**Author's Note** And now a break from the Mind Screw and my fairly average writing. This bonus content pack will explain a few things- a few- and provide the "Director's Cut" of a certain chapter. So, how I will do the explaining is by walking through a list of all the references. Yes, an actual list(and not a short one), because they provide themes I wove into the story. Won't count the self referencing.
*deep breath* Beginning with Written in the Stars:
1. The ending was a Star Wars reference, in there for no other reason than a crude punchline. :)
2. "...Is the world suddenly too large for one so small?" Deffo too good for me to think up on my own. This one came from the Bleach fanfic Understanding.
Your Decision: I wanted these first few chapters to have iconic themes and lines in them, to help get things going. So, I thought of the most melodramatic Naruto moment I could come up with... which is this scene. If you didn't skip ahead from a certain point to this, you'd have noticed the theme was the one that resurfaced the most, and was one of the most important.
1: Chapter title itself is one here, being a song by Alice in Chains.
2. "No one plans to take this path!" Refence to the lyrics of Your Decision.
3. "And how many roads must a man walk before he dies?" Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy movie reference.
4. I had Rorschach in mind when I wrote the end of the chapter. Different yes, but I think it'll still count.
5. "I am not afraid to walk this world alone..." This was a reference to the MCR song, Famous Last Words.
Perfect Cherry Blossom: I wanted to tease several ships here, and this chapter was the first time I focused on that. Heheh, I'll probably never write an explicit love scene, and this chapter will be about as close as I ever get. Um I meant- crap. Ahem...
1. OCRemix #1569, 'Icy Peaks'. Song in question is from a Touhou game titled... you guessed it... Perfect Cherry Blossom. Fell in love with the remix, just beautiful.
2. In the poem, the above game gets another nod.
3. "A thousand points of light" Sorry, George Bush Sr. But I had to.
4. "Their lips meeting like a splash of warm water" Lifted from the Read or Die english manga translation, where the author girl(Hey, it's been a while, okay?) was searching for a way to describe a kiss.
Lucky Number Seven: Some unintentional irony here, as chapter four has "lucky" in the title; also a nod to the anime where Konohamaru dreams of becoming Hokage after Naruto.
1. "Live and die in the flash of a blade" Who doesn't love some classic Iron Maiden? A reference to their great song "Flash of the Blade".
The Sound of Music: This scene could be two completely different things, depending on how you read it. I intentionally wrote it one way with the other in mind; see Perfect Cherry Blossom notes. (_;) The Michael Savage quote is random, yes, but I thought it seemed right to stick it in the author's note.
1. You've been living under a rock if you don't get the chapter title reference.
2. First paragraph sees another nod to the title.
3. "Those thousand points of light" Sorry, President Bush. It just comes too easily. Uh, I mean- crap... *sigh*
4. "An age that seemed to be an eternity- but in truth was a comparatively short moment-" A line from my fanfic World Gone Mad, shamelessly reworked and spliced into this chapter.
5. "...trees by the brook," Stairway to Heaven reference number one...
6. ...aaaaaaannd the entire last line of the chapter is the second.
7. "...those celestial lights a dear memory..." Reference to the forthcoming Wheel of Time book, Memory of Light.
Snakebite Letter: A key chapter if you're trying to puzzle things out, the first of number of similar ones. Also one of my personal favorite ones.
1. The Snakebite Letters, written by one Peter Kreeft. Simply done for the title, but you might check it out for a change of pace.
2. "The blood called to them, precious and sweet." Derived from this Blind Guardian lyric: "It's calling me 'Saidin', so precious and sweet", from their song Wheel of Time.
3. Anko's dialogue to Naruto is almost all from one song, by Project 86: Hollow Again. The first nod: "So, this is how it is now... but it's too late to stop it..."
4. "All we fought so hard to keep, it's all... we couldn't save..." The second.
5. "But... how can we open the eyes of the dead... when we're so empty ourselves..." The third...
6. "I've watched you Naruto. I understand, and I know how hard you've tried." Might as well admit I was listening to Manny Pacquiao's cover of "Sometimes When We Touch".
7. "So I guess this is the way the world ends..." ...and the fourth.
A Toast to My Former Self: By now, I knew where I would take the Your Decision theme. I rather shamelessly copy-pasted the first half of this chapter.
1. Beginning to notice a theme? Chapter title is a double Project 86 reference, once for the title itself, and twice for being the same track/chapter number.
