AN
"Blah"- Normal speech
'Blah'- Thoughts
"Blah"- Demon, summons etc
"BLAH"- Jutsu
Naruto/Final Fantasy VII
Lost Son of Konoha
Chapter24
Turtle Island Arc part 2
Taking a deep breath, the blond haired ninja closed his eyes and did his best to completely block out the world around him; slowly the world grew quiet until only the sound of the waterfall remained.
"Well, well what do we have here…" The sound of voice was suddenly heard, Naruto's eyes bursting open. Looking around he saw a dark shape on the other side of waterfall.
From the water emerged a person, a dark smirk decorating his face. Naruto grabbed his swords and got to his feet, standing before him was a dark eyed mirror image of himself clad in the black and red robes of an Akatsuki member.
"You really want to do this," Dark Naruto said, reaching into his robes he withdrew his own swords, "Alright then, just don't come crying to me if you die in the process…"
Naruto got to his feet. "Who are you?" he demanded.
"Still not too bright I see," Dark Naruto replied, "Then again all the times you've come close to death I'm not surprised that you might have suffered some brain damage along the way."
"And what the hell is that supposed to mean?" Naruto shot back, pointing his sword at his doppelgänger, "Talk sense."
"Are you that incapable of accepting that is in front of your own eyes," the black robed ninja said, "I am the real you, the you that lies at the bottom of your heart."
"What are…" Naruto began but then hesitated, his doppelgangers words resonating inside his mind.
"I am the embodiment of all the things that you hate about yourself. I am your anger, your envy, your greed, your hate. I am the you that hate's the people of Konoha for all that they did to you. I am the you that killed that Oni no Kuni Priestess, I am the you who enjoyed it."
"It…its you from before…" he said, "B…but that was some kind of weird near death induced hallucination, so how the heck can you be here?"
"I'm here because of this waterfall, it reflects the true buried deep inside a persons soul." Dark Naruto told him, "I am that dwells in deep within your heart, I am your darkness personified."
"Let me guess, to begin mastering Kurama's power I have to overcome you first." Naruto said, his tone firm.
"Good luck with that, the last time we let you couldn't even lay a finger on me. You needed mommy and daddy to come bail you out." Dark Naruto replied, reaching into his robes he pulled out his own swords, "Let me tell you this, that was a one time deal. That's not happening again. I know everything about you, your every technique and ability. Your strengths and weaknesses."
"It doesn't matter, I need to beat you and that's what I'm going to do." Naruto said, "I don't have time to waste playing around with my shadow, so lets just skip the posturing and get down to business."
"Fine by me." Dark Naruto retorted. The two of them then rushed at one another, their swords letting out a loud clang as they met.
All was peaceful in the forest; the only noise that could be heard to break quiet was the sound of the song of the birds that sat in the trees above. However look a little closer and one would discover something else.
In a clearing Cloud was swinging First Tsurugi above his head before bringing it down with a mighty swing which in turn left a long gash in the soil beneath him, a small cloud of dirt and debris filling the air.
Breathing heavily Cloud looked up at the sky, the sun now sitting high up in it. Many hours had passed his ninja companion had begun his meditation before the waterfall and had yet to show any sign of coming out of it.
"The Waterfall of Truth, it reflects what is buried within your heart." The brown haired man had said, "Before you can defeat your opponent you must confront the enemy you carry with you, if you cannot overcome your own demons then how can you expect to defeat those who would harm you or your loved ones."
The frown on Cloud's face grew longer as he dwelled on this. 'The Waterfall reflects what is buried in your heart…' he thought to himself, 'I wonder what Naruto is facing off against. What…what would I face if I were in his place?'
It was then he noticed something that in turn snapped him from his musing, something small that he almost didn't see it. A butterfly, its pure white wings carrying it towards the treetops. Cloud stared at it as it flew away.
The small winged insect fluttered through the branches and came to rest on the tip of a finger of an outstretched hand.
Konan stared at her creation, taking a moment to admire her handiwork when a noise, one so quiet that it would be easy to miss got her attention and a dozen more butterflies were seen heading in her direction. Wordlessly the blue haired woman reaching into her robe and taking out a scroll and unfurled it, all the creatures including the one that had landed on her hand fluttered towards the scroll and merged with it, words and symbols appearing on the paper.
