Author's note/Disclaimer: Sorry everyone for the long waiting period. Gut-wrenching promotional exams came barreling, and I had to divert every bit of focus. I couldn't even game or read fics. But I'm back now, and out of nerd mode, so expect updates. As I mentioned at the start, this fic did not start off with any element of season 2 incorporated. But over time, I might decide to put in some things, whenever I'm planning on that, I'll leave a heads up for y'all.

Like so… Heads up!

So, none of ya should go on complaining I didn't get it right. Seriously, no flamers please. Only constructive criticism allowed.

I don't own Naruto nor do I own Fire force. Only my computer, a crazy imagination and a rocket ship. No wait, that's the imagination.

Chapter 3: Into the nether! Again!

-OWBA-OWBA-OWBA-OWBA-

Scuffling sounds announced the individual whose shiny black shoes made the sound. Strolling through the docks, with his personal sin smoldering between his lips. Cigarette smoke wafted into the air, compacting into cloudy shapes which if being puffed by anyone else would have made formless wisps.

A heart.

A spade

A diamond.

A club.

Slowly but surely, the unconventional smoke crafts diffused into nothingness a few seconds into its lifetime. The lit end of the nicotine bar glowed with life as its owner sucked in a sharp breath. A slow breeze, western in origin swept across the docks, causing the purple bandana to reveal a twin purple iris.

Hat, check. Black slacks, check. White shirt, black jacket, all check.

Joker stood unflinchingly, overlooking the decimated docks. It formed the setting for a juicy crime scene. If he were a detective, which he wasn't, he would've been all over it with blue vests, sample bags and yellow tape. He strolled along the wooden walkways, absentmindedly noting the multiple scorch marks from the various battles against the living matchboxes.

"Ahh, so the famed strongest fire soldier was here too?" The giant linear trail of blackened wood marked the point at which Benimaru made his entrance. Joker stood at the 'eye of the storm'. That is to say, the only place the fire did not burn, which during the actual happenings, would have been Benimaru's position in the thick of infernos. "That's a lot of fire power-" he commented, taking in the stretch, whilst measuring against his own. "Shinmon Benimaru. A good thing the Evangelist never got his hands on someone like him." From that point, he swiveled slowly, before spotting something out of the ordinary.

"That's a lot of blood." It was a red puddle, which easily stood out in the dark wooden background. Measuring over a foot in diameter, rising a few centimeters off the dock it signaled quite the pickle for anyone hurt enough to let out that much blood.

Walking over, he painstakingly inspected the life-liquid. No sooner did he find a floating mass. A single card appeared, clenched betwixt his fingers and swiftly completed its mission to scoop up the impurity. Having the foreign matter on a dry surface, he felt it cautiously. What he found was… surprising to say the least.

"…Skin… But how?" Looking around, all he could see was the crimson puddle and the dilapidated wooding. The piles of ash from the many infernos had all but scattered in the winds.

Ashes. A thought, worthy of the madness any crazy scientist worth his salt possessed, reared its head and he bit into it. Pulling a vial that contained some inferno ash within, he expertly shook a few flakes upon his finger. Allowing the ashes to drop into the puddle he focused solely on the gray flakes. Dull purple eyes watched in derisive disinterest as nothing seemed to happen for a few moments, but as he gave up and made to straighten, the ashes quivered, greatly agitated, and morphed into skin. Human skin.

"Oh…" the lit end of the cigarette blazed as Joker sucked in a heavy gulp of air, taken aback as to the terrifying phenomenon he bore witness to. Wherever, whoever, whatever the blood puddle had come from, it had regenerative abilities. Powerful enough to reform inferno ash. His signature grin came out to play, his visage not in the slightest distorted as he gazed into the crimson reflective surface that was blood. "…Now, this. Just got interesting."

-OWBA-OWBA-OWBA-OWBA-

Silent breaths, tinged with exasperation, huffed and puffed, relentless and rolled in annoyance. Gently rolling out the mouth of one Haumea. This time she had grossly miscalculated, heavily misjudged. She had not taken into consideration the fact that she had very little human contact, and even less knowledge of human customs and behaviors. Therefore, her task to escort what was supposed to be an inter-dimensional super-demon to the higher-ups of her secret cult/organization proved a little stressful even for the normally unflappable pyrokinetic when it turned out to be a somewhat regular teenager.

