Chapter 20

Eyes of Fate

Darkness was all that remained.

It was all he had left in the world. Taking revenge had been his obsession, first at his brother, then at his home village, both for destroying his family and taking everything he knew from him. His body and mind was now nothing more than a hollow shell of what it once was, filled with nothing but emptiness and despair, wistfulness of what could have been and guilt at what he had done on the path that brought him to what he now was.

Sasuke Uchiha stood on a small cobblestoned path, looking up at the sky, watching the dark clouds and the continuous pouring rain as it soaked his clothes and splashed his face. A Street light just illuminated his form in the darkness, and a bench was placed under it, barely a few feet away from him. He had thought that standing here in the rain would wash away some of his despair, but every drop which hit his face felt more like a smack than a balm.

He held out a palm, watching with dull onyx eyes as drops of water splashed against his pale skin, sliding through his fingers. He would blink sometimes to find that the rain had changed form to crimson blood. It had happened a lot since he awoke in this strange, foreign land. At first it terrified him, but now it didn't even faze him. It was his fate now, to be reminded of the blood on his hands.

He had lost count of the lives he had taken. Long before he came here he had simply lost count. He knew the number of lives of the men in white armour he took, nearly fifty or so know, including the ten bodies strewn across the stone pavement and surrounding ground, blood mixed with the torrents of fallen rainwater to create a blood-soaked quagmire of death.

That was all he had left now: his ability to kill, to take, to destroy. Having lived for this for so long, he now knew nothing else but to continue down this course until he found someone who could kill him. Sasuke wanted someone who would be considered his equal, someone who would take his head and just end it all.

He could only think of one person who was not just strong enough to do it, but had the right to do it. The Uchiha smirked at this, placing his hand against his face and chuckling away his dementia. Who would have thought that he would crave to be in the presence of that blond dope from his team? Naruto had the right and the will to kill him, and he allowed that chance to slip away.

"Maybe I should have let you take my head, eh Naruto?" he muttered to himself. "You would have gotten your revenge, and I would have finally been at peace."

He would never openly admit it, but deep within his mind there was a small part of him that wished to change the past, knowing that now with these experiences and emotions if the Sound Four had stood before him and offered him that bargain to become Orochimaru's apprentice then he would have spat in their faces and told them to go to hell.

If he had the chance now he would have probably thrown his lot in with the village, with what he now knew about the truth, the real truth, he would have probably burned Madara to a crisp the first meeting they had.

Itachi had been simply a pawn.

The village had been a pawn.

His clan had been a pawn.

Uchiha Madara was the puppet master.

The Jinchūriki had been his sacrifices.

Sasuke had been just another pawn.

Now he stood here, in an unfamiliar land with his strings cut and nothing was left save an empty shell; a shell who knew nothing but how to survive and how to kill. He looked up at the sky one last time before moving to and sitting down on the wet bench, uncaring of his current appearance. He leaned forward, resting his chin atop his clasped hands as he looked to the darkness, and the illumination of lights which represented the settlement beyond.

Pink hair, a flicker of it in the dim light, he stiffened at the sight, but did nothing else. Piercing soft green eyes, shoulder length pink hair, pale skin. She was dressed in a pink kimono decorated with falling Sakura petals. A beautiful and angelic sight and a sight he knew were neither solid nor real. He had wondered sometimes when he was alone, was she a ghost sent here to haunt him, or maybe just a sign of his destabilising mental health?

A slender pale hand, nails vanished a dark pink, caressed his cheek, causing him to flinch. As usual she said nothing, not a word or a peep, mute to his words or moods. He would look up to see the sadness and worry in her soft green eyes, and it would break his heart every single time. In a way this was his ultimate punishment, for her blood was on his hands.

"Why won't you leave me alone?" he muttered, looking down at the ground, another slender hand gently but firmly took hold of his cheeks and forced him to look right into her eyes. She had knelt before him, piercing gaze not leaving his. He managed a broken exhale of breathe. "Of course you won't, you are my punishment after all."

Her mouth opened, and his eyes widened in surprise. Her mouth moved, but words refused to be heard by his ears. Her eyes were slightly wide, her mouth moved. She was trying to tell him something. Finally he heard a voice, her voice, a voice which dominated his nightmares these days, speaking a simple few words, firmly and with total conviction.