Raising the object up to eye level Konan scanned the information that had appeared; the small insects she'd created provided her with Intel of the movements of the inhabitance of the island. According to the information one Kyuubi host hadn't moved from his position at the Waterfall, and If the information was accurate and he was indeed trying to master the power of his Bijuu. This could be a problem since a Jinchuriki with full mastery over the Bijuu they hosted tended to be a lot harder to capture then ones that did not.
Reading further another part of the information caught Konan's attention, the frown on her face deepening. It appeared that another complication had arisen to complicate things further.
Having grown tired of practicing with his sword Cloud decided to take a stroll through the woods, despite the warning he'd received from Motoi about the dangerous wildlife that inhabited the island he felt confident enough in his abilities to defend himself.
As he walked along he heard a noise coming from nearby, his attention grabbed the blond man followed the noise and arrived in a large clearing where he discovered a large group of animals, all of whom were howling almost mournfully.
'What's going on here…' Cloud thought, as he approached closer he noticed that they seemed to be surrounding something rather large.
Noticing his presence several the creatures turned to look at the blond swordsmen; some growled and snarled whilst other glared at hi threateningly. Frowning Cloud stopped dead in his tracks, slowly reaching for his weapon.
"Hey all of you's, knock it off." A familiar voice spoke up, "I ain't got time for your bitchin."
Hearing this the animals backed off, stepping back they revealed the body of a large ape, its body covered in deep, nasty looking cuts bloodstains running from them and pooled on the ground. Beside the body was Bii, the tanned skinned man wore a look of barely restrained anger on his face, Motoi was also nearby, the brown haired man was examining the body.
"What's this?" Cloud asked.
"Murder, cold blooded murder." Bii told him, his tone stern.
Cloud raised an eyebrow at this, unsure of how to respond to this. Looking up at the unmoving body he felt a feeling of familiarity about the massive primate. "Wait, isn't that the gorilla that tried attack us when we arrived yesterday?"
"Course it is, how could you not recognize Lil King?" Bii snapped, glaring at Cloud.
"Sorry, I'm not as familiar with him as you were. It took me a moment." Cloud replied, "What did this anyway, no way it was easy to bring down something of that size and not have us know about it?"
As the two of them exchanged words Motoi was examining one of the wounds on the ape's body when he noticed something embedded within it. Taking hold of it he gently tugged at it until it came free, from the looks of things it appeared to be a sliver of paper.
"What is that?" Cloud asked.
"It's a sign, one that tells us that we are not alone on this Island." The brown haired man replied, he then turned to Bii, "Bii-san, without a doubt this is the weapon that killed this creature."
"A piece of paper?" Cloud said, sounding confused.
"Shit," Bii cursed, "Those guys, they're here ain't they?"
"What are you to talking about?" Cloud asked.
"The Akatsuki, a group of high ranked criminals. No ones entirely sure of what their motives are but they are targeting Jinchurki, people that serve as living containers of the Bijuu." Motoi informed the blond haired man, "If I'm correct you've already encountered two of the their number, Itachi Uchiha and Kisame Hoshigaki."
A frown appeared on Cloud's face as he recalled the Itachi as well as the shark man, someone he'd not thought about in a very long time.
"Amongst their number is a Kunouchi, one who was involved in the Ame Civil War that ended the rule of Hazou the Salamander, one who uses paper as a weapon." Motoi continued, "Bii-san, once Uzumaki-san has completed his task at the Waterfall take him and Strife-san to the shine and secure yourselves there. None of you must fall into the Akatsuki's hands."
"You trippin or something," Bii retorted, "You think I'm just gonna hide like a bitch when the one who iced Lil King is just walkin around."
"This is no time to be stubborn Bii-san, the Akatsuki are not to be taken likely." Motoi said, his tone firm, "Now please, do as I ask."
Bii looked away, muttering something under his breath before walking away. Both Cloud and Motoi stared at his retreating form for a few seconds before walking after him.