"Hey, mea-chan, where are we going again." Haumea sighed irritably, already knowing what was coming next.

"You'll see when we get there." She sighed again, and whispered. "Three, two, one"

"Cool. Are we there yet?" Unfailing. Her blonde annoyance always met expectations. At the back of her mind, she wondered if he was doing it deliberately.

"No, Naruto. We're not." Hopefully that saw the end of that. Sadly, for our cute pyro-criminal, it was not to be so.

"How 'bout now?" A right eye twitched, hard enough to warp the crown atop it. A giant pulsing vein which had steadily been growing over the last fifteen minutes, began to throb. Rapidly.

"Not yet." Heavily gritted teeth ground out the words. "Like I said before, I'll let you know when we get there." The boy nodded understandably, and his white clad escort promised, internally, to offer sacrifices to the Evangelist she served. He couldn't help it, she was at tipping point, just one more push was all it would need.

"Now? Are we there yet?" Naruto jerked in mock surprise when the girl besides him screamed. She grabbed his head and repeatedly slammed hers against his.

"Why" *slam*

"Won't" *slam*

"You" *double slam*

"Get" *double slam*

"Brain-washed" *weak slam* But he bruised not, thanks to years of intensive skull strength training. Recalling the multiple instances when he crashed his skull against hard objects, he held back a wince.

She dropped to her knees, sitting in the grass, with her legs spread outwards, knees touching. Anime styled tear rivers streaming from her hidden eyes causing Naruto to swallow a snort. Walking around her, he sat down with his back touching hers, soon after she leaned against him.

"There, there." He glanced at her over his shoulders. "Hey, mea-chan?" Taking the responsive 'hmm' as a sign to continue, he decided to stoke the flames. "Is this some kind of secret code to get in. White topped head pounded the earth as Haumea screamed into it, fingers clutching and pulling the leaf blades beneath. Minutes later she stood, poised for anything, an easily recognizable no-nonsense look sutured to her face.

"We need to move, we've already wasted a lot of time." Naruto's lips developed a minute downward curl. She had reverted back to her icy persona.

"Alright" he rose as well "the faster we get there, the faster I'd understand all this and how to get home." Piercing blue eyes scanned the environment; the gradual decrease in industrial styled buildings, the slow increment in flora specie, and broadening horizon. It was clear, they were on the outskirts of the city. Swiveling on the spot, he observed their path would lead them out of the city, beyond that, he could only fill in the blanks. He turned back to Haumea, his question clear as glass on his face.

"Mhh, the entrance to our base is outside the city, wayyyy outside. Worried?" The girl showed no deducible signs of which he could use in telling if she had negative intentions. He decided to go along with her.

"None" His head tilted downwards to look her in the eye… err, crown, when she stepped closer to him, planting her dainty form solidly with no regard for his personal space. She looked up at him, as if attempting to read his soul through his eyes. Moments later, a sinister grin crept up her face.

"Great, let's move." She spun around back to being her gay self. He followed after her, coming up side by side, his long strides keeping up her jaunty skips . Her hands swung about her in tune with the rhythm of her body, his firmly clasped in each other and tucked behind his head as a cushion.

"Hey, mea-chan, are there any interesting stuff happening at 'the base.'" A short sharp squeal followed his question.

"Ohhh, I thought you'll never ask…" trailing off at that point, the camera zooms out while the animated discuss continued, slowly fading into a black screen.

"So, what you're saying is we can find that bastard?" Shinra demanded. A day had passed, and Company 8 had successfully cleaned up the wreck of the fight, closed the gaping holes in the walls riddling the walls. Currently, they were all stationed in the debrief room, crowded around the desk and setting up the plan of action. They had gotten a lot of things wrong the first time, but were determined to correct those mistakes. One thing they were sure off, was the white clad had a hand in the sudden appearance of their guest, and left alone, they would seek him to help carry out their malicious plans. That was unacceptable.

Lieutenant Hinawa stood before the gathered group of pyro kinetics. Clutched in his hand was a small, flattened, cuboidal object. Halfway between its center and its top, it sported a concave orb, dark and glassy.

"This is a tracking device" Hinawa announced in his usual drab tone. "Vulcan came up with the idea after our last… unpleasant trip to the nether. He, Viktor and I worked together on it. To be prepared if any situation like that ever comes up repeats itself. And I alone can use it, we found a way to tie its functionality to my bullets."

