The Untold Prophecy

by fanwriter10101

Everyone has a destiny. Some are destined to live a simple life, others to be great leaders, and then there are those destined to change the fate of an entire galaxy. But destiny is only the endgame, it is the journey to that endgame that defines who we are. Most are content bound to their fates, but some are determined to create their own path.

25. Independence Day

Hello all! How are you all doing on this fine day? Partying hard? BBQs? Well happy 4th of July! And to celebrate it I present you this fine chapter! One of our longer ones that you guys seem to enjoy! Now I know some of you will read this chapter and see…Sasuke…yp, and I know you're gonna be pissed, but just read on. Cause he isn't there to take the spotlight. There are actual reasons for him being here. So just keep reading! That's all I ask. With that, I hope you all have a great day and enjoy this chapter!

Grand Convocation Chamber, Coruscant

Senators and various media groups had filled the Senate Rotunda to capacity on this day in particular. It wasn't every day a high-ranking Jedi General was being put on trial, let alone the General of a whole army and a war hero. Outside the Senate building there were protestors, many of which could claim ancestry from the Mid Rim worlds that Naruto had been fighting to save for the past few months. The Senatorial Guards were not equipped for such a large number of protestors, but they managed to keep the peace through sheer numbers.

"Order!" Mas Amedda called out, silencing everyone as they all turned their attention to the Chancellor. Palpatine cleared his throat as he stood up.

"The trial of Jedi General Naruto Uzumaki shall now proceed!" Amedda announced as Naruto was brought forth on a large pod with two Jedi Temple guards behind him. They weren't the only ones as many other Jedi were watching him from many different locations within the chamber. Master Windu himself was also watching, making sure nothing went wrong and to observe Naruto's behaviors. Despite having passed the sentence to expel him, Windu was still uncertain of Naruto's guilt.

"Perhaps through this trial we shall see if he is truly guilty." Windu thought as he watched the Senate proceedings with narrowed eyes. Nothing about this situation had felt right to him, and even after testing Naruto - expelling him - even after his first trial, nothing was falling into place except for the fact that Naruto was either the worst and most heartless traitor in Republic history, or that someone was trying to silence him for good.

"Naruto Uzumaki, you are accused of treason against the Galactic Republic and her peoples. You are brought here today, before it's representatives, to stand trial for your crimes. How do you plead." Palpatine questioned Naruto, who looked at him stoically.

"Not guilty." He responded as everyone muttered. Palpatine raised his hand but this failed to quiet the murmurs. Amedda slammed his staff into the floor of his platform, and the echoing thud put a stop to the chatter. Palpatine put on the facade of a sad smile as he brought forth the evidence against the blond, to which Naruto didn't even bat an eye.

Onboard the Spearhead

Aboard his personal Star Destroyer, Ross walked through the halls, heading to the hangar bay. What he was about to do, what they were all about to do, would brand them as traitors to the Republic. A brand which had no expiration date. Every single one of them knew the weight of their actions, and they were fine with it. They would rather betray the Republic than their brother-in-arms.

"I assume everything is ready?" Ross questioned as he entered the hanger bay to find King, Blitz, Fang, Flash, Fox, and Stoic, all wearing custom Mandalorian armor of various coloring and design.

"Ready as we'll ever be." King stated before putting on his helmet, with a bold red stripe painted around the visor, as Ross nodded before turning his attention to the bounty hunter.

"Can someone tell me why we're wearing this armor again? I mean don't get me wrong, it's a lot more comfortable than that crap the longnecks gave us, but I'm not the biggest fan of white on durasteel grey. Doesn't match my colorful personality." Fang joked about his dull color scheme. The sloppily painted white streaks looked out of place.

"If you go in wearing your regular armor, the entire Galaxy will immediately know who you are, Coruscant will be on lockdown to prevent other Clones from joining in on your little jailbreak. Also can't go in without a helmet since you all have the same Clone face. So this is the solution. Uzumaki is hero-worshipped on Mandalore, it would make sense that Mandalorian radicals would break him out. No one would bat an eye." Said their hired help from the corner of the hangar. He was standing there with a young boy, about ten years old, that looked just like the younger generations of Clones. Was this the "son" of their father, Jango?

"So, he's the one that fought Uzumaki to a standstill?" Ross thought as the bounty hunter approached them carrying a state-of-the-art BlasTech EE-26 carbine. Ross couldn't help but think it looked like one of those ancient ballistic rifles, the kind that fired metal projectiles instead of blaster bolts. Guess the company was trying to bring back that retro design. He was wearing the same darkened durasteel-colored Mandalorian armor as everyone else, albeit more heavily painted with dark blue but it had much less plating than the others. The shoulder pauldrons replaced by two bandolier straps, with a thermal detonator and a vibroknife at the ready.

Ross eyed the bounty hunter up and down, revealing more subtle details about the man's customized armor. His arms and legs were almost completely uncovered, with only the wrists and knees being armored, revealing ample amounts of his black bodysuit, as well as the high tensile cinch straps to give him better balance while crouching and two drop-leg sheaths that contained another vibroknife and a modified DT-29 heavy blaster. He was very confident, but well equipped. The belt and holsters around his waist likely held various tools and weapons.

But the feature that drew Ross' attention wasn't his jetpack equipped with a small missile, or the custom vibrosword strapped along the small of his back, it was his helmet. His normally black visor would occasionally glow with a red tint, likely some sort of advanced tactical HUD that probably cost several thousand credits to install. The alternating color meshed eerily with the paint outlining the eyes - a darker, heavier red. Almost the shade of blood. Sharply drawn white triangles followed the outline, giving his masked visage a fierce look, almost like he was staring into your soul. He had other red and white accents throughout his blue and grey armor, and even a strange white and red circular symbol on his back and forehead, but his visor was more intricately detailed than the rest of his outfit combined.

"It's now or never, sir." The bounty hunter stated to his boss respectfully as everyone nodded. Ross wasn't paying for things, but he was put in charge by the Senator that was, which made him a VIP. Ross and the Captains made their final peace with leaving the Republic for good, as there would be no turning back once they boarded Slave I.

"You're coming too? You know it's going to get a little hectic down there." Blitz questioned from behind his subtly but neatly blue-painted armor, but Ross shook his head.

"No, I'll be sitting this one out. I might not slack on my basic training, but the Senatorial Guard is a bit too much for me. I'm going to be stealing my own money back, and for that I need to hack into a financial systems terminal on Coruscant. Just drop me off near the banking sector." Ross stated. After they liberate Naruto they would need money. Ross had that, but the Republic was insistent on keeping it from him until after Naruto's trial.

"That wasn't part of the deal. My only job is to break out Uzumaki, nothing more." The Bounty Hunter protested. Extra work costs extra.

"Your payment was transferred into my account to keep suspicion off of our benefactor. So if you want to get paid, you'd better do as you're told, bounty hunter." Ross commanded fearlessly. The bounty hunter turned around in an instant and Ross could feel him glaring at him intensely through his equally intense red visor. Ross' demeanor quickly changed and the bounty hunter backed off.

"I'd better get paid in full after this, plus an extra five hundred for this little road trip addendum. If not, it's you I'm coming for you next. Bounty hunters don't do anything for free." The Admiral nodded with a slight gulp as the ship slowly lifted before exiting the hanger of the Star Destroyer.

"Operation Lights-out is a go." the green-clad Fox spoke into his transmitter. Toad, in temporary command aboard Ross' Star Destroyer, would now be ready at any given moment. It had a part of its own to play, but for now it would stay on high alert until the time came for it to arrive at Coruscant. When dealing with matters of treason it was better to be over prepared than not prepared enough.

Their destination wasn't far, as Ross had his Star Destroyer move into a nearby system. His reason for redeploying his flagship was simple; maintenance. Given that he was the highest authority in the 10th Army as of now, it was rather simple to pull strings along and see to it that his ship was scheduled for repairs. No flags would be raised if a ship scheduled to arrive just so happened to show up during a high priority jailbreak. They were two completely unrelated events, and that falsehood would be obvious to anyone. At least anyone in the CHDF. They weren't the brightest bunch in the Navy and the dots wouldn't connect until it was too late

Of course they would definitely realize the duplicity when a dozens of Star Destroyers and other smaller ships start to hyperspace in and open fire on the garrison fleet, but by then the planetary shield would be down and Naruto would be safely aboard the Spearhead, ready and waiting to jump into hyperspace.

"Remind me again why he's coming along? He wasn't in the plan." Flash, his armor accented with gold, questioned as he sat in his seat. The bounty hunter turned to the Clones.

"Six guys wasn't enough to break into the Senate building on high alert. We'll need at least seven. Initially I had wanted to get another bounty hunter - you might know him, Cad Bane - to work with us. But given that the target is wanted by most of the Galaxy's criminal underbelly, he declined the offer and my second... third, fourth, fifth... and any and all of my choices went out the window very quickly. So your buddy here is coming along instead. Besides, this means I don't have to share a cut of the take." The bounty hunter stated as Stoic looked at him, well, stoically, behind his armor that was practically smeared head to toe in black paint.

"Why are you helping us if this mission is so unbelievably dangerous?" Stoic questioned. If bounty hunter had wanted the General dead at one point, then why was this man helping them now - when it was the most dangerous time to go after Naruto?

"Because you're paying me almost as much as I've earned in the past year for this job. Besides, if you lot anything as good as I hear, sparky, we'll cut Senate security to ribbons." The bounty hunter responded. Stoic's brow furled in annoyance at his new nickname.

That had better not stick.

He could tell the bounty hunter was telling the truth, though, but Stoic suspected he had other reasons as well. The history between him and Uzumaki was...complicated, to say the least.

Ahsoka Scene, With Yoda

Ahsoka Tano walked the Temple halls with her head hung low. After the debacle in the prison, she had been reprimanded harshly and let off with a stern warning. She felt helpless. Not just because she couldn't get through to Naruto, but because she was bombarded with several visions during her trial on Ilum, and she was hoping to have her many questions answered before everything started to fall apart with Naruto's alleged treason. In their brief meeting, Naruto seemed to recognize the village she saw, but how exactly? Why? And what did these visions mean for her specifically?

If Naruto wouldn't give her any answers, then there was one Jedi who all others turned to in times of confusion.

Grand Master Yoda.

Ahsoka had set a time to meet with him and she was on her way now to seek his guidance. As she stepped into the darkened room, Ahsoka began meditating to pass the time. She had tried reaching out to the Force several times before, but it failed to give her any answers. Instead of continuing to waste effort on it, she meditated on the Force in general. Perhaps it would indirectly answer her questions

"Master Yoda?" She questioned as someone entered the room. Yoda responded with a hum as he walked to his chair. He sat there, meditating like her, something he had been doing a lot since Naruto was expelled from the Order. Naruto was another one of Yoda's students who had supposedly betrayed the Order. It most likely extracted a heavy toll on the old Jedi Master considering his own Padawan, Dooku, had also betrayed the Order.

"Uhh, Master?" Ahsoka asked, but Yoda remained silent. She had hoped that Yoda would give insight to what she had witnessed given that she was having a hard time understanding them herself. But he seemed more distraught than her. She was about to get up and leave him to his privacy, but finally he opened his eyes.

"Questions, do you not have, of the visions you saw in the crystal caves?" Yoda questioned as Ahsoka nodded before she took a seat, cursing her lack of patience.

"Yes…it's about that. I saw...burning villages, war, lots of dead Mandalorians…Well, I don't know if they're Mandalorian, but they were wearing Mandalorian clothing. Anyways, there was a pale-skinned woman with this freaky red eye on her forehead - she looked like a rabbit - at the center of it all." Ahsoka started to go into the details of what she had seen, recalling them as if she was there. Yoda in the meanwhile thought over what she was describing. Had she seen visions of Naruto's home world? If so, what did Mandalorians have to do with it? And who was this woman she was talking about?

"Master Yoda?" He was broken out of his thoughts by Ahsoka once more as she looked at him for answers.

"Visions of the future, they might be. Always in motion is the Force. Seen young Naruto's world, I believe you have. Of Mandalorian descent, are his people." Yoda responded. He did not know if these visions were from the past or the future, nothing was certain with the Force, especially when it involved the blond Jedi.

"Wha- really? Naruto's a Mandalorian?" Ahsoka frowned. She too thought over what Yoda said. So it was Naruto's world, but what about all the carnage and war? Yoda saw the frustrated look on the young Jedi would-be and stood up.