Far away from the realm that the scene of the crime resided battle raged, its combatants striking at one another, searching for any opportunity to gain an advantage over the other. Their combat causing the water beneath them to change from a calm millpond to a raging ocean.
Naruto glared at his mirror image, his breathing heavy and sweat dripping off of him. As much as he disliked the idea there was no denying the fact that his opponent was an even match for him. It seemed like no matter what he threw at him, Kage Bushin's, Kenjutu, Taijutsu and not to mention just about every Jutsu he knew including several different versions of the Rasangan, none of them seemed in any way effective. No matter what he did his opponent already had a counter prepared.
'Damn it…' he cursed, 'This guy…he's pissing me off….' He then lunged at his dark counterpart, slashing at him with his sword only to have it blocked. Again and again the two blades clashed and with each failed attempt to over power the opponent the more anger and frustration built within the blond haired ninja.
After a length of time, her couldn't be sure of just how long, the two of them paused as they glared at one another, rip's and tears lined their clothing and blood oozed from their wounds, their gaze fixed as they awaited even the slightest hint of movement from the other.
After what seemed like an eternity Dark Naruto rushed at Naruto who in turn did the same, a rage filled cry emanating from them as they did so. The dark reflection's blade sliced through the air towards its target, only for the original to block it with his own weapon, the impact causing a giant surge of water to erupt around them.
Naruto growled in frustration as he did his best to push back against his mirror image however he found he was unable to, he and his opponent was far too evenly matched. It was then at moment he saw something, his own reflection in the blade of his own sword and his eyes and expression matching the one worn by his mirror image.
This was a shock to the blond haired mans system, the angered look on his face melting away and replaced by one of shock and horror. The man that stood before him, this wasn't some dark reflection of himself realised, it was him. It had always been him, a manifestation of the demon that existed deep within his heart.
The one birthed by all the rage, hate and sadness that had tried to bury deep, the one that fed on the darkness caused by all that he had endured over the years. The resentment of villagers that had hunted him as a child. The feelings of betrayal caused by the man he had once called friend. The sadness caused by the rejection by the girl he loved. The confusion and fear caused by learning that he might be a clone.
All of it stood before him given form, a vision of what he could become. Was this what Itachi had warned him about, about the hate that burned inside of him like an out of control blaze?
It was then that something caught his attention, beyond his opponent and the raging water he saw it. The waterfall, the same one that Dark Naruto had emerged from, despite everything still continued to pour calm water into the lake. Seeing it seemed to have a calming effect on him, his anger and confusion seemed to melt away, his mind and thoughts becoming clearer.
Thinking clearly now Naruto shoved his dark counterpart away and then, much to the replica's surprise, jumped backwards putting some distance between the two of them. Naruto pointed his weapon at his opponent for a few moments before flipping the weapon around and slipping it back into its sheath.
"W…what, what's going on?" Dark Naruto demanded, "Why are you just giving up?"
"I'm not giving up, this battle is over." Naruto replied, his tone calm, "You've lost.'
"What are you talking about?" Dark Naruto snapped, "Nothing has changed, you can't beat me."
"Your right, I can't defeat you through strength alone." Naruto said firmly, "And since you're part of me the same goes for you as well, no matter what neither of us can overcome the other. So if I am to defeat you then I'll just have to try something else."
"What are you talking about, you're not making any sense." Dark Naruto said, sounding panicked.
"What I mean is that we are two parts of whole, its only logical that you realize the same thing." Naruto told him, a warm smile then spread across his face, "I acknowledge you."
"Huh?" Dark Naruto explained.
"I acknowledge you." Naruto repeated, "I accept everything that you are and see that they are apart of me. And by doing this I win."
"What nonsense are you spouting?" Dark Naruto spat,
"Its quite simple really, you are the embodiment of the darkness that exists inside my heart. You represent all the suffering and pain that I've gone through." Naruto said, "I don't think it would take much, to become like you, filled with nothing but anger and hate. It would be so easy to only focus on the past and all the wrongs committed against me. So much easier then to take the other road, one that is so much more difficult to walk. To forgive."
"What, are you serious?" Dark Naruto said, hardly able to believe what he was hearing, "After everything, all the shit that others save done to you your gonna forgive them?"