"Wait, what was that lieutenant? I can hardly understand what you're saying" Arthur butted into the explanation.

*sigh* "I place markers with my bullets and then I can find you with this wherever you are."

"Ohhhh, well, why didn't you just say that" Arthur nodded to himself. The world around him turned white. His face bearing a look of graveness and enmity "I must slay the demon who dares intrude upon the castle of a knight. Wait… I meant the Samurai-knight-king!" Pleased with himself, he returned to the world of the normal to rejoin the debrief. He looked around, taking in the settings, Captain Obi, Lieutenant Hinawa standing behind the captain's desk. Himself and the others scattered around the room, occupying various positions. Shinra, currently taking up a spot on the desk, looked very interested in the device. Viktor leaned against the window, even as He, Maki and Tamaki stood in their original positions upon entering the room, but in very lax positions.

"So, I could use this to find that bastard? Right now?" Shinra mused aloud, drawing the attention of everyone present including Vulcan, presently tinkering with a new prototype invention.

"No" Vulcan answered Shinra's unasked yet voiced question.

"WHA-! But he just said-" the flame-footed pyrokinetic got cut off abruptly.

"He said it functions with his powers, so only he can use it." This time the interruption was Viktor's to make. "Without Lieutenant Hinawa, no one can use that device."

Almost immediately, Shinra rounded on Hinawa, his usually devil set eyes, morphing into a terrible attempt at the puppy-dog eyes, made to look even weirder alongside his irreplaceable devil's grin. He launched himself at the spectacled man's feet. "Lieutenant! Please, come with me so I can find that bastard."

Hinawa grunted in irritated, "Shinra, get off me." He tried to kick off the boy. " If we weren't going to look for him, then what need would there be telling you all about this?"

Shinra leapt to his feet, the world around him blending into the background as he broke the fourth wall, his devil's grin flashing in all its disturbing glory. "Yes, finally we're going to find that blonde bastard, and I can get my revenge. That punch really hurt." A look of intense contemplation crossed his face "though, as Captain Obi said, we won't be looking for a fight. But explanations come after I get my justice." Reintegrating himself into the real world, he came to just as Viktor wheeled in a map Tokyo, setting it before the gathered crowd.

Hinawa turned on the fancy remote, which gave off a slight green glow. His dull, unemotive eyes flashing a brilliant gold and a grey dot appeared at the north-western edge of the sphere. Apparently, the second-in-command of the eight company was no slouch in utilizing the device as he zoomed out, reducing the size of the pixel map till it encompassed the entirety of man's last stronghold. Then he zoomed in on the specific position of the conspicuous dot.

Viktor craned his neck , over the heads of Tamaki and Iris, his hands working independent of his senses, attempting to determine the exact location of their one-armed quarry. "Judging from the landscape and the topography and calculating every possible variable, I conclude he is… here!" The scientist planted his finger firmly over a point in the north-west, out in the middle of nowhere.

Obi frowned looking back and forth between the blinking dot and the accused spot on the map. "Hmm, there's nothing out there, are you certain that is the right spot? You sure there aren't any glitches with the prototype?"

Viktor spun around, his usual unnerving smile plastered across his mug "yep, I'm positive that's his current location. Certain of it. Besides, we've been testing out the device for weeks, there aren't any glitches."

Hinawa looked up, his ever-present scowl deepening as he eyed the map critically "check if there're any significant landmarks around that point, within one mile, at least."

Viktor saluted, goofily, and returned to the board. After three seconds of examining the imagery of Tokyo, his smile shriveled off his face. "Oh no. No, no, no, no, no"

"What'd you find?" Arthur jumped to attention, stuffing his head amongst the many such crowding the space around the map and staring at the point some inches away from Naruto's location. Corresponding to on-ground distance, it measured just below a mile, and was the obvious destination of the otherworldly ninja, as indicated by the tracking device. Alarm spread throughout the ranks of the eight, it confirmed all previous suspicions, and informed them of what little time they had left. Pointed out on the map was the famed- or defamed, depending on how you looked at it- abandoned subway.

"The entrance to the nether" Iris' breathed out.

