A/N: Sorry if this isn't all that long, I'm really not feeling well...T_T

*sees the 2.5 trailer*

Well, guess I'm updating this next!

I'm not surprised Mihoyo went that route; gave me a kick to update this early.

As ever, the Embers Rule persists. If folks don't like this...well. I won't continue it. Sorry, but its the sad truth. I don't have a team anymore, meaning I'm writing almost EVERYTHING by myself. At the end of the day, this is a HOBBY for me, one I don't get paid for. To top if off, I'm working two jobs. As such, I haven't the time to write a story no one likes. So by all means, speak up! Raise your voice! Make yourselves heard!

On three questions this time:

Q: Why did the Shogun fall apart so quickly?

A: She did not. Remember, Naruto's been visiting the Shogun and Ei for quite some time. Its been a slow erosion. Moreover, the Shogun -now named Mei!- is the one he's been interacting with most. This "date" merely sealed things between them. You see, she opened up to him first because he did the one thing no one would. He treated her...like a person.

Hell, he gave a name!

And when you give affection to someone who never experienced it...

...well. You may find they're rather keen to hold onto that. Or rather, the person who started it.

Q: Fight, fight, fight! Let the gods rage!

A: Oi! Hold your horses!

Q: ...someone's about to get hurt, aren't they?

A: Well, you know what they say; what doesn't kill you makes you stronger...

Alight, I've kept you long enough.

We're finally here; hope you're ready for it!

As ever, I own no references, quotes, themes or memes! Now then, without further adeu...

"You wish to make yourself my enemy? I am the everlasting god, guardian of eternity."

"Ei...think very carefully about what you're doing."

"I have thought. Now is the time for action."

"Hey! I already said I won't fight you!"

"Then you will die."

~?

An Almighty Audience

She was awake.

Why? Why was she awake?

She did not know. Everything was...murky.

She remembered pain. Death. Darkness. The final desperate pleas of her sister as she perished in her arms. Yet here she was, back among the land of living. Diminished perhaps, a mere wraith of her former self; yet was that not better to being trapped in the claws of the abyss? Something had awoken her spirit. Not intentionally perhaps, yet she found herself stirred regardless.

Only one relic could have done such. The Gnosis. It must be. It had been hers first, after all.

She could feel it now. Changed. Altered. Reclaimed.

"Oh, Ei...what have you done...?

(.0.0.0.)

It was a strange thing to see the Shogun fight firsthand.

Truth be told, Naruto found it rather amusing...and slightly frightening. On the outside looking in, to see her might directed not at him but rather at others, it was something of an experience. He could dodge her attacks with ease; evade the worst of her assault as easily as one would a stray kunai. He'd learned to read the patterns of her attacks and react accordingly; not merely through instinct, but sheer skill.

This lot wasn't quite so fortunate...and were summarily trampled for their foolishness.

Mei did not fight with the calm dignity he'd grown accustomed to over many days. Something had riled her up. Her enemies were weak. She was strong. They were beneath her. She was so very far above them. It was a slaughter in ever sense of the word. She did not let them dictate the flow of battle. That was all her; all fire and fury.

"PERISH!"

The blunt end of her polearm caught an unfortunate Ronin in the skull and sent him spinning to the floor. He was still falling when she snatched him up by the ankle and whipped him into the rest of his comrades. Most of them went down sprawling. With a furious hiss she raised her weapon high. Heaven answered in the form of violet lightning, smiting those who dared to stand against her. Their twitching forms crumbled to the dirt, never to rise against her again.

Kurama whistled in the back of his head, a low note dripping with amusement. "She's got a temper."

Naruto winced as bodies flew through the air. "Didn't think she had in her.

"Fall into oblivion!"

Mei carved a path of violet in every direction, sending yet more bodies hurtling into the air.

In another life he might have intervened on their behalf; sought to stop her rampage, but this lot was clearly in need of a lesson. What did she call them? He vaguely recalled her screaming out insults during the earlier parts of her rampage. Bandits? Vagabonds? Something like that. Pretty sure, that was the term. No helping them.