Chimes: Another chapter in the same vein as Snakebite Letter, this was another ship tease. Now, I wasn't quite sure what to do about the training, but... Naruto keeps his promises. (_;)
1. Chapter title is the same as another Project 86 song.
2. "You don't have to get up for me." I had one of Ryan Seacrest's many gaffes in mind here. Try looking for it on Youtube.
3. "...the pain there calling to turn and leave to come back to Konoha..." A reference to the- SURPRISE!- Project 86 song "Sad Machines". The song comes VERY highly recommended.
4. "The wind chimes sounded, soft and subtle..." Pretty sure you know who my favorite band is now. A reference to their song, "Chimes".
The Wind and the Wheat: A chapter of similar importance to the previous one. About a filler village, but it featured another promise from Naruto so I say it's fair game.
1. Phil Keaggy fan here. Chapter title is a reference to one of his instrumentals, "The Wind and the Wheat." Lovely piece that I think captures the view of the Land of Greens from the cliff top in music. Listen to it!
2. "...Like a warm scene from a memory." Dream Theater lyric and album reference here, it of course being Metropolis(parts one and two).
3. "The blood of innocents crying out from the soil..." A Genesis 4:10 reference here.
Memory of Light: One of another series of chapters, also important in supporting the ending of the story.
1. I've never read the books, but the chapter title is a Wheel of Time reference, Memory of Light being the title of what's supposed to be the last book in the series.
2. "Like arrows in a bloody war the tears began to fly," Shameless self-promotion here, this is taken from my song "Thunder in the Desert Lands pt. 1"
3. "...like a demon hungry for Heaven." Dio is one of my vocal heroes, and this was a reference to his song "Hungry For Heaven".
4. "The terror of the moment ripped a thousand holes in the sky, the blood of the universe leaking through..." George Bush Senior would cry if he knew I used his phrase like this. I merely smile and *teehee*.
5. "Naruto's soul felt weaker, and as he looked up into the eyes of a demon it seemed like those eyes knew- and had been waiting." A reference to Dream Theater's epic "In the Presence of Enemies(pt. 2)" from the section titled "Salvation".
6. "It started break dancing: powerful spins, surreal threading and contortions..." An off-handed reference to my fanfiction The Land of Funk, where Madara stars in a break dancing battle.
7. "Naruto, help me train..." A reference to Shion's wish in Chimes.
8. "For what seemed like an eternity, but was really a few relatively short moments..." Get used to seeing it.
9. "Calling him to turn and leave... pointing and showing the way." Another Sad Machines reference, leading into...
10. "...To come back to himself." A reference to the Project 86 song Subject To Change.
11. "...drifting up on the breeze, and straining to hear its echoes at long last the tune came to Hinata." The third Stairway reference.
12. "...memory of the lights..." Another WoT book reference.
13. "...from the vulgar display of power..." Weren't expecting a Pantera album reference, were you?
Open Hand: *phew* But I'm only half-way done. Again, I copy-paste the first half of the chapter from Your Decision.
1. The second double Project 86 reference, the chapter title being the same as a song and having the same chapter/track number.
2. "What if I told you there's a better way? Would you come home if you knew the way?" If you're taking a shot for each of the Project 86 references, I'd stop now or switch to water. This one's a nod to their song "Twenty Three".
3. "...like pain inside a lonely heart, the lightning cracked the sky." Another Thunder in the Desert Lands lyric.
Twenty Three: Another of my favorite chapters, this one is perhaps the most important of the scenes similar in style to it.
1. Thematically, and I swear this was unintentional at the time I wrote it, it references the Octavarium and Dream Theater's "The Answer Lies Within" lyrics. Especially sweet for me considering it's place in its series and a later reference.
2. The third Project 86 double reference, in the same manner as the others.
3. "...long ago distilled the merits of the path less chosen into pure poetry..." Robert Frost ref. FTW.
4. "Such a pen those same odes were written with appeared the cruelest blade to Naruto at times, twisting the power of merciless words into endearment." Zing! Although the vocals are a bit too harsh for me, I've always liked the lyrics of "All We Had" by Daylight Dies, which this is a reference to.
5. "With clenched fist and clenched teeth Naruto spoke the words burning in his heart..." Another All We Had nod.
6. "For what seemed like countless ages- but was in truth only a reasonably short spin on the axis-" Another twist on the phrase from World Gone Mad.
7. "Naruto trod along, a pain in his heart pointing and showing the way." Yet another reference to Project 86's "Sad Machines".
8. "Praying the words would reach him at last..." An oblique reference to Stairway to Heaven, again.