-OWBA-OWBA-OWBA-OWBA-

Haumea merrily skipped to the towering doors that shut the entryway of the abandoned subway tunnel. Spinning around, once. Twice. Thrice. She came to a stop, left hand planted on her waist, its right compatriot pointed straight at her companion. Naruto stood on the outreaches of the gates, just beyond the unwelcoming shadows that lingered around the entrance. Heavy suspicion marred his features as he inspected the setting. From personal experience, he knew only shady guys met at such sinister places. And every ingrained, honed ninja instinct screamed for him to toss rasenshirukens left and right. Haumea unknowingly let her smile slip, before the blonde boy turned back to face her, his face unreadable at the moment. Quickly slapping on a megawatt grin, lest he notice anything amiss, the right-hand… girl of the Evangelist strode to the ninja in big playful steps.

"We've come all the way here. Don't tell me you're gonna chicken out." The stare of suspicion quickly became an affronted gawk.

"No way! I'm going in there right now! You just watch!" And so, he stormed in after her.

Haumea giggled to herself, seems like she didn't need her mind-control to control some situations. Naruto marched into the increasingly darkened subway, wondering when his brain would finally work before his mouth. Ever since his since his youth, impulsiveness had been a part of his personality. Even as he ventured further, the urge to slice a kunai in any particular direction grew harder to repress. Only the knowledge that his tools were somewhere unreachable made that a moot point. He reached inwards, mentally palming his expansive -and recovering- ocean of chakra in a bid to calm himself. All round, everywhere his eyes sought solace, received hostile, ominous darkness. Haumea stepped past the wary shinobi, heading deeper into the underground catacombs. Naruto walked alongside Haumea staring at the frozen visage of his escort, and just as his mind formulated a question, he sensed two presences ahead of them.

"Ah, you have done well in retrieving the key. It was a wise decision, sending you out to get it, rather than those worthless underlings." Deeply intoned and white robed was Dr. Giovanni, the treacherous company 3 captain.

"Was there ever a doubt? Haumea was the only right candidate for the job." Besides the mechanical fighter was an even weirder figure. Bearing an asymmetrical face, large unexpressive eyes and bleached hair. Yona, the eldritch from beyond the human realm was not spared strange looks from the captive blonde. Haumea passed right between the two… men… well, um… male figures. Not sparing even a glance at either nor stopping to offer any sort of address. Naruto, standing between the two males from which he sensed twisted life signs decided his best bet was to keep up with his courier.

The unused rails and dilapidated metal structures made for an eerie atmosphere, giving the sub terrain a nasty vibe, which made his hairs stand on end. The pregnant barrenness of the subway did nothing to ease his nerves. He knew something, or someone, was lurking down here. Waiting to unleash whatever diabolical schemes had been scrounged up. It was quiet, too quiet. As a ninja, he had been trained to spot such anomalies. As Naruto, such depressing silence practically eroded his brain power.

"So, Haumea, what's this key you're supposed to retrieve? We never stopped to get a key y'know."

"…" He was not comfortable with the silence that followed. The white-clad trio simply marched, Giovanni keeping behind Naruto at all times, Haumea at point and Yona off to his left. It was only a matter of time before the first move was made.

He felt a something curl around his midsection. Looking down, he found Dr. Giovanni's mechanical embrace tightly wrapped around him. Spread evenly along the whip-like extension were minute holes, with their pointy tips sticking into his skin unhindered by his tattered clothing. Somewhere between fifteen to twenty ampoules of sedatives later, Naruto knelt before the trio, gasping and clawing the rusty metal beneath his fingers as the three diabolic agents stared down at him.

"Why -you- of course. You are just what the evangelist ordered. Now, be a good sacrifice and go to sleep " Haumea replied his question with a vague, gut-churning answer. Everything faded into a continuous haze from then on.

-OWBA-OWBA-OWBA-OWBA

Finally, I could think again. The moldy blurs swimming before my eyes finally sharpened into interpretative images. I was chained to a weird-looking altar, with a gold hoop floating above me. Like it rejected gravity. The altar was made of an obsidian material, one I'd never seen before. They grouped together and rose in columns, being thickest and tallest at the center. They looked like hexagonal pillars glued to each other. All around me, people, all decked in white stood around. Haumea stood at the front, looking down at me, an unreadable expression etched on her features.