"His determination I see in others from Mandalore." Yoda revealed the truth of Naruto's heritage to Ahsoka. To be honest, he wasn't certain of it himself, but these were the conclusions that Naruto had come to.

"Are you saying his world was like a colony back in the day? When the Mandalorians were still resorting to their conquering ways?" Ahsoka asked another question.

"Likely, this is. Mandalore, had an Empire once, it did. Not near the grandeur of the Republic, but deep into the unknown regions, it could have stretched." Yoda didn't know, the extent of Mandalore's colonies was lost to history.

"I think that this vision must have been of the past then. Naruto told me that his world had computers and television, but the Mandalorians and the other species they were almost completely agrarian.

"Others, you say?"

"Yeah... there were Zabrak and a family of half-Twi'leks. A devaronian or two and even a handful of Nautolans. They were in Mandalorian armor too. It was adjusted to accommodate their, uh, differing physiologies." Ahsoka thought back.

Yoda hummed at that. There were definitely no Zabrak or Twi'lek on the planet when he arrived, but the planet had its share of oddities. Perhaps Naruto's people were not purely Mandalorian. Unless this wasn't Naruto's world, but he didn't want to discard all the progress made here today. It was more important that Ahsoka be calmed and at peace rather than know the whole truth.

"So...who was that woman?"

"Meditate on this, you must. Have an idea, I do not." Yoda washed his hands of the problem. There was nothing he could do for her on that front, causing Ahsoka to raise an eyebrow.

"Then, onto the second vision?" Ahsoka asked, only continuing when Yoda nodded.

"This was of a village with Stone faces carved into the side of a mountain. Naruto seemed to recognize it when, I, uh, spoke to him." Ahsoka scratched her head in a bit of shame.

"His home, this is. Born in this place, he was." Ahsoka's theories were confirmed.

"You've seen it, haven't you? When you went to convince Naruto to join us." Yoda hummed with a nod. "Then this must be from the future. Unless there were more than four faces on the wall when you were there." Ahsoka thought back.

"Leaders of his village, they have been. When young Naruto, I met, four stone faces there were still."

"Then there's still time to save his village before whoever that was destroys it. Master Yoda, do you think that I could go there sometime?" Ahsoka requested, but Yoda shook his head.

"Perhaps, one day, but not now. First, to the Outer Rim you must go. There you will find your new Master." Yoda answered as he started to hobble out of his room. Perhaps strolling the Temple would provide some sort of refreshment. Ahsoka wanted to protest but knew it would be no use. Naruto was most likely going to be convicted by the Senate and could no longer be her Master. Sighing, she too left the room to catch up to him. He had gotten further than she expected for someone using a cane.

"Master Yoda, you never said which planet he was on... or even what his name was." Ahsoka asked.

Yoda merely hummed chipperly in response.

Onboard Slave I, Coruscant Lower Levels

"We're here." the bounty hunter stated as the ship exited out of hyperspace, approaching the capital of the Republic. Everyone put themselves on high alert. The ship quickly made its way to its first destination, the banking sector, to drop off Ross. Ross still had some connections with the paroled members of old pirate crews that he'd subjugated, that gave him the meants to go behind the Republic's back and enter their financial systems without anyone knowing. At least until it was too late.

"I should get the job done fast. Make sure you do yours, men." Ross stated as he was dropped off. Fox nodded; he would see done what they set out to do. Slave I's boarding ramp closed as the ship ascended back into the hectic skyline and began circling around the governance sector, looking for an inconspicuous place to land.

"Whoa, check that out, there are protests all around the Senate building. People really love the General." Fang stated as he looked at the protestors, dissenters, and the news crews trying to get interviews from anybody worth more than a hundred thousand credits.

"That's good. We can use the protesters as a distraction to stealthy insert ourselves into the building." King stated as he pulled out a holodisk and turned it on to slow a hologram of the Senate building.

"The Grand Concourse will be filled with Senate guards and all halls leading to the main chamber will be watched by trained Jedi. Counting the total, there's no less than a hundred Jedi in the Senate building right now. Most of them are just Padawans - rookies at that, but there are a few Knights and, well...Masters Windu and Shaak Ti are overseeing the trial personally." King stated as everyone nodded. Getting in would be easy with a distraction already on hand but getting inside the man chamber would be the real deal.

"That's why we're gonna use the ventilation shafts to get to the top of the chamber before throwing a flash grenade to blind everyone and springing the General out." Fox reminded as the bounty hunter looked at him confused.

"One grenade won't be enough. The Senate Rotunda is a tenth of a kilometer tall. The effective range on those is only about twenty meters." The bounty hunter stated as Fang chuckled. Clearly he was unfamiliar with the tactics of the 497th.

"That's why we brought more than one." Fang stated as he tapped his satchel. He had nearly a dozen in his and Stoic was carrying plenty too. The bounty hunter could only stare at the troopers with a mix of humorous disbelief. These Clones were…unique compared to the others he had encountered. Shaking his head, he set the ship down in one of the deeper levels of the city. From there, they would have to make their way to the Senate building on foot. Their trek did not stop their in-depth discussion of the plan, though.

"Once we're inside the Rotunda, Red will be on Jedi duty with me." the bounty hunter said, gesturing to King. "In particular, we should be watching out for Windu or Ti. The rest of you should only engage the Jedi in groups of two or more. Our first priority is to free Uzumaki and get him a weapon. I'll feel a lot more comfortable about this whole thing once we have him fighting on our side."

"Heh, I do wish Storm was here." Fang lamented, his brother and rival was one tough nut. A Padawan would certainly have some trouble taking him down in close combat.

"Aww, you do care." Flash teased. Fang nudged his elbow pad into Flash's bodysuit, the sharp angle causing him to wince in a moderate amount of pain before continuing the walk forward.

"Eugh, I hate this place." Blitz complained with a masked scowl. He had been to one of these lower levels and they were filled with the scum of the universe. However he shuddered to think what was at the lowest level of this planet-wide city was like, considering there were more than five thousand levels.

"We won't be here for long." Fang stated as he jumped into an airspeeder's driving seat while everyone looked at him as his hand disassembled itself into wires and began to start up the speeder. Finishing the job in just a handful of seconds he looked up at them.

"What?" He questioned them, wondering if something was wrong.

"That speeder belongs to someone, you know." Fang shrugged in response as Stoic jumped onboard with his snarky comment.

"What we're about to do is gonna make us traitors to the Republic for life and your worried about stealing some random speeder?" Fang questioned as King chuckled before he too jumped aboard.

"Well, he's right about that. Let's go!" the Bounty Hunter stated. It was a tight fit, but everyone was secure in the speeder as they set off. They had a job to do and the sooner the better.

Coruscant, Lower Levels

Ross walked around before he reached a small bar located in the lower levels of the city. Entering the bar, he quickly sat down in the of the many vacant seats. He quickly ordered a drink as he looked around before he started to drink. Right behind him someone sat down as well and ordered a drink as well.

"Didn't think you of all people would show up late." Ross heard the man speak as Ross took a sip, keeping his eyes forward.

"Sorry, and obviously I don't have time to catch up. Do you have what I need?" Ross questioned as the man started gulp down his drink as he stood up.

"Yes." The man said as he reached into his pocket and started to leave, but in addition to leaving his bill, he dropped something; a credit chip. "It has a tapeworm program so it's totally untraceable, it'll take them at least a few days to figure it out and by then you should have all that you need." Ross smirked as he grabbed the chip.

"Thanks. Your debt is settled." Ross stated as he finished his drink as well and waited for a few minutes before leaving. He had many contacts throughout the galaxy, people he knew prior to the Clone Wars. Some were old colleagues from his time in the Navy, others were the people he locked up during his time in the Navy. They had talents that he knew he would want to make use of one day, so he conveniently let them get away. Of course, not before getting a full profile on them to use as blackmail for later.

Bank of the Core

Ross wasted no time in walking up to one of the tellers in the bank. This needed to happen before word of Naruto's escape got out. They would probably suspend all financial services

"I would like to make a withdrawal." Ross started as the teller looked up at him from behind her computer as Ross pulled out a credit chip and slide it through the slot in the plasteel. The teller picked up the card and with one look could tell who her client was.

"You know I can't do that, sir. Your accounts are frozen and being monitored." The teller responded in a bit of a frustrated sing-song voice. This was the fifth time Ross had come here in the last week to try and withdraw credits, but Ross smirked and simply pointed at the card.

"Just swipe the card." Ross stated as the teller looked down at the card before swiping it, but all the computer showed was a denied message.

"Like I said, your assets are frozen. This card won't work." The teller stated but Ross only chuckled as he took his card back.

"Don't worry, you already did your part. I'll do the rest" Ross stated as he walked away and exited the bank before heading into a small restaurant and sitting down to begin his work. Pulling out a datapad and combining it with a typing peripheral, he smirked as he saw his plan already in motion. The card she had swiped contained a code that would allow him access to the inner workings of the bank's systems. Now he just had to bypass the last few bits of security and transfer his credits to a private bank not connected to the Republic in a major way.

"Why don't we leave a surprise for some of those pompous Senators as well." Ross stated. He was sure that they wouldn't miss a few million credits from their accounts. Not like it mattered because they probably didn't know where their dirty credits came from anyways.

"Let's hope things are going well on the other side." Ross stated as he looked at the news broadcast. The trial itself was being heavily guarded, but the Republic had a view of the ongoing proceedings through a broadcasting droid, but people weren't interested in the bureaucracy, so the majority of what they were getting was just the commentator's conjecture of the countless protesters outside the Senate building.

Coruscant, Outside the Senate Building

Things were going as well as they had hoped. They had approached the Senate building without being detected, not like they would have been given that there were protesters everywhere and this was the Capital of the Republic, defended by a whole Fleet, the Senate had full confidence that Coruscant would never be attacked. It hadn't been in one thousand years, why would it now?

"How are we going to get in?" Blitz questioned. For now they had brown robs on as to conceal their weapons and armor, but that wouldn't allow them to get past the security. Fang smirked as he pulled out a small bag.

"With this." Fang stated as Blitz looked at him, confused.

"A bag?" Blitz questioned as Fang chuckled.

"No, with what's inside the bag, ya fool." Fang responded as he opened to reveal about a dozen or so rocks.

"A few stones? Really?" Blitz looked at him, dumbfounded. This was the master plan of the infiltration company captain?

"Look around you. This is a protest. They are a living diversion that we need. We throw some rocks at the guards until they get pissed and start moving on the people. Then the people get pissed and they start throwing stuff themselves and before you know it's an all-out violent protest." Fang said as he picked up a rock and threw it right at one of the guards. Who did nothing initially, but they could see he tensed his hold on his weapon.

"Do it." King ordered as they all began chucking rocks at the guards. Less than a minute later, the guards began to move in. The protestors reacted accordingly with being threatened. Preoccupied by the rioters, guards were lured from their posts within the building in an attempt to suppress the violence, allowing the rogue Captains the time they needed to sneak into the building.

Grand Convocation Chamber

Naruto narrowed his eyes as he glanced around the Senate chambers. Almost any one of these Senators could be the enemy. Nearly any one of them could have staged it all, but why? What would motivate them? Had he wronged them somehow? All he ever did was protect people who couldn't protect themselves. Actually, now that he thought about it, that was probably it. The ultra wealthy made their living off of exploiting those who couldn't protect themselves.

"All the evidence that has been thus far laid out has pointed towards your guilt. Although, one quesiton remains. Why would you betray the Republic? The Jedi? You have nothing to gain by joining the Separatists." Palpatine questioned him as Naruto turned to gaze at the highest-ranking official of the Republic. Could it be that it was Palpatine behind all this?

"That's impossible. He sits at the top. If he wanted me gone it would have happened long ago. Someone else is pulling the strings. Someone high in the Republic's military command." He thought. While Palpatine was the highest-ranking military official, he wasn't the only candidate. There was only so much an old man in Coruscant can do when there was a galactic war. There was a conspiracy against him, and no one was believe him.

"For the last time; I did not betray the Republic or the Jedi." Naruto responded with the same answer as before. This trial was just being dragged on to make it seem as if it's fair trial. It was all a farce.

"But as the evidence clearly-" Palpatine started by Naruto cut him off.

"The evidence is bullshit. Can't you see? The courts could, why can't all of you? This trial, this war, this is all part of a greater conspiracy to destroy the Republic! To remove me from command and to stall the Republic to prolong the war. Do you know what happens in war? People die. People suffer. People get desperate. They start to look to options they never even considered before. While you sit there and judge me as a traitor to the Republic, its true enemies plot to destroy it from within. Are you so blind as to become a puppet of this enemy, Palpatine?!" Naruto questioned Palpatine, who frowned, but on the inside he was seething with anger.

