Roar of the Dragon: This chapter was hard to write. I had no reference and had to make everything up. In other news, I'm sorry to say the story is almost over. I'm not sure how many more chapters, at max two. Then we can start the sequel, Hanyou Trials.
Review Responses: I'll be using the new review response feature to answer reviews that are well thought out and address issues with the story. I won't reply to simple reviews saying how much you like the story unless you give me suggestions for how to improve it or intelligent questions about a particular detail.
Special fic promotion: Please read Jedi Mistress's 1990's fic Shippo's Feudal Adventure! It's a very nice Naruto/Inuyasha crossover and I helped her write chapter 17's big battle and the climactic battle of chapter 34 (listed as chapter 35 in the story because she wrote a bonus oneshot before it)!
Also check out Ricchan's fic Konoha High on this site, it can be found in my favorites list!
Fic promotion: Ryuuhoshi by Tsunami227. It's pretty good, I suggest you guys give it a read and leave a review!
Disclaimer: I don't own Naruto; if I did it would be more like this story! Aki is the property of xAkix, used here with her permission.
Note: Naruto's sword is named Nenshousaiga, Burning Fang, and most of his moves with it are inspired by the game Ninja Gaiden for Xbox and the Rurouni Kenshin manga. Instead of calling Akemi's new weapon a cabled kunai, I'm calling it Tetsugen, Iron String.
Naruto woke up to one of the most wonderful sights in the world for him. Hinata's smiling face as she hugged his tails made the past two months feel like a nightmare. The sound of small nails moving across the floor outside the room alerted Naruto to the fact they were not alone. Gishou poked his head into the room and grinned when he saw Naruto was awake. The little kitsune ran and leapt onto his friend's body before licking Naruto's face. Naruto reached up and scratched his friend's ears, smiling as he felt Hinata shift a little and hug his tails to her body. At this point, all was right in Naruto's world and he wished he could stay like this forever. However, Naruto knew that once Gishou failed to return, his mother would know he at least was up and come to get him. Naruto carefully reached over and shook Hinata's shoulder. "Come on Hinata-chan, time to wake up!" he said. Hinata's eyes slowly opened and she smiled upon seeing Naruto gazing at her and kissed his cheek.
"Good morning Naruto-kun."
"Thanks Hinata-chan. I'd better leave so you can get changed…" said Naruto as he reluctantly prepared to exit the bed.
"You should do the same, your clothes are in terrible condition…" said Hinata as she wrinkled her nose. Naruto glanced down and admitted that aside from his jacket, which turned out to be made from fire rat hair according to his mother and could never be stained, all of his clothes were covered in the blood of the fiends he had fought through to rescue Hinata and torn from his time in the Forest of Death.
"Hehehehe, guess so. See you in a little bit for breakfast?" asked the kitsune boy. Hinata nodded and Naruto smiled before vanishing in a burst of blue flame with a Foxfire Shunshin. Hinata smiled and walked over to her closet to remove a clean outfit before she removed her new harem outfit and pulled on a yukata to protect her modesty while she went to the family baths.
(0o0o0)
Naruto grinned as he stepped out of his room. The Uzumaki house was quiet in the early morning; no sounds of breakfast being prepared reached his ears. Naruto had managed to shower and give his tails a thorough scrub without being disturbed and had just finished changing into fresh clothes. As he stepped into the hall, he heard a door open followed by a gasp and squeal of, "Naruto-nii-chan!" before he was glomped by his little sister. Akemi grabbed onto Naruto and wouldn't let go, a happy growl reached Naruto's ears causing him to smile as he hugged Akemi back, causing her tails to start wagging.
The happy moment was ruined by a fist smashing into Naruto's head from behind and he fell to the ground. Looking up, he gulped as he saw an angry looking Tayuya. "You idiot! We've been worried sick about you and you were trying to sneak out without us?" she yelled. Behind her, Haku and Sasuke both scowled at Naruto, who rubbed his hair nervously.
"Well, Hinata-chan said she wanted to have breakfast with me…" explained the fox boy.
"We've all been invited to breakfast with Hinata's family," said Kyuubi as she exited the master bedroom with Ken. Both parents pulled Naruto into a hug, while Kyuubi's tails reached out to pull her other kits in also. "And as for you young man, we're going to have a long talk about stupid behavior like giving into your instincts to much and worrying your family," she said as she lightly smacked Naruto on the head.
"Everyone is abusing me!" Naruto pretended to sob as he wiped fake tears from his eyes.
"Don't worry Nii-chan, I still love you!" chirped Akemi as she hugged Naruto more.
"Oh Akemi-chan, your loyalty to me is so touching!" sobbed Naruto as he pulled her loose and spun her through the air in his arms. "When I am Hokage I shall make you my ANBU captain!"
"I thought I was going to be your ANBU captain!" yelled Sasuke.
"Yeah, but you're obviously not as loyal as the cute Akemi-chan!" said Naruto.
"Why, you!" yelled Sasuke before he tackled Naruto. The blond tossed Akemi to Tayuya just before Sasuke reached him and the two disappeared into a cloud of dust as they fought with random limbs and heads appearing out of the cloud.
"Boys…" said Haku, Tayuya, and Kyuubi with a sigh while Ken leaned against the wall laughing his head off at the boys' behavior.
(0o0o0)
"Hiashi-sama, the Uzumaki clan has arrived," said a branch family member.
"Excellent, show them in," said Hiashi as he glanced at where Hinata was fidgeting at the table. Her head had snapped up at the name Uzumaki and she was clearly eager to pounce on Naruto. He also noticed Aki was watching the girl from her seat next to Neji. Aki had adapted well to living with the Hyuuga family over the past month and Hiashi smiled as he saw his nephew reach over and gently squeeze her hand. A gust of wind blew through the dining room and Hiashi blinked as Naruto seemed to appear out of nowhere kneeling next to Hinata while the rest of his surprised family watched from the entrance to the dining room.
"Hinata-chan, your eyes are more gorgeous than all the pearls in the world, your skin more delicate than the lily, your hair more calming than the waterfall, and your heart is that of a goddess!" declared Naruto as he kissed Hinata's hand, causing her to blush forty shades of red before he released her hand. Everyone stared at Naruto in shock that the hyperactive blonde could make such a passion-filled speech.
