We meet Gaara in this chapter, and the Invictus begins to get a face-lift.
They awoke the next morning refreshed. Hinata claimed the honor of the morning blowjob since she'd gone a week without ingesting Uzu cum. They others had a filling breakfast in the Officer's Lounge, anticipating a long day. Then they went up to the Bridge to await arrival at Suna.
Naruto, Sasuke and the girls settled into their places on the Bridge and a few minutes later the Invictus dropped out of hyperwarp in the Suna system, the center of power in the Suna Collective. There were in the presence of a single star and it bathed the holographic System Map in a warm yellow glow. Suna was a small reddish orange planet out on the sixth orbital path around the star and when Hana brought up the Tactical Map, dozens upon dozens of orbital factories and refineries could be seen dotted around the system.
A button on the console flashed, indicating an incoming hail and Hinata pressed the button to accept the call. Leader Baki's bulbous grey head filled the viewscreen, his huge unblinking eyes studying them unemotionally.
"Welcome, UzumakiNaruto, to Suna. We have towed your ship as requested. You have been granted clearance to dock at the planetary shipyard," he said in his machine-generated voice.
Naruto nodded. "We thank you for you generous service. I must ask though, what are Kusa raiders doing so far into Suna space?"
Leader Baki did not blink or otherwise react. "I'm afraid that's classified, UzumakiNaruto."
Naruto decided to take a risk. "Very well. But if you'd be so kind, could you pass on a message to your superiors?"
"I will consider it," Leader Baki said unemotionally.
Naruto took a breath and tilted his head to show off his ears. "Tell them a brother of Orochimaru is helping the Kusa. And another has arrived willing to help the Suna."
That got a reaction. Baki's jaw dropped and his vestigial eyelids came down multiple times. Naruto could have sworn he heard a murmur coming from his ship.
"Please standby, UzumakiNaruto," Leader Baki said before cancelling the transmission.
"Hopefully I didn't just paint a bull's-eye for their planetary defense weapons on us," Naruto said nervously.
"They'd be idiots not to give you a chance. Sure you might enslave them but you might save them. Even at 50-50 odds, that's the smart choice," Hana reassured.
"You realize you're going to be discussing with them as if you were a galactic power in your own right? We may have the schematics but we're months if not years away from an Uzu-grade vessel," Sasuke cautioned.
"Master will do what he thinks is best, and we should trust in him," Fu said decisively.
Tenten scanned the traffic in the system. "Suddenly we're getting a wide berth. Safe to say they remember Orochimaru's reign. If his empire stretched to Taki, safe to guess he once controlled everything the Suna once held. And that includes Konoha."
The button for a comm channel began to blink again. Naruto pressed it to see Leader Baki again. "You have been requested to meet with the High Council of Suna. Please follow the provided flight plan in a dropship. Your vessel will remain safe under our supervision." With that, he cut off the comm.
"Meeting the planetary government, that's exciting," Hinata said lightly as they began to file into the elevator to go to Deck 9.
"Let's hope we make a good impression," Sasuke worried, knowing just how much power a governing body had on one's home planet.
They stepped over the rotting corpses of the Kusa to make it to the Docking Bay. They loaded into the gunship that had been a gift and lifted out of the Invictus. Leader Baki's ship suddenly looked much bigger as they followed the orange flight plan that had been uploaded to their computer. They soon entered the atmosphere of Suna and found it to be a dry, desert planet with cities of gleaming silver.
They looked out of the windows of the Raptor and saw that they were rapidly approaching a tall spindly spire, that curved out into a dais with a spherical building in the center and a number of landing pads surrounding the dome. They touched down on one, and a small Grey in white robes approached them. They all went out the loading ramp to meet the diminutive alien.
"Greetings, UzumakiNaruto. I am High Councillor Gaara. Please follow me," the Grey said, his whispery voice coming from a collar he wore.
"Greetings, High Councillor Gaara. We can speak with our minds rather than our voices if you prefer," Naruto offered generously.
The Grey visibly hesitated before Naruto felt a knock on his mental door. *Yes?*
*Oh, my,* Gaara thought in a soft, melodious tenor. *You are not at all what we expected, UzumakiNaruto,* the Grey said.
*I do my very best to be the exact opposite of your typical Uzu. But we should discuss this indoors,* Naruto replied.