9. "Being almost made him sigh that he existed, but he couldn't escape this." It's not my favorite song by them, but Sad Machines is an absolute classic.
10. "...roared out the only words he possibly could: 'IT'S MY LIFE!'" Bon Jovi reference here, as well as...
11. There rest of the paragraph is a ripped from the Harry Potter fanfic Phoenix's Life and adapted to this.
12. "...the passion, glory and splendor..." I saw this in an ad on WWE's website a couple years ago after WM XXV, I think it was for commemorative t-shirts.
13. "...A thousand points of light danced in Naruto's vision as he fell backwards..." :D Here's some tissues, H.W.
14. "...which fork in life's true path will..." A reference to my favorite weapon name of All Time: Fork in Life's True Path, from the online game Adventure Quest, a very shiny and cool looking trident.
Familiar Taste of Poison: What I did here was simply weave Anko into the background of Perfect Cherry Blossom. After the madness of Twenty Three, I think it has a good place in the story.
1. The chapter title is a reference to the Halestorm song of the same name, especially fitting because of the content of both.
2. "A full moon and a starry sky, a thousand points of light..." lol
3. "...they had found each other again, in spite of- or perhaps because of everything..." A reference to my greatest fanfic, The Secret Pokedex. xD lol Read it to see where it pops up there.
4. "...that because you're Hokage now I'll just lie back and think of Konoha..." A wink to the British phrase and urban legend(?), "...Lie back and think of England."
Deep Mountains: Essentially it's The Sound of Music, but a slightly different tune: the cherry blossom motif is used to indicate Sakura. Bush Senior gets a break here.
1. Again, the title is a Touhou game reference, this one being the stage in Perfect Cherry Blossom whose theme is remixed way back up top in "Icy Peaks".
2. "...listened to the sparrow, the tune coming to them at last." Another Stairway lyric reference.
On the Backs of Angels: I apologize for the Down Syndrome reference; I originally planned to make it looked like my account had gotten hacked with this chapter but I left out the obvious trolling signs. Also contains some important self-references and foreshadowing. In my notes, this one was marked, "Point two, craziest." *nods* Yeah... yet even so it contains my favorite reference in the fic:
1. "Join me and we could rule the world together as distant relatives1" A reference to that infamous scene from Star Wars. You know the one.
2. The opening clause and overall style of this one were a reference one of my best fics, "The War of Wars".
3. hehehee... "...tossed himself off this cliff nex'to a sign that sed 'Dont mess with Konoa'" Here, I'm talking about an omnipresent slogan in my home state: "Don't Mess With Texas"
4. "So Narooto jumped over The Edge who was playing With or Without You..." Quite possibly the worst pun of my entire life. But I LOVE IT. U2's pretty nice, though I don't listen to them often.
5. "Cause... my broski..." Zack Ryder mark here. Woo woo woo, you know it!
6. The full quote from above: "Iam willing to let that [crap] slide cuz yuri my broski..." Not a fan of the yuri genre at all, (well, in anime and- never mind), but the extra I just kinda happened. I left it in.
7. "...Foshizzleth... Fie, tHIS pimpingeth hath not been..." Another wave and hello to The War of Wars.
8. "to chewse between the pleasure and the Pain, I now it's wrong and I know its rite..." In my opinion, Brent Smith of Shinedown did Not Strong Enough the best, which this was a reference to.
9. "But Naruto was hanging over The Edge..." Too good to use just once. Teehee!
10. "We are bowth desinded from the Sage of Six Paths!" Another refrence to that scene from Star Wars, along with...
11. "Seach you feelings you now this to be troo..."
12. "...Then naruto's hand was slipping it was like sum knightmare that kept getting wurse..." Double reference here; this is a reworking of the second phrase from World Gone Mad I sneak into everything, as well as a reference to the Code Geass piloted robots which are known as knightmares.
13. "...but then The Edge swung his guitar..." Don't sue me, U2.
14. "...Konan riding towards him... dressed like a barbarian." Think about it... Konan, barbarian clothes... a Conan the Barbarian reference! If you haven't guessed it by now, yes I AM that lame.
15. "...waiting to killify him..." Killify is a word I first used in World Gone Mad.
16. "...it sorta felt like a while but it reely wassent long..." No, World Gone Mad's not my favorite of my fanfics, but I love slipping in those two phrases.
17. And lastly, the chapter title is a reference to the Dream Theater song of the same name.
Oblivion: The last reworking of the Your Decision theme, this one rewards all your patience as it ends on an up note. I tweaked a few words in the first half after I copy-pasted it.
