When I had first begun my journey to capture and save all the Shadow Pokémon, I never knew that the man I had been hunting down had been the kind man that I knew when I first met Hinata. Now… I guess this was how it was meant to be, for now I had to take him down and save the world. Or else, all Pokémon and humans would be in danger forever.
Naruto stared with wide eyes as he saw the man walk out of the shadows and soon he stood next to Yahiko. His clothes the last time he saw them was a simple suit like a business man but instead, they were the black robes with the red clouds. The cloak hid most of his body from view but there was one feature that he knew for a fact that he couldn't forget…
The hair… it was the hair…
"Mayor Nagato… but why?!" shouted Naruto, his eyes flashing red for a brief moment from rage that was building up deep within him.
Nagato, the mayor that Naruto and Hinata spoke to after she was kidnapped had been the leader all this time. If he had known… he would have taken him down but it seemed that it hadn't been meant to happen at the time. Now, he was going to have to face the man in the flesh but there was one thing that he never understood… if he had been the leader this whole time, why didn't Naruto sense the darkness from his Pokémon unless he didn't have them with him at the time.
"Let me tell you a story Naruto… I am from the same clan as you, the Uzumaki Clan… and as such I can speak to Pokémon yet, I cannot feel what they feel like you can." Nagato began with a smirk. "My parents used to tell me that when the Pokémon world would be in danger, that was when the bloodline would awaken so a chosen trainer would gain the power. I knew all about the legend, how Kurama, our ancestor sealed that power away because of some prophecy of his descendants destroying the world of Pokémon or saving it."
"What does this have to do with Kurama's power?" asked Naruto with a glare.
The red haired man smirked for a moment, his eyes shined with insanity. It almost made Naruto want to go over and punch him in the face. Though for now he wasn't going to do even that, at least not yet anyway. "I wanted that power, so I did everything I could to save Pokémon, but I never got that power. The power I craved wouldn't come to me. So I had no choice but to create a way to save Pokémon myself…" Soon, his smirk went darker; it made Naruto shiver slightly though not enough for him to rub his arms from the chill that went through his core.
"I knew that if Pokémon was in danger that the power would awaken within a member of the Uzumaki Clan!" He laughed for a brief moment. Only for his eyes to darken with rage. "The power was to be mine but around that time… an Uzumaki child was born… you. The power had awakened in you. When Orochimaru joined my group by providing me Pokémon, he had told me of your power and that was when I knew that I could still go on with my plan by controlling you. But you had escaped."
Naruto narrowed his eyes. He remembered Orochimaru telling him that he was going to be transferred to a new location before he went on that mission and returned early to blow up the base. It seems that he had dodged a bullet there or else he would have been under this man's control and Hinata… well there was no way of knowing what was going to happen to her.
"What do you plan to do now that you had lost your chance of getting me hm?" asked Naruto, his voice was strangely calm though deep down, he was throwing a deep rage that he was keeping to himself.
"Simple… in this battle there are higher stakes. All the battles that you've been in have just building up the darkness that was within you. You have lost control yes, but now… if you lose this one battle Naruto, the darkness shall firmly have its hold over you and you will join me! You will never break free ever… again."
Naruto's eyes widened at hearing those words but… he knew that he had no choice. If he didn't do something not only would he put the Uzumaki name to shame, but Pokémon would still and forever remain in danger until the next Uzumaki with this power comes along and there is no way of knowing who that will be. Narrowing his eyes, Naruto calmly said "you're just insane! You would have to be born with that power not have it later on in your life!"
Nagato just smirked once again. Naruto knew that he was far too gone with his desire for power and that was something that he knew that shouldn't be… It looks like he would have to take him down once and for all, even if there was a chance of him losing this battle and not to mention, losing himself to the darkness if he does just so happen to lose.
'Yet that will be a risk I'm willing to take so long as I can save them…' thought Naruto with a deep breath before he shouted "come on fucker, you and me. Right here, right now, I'll take you down so fast your head will spin!"
Nagato raised his eyebrow at Naruto, apparently a little surprised at Naruto's eagerness to battle. Though it mattered not to him, for this battle would decide the fate of the world and he would make sure that Naruto would join him no matter the cost. Taking a deep breath, Naruto looked ready to take down the crazy red haired man. He had to make sure that nothing happened though he knew that it would be a challenge but it would be worth it in the end after all.
Soon, Nagato smirked before he tossed out his Pokéball, Naruto had a weird feeling about this but at the moment he didn't really care what the Pokémon was, he was going to take it down without a problem.