*Yes, we should.* Gaara led them up to some ornate double doors with strange alien glyphs inscribed on the silvery metal of the frame. Naruto looked up at the domed building that towered above them and noticed more of the ornate scripting covering every inch of its metallic surface.
*Those are Uzu runes!* Tenten mentally exclaimed, reading the paragraphs of protection and peace and clear mindedness.
*Guess we have confirmation that Orochimaru created the Suna as well,* Sasuke thought.
The doors slid open silently in front of them, allowing them access to the large foyer within. The light red dusting that covered the ground stopped abruptly at the entrance, light gusts from some kind of filter set in the floor blowing the dust backward in tiny little swirls. High Councillor Gaara guided them over to the back of the spotlessly clean room; Councillor Gaara bowed again and then led them into a comfortable looking waiting area that had a number of plush seats and tables.
*Please be seated while we wait for the High Council to assemble. Help yourselves to refreshments,* the robed Suna said cordially in an open psychic broadcast, heard by all of them, gesturing to the rounded vase of light pink liquid and the crystalline cups adjacent to it.
Naruto's sharp mind caught the obvious implications. *You're bait, aren't you? Come to test my character. Tell me, were you ordered or did you volunteer?*
Gaara nodded *Indeed, I am meant to be a sacrificial lamb on your mercy, to determine whether you are like the Orochimaru of old who ruled with an iron fist or the Orochimaru of late whom sacrificed his life for the good of what you now know as the Galactic League. If you must know, I volunteered for the task.*
*How am I coming off?* Naruto asked genially.
*You are, if possible, even kinder than Orochimaru was in his best moments. Of course, this could all be a ruse to disguise your true intentions. Hence my presence here while my colleagues are safe in a psychic bunker, as you would think of it,* Gaara answered with total honesty. That was the thing about Telepathy, it encouraged sincerity. Even in politicians.
Naruto took a leap of faith and let down all his walls. *If you would prefer, we can skip an interview and you can take a deep dive into my mind. I swear on the lives of my crew not to attack you or defend myself in anyway.*
Gaara blinked, which Naruto was learning was a show of extreme emotion for a Grey. *That… that is most generous. And would answer a great many questions we all have. But are you truly alright with baring your very soul and every secret to me?*
Naruto took comforting encouragement from his Pack before nodding. *We've got nothing to hide,* he projected solemnly.
Gaara sat up and reached out to lay a hand on Naruto's. Naruto noted how cool and smooth his skin was, like glass or ice. *I will attempt to be gentle,* he heard before he saw Gaara's Astral form detach from his body and fly right at Naruto's face. He did his best not to flinch.
And then he was remembering everything. Learning to ride a bike under his grandpa's watchful eye. The burns his grandma had patched up as he was first learning to cook. Going to the Academy and beginning to experiment with his sexuality. Countless boarding actions as a Marine aboard the Invictus, fighting alongside his brothers and sisters in arms. Retiring when it was all too much and buying a rusty discount Freighter. Confronting his Guide, and the year-long battle for his sanity until he found his totem. And then his entire adventure since meeting Hinata, falling in love with one Thrall after the next, raising them to the level of the Uzu in blatant disregard of normal practice for his kind. Finally, a tough confrontation with the Kusa and taking the plunge to meet the Suna. And of course, hours upon hours of sex.
Gaara withdrew his hand, his eyes even wider than usual. *Oh my… you are NOTHING like what we expected, UzumakiNaruto.*
*So, do I pass the test?* Naruto asked nervously.
*With flying colors. I believe you could be the most beneficial ally the Suna Collective has ever had.* Gaara stood up. *Let me lead you to the High Council Chambers.*
The Grey glided away and headed to the big double doors at the other end of the chamber. Naruto walked over to join the rest of the crew, as they rose from their chairs. They followed the councillor into a large spherical room, with a curved dais at one end, where eight Suna in white robes were seated, the ninth high-backed chair currently empty. Councillor Gaara bowed towards Naruto and then glided over to the platform and sat in the ninth chair.
The Grey seated in the middle had an ornate silvery chain around its neck, that glinted in the light as it rose to its feet.
"We gratefully appreciate your willingness to meet with the High Council, UzumakiNaruto," the robed alien said in its quiet whispery voice. "My name is Senior Councillor Rasa."