"Get up!"

He blinked, and she was gone.

'the rains stopped,' he realised, looking up at the sky and shaking his head, allowing droplets of water to cascade from his wet spiky black hair. Then he heard other sounds, an inhale and exhale of breathe, mechanical in nature, continuous, rhythmic. He looked up at the exact place where his ghost had appeared to see a new individual.

This one looked nothing like his beautiful ghost.

This one looked like the Reaper.

He was dressed from head to toe in jet-black armour that reminded him of the Samurai he had fought against during the war. A black cape was hung around his shoulders, billowing slightly in the weak wind. In his black gloved hand was a cylindrical device. He took a few more steps, and Sasuke watched dully as his black boots slammed into the earth, sending water and blood flying.

He spoke, and his voice did not sound human, rather a mechanical façade, though it couldn't hide its owner's bemused curiosity, "Considering how effectively and completely you have managed to avoid and assassinate my troops, I had expected you to be more difficult to find."

Sasuke looked at this man, eyes peering over his clasped hands as he studied him with all of his senses, and he meant all of his senses. This man was not like the others, he was several leagues above them. When he looked at this man he felt…power…and darkness, as well. Neither of them moved nor spoke, all that could be heard was the mechanical inhale and exhale.

"Hn," Sasuke grunted as he slowly rose to his feet, onyx eyes studying this interesting creation in front of him. He closed his eyes and activated his Sharingan, studying him with the added clarity of his crimson eyes, "Interesting. Perhaps you will be the one to give me what I want."

"You will come with me," the black armoured figure said, unperturbed by his spinning pinwheel eyes.

"I don't think so," Sasuke replied flatly.

"My master would rather you be alive," the armoured man countered. "But he also said that death would be acceptable."

"Did he now?" Sasuke asked, face stony and expressionless, though he narrowed his eyes as he began to study this black devil that was fixing to become his next adversary, "I said no."

"That is not an option."

More presences, more footsteps. Sasuke's eyes darted left and right, seeing other figures illuminated by the low light. They were all dressed in black armour, with articulately bullet-shaped helmets covering their faces, black cloaks billowed in the wind as they walked, and in their hands, around waist level, were cylindrical objects similar in appearance to the one their leader held, but longer.

"How ironic, that the one sent to kill me is a kindred spirit," he sighed, looking up to meet the emotionless black mask of his assailant, "You're just like me, aren't you? We are both broken men, weighed upon by our guilt and the blood on our hands. Even though I can't see your eyes, I can hear it in your voice and see it in the way you carry yourself. The only difference between us is that you look as broken as you are."

There was no physical reaction, but there was a snap-hiss as the cylindrical object in his hand came alive, a blade of crimson light igniting to form some kind of plasma-based sword. It reminded him of the weapon wielded by the Nidaime Hokage. Other snap-hissesassaulted his ears, and his eyes noticed that the dim illumination had taken on a blood-coloured tinge. The black-armoured soldiers held similar weapons, but there were two blades instead of one. They stood at his flanks and at his back, stoic and motionless as statues.

He counted twelve, including their leader.

"Are you all strong enough?" Sasuke asked, his hand gripping onto the hilt of his katana and drawing it slowly, listening to the grind of steel as it was unsheathed from its casing. His blade glimmered in the low light, liquid silver with a tinge of red, mirroring the lighting of the surrounding weapons as he pointed it right at their leader, "Perhaps you will be the ones to take my head and finally put my tortured soul to rest."

Naruto whistled as he looked upon the interior of the vessel. The Will of Firewasn't an impressive starship, at least not when one looked at the warships he had seen pictures of, but by independent standards he still liked the ship. He and Aayla walked through its interior, Cristo following them as the Ranger Colonel explained the inner dynamics, most of which were beyond the Shinobi's ability to understand but well within the technical skill of Aayla.

"You are aware of the YT-series I take it, Knight Secura?" Cristo asked.

"I've flown on one once or twice," she replied.

"Well as you may know the YT-1300 series is a popular starship, mainly because of the many configurations its module based design could take on. This one is based on one of the two most popular designs, that of a passenger configuration, also known as the YT-1300p model." The colonel explained as the small group entered the main hold. "This design sacrifices the areas used for cargo and machinery in favour of multiple passenger modules, utilising the saucer-like design of the freighter to its fullest extent. There were also escape pods built into the sides, each capable of holding up to six people."

