Naruto: Ice Burn

Blanket disclaimer: I do not own Naruto or Freezing

AUTHOR'S NOTE:

I've decided to come back to this story after many years, At the time of the original writing I was into Freezing's early chapters as it was a cool story but then it basically devolved into mindless T &A and demented violence that I really couldn't incorporate into my story. I decided at the time to discontinue the story as I really had lost my way.

Anyway, I've decided to pick up from the original drafts and write from there. Looking back at Freezing I never read past the 13th Nova Clash. The only thing changed from the original drafts is I switched to metric. This chapter is all new. Here is chapter 7. Enjoy!

[ ] Signifies hand signals

Last Time:

Fang Country, Plaza

Kuriarare Kushimaru was a bit irked as he travelled through Fang Country looking for information on Uzumaki Naruto. Nobody knew the former Seven Swordsman even by reputation. Since he was long dead according to the bingo books Kushimaru's name didn't strike fear into others as it did when he was one of the Seven Swordsmen of the Mist. Frankly, the once elite and feared Seven Swordsmen had scattered to the four winds and their reputation fell into the mud as a result. Most people thought he was using his own damn name as an alias to impress others. Oh, well…Kushimaru was staying in a rundown hotel called Clearwater in the Fang Country Capitol waiting for his prey to show up.

Rumors had it that Uzumaki was (temporarily) some kind of a personal retainer to the Fang Country Diamyo for unknown reasons. The locals called him Naruto-sama and he was running around with his concubine who was apparently a complete hottie. 'Sounds like Jiraiya-sama's apprentice alright…' he thought ruefully. That's when Kushimaru laid eyes on Naruto for the first time. The slim but muscular blonde was walking along and had an unassuming image about him. He wasn't out to look scary or intimidating. At the same time the indigo clad blonde seemed to radiate a power and confidence that made the crowds part ways in deference to him. 'That's got to be him. An aura of power like that isn't something you learn. You are born with it.'

Naruto separated from the crowd and went over to a curio shop. He seemed totally enthralled looking at the various baubles and was making small talk with the owner when Kushimaru decided to move in silently. As a master of the silent killing technique it was child's play to sneak up on an unsuspecting ninja. That's when Naruto turned around and looked directly at him. Kushimaru stopped cold as Naruto's blue eyes seemed to penetrate his very soul. Kushimaru felt completely exposed though he was well concealed in the shadows. 'W-what is this?' thought the swordsman. Naruto's eyes bled red and an incredibly refined killing intent seemed to pierce Kushimaru's being. 'If I attack him now I will lose…' thought the wielder of the Nuibari. 'I need to withdraw." With that, the shaken Kushimaru vanished in a body flicker….

…

Naruto's eyes faded back to blue. 'Thanks Kurama. Your ability to sense negative emotions let me stare him down before he could attack.'

'No problem Naruto; using a bit of my killing intent combined with Asura's aura was enough to make him run. Your training is paying off. Just remember not everyone will retreat so easily.' answered Kurama.

'I think that guy was relying on his stealth skills and left when he was spotted.' thought Naruto. 'Come to think of it, the way he maneuvered around reminds me of how Momichi Zabuza did. I wonder why…He had a Kiri embem on that mask. I'm going to look him up in the Kiri section of my old bingo book and see if I can spot that particular mask…'

'It never hurts to be prepared.' agreed the fox. 'Just because you spooked him doesn't mean he won't try again.'

…

With Kushimaru, The Clearwater Hotel

The swordsman was sweating when he got back to his hotel room. 'What the hell was that? I've felt massive, Kage level killing intent before but this was totally different. He didn't just spot me; it was like he could see my god damned soul! What the hell is he? Was that a mind jutsu to throw me off? I only felt it after we made eye contact. I could try the hiding in mist justu. Maybe it's just a doujutstu like the sharingan…that must be it…'

The rogue swordsman didn't get much sleep that night. Something about Naruto's stare had chilled him to the marrow…It wasn't a feeling he enjoyed at all and Kuriarare Kushimaru was beginning to wonder if this trip was a bad idea…

…

Chapter 7

Fang Country, Daimyo's Compound

It was morning and Naruto was looking through an older bingo book at the Kiri section until he spotted the ANBU style mask he'd seen the evening before in an entry for the late Kuriarare Kushimaru. The blonde frowned and read the entry for the dead swordsman.