Forming from the light was another Legendary Pokémon, one of the Legendary Dogs that Naruto hasn't captured yet. An Entei, Entei is a massive, leonine quadruped with some mastiff qualities. It is covered in brown fur and a long, light grey mane along its entire back. It has gray plates on either side of the mane (making it look like smoke is coming out of a crater on its back) and a plate beneath the cream belly fur on its chest. Entei has grey paws with brown pads and black cuff-like bands on its legs. Its main faceplate is red and shaped like fins or a six-sided star. A gray plate covers its muzzle and resembles a handlebar moustache. It also has a yellow crest with three sloped points on its forehead and red eyes. As a whole, Entei's head appears to resemble a kabuto.
Narrowing his eyes, Naruto reached for his Pokémon and tossed out the Pokéball that contained Gyarados. The giant serpent–like Pokémon turned his gaze onto Naruto for a moment before turning back to Entei. It was easy to see that he was trying to seize up the Legendary Pokémon but Entei didn't flinch from the stare. "Naruto… you owe me big time." calmly said the water/flying Pokémon which made Naruto chuckle softly.
"Don't worry buddy, we just have to kick some ass and we'll win this battle in no time."
"Yeah, but you're forgetting that if you don't win this battle that you'll turn over to their side and you will never come back to us."
"How did you-?"
"I do have ears Naruto, even if you can't see them."
Naruto sighed softly as he ran his fingers through his blonde locks only to glare at Nagato. He had to finish this once and for all. At least his Pokémon were on his side with the choice that he made. Looking up, he saw Nagato giving a deranged smile as if he had finally lose his mind before calling out "Shadow Rush!" so he could really speak to Pokémon as well.
"Okay buddy, you'll have to counter it with Aqua Tail!" Soon, Gyarados's tail started to glow blue as he swung it at Entei. The Legendary Dog of Fire let out a roar of pain as his charge was stopped short and flew into the wall. He didn't think it would be this easy but then again, Shadow Pokémon only knew one attack and could do nothing else and that was pretty much it.
Entei shook his body, his fur swaying from the motion as he glared at Gyarados for a moment before he looked ready to make another attack. Naruto knew that he would have to be careful. "Quick Entei, use another Shadow Rush!"
"Counter with Hydro Pump!" shouted Naruto.
Entei rushed forward, his body lighting up in some weird black aura. It was something that Naruto knew Hinata had described to him once though she had always told him that it was purple. Maybe since Entei was a Legendary Pokémon, it was a stronger aura to transform him. Narrowing his eyes, Naruto watched as Entei tried to force his way through Gyarados's attack.
Entei was strong, that was for sure though he couldn't help but wonder if Entei was doing this on purpose so he would lose or if it was something else. Shaking his head, Naruto knew that something big was coming though he wasn't sure what that was as of yet. "Shadow Rush, full power!"
What!? Entei rushed through the Hydro Pump, he managed to bite Gyarados's throat and pin him to the ground. "No!" shouted Naruto as he stared in shock, this couldn't be happening! "Gyarados!" shouted the young man as he stared in utter horror as he stared at his Pokémon getting his throat being ripped out or at least that's what it looked like.
Staring in shock, Naruto tried to think on what he could do though it seemed that he couldn't think straight. It almost seemed like everything had disappeared from his mind. He had to do something to save his friend before he lost him. But how was he to do anything?! Suddenly, Naruto started to feel something. It felt like something was stirring within his soul before it started to prickle at his skin. 'What the hell is going on?' thought Naruto as he frowned a bit in confusion.
Suddenly, Gyarados shot up and threw Entei away from him. Naruto stared in shock for a moment only to rub his eyes, thinking that this was nothing more than a dream. Though when he looked up, Naruto couldn't believe what he was seeing. Gyarados had really thrown the Legendary Pokémon away from him and it was amazing.
"Naruto what did you do? I feel amazing!" roared out Gyarados with a happy look on his face. Naruto wasn't going to complain though even he didn't get what had happened. Unless this was the power that Itachi was talking about before. Maybe it was something that would have given him this kind of power and that itself had given his Pokémon power for that.
Grinning from ear to ear, the young man called out "finish this fight off with Hyper Beam!" Gyarados smirked before he shot out a Hyper Beam and shot it at Entei. It was amazing that the Legendary Pokémon had been taken down so easily but at the moment Naruto didn't care. The only thing that confused him was that it was taken down so easily. Maybe it was because it had been charged… Taking a deep breath, the young man captured Entei and looked up at Nagato. "Whatcha gonna do now Nagato?" said the blonde haired young man with a smirk.
Nagato tossed out another Pokéball as his smile widened in a smirk. Naruto knew that this was a Pokémon that he wouldn't have expected from him but he would just have to be prepared.