"Arigato, Naruto-kun," said Hinata as she gestured for him to sit down beside her. Akemi immediately claimed the seat on Naruto's other side, not wanting to leave her big brother's side since he'd been avoiding everyone for the last two months. Akemi made it a point to spend time with each member of her family each day when they were all in Konoha. She was currently making up for lost time with Naruto and he had a feeling she would be following him all day if she could. Once everyone was seated, the meal started. Naruto ate rapidly but politely, despite the huge amount of food he had consumed during the party at Xaria's castle. His chakra reserves had grown exponentially over the past two months, meaning he needed lots of food and rest to fully recover after digging so deeply into them.
(0o0o0)
As everyone was finally finished with the meal and sitting around chatting and sipping drinks, Kyuubi cleared her throat and got everyone's attention. "Hiashi-sama, Hikari-san, thank you for having us over. Now that we are alerted to the problem with the council, what steps shall we take to prevent events such as this from happening again?"
"That's easy," said Hiashi as he turned to Naruto. "Uzumaki Naruto, do you love my daughter and intend to marry her someday?"
"Hai!" exclaimed Naruto as he straightened immediately under Hiashi's gaze.
"Hinata, would you accept Uzumaki-kun's hand in marriage after you are old enough to be wed?" asked Hiashi as his gaze focused on his daughter.
"Hai, Hiashi-sama," said Hinata softly, having a good idea where this was going already.
"Then the two of you are engaged as soon as you sign this contract," said Hiashi as he pulled a scroll from his robe, only to see it disappear as Hinata grabbed and opened the scroll faster than he expected. Hinata's eyes flashed through the scroll as she read its contents and she quickly bit her thumb to sign her name on the line provided. Naruto did the same and promptly kissed Hinata on the cheek once the blood had dried.
"Excellent Hiashi, the council will not be able to do anything now," said Hikari with a smile.
"Thank you for taking care of this so quickly, Hiashi-san," said Kyuubi with a polite half bow. "I also have an announcement to make." At this, everyone's ears and eyes were focused on the kitsune woman. "I'm pregnant again, there's going to be another little Uzumaki kitsune running around!"
There was a moment of stunned silence before Naruto broke it with a loud yell of "Yatta!"
"How far along are you?" demanded Hikari as she looked her kitsune friend over for signs of pregnancy.
"Two months, I was waiting for things to return to normal before I told anyone," said Kyuubi with a smile as she gently rested her hand on her waist.
"We were all so worried about Naruto we never noticed," muttered Tayuya.
"Don't worry, by the time the baby is born everything should be fine," said Kyuubi with a smile.
"By the way, it might interest you to hear what results we've gotten from our investigation into how an incubus could pose as a Hyuuga for so long," said Hizashi, causing everyone's mood to turn serious. "We examined Hideyoshi's room and found traces of a pentagram, some recently killed chickens, and other demonic summoning equipment. It looks like Hideyoshi summoned the incubus to help him seduce Hinata but he made a mistake in the circle and the demon stole his soul and took on his form."
"That makes sense, those western summoners tend to use the circle to bind a demon to them and if they make a mistake the demon breaks the binding and takes them to hell. Unlike ninja that sign a contract with a summon clan; western summoners can summon any type of demon if they have enough power." muttered Kyuubi.
"That also explains why he had me halt my miko training, he didn't want me to figure things out." said Hinata.
"All I can say is I'm glad he's dead." muttered Naruto.
(0o0o0)
Several hours later, Neji was heading to Aki's room to ask her if she wanted to take a walk with him, only to stop as he heard voices coming from the room.
"Wow Naruto, it's so big!" gasped Aki.
"Yeah, I can barely fit my hand around the base," said Tenten with a tone of awe.
"I can't believe you survived being stabbed by this thing Hinata," said Aki.
"I was kind of lost in the moment," muttered Hinata.
"Yeah, and you girls should thank Hinata for suggesting that I show this to you," said Naruto, causing Neji's image of his sweet innocent cousin to shatter.
"Thanks Hinata, it's the perfect solution to a problem I've been having," said Aki.
At this point, Neji had heard enough and broke through his shock to slam open the door to Aki's room while yelling, "What the FXXX is going on here????!!!!"
The sight that met Neji's eyes was not what he expected. Tenten and Aki were examining a giant zanbatō while Hinata was sitting on Naruto's lap reading a scroll. None of the four were missing any clothes, though Naruto's jacket was tied around his waist. Neji's face turned bright red and he spun around before dashing out of the room. Moments later he was in the garden bashing his head against a tree while yelling, "DAMN YOU KAKASHI AND YOUR PERVERTED READING MATERIAL!!!!"
"Is he going to be alright?" asked Naruto.
"Yeah, he just needs to vent," said Hinata before she snuggled closer to Naruto. Aki and Tenten went back to examining the zanbatō and discussing using it in their new jutsu. Finally, the two girls reached an agreement and resealed the weapon into its scroll for easy transport. They then walked up to Naruto and Hinata.
"Hinata, we're glad you called us in to see the sword, we've got something for you. Over the last two months we've been developing special weapons for all the members of Konoha's Fifteen," said Tenten as she pulled out a scroll. "We decided to give you yours after the engagement fiasco was over so you could use it to beat up that jerk, but as you know, things didn't turn out like anyone planned. So we now present to you your new weapon! Kouryuu Kougake (Rain Dragon Fist)!" Tenten unrolled the scroll and swiped her blood along it with a flourish. The usual cloud of smoke appeared and when it cleared Hinata's eyes widened. Resting in Tenten and Aki's hands was a pair of gloves like Kakashi wore that appeared to be made from scaly blue leather.
"These are made from the skin Haku-chan sheds once a year. Akemi has been collecting and saving it but didn't have a use for it until now. We took the last shed skin and used the arms and hands to make these to make sure they would be flexible enough to allow you to use your Jyuuken," said Aki. "They'll make it easier for you to draw water from your surroundings and protect your hands and arms."
"Wow, these are amazing!" exclaimed Hinata as she pulled on the gauntlets. They fit snuggly and Hinata thought for a moment she was wearing a pair of silk gloves. "Thank you so much!" said Hinata as she hugged the two girls.
"Don't forget to thank Akemi, she was the one who suggested using Haku-chan's shed skin to make gauntlets for you," said Tenten.
"I'll go find her now!" said Hinata as she ran out of the room, leaving Naruto alone with the two older girls.
"So did you girl happen to make a weapon for me as well?" asked the kitsune boy.
"No, you've already got Nenshousaiga, another weapon wouldn't do you any good at this point," said Tenten. Naruto nodded before leaving to find Hinata while the girls continued their discussions on the zanbatō as they walked back to Tenten's house.