Kuriarare Kushimaru:

Status: Missing, Presumed Dead

Kuriarare was a Kirigakure jōninand a member of the Seven Ninja Swordsmen of the Mistwielding the deadly blade Nuibari. He was very thin and tall in stature, which gave him an overall gangling appearance. He had long, shaggy, straw-colored blond hair and his face was concealed by a white porcelain ANBU mask with a green colored triangle on its lower half, slits for eye-holes and Kirigakure's symbol etched into the top. His attire consisted of a sleeveless black shirt, matching pants complete with a waist guard and Kirigakure's striped wrist and leg guards. He also wore bandages around his neck like the other members of his generation of the swordsmen….

Kushimaru was known to revel in killing like his other swordsmen teammates, taking pleasure in crucifying countless shinobi. He was also noted to have committed many cruel acts such as killing his sensei. He also had a penchant for laughing maniacally. He wielded the unique long sword Nuibari. With it, he was not only able to precisely pierce multiple enemies in quick succession, but also stitch them together utilizing a substantial length of wireattached to the blade. This aptly demonstrated his proficient dexterity while handling this particular needle-like sword, as he was able to repeatedly catch it securely just mere moments after previously forcing the blade through his adversaries….

The Nuibari:

Status: Missing

The blade itself has the form of a narrow long sword that greatly resembles a large needle, with a long length of thin wire-mirroring thread, tied through the eye located at the base of its hilt. This sword is said to possess the ability to pierce all and stitch them together, demonstrated through its ability to effortlessly penetrate multiple targets in a single thrust and then quite literally stitched them together in substantial bundles, by simply pulling the attached wire taut. A capable user can even throw the sword with the intent of piercing a line of multiple enemies, before catching the needle at the other side and repeating the process at different angles, in order to create knots of corpses with the wire passing through the entirety, effectively creating bundles of bodies at various points along the length of the thread….

…

The blonde ninja thought aloud to himself, "It could be that Kuriarare had an apprentice or someone is a pretender. Either way I should prepare everyone for the worst."

…

Naruto went with Chiffon to breakfast and brought up what he'd found out with the others.

"….So you're saying that you saw Kuriarare Kushimaru's ghost or something?" asked Sakura over breakfast. "That's a bit farfetched Naruto."

Naruto face faulted. "I said that I saw someone with a mask identical to his. Whether he had a successor or this is a copycat or not is debatable but if that person is wielding the Nuibari they could be extremely dangerous. We should prepare for a worst case scenario."

Shikamaru nodded. "It never hurts to be prepared. Reading this guy's entry in your bingo book gives me the chills. Kariarare was a sick bastard."

Chiffon asked, "How old would this character be if he was still alive Naruto-kun?"

The blonde replied, "He'd be in his mid-forties. I don't have his exact date of birth. Come to think of it the guy is supposed to have straw blonde hair. In the low light I could only see it was light colored. It's hard to say since hair can be bleached or dyed."

"Well, whoever it is; we should be on guard. Jiraiya-sama still needs to be healed and the Daimyo still hasn't given us a letter to clear us at the hospital." said Sakura. "This is a mess."

"Politics can't be avoided sometimes." said Naruto. "We'll just have to bear with it until Daimyo-sama cooperates."

Shikamaru looked amused. "Since when did you grow up Naruto?"

Naruto said somberly, "We all have to grow up sometime Shika."

…

The Clearwater Hotel

Kuriarare Kushimaru woke up with a jolt. He had been plagued with nightmares of Naruto's stare virtually the entire night. The swordsman looked at the Nuibari and wondered what on earth he was doing in Fang Country to begin with.

'I had planned to crucify that boy but now I'm not so sure.' thought the Nuibari's wielder. 'What's wrong with me? I haven't felt this scared since I murdered my own Master to claim my sword. Something is amiss and I have to figure it out.'