It was a Latias! Latias is a bird-like, dragon Pokémon. It has an aerodynamic body and glass-like down feathers. The lower half of its body is red with jet-plane wings and fin-like feet. It has a blue triangular marking on its chest. It has white and red arms that can be tucked into its body. The upper-half of its body is white. It has triangular ears and a red face with a white pentagon in the middle.
Does he only have Legendary Pokémon or what?!
Shaking his head, Naruto reached for Gyarados's Pokéball and called him back before reaching out for another Pokéball and tossed it. "Come on out Minato!" shouted Naruto.
"Really Naruto? Another Legendary Pokémon? Why do you do this to me…" moaned Minato before glaring at Naruto for a moment. Naruto just sighed softly, not sure what he could say to Minato, there wasn't really anything he could do or say though what he did know was that he would have to give orders and kick some major ass.
"Faint Attack!" shouted Naruto. Minato rolled his red eyes before he vanished from sight. Latias looked around the area, wondering where Minato could have gone. It was something that Naruto always loved to see was when the Pokémon would search for Minato when he would just suddenly disappear from sight.
Minato suddenly appeared from above and slam his body into Latias. Naruto smirked a bit before he tried to think of a follow up attack. "Pursuit!" Minato's tail started to glow for a brief moment, as if trying to build up power before he spun around in a wheel and slammed his tail into Latias and flipped so he would land on the ground. Naruto knew that this was an easy battle so far though he wasn't sure if this Latias was even going to fight back… It almost seemed to easy…
"Shadow Rush." said Nagato.
Latias disappeared before slamming her body into Minato, sending him flying into the wall. Minato yelped from the pain before he had crumbled onto the floor shaking in pain. Naruto stared in shock, he couldn't believe this… Shaking his head, Minato was too hurt for the power increase like he did for Gyarados… Shaking his head, Naruto called out "Minato Return!"
Latias was stronger than he seems though maybe it was because Minato had fought too much as it was. Narrowing his eyes, he knew that since Latias couldn't use any of its normal attacks, he can use the only Pokémon that can tolerate slams like that… Shaking his head, he grabbed another Pokéball and tossed it saying "Come on out Blade!"
"Cool, a Legendary Pokémon!" said Blade with a grin.
"Yes Blade, now just be careful… It took down Minato in one hit so just watch out okay?" Naruto calmly said so that Blade wouldn't hurt himself in this battle.
Blade nodded his head, his blue eyes shining with caution. At least he knew not to risk his life… "Blade, use Dragon Pulse!" Blade smirked as he jumped in the air, a large turquoise orb started to form from Blade's gaping mouth. "Put more power into it, teach Latias not to mess with our friends!" shouted Naruto. Blade did just that, trying to pump more energy in Dragon Pulse so he could finish this attack off without a problem.
"Friends? You think of your Pokémon as friends? Ha. That's just a stupid dream Naruto… a dream meant to crumble. Latias, Shadow Rush." said Nagato as he ordered his Pokémon to attack.
Naruto knew that this was tricky. He would have to have Blade launch the attack at the last minute for close range. At least he hoped that this wouldn't risk Blade's safety since he was part steel type so it shouldn't cause that much damage. Latias was getting closer and closer, the Dragon Pulse was pretty big by now, almost the same size as Blade though it still wasn't enough yet. Naruto wasn't sure how he could send Blade more energy like he did for Gyarados though maybe it was through his desire to save Pokémon? He didn't see them as tools or for his own personal desires… He saw them as family…
Suddenly, the Dragon Pulse increased, becoming five times the size Blade had made it. It was incredible and now this was the chance that he had been waiting for. Smirking, he called out Release it Blade! Send it straight to Latias right about… NOW!"
As soon as Latias was within mere inches from Blade, the attack made its mark. Blade went flying from the blast, as did Latias. Though unlike Latias, Blade flipped through the air and placed his feet on the wall before he landed on the ground and started to walk until he stood next to Naruto. Looking ahead, Naruto saw that Latias was trying to get back up but was having trouble because of the strike from the Dragon-Type move. It had been something and it was enough for Naruto to capture it.
After that, he grabbed a Pokéball and tossed it at Latias. He was going to save her and after that he was going to live a happy life. Though he couldn't help but wonder what was the last Pokémon this guy was going to use. It had him curious though was it enough to defeat him or better yet would he be able to capture it without a problem?
Taking a deep breath, Naruto narrowed his eyes as he looked ready to take this guy down though he couldn't help but wonder… would he win?