(0o0o0)
Sasuke stood in the middle of Team Seven's usual training ground, his mother's sword resting at his side. He had gotten the sword from its hiding place a few days after he was allowed to start training again and brought it to Tenten's parents. They had been able to restore the blade to its original glory as well as add some things at Kyuubi's request. One had been the fang of a Raiju (Thunder beast) Kyuubi had killed several decades ago and kept some fangs from as well as one of Kyuubi's fangs. Both fangs were used to strengthen the sword and make it able to conduct Sasuke's chakra. He had been able to get the sword to channel his fire chakra or lightning chakra separately, but never both at once like he was about to attempt.
Haku stood across from her boyfriend, eyes closed and hands raised to help her concentrate as she created a giant block of ice in the middle of the clearing. As the ice block reached the size she wanted, she opened her eyes and stepped back beside Kyuubi before saying, "All set, Sasuke-kun." The Uchiha boy unsheathed his mother's sword and took a deep breath before pushing his chakra into the blade. It was relatively easy to convert the chakra into electricity, but the fire chakra was harder to control in a medium besides the air. But Sasuke had been practicing this for the last week and the practice finally paid off as he felt the chakra bend to his will. Blue lightning mixed with red flame surrounding the sword blade, causing Sasuke to grin.
Sasuke raised the sword and leaned forward before dashing towards his target with the back of the blade parallel to the ground and his left arm raised to keep his balance and help him aim. "Kenjutsu: Raikakiri (Sword Arts: Lightning Fire Blade)!" cried Sasuke before he charged the ice block and stabbed the sword into it. The blade sank into the ice and the very tip of the sword reached the other side before the hand guard stopped any further progress.
"Excellent Sasuke, I knew teaching you Gatotsu (Fang Thrust) was a good idea," said Kyuubi as she smiled at the boy. She had first taught the move to his mother when she was in ANBU after she became friends with the woman and Mikoto's will had asked Kyuubi to train her son as well if something happened to her. Looking down at her arms she said, "Okay, you can join him now." Almost immediately, a small dragon rose up from its temporary nest and glided through the air to land on Sasuke's shoulder. Sasuke smiled and stroked the little dragon's nose.
"Well, what did you think, Pyre?" asked Sasuke. Pyre had been Sasuke's first successful summons in the real world before Sasuke summoned his father Pyreforge and performed the desired Katon: Karyū Endan (Fire Style: Fire Dragon Flame Missile) for the dragon elder, who assigned his son to accompany Sasuke and learn more about the human world. The little dragon loved to sit on Sasuke's shoulder when he wasn't in the way and would eagerly watch his friend train. Sasuke was dressed in the standard Konoha Chunnin outfit with the sheath for his mother's sword at his waist. He looked a lot like a younger, more relaxed version of his father, which had caused Ken to call him Chibi-Fugaku when he first saw Sasuke's new outfit. Sasuke had given him a death glare that caused the Yondaime to actually feel a moment of fear before he remembered he could still take down Sasuke without much effort.
"That was freakin' awesome, Sasuke!" cheered the little dragon. Sasuke sighed as the little dragon seemed to enjoy speaking like a teenager and it drove Sasuke crazy. Even though Pyre was ten years old in human years, he was still very young in dragon years. When Sasuke had first summoned him, the little dragon had started doing mid-air cartwheels to celebrate. Then Sasuke found out Pyre could have the attention span of a child when he saw something shiny and dove for it. He was only serious when Sasuke was training him or he was watching the Uchiha boy train.
Haku as examining the block of ice and suddenly started to grin. "Sasuke-kun, oka-san, look at this!" she said before using Korrimizusaiga (Ice Water Fang) to slice the ice block in half vertically. As both halves fell to the ground, Sasuke and Kyuubi stared at the large amount of space that had resulted from the intense heat and electricity of the attack melting and vaporizing the water.
"Well Sasuke, I think it's safe to assume anyone who can survive having that attack penetrate their body is going to take lots of effort to take down," said Kyuubi. The Uchiha boy nodded, though part of his mind could just imagine the look on Itachi's face when he had to face the attack. Kyuubi glanced up as a hawk flew over the clearing and her smile vanished. "Come on, you two, we've got to get to the Hokage's office," she said.
(0o0o0)
Ino leapt backwards to avoid Chouji's giant war hammer as the head of the weapon crashed into the ground. Knowing from past experience that the attack would produce a shockwave, Ino had leapt high into the air and timed her landing to come to rest on the head of the hammer. Before Chouji could recover from his missed attack, Ino charged up the hammer's handle and slammed her knee into her boyfriend's chest, causing him to lose his grip on the hammer and fly backwards. "Baka, we've told you to be more careful with this thing! Big weapons mean lots of power but if they miss they leave you open for a counterattack, especially against someone faster that you!" yelled Ino as she stormed up to Chouji and started shaking him. "If I had been an enemy you would have been dead!" she yelled. Chouji silenced Ino by grabbing her head and pulling her in for a kiss, much to the amusement of Asuma as he watched them. Chouji had been eager to train ever since the mission to rescue Sasuke and using his great grandfather's giant war hammer, Kanaduchi (Iron Hammer), he had turned most of his fat into solid muscle. The boy could now plow through almost anything with his Nikudan Sensha (Human Bullet Tank) and his blows while using Baika (Multi-size) no Jutsu on his entire body were strong enough to leave deep craters in the ground.
Ino on the other hand had been working on enhancing her speed and strength. Her mother had continued to train her in the Mokuton (Wood Style) techniques and other plant based attacks. Asuma had surprised her during her training at one point and woken up to find himself covered in wounds from her rose whip as well as several punch marks from a new taijutsu technique Ino had been practicing. Neither one mentioned the incident, but since then Asuma was careful to signal his presence to Ino with a cloud of cigarette smoke or by approaching from in front of her.
On the other side of the field, Shikamaru was training with a pair of trench knives similar to those Asuma used, only these were pure black. Aki had made the blades herself for her cousin, using obsidian to line the edges of the blade for precision cutting. Shikamaru had abandoned his lazy routine to improve himself, he knew something big was coming and refused to let his friends suffer because he slacked off.
Asuma glanced up at the hawk flying over head and said, "Alright team, we've been summoned by the Godaime, let's go!" Ino and Chouji reluctantly broke apart and with Shikamaru muttering his trade mark "Troublesome," the team headed towards the Hokage Tower.
