Chapter 5

Naruto grimaced. No matter how deep he submerged himself in the depths of war and violence, the coppery stench of blood was a sensation he would never get used to. The pile of bodies was sickening enough, but the sheer amount of blood seeping into the ground was shocking. "What kind of monster…" He offered a silent prayer for the dead before continuing to search.

Beyond the corpses, it was the glint of metal that caught his eye. "It can't be!" With minimal effort, he threw the bodies aside, searching for what he thought he saw. Flecks of blood and flesh spilled into the air.

Naruto clenched his fist and looked away in disbelief. Of course, he'd had his suspicions, but the all-too-familiar item confirmed his guess. "Am I really here? Is this a dream? Because if it is…" He dropped the scrap of metal with a sigh of resignation. "There's no point in waiting here any longer." With an explosive burst of chakra, Naruto quickly left the scene of death and destruction.

~o~

A twinge of annoyance marred the perfect features of Gilgamesh. She peered carelessly over each corpse, ignoring the deathly stench. "I was late…" She sighed. A trail of mana lingered in the area, but there was no presence of her target.

Her vehicle hovered over the bodies, stopping on Gilgamesh's command as her eyes picked up on an object lying on the ground. Her mind failed to recall the significance of it, only knowing that it held great importance.

Hurriedly, she stepped off her vehicle and snatched the rusted, blood-coated headband. Her crimson eyes stared holes into the metal, wondering where exactly she had seen such a spiral. A second passed. Two seconds. Then, a velvety, arrogant laugh erupted from her throat, perfectly befitting of a tyrant.

"How amusing!" Gilgamesh cackled, her crazed eyes glinting with excitement and madness. "This symbol was on your head, wasn't it, Naruto? To be fortunate enough to venture to your old world. Your King is most definitely amused! Now all that is left…" And just like that, her mood soured over. "Worms. Mere worms defile my presence. Come out, mongrels, and if you beg well enough, I may consider granting you mercy."

Only the rustling of leaves could be heard. Even the animals, deep within their primal instincts, knew better than to interrupt the King.

"My patience grows thin… I demand of you once more! Reveal your faces! To think you are capable of hiding from your King's senses is a folly indeed." Gilgamesh clenched her fist, summoning the rippling, aureate circles to her side. The Gate of Babylon stood ready to respond to its King's orders.

Yet the pooling killing intent failed to faze the intruders. They remained in their places, perhaps trusting in their ability in concealing their presence.

"Very well. I am left with no other choice. Rejoice in the honor of tasting my treasures." With a mere flick of her wrist, Gilgamesh sent weapons hurtling in every direction. A wide arc of weapons sliced down the foliage, trees, and animals. As she decreed, no living thing was granted mercy. And that included the humans hiding within this cover.

"Ho?" Gilgamesh stepped towards the fallen body. The figure was masked and any distinguishable features were unseeable. But all of that was of no importance to her. It was only the headband strapped on his forehead that drew her attention. "Are these your people, Naruto? I expected… more."

Having somehow avoided the rain of weapons, another figure leapt from the shadows, breaking the almost peaceful silence. His legs nearly exploded from the pressure of the chakra flowing to the lower area, but his face remained emotionless, just like a robot - not that Gilgamesh could see it. His blinding speed and explosive first step brought him right next to the King. One arm stretched out, slicing his knife to Gilgamesh's throat, only to be slammed into a tree in a gust of wind that reverberated throughout the forest.

He shook his head, blood dripping down his mouth. It seemed as if he had been teleported from one place to another, but it was anything but that. He grasped the thin, shining spear that had nailed him to the trunk. "Strong." But even more troubling was the otherworldly energy leaking from the weapon. It was certainly not chakra, unless it was Natural Energy. But was it even possible to imbue weapons with Natural Energy? "Lord Danzo must be notified of such-" His head exploded into chunks of blood, bone, and brain matter moments later.

Gilgamesh scoffed. "Fools! This is not the first time an attempt to assassinate me has been made. They are mongrels, but still, I expected something more than just cowards hiding in the dark. How pathetic." The spear impaling the corpse dissipated into gold sparks and so did the other treasures she expended during the fight. "Now to find that fool…" Hopping back on her Vimana, Gilgamesh blasted into the sky.