1. Thematically, it cross references with Twenty Three's Octavarium reference, due to this lyric from, of course, Project 86's song Oblivion: "You think The Answer Lies Within, when your heart betrays you?" I like this one and how it further enforces the complex emotions at play- if you're following all this, of course.
2. "I'll be back."
Someone Like Him: A switcherroonie puts Naruto in Konohamaru's shoes here, though it of course still ends the same way.
1. The title is a reference to a section of the Dream Theater magnum opus, Octavarium. Again, I like this in how it teases there's a never-ending cycle at work.
2. "For what seemed like an eternity, but was really..." Sorry, couldn't help it. :/
3. "...all the miles he'd walked, an uncertain destiny upon his back..." A slight tweak on a lyric from a School Rumble fic of mine: "An uncertain destiny, carried for miles upon my back..."
4. "...In the flash of a blade..." Copy-pasted and tweaked, so the Maiden reference is still there.
On the Edge: The final fulfillment of the Your Decision theme, this was satisfying to write.
1. The chapter title is another reference to the Octavarium album, taken from a Panic Attack lyric: "All wound up/ On the Edge..." Also kinda hints at where Naruto is in the Octavarium.
2. "It was a dark blustery day in the first few days of Spring..." A reference to the beginning of one of my favorite book series, the Mortal Engines Quartet, almost word for word like the first sentence.
3. "...he'd been walking out of the shadows..." A reference to the Manowar song "I Believe", specifically the lyrics: "From the darkness, I walk into the light ... from the shadows, I will appear"
4. A double reference with "...after having wrestled with them..." First is to the Bret Hart documentary "Hitman Hart: Wrestling With Shadows", second to my School Rumble fic Soldiers of Innocence, to this lyric in it: "Wrestling with the shadows, for my place in the light..."
5. You knew it was coming: "...for what seemed like an eternity but was really only a handful of seasons."
6. "Not with defeat, but determination." A reference to the great As I Lay Dying song, "The Blinding of False Light".
Through Each Darkest Fire: I have no idea who the heck Gangnam is, and don't want to guess at their gender. Heh this chapter was fun to write, one because of Google Translate, and two because of Google Translate. It came out of the wringer "better" than I could have hoped for. In my notes, it was marked "point two craziester". :)
1. The title is another reference to an Octavarium lyric, again hinting at what Naruto is struggling with inside his Octavarium- if he is inside one.
2. Seven Nation Army is title dropped, seemingly in an odd spot...
3. Not intentional, but Reign of Terror too- I'm most familiar with the Rhapsody of Fire song, but there's also a Sabbaton song with the same name.
4. "...have the faith and desire ... have the loyalty and trust..." Another reference to the same Interval in Octavarium as the one the chapter title refers to.
5. "...the elect, the chosen one..." Shamelessly ripped word for word from my song of the moment, Heroes of the Waterfalls' Kingdom, by Rhapsody of Fire. The line in question comes right before the part. You'll know the one if you listen.
Dark Side of the Moon: Whew, one big chapter. My favorite part of the whole story, this is where everything comes together. The World Gone Mad and Bush Sr. references, it's all in here. Now, the Hinata and Naruto kiss wasn't planned. lol just like real - ahem. It just kinda grew from the spot in the chapter where Hinata gives back Naruto's headband. The resulting ripples that sent through the fic's waters of romance were tough to deal with, because as I'm sure you guessed I have no two-sided experience in that area. *crack knuckles* Alright, here we go:
1. Of course, the chapter title itself. No prize for guessing which album it references.
2. Frosted Sugar Flakes: a fictitious brand of cereal from World Gone Mad. The breakfast of champs!
3. Survivor-O's: another fictitious cereal, this is a reference to the beginning of Disturbed's "10000 Fists": 'Survivo~r, [oh]' Geddit?
4. "...how the world is; learning to live half a lie..." A reference to the lyrics of Kristina Perri's(sp?) song Jar of Hearts, continuing into...
5. "...twisting the power of merciless words to endear..." Another reference to All We Had's lyrics.
6. "The truth's the truth, it's all you can do just to live with it..." A reference to Dream Theater's Twelve Step Suite, and thereby also an oblique Octavarium reference. The song this is paraphrased from is part four, Repentance.
7. "Bl- Naruto, are you brain damaged...?" Kinda a twisty reference, as the PF album is named Dark Side of the Moon, which is also a lyric in the song... Brain Damage.