He wasn't getting between her and that lot. Not for anything.

And besides, this gave her a chance to vent.

So he stood by and took notes.

(.0.0.0.)

...victory brought catharsis.

Mei lowered her hand, scowling as her final foe folded like a house of cards. She walked over him, heedless of the fool's whimper when her heels dug into his spine. He muttered some manner of curse at her, but she paid the words little heed. Final words were for the victors, not the defeated.

Naruto coughed into a fist. "You missed one."

Here at last the Shogun turned to face him. Her heart skipped a beat. Silhouetted against the waning light of the sun, his body almost seemed to glow. His prey less so. A stray vagabond dangled from his fist, legs kicking furtively against the air as he sought purchase where none was to be found. When he saw the Shogun headed his way, the kicking intensified.

No need for her weapon here; her fist slammed into the man's torso. He crumpled with a groan.

Naruto quirked an eyebrow at her, but dropped the man all the same. "Was that necessary?"

She cast a slow, ponderous glance toward the still-twitching bodies. "They will live."

...will they?"

"Well," she touched a finger to her chin and considered te matter. "Most of them. However!" Anger flashed, reminding her of what she'd been about to say before the interruption; feelings unspent bubbled forth. He looked so happy, so content, that it set her heart ablaze." You!"

Blue eyes fluttered in a quick blink. "Me?!"

She stalked up to him.

"YOOOUUU!"

To his credit, Naruto didn't run. He stood his ground, even then.

"You are the cause of this; I see that now. You have made me...me...malfunction!" She spat the word and that was it; her hands closed around his; denying him any chance of escape. "I will have you take responsibility for your actions!"

Her programming dictated it as the logical thing to say; indeed, the proper thing to do. So why was he looking at her like she'd grown a second head?

Naruto offered her a slow blink. "Mei say what now?"

"Responsibility!" she huffed, all but driving her head against his. "You! Take it!"

Comprehension dawned and his lips curled into the impish-yet-roguish grin she had come to respect.

Bemused, he tilted his head, regarding her as one might an angry kitten. "Is the shogun shy?"

"Shy?!" Mei flailed her arms at him, to no avail. "She is not!"

Naruto cooed anyone, despite her protests. "Awwww!"

Hot. Her face was hot. Why? Was she overheating again? Absurd! She had not entered her combat form; though perhaps the sight of that would be enough to silence him! No, she didn't like that. She did not wish for him to be silenced. She wished for him to remain; prayed that this day would carry on unto eternity. But it wouldn't, would it?

The thought stung, so much so that she tore her gaze from his.

His smile faded. "You know I was just teasin' ya, right?"

"No, its not that. I...do not wish for you to be my enemy." Her tongue betrayed as surely as Ei had. "You must remain my guard. Forever."

He had to. The alternative was annihilation.

But there it was. That sad look, like the wilting blooms of the sakura trees. "Don't think I can do that."

She flinched and gripped his hands tigther still. "You must."

"Still can't." he looked away, made pensive by her insistence. "I've upset ya. I get that. Maybe its best if we called things here for today."

He tugged his hands from hers.

In their absence, Mei's very soul went still.

No! A tiny little voice bleated in her head, the child she'd never been. Don't go!

She was terrified of these feelings drying up in his absence; now that she knew what it was to experience them, the thought of returning to her old self rankled. She didn't want that. Would she forget today? Would it be wiped from her memory? Could Ei do such? She wasn't sure. She didn't know; no, rather, she didn't want to know.

Something cracked in her core and she snatched his hands back. "I don't want that!"

"Eh?! Now wait just a sec! Calm down!

"I will not!"

"Listen, darn it!" when it became apparent that she would not release him, he held up their interlocked fingers instead. "I need to talk to Ei, too. I said I'd help you both."