"So it's basically a people carrier?" Naruto asked.

"To put it simply, yes," The Colonel nodded. "But this type is more than that. The YT-1300 series is so popular because of its ability to adapt to any given situation. You could make upgrades to its structure with ease, change its interior configuration to whatever work you plan on doing. In short, it is the spaceships equivalent to a jack-of-all-trades."

Naruto grinned, liking the analogy. He was considered a jack-of-all-trades himself during his Shinobi career. He and this ship seemed tailor-made for each other, "I like this ship more and more."

Aayla shook her head; smiling at the blond's excitement in the very idea of gaining a ship he could call his own. She wouldn't be lying if she said she was more than happy to follow him, "We'll we've already said we'd take her."

"The payment also checks out," Cristo grinned.

"Do you know anyone willing to make a few back table modifications?" the Twi'lek asked.

The Colonel gave her a look before breaking out into a conspiratorial smile. "I believe I can put a few names out there, whether you decide to take them or not is entirely up to yourselves, Lady Secura."

"So," a feminine voice echoed through the corridors with a whistle of admiration, "This is what you guys have decided on?"

Celeste walked into the main hold, looking around for a moment before setting her eyes on Aayla, Cristo and Naruto. The blond was grinning her way, mirrored somewhat by Aayla's small smile. It was Naruto who spoke. "So you've decided to join us then?"

Celeste smirked, "Can't allow you two love birds to drive away by yourselves, now, can I? I mean, where's the fun in that?"

Naruto laughed at that, "I'm guessing not."

"You thought up a name for this tub?" the Shadow asked.

"The Will of Fire," Aayla replied.

"I like it," The Shadow grinned, before offering a humble bow, "Allow me to reintroduce myself. My name is Celeste Morne, former Jedi Shadow, now a wandering soul with nowhere else to turn. I can pilot, but I was never the best, I am a first rate engineer though and I think this crate will need a lot of maintenance if he is on it," she finished wryly while jerking her thumb in Naruto's direction.

Aayla smiled at that, before mirroring her lost sister's motions, bowing her head, "Allow me to reintroduce myself, as well. My name is Aayla Secura, Jedi Knight and former General in the Republic Grand Army. I am decent in mechanical work, though I wouldn't be all that confident in my abilities. I am a first rate pilot though, so I think that will be my job description."

Naruto smirked as he sat on the sofa at the other side of the room, a circular configuration of red leather in a semi-circular design; a circular white table was placed in the space in the middle. "My name is Naruto Uzumaki, I'm a decent pilot although according to Aayla I can't land to save my life, and my mechanical sense is pretty amateur at best, so I guess that leaves me in the Captain slot."

Both women snorted at that, causing Naruto to raise his brow in question, "What?"

"You are not the Captain," Celeste snickered.

"More like the hired muscle," Aayla added, smiling in mirth. "You would be more along the lines of a security chief, I think."

Naruto shot Aayla a mock-hurt look, before sending a pleading gaze over to the second female of this hastily established crew. "Celeste, come on, give me some support here."

The Shadow shook her head, giving him an apologetic look before grinning. It was nice to see her smile after what she had been through. "Sorry Naruto, but I agree with Aayla. You're our defence and our muscle."

"Traitors," Naruto muttered as he folded his arms and pouted. "This is sexist."

"Men," Celeste scoffed playfully, "Always using gender as an excuse."

Aayla giggled at that before leaning against the wall, folding her arms and looking at her two friends, well one friend and one... she never thought she would say this about herself... boyfriend and smirking ever so slightly, "I suppose the position of Captain will remain vacant for the time being, though I have an idea which I believe will satisfy everyone to fill that vacancy."

"Go on," Naruto sighed.

"Three months, three months for one of us to prove they are the most worthy of the title of Captain," Aayla explained. "This includes the basics including showing leadership skills, combat ability, decision-making and so on. Whoever shows these abilities in greatest measure within the next three months will be named the Captain of the Will of Fire."

"I like that idea," Naruto grinned.

"And I'm out," Celeste shook her head. "This isn't my ship, and I don't want to be her Captain. It's between you and Naruto."