(0o0o0)
Lee skidded backwards from the force of Neji's Jyuuken strike. The Hyuuga genius's blows had grown even more powerful as he learned how to pack lightning chakra into the blows to damage his enemy's nervous system as well as the chakra circulatory system. The gauntlets Aki had made for Neji only made this easier. The Raiju Kougake (Thunder beast Gauntlets) protected Neji from accidentally hurting himself by absorbing any lightning chakra hitting them and making the conversion easier.
Neji was not in perfect shape however. Lee's Garou Tekko (Hungry Wolf Knuckleduster) had allowed him to land several slash attacks on Neji since the Hyuuga Genius had to adjust to the increased range the claws gave the spandex clad boy (Think Wolverine from X-men). Lee had also used his speed to slip inside Neji's guard before the Hyuuga could use a Kaiten to defend himself and as a result Neji had several bruises. Neji blamed his distraction on the thoughts filling his head after overhearing the misleading conversation about the zanbatō.
Gai grinned at the sight of his two students and glanced up as Tenten and Aki entered the clearing. The two girls had been working on a combination jutsu that they refused to show anyone, only Tenten's parents had a slight idea what the two girls were working on and they weren't telling. "Tenten, Aki, I'm so glad you could join us in celebrating our SPRING TIME OF YOUTH!" yelled Gai as he gave them the good guy pose complete with pinging teeth. Both girls flinched at the yell, but stared in shock as a large black wolf tackled Gai to the ground and glared at him from on top of his chest.
"I've told you, don't yell so loud," growled Kurotsume.
"Eehehehe, sorry," muttered Gai. He still had a habit of yelling out loud, even though his somewhat feral girlfriend had started to calm him down. Gai's face turned serious as he saw a hawk fly overhead. "We've been summoned to Hokage-sama's office, let's go!" With that the whole group leapt towards the Hokage tower.
(0o0o0)
Kurenai smiled as she leapt away from one of Sakura's whip strikes. Ever since the Chunnin Exam where she lost to Haku, the pink haired girl had been working to improve her whip technique as well as the number of Genjutsu in her arsenal. "Good Sakura, you've improved a lot!" said Kurenai.
Across the clearing, Shino and Kiba were sparring together as well. Shino was clad in his family's battle armor, Ekuzosukeruton Kacchuu (Exoskeleton Armor and Helmet), which was made from the exoskeletons of ancient insect youkai and thus very strong. Kiba on the other hand wore special gauntlets his father had left for him. The Hyakujuunoou no Tsume (Claws of the King of Beasts) covered each of his fingers with a very sharp metal claw that gave Kiba a slightly longer reach and provided extra protection for his hands while being specially designed not to prevent the usage of hand seals. The constant sound of claws on armor provided a counterpoint to the cracks of Sakura's whip.
"Come on Kiba, is this the best you can do?" asked Shino as he drove his fist into Kiba's stomach to send him flying backwards.
"Shut it bug boy, we're just getting started!" yelled Kiba. "Akamaru!" the white dog was now twice as large thanks to an enhanced diet Kiba's mother had put him on. The canine leapt onto Kiba's back. "Juuijuin Bushin (Beast/Human clone)!" yelled Kiba. Akamaru instantly transformed into a feral Kiba, both of which charged towards Shino. "Gatsuuga (Piercing fang)!" yelled Kiba as the two became spinning cyclones. Shino was prepared for a two pronged frontal assault, but one Kiba zoomed past him and rebounded off a tree to attack him from behind. The variation on Kiba's usual use of the jutsu caught Shino totally by surprise, forcing him right into the second Kiba's attack. Shino was then hit by multiple spinning tornadoes as Kiba and Akamaru bounced him back and forth between one another like a pinball. Shino finally managed to escape by using his bugs as a rope to grab a tree and pull himself away from an attack, throwing Kiba and Akamaru off track and causing them to collide with one another. All three hit the ground hard, Akamaru and Kiba both reverting to normal. Kurenai and Sakura broke off their sparring and rushed to make sure both boys and the dog were okay.
"Baka, we're training, not trying to kill one another!" yelled Sakura and she used a diagnostic jutsu on Kiba. "You're lucky you didn't break any bones or lose an arm at that speed!"
"Hehehe, don't worry, Akamaru and I play rough all the time, something like this won't hurt us," said Kiba with a grin.
"Be that as it may Kiba, you should keep better track of one another when using the jutsu. What if you were fighting Naruto and he used his shadow clones to line you two up for a head on collision? You'd plow right through the clones and hit one another," said Kurenai before she looked up to see a hawk flying over head. "That's all for today, follow me to Hokage-sama's office," she commanded.
(0o0o0)
Akemi glanced up as Naruto and Hinata exited the Uzumaki house and entered the family training ground. The kitsune girl was sparring with Ken, enjoying being able to spend some time with her father. "Ni-san! Hinata-chan! Care to join us?" asked Akemi.
Naruto glanced at Hinata and tilted his head in question. Hinata nodded and the two prepared to join in the spar. Naruto grinned and suddenly charged his father while Hinata slipped into a defensive stance as Akemi charged towards her. Naruto and Ken became a series of golden flashes, appearing together as the attacked one another with taijutsu. Akemi and Hinata were forced to abandon their sparring when two Rasengan collided and sent both girls flying with an explosion of power. Both girls quickly leapt to the trees to avoid being in the way of the father and son spar. The action ground to a halt as Naruto and Ken reappeared. Ken had one of his Hiraishin kunai out and was blocking Nenshousaiga with it. "You've gotten better, Naruto, but you've still got a long way to go," said Ken.
"Heh, someday I'll beat you Otou-san!" said Naruto before the two stepped back. Naruto and Akemi both glanced up a split second before Ken spotted the hawk flying over head.
'So it's finally time,' thought Ken. "All right you three, Tsunade has summoned us!" With that, the four ninja dashed towards Ken's former office.
(0o0o0)
Tsunade stared at the group standing in front of her desk. All of the Konoha 15 were there as well as their sensei, Ken, Kyuubi, Tayuya, and Kudora. "All right, as you know, you've all been training for the past two months in your various elements. The purpose of this intense training was to prepare you for the most dangerous mission many of you have faced yet. Based on information from Tayuya as well as our ANBU spies, we have determined the location of Orochimaru's current base," she said.
"Wait, current base?" asked Naruto.