"Wha-" I tried speaking, but my throat felt like it had been spiked over a raging campfire, while I juggled chunks of ice with my teeth. I noticed the strange dude from earlier staring at me from the corner of the room, his widened orbs drinking in my every move, savoring every muscle twitch. Even the rise and fall of my chest as I took recovery breaths. There was not a flinch. Not a blink. Simply unhindered eye contact.

Creepy.

I felt a tickle on my neck, and threw my hands to brush of whatever was causing the itch. No such luck. I frowned 'yeah, my arms were chained' I recalled. Straining my neck to see, all I could make out were glass tubes, nine in number.

Ironic.

I jerked, responding to the chant that had started amongst their ranks, some grade-A weird was going on. And I was a forced participator. The tones increased. Rapidly. The sound reverberated off everything. Nothing out of the ordinary happened, yet, I could feel a gathering of power. An odd sensation of unfiltered ethereal energy concentrated around the obsidian columns.

Climax. I could feel it.

BOOM! The wall exploded, sending some of the robed figurines flying. The dust settled, and I knew I had seen that object somewhere. It was a deep blue van (as I had come to understand), with '08' printed boldly on its front. As quickly as the van burst in, its occupants flew out the back. I recognized them. Every one of them was a familiar face. I should know, they were the people I had played my first prank on in this strange place.

~POV change~

"You're to late. Then again, you 'heroes' always are. Company 08, such a drab collection of weaklings, children and fools. Yet somehow, you manage to hold on to the Adolla burst. Never mind that, do you see, all you've done, all the chaos and chinks you've put in our plans, with this sacrifice we would bypass all steps. In a short while, everyone gathered here would feel the radiance of the sun." Dr Giovanni announced in all his self-absorbed disposition. He turned undisputedly towards Shinra "we might not even need you anymore, or need gather the pillars-" Yona elbowed the technologically enhanced captain to get him to stop before he revealed too much.

"Like we'll ever let your twisted plans for our world come fruition. You and your evangelist better watch out, because we're taking you down." Obi yelled at his fellow but turned captain. He, Hinawa, and Vulcan unloaded their gear, enhanced ammunition, a rifle, magnetic pulse grenades, all the likes. Behind them Shinra had taken to the air, hovering at head height. Arthur pulled out his plasma blade, itching for a chance to use it. Tamaki and Maki stood at ready, the twin units, Tekkyo, set an imposing sight to the cowering members of the white-clad. Behind them, Iris tightly clutched a two-handed battering ram, knees bent towards each other, staring frightfully at the opposition.

"Brave words, coming from a fool whose about to die." Giovanni snapped at the impudent company 8 captain. Then he glanced behind him, at the captive Naruto. "Ah, the show's about to begin. Enjoy our front row seats to the beginning of second Great Cataclysm."

The would-be rescuers looked to where their blonde escapee knelt, fettered to the strange altar. The expression on their faces captured in likeness.

Horrified.

Atop Naruto, rested a weird setup. But that garnered no attention. What did, were the tubes the setup pressed firmly against his unprotected back. Nine tubes; spanning shoulder-to-shoulder, arranged in rows of three, each with its individual infernal bug scraping the glass from within. The golden hoop glowed with an ethereal light entrancing all sentient beings present to notice. The bugs -as if hypnotized, or mind-controlled- spun 180-degree sand began a slow, drunken march to Naruto's prone posterior.

"Company 8, move out" Obi bellowed.

The action began. The fighting fierce. And the stakes were as high as hell.

Shinra flew right at Haumea, who skipped her merry way out of reach. Blasting a bolt at his cranium, she gawked when it was intercepted by a familiar blue blade. Arthur smirked at the irritated right hand, and looked backwards to his fellow rookie.

"Well don't just stand there, let's get her ya flying devil."

Kusakabe made a face "Don't tell me what to do" a burst interrupted his steady stream of flames as he rocketed towards the girl who took control of his brother. The girl whose playful expression never faltered as she avoided consecutive swipes and slashes from the two rookie soldiers.

Elsewhere, Maki bravely charged a group of unsuspecting terrorists. Alongside her units, she easily hammered her way through their ranks. While she busied herself, Tamaki charged a group of new recruits. Dashing in with the added speed and agility her nekomata flames granted her. A whirlwind of pink flames, she tossed white clad members apart, until her penchant for accidental stripping came on full glare. Losing her sense of balance due to vertigo, she stumbled about and got her vest caught on a stray piping. Pulling the vest off her and to the ground, on the way down her pants decided to take a coffee break. Sitting on the cold tracks, with naught but underwear, the young unfortunate lass was vulnerable to the starry, prying eyes.