Naruto looked over at the third member of their crew and sighed. "Alright, we'll make a decision on who will be Captain in a few months. Until then, where should we go to get this baby modified to our liking?"

"That's where I come in," Cristo replied with a grin before reaching into his jumpsuit, pulling out a datapad and switching the device on before setting it on the main table. It exploded to life in a cascade of light, showing a holographic view of a list of names and addresses, "These are the names of every engineering company in or around Nar Shaddaa that can upgrade a starship, both legally and illegally. If you want to do this quietly and with a few illegal modifications then I would narrow it down from fifty to twelve, eight of which are right here on Nar Shaddaa."

"Which one would you consider the most information-sensitive?" Celeste asked.

Cristo's grin retracted into a smile as he tapped a few runes onto his datapad, "Narrowing it down to three, all of which are here on Nar Shaddaa."

Naruto sighed, "Looks like we're staying here for a while."

Aayla smiled over at him, "Doesn't sound so bad. We'll just do what we planned to do on Esseles, except hopefully without saving any children from child-eating sociopaths."

Celeste frowned, "Child eating sociopaths?"

"A long story for another time," Naruto replied absently before looking over at her and smiling, "Just know that it had a semi-happy ending."

The Slave I was a rare kind of starship, one of six prototype Firespray 31-class patrol and pursuit vessels created originally for the Republic Correctional Authority to transport prisoners. His father had stolen one during its initial flight tests, and since then it had been his pride and joy during life. Jango Fett had modified his new vessel, arming it to the teeth and replacing everything on her with more advanced, more reliable technologies including engines, weapons, thrusters, armour, shields, life support systems, targeting systems and tracking systems.

When his father died on Geonosis, the ship, as well as his father's weapons, armour and name had been passed down to his only living relative. His son, Boba, had taken over piloting and maintaining the vessel, using his father's contacts to keep her space-worthy.

He walked around the ship towards the entrance ramp at the rear, running his right hand along the surface of carbon scoring and faded red paint. The young bounty hunter had had his fill of this planet. His toll fee had been paid. His ship was refuelled and rearmed. He was leaving this god-forsaken ball of sludge.

Fett walked up the boarding ramp and then down the corridor towards the cockpit. He sat on the leather pilot's chair which was still a few sizes too large for him. Dropping his helm and gauntlets on the co-pilots chair he sat there for a long moment, leaning against the worn leather, eyes closed as he took a deep breath. He opened his eyes and began skimming through the controls of the main console before him; lighting began to blink to life on the many different runes and screens. He heard the engine of his father's ship sputter to life as a hum which slowly began to rise in volume to a growl.

"Nar Shaddaa control, this is Slave-I, designation identification D127654. Requesting permission to leave airspace, over?" he said as he activated the ships comlink system, listening as it crackled to life before a gruff male voice spoke over the static.

"Nar Shaddaa control to Slave-I: you are clear to proceed. Go through AEC 12, over."

"Roger that, control. Slave-I out," Fett replied before cutting off the connection, placing his hands on the ships joystick he pressed a few more runes, feeling the docking clamps disengage and his atmospheric thrusters come to life, propelling him out of the clawed bays grasp and into space. He spoke softly to himself, reminding him of his exit path, "Going through Atmospheric Exit Canal 12, position of entry: thirty eight degrees north east, ten kilometres, remain at altitude of twenty thousand feet to avoid traffic... this was so much easier with dad here."

"That's war, kid."

A small smile graced his lips as he brought the ship up to the recommended height. "Yeah, that's war alright."

He needed to get away from this system. He needed to get away from bounty hunting. He needed to get away from his past. He just needed to get away from anything he knew. He needed time to sort through his feelings, get over his loss and mull over the words that blond-haired soldier had shouted at him during their struggle. Life was a gift, he had said, not something to be wasted.

"I need time," he muttered as he looked at his instruments, seeing that he was closing in on his exit vector. He shook his head and scoffed lightly, "I need to sort this out. I can't do this job the way I am now."

"You lost your father? It was war, boy! And your father chose to participate in it! He died because his opponent was a split second faster than he was! It's tragic, but that's war! And in war, it's kill or be killed!"

"Shut up," Fett ground out.

His opponents own voice lowered, but took on an ominous tone, "It wasn't personal, kid. They were just two warriors on opposite sides; that's it!"