Tayuya moved towards the map of the elemental countries sitting on Tsunade's desk. "The snake bastard moves his base of operations every other week. I've been to bases in all the minor countries that don't have large villages, but most of the ones he'll come back to are in countries with no ninja village. One of the ones we constantly came back to and the one that appears the oldest is in the former Rice country, the center of Sound country. It's the location of some sort of special long term experiment Orochi-teme has been doing since before he left Konoha. I don't know what it is exactly since only Orochimaru and Kabuto have access to the experiment's location, but it's big and he has to be there now."
"This means we know where he'll be at this time. Forces from Konoha and Suna led by Ken and Jiraiya will be engaging the Oto forces while Tayuya leads the Konoha 15 into the base to rescue Orochimaru's prisoners and obtain any information they can on his plans," explained Tsunade. "Kudora will be accompanying you to act as a secondary medic. Shikamaru is in charge of strategy, but if the group is split in half command falls to Neji followed by either Haku, Naruto, Shino, or Sasuke based on the situation."
"What kind of opposition do you think we'll face?" asked Shikamaru.
"We're not sure. It's likely you'll be facing Genin to Jounin level enemies, plus foes with curse seals like you fought in the mission to rescue Sasuke," said Tsunade. All of the group who had participated in that mission remembered their fights against those fearsome foes, while Tayuya rubbed where her curse seal was bound by Kyuubi's Kyutenshi Fuuin (Nine Natural Elements Seal). "However, most of you are Chunnin level or extremely close to it and working together you can take on low level Jounin."
"What about medical attention?" asked Neji.
"Tsunade-sama and I will be manning a field hospital; if need be you can evacuate to there," said Kyuubi. "We'll be providing you with a special talisman similar to my mate's Hiraishin kunai, only it will bring you to the field hospital when activated."
"Once we break through the outer forces, the Jounin and ANBU will take over and you will evacuate. In the mean time, set traps, sabotage, do anything you can to prevent the enemy from getting reinforcements easily," said Ken.
"Everyone understand their orders??" asked Tsunade.
"Hai Hokage-sama!"
"Then get a good rest, tomorrow begins operation Kuchifusagi (Imposition of Silence)!" declared Tsunade.
(0o0o0)
The next morning found the group ready for battle and following Tayuya as she led the way through the forests of Konoha towards Hidden Sound. A day behind them marched the Konoha forces on a slightly different Eastern path to meet up with the forces from Suna. The two would combine into an army and draw the attention of Orochimaru from the infiltration group. The infiltration group slipped around the border of Sound Country and moved in from the neutral territory between Fire Country and Lightning Country. This was risky, since they could encounter Hidden Cloud shinobi, but luck was on their side and they made it through with no detection. Tayuya led the group through a small mountain range and they made camp in a small valley hidden by a powerful kitsune illusion Akemi and Naruto worked together to create and anchor on a large set of boulders. Tayuya then knelt down to draw the area surrounding them.
"Alright, Orochimaru built this base with only one major way in or out, plus a secret exit to only be used in worse case scenarios. These mountains form a U shape and the ones we're in are the bottom of the U. The Konoha and Suna forces are going to be coming from the top of the U and attacking, so we'll sneak in through the secret entrance located in this cave," she said as she pointed to a small drawing of said cave located in the other valley next to them. "It leads to a bridge over a lava pool that is fed by the magma lake in the next chamber. There are several side chambers that are used to store emergency supplies in case of an evacuation, we'll have to make sure they're clear of guards before we proceed. After that, we have to pass through several chambers before we'll reach the center of the base. The prison for his captives is right below this area. From there we can break into Orochimaru's secret area and figure out what's going, though my knowledge of the layout is useless beyond the prison level."
Shikamaru adapted his thinking position for several minutes and finally nodded to himself. "Alright, here's how we're going in. We'll infiltrate in our original three man teams. Team Kurenai will move in first so Kiba and Shino can search for enemies while Sakura breaks any Genjutsu. After them will be Ino, Chouji and me so I can relay orders based on their findings. Then Team Gai so Neji can cover the whole group with his Byakugan and allow Lee and Tenten to cover the whole group with Lee's speed and her weapons. After them will be team Kunoichi with Haku in the lead to provide medical attention to anyone in the group. In the rear will be Naruto, Hinata, and Sasuke. This will give Naruto and Sasuke room to charge up their more devastating techniques and keep Hinata in a position to watch our rear," said the lazy genius. "Kudora will be in the center of the group with Tayuya to provide long range support and cover for Tayuya if she needs it."
Everyone nodded and prepared to wait for the signal to start their mission.
(0o0o0)
Ken glanced at Jiraiya and Kakashi as they surveyed the entrance to Otogakure no Sato (Village Hidden in Sound). A large valley between high mountains was the assault force's only way in and a sure fire bet for an ambush.
"Well, whatever you say about the snake bastard he sure knows how to choose the spot to use the terrain to his advantage," said Ken.
"Hmm, getting there will be troublesome," muttered Shikaku as he mimicked his son's thinking pose.
"I'm guessing he's got a bunch of men ready to summon snakes to keep us busy," said Jiraiya as he lowered his telescope. "I can see several partly hidden summoning seals and hints of nearby camps. As soon as they see our force coming they'll summon the snakes."
"I can take them, I love snake jerky," said Chouji's father Choza as he gripped his bo staff.
"Not so fast my friend, Orochimaru is probably counting on us using summons to beat any he has set as guards, so we'll need more than you and Gamabunta," said Shikaku.
Just then, a three tailed kitsune ran up to the group. "Ken-sama, I bring word from the Kitsune forces. Naruto-sama and his group are in position. Our scouts have also made contact with the tanuki clan and the local Kappa. The Kappa clan is on our side, they say Orochimaru has been polluting the waters that don't flow into his village with his experiments. Xaria-san has also had her forces scouting out the minds of the enemy for the last few days, they have an idea they will be attacked but they aren't sure when," said the fox.
"That makes things easier. Okay… here's how we're going to move in," said the elder Nara.
(0o0o0)
The first warning the Sound forces had of an attack was when a large number of tri-bladed kunai shot through the air and landed in various parts of the valley. The next was that a yellow blur shot around the valley. The third sign was that anyone within arms reach of the blur collapsed with their throats slit or a kunai in their heads. "Alert Orochimaru-sama we're under attack!" yelled a Jounin as he started forming hand seals with his team before they all slammed their hands into the ground. "Kuchiyose (Summoning) no jutsu!" yelled the group before a massive cloud of displaced air was kicked up. All around the valley similar clouds of smoke appeared before massive snakes began to make their way out of the clouds towards the entrance to the valley.