"How dare this upstart boy think that I'm the puppet?! I'll show him who's the puppet!" Palpatine thought. He had composed this war. He had orchestrated everything from the shadows. He had killed his Master to achieve what the Sith couldn't for a thousand years. And he was the de facto leader of both the Republic and the Separatist Alliance. He was the chessmaster, not the pawn. Sensing the end of the trial was drawing near, Naruto took a moment to speak directly to the broadcasting droid.

"Please listen, people of the Republic, those of you who are experiencing this war firsthand. I've been there, I've seen your struggle throughout the mid and outer rims! This war doesn't need to be yours." Naruto pleaded to the masses, hoping that he could, in his last moments free, at least save some from the fates he had seen across the galaxy. "You're the people, you ultimately get to make the decisions, right? Well, it's time to make the most important decision of your lives. It's time to leave the Republic before it's too late and there's not a shred of democracy left to be had in this festering hellhole that we call a Senate." There was a round of boos from the Core worlds and Corporate sector Senators to no one's surprise. A loud thud echoed throughout the chamber.

"Silence! The accused will not speak unless spoken to by- Order!" Mas Amedda attempted to salvage the situation with subsequent calls to order, but it was too late. The Senate was in an uproar, but Naruto felt he had one last bit to say before he was lost in the roar of the crowd.

"Not every Senator is guilty of corruption, but the ones that are are guilty to the greatest degree! There are those within the Senate plotting the downfall of the Republic. The downfall of freedom and democracy. The downfall of the Jedi order and of myself. You can't escape them from within the Republic, but you can escape them outside of it." With that, the Senate descended into total chaos. Mace couldn't help but imagine the situation outside, which he had been informed had turned violent a couple minutes ago.

"That's enough of the charade." Naruto spoke to the Senate one last time. "Just kill me and be done with it." The blond was content that he may have at least saved a handful of people from the conflict. Palpatine paled, but not in fear like Naruto thought, but in rage. Even in defeat, this boy was grating on his last nerves. Oh, he would kill him alright. He would visit him in a very secluded cell and make sure that he knew the true power of the Dark side.

As the trial kept dragging on in part to the efforts of a small, but now extremely vocal minority of Senators farther from the who spoke tales of Naruto's heroism, Mace Windu kept observing Naruto intently. His last outburst had merit, even though it was buried under frustration. Naruto was by all accounts a war hero and the people loved him, if the rioting outside told him anything.

"One thing's for sure. I sense a plot to destroy the Jedi. I get the feeling that Naruto is just the first of many." He thought as he stroked his chin and looked down over to Shaak Ti, who was conversing with a Jedi - a Besalisk named Pong Krell, if he recalled correctly - who looked trouble and was seeking her council. She had always suspected such a plot after Qui-Gon was killed by Darth Maul and after what Dooku had told Obi-Wan. While Obi-Wan and most others had dismissed it as Dooku playing with their heads, Shaak Ti did not, and now Windu was beginning to feel the same way. The two of them took the Sith threat far more seriously than anyone else on the Council and it was time to start poking around the Senate to see if he could ruffle the spiders from their nests.

"I believe it is time that we come to a decision." Mace was broken out of his thoughts as the Chancellor announced that a verdict was to be passed down. Naruto sighed as he looked up at the Chancellor during the collection of votes. They wouldn't believe him, not one bit. Even if they somehow did, it was definite that the voting machines would be rigged. Someone wanted him gone and it would seem that they would achieve their goal after all.

"General Naruto Uzumaki, for your crimes against the Republic, you have been –" The Chancellor didn't get to finish as a couple dozen metal orbs began to freefall from the ceiling vent. Mace recognized them and immediately moved to cover his eyes, but it was too late. Palpatine sneered in realization when a series of thunderous explosions of bright white light occurred all around the chamber, rendering the entire rotunda blinded and deafened, at least temporarily. Naruto himself was disoriented, but he had seen them coming first and was able to cover his eyes fully. He still couldn't hear like the others, but his vision was mostly unimpaired.

"What's going on?" He questioned despite being unable to listen to his own words. Searching around the room, he looked up to see six figures rappelling down towards him taking aim at the Temple Guards behind him. A seventh equipped with a jetpack landed on the edge of the pod and was surveying the room carefully. Naruto thought that they were the enemy, here to finish him off in a display of dramatic overkill, but to his surprise they didn't attack him.

The one with white paint said something that Naruto's deafened ears only registered as muffles, but he did notice that had a prosthetic arm. Naruto's eyes widened. Realizing who the man in front of him was, he turned to him. Looking at the one in red's weapons, he recognized them immediately as well. For a few seconds, Naruto just looked around the room at the incapacitated Senators, standing silently.

Naruto thought it over quickly, and finally decided that he would not fall victim to the judgement of the corrupt Senate after all. He always knew deep down he still had work left to do. There were still ways to save the Republic.

And this was basically the job offer of a lifetime.

Naruto's eyes locked on who he was certain was King, and he raised his bound arms into the air. King quickly cut his restraints with a swing of his vibroknives.

The Jedi guards were still disoriented, which meant they still had time. Which meant that they had a chance escape. Naruto used the Force to jump from pod to pod, quickly reaching the top levels. He located Master Windu, who had elected to keep Naruto's lightsaber on his person for safekeeping.

That would prove to be a mistake on his part.

Windu had recovered quickly and gotten to his feet just in time to see Naruto jump in front of him and pull the weapon from his belt with the Force. Windu raised his defenses and was ready to block the inevitable Force Push with his Force wall, but it didn't come. Instead, it was Naruto himself who did charging forward. His fist raised to knock out the Jedi Master with brute force rather than the metaphysical one. Mace went to draw his lightsaber almost too quickly. He still had time, and if he reacted quickly enough he could -

Mace suddenly felt everything in the galaxy screaming at him to stop. To not defend himself. Was this the Force? Or was it a result of his own logical conclusions? He didn't have time to answer himself when he felt his consciousness fade away with a dull thud.

Naruto stood over the Korun Jedi Master with his still deactivated weapon in hand. He was somewhat confused, he was certain that Mace was going to raise his defenses in time but it never came to pass. Naruto didn't have time to ponder, so he left his old ally on the floor with four words.

"Forgive me, Master Windu."

Naruto began leaping back down the rotunda, it should have taken much less time than going up, but Naruto ran into an unexpected face on his way down. Her brown hair and eyes. Her simple, but elegant regalia.

It was Senator Padme Amidala. He stared at her for a moment, and she stared back in shock. Naruto chose not to waste any more time dwelling on the past and continued his descent. Padme watched him leave the rotunda at the lowest floor as her dumbfounded look turned into a warm smile.

Senate Building, Grand Concourse

It didn't take long for Jedi and Senate Commandos to quickly react and begin blocking off all the exits and hallways with armed guards.

"Guess we will have to fight our way out." King stated as he pulled out his two twin vibroblades, while everyone else brought out their blasters and Naruto his saber.

"Let's do this." The seventh figure stated as Naruto narrowed his eyes. This was the bounty hunter that he had fought with all those years ago. Shaking his head, he realized that escape was a more pressing matter than getting even. So he turned to the wall of Senate Guards ahead, which were being backed by a Jedi. They began to open fire, but Naruto, who had fought in many battles and many different opponents, easily deflected back as his group returned fire.

"We've got Jedi on our rear!" Blitz shouted. The two Jedi that were assigned to guard Naruto had come to and were intent on not letting their charge go.

"Orders, sir?" King questioned, knowing what he was asking Naruto. Never had they fought against a Jedi. King had trained with Naruto, and they had faced Dark Side disciples, yes, but never Jedi. Naruto couldn't think clearly, but the Bounty hunter made the decision for him as he broke off and leapt back towards the two Jedi. Naruto didn't exactly see him turn around, but he heard the sound of the wind rippling against his loose bodysuit. The blue-armored hunter drew his vibroblade in mid-air and decapitated the two Jedi instantly with one fell swoop of his blade. He jumped to the wall and used it to launch himself back forward to catch up with the rest of the group, the sound of metal grating as he sheathed his blade and took unclipped his rifle from the magnetic loop on his belt.

"What the hell?! Daaamn, and I thought I was fast." Flash was beyond impressed with the bounty hunter's speed, he was downright jealous. Naruto braced for the feeling of regret, but it did not come. The Order had abandoned him to the wolves. Why show them mercy now? With that realization, he came to a decision, one that would no doubt have him removed from the Order for good. Turning to King, he muttered the condemning three words.

"Aim to kill." Naruto ordered. He was done with the Order the second they decided to expel him. King nodded in approval as he moved to engage in-combat with the squad blue-armored Senate Commandos ahead, Blitz followed in close pursuit. This was a battle for survival, there was no time for sympathy. Naruto and the others kept moving forward, even after passing the Clone's struggle. The found a group of Senate guards, but this one seems to have been part of the main force outside called back to stop them.

"Naruto." Naruto heard the voice of the bounty hunter behind him to his left, ranging his EE-26. Naruto was curious how he the man knew his name, but figured that King and the others had probably told. Naruto nodded, realizing the bounty hunter's plan as he slowed his advance and switched to a counteroffensive tactic, blocking the barrage of blaster bolts and sending back what he could with a dedicated Form V Shien defense. The bounty hunter's visor turned red as he aimed his rifle and began firing in the limited openings that Naruto provided, hitting his targets dead on through the whirling blue glow of Naruto's blade. The two kept this up as they pushed further and further towards the group until Naruto switched to Form I, cutting down what was left. Just when they relaxed, a Jedi sprung from a hallway and leapt towards them. Naruto ignited his saber to defend, but the Jedi was quickly shot in the head from the side by the one with armor smeared in black.

"That's some fancy shooting for a lowlife bounty hunter like yourself." Naruto recognized the deadeye accuracy and subtle differences in inflection as belonging to Stoic. "I thought I was the best marksmen on this team." Stoic spun his DC-15S back into his holster, and the bounty hunter only replied with a two-fingered salute of respect. He was right to bring along Sparky. Had Naruto defended too hastily, the Jedi just might have switched targets.

At that moment, King and Blitz came up from behind in a blur of grey, red, and blue. A quartet of Jedi stepped out between the two groups and tried to stop them, but they weren't prepared to be met head on by the two Clones. Naruto immediately moved to assist, but was surprised to find that Blitz was holding his own against the youngest, probably a Padawan. Naruto did, however, take the attention of one of the Knights away from King. He was no match for Naruto's superior skills and was quickly disarmed and pushed hard into the wall and knocked unconscious. Naruto looked back to see King blocking the incoming strikes from the two Jedi, a Knight and his Padawan, before he kicked one of them away and used his free blade to finish the other one off.

"Well, if you weren't a traitor before, you definitely are now." Fang stated as Naruto nodded. The Republic would hunt them down for what they do here.

"Come on, lets go." Naruto stated as they all began to move out.

"If we're lucky most of the security forces should be at the Senate Chambers making sure that the Senators are safe. The only resistance we should run into from here out are Planetary Security, Senate Commandos, and maybe a few Jedi. With the chaos outside there shouldn't be much resistance if we just walk out the front door, unless they want to risk firing on civilians and causing a PR nightmare." Blitz said as they all ran towards the closest exit. However as they all turned the corner and found the hallway littered with Jedi and Senate Commandos, likely the primary response team called into to halt their escape.

"Stop them!" One of the Jedi, an elderly Master, shouted as Naruto narrowed his eyes and activated his saber before he began to deflect a barrage of blaster fire before his group began to return fire. Naruto soon locked horns with the aged Jedi, who did not seem to have a high opinion of him.

"Traitor! I-I knew it." The Jedi shouted, but Naruto narrowed his eyes as he pushed the Jedi forward before spinning above him with an advanced Form IV cadence and impaling his saber right through his back. Naruto couldn't see the Master's shock at his quick and easy defeat.

"No longer wanting to fight for a corrupt government that wants me dead for doing my job doesn't make me a traitor." Was all Naruto stated as he pulled the saber out and began to push forward, ready to take out the next Jedi in line. King, Blitz, Fox and the unknown were taking on what Naruto counted as seven Jedi while Flash, Fang, and Stoic saw to the Commandos.