"That's right. Being stuck in the past ultimately get's you nowhere except stuck in the same place unable to move forward, just look at what happened to Kakashi-sensei and even Sasuke." Naruto told him, "Kakashi never got over the deaths of Obito and Rin and Sasuke is obsessed with revenge, both of them are seemingly unable to move on from the past. I don't want to share that fate, I will do what they could not and honor Itachi's last request move past it."
"And that's all I am to you, some obstacle for you to overcome?" Dark Naruto snapped, "Your only here now because of me, if I wasn't here you would have died long ago." He then charged at Naruto, weapon raised with then intent of cutting him down.
Naruto didn't move watching as his dark counterpart ran towards him, the moment he swung his weapon in a vertical slash, the blond ninja made his move grabbing the dark versions wrist halting his attack before wrapping his other arm around this mirror images shoulder and puled him in close, an action that caught his mirror image by surprise.
"Thank you, for everything." Naruto told him, "Its ok now, I promise..." Hearing this Dark Naruto's grip loosened and his sword fell and sunk between the water, his body dissolving away until he vanished completely.
Back in reality Naruto's eyes opened, feeing somewhat drained and yet at the same time there was also something else, a feeling he'd not felt before. One of…wholeness, as if he'd been reunited by something that he never knew had been missing the whole time.
Just as his meditation ended both Cloud and Bii emerged from the woods and were greeted by the sight of him getting to his feet. "Well, isn't that convenient." Cloud said, he then looked over at Bii, "So now what?"
"He moves on to the next step, course." Bii told him, "He goes to the Bijuu Temple where he's faces off against the fox."
"And where is this temple exactly?" Cloud asked.
"Behind the waterfall." Bii told him.
"Ok, take Naruto and go there." Cloud said firmly, "I'll stay here and cover you in case this Akatsuki member shows up."
"You trippin or somethin, side who says you get to tell me what to do." Bii said incredulously.
"I'm sure, someone needs to be here just in case." Cloud told him, "Besides its like I said to that Motoi guy, wanting to master the demon is something he wants more then I do and you're the only one who can help him with that."
"Tsk, whatever." Bii scoffed before walking towards Naruto, the pair of then talked for a moment before the tanned skinned man lead the blond haired towards the waterfall.
Cloud watching as the two of them stepped into the falling water and vanished; once they were gone he walked over and took up his position at the waters edge drawing his sword. Scanning the area for any signs of anything or anyone who might try to get to the waterfall behind him.
Nearby Konan watched as one of her butterflies fluttered towards her, merging with her scroll providing more Intel. It seemed that the hosts of the Kyuubi and the Hachibi vanished into the waterfall where some sort of shine was located whilst the third member of their group stayed behind, no doubt to stand guard.
It appeared that the Kyuubi host had completed whatever trial he needed to undergo and was moving on to whatever he needed to do gain mastery over the demon he held. If she was to capture him before he could do so she would have to act quickly.
Before she could make a move the sound of something landing on a tree blanch close to her position was heard, looking round she found herself face to face with Motoi.
"There you are," the brown haired man said, his tone firm, "Guess you couldn't have known but I am one of the best Tracker-nin Kumo has produced, my record for tracking ninja is almost spotless. Did you really think that you could hide from me forever."
Konan stared at the man, her features stern. "Don't feel like talking then, that's perfectly fine." Motoi said, reaching into his robes and drawing out a wakizashi blade, "I know the reason for your presence here Akatsuki, I cannot allow for you to get close to Bii-san and Uzumaki-san."
The blue haired woman let out a snort. "Are you going to fight me?" she asked, "Its my experience that Tracker-nin don't tend to be very good in combat."
"Maybe I'm different from others you have met." Motoi retorted, he then jumped off of his branch no sooner had he landed he began flipped through a series of hand seals, "RAITON: AMIGUMO! Spider Web!"
Placing his hand on the ground, a surge of chakra passing into it and spread out taking on the appearance of a spider's web. The web began to crackle with electrical energy, the sole female Akatsuki member getting zapped only for her body to dissolve into dozens of sheets of paper. "Wh…what?" Motoi exclaimed.