(0o0o0)
"Kuchiyose no Jutsu!" yelled two voices. Two clouds of smoke billowed up at the entrance of the valley to reveal Gamabunta and another slightly smaller toad dressed in a large feminine yakuza robe. This was Gamabunta's wife, Gamaouhi (Toad Queen).
"So, it seems we get to put an end to these little worms, eh, husband?" asked Gamaouhi.
"I just hope Manda comes out to play so we can settle the score," said the boss toad as he puffed on his pipe.
"Don't worry, oyabin (boss), we'll get the snake," said Ken.
"Hmph, if he survives a fight with you and Ero-Sennin together then neither of you are worthy of summoning us," said Gamabunta.
"Why the hell are you calling me that?" demanded Jiraiya, causing Ken to snicker.
"Because it's true!"
The banter between the Sannin and the boss toad was interrupted as the Kyodaija (Giant Snakes) got within range of the two giant toads. "Katon: Gamayu Endan (Fire Style: Toad Oil Flame Bullet)!" yelled both men as the two toads both spat out huge streams of oil that Jiraiya and Ken ignited with a Katon jutsu. The twin streams of oil became massive geysers of flame that slammed into the Kyodaija. The snakes had no chance to prepare a counter attack and only the ones farthest from the valley entrance were able to dive underground to avoid the flames. Their summoners also managed to escape, but most of the valley was covered in flames, creating a giant smoke cloud that reached high into the air.
(0o0o0)
Naruto looked up as an orange toad with a blue jacket hopped into the clearing. "So we're ready to go, Gamakichi?" he asked the small toad.
"Yep! Mom and dad are giving the snakes a hard time, so everyone should be focused on the entrance to the valley," reported the little toad.
"Alright, we're going in," said Shikamaru. The group quickly made their way to the next valley where they found the entrance guarded by two nervous Chunnin who were looking at the rising smoke cloud. The two guards didn't even have a chance to react before Shino's bugs engulfed one while Kiba slammed the head of the other guard into the ground. With the guards taken care of, the group entered a tunnel with torches lining the walls every few feet. The tunnel curved down and around, mimicking a snake in movement. As the group moved down deeper into the tunnels it grew hotter until the tunnel opened into a giant cavern. A giant stone statue of a dragon stretched across a wide river of magma and formed a bridge to the high entrance to the next cave. The group made their way along the statue's back to find themselves looking down on the magma lake Tayuya had mentioned. Shino suddenly stopped, causing everyone to come to a halt. "What's wrong?" asked Kiba.
"My bugs are uneasy, they sense something, but they aren't sure what…" muttered the bug user. When nothing appeared, the group started making their way across the lake by way of the stone islands scattered through out it. As team eight reached the last island, a loud buzzing caused the whole group to freeze before a swarm of youkai insects swooped in and grabbed Shino, Kiba, Akamaru, and Sakura before flying across the magma to a high up cave nobody had noticed. "Go!" yelled Shino.
"You heard him, move!" ordered Shikamaru. The group rushed to the chamber exit, though a few of the youkai insects turned around to attack them and were repelled by a barrage of fox fire blasts from Naruto and Akemi. As soon as Naruto, Sasuke, and Hinata were safely through the door, a huge stone slab crashed down, sealing the way back out.
(0o0o0)
The youkai insects brought team eight to a large chamber that was obviously a nest for the insects and dropped their captives in the middle of the nest. "Aw hell, I don't want to be bug food!" yelled Kiba.
"Oh, they won't eat you… yet," said a new voice. The three humans and one dog looked up to see a creepy looking figure sitting on a slightly raised platform. As the figure moved forward, everyone gasped as they saw the head of a giant fly on top of a humanoid body. But the body wasn't human either, it looked like a beetle body with tough armor and an extra set of arms.
"I am Ekirei (Pestilence), the four of your will make wonderful food for my children!" declared the man as the buzzing of the demonic insects grew louder.
(0o0o0)
"Shit, we're going to have to get them on our way back!" muttered Shikamaru as the team found themselves in a long narrow corridor lined with more torches. As they neared the end of the corridor where it doubled back out of sight, a faint rumbling caught the ears of Naruto, Akemi, and Kudora. Everyone was caught by surprise as a part of the wall suddenly pushed Team ten into a suddenly revealed side chamber that closed just as quickly.
Tayuya suddenly found Nenshousaiga poking into her back as Naruto said, "Tayuya-ne-chan… I really hope you haven't been playing us for fools all this time and are leading us into a trap."
Tayuya kept her arms out where everyone could see them and slowly turned to face Naruto and the rest of the group.
(0o0o0)
Team ten had been pushed into a short stone slide that carried them to a new room and spilled them out in a heap on the ground in the dark. "Ugh, what happened?" demanded Chouji as he regained his bearing and found a slightly disoriented Shikamaru and Ino on top of him.
"We got caught by a trap, it seems this way isn't as guarded as Tayuya thinks," muttered Shikamaru as he helped Ino to her feet and they both pulled Chouji up.
"Hehehehehehehehehehe, you three look tasty, I haven't had such a tasty looking meal in a long time," said a creepy voice. Ino, Chouji, and Shikamaru instantly went back to back while drawing kunai. The sound of steps coming towards them alerted to their enemy's location, but all three started to tremble as they realized this enemy was big since the footsteps sounded just like those made by Chouji's father. A series of lights snapped on and the team got their first glimpse of their opponent. He was a big man like his footsteps suggested, unusually pale like he hadn't been out in the sun for a long time, and had a metal jaw with sharp teeth. At first they thought the simple pants and shirt he wore were dark brown, then they realized they were the color of dried blood. "Hello little morsels, I'm Kikin (Famine) and I shall enjoy feasting on you tonight!" declared the man.
(0o0o0)
As Tayuya faced the group of Genin and Chunnin she looked at the faces of her friends and family. Akemi had big tears in her eyes at the thought of the older red head betraying them, while Haku looked extremely sad. Kudora, Hinata, Neji, Tenten, and Lee were stony faced, but it was the look on Naruto and Sasuke's faces that hurt her the most. Both boys were fighting back tears and Tayuya suddenly realized why. 'Years ago… Itachi killed the rest of his clan and took away Sasuke's family and Naruto's second family. Sasuke, Haku-chan, and Akemi-imotou-chan have all lost their parents just like me… and they think I've betrayed them.' Tayuya's eyes started to tear up as she said, "I have nothing that can convince you… I had no idea this way would be guarded so much or that there were traps in an evacuation tunnel."