"Shut up."

"Do you know how many Jedi died on that field, that blood-soaked field?" he asked, voice low yet carrying such anger. "Two hundred Jedi went in, less than twenty came out."

"Shut up!"

"You think you're avenging your father? Your father's killer was likely just avenging the comrades that he lost at your father's hands! That's war!"

"Shut UP!"

"And once you've had your fill of vengeance, how long is it going to be before someone comes seeking vengeance from you, huh? WHEN DOES IT END?"

"SHUT UP!"

Fett sighed, covering his face with his left hand as he shook his head. Once he had managed to bring his ship into the exit vector, he set it on autopilot, closed his eyes and leaned back into his chair. He used the quiet to think; think for the first time since he left that dark alley. He was right; Naruto Uzumaki had been right. Two hundred Jedi went into that arena, and only twenty came out. The rest all died, every last one of them defending one of their own. It was noble, it was heroic, and it was supremely stupid.

Boba had forgotten all about the details of that day. All he remembered was crouching in the middle of an arena full of the wreaks of sparking battle droids and corpses, picking up the severed head of his father, still wrapped around his Mandalorian helmet and knowing that his whole world had come apart.

The sky made way to the starry darkness of space.

He knelt down beside Boba Fett as he continued with a firm yet understanding posture, "Don't ruin your life over revenge, son. I doubt your father would want that, and the Jedi who killed him is probably dead already."

"He is," Fett managed.

"Then someone has taken your revenge for you," Naruto replied as he stood up. "Don't aim your revenge at those who had no part in it."

"But your friend was there," he rasped.

"I know, she told me." Naruto replied with a smile, a sad smile. "But she was nothing more than a soldier following orders. And sometimes she wakes up at night crying out the names of her friends who died in that coliseum. You're looking for revenge in the wrong place and honestly, she's suffered enough."

"How many friends did she lose, I wonder?" he muttered before snorting softly at the irony of the situation, "Here we are: two victims of the same circuit, and I nearly sent her to her death for it."

"You're young. You have a life ahead of you. You might meet a girl, fall in love, and have a family. I'll give you this piece of advice: cherish those you love. Do not abandon them or forsake them, because in doing so you waste your life and you may ruin the lives of those you leave behind."

His eyes had been opened by that enigma of a man, and though confusion was still rampant in his mind, through it all one thing was certain.

Boba Fett had a lot of serious rethinking to do.

They were good.

Sasuke had to admit this barely a few seconds into their confrontation. The eleven warriors moved with superhuman speed and precision born from years of practise and experience. The first one to engage him was the third on his left, who jumped high into the air, curling his body into a ball to somersault and landing barely a meter away from him. The Uchiha raised his sword, unconsciously coating it in a layer of lightning chakra, and parried the crimson blade of plasma.

As quickly as the shadowy figure locked blades with him, he batted his katana away and spun, swinging the opposite blade of his double-sided sword in a diagonal arc. Sasuke parried that move too, circling his wrist to deflect the simmering crimson and launched into a counterattack with a probing forward thrust. The warriors head tilted to the side, just missing a deadly hit before jumping back just out of reach.

The faceless warrior rushed him again; double-bladed weapon spinning in his hands as he reengaged with a flurry of diagonal, horizontal and vertical swings, arcs and thrusts from his weapon, spinning on his heel as he fought. Sasuke had to admit that he wasn't fighting a lightweight. His swings were near-perfect and his movements were precise. This opponent would be considered a master of Kenjutsu back home.

But what else could he do?

Sasuke sidestepped him, seeing his opponent recover quickly and continue the attack, spinning his weapon like a baton as he danced. The blades were barely noticeable as deadly blurred light as they moved with precision. The Uchiha dodged some, parried others and deflected a few more before jumping back a few steps, free hand already coming up to form the one handed seal of the dragon.

His cheeks puffed as he gathered and manipulated his chakra, feeling the familiar heat build in his throat, ready for ignition upon exhale. He made a ring with his free hand then, finger and thumb forming a ring around his mouth before he blew out. A great fireball erupted forth, encompassing his opponent in its burning flames.