After taking care of his morning rituals, Kushimaru went out to scout around a bit. That's when he saw the Konoha ninja and chiffon headed to the local hot springs resort to soak. He smiled under his mask and thought, 'I have you now Uzumaki. I'll string you and your friends together and hang you up to dry.'

…

Suberashi Hot Springs

Naruto, Shikamaru and Choji were having a nice soak and drinking a bit of sake in the men's side of the Suberashi Hot Springs while Sakura, Ino and Chiffon were doing the same over on the women's side. The Nara heir said, "This is relaxing. More missions should be like this."

Choji sipped his sake and said, "What do you suppose the Daimyo will have lined up for us next Naruto?"

The blonde replied, "As long as it stays in the Fang Country Borders, I'm willing to consider it."

"What did he ask for before?" asked Shikamaru.

Naruto hand signed, ["Assassination of the Claw Country Daimyo."]

Choji nearly spit out his drink and the Nara Heir said, "That's beyond troublesome."

…

Over on the women's side, Chiffon was relaxing with Sakura and Ino. Ino said, "So Pandora's were created to fight monsters called Novas? Do the even exist anymore?"

"I sincerely hope not." replied Chiffon. "I may be a relic of the past. I have to wonder if any other Pandoras are left either."

Sakura said, "I'm sure you'd be welcome in Konoha Chiffon."

"Wherever Naruto-kun goes, I intend to go." replied the Pandora.

…

Kuriarare Kushimaru sneaked over the onsen wall using the hiding in the mist technique that blended seamlessly with the steam rising from the hot springs He peered over at the women's side and saw the kunoichi were relaxed. Satisfied they wouldn't get involved; the swordsman m But whenoved over to the men's side and slowly but surely crept around behind his target Uzumaki Naruto.

Kushimaru closed the range before throwing the Nuibari like a javelin at Naruto's back, The blonde cried out in pain as the blade ran him through his right lung. Kuriarare cackled maniacally as he body flickered in front of Naruto to pull the sword through his victim and prepared to turn on Choji and Shikamaru.

Then Naruto burst into smoke. Kushimara's eye widened and he said, "A clone? But when did he-" Naruto came out of the water and gripped Kushimaru's hand with the Nuibari still in it and crushed the swordsman's hand to the point of uselessness.

Kuriarare was no longer cackling with glee as Naruto twisted the lanky swordsman's hand even further causing his to drop his weapon. The blonde jinchuruki hit Kushimaru with a throat jab so brutal that the man's Adam's apple was crushed.

Then Naruto flipped the man by his maimed hand away from Choji and Shikamaru. And onto some rocks with an awful crunch. Kuriarere felt his spine snap on impact with the stones and Naruto gripped his face before pushing it underwater to drown the missing nin. Kushimaru struggled with his uninjured arm flailing about but the younger man was simply to strong for him.

As Kushimaru started to see spots he came to a startling realization. '…I could have just walked away…instead, this is how I died…'

Shikamaru and Choji were up with the Nara holding the Nuibari. He was going to intervene but Shikamaru saw the assassin's arm go limp as the blonde genin drowned him. Kuriarare Kushimaru was no more…

Amidst all the screaming and yelling Naruto remained silent until the swordsman's body went limp. He didn't really notice their three kunoichi companions crash through the wooden wall that divided the men's and women's sides until after he heard Sakura ask, "Is he dead..?"

Naruto let go of the body and it floated to the surface. The man was still wearing his mask as blood flowed out of the eyeholes and down the dead man's chest. Naruto checked for a pulse and said, "Yeah, he's dead alright."

Ino glanced at Shikamaru and saw the sword he was holding. "Is that the Nuibari?" she asked fearfully.

The Nara nodded. "And I presume that was Kuriarare Kushimaru."

Two of the Daimyo's samurai arrived and one said, "Naruto-sama; we heard the was an attack!"

The blonde said, "There is no need to worry, the assassin is dead. I made sure of that personally. Get the people out of the onsen until this mess is cleaned up please, samurai-san."

Chiffon put her hand on Naruto's shoulder and asked, "Are you alright Naruto-kun?"