"NINPO: KAMI SHURKEN! Paper Shuriken" the paper that had formed 'Konan's' body then launched themselves at Motoi, the brown haired man who did his best to avoid these projectiles, either by dodging out of the way or using his blade to deflect them.
"NINPO: KAMI BAKUDAN! Paper Bomb!" Without warning several of the papers glowed before releasing a burst of energy, one strong enough to knock Motoi off of his feet and sent him sprawling on the ground. Looking up he saw the real Konan standing not too far away.
"Seem the reports were accurate, I can see how you earned your S ranking." The brunette said as he picked himself up off of the ground, "I have to say paper is an interesting choice o weapon. But all the same you are here to subdue and abduct Bii-san and Uzumaki-san, that is something I can't allow you to succeed."
A frown spread across the blue haired woman's face. The man before her was nowhere near her level, far from it, however he was being enough of a nuisance to delay her. Every moment she spent dealing with this man was another moment that the Kyuubi host needed to complete the training he needed to gain full control and access to his demons chakra. 'I haven't got time for this; I need to end this quickly. To do so it seems I'll have to use that technique.'
Still standing in his position at the lakes side, Cloud head snapped round at the sound of an explosion, one that seemed to have come from close by. He hadn't seen Motoi since the brown haired man separated from him and Bii in order to track down the Akatsuki member that was loose on the island
Given how close the explosions were it was clear that the Kumo ninja had not only found the intruder he had also engaged them. The blond man frowned as he recalled the Akatsuki members he had encountered so far.
Kisame Hoshigaki, the shark man with the odd looking sword, a psychically powerful who had managed to fight off several ninja including the Kazekage Garra.
Itachi Uchiha, whilst not as string physically as his partner the dark haired man had displayed great speed and a variety of techniques that had made him formidable and that wasn't even taking into consideration his eyes. Even at the point of death had had been determined to conclude his business with him.
And finally Zetsu. Whilst he'd been neither strong nor powerful what the strange plant man did have was a strange ability to replicate himself, giving him the ability to overwhelm his enemies with sheer numbers alone. Each of them had been formidable in their own ways, not to be underestimated.
Right now Cloud was faced with a dilemma, whilst he disliked the idea of leaving a friend, even one he'd only know a short time, to fight alone there was a chance however that the Akatsuki member that killed the gorilla wasn't acting alone and leaving this place undefended could allowed to gain access to the Shine where both Naruto and Bii were hold up in his absence.
Gritting his teeth in frustration Cloud glanced back at the waterfall, knowing what lay behind it. He stared at it for a few moments before sliding First Tsurgi into the sheath on his belt and ran towards the woods in search of the source of the explosions he'd heard, hoping that he whoever was after the two Jinchuriki inside the shine wouldn't be able to find them if they were able to slip past him.
Running through the woods Cloud headed in the direction that he believed the explosions came from, his Mako infused blue eyes scanning his surroundings for any sign of a possible threat. It wasn't long however before he came to a halt, it had been present for only a moment but there was something here, he was sure of it.
"I know your there," he called out, his hand gripping the handle of his sword, "Come out and show yourself."
All was still for a few seconds before a woman clad in a familiar looking black robe with red clouds printed on it, her pale skin highlighting her blue hair and amber colored eyes which were highlighted by lavender eye shadow.
"You were able to pick up on my presence, I must say I'm impressed." She said, her voice even, "Especially for a non ninja."
"Who are you?" Cloud demanded.
"My name is Konan," the woman replied, "As I'm sure you've aware I am part of the Akatsuki."
"And the one who killed that gorilla I take it you're?" Cloud asked.
"Regrettable, I prefer that I complete my mission with as few complications as possible." "As such I would appreciate if you were to surrender yourself and lead me to the Shine behind the waterfall where the two Jinchuriki are currently located."
Cloud did his best to keep a look of surprise from appearing on his face. "You know about that?" he said, "How?"
Konan said nothing; then from out of the tree line dozens of white butterflies appeared, hovering around the blue haired woman. "These…there are yours?" Cloud asked, "What are these things?"