Once, Ei might have responded to such. But her attention was elsewhere; focused on other matters. The Shogun took the reprieve for what it was.

...she'll not let you."

A blond brow rose. "Wasn't asking. You know where she is?"

She shook her head, setting her unbound hair to swaying. "I do not know. Even so, you must-

"Almighty Shogun! A guard rushed up, startling her terribly. "I have news!"

She nearly struck him dead on the spot. How dare he interrupt!

"If it is of these bandits, I have dispatched them." she gestured to the smoldering forms sprawled behind her. A few yet twitched with life. The survivors might think themselves fortunate.

They would not be.

"Not that, your ladyship!" came the sputtering answer as he stood at attention. "Its an Oni! There's a There's a one-armed demon woman wreaking havoc across the island!"

An Oni? hey were rare these days. And one armed...? Did she not have data on such a being? She did.

The Shogun raised her gaze an inch. It couldn't be. "Chiyo...?"

Naruto perked up. "Friend of yours, I take it?"

...a friend of Ei, once. No longer."

(.0.0.0.)

Something had awakened her.

Rend. Smash. KILL!

Rip and tear!

(.0.0.0.)

It wasn't hard to fight the madwoman; they need only follow the screams.

The bodies.

Blood.

Mei had not seen the one named Chiyo with her own eyes until this moment. On the eve of her creation, Ei had spoken to her of her past, of what led to her inception. She knew of her fallen comrades, of those who died, or had been devoured by darkness; those who fell to its corrupting influence. She'd thought herself prepared for it; for the spectacle she'd find. How the mighty had fallen.

But this? This was terror. Absolute horror.

All bloody rags and terribly scarred, missing her right arm and one of her horns, Chiyo stood bathed in the blood of the fallen. Bandits by the look of them, ronin at that. It didn't make her deed noble; but the knowledge that she hadn't slain any innocents brought some peace to her heart.

Less so the sight as she feasted on their flesh.

Distantly, the Shogun was aware of herself striding forward, of Naruto's startled hiss at her back.

"What the actual hell...?"

The sound reactivated the madwoman. She tore her head up, clutching an arm between her teeth. Mei flinched when she saw her face. Teeth gone sharp, eyes glowing red. Those eyes...they were wrong. Wrong, wrong, wrong. The white of her gaze had been stained a sinister scarlet, those once golden orbs so much poisoned honey. Someone had carved off one of her horns long ago; leaving the wound to fester.

This...whatever it had been, it was no longer human.

And yet when she saw her, the monster faltered. Her eyes widened.

"Ei...?" that remaining arm reached out to her. "Is that...?" Faltered, when she saw the horror in her eyes. Something hardened in her gaze. "No! Not Ei! False! Puppet! Pretender!"

She lunged, fangs bared, claws tearing at the air.

The Shogun moved accordingly-

So did Naruto.

A black ringed staff descended mercilessly to strike the raging oni between the horns. The sound echoed clearly, ringing out over the grass plains. Chiyo slammed facefirst into the muck with a strangled snarl.

The blond planed a boot on her back, pinning her into the soil, driving her down when tried to rise.

His eyes were different than she recalled; gone were the orbs that resembled clear skies, in their place his gaze had gained a placid-yet-piercing shade of gold. His eyelids stood dusted faintly with orange, pupils little more than horizontal slits.

The Shogun found herself stepping forward to aid him. Support. He needed support-

"Stay back." the command was stern, as it had never been before. "I've got this under control."

She would do no such thing!

"Trust me."

And yet for all that, his gaze was calm.

"You've really got some nasty stuff brewing inside ya." his smile swept back to Chiyo tranquil as the morning dew. "Don't worry." He reached down to touch her head, heedless of her growls, brandishing the strange staff with ease. "Just give me a minute and I'll knock it right out of ya-

"No!" came the shriek, muffled into the earth. "No hope! Rip and tear!"

A dozen shadowy hands burst from her back, tearing away his grip.

She thrashed upright and clawed at him in a wild rage.