"Come on out Latios." said Nagato as he tossed out his final Pokéball.
Latios is a bird-like, dragon Pokémon. It has an aerodynamic body. The lower half of its body is blue with jet-plane wings and fin-like feet. It has a red triangular marking on its chest. By tucking its wings and forelimbs, it can fly faster than a jet. It has white and blue arms that can be tucked into its body. The upper-half of its body is white. It has triangular ears and a blue face with a white pentagon in the middle. In a way, it looked just like Latias but with a slightly larger body.
"Okay Blade, I don't think Dragon Pulse is going to work like it did with Latias. So we're gonna have to use another type attack okay?" said Naruto as he looked at Blade. The Fighting/Steel-Type nodded before walking forward. It was rather nice that he was able to enjoy the battle with his Pokémon, his family though he knew that he would have to build up energy and strength before they could do the finishing blow.
Crossing his arms, Naruto said "Poison Jab." Blade's paw started to glow purple before he rushed forward and jammed his paw into Latios's chest and jumped back. Narrowing his blue eyes, the Pokémon carefully watched Latios wondering where he would attack.
"Shadow Rush…" Nagato said with a smirk. The way he had said it, it made Naruto fear what was to happen. Suddenly, Latios's arms disappeared into his body and he zipped by Blade trying to hit him. Blade of course, would jump or dodge out of the way so he wouldn't get hit. It seemed that Nagato had this planned from the start. That he would have made sure that Blade wouldn't be able to attack in time until the attack hit is mark. He's going to have to do something before he was hit. Wait…
"Shadow Claw!" shouted Naruto, hoping that Shadow Claw would work since it wasn't just a ghost type move, but it was also close range.
Blade's left paw started to form claws with what seemed like it was made from the shadows themselves. It was like it was made from pure negative energy that surrounded him though what made this better? It may have gotten more strength not just from Naruto but by being near a 'Shadow' Pokémon. As soon as Latios was within range, Blade swung his claws and striked Latios in the face, sending him flying a foot away before landing on the ground.
Blade landed on his feet, breathing heavily. Naruto could tell that he was worn out from trying to dodge all of Latios's attacks which were to be expected. Taking a deep breath, Naruto calmly said "Shadow Ball!" He just prayed that this worked, that this would be easy though he shouldn't expect that to happen as much since after all it was a Legendary Pokémon like the other two Nagato had used.
Blade started to form a purple sphere in between his hands before throwing it at Latios. Naruto knew that these wouldn't be enough to take him down though it would at least be enough to weaken him for the final attack. At least, he hoped that would be the case.
Taking a deep breath, Naruto just watched as Latios tried to push himself back up though the young man knew that being poisoned from Poison Jab was also taking its toll on him though he couldn't help but wonder if it was weak enough for it to be captured. Though he couldn't do that as of yet. Just one more attack and he was sure that Latios could be captured though that was still a risk in a way. So far, he hadn't lost the battle in fact he was pretty damn close to winning this thing.
"Okay Blade, we're gonna have to finish this battle off in one attack while Latios can't move. Let's try Dark Pulse." calmly said Naruto before looking over at Blade. He knew that the attack was another they hadn't worked with though it was something that he had to do in order to win this battle.
Blade nodded to Naruto, he braced himself for any on coming attacks while he got this move prepared. He started to build up the dark energy from his negative thoughts, the thought of losing this battle; of failing Arashi… failing everyone around him was causing great negative emotions to flow through him giving him more power and more energy.
Soon, Blade opened his jaws and shot out a blast with dark purple rings flowing through the stream of dark energy. The power was impressive for a Pokémon that wasn't a Dark-Type though it was still very powerful that was for sure. Latios screamed out in pain when the attack hit its mark. In a way, Naruto felt bad for him but this was just the way it was meant to be so he could be saved. It was just the way it was meant to be maybe.
"Keep going Blade!" shouted Naruto, he just hoped that this wasn't putting a strain of Blade. He knew that this was already hurting him, that it was already bothering him from the power of negative thoughts could sometimes have consequences though he just wasn't sure what that was going to be with Blade but either way he was going to make sure that nothing bad happened to him, not ever.
Soon, the blast started to diminish and Latios just lied there on the floor. It was over… Grabbing a Pokéball from his belt, Naruto tossed out another Snag Ball and smiled that he had easily captured Latios. Looking at Blade, he smiled as he told him to grab the two Pokéballs and just smiled all the more when he put the new Pokémon in his pocket. He would have to make sure that he purified them later.