Kudora suddenly stepped forward, miko powers glowing at her hand. She rested her hand above Tayuya's heart and said, "Kokoronookusoko (innermost depths of one's heart)!" as she closed her eyes. Tayuya could feel Kudora's miko powers passing through her and then leaving her before the tiger girl opened her eyes. "That techniques allows me to see into the depths of a person's heart. I can sense no evil intent in Tayuya's heart and only a desire to put an end to Orochimaru's evil," said the miko.
Tayuya was immediately glomped by Akemi, who was crying about how she knew her big sister hadn't betrayed them. Naruto sheathed Nenshousaiga and smiled before glancing at Neji. The Hyuuga genius nodded and said, "We have to keep moving! If we delay too long we'll be swarmed by enemies!" The group ran down the tunnel and came to what looked like a small factory that clearly puzzled Tayuya. As they passed through the middle of the area, the wall suddenly exploded as a giant metal hand shot through the wall and towards the group and grabbed Tenten before she could react and then shot back into the darkness. Neji and Lee immediately ran after their captured team mate with Neji yelling, "Go!" just before the wall started to collapse, trapping them with whatever had Tenten.
"Shit, we're losing teams one by one!" muttered Naruto.
"We have to keep going, we were assigned a mission! This is just like when we went after Sasuke!" said Aki, even though part of her longed to go help Neji. The group hurried towards a metal door that groaned open as they approached.
(0o0o0)
Neji and Lee were horrified to find Tenten caught in the grip of a giant of a man. This man was covered in metal parts, looking more like a machine than a human. "Oi, metal head, let her go!" yelled Lee before he charged the monstrosity.
"As you wish!" muttered the metal clad man before he threw Tenten at Lee, who caught her and leapt back to get some room.
"Be careful, his armor contains an artificial chakra network," said Neji as he stared at their foe.
"Correct, this chakra armor allows me to nullify most attacks on myself," said the man. "I am Sensou (War) and I shall be your executioner!"
(0o0o0)
"Everyone be on your guard," said Haku as they dashed through the halls. Electrical lights now lit the way, showing they were close to the main part of Orochimaru's lair. Team kunoichi was leading the group with Tayuya and Kudora coming next and followed by Team seven. The whole group suddenly skidded to a stop as they entered a room covered with the several giant skeletons embedded in the walls and numerous graves lining a path through the room.
"I don't remember this," whispered Tayuya as she took in the giant remains.
"Orochimaru-sama redecorated since the last time you were here," said a new voice as a sickenly pale figure stepped out of the shadows, revealing a fairly tall man dressed in what looked like bone armor. "When our scouts couldn't find your body, Orochimaru-sama figured you had been captured and would be interrogated to reveal his plans as well as the location of his lairs. He certainly never expected to find that bitch had taken you in…" the figure got no further before an enraged Tayuya drove her fist into his stomach, sending him crashing backwards. He then barely managed to roll aside from Naruto as the fox boy plummeted down towards the ground attempting to impale him. Haku and Akemi hurled senbon and shuriken at the sound nin, only to have him block the projectiles with a giant scythe he pulled out from behind one of the grave stones.
"Naruto, Hinata, Sasuke, go, we've got this guy!" declared Haku as she drew Korrimizusaiga. Akemi had already prepped her Tetsugan (Iron String), and Aki had pulled out a wakizashi with an obsidian blade.
"Okay, just be careful!" yelled Naruto before team seven, Kudora, and Tayuya ran towards the exit of the room.
"I don't think so!" yelled the Sound nin before he hurled his scythe at the running group. However, Haku slammed her hand down on the ground to cause a wall of ice to shoot up and deflect the attack.
"Hmmmm, you three might prove some entertainment. After I've beaten all of you I'm sure I can find something even more fun for us to do," said the Sound nin with a leer. Akemi responded in true Uzumaki fashion by flipping the pale man the finger. By this time team seven, Kudora, and Tayuya had made it out of the chamber and were on their way deeper into the base.
"You would be wise not to underestimate us just because we're girls," warned Aki.
"And you should beware, for you dance with Kisei (Death)!" replied the sound nin before he charged the three kunoichi with his massive scythe.
(0o0o0)
"We're almost at the prison and area where the Hebi-teme keeps his experiments," said Tayuya. The redhead had lead team seven and Kudora through several twisting corridors and secret passages. "I should warn you all that you will see things in there that will haunt your dreams for life. The curse seal kept it blocked out for me, but now that it's powerless I can remember everything." The group glanced at one another in concern but kept going until they reached a large underground arena with cages lining every part of it. The smell of death and blood lingering everywhere almost caused Naruto, Kudora, and Gishou to faint. As they reached the first cell, Hinata gasped in horror when she saw a small girl huddled in the corner of the small room. She was covered in bruises and rags and seemed utterly dejected. Tayuya's eyes widened as she saw the girl and she gasped, "Shinja(Sacred Snake)-chan???" causing the girl's head to jerk up. Upon seeing Tayuya, she scrambled to the door of her cell and stared at Tayuya with tears coming from her eyes.
"Otou-san said you were dead!" she whispered. "Then he told me I needed to grow stronger and has been forcing me to fight every day for the last two months!"
"Well I'm not, and I can't believe he would do this to you!" exclaimed Tayuya as she hugged the little girl through the bars of the door.
"Tayuya-nee-chan, who is she?" asked Naruto.
"This is Shinja-chan, the only person I would trust with my life in Otogakure," said Tayuya. "Shinja-chan, these are my new family, they're here to help free everyone here and bring you back to Konoha."
"Who is her Otou-san?" asked Hinata, horrified a father would do something like this to his own child.
"Orochimaru," said Tayuya. "She's probably the only good thing to come of his experiments, she has such a pure soul that not even he can corrupt her or place a curse seal on her. She was meant to be impregnated by Sasuke to produce a perfect body for Orochimaru's next host and breed a future line of warriors totally devoted to him, but as you can see she is still too young to have children, hence why when the plan to get Sasuke here failed she was placed in this hell hole."