These Jedi were almost laughable, barely able to match the skills of two ex-Clone commandos and a bounty hunter, albeit someone apprenticed to the most renowned bounty hunter in the galaxy. One after another Jedi fell to the battle-hardened Clones. The nameless hunter had taken down three Knights by himself and was working on a fourth. King and Blitz used their impeccable teamwork to down another two, and despite struggling for a bit, Fox 'borrowed' one of the bounty hunter's vibroknives to get a lucky kill on the last one. Naruto was both impressed and upset by the speed at which the Jedi had been dispatched. These Jedi were young, even younger than him, and had probably been promoted from Padawan early to take a more active role in the war.

Naruto turned his attention to the firefight and decided to end it quickly with a massive Force push throwing the Senate commandos into the wall, breaking and bruising ribs with the excessive Force. Naruto didn't think he'd thrown them that hard. That's when he felt a familiar, menacing sensation.

"Dammit, Kurama. Quit messing with me. I don't need your help." Naruto was getting irritated by Kurama's near constant interference. He wasn't sure how much of the seal was left intact, but it was weakened enough that the Fox's chakra was leaking out almost constantly.

He would have to deal with this before too long.

Observation Platform, Senate Rotunda

Mace Windu rubbed his temple as he groaned. First he was blinded and then Naruto had knocked him out. Which begged the question, why did Naruto knock him out?

"Are you ok?" He heard as he turned around to find Shaak Ti. He nodded as he stood up. She must have been blinded as well.

"If we move now we can stop him." Shaak Ti stated, but Windu stopped her.

"No." Windu stated as Shaak Ti turned to look at him with her hairless eyebrow raised.

"Why?" She questioned. She didn't want to kill Naruto and she would not allow anyone to do that. She was hoping to recapture him herself and find him a safe prison outside of the Republic's prying eyes.

"Naruto didn't kill me when he had the chance." Windu stated. If Naruto did want to kill him, he truly betrayed the order, then he would have done it while he was unconscious and it would have been so easy.

"He's killing our fellow Jedi right now." Shaak Ti reasoned as Mace frowned but sighed.

"In self-defense. Tell all members of the Order to cease engaging in combat and simply stay in pursuit. There are maybe twenty Jedi in the entire order that have a chance of standing up against Naruto, and only... four of them are here on Coruscant. The two of us and the two at the Temple." Windu stated while Shaak Ti looked at him as if he had grown another head.

"But he's escaping from his trail." Shaak Ti would have gone further but Mace raised his hand.

"We both know that this trial is a setup. It's all just a big show. If there is one thing Naruto is right about, it's the enemy within. Someone within the Republic wants to destabilize it and destroy the Jedi. I don't think Dooku was lying to Obi-wan when he said that someone controls the Senate, I think he was trying to get Obi-wan on his side." Windu stated as Shaak Ti frowned. If that was true, then it would mean that such a conspiracy would likely target Naruto, one of the greatest stabilizing Forces in the war. He'd brought nothing but peace and victory to the world's his visited.

"Then what do we do?" She questioned him as Mace closed his eyes.

"Let Naruto go. If we let him go, then whoever is targeting him will have to do it again, and Naruto will elude him as he has before. Eventually, they will misstep and reveal their identity." Mace stated as Shaak Ti frowned at the realization.

"Using him as bait? I don't like that." She voiced her opposition, but it made sense. Whoever it was that wanted Naruto gone was covering their tracks, but with Naruto out and at large they might slip up.

"It's the only way to save Naruto. The only way to protect him from the corruption in the Republic... is to remove him from the Republic entirely." Windu stated and Shaak Ti was taken aback.

"Was this your plan all along?!" She could barely keep her voice to a whisper. She was onboard with the plan, but was aggravated at Master Windu's choice to use an unwitting Naruto. Their enemy wouldn't reveal himself without significant provocation, so they had to set a trap that not even Naruto would knew of.

"Actually, it's my plan as of five minutes ago. Something, I don't know if it was myself or the Force, told me to stand down when I was up against Naruto. But I'm inclined to believe it was the Force telling me to spare Naruto."

"Are you so certain that Naruto would've lost? He did catch you off guard."

"I'm sure it would've at least cost me an arm or an eye, but he's still got a few years to go before he can match me." Windu was not eager to face Naruto in combat, but he could if he had to.

"You sure? He's better than Dooku. This arrogance is unbecoming of you." Shaak Ti teased. That was a trait Windu wished she hadn't picked up from Naruto.

"It doesn't matter who's a match for who, we're all skilled Jedi Masters and if anyone but us tries to face Naruto they'll be leaving here in a bodybag. Give the order to stand down before that happens." Mace Windu urged.

"It's already done. I told them to stand down before I came to wake you." She said with a slightly mocking smile.

Mace was beginning to wish he had activated his lightsaber.

Grand Concourse, Ground Floor

Great progress had been made as Naruto had cut through several Senate Commandos on his path to escape and sure enough they were reaching the exit. He was beginning to notice a distinct lack of Jedi, and Jedi had even begun fleeing from him. I guess they had wised up to the difference in skill.

"So, do we have a ride?" Naruto questioned his rescue squad as they kept running.

"That we do." Flash stated as he sped up his pace. He was the first one to exit the building as he charged past the guards, blasting them with efficiency. The sudden attack from behind while the protesters were getting violent, sowed even more chaos and the guards lost all sense of cohesion as they were overwhelmed by the cheering rioters.

"Stun em! Don't let Uzumaki get away." One of the Commandos shouted as they switched their blasters to stun and began firing on the crowd, which only served to further anger the mob, who began to fight the guards on Naruto's behalf. Naruto wasn't exactly happy about it, but he was confident that anyone captured would get maybe a month or two of prison time at most for disorderly conduct.

"Good going, Flash." Fang joked as Flash shrugged his shoulders.

"It was the only way." Flash defended himself as Stoic started up the stolen speeder before zooming away, heading to some of the lower levels.

"Sir, are you ok?" King questioned Naruto, who sighed as he closed his eyes.

"Being locked up in a cell was less than ideal, but I'll manage." Naruto responded, choosing to maneuver around the question. He did not want to talk about the events that led up to all of…this.

"Are we there yet?" Fang questioned Stoic, who nearly ground his teeth into powder.

"If you stay that one more time I'll turn this speeder around and dump your ass on the Senate's front lawn." Stoic snapped back, to which Fang shut his mouth.

"I don't think that's a good idea. We'd probably be shot out of the sky" Blitz stated with a chuckle as all the Clones, minus King, looked at him as if he had grown another head.

"What?" Blitz questioned as Stoic pointed at him from the driver's seat with his thumb.

"The only emotions you know are being a by the book smart ass and that's it. You just chuckled. That has never happened." Stoic answered as Blitz rolled his eyes.

"Following the book has kept us alive." Blitz stated as Fang chuckled.

"Pretty sure what we did wasn't exactly 'following the book'." Fang stated as Blitz opened his mouth but shut it quickly. Fang was right.

"He was like that a lot more during Commando training. Quite the little hell raising rebel back in the day." King commented. He was happy to see his brother start to tear down the walls he put up around him.

Grand Concourse, Upper Levels

Bail Organa was being seen to by a medic, a process he thought unnecessary, but it gave him time to vent his frustrations.

"I didn't expect them to use a hundred or so flash grenades to incapacitate everyone in the entire Senate." Bail was a bit disgruntled at being mistreated by his 'independent contractors', but then again what did he expect getting help from someone like that. Suddenly, a beeping came from his person. Realizing they must be reporting on Naruto's safety, Bail excused himself to a quiet room away from the walls that had ears.

"R.D.? That was, uh... some rescue, although I have to say I would've appreciated a bit of warning about the flash grenades. Is the target safe?" Bail asked with a smile. He was at least happy that an innocent man had been saved from injustice.

"We... have a bit of a problem..."the voice groaned from the communicator.

"What's wrong. Did something happen to Uzumaki? He isn't injured, is he?" Bail asked, slightly worried.

"I wouldn't know... my team never got to him." At first Bail thought it his ears were still damaged.

"What? How? Didn't you guys just break out?" Bail asked, his slight worry turning into mild panic.

"Nope, that was someone else entirely." the voice spoke, dejected by their being too slow to act in time.

"You're telling me someone else hired bounty hunters to rescue Uzumaki?" Bail theorized, almost incredulous that two completely unrelated groups were going after the same man on the same day.

"No, I'm telling you that my team doesn't have him and I'm working on it. I have no clue as to anything like that. I'll call you back when I learn more." The connection was cut prematurely.

"No- wait, no. Darahan? Darahan!" Bail spoke as loudly as he could without anyone hearing.

If it wasn't the team he'd hired, then who had just freed Naruto?

Coruscant, Lower Levels

"We're here." Stoic announced as the speeder gently touched down at one of the lower levels where the Republics influence was almost nonexistent. Jumping out of the speeder, they saw Slave I with someone else standing near it. Naruto narrowed his eyes as he readied himself for combat, but his eyes widened to find the person to be Ross.

"Ross? What are you doing here?" Naruto questioned as Ross walked up to the group.

"Why wouldn't I be? I'm the leader of the rescue team." Ross stated as Naruto's eyes widened. He would have never suspected Ross of all people to break him out.

"But why?" Naruto questioned. It was no secret that at many times he and Ross didn't see eye to eye on things and at one-point Naruto had threatened to have him removed from service. Ross sighed as he walked up to the Jedi.

"I loved Siri just as much as you did, even if she loved you more. Regardless, I know that you would never do anything to harm her. I have seen the lengths you would go to keep her safe. I could not allow an innocent man go to prison, or worse. Not for a crime I know he did not commit." Ross stated as Naruto slowly nodded, understanding why Ross did what he did.

"I... thank you, Ross." Naruto was a bit touched. He and Ross had definitely gotten on more friendly terms, but this was a selfless act of...friendship?

"Oh, and the entire Legion has defected from the Republic. They'll be arriving here in a short while to pick us up." Ross casually added, causing Naruto almost trip.

"What?!" Naruto questioned him. What did he mean the whole Legion had defected? To who? What had he missed?

"Well, after your imprisonment, a good lot the 10th Army was not happy to put it lightly. The 497th in particular was up in arms, so they, among others, chose to defect over to your side." Ross stated causing Naruto to look at the Clones.

"But I don't have a side. I didn't exactly leave the Republic voluntarily." Naruto reminded that even if he wanted to go back, he couldn't.

"Sir, are you sure about that? You have about twenty thousand highly trained troops and an ample Fleet at your disposal." King interjected. "If you don't have a side, make one."

"As much as I appreciate everything, you guys do realize that you're all traitors to the Republic? If they catch up to us, they'll kill us. Or at least throw us in prison forever. There won't be a trial for anyone." Naruto questioned them as they all nodded.

"I've no love for the Republic. Hell, I'm just a homegrown experiment that was given a weapon and told to fight a war for a government that paid for my services on Credit, and not even to me." Fang stated his version of the truth casually. He hadn't seen the point or the reason for fighting in this war for a while, he was only along for the ride because Naruto was in charge.

"Sir, we are ready to follow you wherever you go. We are loyal to you first and no one else." King stated. Naruto was quite surprised by the sheer amount of loyalty that his brothers-in-arms were showing him. They were willing to betray the Republic, for him. Not even the Order was willing to stand beside him against the Senate.

"You're blind loyalty was hastily and stupidly misplaced. Thanks...all of you." Naruto stated with a bow of respect. Truly they were the best of the best among their peers.

"This is great and all, but we need to leave before they fully lockdown the planet, and I intend to get paid in full." The bounty hunter broke the moment, causing Naruto to turn to him with narrowed eyes.

"Tell me, why would a bounty hunter that had once fought to kill me and has killed many Jedi's, be willing to break me out of the Senate? You're would pretty much be a target, even within the bounty hunter world." Naruto questioned as the bounty hunter reeled in surprise before realizing he was still wearing his helmet, and there was no way the blond could recognize him. He switched to his native language and spoke.

"Well, it's because I know you." This caused Naruto to widen his eyes. He hadn't heard his native language spoken so... flawlessly since he was a child on his home world. The bounty hunter began to remove his helmet as he reverted to speaking Galactic Basic. "It has been quite a while." Those raven black hair and eyes. His sharp, angular face. And Naruto swore he could recognize his unmodified voice from somewhere.

'No way.' Naruto thought, in complete denial.

"Long time no see... usuratonkachi." This caused Naruto to be even more surprised. Only one person ever called him that.

"No way…" He muttered as he came face to face with someone from his past.

Jedi Temple

Ahsoka wandered the halls of the Temple.