~o~

He breathed out unsteadily. Having gone through Lord Danzo's special training, his emotions had been stripped from him. The elder always insisted on the idea of shinobi performing more efficiently and effectively without their emotions.

But if that was the case, how come his hand couldn't stop shaking? Were his seals malfunctioning? Was it this so-called fear that paralyzed him? Hopelessness?

He shook his head. What they were was of no concern. These issues were less pressing than the self-proclaimed King. Lord Danzo had to be notified of a threat that was able to sense their presence and summon fearsome weapons. And the name she uttered… Naruto, was it? Something was terribly wrong…

His hand steadied itself, gripping the brush with a practiced motion. He deftly dipped it in ink, quickly writing down a brief report on a scroll. Once finished, he quickly animated ink rats to deliver it to Lord Danzo.

Did he dare continue? Though he was "emotionless," he couldn't help but feel slightly irritated at the gap of power between the woman and him. Even if tried his best to conceal himself, he had a feeling that the woman would still be able to detect him.

As if on cue, the woman's inhuman eyes locked onto his, and for the longest second in his life, he saw the Death grinning down on him. His memories flashed by, but even as he peacefully relived through them, he could not rid-

IamgoingtodieIamgoingtodieIamgoingtodie

She scoffed and turned away, dismissing him like the bug he was. Yes... To her, he was a mere ant, one that was not worth killing. Sweat poured down his face and he quickly turned away, retreating into the dark.

Lord Danzo taught him to fight but he also taught him to know when to run.

Now was most certainly the time to run.

~o~

Naruto leapt from tree branch to tree branch, chakra pulsing from his feet and legs. Wind slapped against his face from the high speed he was traveling at. He sighed from the nostalgia. It was almost as if he was back home. Well, he was. He nearly froze in his tracks.

That's right… He's back in Konoha! What were the chances the Throne of Heroes sent him back to a time when Kakashi was still alive? A time when Sasuke was still back in the village? He'd be able to talk that dark-haired bastard out of leaving the village and save Kakashi!

"Calm down." Naruto stopped tree-jumping, taking a break near the trunk of a tree. "I might be able to save those two, but what would be the repercussions? I am who I am today because of Orochimaru and Kakashi's death…" Would he simply cease to exist? Or would that have no impact on him at all?

Naruto's head snapped up. His suspicions were no longer mere guesses. There was someone in the vicinity - most likely hostile. He cracked his knuckles. Whoever it was, they were getting on his nerves. Time to time, he felt slight killing intent leak from his surroundings, but it was quickly contained, leaving him confused as to where the shinobi was. Never mind stealth. Naruto wanted to confront this threat head on.

He exhaled in preparation for the upcoming fight. "Yo! Whoever that is better come out. I know you're there."

There was no response, but that was expected. Still, from what he remembered, Konoha was a relatively peaceful village. Was he transported to the time during Orochimaru's attack? No, it was too early to rush to such conclusions. Most likely, he was running off of paranoia and the enemy was a rogue ninja. "At least be someone strong…"

A stream of pitch black lightning was his only warning. Naruto whirled around, hastily putting his arms up in a block, just in time to guard a muscular, dark arm wreathed in voltage. The immense force behind the strike sent Naruto tumbling away, crashing through not one, but two, thick tree trunks.

"What is wrong with me?" Naruto quickly leapt to his feet, avoiding a second strike. If he was anyone else, he would've been dead, not just from the strike itself but from the sheer embarrassment from being caught off guard that badly. His over-dependence on the opponent revealing bloodlust right before the ambush was a huge mistake. Underestimating the enemy's speed and overestimating his durability was only the cherry on top. "I'll finish this quickly. Snap out of this mindset, Naruto!"

Naruto quickly parried each of the hits, smoothly jumping backwards and pivoting out of the way. "You piece of shit!" The shinobi dug one foot into the ground, using it as leverage to flip backwards. "Ranton: Reiza Sakasu (Storm Release: Laser Circus)!"

"Kekkei Genkai?" Naruto slammed his hands on the ground, quickly summoning a mud wall to counteract the missiles of light. Moving quickly, he split himself into two clones and jumped to the crumbling sides of the walls.