"Greetings to you, High Council, from the Uzumaki Pack of the Invictus. As I told Councillor Gaara, we can speak with thought rather than sound if you prefer," Naruto said magnanimously.
The Council all seemed to glance at Gaara, who nodded. Then Naruto felt multiple knocks on his mental shield. He opened it and found himself in the equivalent of a psychic conference call. *Very well. Let us get straight to business. My son has proposed that we offer you a treaty, with himself as ambassador. Do you consent?* asked a deep bass that Naruto assumed to be Rasa.
Naruto blinked. He turned to Gaara. *Two questions: one, you're a prince? Two, you want to join my crew? You're aware of all the implications of that, perhaps better than anyone else in this room.*
*I am not in the line of succession for Senior Councillor. My post was earned democratically. And yes, I am. I believe you are the best hope for my people, and I volunteer myself for the sake of an alliance between our peoples.* Gaara blushed. *On a personal note, I find you and your curvaceous companions to be the pinnacle of beauty I have found in my life. I would be honored to serve as your Thrall, having seen how you treat them.*
Naruto tuned into the Pack mind. *What do you guys say? Fancy a Grey on the crew?*
*I'm up for it. His growth spurt will be even bigger than mine,* Hinata said.
*I am always happy to see you expand your power base, Naruto,* Fu offered neutrally.
*An ambassador from the High Council in our bed, ain't that a head trip?* Sasuke wondered.
*Gaara seems nice. He can be Comms, given he's a master Telepath,* Hana offered.
*I'll work on the Beta Armor after I'm done with the Thrall Armor. He'd look good at 6'1 and with a Laser Railgun,* Tenten mused.
Naruto nodded. *What would be the terms of this alliance?* He asked the High Council.
*Of immediate concern is the threat these Kusa pawns of the mystery Uzu hold. They are wreaking havoc on our internal structure and it is not an exaggeration to say they present an existential threat if left unchecked. Once they are dealt with, you promise to respond whenever the Suna Collective has need of your help,* Senior Councillor Rasa stated.
*And what's in it for me?* Naruto asked simply.
*Access to the accumulated resources of our entire species. All that we have would be at your disposal. And should you ever find yourself in a conflict, the Suna Collective will swear to help you,* Rasa listed, his bass voice somehow pleading.
Naruto considered it along with his Pack. *We accept to all your terms. We'll need two days to retrofit our ship. My crew will analyze and trace the Kusa to their base after this meeting. We'll get on the process of converting Gaara immediately. My Chief Engineer will send you the list of components for your Mass Fabricators to work on. I intend to at least double the effectiveness of my ship, and we'll need to work together to do it in the time allotted. Are we agreed?*
The High Council blinked as one. *You agree to our alliance?* Rasa asked to clarify.
*Indeed. Time's a-wasting. Shall we shake on it? We can draw it up and sign something if you insist,* Naruto said, standing up.
Senior Councillor Rasa and the rest of the High Council all stood. *We may shake. Thank you, UzumakiNaruto, for your generous acceptance of our proposal!* Rasa said emphatically. He reached out a small grey hand which Naruto took in his big grip and shook firmly. And with that, history was made.
The Pack split up after that. Sasuke and Hana followed a Councillor Kankuro to the analyst teams of the Suna, to determine the size of the enemy force and its location. Councillor Gaara, or rather Ambassador Gaara, volunteered to lead the rest back to the Raptor, to the Invictus, to the main drydock of Suna.
Naruto led Gaara back to the cabin in the Raptor while Hinata flew them back to their damaged home. *This isn't as romantic as I would want, but we need to get a move on. We have an appointment with Hana's family in a week and I want your transformation finished by then so you can meet them.*
*I would be honored to meet the family of the resplendent goddess Hana,* Gaara said enthusiastically. *I understand that I will not remember the first two times. I hope that I prove pleasurable to you, master.*
Naruto waved his hand. *Only Fu gets to call me that and we're working her out of it. I'm your Commander or your Alpha, nothing more.*
*Apologies,* Gaara said, bowing his head.
Naruto sat down in the King-sized bed in the Raptor. He reached for his belt and tried to think sexy thoughts. Gaara had a great personality, it seemed, but physically he was quite unappealing to the Uzu. Still, getting hard was his natural state, so he managed to get a workable erection up for the Grey's benefit.