"There are my creations yes," Konan replied as one of the creatures handed in the palm of her out stretched hand, "Thanks to them I am aware of everything that is going on throughout this entire island."
Drawing First Tsurugi from the sheath on his belt Cloud pointed the weapon at the blue haired kunouchi. "So you know about the Shine then." He said.
"That's right." Konan said plainly, "Now I shall ask again to stand down, submit to me peacefully and come with me along with the two other Jinchuriki to have your Bijuu extracted."
"I can't do that." Cloud replied, "I don't want to have to hurt you but if you attempt to harm anyone else I won't hesitate to put you down."
"Very well then." Konan said, she then formed a ram seal. "NINPO: KAMI FUBUKI! Paper Blizzard!" The moment she said these words the white insects hurled themselves at Cloud and whirled around him, an almost blanket of white enveloping his vision.
Gritting his teeth Cloud did his best to shield his eyes from the almost blinding bombardment of white that surrounding him. It was so bad he almost didn't notice Konan approaching him, believing that he was distracted.
"NINPO: KAMI SHURIKEN! Paper Shuriken!" the blue haired woman said, her voice practically monotone. At her command the papers that been used to blind Cloud were launched at him, slicing into his flesh leaving many nasty looking gashes.
As the onslaught of the blue haired Kunouchi's jutsu proceeded that blade of Cloud's sword began to crackle with energy, with a cry Cloud swung his weapon above his head before bringing it down with a mighty swing, a beam of energy cutting through the … that surrounded him and blasting the paper away before running towards Konan.
Seeing this the female Akatsuki member produced several sheets of paper and tossed them Cloud, the blond swordsman using his weapon to deflect them before swinging it at Kona, the blue haired woman ducking and weaving out of the way of his sword. This was until she caught it in the shoulder, the blade slicing into body.
Seconds before this happened Konan's hands came together to form a Ram's seal. "NINPO: SHIKIGAMI NO MAI! Dance of the Shikigami! Her body suddenly dissolved into hundreds of sheets of paper falling away around the blond man's sword and then as if in an invisible gust of wind passed by Cloud and reformed into the blue haired woman.
With a flick of her wrists Konan produced four more sheets of paper and tossed them at Cloud, the blond swordsman readied to deflect them only for them to land at his feet, something that confused him. The blue haired woman then flipped through several hand seals. "NINPO: KAMI BAKUDAN! Paper Bomb!"
Hearing this Cloud jumped upwards in an attempt to get clear, seconds later the four sheets released a burst of light and energy, one strong enough to knock Cloud backwards. As he did so Cloud charged up another attack, flipping in mid air and launching several burning rocks in Konan's direction. Once more the Akatsuki member's body dissolved into dozens of papers sheets, narrowly evading Cloud's Limit Break.
Landing Cloud was quick to charge forward, his face set into a scowl and his eyes fixed up his opponent as she reformed. Konan was quick to act, flipping through hand seals. "NINPO: KAMI KUSARI! Paper Chain!" From her sleeves emerged a long stream of paper sheets all chained together and launched them at Cloud.
Seeing this Cloud detached a piece of his sword, giving him a second weapon, using them to hack and slash at the chains of paper as they tried to wrap around him. Just as he was within range Cloud then leapt into the air, the blade of his sword once more giving off a glowing energy, and unleashed a powerful swing at Konan, the blue haired woman using Shikigami no Mai once more to avoid the it.
Cloud however didn't look surprised by this, rather he had anticipated it. The moment his feet touched the ground the blond swordsman, Cloud quickly reassembled First Tsurugi back into a single blade before charging up another Limit Break, swinging his weapon a few times above his head before positioning behind him, he then followed this up by unleashing a mighty swing which in turn created a mighty burst of wind strong enough to catch the paper sheets and caused them to scatter.
Several meters away a mass of paper scattered across the ground and reformed into form of Konan, the blue haired woman pushing herself off of the ground. 'He's strong, stronger then the other one…' she thought to herself, 'Stubborn and persistent too.'
Picking herself up the Ame Konouchi began considering her options, what she could do to defeat Cloud. Whilst she figured she had several ways she could do so there was one factor that negated most of them: time.