"Ahsoka!" She looked up to find a green skinned Padawan. She was much older and had been a major

"Barriss! Back from patrol duty?" She questioned her friend and fellow Padawan with a smile.

"Ahsoka, haven't you heard?" Bariss questioned her, to which she blinked.

"Heard what?" Ahsoka questioned, wondering what this was about.

"Naruto's been sprung." Ahsoka stared blankly at Barriss for a second

"What?!"

"Apparently a group of bounty hunters wearing Mandalorian armor broke him out during the trial. They killed over twenty Jedi in the break out." Bariss answered. Ahsoka stood still in surprise. Naruto killed Jedi? Naruto broke free? She was horrified by the first set of words, but at the second she smiled. She was definitely shocked that Naruto was responsible for the death of Jedi, but when she thought about it no one really couldn't blame him for defending himself. She wanted to look aghast as the tragedy of so many Jedi and was trying to frown, but she just couldn't help but keep smiling. This resulted in a not so sane-looking grin on her face.

"Why are you smiling?" The Mirialan Padawan called Ahsoka out on her strange behavior. She was somewhat worried that Ahsoka almost looked happy about it. "He killed Jedi. There were a couple of them that were in my group of Younglings. People I've known since birth"

"I know, I know. Sorry, sorry. But you know how I am with Naruto. I just can't help but feel a little happy." Naruto was her friend. Naruto was her family. The familial love she had with Naruto transcended the boundaries of the Order. She didn't care if Naruto was or wasn't a Jedi. That didn't mean she didn't love him like a brother all the same.

"Ahsoka!" Barriss yelled, somewhat offended.

"Sorry, I... Can we just talk about something else? I don't want to go down this rabbit hole any further." Ahsoka replied. She didn't want to upset her friend.

"Alright, what do you want to talk about then?" Barris asked, still a bit peeved.

"Well, I just got my first assignment as a Jedi." Ahsoka proposed, hoping that Barriss would take the bait and be drawn away by her comments about Naruto.

"Assignment?" Bariss questioned with intrigue.

Hook, line, and sinker.

"I've just been assigned to my new Master and I have to go meet with him. But he's not at the Temple right now. I have to go meet him." Ahsoka replied to which Bariss was quite surprised. It was rare that Jedi didn't first meet their Padawans at the Temple.

"So, where is it that you're meeting him... or her? I guess." Barriss

"It's a guy, and he's currently running a blockade on Christophsis."

"Really? Just who is it?" Barriss asked, wanting to know more about this daring Jedi. Ahsoka grinned widely. Barriss would never live this down.

"Well, you might have heard a thing or two about him. He's... pretty famous."

Coruscant, Lower Levels

"Sasuke Uchiha?" Naruto questioned, making sure he was seeing things right. This was someone from his home world, someone he once saw as a rival. What the hell was the stuck-up bastard doing all the way out here?

"Wait a second, you two know each other? Like, more than just from fighting once or twice?" Fang asked, confused by their exchange. Sasuke nodded in confirmation with an almost gleeful smirk.

"What? Surprised to see me?" Sasuke questioned as Naruto nodded. He thought he was the only one from his home world that had managed to leave it, and that was only thanks to Yoda having sensed him in the Force.

"What...when...how?" were the only three disjointed words that came out of Naruto's mouth. Did another Jedi pick him up? No. Impossible. He would have seen him in the Temple. Besides, from what he could tell, Sasuke wasn't Force sensitive.

"Long story short, I stumbled upon a starship. I started messing with it to figure out what it was. accidently and before I knew it I was moving further and further away from our planet." Sasuke answered curtly. He didn't go into the details, but Naruto could figure it out.

"So you ran into a hyperspace capable starship on our planet? Where?" Naruto questioned, wondering exactly where someone could've hidden a ship on their planet without anyone finding it.

"Two thousand." Was his answer. This caused Naruto to blink.

"What?"

"You'll have to pay if you want to hear the long version. Two thousand credits if you want me to tell you where I found the ship.

"Are you fucking kidding me?" Naruto deadpanned.

"I don't kid, Naruto, I adult. And adults have bills to pay." Sasuke snapped back, his grin still intact.

"We're paying you a ridiculous sum of money and you don't even have the decency to answer his questions?" King protested.

"I was paid to rescue him, not to answer questions. You want a Q and A session it's gonna cost extra. As far as I'm concerned, you're safe and the mission is done once we get you onboard the Star Destroyer that's in orbit. I'm glad we're getting to catch up, but we're burning oil just standing around here trading questions." All these words and one phrase stuck out to Naruto.

Was this really Sasuke Uchiha? Stuck up, irritable, good for noth- well, good for everything, actually - Sasuke Uchiha? The Sasuke he knew as a child was always talking about revenge and now he seemed like he just didn't care about much of anything.

It didn't matter who Sasuke had become, what mattered was that he was on his side, at least for now. The Republic would be out looking for him, and the Separatist would want him dead. The only space place right now would be his home world, a place that only three people in the Galaxy had even been to his knowledge, and two of them were here.

Not only would his homeworld be safe, he needed to find a way to get Kurama's Chakra under control. The seal had been weakened, so he should probably look for a Fuinjutsu specialist.

"Well, whatever, I guess it doesn't matter. But I do need to use that ship you hadand–" Naruto was cut off as Sasuke raised his hand.

"That ship was scuttled almost a decade ago." Sasuke stated, causing Naruto frown. This would make things…difficult.

"Argh, dammit. Why?" Naruto complained. That would've been a lot easier than the alternatives.

"I needed something to survive on in a brand new world where I couldn't even speak the language. People understand when you show them money and point to something. But thank God I ran into Jango and he was kind enough to teach me Mandalorian from our language, and basic from there. Afterwards, I joined him bounty hunting and things got easier. I mean it sucked staying on that wet hellhole of a rock they called Kamino, but Jango delegated a lot of the smaller jobs to me so I could make my own living. Pretty soon I was tagging along with him for bigger jobs, including working for Dooku." Sasuke was certainly elaborating a lot for someone who wanted to charge money for questions. But there was a certain sentence that Naruto latched onto.

Naruto felt so vindicated right now he almost wanted to hug Sasuke. At least there was one other sane person in the galaxy that hated that dark and gloomy pebble of storms they called a planet. He shook his head, not wanting to get distracted.

"Then the only other ship that has the Nav Data we need for our planet is…Master Yoda's personal transport..." Naruto's speech slowed to a stop as he realized. The Clones were looking at him dumbfounded.

"Please don't tell me we're breaking into the Jedi Temple." Flash spoke up as he looked at everyone's faces.

"We're breaking into the Jedi Temple…" Fang muttered. First the Senate building and now the Jedi Temple? If they managed to pull this off then they would be the most infamous group of traitors in recent galactic history.

"No, you're breaking into the Jedi Temple. I did my part. If you're going there that's fine, I'm more than happy to wait in my ship here for you guys to come back." Sasuke stated as he headed towards his ship.

"But what about returning to your old life?" Naruto questioned him. Surly Sasuke had wanted to return to his old life? Sasuke stopped as he turned to look at Naruto.

"Naruto…a lot has changed since we last saw each other. I've traveled the galaxy and the things I have seen are sometimes worse then what had happened to my family. There's nothing for me back home. Here, there's money, fame, excitement, and beautiful ladies of all kinds. I've moved on from life on Ajnin. You should too." Sasuke advised him as Naruto thought over his words.

Wait...what?

"Azh-nin?" Naruto questioned. Where in the hell was that?

"Oh, yeah. I got sick of calling it 'my homeworld' so I came up with a name for it. Ajnin. A-J-N-I-N." Sasuke said, scratching the back of his head.

"Isn't that just 'Ninja' backwards? Sounds kinda lame. What about Ibonihs or something?" Naruto suggested. Sasuke thought it over.

"...Isn't that just 'Shinobi' backwards?" Sasuke countered.

"Well, yeah, but at least it doesn't sound half as lame as Ajnin. It's like... longer." Naruto pouted at getting found out so easily.

"But I think someone already used that in another fic. Wouldn't want to get called copycats, would we?" Fang said through the crumbling fourth wall. Naruto gave up. Ajnin it was.

"Excuse me, Mister Uchiha, was it?" Ross interrupted.

"Call me Sasuke. The Uchiha clan is dead." Sasuke corrected.

"Right...well I've got access to my accounts. I'll pay you extra if you assist us in getting him to...Ajnin. And that would include infiltrating the Temple." Ross spoke up causing Sasuke to sigh before looking at Ross, who was smirking. Now with his assets (and a bit more) firmly under his control, Ross could buy a small armada of warships if he wanted to and still have some left over.

"How much more?" Sasuke asked, tentatively intrigued.

"How much would it take to convince you?" Ross asked.

"Double." Ross did his best to keep his composure. While Sasuke's ask was steep, it wasn't ridiculous. The Jedi Temple was probably the most well defended place in the Galaxy. There were at least a couple hundred Jedi in it at any given time.

"Done." Ross didn't bother haggling, preferring to seal the deal quickly before Sasuke lost interest. Naruto was none the wiser, but the troopers looked at him as if he was insane.

"With respect sir, but his current fee is ridiculous as it is!" Blitz protested. How the hell did Ross think he was going to afford such a price.

"Don't worry, it's not too much for me to pay and not too much of him to ask." Ross assured causing to just look at him. "What? I'm not a poor man." Ross said with a chuckle as he grabbed a datapad and handed it to Naruto.

"Listen, with our recent…activity, and them no doubt noticing that we haven't reached orbit yet, the planetary shield is should be active before we can even make it into orbit, and all vessels entering and leaving the system are probably being stopped and boarded. While you folks go get the Nav Data, I'll figure out a way to have it disabled without them noticing." Ross stated as Naruto nodded. Ross wasn't a combat expert. That was probably why he stayed away from the Senate. Best to keep his distance from the Temple as well.

"Right, then, we have our mission, let's move." Naruto stated as they began to ready up. This task would be just as hard as storming the Senate building.

"Then I'll work on the planetary shield and pick you up in the speeder later." Ross stated as he turned to take the speeder.

"Why bother?" Sasuke asked. "Just take Slave I. We'll take the speeder and ditch it near the Temple" the bounty hunter offered.

"Are you sure? What if I try to steal it. " Ross pondered. He wouldn't, but he was curious why Sasuke was so trusting. The bounty hunter gave a thumbs up of approval.

"I'm positive you won't." Ross wouldn't leave with Naruto or the Clones, and they needed someone to get them out of the Temple. Infiltrating without being detected would be impossible given the Jedi's hightened state of awareness... and Force sense. "Also, if you move the ship too far away from the transponder chip I had implanted in my body, the whole thing will self-destruct. Even if you miraculously survive the explosion, you won't survive the fall." Sasuke said with a grin.

"Yeah... I probably won't steal it then." Ross said nervously.

Naruto nodded at the others as they began to head out. They needed to strike fast and they need to strike now. The entire Senate building was most likely in chaos and there was no doubt that they were being searched for by the entire Planetary Security Force, a dozen or two Jedi, and the Senate Commandos. But this also meant a fair amount of Jedi would probably out and about, leaving the Temple more vulnerable. And no one would expect someone to break into the Senate Building and the Jedi Temple on the same day.

"Hurry it up. I don't get paid by the hour." Sasuke stated as he fired up the speeder for a third road trip.

Jedi Temple

"Are you sure this is going to work?" Flash questioned Fang, who rolled his eyes.

"Will you relax? Cindy here is just as good as any astromech." Fang chuckled as his hand had broken down into small wires, working on the rayshields that protected the ventilation shafts.

"Did you seriously name your prosthetic hand?" Stoic deadpanned.

"Did you seriously name it Cindy?" Fox asked in a bit of disbelief.

"Someone must have felt lonely at night." Flash grinned. "Should be careful Fang, don't want her to get all rusted now, do ya?"

"Shut the hell up." Fang said as he deactivated the shields and removed the cover.

"I have to hand it to you, Fang, I wish my girlfriend was that useful." Naruto joined in the fun.

"We should've left you to rot." Fang spat.

"You would think this place would be more guarded." Stoic spoke up, but Naruto shook his head.

"The Temple hasn't been attacked for a thousand of years. The peace has made the Jedi security complacent and the security lax. After all, a platoon of Jedi is the best security system in the galaxy." Naruto stated. Ever since the escape, he had to focus concealing his presence, lest the Jedi simply follow the massive swell in the Force.