"Katon: Kokyaku no Jutsu,"Sasuke muttered as he blew out a puff of smoke. The flames continued to burn, and ashen smoke rose steadily into the sky. There was no movement from within the flames, nor was there any sound. He looked around, seeing the other ten black-armoured guards remaining where they were, double-bladed weapons ignited and held just in front of their waists. The devil with the mechanical voice didn't move either. He simply stood where he was, arms folded as he watched the confrontation.

"Anyone else?" Sasuke asked in a casual manner.

"You haven't killed him yet," the leader replied simply, stretching out with his right hand to point at the billowing flames behind him.

Sasuke frowned as he turned, and his frown deepened as he watched the black-armoured soldier walk through the flames, double-bladed weapon blazing. His black cloak alight with dancing flames. The warrior didn't even look back at his burning cloak. He simply reached up with his free hand, and pulled the cord, allowing the cloak to fall from his shoulders and fall in a smouldering heap on the grassy ground.

"I see," Sasuke murmured as he turned around, motioning towards the white-armoured corpses strewn across the field, "that armour is better than the ones on these poor souls."

The shadowy figure rushed forward with speed, swinging one of his weapons blades, which Sasuke easily parried. The Uchiha prepared himself to meet the following blow, but was unprepared, barely noticing it until he realised the blade did not move. He looked up in time to see a single finger aimed for his forehead. A powerful force struck him, and he felt pain flare before he was sent flying back, colliding with what could only be the park bench, feeling it shatter under his velocity before he finally came to a stop, slamming against the side of a thick wooden tree.

Sasuke coughed, feeling the pain flare across his forehead. He felt the warmth of his own blood as it flowed from his wound and down the bridge of his nose, tasting the coppery liquid as a little got into his mouth. He growled, showing his first emotion since the battle began before reaching up to wipe his forehead clean of the blood that threatened to blind him.

It seemed like a wind element technique; he had faced a few wind element users such as Danzo, the Kazekage's sister Temari, and Naruto. Was it a wind technique though? Sasuke hadn't sensed any dispersal of chakra at all, nor had he even felt chakra from these beings to begin with. So what was that move, and how was it done?

His hand flew up, flashing through the half-seals for the ram, horse, snake, dragon, rat, ox and tiger before feeling the same familiar fire-natured chakra converging in his throat, but nearly five times as powerful and as dense as the Grand Fireball he had used previously.

'The armour these guys are wearing is a lot stronger than the ones before,' mused Sasuke, intrigued with the opponents he was facing, 'so let's see if I can find its limits.'

He inhaled this time, adding more air to the chakra already in his lungs and throat as he shouted the name of his next attack in his head, "Katon: Karyū Endan!"

A stream of concentrated flame spewed forth unperturbed from his mouth, incinerating everything in and around its path as it closed the gap between him and his opponent. He watched as the shadowy figure extinguished the blades of his weapon before reaching towards the fire with both hands. Sasuke felt something converge on his palms, but he had never felt anything like it before. He continued to watch, eyes widening ever so slightly as the condensed stream of flame parted before the warrior, swirling around him but not touching him.

A bubble, he had created a protective bubble around himself. Such a technique, while not unheard off, was extremely difficult to cultivate and use. His mind still favoured that his enemy was using wind element chakra, but now he was having doubts. If it was wind it would have fed the flames, made them billow and expand, but they didn't. It simply seemed that he had created a protective barrier between him and the superheated fire, made up of…force; was he using gravity to repel the flames the same way Madara did with his Shinra Tensei? Or was it something else?

Sasuke continued to spew the flames forth, activating his Sharingan eyes to further study what he was seeing. The crimson bled into his onyx sclera, three tomoe-shaped black marks overlapping them, spinning wildly in perfect clockwise circles around his pupils. It wasn't wind element chakra. It wasn't chakra at all. There were no active chakra coils in his body; rather it seemed that he was manipulating the very environment around him, just like Naruto did when he activated his Sage mode.

"Interesting," he mumbled, and with a release of breath ended his attack.

"Will you surrender?" the leader asked again, a few moments after the last of his flames died away leaving little more than sporadic fire and scorched earth.

"No," he replied simply. "I've been used for someone else's ambition before, and I won't be used as anyone's pawn or tool ever again."

"So be it," the man replied after a moment of pause.