She had a mission to complete and instead time was being spent fighting Cloud, and time spent fighting him was more time that the Jinchuriki of the Kyuubi needed to gain whatever mastery over his Bijuu. She needed to end this quickly and she happened to have a jutsu that could do so. She just didn't think she'd have to use it twice in quick succession.
It was then she heard the sound of something making its way through the undergrowth and Cloud was soon within view. Seeing him Konan quickly flipped through hand seals. "NINPO: KAMI FUBUKI! Paper Blizzard!"
Once more dozens of paper sheets emerged from the blue haired woman's sleeves and enveloped Cloud, the blond swordsman tried to fight his way through this storm of white that filled his vision.
Confident that Cloud was distracted, Konan began flipping though a long series of hand seals, casting a jutsu to defeat the Cloud. "TSUKUYOMI KAGAMI! Moon Goddess's Mirror!"
Whilst all this was going on Bii had led Naruto behind the waterfall, stepping through it the blond man was met by a large wall on which was a large image engraved onto it, depicting a large canine looking creature that had ten tails, as well as dozens of statues all of which had their heads missing.
"Damn…" Naruto said as he took in the sight that spread out before him.
"You gonna stand there all day with a dumb look on your face or somthin?" Bii called out as he approached the wall, his serious tone carrying a tone of barely restrained anger. He then indicated to a carving on the wall that depicting a beast's head with an open mouth, a large opening set into it.
"Ok what's going on with you, you've been in a bad mood since I finished my trial at the waterfall." Naruto said, "There's something your not telling me, I can tell, so why don't you just quit the silent treatment and tell me what it is."
"You want to control that mangy fox that you've got in your gut or not." Bii retorted, "So why don't you quit flappin your lips and stick your head in that hole already."
Shaking his head, Naruto stuck his in the opening, where inside he found a switch. For a moment he was tempted to pretend to lose his head but judging by his Masters rather foul mood he decided against it.
Pressing down on it the air was then filled by the sound of stone scraping against stone and a section of the wall slid away revealing a doorway revealing a pure white room.
"Get your ass in there, sit down and close your eyes." Bii told the blond, "In there is where you gotta undo your seal and go head to head with your Bijuu. If you can tame it you gain full control over its power."
"And if I fail?" Naruto asked.
"Then you ain't leavin." Bill replied, "The whole purpose of this place is to hold Bijuu that escape their Jinchuriki till a new one can be found.
Taking a deep breath Naruto made his way inside, walking to the center of the room where he looked over his shoulder. "You coming to?" he asked.
"Nah, I got somethin I gotta take care of." Bii replied, with that said the door slid shut leaving Naruto alone in the room.
With nothing else to do Naruto seated himself on the floor, closing his eyes he cleared his mind of all distractions and focused on the demon that he carried within him. Opening his eyes he found himself standing before the familiar sight of the cage that contained the massive form of the multiple tailed orange furred canine creature within.
"So there you are." Kurama said offhandedly, "Finally manned up and decided to face me have you. Gotta say your dumber then I ever thought possible if you think you've got a hope in hell against me."
"Well aren't you the cocky one." Naruto replied as he reached for the paper charm with a 'seal' kanji character written on it, with one pull it fell away revealing a symbol that acted as a lock, one put there long by his father.
Concentrating for a moment a series of symbols then manifested themselves along his arms and on the palm of his hand, inscribed several years ago by a Fuujutsu master of the Wolf clan under the watchful eye of Bii. All for the purpose of releasing the seal that kept the Kyuubi in check.
"You serious, you know the second I get out of here I will take pleasure sucking the marrow from your bones." the fox chuckled darkly.
"We'll see about that." Naruto replied, he then placed his hand upon the lock and the door to the cage swung open, a giant burst of wind erupted from the cage strong enough to throw Naruto back several feet.
The moment the door opened a sinister grin spread across Kurama's face, rising up the demon let out a sigh of contentment as it worked out the kinks that had developed from its decades of captivity.
"That's better, you have no idea what its like to cooped up for that long." it said as it took its first steps out of the cage, "I'm gonna enjoy taking you apart for what that bastard you call your father did to me."