Now that they had created an entry point, they would be able to break into the temple without anyone knowing. Then they would work their way up.

"Once we get to the upper levels. We should probably split up to avoid concentrating too many Jedi in one spot. We're good, but even we'd get overwhelmed." Naruto stated as Fox raised an eyebrow.

"Flash, you're with me. Fox, take Stoic and Fang. Sasuke, take King and Blitz. Our objective is to reach the hangar as quickly and as stealthily as possible, steal the NavData from the ship, and then call Ross and get the hell out of here before someone too badass finds us.

"Alright, lets go." Fang stated as they all began to make their way into the Temple.

With Ross

"Typical." Ross stated as he studied the Security around planet shield generator. From the looks of it the Coruscant security were in charge of the place. They probably didn't even know that he was here, so getting in should be easy.

"Well well well, look who we have here." Ross nearly jumped at the voice behind him as his eyes widened as he turned to look at someone he thought he would never see again. "You know, I'd heard about the infamous 10th Sector Army Admiral. Nothing but praise, so imagine my shock to find out that it was you, Ross." the man stated as Ross narrowed his eyes.

Long, unkempt hair? A sloppily trimmed beard? Dark brown soulless eyes? Reeked of smoke and drug racketeering? Yeah, it was him alright.

"Roll…" Ross muttered as he stared at his older brother, the infamous gang leader Roland Darahan, who had a warm smile on his face that belied his sinister nature. "What are you doing here?" Ross questioned, to which Roland just pursed his lips and shook his head.

"Ooh, that's cold, Rossy. Not even a hello? No 'sorry for abandoning you to rot in prison for a decade?' Oh well, guess you turned out like me more than I would've liked." Roland mocked as he started to slowly walked closer Ross. "You see, I was hired to get that General of yours out of that little…mess…he had gotten himself into. But then some other lot decided to break him out first and now I find you here. Put two and two together and figured that you must be the one in charge of the whole thing. You stole my score. Now, what should I tell my employer?" Roland pulled out a cigar and lit it.

"Should I tell him that he's safe, but we'll be unable to deliver him to the proper location. And only keep the half he's already paid us." Roland began to stroll around Ross, but didn't take his eyes off him for more than a couple seconds. "Should I warn the guards and have them interrogate you until them where Uzumaki is? Then kill them and capture Uzumaki to negotiate a ransom from the Republic." he continued his stroll to the edge of the platform. Roland suddenly spun around with a DL-44 in hand. Ross raised his own pistol in self defense, but didn't fire. "Or should I just kill you here and be done with the whole thing?" Ross gulped as he was frozen in place by fear. Roland was an experienced sharpshooter, he was not.

"What do you want?" Ross questioned as Roland chuckled.

"Would you kindly drop me off on Alderaan?" Roland questioned as he raised an eyebrow.

"No." Ross replied simply as Roland stared at him before bursting into laughter as he walked up and pat Ross on the shoulder.

"Relax, boss Ross. I'll just have to settle for half my payment. There ain't no way I could subdue a Jedi Master and take him from you and yer merry little band. That and stealing a score from the Red-eyed Hunter isn't a good idea in the circles I run with." Roland chuckled before he sighed and closed his eyes. Before he opened them with a menacing look in his eyes and a mad grin on his face.

"Or can I?" Roland questioned as he held his blaster to Ross gut. Ross gulped once more, but again Roland started to laugh and lowered his blaster.

"Relax. I'm not gonna kill ya, not yet anyways. The boys are waiting for me; besides, it'll be easier for you to get into that shield generator than me. So good luck with your little 'adventure', brother. Oh. And just a heads up, little bro. If you ever steal my mark again...I will kill you." Roland stated as he turned and began walking away. Ross let out a sigh of relief. For a moment he thought he was going to die there.

"He probably left me alive just because he wants me to take down the shield generator for him. That's why he came here. Dammit. Even now I'm stuck doing dirty work for that asshole." Ross stewed in his thought as he recomposed himself and began to carry out his part of the mission. He would have to put aside his personal feelings, bringing down the shield was all that mattered.

Jedi Temple, Sasuke's Group

The three had split off from the main group and took a different route to the hanger bay. However, as they made their way to the hangar bay, King had something on his mind.

"So, how does the General know you exactly?" King questioned. It was obvious that the two knew each other even before the war. Sasuke kept his eyes straight as they kept sneaking through the Temple. They had plenty of time to talk as they avoided wandering Jedi. They had the element of surprise. There was no way the Jedi would expect Naruto to break back into the temple.

"We used to be in the same academy. Training to be Shinobi; soldiers for our village. He suddenly up and disappeared one day." Sasuke stated as King saw this as a perfect chance to know more about this academy Naruto had once talked about. Naruto had always avoided the topic about his world.

"So what was this academy like?" King questioned, to which Sasuke grunted.

"In a way it's pretty similar to how you and the Clones were trained to fight. Children enroll into the academy at a young age. Then we learn basic subjects: math, linguistics, history, a bit of chemistry and physics to help with using our tools, and how to use and decrypt ciphers. This all alongside proper ninja training before we officially graduate and become Genin, the lowest rank. Provided we past the test given to us by our new Jonin-sensei." Sasuke responded as King hummed at that. King had referred to Naruto as Sensei during their training sessions at his request, but he never knew why. The blond was joking, but so was King when he decided to use the word excessively during their training sessions.

"So what rank were you?" Blitz was curious. He must've been high rank to take down Jedi.

"Well, times turned tough and we lost a lot of good shinobi about... twelve years ago now? I was promoted to Jonin, the highest rank, pretty early. But, I don't think my skills were that much better than some Chunin when I left."

"When you found the ship and came here, you mean?" King asked.

"No, that happened a couple years later..." Sasuke trailed off leaving King confused. He went to ask what he meant but the raven-haired bounty hunter held up a finger. A group of Jedi younglings were walking by and Sasuke wasn't too keen on the prospect of having to kill children. Once they had gone King spoke again.

"The General didn't mention that when he talked about his home world. I mean, uh, Ajnin." Sasuke chuckled at that.

"That's cause he was at the bottom of his class, dead last in academics and practicals." Sasuke replied as King almost tripped.

"Wait, he was the dead last?" King questioned. It was hard to believe that the person he looked up to, the war hero, the man who was known to turn the tide of battles and beloved by billions, was a dead last?

"Yeah. Now that I see him it's hard to believe that he used to be a failure. Guess the Jedi Order did good for him. I might know how to utilize Chakra, but its still no match for his Force ability. Especially when compared to others." Sasuke stated as King raised an eyebrow.

"What do you mean?" King questioned.

"I can see the presence of the Force, even if I can't use it, thanks to my eyes. They're, special, let's just say. I worked with Dooku before the war started, but to compare Dooku and Naruto is a joke. The difference is night and day. Naruto's Force signature is one of the strongest I've seen. It rivals that little old frog that everyone looks up to. It's just not tamed yet." Sasuke stated as King thought over that. Naruto was always trying to perfect and train in his Force abilities, but he always mentioned how difficult it was.

"He has the potential to become one of the strongest beings in this galaxy. I only saw one Jedi on Geonosis that had a potential in the Force surpassing his. If he masters control over the Force...and if he's going home for what I think he's wanting to do..." Sasuke stated as they turned a corner. The three of them came to a halt as someone blocked their path. Sasuke didn't recognize her, but King gulped and was shivering a bit in terror.

"Master Shaak Ti." King muttered as he saw the Jedi Master standing in their path. King drew his vibroblades and Sasuke tossed both of his knives over to Blitz. Shaak Ti narrowed her eyes as she readied her Form II defenses. Windu had said to let Naruto escape, but he didn't say anything about these three.

"He's the one that Naruto fought with from Pantora." She thought as she activated her lightsaber and watched carefully. She knew that this man was dangerous.

Sasuke moved forward in a flash, drawing his vibroblade faster than the Jedi Master could see. She let the Force guide her defenses and heard the sharp clash of their weapons colliding before realizing that the blue armored man was already in front of her.

Sasuke's visor changed colors to red. Beneath his helmet, his eyes had similarly turned red with three black tomoe circling his pupil.

Fox's Group

Fox's group turned the corner as they realized that they were the nearest group, but before them were two Jedi's who were unaware of the approaching group.

"I'll take em." Fox stated as he pulled out his twin blasters and quickly dispatched the Jedi. They quickly entered the hanger and saw the many Jedi starfighters.

"Which ones Yoda's?" Stoic questioned as Fox looked around, comparing the hologram model of the ship to the one's in the hangar before finding Yoda's personal transport.

"Over there." Fox stated as they quickly ran up to ship. Fang quickly jumped on it before opening the cockpit and started to go through the ship's computer, but he found himself blocked by.

"No good, it's locked. We need the passcode." Fang stated as Fox hummed.

"Can't you hack it?" Fox questioned Fang, who shook his head.

"No, it's missing the Code Cylinder. Without it, the whole ships locked down." Fang stated as Fox nodded before pulling out his transmitter.

"General, the ship needs a Code Cylinder to access NavData history. We need to retrieve it...probably from Master Yoda's chambers." Fox reported, waiting for a response.

"Copy that, Flash and I will handle it. We're nearby anyways." Naruto replied as Fox was about to confirm, he but was interrupted as two Jedi wandered into the hangar. Noticing the intruders, the older male drew his lightsaber and began to advance while the younger girl ran away, likely to raise the alarm.

"Form up, defensive positions! Take him out!" Fox ordered as Stoic pulled out a heavy blaster and started to fire away, which Fox and Fang providing support. The Jedi never stood a chance as the battle-hardened troopers concentrated their fire on the chest. He couldn't deflect all of the blaster fire and eventually succumb to their barrage.

"Fang, you can hack into their security system right?" Fox asked.

"Cindy and I can hack anything." Fang boasted confidently. Fox resisted the urge to shake his head and kept on task.

"Then get out there and find the central computer, start causing chaos. We don't want the Jedi to converge on this hangar otherwise no one will be able to get through. Stoic, you and I need to defend this ship at all cost." Fox quickly issued the orders as Fang nodded and went to work. While Stoic used his superior physique to start crafting barricades and blocking paths to create choke points. Fox was crafting traps to close off the hangar doors. Nothing too fancy, just claymores with tripwires. They would need to pull out all the stops to halt Jedi. They didn't need to kill them, necessarily, although that was an option. But their goal was just to make them think twice about advancing.

Naruto's Group

Naruto, along with Flash, were making their way down to Master Yoda's room to retrieve his code cylinder.

"Sir…about General Siri…" Flash started as Naruto closed his eyes. Flash was almost like a devoted nephew to Siri's wild aunt personality. The two loved to go fast, be it in a starfighter or an airspeeder, they were both possessed by the need for speed.

"Fox, I..." Naruto began, but Flash took notice of his anguish and interrupted.

"It's not your fault, sir. But please tell me, how…how did she die?" Flash questioned. He wanted to know what happened. Naruto opened his eyes as he looked forward, anger in his eyes.

"She died fighting Grievous. He...impaled her." Naruto answered with slight anger. If he ever saw Grievous he would make him pay, dearly.

"I get it, sir, we'll make him pay. Just promise that I get to be there when you crush his skill with the the Force." Flash responded, endorsing Naruto's desire for revenge. Flash himself swore he would make Grievous pay for what he did..

"I'll be sure to make a point of it." Naruto fumed. The next time he met Grievous he would tear the cyborg limb from limb. Flash even gave him a good idea of how to finish him off. "Anyways, this isn't the time for this, let's get moving." Flash saluted with a 'yes, sir' and the two were off. Their sprint through the halls came to a stop as Naruto tightened his fists. Before them stood his a familiar face... his former Master.

"Master Plo…" Naruto stated, readying his blade. The Kel Dor Jedi was like a father to him and now... the two would have to fight one another. This was not an opponent they could simply bypass.

"I'm surprised that you didn't scramble off planet before they put up the shield. I'm even more shocked to find you here." Plo Koon expressed his surprise. He was sure that by now Naruto was off planet, not at the Jedi Temple of all places.

"I don't want to fight you…" Naruto stated as Plo Koon sighed and stepped aside.

"Well, that's fortunate, because I don't want to fight you either." Plo Koon stated, causing Naruto to be surprised.

"Wha- really?" Naruto questioned him as Plo Koon sighed once more.

"I refuse to believe that you are guilty. Even after the breakout from the Senate building. Capturing you wouldn't do justice. So be on your way. Do what you must." Plo Koon stated as Naruto nodded before he looked at him.

