Naruto (Hellfire): I really needed that vacation.

Inuyasha: Feh. A demon shouldn't need a vacation!

Naruto (Hellfire): *irked* What are you still doing here dog boy?

Inuyasha: Wouldn't you like to know! I'm enjoying these fics before I start my own raising a little Naruto to be better than you!

Naruto (Hellfire): Ugh. To know that a small baby Naruto is going to be raised by you annoys me.

Tenten (Hellfire): But enough about that. Enjoy the chapter everyone!


Forged in Hellfire: Lost Soul Reborn
Chapter Forty –The Broken, The Blind and The Bloody Rebirth

Konohagakure no Sato – Streets of Konoha
Uchiha Sasuke

It felt so weird to be in Konoha after the emotional bombshells that had rocked him to his core.

Itachi hadn't killed their clan for power. He did it to stop a civil war within the village and not only that, Itachi did it to keep Sasuke himself alive.

He loved him…

All that Itachi did was for him to have peace…And Sasuke truly couldn't wrap his head around it. "I hated him for so long…For so long and all he did was for me," Sasuke said to himself as he stood in his doorway.

All that he had done was to defeat Itachi but Itachi died.

He died saving Sasuke's life…

There were other realms, other powerful beings out there. The allies he had were stronger than life. It was all too much to handle.

'All this time, I wanted to become a shinobi to fight him…I wanted vengeance…I wanted to kill him and yet…he was still the big brother I had always admired…always wanted to be…the one that always looked after me,' Sasuke thought to himself.

It began to rain as Sasuke walked through the streets of Konoha and he could feel the emotions building up in his heart. 'What do I do now?' Sasuke thought to himself as his eyes began to blur before he blinked, releasing the tears that had built up.

Unable to stop himself, Sasuke fell to his knees and began to sob heavily in the middle of the street.

His revenge, all that he had sworn to do was shattered. The brother that he had sworn to kill was dead.

All that Uchiha Sasuke thought that he was…It was gone and left behind was a shattered soul.

The rain pelted his body as he kneeled there, his hair becoming slick with every drop of water.

But then…it stopped.

Confused, Sasuke looked up and he saw who he knew was Ayame, the sixteen year waitress of Ichikaru's. He could see concern in her eyes as she stood before him, an umbrella in her hands. "Are you okay?" She asked him, a concerned look in her toffee brown eyes.

Sasuke wanted to see he was okay. That she had just caught him in a moment of weakness but as hard as he tried, he couldn't muster up the confidence he had always shown.

He couldn't lie to her.

"No…" Sasuke whispered as more tears fell from his eyes.

He could see her eyes soften before she slowly knelt down and wrapped her arms around him in a soft hug.

"It'll be okay," Ayame whispered into his ear.

It had been…So long since Sasuke had been touched by a human that didn't have malice behind it and it was even longer since he had been hugged that the moment he felt the warmth of her against him, the tears began anew.


Village of Hisako
Tenten

"Are you alright child?"

Tenten turned her head to see an old woman with grey hair sitting in the middle of an alleyway, sitting in a booth. There was something ominous about this woman but all Tenten could do is stare at her with curious eyes.

"I am…frustrated," Tenten replied as she walked to the woman in the alleyway and sat in the empty seat in front of the small booth.

"Ah, you were the Kunoichi from Konoha that battle the Oto Kunoichi, yes?" The old woman questioned.

"I was…" Tenten said bitterly as she looked at the booth. "I wanted to be as strong as my mother and father and as well known like Tsunade but without my arm…I'm nothing…" Tenten felt the familiar burst of anger fill her heart at the thought. All of the years training to be a shinobi…Gone due to that Oto Kunoichi.

It sickened her to a point that should have scared her but all she wanted was revenge.

"I can see the fire in your eyes child…It is a fire I saw in another young woman," The old woman said with a smile. "She was a lowly street urchin, fighting to survive in a harsh world…But with the power of Blood Magic, she was able to become powerful. Powerful to regrow limbs…Powerful to create any weapon she desired from not only her blood but the blood of her enemies…"

Tenten's eyes snapped up at the old woman, who smiled a devious smile. "How do you learn this power?" Tenten asked her.

The woman pulled out an ancient looking scroll and said "This scroll holds the secrets of blood magic…The secret my clan has used for many years…"

"Is there a cost?" Tenten asked.

"None," the woman replied.

Tenten stared at the scroll before she asked "Why? Why give this to me?"

The old woman gave a gentle smile and said "You Konoha shinobi have saved our little village twice. You were injured in doing so. Consider this a thank you from me to you but be warned…There are effects to using blood magic. Too much use can cause dependency and insanity…"

Tenten weighed the options before her.

Without her arm, she was worthless as a Kunoichi of Konoha and not to mention, the thought of not only regaining her arm but being able to make her own weapons from blood was both morbid and fascinating to her.