Gaara blinked. *Oh, my. My culture is obsessed with spheres and spires. Our best architects could make a monument to this phallus!*
Naruto snorted. *Funny as it is to imagine a statue of my wang somewhere on Suna, shouldn't you be sucking?*
Gaara nodded. *See you in 14 hours,* was his last thought before he opened his mouth wide and gummed on the head of Naruto's cock. His black eyes went glassy and he slowly slide down Naruto's pole until his lips touched his quad. It was an extremely tight fit, and Naruto found himself cumming before they even touched down in the Invictus.
*Want to carry him up to the bed?* Hinata asked.
*No, let's leave him here. I get the feeling we'll be sleeping in here while they work on the ship.* Naruto laid a possessive hand in Gaara's inflated stomach. Like with Fu, it had only taken one dose to create an Astral Bond. He was officially his first male Thrall.
They went up to the Bridge to find a blinking intercom light. Naruto took his Command Chair and pressed the button. Leader Baki appeared on screen.
"Greetings, UzumakiNaruto. We have been ordered by the High Council to escort you to our best drydock. Please follow along behind us," the Grey patrolman instructed.
Hinata expertly guided the Invictus to follow the disc-shaped vessel. They soon descended into the atmosphere.
They approached a huge levitating plateau that was festooned with a bewildering array of spires and domes.
"How are we going to land on that?" Hinata asked curiously, seeing that the guide path was taking them directly towards it.
"We won't be landing 'on' it," Naruto said with a grin.
The Invictus drew ever closer to their destination and the guide path abruptly dipped into a huge canyon that led directly underneath the enormous shipyard. Many disc-shaped vessels were flying in and out of that enormous ravine on clearly designated flight paths, that were marked by rows of bright navigation lights. Their Assault Cruiser dwarfed most of the much smaller ships and the saucer shaped vessels gave them a wide berth as Hinata guided them skilfully into the canyon.
The colossal shipyard loomed overhead, casting them in shadow as it completely blocked the yellow glow from the sun. After a minute of careful flying, there was a warning chime to alert everyone on the Bridge that they had nearly reached their destination. Hinata brought the Invictus upwards, closer to the underbelly of the rocky surface underneath the vast shipyard and they could see row after row of docking bays dotting the rock face above them. Eventually they reached the bay that had been allocated to the Invictus and Hinata used the retrothrusters to lift them up into the huge rectangular hangar.
Massive robotic arms ending in magnetic clamps swung out from the sides of the docking bay and moved inwards to the fore and aft of the ship, locking them into position. Once they were securely fastened, the robotic arms rotated the ship 180 degrees around their horizontal axis, turning them upside down.
"Well, time to meet my army of loyal minions. They promised me 100 of their best engineers to play with." Tenten was practically giddy. "I'm going to change this ship so much it'll be unrecognizable!"
"I'm sure you will, honey. Let's disembark and then you can get cracking," Naruto encouraged.
They all went down to the Docking Bay, their airlock still occupied by the Kusa dropship, with another attached to Deck 7 at the flooded Gym. They walked out the Docking Bay to find indeed 100 engineers, Councillor Kankuro, and Hana and Sasuke.
"That was fast," Naruto marveled at his analytical crewmates.
"Would have been faster but the analysts claimed we were pulling shit out our ass," Sasuke grumbled.
"We showed them the error of their ways," Hana said with a smug smile.
Councillor Kankuro nodded. "Their intelligence and deduction skills were something to behold. They deduced there are 3, soon to be 4 more Cruisers operating out of the Kappa Indarran system."
Row after row of Suna engineers stood waiting for them expectantly. They were dressed in silvery jumpsuits and were carrying a huge variety of delicate and complicated looking tools and components. Dozens of sets of huge black eyes stared back at them as they awaited their orders.
Tenten grinned at Hinata, her eyes gleaming with excitement, before she strode out purposefully to go and greet High Councillor Kankuro who was waiting patiently with the engineering crews.
Hinata smiled at her friend affectionately, pleased for her that she was fulfilling a lifelong dream of working on such vitally important and high tech work. She turned to her other side to look at Fu, who was watching Tenten with a smile on her face as the ravenette walked away purposefully.