8. "M-M-M-Ma... dara?" It went from simple stuttering to that awkwardness when I realized I could hammer a Poker Face reference out of it. But... *sigh*
9. "...more serious names were proposed(Voyager...)" The ship name is the first reference to Star Trek in that sentence...
10. "Enterprise..." With this being the second.
11. "...Discovery)..." To finish out the references to other works in the sentence, here's nod to the real life space ship.
12. "Dark forebodings burst through Hinata's mind..." The first Brain Damage reference in the sentence...
13. "...the dam broke open after what Hinata felt was years too late." The second, with a slightly tragic twist. Hinata+Naruto kiss!
14. "This! Is! Konoha!" Konoha, not Sparta.
15. "...and giving way to a thousand points of light." I think this is the last of the George Bush Sr. references.
16. "It doesn't matter what you think!" Naruto's lucky he didn't get a taste of what The Madara was cooking.
17. The last external reference in the fic goes, of course, to Project 86 and their song Solace. "A funny thing about justice is that it always comes when you least expect it."
18. "After what seemed like an eternity, but was really less than a minute..."
And Now, I present the special edition of a previous chapter. What you're about to see is the original English, before I put it through Japanese, Welsh, Spanish and back to English with Google Translate, and before Kishimoto screwed with us big-time.
Though she was the last person Naruto expected to see in the stylish lounge, Naruto wasn't surprised by Konan suddenly appearing, lazily leaning back on the sofa across from him. He was, however, surprised by her dress: form-fitting blue pants and white high-heeled sandals; a daring robe with no back or arms and little on the side, parting above her belly button and revealing four piercings around it. She spoke, her calm and even voice doing absolutely nothing to calm Naruto.
"So you think you're ready, huh?" Konan took a sip from a martini glass that had inexplicably appeared in her hand. "The truth is, you're not. You couldn't even begin to dream of what Madara is capable of now."
"He's like another Sage of Six Paths, isn't he?"
"Worse... because the Sage didn't have world enslavement in mind." Konan looked away for a minute before continuing. "Naruto, I'll be honest with you here... you won't be able to defeat him in a direct confrontation. As much as I would like it to, it won't happen. I myself died trying to stop him."
"Died...? So, we're...?"
Konan leaned forwards. "No, don't worry; this is only possible because Madara's mental barriers are subtly weakening, and his subconscious mind is beginning to leak into his mass genjutsu." A gentle smile appeared on the former Akatsuki's face. "I just wish we could've had this talk before I passed away."
Naruto felt shame coming up in him at the sight of Konan's smile. "Konan... I'm sorry. I did my best, but I gave in and let Madara take the Nine-Tails from me, so I could meet Sasuke. I know how much Yahiko and Nagato's dream meant to you, and I- I... I just wasn't strong enough."
"I couldn't stop him either, so don't take it too tough." Standing up, Konan walked around the glass coffee table and sat beside Naruto, putting an arm around his shoulders and sipping from her martini. "I said you couldn't do it alone; so you'll need the help of Konoha and the other ninja villages. One very determined man might not end Madara's reign of terror, but a very determined seven nation army could." Struggling to control himself, Naruto waited for Konan's next words while she sipped from her martini and twirled a finger through his hair. "There's just something about you, Naruto... people will follow you, they'll believe in you..."
"But... i- it was bad enough I was the Nine-Tails' host at first, but after I gave it up to Madara how could I get all those people to follow me? I might be able to get Team Seven with me, but I don't know about everyone else..."
"Naruto, if you believe in yourself and have the faith and desire to do it, I'm confident you'll have the loyalty and trust of the whole ninja world behind you." Konan smiled again, then leaned in and gave Naruto a warm kiss on the cheek. She gazed into his eyes, then chuckled before giving him a quick peck on his temple and standing.
"Wait, Konan!" The last of Naruto's self-doubts came to mind, and he voiced them. "Does it have to be me? Couldn't somebody else have stood up to Madara?"
"...Yes, but... they would have failed. You have met darkness and light, and you chose... you are the most powerful of us all: the elected, the chosen one." Konan downed the rest of her martini, and set the glass on the coffee table, and began to walk towards the lounge's door.
"One last thing," Naruto began, as Konan was about to open the door. "This is kinda a pervy question, but you wouldn't happen to own a fur bikini, would you?"
Konan smiled wider than Naruto had ever seen her before, and left the lounge.
So that's everything! If you read through it all I hope you enjoyed it.
Hugs and Kisses and Best of Wishes,
~Uskius