Three more black-armoured soldiers jumped from their perches. They landed behind their comrade before moving up to flank him, double-bladed weapons ignited and ready for battle. Sasuke watched them, his Sharingan active as he studied every little ounce of movement from them, reading their body language and preparing himself for the battle to come. It would be an interesting encounter. The young Uchiha stared at them with stone-cold, dead eyes, looking upon his four opponents as he raised his sword, pointing the tip right at them, bluish-white lightning crackling and snapping as it enveloped his blade.

"Kusanagi no Tsurugi: Chidorigatana," he muttered the name before breaking out into a run, bringing his blade up to his shoulder as both hands held the hilt.

His opponents were already moving straight at him, two breaking off to the right and one to the left as the original continued to meet him head-on. Sasuke sidestepped his opponent's running stab, seeing him moving in slow motion before he used the black-armoured warriors own momentum against him, his back connecting with his as he rolled over him and landed on his feet, spinning around as he swung his sword in a decapitating swipe.

The blade was intercepted, but not by his opponent. The man's back was still turned. The interception came from one of the two who had banked to the right. The first spun around, joining the second as they assaulted him with a flurry of blurring crimson blades. The Uchiha was forced to backpedal, hands manoeuvring his blade to where it was needed to parry and block.

It wasn't just their individual technique and skill. They appeared to quite a cohesive unit as well, running like a well-oiled machine. At least they seemed to know how to watch each other's backs.

Sasuke felt the shadow on his back, eyes widening and turning in time to see another one of these shadowy soldiers appear in a blur, trying to kill him by using a blind spot. He ducked, the crimson blade passing overhead, singeing his hair but doing little else. He spun around, seeing his opponent fatally overextended and stabbed out with his katana.

The blade, immersed in lightning chakra, punched clear through his armour, piercing his right torso and sinking into his body all the way to the hilt. The tip of the weapon exited his back in an explosion of blood and released lightning. His opponent emitted a full-bodied spasm, releasing his double-bladed weapon from his twitching fingers before falling onto his side. Sasuke barely had time to pull the blade from the body before he was once again forced to backpedal, blocking and deflecting the strikes of his first two attackers.

One down, eleven to go.

He was getting tired of this game.

"Mangekyō Sharingan!"

He felt his eyes morph into his clan's ultimate Doujutsu form, knowing that it was vastly different to his before his brother's eyes were transplanted into him, but still unsure of its shape. He knew that it was a melding of his own, a six pointed star, and Itachi's, a three bladed shuriken. At this point he didn't care. All he wanted to do was remove these pests.

"Amaterasu,"

Black flames exploded from around him, whirling and writhing in unnatural shapes and forms before exploding towards his three opponents. One wasn't nearly fast enough, and was just able to emit a cut off scream before the black flames encompassed him, eating away his clothing and armour before burning him to a charred black corpse. The other two raised their hands, once again calling forth two protective spheres of unknown energy around them.

Sasuke continued to watch, eyes narrowing when he saw that even the black flames of Amaterasu were unable to penetrate these defensive shields, yet he kept the pressure up, increasing the strength of his technique until he saw a reaction. The second opponent began to falter, his hands, arms, and his entire body twitching and shivering as he continued to resist. Then the sphere imploded around him, and he met the same fate as the one before, screaming in agony as the hellish black flames encompassed him.

The last one continued to resist, then he brought his hands together, not in a seal but to any other observer it would seem that he was praying. Once again Sasuke felt that weird energy encompass him, and then his opponent spread his hands. The energy released was impressive and it definitely was not a manipulation of wind. The black flames were suddenly pushed back as the sphere of protective energy expanded around him, then exploded in a mass of energy which was powerful enough to disperse the uncontrollable flames of Amaterasu.

The energy struck him, and he was once again thrown across the field with bone jarring force, slamming into a tree and feeling the bark crack as surely as he felt his ribs crack. Sasuke coughed up blood this time, but he did not fall nor go down to a knee, instead he used the trunk of the tree for support as he leaned against it, coughing and hacking before taking in huge gulps of air.

Then he laughed, a laugh with no joy in it, but instead carried with it an emptiness which was bone-chilling to all present, "Maybe you are worthy of taking my head, but there's just one more test you need to pass before I allow it."