"While she's acting as chief overlord of the Greys, you and I should get some practice in on the Raptor. There seemed to be plenty of empty spaces on Suna where we could let loose," Hinata told her green sister.
Naruto waved them goodbye and then turned his attention to Tenten, who was in her element.
"Hello everyone!" She called out boldly. "Thanks for agreeing to help!" she said, giving them her best winsome grin.
Councillor Kankuro stepped forward to meet her and gave her a slight nod of his head.
"Please let us know how you would like to direct the teams," he said in his quiet whispery voice.
"Ok then!" Tenten said excitedly. "Gather around everyone!" She called out to the horde of Suna engineers, who moved forward to listen to the perky ravenette.
"You can call me Tenten. I'm the Chief Engineer on the Invictus and I'll be co-ordinating the refit and repairs. Feel free to speak to me if you have any questions," she told them reassuringly.
"Firstly I'd like you to assemble two teams; let's call them 'Drive Team' and 'Core Team', to begin removing the destroyed Tachyon Drive and the existing Power Core from the Invictus. I also want the replacements prepared for immediate installation. Choose one representative from each team to report back to me with status updates, as soon as the old components are removed and the new ones installed," she said, gathering momentum.
"We need the Kusa dropships removed from the hull and moved out the way. 'Team Armor' will need to let me know as soon as that's done, so I can take a look at what makes that armor so resistant to energy weapons. Once I've reverse engineered the tech used for their armor plating, we're going to re-armor every square inch of the Invictus' hull with upgraded plating," she said enthusiastically.
"Oh and let me know before you remove that one." Tenten said pointing at the second dropship high up on the hull. "It's currently flooded!" she cautioned them with a grin.
"When that dropship is gone, 'Team Armor' will be able to repair the damage to the hull, so come and speak to me when you're ready to start." she requested.
"I'm planning to put in anti-grav tubes to replace the lift, so someone from 'Team Elevator' will need to consult with me, so we can come up with a blueprint. I want the central elevator in the Assault Cruiser removed and the elevator shaft widened," she ordered. "I'll give you the new dimensions for the lift shaft then," Tenten mentioned helpfully.
"Assemble another group called 'Team Defence'. They will be tasked with making the Invictus more resistant to boarding. I'm thinking anti-personnel turrets, reinforced buttresses for protection in firefights and ways of locking down and sealing sections of the hull to slow down the progress of boarding parties. Draw up plans with potential ideas and I'll review them with the team as soon as they're done," she suggested.
"We need a group called 'Team Gear'. I want you to collect the 10 sets of Body armor and 10 Assault Rifles I plan to upgrade and bring them out here so that we can begin prototyping and fabricating the components I'll need. I'll give you their current locations when you come and speak to me. I'm going to use miniaturised versions of our power core tech for the armor, so let me know if you don't have anything suitable already and I'll see what I can whip up," she said with a smile.
"I need 'Team Cleanup' to begin work immediately. There are Kusa corpses on the bottom deck and Deck 7. There are more in the flooded compartment, but I want to store two of them in the med bay for later analysis. I'll let you know when I drain the room and you can move the corpses right away. I want samples of their body armor, weapons and shields, so please find me a couple of undamaged samples of each and hand them over to 'Team Gear'."
"We'll need a 'Team Sensors' too. I've got a design for much better sensors, and I need a team to replace them under the armor plating while each plate is being replaced."
"Finally I need one Engineer to act as my consultant on your technology. I'll need to know how best to make use of the equipment you have here in the drydock," she explained reasonably.
The assembled Suna stared at her in stunned silence as she finished her long list of orders. Tenten frowned and clapped her hands sharply, the sound echoing like a gunshot in the deathly quiet of the drydock.
"You have your instructions, proceed!" she demanded imperiously.
They burst into motion. Councillor Kankuro came over to Naruto, who was watching his girl with pride.
*Gaara informed us that you like your Thralls strong and independent, but I'm still amazed at Tenten's strength of character. She is like a goddess, in both body and mind. I am much more accepting of my brother becoming your mate.*
*Gaara? Your brother?* Naruto asked in surprise.
*The two of us and our sister Temari followed in our father's footsteps into politics.*
*Might I ask about your mother?*
*There were complications with Gaara's birth. She died birthing him. He blames himself,* Kankuro revealed solemnly.