"Alright, stand back Shinja-chan!" said Naruto as he raised his hand to grab Nenshousaiga's hilt. As Shinja backed up to the far side of the cell, Naruto swung Nenshousaiga with a cry of, "Zantetsu (Metal Slash)!" and sliced all the bars of the cage. The gasps from those prisoners who had been watching were the only sounds before the severed bars fell to the ground. "Kage Bunshin no Jutsu!" said Naruto as he created a clone for each cell and sent them to free the other prisoners. There were about fifty prisoners in all, ranging from all ages and genders, with at least one from each hidden village. Some had to be carried out of their cells by the clones. Many of them showed signs of medical experimentation, but none more than Shinja. She had flesh colored scale skin instead of normal human skin, though it was warm to the touch and not obvious unless you were really close, small snake fangs, a forked tongue that constantly tasted the air, and the same hair and golden eyes as Orochimaru. However, Shinja's eyes were soft and gentle unlike the cold reptilian eyes of her father.
"All right, let's get these people out of here and help our friends!" said Naruto as he started to lead the way back they had come, only to stop as the sound of chuckling came from the tunnel.
"Well, well, Naruto-kun, Sasuke-kun, and Hinata-chan, this is a surprise. I would have thought you would have stopped to help your friends," said Kabuto as he walked out of the escape tunnel towards the group. "And Tayuya, how nice to see you again, we missed you." The newest Uzumaki girl gave him a one fingered salute with both hands. "Since we're having so many reunions, how about a family one??? Kuchiyose: Edo Tensei (Summoning: Impure World Resurrection)!" yelled Kabuto as he slammed both hands into the ground, causing two coffins to rise up that had the Uchiha crest on them. Sasuke's eyes widened in horror as the coffin lids fell away to reveal his parents.
"Oka-san, Otou-san," he whispered as the bodies of his parents walked out of their coffins. Both were dressed in their uniforms, Fugaku as the chief of the Military Police and Mikoto in her ANBU armor with her wolf mask at her hip. Sasuke was relieved he had her sword, he knew if she had that she could kill all of them before they could blink.
"Kabuto-san… why are you doing this?" whispered Shinja.
"These people seek to stop Orochimaru-sama's ambition… I will not allow that," said the silver haired medic.
"Sasuke… you've grown up…" said Mikoto with tears in her eyes.
"You've made us proud, just as I expect of my son," said Fugaku.
"Now it's time for the true reunion," said Kabuto as he prepared to drive two kunai with special tags into the backs of Sasuke's parents. Sasuke suddenly lunged forward, trying desperately to grab the kunai. He managed to get one out of Kabuto's grip, but the other plunged into Fugaku's back and his eyes became blank before his Sharingan activated.
"YOU BASTARD!" yelled Sasuke before he drove his foot into Kabuto's stomach, sending him crashing backwards. The now zombie Fugaku backhanded Sasuke away from Kabuto, striding forward to kill the boy. Fugaku's Sharingan never left Sasuke, paralyzing the younger Uchiha with his hypnotic gaze even as Fugaku, ducked under Naruto's axe kick and sent the fox boy flying into Hinata. Kudora was quickly leading the prisoners out of the arena with Tayuya covering her, but neither of them could move fast enough to save Sasuke as Fugaku's fist was covered in flames and he lunged forward to ram his blazing fist through Sasuke's chest. However, a black blur intercepted the blow and Sasuke could only stare in shock as Mikoto took the blow meant for him and wrapped her arms around Fugaku to hold him in place.
"Sasuke, finish him off!" yelled Mikoto as she struggled to keep her possessed husband from killing her son.
With tears in his eyes, Sasuke quickly formed the seals for his new Raiton jutsu. "Raigekidan (Thunder Attack Bullet)!" yelled Sasuke before he launched a giant ball of electricity at his parents that reduced them to ash.
Kabuto cursed as his minions were destroyed so easily and beat a hasty retreat through a secret passage to warn Orochimaru. Naruto rested a hand on Sasuke's shoulder as the Uchiha boy stared at his mother's mask, the only thing that survived the attack since it was a ceramic mask. Both boys looked up as they heard Tayuya's flute start to play, a sweet sound that brought to mind mothers tucking in their children, cooking in the kitchen, and singing lullabies to put them to sleep. A bright light appeared above the ashes of Fugaku and Mikoto, causing everyone to stare in shock as it slowly formed into Mikoto, who looked very confused, especially since she clearly remembered being incinerated by Sasuke's last jutsu.
"Nakihaha saisei (Dead Mother Rebirth), a technique used by my clan to bring back a mother who has just died saving their child, usually in birth or natural disasters," said Tayuya softly as she lowered her flute.
"I'm alive?" gasped Mikoto. The next thing she knew Sasuke had his arms around her and was crying tears of joy. "My son," she whispered before tears started leaking out of her eyes. Mikoto then embraced Tayuya. "Thank you, you've made my greatest wish come true," she said to the red head.
"Mikoto-san, can you help Nee-chan and Kudora-chan escort these people out of here? We have to go after Kabuto," said Naruto.
"Of course I will Naruto, just be careful," said Mikoto before she joined Tayuya and Kudora in escorting the former prisoners. Those that couldn't walk were being carried by tigers summoned by Kudora as well as the wolves Mikoto summoned. The wolves were overjoyed to see their mistress again and happy to help.
"Come on, we've got to catch that bastard!" said Naruto as he lead his team down the corridor Kabuto had taken. The three ran after the silver haired medic, Naruto's nose allowing them to keep move at high speeds and stay on the right track while Hinata's Byakugan would warn them of any traps. They finally reached a new room that had a single building blocking their way. It looked a lot like a dojo to the trio and they entered it carefully. Scrolls bearing the words The Strong Live and the Weak Die lined the walls as well as scrolls bearing paintings of fire that seemed to move while a single figure waited at the other side of the building, guarding the only way forward. Large lanterns in each corner of the building illuminated the room, but cast no light onto the waiting figure.
"Three children? These are the ones that had Kabuto so scared?" said the figure as he stepped into the light to reveal a man whose whole body was covered in bandages and wearing a blue yukata with one arm hanging free.
"We may look young to you, but we've seen our share of battles to the death!" exclaimed Naruto.
"Such spirit. Maybe the three of you can give Makoto Shishio a good fight," said the man as the lanterns in the corners of the building flared up.
I'm sorry for the delay in this chapter, I've been dealing with college and working more hours during the weekends. Please don't just beg me to update, I take my time to give you readers the best I can offer. Next chapter will be crammed full of fights, including the climactic battle for this story!