The blonde prankster nodded. "I'm fine as long as you are safe Chiffon-chan."

She smiled and said, "So much for a relaxing soak huh?"

Naruto smiled back, "Assassins kind of tend to ruin things."

…

Fang Country, Daimyo's Compound

Sakura finished the autopsy and said, "This was definitely Kuriarare Kushimaru from the bingo books. We'll seal up the body and take it back to Konoha with us. I don't know what to do with the Nuibari. It's so unusual that it will probably attract attention."

"Seal it up in a scroll and take it back to Konoha also." said Naruto.

"Are you sure you don't want it?" asked Shikamaru. "It's a legendary blade and the spoils are yours by right,"

The blonde shook his head, "It would just attract attention. Besides. The idea of shoving wire through somebody is really gross."

The Nara heir cringed. "You have a point there Naruto."

…

The Daimyo was a bit shocked at the situation and the group was discussing it over lunch. "One of the legendary Seven Swordsmen of the Mist was here in Fang Country and you slew him single handedly Naruto-kun?"

"That he did, Daimyo-sama." said Chiffon.

"Gracious you ninja lead interesting lives." said the Daimyo. "Do you have any idea why he was in Fang Country or why he chose to attack you?"

"I'm afraid not Daimyo-sama." replied Naruto. "We're looking into it. I fear he may have come looking for Master Jiraiya and found me instead. With Jiraiya in such a weakened state he would be vulnerable to such attacks."

"We must get Jiraiya-sama healed quickly then." His stated the Daimyo.

'Well played Naruto.' thought Shikamaru.'We'll have Jiraiya-sama out of here in no time.'

After lunch the Daimyo wrote a letter to the hospital staff clearing Jiraiya of debts and to be healed by Sakura. The Konoha group was soon headed towards the hospital where Jiraiya was.

…

Fang Country Hospital

It took Sakura a couple of hours to fix up the Toad sanin but soon he was right as rain. Jiraiya said, "Thank you Sakura-chan. I can certainly tell Tsunade is your master. You did an outstanding job patching me up."

Sakura smiled. "Thank you, Jiraiya-sama."

Jiraiya and Sakura came out of the hospital and the Toad Sage said, "Ah, it's good to see the sun again and feel the breeze on my face. It's simple things like that which make life worth living Sakura-chan. Remember that. Now where is that apprentice of mine?"

"Right here Master Jiraiya." said Naruto from behind him.

The Toad Sage spun around and saw his apprentice. He gave Naruto a glance and his eyes nearly popped out of his head. "Naruto, what happened to you?! Where is the orange?"

"It was destroyed in the explosion I told you about sensei." said the blonde. "I had to go with indigo."

Jiraiya gave Naruto an appraising look and said, "It looks good on you Naruto."

"I think so too." said Chiffon. She was back in her snug purple kimono with sunflowers.

Jiraiya had a slight nosebleed at her beauty and said, "Ah, Chiffon-chan. Don't you look lovely. I hope my apprentice has been treating you right."

Chiffon smiled. "He has Jiraiya-sama. I'm glad to see you up and around. Last time I saw you; you were wrapped in bandages."

"Such minor injuries cannot keep the gallant Jiraiya down for long my dear." said the Toad Sage with a smile.

Naruto said, "The Daimyo of Fang Country is expecting a visit from you sensei. He's quite a fan of yours." He hand signed. ["There is much to discuss after you see the Daimyo."]

"Of course!" said Jiraiya. "Daimyo-sama is a good friend of mine. We go way back." ["We'll talk in private when we get the chance."]

…

Fang Country, Daimyo's Compound

Everyone was present for the banquet that the Fang Country Daimyo had his staff prepared to celebrate Jiraiya's full recovery. Jiraiya was entertaining the Daimyo with (highly edited) tales of his and Naruto's adventures over the last couple of years.

Naruto was doing his best not to roll his eyes and Chiffon was giggling. The Daimyo said, "And to think young Naruto-kun is following in your footsteps Jiraiya-sama. Finding out he took down one of the Seven Swordsmen of the Hidden Mist just this morning nearly made my heart stop."