"Then...will you help me against Master Yoda?" Naruto questione. Master Plo was one of the few Jedi that had ever defeated Yoda in a duel, but the old Jedi shook his head.

"I cannot do that. I won't stop you, but I will not aid you. You must face this trial alone, my old Padawan." Plo Koon replied. There was something that was stopping him, and he believed that it was the Force. Clearly there was something that he didn't know or understand, but the Force would not allow him to stop Naruto. He had a far greater destiny and the Force would not allow it to be hindered.

"Thank you, Master Plo." Naruto stated as he and Flash made their way past Plo Koon, leaving the Jedi Master to his own thoughts.

"May the Force be with you, Naruto." Plo Koon stated as he turned to head to his chambers. This was his way of helping his student.

"Well, that went a hell of a lot better than I thought it would." Flash said, finally breathing again. Naruto nodded in relief. If they could avoid a fight then they could save some time, and their lives.

Jedi Temple Hangar

"We've got more of them!" Fox shouted as he kept firing his blaster pistols at the incoming Jedi Temple Guards. Stoic grunted as he leveled his heavy blaster at a few fuel cells he had hidden behind one of the barricades that the Guards have overrunned. The front of the hanger rocked with an explosion as the fuel cells exploded, killing most of the Jedi Temple Guards. Fox in the meantime was engaged in close combat with a Temple Guard. However, once more, the troopers war experience paid off as the Temple Guard was slain.

"These Temple Guards aren't that tough." Stoic stated as he took another one out. The Temple Guards trained regularly, but most of them hadn't fought in a live battle for a very long time. Their lack of experience in dealing with elite clones was costing them victory.

"Where is Fang and what the hell is he doing?" Fox questioned to himself as he kept firing before the ray shields activated, blocking the entrance to the hangar and stopping the Jedi dead in their tracks. "Heh, speak of the devil. I can't believe Fang was smart enough to think of that." Stoic lowered his blasters as he let lose a rare smirk as he walked up to the ray shield.

"Well, what are you gonna do now? Cut through the shield? I'd like to see you try, bastards!" Stoic taunted as he chuckled, causing Fox to shake his head.

"Stop messing around, we need to make sure we're ready when they bring that shield down." Fox stated as Stoic turned around and nodded.

"Copy that." With that, the two began to reorganize their defense.

Battle With Shaak Ti Part One

Lightsaber clashed against metal as Shaak Ti used her expert dueling skills to fend off her three opponents. It was frustrating not knowing their names, but Shaak Ti had nicknamed the two weaker ones Red and Blue because of their armor, while the third she had designated Leader since he seemed to be the one giving orders.

Leader proved the most difficult. He was using a mixture of Shien and Ataru as well as his own unique bladework. It was obvious to her that this was someone who was trained in a homegrown art of the blade from a young age, but had eventually been trained by a Jedi. His skills with them were on the level of a Master, and she was thoroughly impressed. But was confused her was that the man wasn't Force sensitive, well - perhaps mildly, but it wasn't enough to rouse the attention of a passing Jedi. He would never have been taken to the Temple for training. This was a question for later, it was best to focus on the battle.

The two Mandalorians in armor that looked freshly painted were skilled, but not nearly as much as the man she assumed to be their leader. Still, they proved formidable opponents thanks to the imbalanced teams. The Red-painted one seemed to be using the common Jar'kai variant of Form VI Niman, albeit without the Force integration that the style made use of. He had filled in those gaps on his own. It was powerful and would occasionally surprise her, but it wasn't refined in the way true master of the style would be. He needed a few months to perfect his cadences, but he was well on his way to becoming truly dangerous.

However... the one that proved the most annoying was the one painted Blue. He had picked up Form II recently. She could tell by his rougher movements. But what he lacked in grace he made up for in skill. He linked moves in a way that not even she had thought of, it was almost a fusion of Forms II and III with how efficient the cadences were. But something was holding him back. His attacks never seemed to follow through for the kill, they were too careful. At first, this constant caution seemed to be a detriment, but it actually played to his allies' advantage, as Shaak Ti's instincts told her to move to block the follow through, but it often never came, and she ended up leaving herself in a dangerous position that their leader was all too ready to exploit. She was wasting energy correcting her instinctual mistakes, but she couldn't afford to not attempt a block as he might actually follow through with deadly results, and this combination of constant paranoia and a feckless defense was starting to get on her nerves.

Their leader suddenly stepped back, leaving the two underlings to face her alone for a while. She was curious about the red coloring of his visor, but again, she had to focus on the battle in front of her. With the absence of the major player, Shaak Ti quickly took the advantage and went on offense. Pushing the two less experienced bounty hunters back.

"Hey, are you gonna get back in this fight anytime soon or are you taking a full fifteen-minute break?" the Blue one called out to their leader.

"I need just a couple minutes more. Keep her occupied until then, Blue." their leader responded, watching the battle intently. Shaak Ti cursed in her mind as it seemed they were intent to speak to one another using pronouns and armor colors. It would've helped her to call them by name.

"Dammit, I guess we'll do this ourselves... Red!" Blue called out. Seemingly asking for help.

"On it, Blue." Red suddenly threw his vibroknives into the air as the blue tossed his own pair over to Red. Comparing the two, Shaak Ti realized that Red had actually been using what seemed to be custom made shortswords and not the more common combat vibroknives like she thought. Red came at her from the side, using the shorter reach to his advantage. His up close fighting style wasn't better suited to these knives, but it changed the paradigm of his attacks. He was closer and swinging harder, it made her have to completely rethink her defenses.

In the air, Blue had caught the shortswords and pressed the attack. She quickly noted that with the added reach, he was more inclined to follow through on somewhat riskier attacks. Despite their efforts, Shaak Ti adjusted quickly and started pushing them back again. All the while, the third had just been sitting back at rest, watching intently.

Red and Blue continued their combined offensive, regularly trading weapons and switching combat styles in no particular order or pattern. They simply knew when to trade to keep her on edge. They had just traded back to their original weapons when Shaak Ti felt a disturbance in the Force telling her she was in danger.

"That should be enough..." She heard someone mutter. Turning her attention to him, she blocked his opportunistic strike just in time. His offense did not stop, and she began being pushed back by his fluid and precise strikes. Wait a second...

Shien and Ataru weren't fluid nor precise like Soresu or Makashi. But now that she thought about it, he was no longer using Shien or Ataru. Her graceful and unique style of Makashi was being imitated and stolen by his bounty hunter, and he was using it to great effect. Rather than switching styles completely, he had merely incorporated Makashi into his other forms of combat. Shaak Ti found that while she could hold back the three of them before, it was requiring a significant effort just to keep herself from getting overwhelmed. Having noticed the change in her balance, Leader spoke up.

"Blue, get to the hangar. We can handle things here, but they're gonna need your help before long. I'll be needing my knives back, though." Shaak Ti was confused. They should press their advantage and try to defeat her now before she recovered. That is, unless their intention was only to delay her. If that was the case, then... was Naruto here, in the Temple?!

"Yes, sir." Blue tossed the knives over to Leader before taking off down the hall, who caught them in one hand and pushed Shaak Ti back with a strong shove against his blade. Well, that was one advantage physical weapons had over energy ones like lightsabers. Touching them didn't scorch your skin. When Shaak Ti recovered she leapt towards Leader, he blocked using the Makashi techniques he had just copied from her. This irritated Shaak Ti immensely, how rude to just steal someone's style. But then again, this was a lightsaber form made by a Jedi for Jedi. Perhaps she could use that to her advantage.

It required a lot more effort, but Shaak Ti began utilizing the more advanced techniques of her style almost exclusively. The bounty hunter changed his style to keep up, but backed off when Shaak Ti landed a glancing blow on his shoulder. Internally, Sasuke was furious. He had reached the edge of his physical limitations. Even with his Sharingan and boosting his physicality with Chakra, he did not receive premonitions like the Jedi could and couldn't predict Shaak Ti's strikes with complete certainty. He tried to switch between his styles, but Shaak Ti was well trained in all six of the basic forms. She kept things as advanced as possible, and her opponent faltered, learning the hard way that he just wasn't capable of fully mirroring a Jedi.

"It doesn't matter if you know one lightsaber form or a thousand, if you can't use them properly you'll never defeat a Jedi Master." Shaak Ti said triumphantly. Sasuke had realized his mistake too late. His opponent had shifted the balance and she began batting away his defenses with power strikes. Shaak Ti's final power swing should have disarmed the bounty hunter, literally, but it had been stopped by Red with his two vibroswords in a cross guard.

"What, did ya forget about me?" King taunted before running down the hall towards the hangar. King knew that in a one on one he wouldn't last long, but he just needed to distract her for a few seconds. Shaak Ti was frustrated with the constant interruptions, and if she could defeat them now and get to Naruto then maybe she could stop him from being used as bait in Windu's plan. She had only chased after Red for a second when a vibroblade suddenly blocked her path.

The leader had caught up to them in a flash. He was quick, too quick. She fought him off but found he was quick to retreat to a safe distance. When a vibroknife came flying at her, she pieced together his strategy as she ducked. She was surprised when the Force warned her to duck for cover once more as the vibroknife came flying back. That's when she noticed it was attached to a thick wire that the bounty hunter was holding in his hand.

"I suppose it's not a perfect recreation, but let's see how you handle the old kunai on a chain technique." With a few more flourishes of the wire, Sasuke threw the vibroknife and pulled on the wire when Shaak Ti went to block, causing it to veer into the wall and bounce back towards her. Crouching out of the way, Ti swung her saber at the wire passing overhead, but found that it only fizzled briefly.

"Heh, sorry miss, but that's a cortosis weave meant specifically for binding Jedi. A lightsaber isn't gonna cut it in one half-assed swing." Sasuke informed Shaak Ti cursed as she rolled towards her attacker. She went in for a strike, but found the back of her hand cut by the passing knife, nearly forcing her to drop her saber.

"You should really watch out for that, Miss Ti." Red taunted her again. Shaak Ti bore her sharp canines in frustration. What was he sitting all high and mighty for? Not like he was doing much of anything. Okay, so she couldn't go after Leader anymore. Trying to get pass that flying vibroknife in these enclosed halls wasn't going to happen. That left her with only one target and she was more than happy to shut him up. Speeding towards Red, he raised his twin vibroswords in defense but she batted them out of the way and brought down her blue saber for the kill.

Jedi Temple, Yoda's Chambers

"Wait here. Sorry, but this is on a level you're just not ready for." Naruto stated as they finally reached Master Yoda's quarters. The door quickly opened up form him as he entered, leaving Flash behind. Yoda wouldn't miss someone sneaking into his room, especially if he were in them. So Naruto would have to draw Yoda out of his chambers.

"Grand Master." Naruto stated as Yoda opened his eyes.

"Arrived, you have?" Yoda questioned, as Naruto nodded. He knew that Yoda would be waiting for him. There was no point in hiding his presence anymore.

"You know I didn't do it. I would never harm Siri." Naruto stated as his hand hovered over his lightsaber, but Yoda closed his eyes and sighed.

"Believe you I do. But let you go... I cannot. Understand, you do?" Yoda inquired as his eyes opened, glaring at Naruto. His green lightsaber hissed and Naruto quickly activated his own in defense. Yoda leapt into the air with a wild yell, his blade impacting on Naruto's two or three times before pausing on the wall and striking again.

"Dammit. His size and fighting style are perfect for such environment." Naruto thought to himself as his eyes darted across the room, trying to keep track of Yoda. The little green Grand Master was using Force Valor, and he was using it a lot more effectively than he could. Naruto did his best to lure Yoda towards the door, and he was glad when Yoda followed him outside into the hall.

"He's using the Force to boost his physiology and speed to such a high level." Naruto gritted as he started to use his own Force Valor ability, but he quickly realized just how far the difference in ability was. Not to mention Yoda's experience was working against Naruto and in a way not possible with beings of a shorter lifespan. Force Sensitive Humans lived to maybe seventy without encountering severe health problems that come with old age, and they would become one with the Force within another three decades.

A few passing Jedi had taken notice of Naruto's duel with Yoda, and stopped to observe it in awe. These were the same Padawans and rookie Knights that were guarding the Senate earlier, they knew that interfering would only end up in someone getting maimed, or worse.

"Hurry up, Flash!" Naruto thought to himself as he noticed Flash going through Yoda's room as stealthy as possible. He was trying to keep Yoda's attention on him, to give time for Flash to find what he was looking for and find it he did. With there no longer being any need for stealth, Flash ran out the door same the way he had came in, but Yoda noticed Flash and tried to stop him, but Naruto did not let him.