His chakra became visible, first as a whitish-blue before bleeding and morphing into a dark, antagonistic violet. It expanded, and then took a shape, almost as if a spirit was attempting to break free from his body. A humanoid shape towered over him, seemingly dressed in some variety of ancient armour, plate-like pauldrons covering the shoulders. On the spectre's head was a crown of long horns. A bow seemed to materialise in its left hand, and as it raised its head it brought its right hand back as if it was knocking and preparing to fire an arrow.

"Susanoo," Sasuke declared, tilting his head to the side, ignoring the blood pouring from his mouth. He was tired, running for weeks and scavenging what little scrapes of food he could, barely able to sleep thanks to the nightmares and ghosts from his past. He doubted that he would be capable of more than a few shots, maybe they would be enough, and maybe they won't. This wasn't even the ultimate form of his clan's ultimate technique anyway.

Susanoo released the cord, allowing the arrow to fly. The black-armoured soldier already had his hands up, preparing for such a strike, but it was far too much for him. The arrow of purple chakra punctured through his protective shield as if it wasn't even there, piercing through his torso, disintegrating his heart and throwing him back at least twenty meters before landing hard, skidding to a halt and laying there, unmoving.

"I suppose you weren't the one after all," The young Uchiha looked on with bloodshot eyes, breathing hard and using all the last reserves of strength to stop himself from collapsing where he stood. He turned to the fearsome man that he likened to a devil, willing Susanoo to form another arrow. "What about you?"

He released the arrow.

It soared from his Susanoo's bow directly towards the torso of the leader of this impressive force. Sasuke watched, intrigued, when the devil-man stepped to the left and with an almost lazy motion raised his arm, grabbing the arrow before it passed him by. He looked at it, and with a simple motion snapped the arrow in two. An explosion of black chakra broke free, but the armoured figure barely seemed to notice. The release of energy barely enough to billow his black cloak before it disintegrated in his grasp. Watching this…embodiment of terror…catch and break one of Susanoo's arrows with such ease, caused Sasuke's intrigue to evolve into surprised shock. Even Madara wouldn't have been able to perform such a feat.

Just who WAS this guy?

WHAT was this guy?

Sasuke, with no more strength, allowed Susanoo to once again lay dormant, disintegrating into the winds of this depressing place. Not very many people were able to deflect the arrows of Susanoo; nobody had ever caught one with a bare hand and broken it. This Susanoo may not have been the strongest one he'd ever created, but anyone capable of blocking even such a relatively weak-powered arrow from Susanoo's bow was a worthy opponent indeed. Sasuke managed to croak out a laugh before his strength finally failed him and he fell onto his side, unmoving.

Darth Vader remained where he was for a moment, still feeling the after effects of the arrow. The weapon had burned through his armour, and had nearly pierced the final layer between that and his mechanical hands main components. He looked at his charred hand. "Hmm, more concentration next time."

He walked over to the fallen figure, kneeled before him and reaching out with his other good hand checked his pulse, "Still alive, but his pulse is weak."

He turned to two of the remaining Shadow Guardsmen and ordered, "Take him to my shuttle, make sure he is sedated and given proper medical attention."

Vader moved past the two as they shuffled toward the young man that had but a few moments ago been their adversary and picked him up gently, intent on carrying out their master's orders. Vader passed by the charred and blackened remains of the field, ignoring the three dead Guards at his feet, two of which were too badly charred to inspect and the other probably not worth his time. He came before a tree, looking up to see the body crushed against it, arrow disintegrating but body still imbedded. He reached up with a single hand, pressing the release on the body's helm, and pulled the helmet away, tossing it to the side.

He looked at the face of the lead Shadow Guardsmen, and behind his mask his eyes narrowed. His hands clenched into fists, leather and metal in his gauntlets creaking under the sudden strain, "So this is your new experiment, my master?"

Author's Alert 1: Just finished a six day long week and all I want to do is stay in bed with a bottle of beer and my tv switched onto the International football. Which I am doing right now Being in a forty hour a week job is very tiring, but I'm actually enjoying the training at FirstSource, stuck in a fifteen strong class of jokers, madmen and nutcases there is rarely a boring moment, lol. My training officially ends next Wednesday and I'll be placed in a working environment, let's see how long my optimism lasts.

Author's Alert 2: The poll for the Lemon question will remain up until Wednesday next week, but let's be honest we all know what the result is going to be. So far a total of 224 people have voted, 188 for, 21 not sure and 15 against.