*I'll work on that with him,* Naruto promised.
Back with Tenten, she was discussing matters with Engineer Zanthus, her consultant. "I want to know more about the silvery metal I've seen you use on all your ships. What is that exactly?" she asked inquisitively.
"It is an alloy of Etherite crystals and the element you know as Aluminium," Zanthus explained for her.
"Your ship hulls are made out of Aluminium?" Tenten asked dubiously. "That doesn't sound like it would be very strong."
"Adding Etherite crystals makes the metal more malleable to our tools and then the metal hardens once the shape is formed," Zanthus said quietly. "The finished alloy is quite resilient and is known as Etherium."
"The shape is formed?" Tenten asked, puzzled. "What do you mean by that exactly?"
"I can demonstrate if you wish," Zanthus offered in his neutral tone of voice.
"Great!" Tenten said eagerly. "Lead on!" she smiled.
She followed after the Suna engineer as he led her to a large machine on a pivotable arm with three large emitters on one end. At the other end there was some kind of sensor array next to a floating display that was currently blank. She looked at the equipment, trying to figure out what it was exactly.
"We call this device a Psi-Shaper," Zanthus murmured.
Zanthus stopped in front of the machine and grew still, closing his eyes and looking like he was concentrating. Another nearby robotic arm swung into action, rotating around and then sinking downwards, as it moved to pick up a block of silvery material from a nearby stack. The arm rotated back towards them and then carefully placed the silvery metal near the elaborate machine. The arm with the emitters pivoted into place and loomed ominously over the block of metal.
"What form would you like me to shape?" Zanthus asked softly.
"Oh something simple. How about a section of armor plating?" Tenten said, thinking about how she was most likely to need to use the device.
Zanthus turned back towards the Psi-shaper and closed his eyes, concentrating intently. The sensor array seemed to be swathed in a green glow and the display began to list numerous alien glyphs before finally showing an image of an armor plating section. The three large emitters began to glow with an ethereal green radiance and the block of silvery metal rose off the ground and began to flatten and elongate, moving like liquid as it oozed into the form currently rotating in the display. Finally the shape was complete and the newly created armor plating section lowered to the ground.
"Neat! But why use the Psi-Shaper instead of straight Telekinesis?" Tenten asked curiously.
Engineer Zanthus blinked. "Most Suna lack the mind-strength to mold Etherium unassisted even once. Shaping it grows more difficult exponentially with each successive shaping."
"Really?" Deciding to experiment, Tenten gripped the armor plate with her mind, willing it to become liquid again. It obeyed, and she shaped it into a statue of Zanthus on a whim. "Here you go. Call it a thank you for teaching me about Suna tech."
Every Suna who'd witnessed what happened was gaping like fish. "Tell us, Tenten, are you the strongest psychic on your crew?" Zanthus asked in his whispery voice, awe clear even through the machine-generated sound.
Tenten snorted. "Hell no. That's Naruto or Hinata. They've been Uzu longest, they've had the most practice."
Engineer Zanthus gulped before bowing to Tenten. "If you could spare a few minutes of your time to reverse-engineer the Psi-Shaper, the Suna will be eternally grateful."
"Sure, just show me the schematics. I'll have your weakest engineer quad-shaping in no time. Now, all your drydock equipment is based on Etherite crystals? So if I'm going to use Onyxium, I'm going to need to make an alloy with Etherite crystals and Titanium, since that's the handiest metal we have."
Zanthus managed to look skeptical. "Can you really accomplish such a task in two days?"
Tenten grinned slowly. "Oh, Zanthus, you have no idea what I'm capable of."
Naruto got bored watching Tenten order around the Greys, so he, Sasuke, and Hana engaged in a light spar as had become their habit. Their use of Psychic Speed drew some eyes but the Suna remained on task.
Eventually, Hinata and Fu came back. They had a dinner of sandwiches the Suna had delivered and Naruto used Water Manipulation to whisk the sweat off their bodies. Naruto dragged Tenten away from her work with firm orders that she needed at least 5 hours of sleep before starting up again. They all passed out, woken at 2200 by Gaara stirring. They all observed the second mindless blowjob, and then they all went to sleep for real.
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