Blood flew through the air.

Naruto took the slash to his chest, grunted, and stepped in. His staff swung, and those eldritch arms, forged from the very abyss itself, crumbled to dust. Chiyo stumbled. He drew her close, pulling her into his arms as an elder sibling might a surly sister. Chiyo fought him tooth and nail, tearing deep gouges into his right side. Blood stained his jacket, yet still he stood tall.

"Its not your fault." he held her tight, uncaring of the wounds she inflicted. "I understand. You're alright. You didn't have any control over your actions. Its not...your fault."

Chiyo snarled and clawed at him, a feral creature without reason.

"I'm going to save you. Just sit tight for a second."

She tried to thrash free, to break away; she succeeded, if only in part. Her teeth snapped at him, and he shoved his staff in her face. She bit down, an unreasoning beast, trying to get at him. The moment she did he took the staff and bend the chakra metal around her face, forming a crude gag of sorts. His body blazed gold, and his good hand swept fort, touching her face. Her claws swept out, tearing into his cheek. He didn't even wince. That small, faint smile persisted despite all else.

"Everything's...going to be alright." his forehead touched hers. "Just breathe with me. That's right. In. Out. Innn. Ouuut."

Golden chakra flowed from his body and into hers, lighting it a pale shade of saffron.

A single black tear rolled out of Chiyo's right eye. "Please...kill...me...

Naruto began to hum a soft, nameless lullaby. No. Not nameless.

An ancient, haunting tune, as stirring as it was powerful.

Chiyo collapsed into his arms like a stringless puppet.

(.0.0.0.)

"What's all the commotion in my shrine-is that Chiyo? Oh dear, you're bleeding everywhere...

It was a curious thing to be ignored by Yae Miko, the Shogun found. She did not objectively care for the shrine maiden one way or another. This was Ei's friend. Not hers. They had no connection. It seemed the sentiment was reciprocated; because the fox envoy paid her no more heed than one would an errant leaf in the wind.

And so she found herself standing idly by as a certain

"Sorry for the intrusion." Naruto grunted, still shouldering the unconscious Oni on his back as one might an exhausted child. "We need someplace safe to stash her until she's healed. Might need to tie her down, too."

Yae's face proved a study of contrasts. "And you?"

He lowered the poor girl onto a bed. "What about about me? I'll heal."

Would he? That was news to the Shogun. She could see the tears in his flesh where Chiyo had savaged him, but they seemed lesser somehow, smaller than she remembered. Less mortal. She seen a rib earlier, but now it was nowhere to be seen.

.

..

...was he truly mortal?

"Twist my tails, why don't you?" Yae's voice snapped her back to reality. "She can stay." she thumbed her chin with a put-upon look. "But you're bleeding everywhere. Come here; at least let me treat your wounds." Her gaze pivoted t Mei. "What're you doing just standing there? Keep him still while I fetch some the bandages."

Naruto rolled his eyes. "I just said I'm fine-

He would not be!"

A spark of electro flashed through the Shogun's eyes. "You will be still."

Naruto pouted...and with a long suffering sigh, rolled up his shirt to expose his ribs.

"Good." she pinched a portion of undamaged skin, drawing a yelp from him as her cold fingers found his skin. You understand."

Yae laughed softly. "Adorable...

She did good work all things considered; it was the work of only five minutes to bandage him...less so what followed.

Naruto hummed his appreciation, rolled his ruined jacket down, and pivoted.

"Where's Ei?"

Yae sighed. "Just missed her, I'm afraid. She's been a busy little bird while you were occupied."

"..."

"Consider this." She held up a finger. "She was powerful enough without her Gnosis. Now that she's reclaimed it after all these years...who knows what she might be capable of? The Shogun may be fond of you to be sure, but at the end of the day, its Ei you have to contend with...

"Then I'll deal with her right now." his expression was nothing short of mulish.

"You'll have to break into the Plane of Euthymia. How fortunate then, that we have a path right here.