"You fool! I could have had all the power in the world and you ruined it!" shouted Nagato as he grabbed Yahiko so they could escape from this place. Naruto tried to rush forward, to stop them but before he knew it shadows zipped past him. Naruto yelped from the shock only to notice that it was four people that he knew…
"Sasuke! Sakura! Itachi! Kiyoko! What are you doing here?" asked Naruto in shock before shaking his head. Maybe it was what they had been waiting for. They had been waiting for Nagato to weaken a bit before trying to capture him. Either way, he wasn't going to complain. Not as long as this guy got his ass thrown into jail so he couldn't harm Pokémon ever again.
"We've been watching the match the whole time and knew that if something bad happened we'd have to stop you or Nagato before that happened." Calmly said Sasuke before grabbing Yahiko with Sakura. Naruto just nodded, that did make some sense for him. It was best that they had been here just in case that was to happen.
Though turning to Hinata, he couldn't help but smile as he said "it's over Hinata, we can go back to Konoha and purify the Pokémon and they can be normal again." The thought of purifying the Shadow Pokémon made him smile at the thought of it. It'll be nice when the Pokémon would be normal again though he couldn't help but wonder what more would be in store for him now. Maybe after purifying the Pokémon, he could do something more to help Pokémon, maybe create not only a safe haven for them but to do some research to prevent this from ever happening ever again.
He started to make his way back to Hinata, thinking that he'll have a great life now. Though, the young blonde haired young man knew that so long as he lived he would never completely forgive himself for the crimes that he had committed to Pokémon around the world or in this case, in the country. Yet, it wouldn't stop him from trying to atone for those crimes that he had done to Pokémon. At least, he hoped that would be the case for him.
Taking a deep breath, Naruto was almost near Hinata when he started to hear struggling. Frowning, he started to turn around and watched as Itachi and Kiyoko struggled to hold onto Nagato. He was screaming and shouting about how Naruto had ruined everything, about trying to become the strongest member of the Uzumaki Clan that had ever lived next to Kurama though Naruto knew that, that would be nothing more than a dream.
A dream that would never, ever come true for him.
Shaking his head, Naruto calmly said "you've only done this to yourself Nagato, you're the one that wouldn't let go of a dream that you knew wouldn't come true. Now, you are to pay for your crimes. You could have changed your ways like I did and now well… it's a little late for that now isn't it."
Nagato just glared at Naruto, the glare was so cold it almost made Naruto shake in fear though he wasn't going to. Not in front of him or so many people for that matter. That would give him some kind of win in a way. "You know Naruto… there is one way… I can get what I want…" Said Nagato with a smirk.
"What would you want now?" asked Naruto with a raised eyebrow.
"Your death!" shouted Nagato as he broke free from Kiyoko's grasp, whipped out a gun and shot at Naruto twice.
Everything had happened so fast that Naruto didn't know how to react. It felt like time itself had started to slow down when the bullets hit him in the chest. Slowly, Naruto fell backward, the pain starting to make itself known to him though he had tried to ignore it, yet… he couldn't even do that. Blood started to trickle the side of his mouth and dripped over his chin and onto the ground.
Hinata screamed and rushed to his side, screaming for Naruto to stay with her. To stay alive so they could be together forever. Now that he thought about it… this was what happened in that vision that he had on the way to the Shadow Pokémon lab. So he hadn't been able to stop it after all, no matter what he did to try to stop that vision, he had failed and now he was paying for it.
"Hinata…" whispered Naruto, his body feeling so weak that he could barely hear the laughter of Nagato as he was taken away.
"Don't talk Naruto… you'll be fine, I promise…" whispered Hinata, trying to keep her tears at bay. Naruto tried to smile… he could feel his blood starting to now only soak through his clothes but started to pool itself around him. He knew that this was going to be the end of him though… he couldn't help but say what was on his mind. If he only had minutes left, he might as well use those minutes to say something meaningful to Hinata.
"Hinata… you… made me want to be a better man. I never knew that I could atone for my crimes…" he whispered softly, he looked up at her as he tried to keep his strength up. "We've been through a lot together… just to save Pokémon that I had captured. To be honest…" His eyes slowly started to droop as he spoke. "I wanted to spend the rest of my life with you Hinata… I wanted to be… with the woman I loved more than anything but… I guess it wasn't meant to be." He chuckled weakly before coughing up some blood.
"Naruto don't talk like that!" cried Hinata.
"I'm sorry… Hina-chan… I never… wanted… you to… cry… I… love…" his eyes soon started to close as he whispered "you" under his breath… Hinata screamed as she held onto Naruto's body, crying for him to come back to her… Though, what she didn't expect was to hear a loud screech of some kind, causing her to look up in shock at what she saw…