"It's over." But this time, he'd see it to the end.

The shinobi scanned the area and pulled out a kunai to deflect the incoming projectiles. A harsh clang sounded as he sent them flying to his sides. Once more, his body converted chakra to lightning, crackling and popping all around his legs. It was all released at once, sending him rocketing to Naruto's position like a bullet. "You're dead, bastard!" There was no shinobi that could possibly react to his blinding speed.

Naruto turned his cold, hard face, ignoring the blatant hate spewing from the shinobi's words. He stared deep into Naruto's endless whirlpools of blue and felt only...

Despair.

"Am I?" A whooshing sound was all that could be heard as he sped- no, teleported from one place to another.

"A yellow flash? But that could only mean-" A rotating mass of chakra slammed into his back, easily burning through his tattered jacket and leaving a red spiral mark.

Blood spurted from his mouth and he was slammed face first into the ground. "Y-You…" Exhaustion was no longer the only factor hindering his movement. "Rasengan and Hiraishin… Is he the Yellow Flash?"

Naruto quickly restrained him, eager to get more information from him. "Here's the deal. I'll ask you the questions and you'll give me the answers. If I'm satisfied, I'll let you go. Does that sound fair?" Unless he was a shinobi from another nation. If that was the case, he'd have to go back on his promise. But then again, it wasn't a promise in the first place, was it? And even if it was, the essence of shinobi was based on lying and killing.

"You Konoha filth!" He snarled, seemingly ignoring him and thrashing under Naruto's grasp. "Never satisfied with what you have. Always hungering for more. Hurry up and kill me. I'd rather die than join your kingdom."

Naruto was tempted to do so. But he was a shinobi, trained to pick up on every clue. From what he remembered from his days, his village was always against the idea of war. Konoha produced some of the most notable and fearsome ninja, but they were content with their borders and peace. And to have referred to his village as a "kingdom" was only further troubling. "Something is different about this place. I'm familiar with the land and all, but there must be a change in Hokage. Hiruzen would never allow Konoha to change so radically, and neither would Tsunade. So who would ever…"

Naruto pulled the shinobi to his feet. "Who's the current Hokage right now?"

"You don't even know the name of your dictator? Typical…" He chuckled halfheartedly. "Go to hell, scum. I'm not telling you anything."

Naruto clenched his jaw. It was typical of shinobi to never give away information, but it was troublesome all the same. If he wanted to play that game, Naruto would happily oblige. Keeping one hand to pin down the shinobi, he then pulled down the mask covering his Sharingan.

At the sight of the dojutsu, the shinobi's eyes widened. "An Uchiha?"

"Something like that. Last chance before I use Genjutsu. Either way, I'll be getting what I need. It's your choice to do it the easy way or the hard way."

He gathered a glob of saliva before spitting right at Naruto's face. Luckily, Naruto tilted his head at the last second. The loogie sped right past him. If it wasn't so disrespectful, Naruto would almost be amused. But he had his response, one that he'd predicted. "Fine by me."

The ringed eye spiraled furiously, its tomoe boring straight into the shinobi's pupils. But just before he began casting the illusionary chakra, he noticed something… something peculiar about this man's face… That was it! Naruto nearly let go of the man out of pure shock. How could he have forgotten an S-rank shinobi, especially a man possessing two unique techniques?

"Darui of Kumogakure." Naruto breathed out. Still, Naruto never remembered Darui as an overly muscular build. From what he remembered, Darui was much leaner. If anything, this body type was more like that of the Fourth Raikage.

"Yeah that's me. The hell is up with you?" Darui snarled. …That as well. From the limited interactions he had with him, Darui never struck him as an overly aggressive shinobi. He was more lax, even to a fault.

Could he really dismiss these discrepancies between this current "Darui" and the one he knew? Were they minor enough to label them as coincidences? Naruto gritted his teeth. Even when he thought he had returned home, there was something wrong with the whole situation.

Darui's body blazed with that same black lightning in a sly attempt to catch Naruto off guard, but Naruto was a veteran. As the strongest shinobi himself, Naruto knew and expected all the tricks of a shinobi. "Stay down." He quickly switched his grip, slamming Darui headfirst into the ground again. Only, upon impact, "Darui" imploded into flickers of lightning.