Their gaze shifted to the Shogun.

"She will not let me draw her blade."

"That's alright." the blond patted her shoulder. "I think I've got an idea of my own.

"Naruto."

He paused as Yae called to him.

"I'm placing my god in your capable hands...please. Bring her back."

He tugged his headband on.

"I will."

(.0.0.0.)

Thump.

Ei heard the noise long before she felt the tremors.

Thump.

It was a strange sound, not quite a bang, but not a pop, either. Although she levitated high in the air -another sign of her foul mood- she heard it all the same; indeed it was was impossible to ignore. Even as she sought to keep her eyes closed and her posture poised, still the vibration rattled through her teeth. She felt it.

Thump!

Beating in time with her heart.

Thump!

It rattled the plane of Euthymia from top to bottom like a gong. No, not a gong, a bell. A bell which tolled for her.

Thump!

It was growing louder now -impossible to ignore.

Thump!

Her right eye began to twitch.

Thump!

No. He should know better.

Thump!

He would not dare.

THUMP!

A fist slammed through the air, shattering it like so much glass. A gleaming red eye shone through the cracks. Golden palms braced themselves on the fractured air, found a crude handhold grasped it, and tore the barrier apart. Naruto's fist thrust itself through, followed by his arm, then his shoulder, and finally the rest of him.

"Nice place ya got here."

Ei felt the beginnings of an ancient anger stir in her as she gazed down upon him. Her eyes narrowed. She would not descend to meet him.

"C'mon," he called up to her, "Don't ignore me."

...How did you find this place?"

He didn't answer her immediately, foppish fool that he was. Instead he paused to dust himself off, hands brushing stray shards of glassy reality from his shoulders. Only then did he look up at her.

"I knocked."

Brat...!

"You gonna stay up there all day?" his voice was a low growl, conveying his displeasure with her. "Or are ya gonna be a big girl and face this?"

Ei didn't budge.

An ugly realization dawned.

"You've corrupted the Shogun. I don't know why I'm surprised."

"Ain't nothing corrupt about it." he crossed both arms before his chest, undaunted by her anger. "I just gave her a chance to enjoy normal life. There's nothing wrong with that."

"Everything is wrong with that!" she brought one leg out from under the other, uncrossing them to stand in the air. "You...!

"I gave her a name, too." he didn't waver in the face of her fury. "She deserved one."

Incredulity burst to life in her.

"A name?" Ei scowled at him. "You don't seem to understand. She is a puppet. She feels nothing."

"Is that so?" he stabbed a finger at her. "And who decided that?"

Wasn't it obvious...? She tilted her head. "I did."

"Then you were wrong!"

Such nerve. Such gall. He dared to stand before her, to subvert her plans. No longer. She had been lenient. Too much so. If the Shogun had failed her, then she would start anew.

Once she finished him.

She hissed. "No. You are wrong."

All around her, the Plane of Euthymia darkened. Noxious black clouds swept in, driving rain before them.

Naruto spared a glance for them. "Ei...think very carefully about what you're doing."

"Silence!" thunder echoed her words. "You will sway me no longer!"

"..."

Her stride was calm, almost eerily so as she descended through the air to meet him. Faint light flickered under her feet, forming platforms of violet light as she strode forth. There was a noticeable swing in her hips that hadn't been there before. She didn't walk or stalk. She strutted.

"You are an enemy that requires special attention."

He could see the light stemming from her chest...light without her sword.

Was that fear in his eyes? Concern? Good. He should fear her. He should be afraid.

"Thus," Ei continued on, unabated, "I had to reclaim something which I forsook long ago." A hand rose, drawing forth a blade of purest light from her chest. The weapon was sharper than before, warped by her new might. "Centuries of power." she intoned softly, and the very air began to shimmer around her. "Of governance done in mind, if not body. Now...

Her arm swung down.

...face the lightning directly."

And the heavens answered her call.

Naruto's arm snapped up, batting the bolt aside.