But the dependency and insanity aspect…

'No!' Tenten thought. 'I made a promise to mom…I can't back down from it now!' With that thought in mind, Tenten smirked and said "I'll take the chances."

"Then the scroll…is yours…" The woman said as she slid the scroll to Tenten. "At midnight tonight, when the moon is full, you will open the scroll and cut your palm and once it does, you will place your hand in where the circular seal appears…And when it does, you will know what to do next…Just make sure not to do this within the village…Take my word for it."

Tenten nodded and the woman smiled, her ruby red eyes glinting briefly. Tenten took the scroll and stood up to give the woman a bow.

"Thank you for this gift. I can never repay you," Tenten replied.

"No…you accepting my gift is thanks enough…" The woman replied.

Tenten smiled and turned to walk away but as she did, she realized that she never got the woman's name but when she turned around, the woman was gone, along with her booth.

"….Huh," Tenten said thoughtfully but she shrugged.

The woman probably had some errand.

But thankfully, the scroll was still firmly tucked beneath her arm. Tenten didn't know where the woman came from nor why she spilled her inner most thoughts to her but in the end, it was worth it.

"Looks like my useless days are coming to an end…" Tenten said, a hopeful feeling blossoming in her chest for the first time in a very long time.


?
Hyūga Neji

Neji stood In the middle of a dark void, his sockets glowing as he looked around in wonder.

Where was he?

"Find…"

Neji's head snapped to the right and there, he saw a door with the Hyūga Emblem etched into it. Neji walked towards the door and slide the door open and there, he saw it.

There was a Katana that was embedded in a stone pedestal. The blade had several chains holding it down along with several paper seals attached to it.

"What am I looking at?" Neji questioned.

"Senta," A voice replied.

Neji turned around and found himself looking at a man.

The man had graying black hair and goatee and he wore a black body suit with red accents with a sash across his chest, depicting a dragon, and a black pauldron on his right shoulder. Attached to his belt is a small satchel. He wears red knee pads and black boots. His signature red bandana is worn across his eyes.

"W-Who are you?" Neji stammered.

"Takahashi Kenshi," The man replied with a warm smile. "And I was the previous holder of Sento…Up until I perished in battle."

"Did you come from the same time as Naruto's other life?" Neji asked.

"I did," Kenshi replied.

"Why are you here then? I never died and as far as I know, you aren't my previous life," Neji said.

"You're right. I'm not. I am someone who wielded Sento and when I did, my soul was taken within the blade, waiting for the next wielder to reveal themselves," Kenshi told him.

"And you think that is me?" Neji asked.

"I do," Kenshi said. "I have been watching you Hyūga Neji. Your skills are very impressive as a fighter but your attitude was something that was left to be desired. I was going to give up on you until your family member and reincarnation of Kitana set you on the right path."

Neji remained silent.

"You and I…We were exactly the same," Kenshi began. "When I was younger, all I thought about was the fight. I was arrogant, cocky but I knew I could back it up. Shang Tsung knew this as well."

"Shang Tsung?" Neji said.

"A sorcerer with untold power. Able to use the souls of his victims to fuel it in many different ways," Kenshi explained. "Someone whose power could rend this asunder if given a chance."

Neji remained silent.

"He was able to shapeshift himself into a feeble old man and told me about Sento and said that it was worthy of my abilities…Fueled with pride, I let him lead me to a tomb where the Well of Souls laid. When I pulled out Sento, the souls of ancient warriors came forth…It blinded me and stole them, fueling his power to levels unheard of…He left me for dead. But it was there that Sento called to me…"

"Called to you?" Neji asked.

"Yes," Kenshi said with a nod. "It called to me and lead me out of the tomb and revealed that the souls of the warriors were my ancestors…"

"So you lead this Shang Tsung to your ancestors without knowing it…That is not only humiliating but sad…." Neji told him.

"The man that walked into the tomb was arrogant, cocky and sure of himself. The man that walked out was humbled, defeated but given a purpose bigger than what he had and that was to bring good to the world…" Kenshi said with a faint smile. "As much as I despise Shang Tsung…He led me to my destiny as a hero to Earthrealm and through his actions, I was able to find the woman that would give my pride and joy in Takeda…I was able to redeem Scorpion, a man lost to his revenge….I was able to help my realm in its greatest time of need and now…I am here to lead you to Sento…"

Neji was humbled by this man's tale and said "I-I'm honored that you see my skill as a shinobi and that we have similarties but admittedly, I am afraid…I was everything I said I was but without my sight…I can't even use those skills…"

"That is the exact thought I had when Sento chose me," Kenshi replied softly. "And believe me when I say, once you have Sento, you will never had to worry about losing your sight ever again."

Neji was silent for a moment before he asked "So you're telling me that even with this blindness, I will still be able to fight at one-hundred percent?"