"Guess I got no choice." Naruto muttered to himself as he began to use his unique style and quickly. His speed and power increasing drastically as Yoda began to tire. Despite his ability with Force valor, he was still elderly and a prolonged fight against a powerful opponent was very tiring. Yoda realized at that moment that with enough years and experience, Naruto would become an unstoppable force. However, Naruto's unique style had a weakness.

"Dammit…" Naruto huffed as he out distance between him and Yoda. He was also beginning to tire. Keeping the advantage over Yoda's speed required all he could muster. The intertwining blurs of blue and green became impossible for the crowd of Jedi to follow. They could only watch the colorful dance of two Form IV Masters continue.

Yoda felt the strain on his body growing, making it difficult for him to block Naruto's power strikes. Yoda also felt his swings getting heavier, but this wasn't his body telling him to slow down, it was something else trying to stop him.

"The Force?" Yoda thought as Naruto raised his saber once more to fight, even after exhausting himself with Force Valor. However, he was quickly lifted up and onto someone's back.

"What the?" Naruto said in surprise at the man fireman carrying him through the halls, with the observing Jedi now in close pursuit.

"Sorry sir, but you looked like you were about to fall over and die and we need to get you to the extraction point in one piece." He heard Blitz as Naruto raised an eyebrow.

"I thought you were heading for the hangar?" Naruto questioned as Blitz's nodded.

"Was, but I had a gut feeling that you'd gotten yourself into trouble , so I made my way here." Blitz's replied as Naruto hummed.

"Good call." Naruto stated as he felt the last bit of strength in his body fade. Yoda meanwhile sighed as he sat down to rest. He was too tired to give chase and was also amazed that Naruto had fought him to a standstill even with the Force hindering him.

"Mysterious, the Force is." Yoda stated as he chuckled slightly.

Jedi Temple Hangar

"Where are they…" Stoic wondered from up in the rafters while watching over the hangar. He was glad that ray shield had held up for so long, and with Fang causing chaos the Jedi had begun to disperse to deal with those supposed attacks on the Temple. Whatever it took, as long as they were too busy to congregate at the hanger bay, but Stoic knew this deception wouldn't last.

"At the very least it's quiet." Fox stated as he kept watch from below, ready to take cover behind a makeshift barricade at a moment's notice. Suddenly, a voice came over their comms channel. It was Flash.

"Fang, I've got the code cylinder! We're on our way to the hangar. Lower the shield and get out here now!" Flash shouted into their earpieces at Fang as the two Captains stood up as he followed after the too and quickly headed over to Yoda's ship and quickly got to work.

"Stoic!" He looked up to find Flash running towards him. He saw the Jedi waiting at the shielded door turn to face Flash with their lightsabers readied. But Flash didn't stop like they expected, he kept going. Fang, who was observing the Temple's security feed, took that opportunity to lower the shield behind them. Fox and Stoic wasted no time in opening fire on the exposed Jedi. A couple of them turned around to deflect their blasts back at them.

"Flash, what are you doing?! There's too many, get out of here!" Fox yelled at the foolish Captain before ducking. One of his blasts had zoomed right back at him. "This isn't the time for a suicidal charge." Fox shouted from behind cover.

"Heh, it's not suicidal if you're me." Flash picked up his speed and began running towards the side of the hallway. The Jedi moved to intercept, but Flash had taken flight as his boots planted themselves on the walls, turning his forward momentum into upward momentum and sending him soaring over the heads of the Jedi and into the hangar. Now it was a five on three... with the group of five being Jedi. Great.

"I'm here guys!" He looked up to find Fang running towards him with his hand waving before the supposed master of stealth tripped over his own feet, causing Stoic to sweat drop.

"What a time to be an airhead." Stoic thought as he shook his head before he saw Blitz turning the corner in a rush. At least it would be five on five now, but that's when he noticed what Blitz was running from.

"Uhh...Fang, you'd better hurry!" Stoic shouted as everyone looked up at him and their eyes widened. Running down the hallway was Blitz carrying Naruto and behind them were a large group of angry Jedi Knights intent on stopping them.

"Just give me and Cindy a second." Fang said as he got down to work through the dreadful groans of the other three Captains. The code cylinder was accepted and Fang found the relevant hyperspace routes and began downloading the NavData into the data storage hosted in his cybernetic arm.

"I think it's time to call Ross." Naruto suggested as Blitz sat him down next to the ship to rest. Blitz nodded and got onto the comms channel. Ross shouldn't be too far away, now all they had to do was wait for King and Sasuke.

Battle With Shaak Ti Part Two

Shaak Ti found her weapon impact against the white steel of Sasuke's pristine blade. King had raised his arms in terror, but quickly relaxed when he realized his life was safe.

"Times up. Get to the ship, I'll handle her." Sasuke ordered King, who nodded and quickly went past the two to back up the others in the hangar.

"You should surrender right now." Shaak Ti stated, as she pushed him back. Sasuke smirked at that.

"Not a chance." He replied as he moved in to attack at great speed. It initially caught Shaak Ti off, but he was noticeable slower than Naruto in his bladework. Still, she was put on her backfoot as Sasuke kept pushing forward before she was able to get the hang of things.

"You're almost as good as my former student. Almost." Shaak Ti taunted as she began to push back, forcing Sasuke on the defense.

"I don't even know if it's possible to not compare her to Dooku." Sasuke grit his teeth. Shaak Ti and Dooku were both Jedi Masters, but Shaak Ti was the better of the two in some regards. Her swings were calm, precise, and calculated. Dooku, on the other hand, had the power of the dark side.

"Guess I'll have to use Chakra. Hope this doesn't reveal too much." Sasuke thought as he used his strength and pushed Shaak Ti back before he held his vibroblade in one hand before he started channeling Chakra into his hand, coating it in lightning. Shaak Ti widened her eyes. Was this a Sith in disguise?! No, his martial skills didn't matter. There was no way he was Force sensitive enough to conjure lightning.

Sasuke rushed forward, his hand covered in lighting and moved in for an attack. Shaak Ti in response raised her lightsaber to defend herself, but was left in complete shock when Sasuke opened his lightning clad had latched onto her lightsaber, sending the energy careening through the blade and into the metal handle, where nature took care of the rest.

"Urgh!" Shaak Ti grunted her teeth as she felt the lighting course through her, causing her to buckle over and fall to her knees. Sasuke finished the battle with a powerful kick that he leaned into a little too much. Huffing before sprinting down the hall, Sasuke made a rush for the hangar.

In Orbit Over Coruscant

The Coruscant Home Defense Fleet was pretty self explanitory. A fleet stationed at Coruscant to defend it in case of an attack. It was sizeable, but as Coruscant was so deep in Republic territory, it often had little to do and many of it's ships had been restationed elswhere. Currently, it was quickly busy, making sure no ship got off without being boarded and inspected. There was a traitor on the run, and they would catch him.

"Sir, we have multiple ships dropping out of hyperspace." An officer reported to his superior onboard the Paladin. The superior officer turned to his subordinate.

"Friend or foe?" He questioned as the officer looked at his screen.

"Republic, sir." He replied as the superior officer nodded.

"Then there's nothing wrong. They're probably here to stop these upstart protestors" The superior officer wrote off. It was most likely a reinforcing Fleet here to help the CHDF.

Onboard the Fire's Shadow

"Sir, we're leaving hyperspace!" An officer reported to Storm, who Ross had placed in command of Naruto's personal Star Destroyer. They had received the reinforcement signal from Toad and the 497th along with the other splinter groups of the 10th Army began to drop out of hyperspace.

"It seems like they don't know our intent. That's good." a Clone reported as Storm nodded and smirked.

"Good. Get us close and ready our turbolasers. We'll cast the die and cause havoc." Storm ordered as the Fleet of Star Destroyers and smaller vessels approached the CHDF before they were being raised by command.

"Unidentified Republic Fleet, what is your purpose here?" Storm heard over the comms, to which he smirked.

"Well, we are here to liberate." Storm replied with a smile.

"Liberate? Liberate what?" Was the reply. Storm looked at the weapons officer and nodded.

"Why, liberate our General, Naruto Uzumaki, from the clutches of the Republic, of course. All batteries, open fire! Full broadside!" Storm ordered with a stomp of his new metal leg as the Fleet began to open fire at close range at the unprepared orbiting fleet.

Jedi Temple Hangar Bay

"I've got it!" Fang stated as he finally managed to extract the NavData.

"That's great, but our situation isn't improving! Where the hell is that bounty hunter? He knows we can't leave without him, right?" Fox shouted as the clones continued their barrage of fire at the Jedi, keeping them from advancing further into the hangar as best they could. Naruto was still out of it from his encounter with Yoda, asking him to help in this situation would be dangerous to his health. No sooner did he say that then did Sasuke came running down the hallway from behind the Jedi lines.

"Comin' through, watch your heads!" Sasuke shouted as he activated his jetpack and flew right over the Jedi and rolled right into the hangar, a quick barrage of blaster bolts tagging a few unsuspecting Jedi.

"That's everyone! Now follow my lead!" Naruto shouted as he started to run towards the end of the hangar bay, everyone quickly started to follow him but their enthusiasm stiffened when they realized Naruto wasn't stopping.

"Are you seriously asking us to jump out of the hangar?" Fang questioned.

"I've done it before. Just trust me." Naruto lied as he jumped through the opening and started to freefall along the side of the building. Sasuke was the first to follow, being unintimidated by a long fall thanks to his ninja training... and jetpack. King was next to muster up the courage, which inspired Blitz to follow suit. Flash, Stoic, and Fox took the leap leaving Fang dragging his feet. He silently cursed Naruto before finally plunging out the hangar.

The group was in freefall for a couple seconds before landing on the slanted walls of the temple and sliding down. They had maybe half a minute before they all impacted on the rooftops of the lower levels. Sasuke was the first to adjust and rose to his feet. Naruto got his bearings soon after and started to run down the wall with greater control. The Clones continued sliding, unable to compensate with Chakra like Sasuke, or the Force as with Naruto. Sasuke was the first to see his inbound ship and he flew to it with his jetpack, the loading ramp lowered and Sasuke beckoned the others to hop aboard.

"This is it boys. It's now or never! Jump!" Naruto shouted as he jumped off the wall and right onto the Slave I. Stoic, Flash and King successfully made the jump, while Fox had to be caught by Naruto and Blitz by Sasuke. Fang reached out with his cybernetic hand and activated the magnetic implants, adhering him firmly to the side of the ship, allowing him to compensate for his slightly more lacking physiology. He climbed towards the ramp when the ship suddenly shook violently. Delta-7s had pursued them out of the Temple and were firing on the ship. Fang completed the climb and the ramp closed as the eight of them took their seats.

"Get this ship going Ross!" Naruto shouted as the ship slowly moved into positioned and quickly shot up into the atmosphere. As the ship left the planet, those onboard could see the battle in orbit raging on as Ross relinquished the pilot's seat to Sasuke, who maneuvered them through the battle.

"There's the Spearhead. Take us there." Ross stated as Sasuke nodded and started to move the ship towards the Spearhead's hanger bay. Ross pulled out his transmitter and contacted Toad.

"Toad, get the Fleet to ready to jump out the second the docking clamps are in place!" Ross shouted into the transmitter.

"We'll be ready sir." Toad replied as the ships began to maneuver into position for a jump to the rendezvous point. Slave I evaded incoming fire from the pursuing Jedi expertly before it almost crash landed into the dorsal hanger of the Spearhead. Sasuke quickly adjusted his speed and the magnetic clamps were in place in a few seconds

"Now!" Ross shouted into the transmitter as the Spearhead quickly maneuvered into position before it jumped into hyperspace with the rest of the Fleet following soon after.

So? Did yh all like it? Me and my Beta/co-writer hopes that it was good. Now I know some of you have questions that you want answers to, but there are just so many of you guys that leave reviews that they all get drowned and I forget who asked what lol. We try to answer your questions though the actual chapter rather than notes regarding this story. So PM me if you have any questions regarding the story. Now some of you may be pissed and will leave a review saying "Oh! Sasuke! I hate him! I don't want to read this story anymore!" and that's fine. It has always been your choice to read a story or not. Naruto will reemerge to the galactic stage after a while seeing as how Kuramas seal is failing and most of you already know how he's gonna do it lol. I hope you all enjoyed this chapter! We'll see you later! Bye!