"Admirable." She commended him. "But you will find that I am not so easy to defeat now...

His scowl redoubled. "I already said I won't fight you!"

"Then you will die."

He was silent for a long moment.

"Only a tyrant deals in absolutes." he reached up and tore his ruined jacket off, leaving it to flutter away over his shoulder. "I will do what I must."

She smiled. "You will try, my old friend."

"No." He raised his eyes and here at last, she realized they were red. "I really won't."

He walked right up to her, knowing full well she could strike him down at any given moment.

"You wish to make yourself my enemy?" she drew herself up to her full towering height. "I am the everlasting god, guardian of eternity. Perhaps it is you who should think carefully...lest you lose your life."

"Sorry." he crossed both hands together. "I've always been a slow learner."

That damn smile again. Just like her sister. So carefree. So pure.

...she hated it.

"Never stop searching, even if only for a brief flash of light. If nothing else, we have the present moment." Ei clenched her hands at her sides. "My sister said those words to me once. Before all this. Before...YOU. She was good and kind and pure. She should have lived. That's why...why eternity is the only way." she hugged her arms close to herself. "I don't want to talk about this anymore...leave me alone...

"No." He gripped her wrist hard enough to make it creak. "That's not the way. You're only hurting yourself."

"Don't you see? The present moment is a fragile illusion." she cast a hand up to the forlorn skyscape of her mind. "All things must die. Only eternity can bring us closer to the heavenly principles."

"And why are they so important?

Here at last, anger reared its ugly head.

"Why must you always be like this?! I hate it!" She stomped a foot. "I hate you!"

"No. You don't." She saw the pity in his eyes. It burned. "You hate the truth in my words...

"I have lost more than you can possibly imagine. Your life is but a mote of dust compared to mine!"

He planted his feet and crossed both arms before his chest. "Yet here I stand."

It was too much. Something snapped. "NARUTO!"

He didn't budge. "Go ahead. Hit me."

Silence stretched between them.

"Makoto would have liked you, I think." Ei drew away with a shudder. "However, I do not. You've ruined everything! Why did you come?! Why did you fill my heart with doubt?! WHY?! Answer me!" He didn't answer her at first. Damn him. Damn him to the abyss. "SPEAK!"

Naruto lowered his arms. "Because..I think you really needed a friend."

A vein pulsed in her temple. For such a reason?!

It was too much. Ei felt her eyes blaze.

Above her, a giant blade manifested.

"Perish!"

A/N: There we are.

Things are heating up, and then some!

As ever, the Embers Rule persists. So? Should this continue? Or fall into oblivion?

By all means, speak up! Make yourselves heard!

So in the Immortal Words of Atlas...

...Review...Would You Kindly?

And enjoy the Previews!

As ever:

SPOILERS! SPOILERS! SPOILERS!

PLOT DETAILS AHOY!

YE BE WARNED!

Read at your own risk!

As ever, these are from the far flung future...or are they~?!

Some are the same as before, other's aren't.

(Previews!)

"Witness the final calamity."

Her blade swept down. He caught it.

"What?!"

"You've been holding back. I get that. But so have I."

Equal. He was equal to her. If she hadn't reclaimed her Gnosis, that blow would've been the end of her. But she'd nearly killed him just now, too.

What...are you?!"

"You don't seem to understand." For a moment it almost seemed that another was speaking through him, some great beast utilizing him as a mouthpiece. "She has a right to exist. Just as you do. These people, this world, everyone and everything in it, has a will of their own. And that's why...

He took a stance.

"I'm going to knock some sense into you!"

"Now come down here, stop using that ridiculous form, and quit wasting everyone's time."

ENOUGH!

Golden light crashed into violet.

An unstoppable force met an immovable object.

"I WILL END IT ALL!"

"Be good to Ei."

Naruto looked past her.

...please tell me you're not a ghost."

The spirit smiled softly. "Would it bother you if I was?"

She looked so much like Ei...

R&R~!