Kenshi didn't say anything for a moment before he said "I don't wish to sound arrogant but despite my blindness, I was able to go toe-to-toe with humans and beings that would come to fear me."

Neji let a small grin appear on his face and said "Judging from the door this was behind, my clan holds Sento…"

"You'd be correct but you have to let it guide to where it lies…" Kenshi said before he placed a hand on Neji's shoulder. "And when you do, I will return and we will begin to make you a fighter to be feared."

Kenshi then pulled off his red bandana from his eyes and placed it in Neji's hands, revealing his own glowing eye sockets. "For when you awake Hyūga Neji…Until we meet again."

Neji leaned up off the bed and panted heavily, sweat pouring down his face as he felt around. He then smelled the air and realized that he was still in the hospital. It was then he felt the smooth velvet texture beneath his right hand.

Just then, the door opened and Neji asked "Are you a nurse?"

"Yes I am," A female replied.

"Tell me…What is in my hand?" Neji asked.

"A red bandana," The nurse replied.

Neji felt his heart beat quicken as he gripepd the headband in his fist as he thought 'I must get back to Konoha…'

But there was one question that nagged at him…

How did the Hyūga Clan find Sento and why did they have it sealed and chained?


Forest outside Hisako
Tenten

It was three minutes to midnight and Tenten found herself in an empty field within the forest a few minutes outside of Hisako. "This seems to be the perfect area," Tenten said as she knelt on the ground and placed the scroll on the ground.

She unlocked the scroll and exactly like the woman said, there was a simple circular seal in the middle of the small scroll. She pulled out a kunai with some difficulty and bit down on the handle and with a swift whip of her head, she cut her palm, causing blood to spill out of it.

She spat the kunai out then took a shaky breath and stared at her palm for a moment. "Now or never…" she whispered before she placed her bloody palm within the seal. For a moment, nothing seemed to happen.

Had she been too late?

Had she been duped by that old woman?

It was then she felt a pulse through her hand and when she looked down, she saw her blood begin to flow towards the intricate circle seal but once her blood reached the seals, it didn't move past that barrier.

Another pulse and Tenten felt a hint of pain and it was then she saw her blood begin to spread from beneath the circular seal, revealing lines and lines of seals but the blood in the circular seal never moved nor lessened.

Once the final seal that filled with her blood, the seals themselves began to shine a ruby red before the seals themselves began to be sucked back towards the larger seal before her palm was forcefully pushed from the circular seal.

Tenten looked at her palm and saw that the wound had not only healed but it was glowing the same ruby red. She looked back at the scroll and saw her blood begin to float and take form into an orb and moments later, her blood began to take form into a dagger but it was unlike any dagger she had ever seen.

The blade was bright silver but the edges and the middle of it was crystallized blood but she could see that blood, her blood, was dripping from the crystals. The hilt was also made of the same crystallized blood but there was a vile of glowing liqud sticking out from the bottom of it.

As if she was in a trance, she grabbed the hilt and held it in her hand. Her breath came out slowly as an image of a woman plunging the dagger into her chest. She held the blade to her chest and with no hesitation, she stabbed herself in the air.

She felt the chill of the steel pierce her chest and her heart and yet, she did not feel pain. She felt warmth like no other. She watched as the glowing liqud began to drain from the vial and a strange feeling in her heart and once it was gone, the blade liquefied into blood which then slid into the hole in her chest which then healed.

Then she felt this warmth spread across her body, each second it began to get hotter and hotter to alarming rates. She then heard a blood curdling scream as white hot pain but then she realized that this near inhuman scream was coming from her own mouth.

She didn't know if it was minutes or hours but the intense heat and pain continued to build, her eyes locked on the moon but suddenly, it began to become tinted in red as blood began to seep from her eyes, ears, mouth and every single pore on her body.

Suddenly, the blood began to glow and she let out a loud scream as ruby red energy exploded from her body which caused the entire area to be bathed in red light.

When the energy faded, she found herself on her feet as naked as the day she was born, blood dripping down her body, with both of her arms. She opened her eyes and instead of the normal chocolate brown they were, they were now brown that was tinted in red.

She looked down and saw her limb and felt clenched then unclenched her fingers before a slow smile appeared on her lips.

She licked her lips, which held blood on them.

It tasted…good.


Rain: Yep. So while I focused on Neji and Sasuke (The latter I have more plans with) This chapter focused the most on Tenten. I always thought Tenten was heavily underuterlized in the show (Both of them now) and decided that I would do something different.

I did originally plan for her to be a Jaqcui-like with a puppet arm while blood magic was going to be something I never touched on but I decided that I should change that so instead of doing that, I gave her Skarlet's blood magic but will she have her insatiable thirst for blood as well? Hehehe, until the next chapter.

Tenten (Hellfire): *smiles slowly*