"A Lightning Clone?" Naruto slammed his hand into the ground. The revelation of that shinobi being Darui must've taken a greater toll on him than anticipated. That realization was an opening Darui ruthlessly exploited. What a shame… His immediate source of information was gone so now he'd have to venture further into the land. But if this world was really changed, he'd have to disguise himself. That'd mean-

A thick wall of spears cratered the ground Naruto was just standing on. Just as he teleported away to a marked tree, he saw golden explosions accompanying the furious, regal face of Gilgamesh. "Come back here, Naruto! Your king is in need of amusement!"

"One after the other! Can I catch a break?" The mentioned shinobi closed his eyes. Was there any use in running away? Clearly, Gilgamesh was capable of tracking him down, so was it more effective to simply slay her now? But with the amount of energy and killing intent they were both releasing, it was inevitable that shinobi would be alerted to their presence. He couldn't take that risk!

But was there anything she could do against his Sharingan? Naruto quickly shifted his Sharingan into its cursed, Mangekyo form. Drawing upon the Uchiha chakra, he made himself intangible, though Gilgamesh wouldn't be able to see that.

Weapons carved their path through the air, leaving glowing streaks. Despite the weapons' blinding speed, the immense energy packed into each of them served as markers, making it easier for Naruto to dodge them. Of course, his unique ability - or Noble Phantasm - would make it so that they would pass through him, but then Gilgamesh would see the usage of his Kamui and act accordingly.

Chakra enveloped his legs, propelling him side to side. While he couldn't run in a straight line because of the constant barrage of weapons, his unparalleled speed allowed him to slowly gain ground. "You're a King, not a warrior, Gilgamesh!" Naruto called out, flipping over two swords and then using wind chakra to push away a pair of hurtling spears as he landed.

"Fool." Gilgamesh muttered, but her insult failed to match her troubled expression. For once, the King understood simply throwing weapons at the ninja would fail. Yet even with this thought, Gilgamesh couldn't help but smile. She would freely admit that there were Servants in the Throne of Heroes that could face her in a battle. But the excitement of fighting them dulled over time. The mystery behind their Noble Phantasms were exposed, and their unique qualities were reduced to common knowledge. But this Naruto… Something told her he'd be surprising her for a very, very long time.

"It's over." Naruto's mismatched eyes glowed with barely restrained power as he sped around the King's spray of weapons. Dodging yet another sword, he unsealed the Sword of the Thunder God in all its fury. The lightning emitting from the blade trickled over to his body, charging it with its intensity.

"Really?" She held her head high. "Don't think your King will be caught off guard. I know how your Noble Phantasm works now."

With a roar, Naruto gathered strength in his knees and pushed off, fissuring the ground from the pressure. He readied his sword strike, cocking his arm back and focusing energy into the sword.

He reached his arm out, nearly in the position of stabbing Gilgamesh through the throat. Even as the swords and spears flew through him, Naruto felt no sense of danger. At least, not until Gilgamesh grinned savagely at him.

Four shining circles appeared behind Gilgamesh, and while they looked no different from the litter of circles all around her, the presence emitting from those four were on a completely different level. No… It wasn't even that. There was simply something unsettling about the tips of the spikes emerging from the glowing gold.

Naruto's premonition had come to pass. Just as he materialized himself to stab Gilgamesh, those spikes eagerly snaked out of her circles, coiling around Naruto's four limbs and clasping him in a stiff position. Gilgamesh scoffed atop her floating vehicle. "To believe I, the King of all Heroes, would fall for the same trick is a crime in itself. Do you truly believe that I would not realize the limitations of your ability?"

Testing the strength of these chains, Naruto flexed his muscles, but the chains only held him down tighter, nearly snapping his bones under the pressure. Blood dribbled down his chin, but he refused to let out even a groan.

"Mongrel! If you are intangible, it wouldn't be possible for you to hit me! Yet you did in our previous encounter." Gilgamesh stepped down from her vimana. "Which means just as you get in range, you reveal yourself to the world to deal a fatal blow. A dirty trick, but a fairly simple one. But if that is all you have to offer… your King is not amused."