Jiraya glanced over at Naruto and the others who all nodded. Then he plastered on a fake smile and said, "I wouldn't expect any less from my apprentice. He's becoming a powerful shinobi in his own right." 'What the hell happened while I was injured?! Naruto doesn't look hurt…He and I have a lot to discuss.'

…

Later that evening Jiraiya was examining the Nuibari. 'There's no doubt about it, Naruto slew Kuriarare Kushimaru in single combat wearing only a towel. What happened to you while I was gone Naruto?' Jiraiya said, "I'll want to hear verbal reports from each of you regarding Kuriarare. Did anything else of note happen?

"Naruto and Chiffon-san took out the missing nin Mizu Aki and her gang of bandits before the rest of us arrived Jiraiya-sama." said Shikamaru. "We were a bit surprised to say the least."

"Mizu Aki was there, and you took Chiffon-chan in Naruto?!" asked Jiraiya. "She's a civilian!"

The blonde shook his head, "Chiffon-chan is at least jonin level sensei." said Naruto. "She's not a ninja but she's certainly no civilian."

The Toad sanin wasn't sure what to do with this information. "I'll have to spar with her." said Jiraiya. "For all that matter I need to check your progress as well Naruto. In the past few weeks you've grown in leaps and bounds." 'Maybe that's what Naruto wants to talk about.'

…

The next day Naruto woke up early with Chiffon curled up in his arms. She had a content smile on her face and was sleeping peacefully. Naruto kissed the crown of her head and her gold eyes opened. Chiffon tilted her head up and gave Naruto a deep good morning kiss. Naruto reciprocated and after about ten minutes the two broke for air.

She stretched like a cat before curling her arms back around Naruto. Chiffon yawned, "Mmmm…I want to sleep awhile longer."

Naruto smiled and said, "We have to get up and spar with Jiraiya-sensei, remember?"

She got a pouty look and said, "But I want to nap."

'…Must…resist…cuteness…' thought Naruto. He kissed her nose. "Chiffon-chan, waaaake uuuup."

She opened her gold eyes and said, "You're not playing fair Naruto-kun."

He smiled wickedly and said, "A ninja never plays fair. You don't want me to tickle torture you do you...?

She got a sultry look in her eyes and said, "What if I do mister ninja…?"

…

Haruno Sakura always was and early riser but figured Naruto was still asleep. She was about to pound on his down when she suddenly heard Chiffon's voice howling with laughter...

"…Ahahaha! Oh gods! Bwahahaha! Not there! Ahahaha! Not there! Oh my god...Oh yeah Naruto-kun, right there. Oh. My. Gods. Oh yes…Riiiight theeeeere. Oooooh fuuuuck yeeeessssss…Ooooohhh goooods…"

Sakura was blushing redder than her uniform as she listened to Naruto drive Chiffon into orgasmic bliss. The rosette was too embarrassed to say anything and left in a body flicker…

Naruto and a very happy Chiffon came out of their bedroom about a half hour later and her eyes were bright and full of contentment. The young couple went down to have breakfast with everyone else. Other than Sakura noticeably blushing and looking away from time to time it was a normal breakfast for the group.

…

Sparring Grounds

After Breakfast Jiraiya led the group to a large sparring area behind the Daimyo's Compound that was normally reserved for riders and horseback training. Jiraiya said, Alright Naruto, this is a taijustu and weapons only spar. No heavy jutsus. I just got out of the hospital after all. Come at me when you are ready."

Naruto moved so fast that none of the chunins realized he moved until his fist made an impact on Jiraiya's open palms. The Toad Sage caught the blow but skidded back about three meters digging trails in the turf with his feet. Jiraiya's eyes were big as saucers because he sensed Naruto was subconsciously drawing on senjutsu.

The sanin smiled and said, "Things just got interesting." He launched himself full force at Naruto and the two engaged in a thunderous taijutsu battle that looked like blurs to everyone but Chiffon. Naruto knocked Jiraiya away for a brief instant and closed his eyes.