Grabbing the hilts of his weapons, Naruto drew them and took his fighting stance. "Bring it fuzz ball." He replied, "Before this day is through your power will be mine."
A flock of birds erupted from a tree as beaten and bruised form of Motoi slammed into the trunk, the brown haired man then collapsing onto the ground.
His breathing labored and his body wracked with pain the Kumo ninja pushed himself up onto his elbows as his attacker slowly walked towards him. "W…why…" he managed to get out, "Bii-san…"
Towering over him was the tanned skinned Jinchuriki, despite being hidden behind his shades Motoi could feel the man's eyes staring at him, a look of barely contained anger on his bearded face.
"You little shit stain," the Hachibi Jinchuriki said, his tone harsh, "Did you really think you could get away with it? Did you think I didn't know what you did?"
He then grabbed the brown haired man by the throat and pinned him against the tree trunk. "You were my hommie, someone I thought I could trust and you stabbed me in the back." he continued, "You tried to kill me when we were kids, there ain't no way I'm lettin that go."
"Bii-san…" Motoi chocked out, gripping the other mans hands in an attempt to loosen his grip on his throat but was unsuccessful, it was as if the vessel of the Hachibi had a grip like a steel vice.
Reaching behind him Bii withdrew a blade from a sheath located on his belt and pointed it his fellow Kumo ninja. "You got sins you need to pay for, and your gonna pay for it with your blood."
Surrounded him all Cloud could see was white as the paper sheets, no matter where he turned his head the storm of paper was all that more then once he felt a sheet graze his skin.
After what seemed like an eternity the papers that encompassed him began to move away and grouped together several feet away, the mass of paper merged together and began to take on a shape that looked to be humanoid.
Cloud's grip tightened on the grip on the handle of his large sword as the appearance of the paper man began to change, its body becoming clad in black leather clothing, most notably a long coat that featured a pair of metal shoulder pads, from the right shoulder protruded a single black feathered wing. Long silver hair sprouted from the top of its head and to top it all off a sword appeared at the man's side, the weapons blade was almost as long as he was.
Cloud looked on, his face shifting into a look of utter horror. This wasn't possible; there was no way that the man standing before him could be here.
The silver haired man eyelids parted revealing a pair of blue eyes, the color was almost unnaturally so, a small smile appeared on his face as he stared back at Cloud, a small chuckle emanating from his throat. "Hello Cloud…"
AN And with that this chapter is done, I promised to get a new chapter out every 3 months and so far I've been able to stick to that. And before you all ask, the guy at the end, yes that is who you think that is.
So yeah several fights going on in this chapter, Naruto Vs Dark Naruto, Motoi Vs Konan and finally Cloud Vs Konan and I tried to make both of them indistinct from one another. First Naruto and Dark Naruto, yeah you only really got to see the end of it, whilst I could have done the whole thing it more or less would have just been the same as what happened in the manga and you got to see the most important part of it. Interesting little tidbit, the scene itself was inspired by between Jack and Mad Jack from 8x01 of Samurai Jack. If your familiar with the show you probably figured that out and it your not I suggest you look it up on Youtube.
As for Motoi Vs Konan, I know it was also short but it was to give a brief glimpse of what Konan is capable of before going into her fight with Cloud. IMO Konan had one of the more interesting gimmicks in the manga with her use of paper as a weapon but never really got a chance to show off what she could really do, the only real fight she was in was against Obito and there was no way she was ever going to beat him. So when it came to the fight with Cloud I did my best to demonstrate why she would be able to stand with the other members of a high ranked criminal group like the Akatsuki. I don't believe for a second that Konan is as strong or stronger then Cloud so I went for a power Vs technique thing, with her utilise her paper jutsu as a means of overwhelming him.
Oh and for those of you who are confused no Konan is not Uchiha or possess a Sharingan, her Tsukuomi Kagami has nothing to do with the Uchiha or Sharingan it just happens to have a similar name. There is a reason for the name and it'll be revealed next time.
So I'm done, please leave feed back and tell me what you thought of this chapter. Next time should be final part of this arc, Naruto has to deal with Kurama and Cloud faces off against the embodiment of the darkness within him.
Till next, later y'all.
