blond swordsman nearly five hours of work with two dozens of shadow clones helping him to figure out how the jutsu he was trying to create should work... The best idea so far was creating a reinforced kage bunshin that lacked its own 'soul' and was set to imitate Akasha's appearance, and then binding her spirit to the said shadow clone. This plan was not fool-proof and Naruto knew that well without the vampiress pointing it out, but there weren't any other feasible ideas of how to give her a body, temporarily or otherwise... So they decided to try it.
But before they could try it, the soulless and reinforced against physical damage shadow 'clone' was to be developed, which mean adding reinforcement and filtering arrays to the one that was the base of the original jutsu, and doing so in a way that would allow summoning such a construct without any lengthy rituals.
The task set, he, his kage bunshin and Akasha went to work, though, since it was just a couple of hours before the sunset, it was doubtful that they will be able to progress much. Still, starting the job was the best while the ideas were fresh in their minds...
Only the lack of the natural light forced the Kyuubi jinchuuriki to stop working on the jutsu and call it a day. He and Akasha made a nice progress today, but the jutsu still needed weeks if not months of work, before it could be called complete by any stretch of that word.
Dismissing his shadow clones and absorbing their ideas and thoughts on the project, Naruto rolled up the scrolls he used to write down the ideas and draw sketches of arrays for the new jutsu. Sealing them all into another scroll, the blond swordsman headed home, hoping that Mei-chan was in good mood tonight and wouldn't be very angry at him for being so late...
Apparently, though, the bane of all Kage, paperwork, kept the redhead at her office, as when Naruto arrived to their home, she wasn't there. So, after fixing himself a quick meal, the blond swordsmen returned to his work, choosing to sit around the table in the corner of the common room with the mass of his scrolls spread on the desk...
He was so absorbed by his research that he was paying to attention to the time, thus he wasn't sure when exactly the redhead had returned, even if he had heard her dropping down into one of the armchairs in the room – he was having his back to the room so he couldn't see her – definitely tired from the long day.
"How was you day, Mei-chan?" The Kyuubi jinchuuriki asked, not looking away from his scrolls: he had to finish writing the array that should be a connector between kage bunshin base and the reinforcement seal down before it fled his head. And the thought of the red-haired kunoichi in her home clothes weren't helping him...
"Remind me, why I chose to become the Mizukage?" She replied with a tired sigh. He didn't even need to see her to know that her today's fight with the mountains of paperwork had exhausted her. "Anyway... I did as you have asked and talked to Kagerou-san." Mei continued. "It wasn't easy, but we managed to come to an agreement." Naruto allowed himself a small, almost inaudible sigh of relief: there will be no more fighting between those two girls... Dipping his brush in the inkwell, the blond swordsman started drawing the final block of the symbols for the array he was working on. "But so that you know, you're still mine." The redhead added then.
As he finished adding the last symbol to the array, Naruto put his brush down and turned around in the armchair, so that now he was facing the room. And then he blushed: Mei-chan was sitting... lying sideways in the armchair in the opposite corner of the room, dressed in a loose white T-shirt and her black lace panties...
Damned Akasha! Ever since their time in his mindscape Naruto couldn't look at the woman in an armchair the same way he used to... It was simply impossible after what the vampiress did with him on that particular piece of furniture... And to make the things even worse, the red-haired kunoichi saw the effect she had on him and beckoned him with her finger so very sexily... Damn you, Akasha!
"Naru-chan..." The redhead in front of him whispered with a pout on her face that made her absolutely irresistible. "Come to me..." The blond teen shook his head slightly as he got out of his own armchair: it will be a long night tonight... A very long night with the hot as hell bombshell that Mei-chan was. Not that he was complaining...
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