Jiraiya was moving around Naruto at impossible speeds as Naruto stood motionless. The Toad Sage struck like lightning and the impact of his fist hitting Naruto's hand sounded like a thunderclap to all present. It happened four more times until Naruto began to glow with senjutsu energy.

Jira leapt back and said, "That's enough Naruto. You're ready for the next level of training. I'm proud of you."

Naruto stopped channeling senjutsu and fell to his knees. He exhaled and said, "Thanks Jiraiya-sensei. That's exhausting. I'm still not used to it."

Jiraya said, "It will take time, but you'll get there. You've begun the next stage instinctually." Then the Toad sanin started shaking his hand and said, "Ouch. Ouch. Ouch! I feel like I've been pounding on a granite cliff. Sakura, could you check both of us over?"

Sakura dashed over and quickly heal Jiraiya's hands before checking him over bodily. "You should be alright now Jiraiya-sama. You need to take it easy for a few days though. I never imagined your spar would be so intense. I expected you to knock Naruto out quickly to be honest." She looked over at Naruto who looked tired but otherwise okay. "What was that glowing Jiraiya-sama?"

Jiraiya smiled proudly and said, "That was senjutsu energy Sakura-chan. "Naruto is becoming a sage."

Chiffon was standing over Naruto who was kneeling still. "Are you alright Naruto-kun? Jiraiya-sama really pushed your limits."

Naruto nodded. "I'm okay Chiffon-chan, just really worn out."

Sakura came over and checked Naruto over. The pink haired medic soon finished and said, "You're just suffering from fatigue. Just take it easy for a couple of days; okay?"

The whisker faced young man said, "I understand Sakura-chan."

Chiffon smiled and ruffled his blonde hair. "I'll keep an eye on you Naruto-kun.

…

Location Unknown

A robotic voice spoke. "Pandora activity detected at Point A".

"Platoon A Commander Chiffon Fairchild: Active."

"…"

"No other Pandoras from Platoon A Active."

"…"

"No Nova Activity Detected."

"Activate Platoon B? Yes/No"

"Deliberating…"

…

Sparring Grounds

Jiraiya decided to call it a morning and Chiffon took Naruto back inside the Daimyo's Compound. The four chunins were left to their own devices and after several minutes of silence Ino said, "I couldn't even keep up with Naruto or Jiraiya-sama visually, let alone physically. I'm just floored. How did Naruto get that strong?"

Choji pulled out a bag of chips and said, "The other day when I sparred with Naruto he wasn't going all out and I thought he was moving as fast as Asuma-sensei. I don't know what to think."

Shikamaru was resting his palm on his forehead. "Naruto is beyond troublesome. The hit he nailed Jiraiya-sama with at the beginning of the spar was enough to take out a charging rhino. Then again, Jiraiya-sama did train the Fourth Hokage."

"My ears are still ringing from the sounds of the hits Naruto took from Jiraiya-sama and the knucklehead didn't even flinch at the impacts." said the blonde kunoichi. "What was with Naruto glowing?"

Sakura said, "Jiraiya-sama said the glowing was senjutsu energy and that Naruto is becoming a sage."

"A sage?" asked Ino. "What all does that entail?"

"I don't have a clue." admitted Sakura. "Tsunade-sama said Jiraiya-same is a Toad Sage and that senjutsu can give you a massive boost of power. I'll have to ask her more about it when we get back to Konoha. I still wonder how strong Chiffon-san is. She didn't even seem fazed by the power Naruto and Jiraiya-sama were throwing off."

"From what she said about being a Pandora, maybe those kind of power levels weren't unheard of in her time." Choji theorized. "Those Nova sound like they were bad news."

"Chiffon-san is a riddle; that much is certain." said Shikamaru. "I wonder how much Naruto actually knows about her."

…

POSTSCRIPT:

Well, this was a jog down memory lane. Kuriarare Kushimaru is history and the legendary sword Nuibari is now in the Konoha ninja's hands. Naruto has begun to learn to use senjutsu. Also, we now know that Chiffon was the designated Commander of Pandora Platoon A. Now there's an AI trying to decide if Platoon B should be activated. What will come of that? See you next time. Blue out, 4/27/22