But "Naruto" popped into white smoke, leaving the chains with nothing to bind. They fell to the soft ground as Gilgamesh remained in her place, stunned. The true self shook his head, hiding within the trees. "You're the only fool here, Gilgamesh. Do you really think I wouldn't know the flaws of my own abilities?" He whispered.

Gilgamesh chuckled. "That's more like it. It'd be far too easy if it had ended like that. Now then…" Her crimson eyes honed in on Naruto's figure. "Shall we resume?"

He grunted in annoyance. "Fine by me." Naruto stood on the tree branch, looking down on the opposing Servant, but before he could initiate an attack, his hand instinctively snapped up, grabbing onto a kunai that would've pierced his Sharingan. His Sharingan scanned the area, quickly spotting black figures zipping all throughout the forest. "We've been found. But by who is the real question…"

"These pathetic worms!" Gilgamesh stomped her foot on the ground. "This is the second transgression against your King! When I'm done with all of you, there will not be even a shard of bone left to spare!"

Four scrolls were tossed around Gilgamesh in a rectangular formation. "Shishienjin (Four Violet Flames Formation)!" One figure intoned, quickly moving away after activating the barrier. Four rays of purple light shot up from each scroll, joining each other to form a cube.

"That barrier!" Naruto quickly put aside his quarrel with Gilgamesh. That jutsu was a particularly effective barrier, engulfing any intruders in its never ending flames. But its biggest flaw was the reliance on four shinobi to constantly hold the jutsu in each corner. Yet this variant bypassed such a restriction, requiring only those four scrolls. Whatever force this was, it was dangerous.

Naruto flashed through hand signs, blowing a sea of flames all around him. If these shinobi were comfortable hiding within the trees, he would simply burn them down.

But they had anticipated such an attack, quickly responding with a wall of water. The opposite elements slammed against each other, releasing a cloud of steam upon collision. "They're skilled. They wasted no time getting in formation around me and synchronizing their jutsus. They're nothing special one on one, but together…" As the shinobi began slowing down, they wordlessly surrounded Naruto in a rose-like formation.

Luckily for him, a fellow Servant shared his distaste of the enemy. He'd almost begun to forget about Gilgamesh when she shattered the barrier with ease. The scrolls then shriveled up, disintegrating into fine dust. "You fools would lock me up as an animal? I must beat some sense into your people, Naruto." She stepped away from the ruined makeshift prison, bumping into a slowly backing up Naruto. "Is your King's decision not to your liking?"

"My people? Wait! Those headbands! So they are from my village. But from the way they move and communicate... They must be Danzo's men. And Danzo?" Naruto shook his head. "Go ahead, your majesty." He turned around, his back against Gilgamesh's back. "I'm assuming we're having a temporary truce?"

"Your intelligence is frightening. For a mere dog that is…" She said mockingly. Several of her portals closed, leaving only several circles for her to shoot weapons out of. Gilgamesh laughed, noting Naruto's bemused expression. "They have not proven themselves to be worthy just yet. Only a true hero may taste my full power."

"So you consider me a true hero?" Naruto smirked, deflecting a kunai to the side.

"Arrogant dog." Gilgamesh sent several swords arcing down to a stray shinobi unlucky enough to separate from the group by a skinny margin.

"Upgraded from a mongrel to a dog…" Naruto sweatdropped. There was no excitement in poking fun at her if she constantly responded with the same arrogance. "Focus on the battle at hand, Naruto." He chided to himself. His sword in one hand and a Rasengan in the other, he charged into the fray of the battle.

A/N: I really couldn't force anymore words out. But I promise it'll get interesting soon enough. I've hinted at it slightly, but I haven't explicitly stated what the deal is with this world. I saw somone say something about a Grail War, but think about this as more of a Singularity. I won't say anymore. Don't give up on me just yet.

Now, I'm still wondering where I should start with the Forgotten But Not Gone renewal, but I'm stuck. I promise I'll get it out before the end of this month. Maybe.

Please review!

Next Update: Magi and Assassins (Please try to give this fic a read. I understand it may not be your preference, but I think I'm most committed to this project, just because of my huge interest in Killua as a character and FGO's story. I'd appreciate a review. ;))