"Woah!" A youthful servant of the Evangelist yelled.

"Ooohhhhh, marry me!" still another cried.

'Guhhhhhhhhh-' that was all the unfortunate drooler thought of the timely situation. That is; until Iris appeared behind the drooling males, bathed in pure female fury, hefting her hulking baton above their unguarded heads.

"Lato"

Fine, promising pyro kinetics, crushed by a girl with a giant stick. Sad. On the other hand, Vulcan and Obi proved to be too much for the traitorous company 3 captain.

"You never learn Vulcan-" the baritone mechanized voice sang, "-just like your father and grand-father."

"They were great people, my grand-father taught you everything you know." The red-head threw several grenades at the cloaked captain who dodged with minimal movements, his mechanics shielding him from the heat of the explosions. "He made you an apprentice, but you chose Haijima instead. You damn turncoat." His penguin helmet emerged, and he flew at the older student. Giovanni ducked under his swipe, and his slinky mechanical arms exited his cloak. Wrapped and held in mid-air, Vulcan grunted in exertion, struggling to break the metal links.

"Your grand-father WAS! A! FOOL!" Giovanni's cane made an appearance, while he yelled into the boy's face. He planted it on the ground while his artificial limbs squeezed the younger male.

*It was a scene familiar to most. In another dimension, a boy masked in red sneezed and almost missed his next swing. Which would have sent him plummeting aplenty stories down.*

"Rrrrrrarrgh" Akitaru Obi barreled into the mechanized fighter like the muscle head he was, a heaving haymaker disconnecting him from his captive. Vulcan dropped to its knees, sucking air into his abused lungs while his captain posed heroically betwixt him and Giovanni. "That's my engineer you're hurting."

Giovanni glanced to his opposition. Vulcan was on his feet -determination being the supreme emote he expressed- Obi stood by him, unflinching. He knew he couldn't take on both of them, not in his current state. It was no surprise he cut his losses and ended the fight. The other members of the force were on round-up duty, polishing off the few stragglers. Arthur missed another swing at the evasive neuro-telepath. His flying counterpart launched an offensive, conserving the momentum, never letting up on the challenging side. Hard-pressed for space between the two relentless fighters, Haumea created a wall of electric charges and let it expand, drilling Arthur into the hard metal floor, and sending Shinra skipping across the cold hard ground in a manner similar to a flat stone on a calm lake. Groggy, Shinra surveyed the entirety of the battlefield- the departing Giovanni, several unconscious white-clad soldiers, his team victorious- looking to where Naruto lay chained, the bugs only a few steps away from claiming their victim. Every bit of effort, all the energy spent, would be in futility if he let the unidentified entity turn inferno. His grin screamed milliseconds before he sped off, racing towards the endangered ninja.

A step. In his ears, the sound reverberated as a block of glass shattering. Alongside others disastrous sound effects. Shinra surpassed speeds few sprinters could ever hope to reach.

The second. The sound of a bomb going off filled his chest with dread. But that was all in his head. His face, though, was just about turning inside out due to his velocity.

The final step. It came a lot quieter than he expected, probably because the universe ceased for a split second. On a side note, he learnt how to fly backwards. A pulse of blue energy swept through the rundown subway/battle arena, ripping away every loose object as well as humans, tossing them about like ragdolls in a mutt's jaws.

Then there was the scream. Pure, unadulterated agony. It ripped throughout their ranks, a sound no human deigned to listen to. Unending. Listless. Overwhelming.

"Make it stop! MAKE IT STOP!"Tamaki shouted in return, clutching her ears as she knelt in sorrow. Iris kneeling by her in a bid to comfort her. An effort in futility as she staved off sobs with her hand, ignoring the fat beads of tears rolling down her cheeks. No one could believe it. Less than a day they met him, and now… now they bore witness to his death, consumed by Infernal bugs. Shinra's hate for fire deepened.

Fabric- obliterated by flames. Skin- burnt, blackened and crusted. The flames gradually melding with his body while his voice grew hoarse and indistinct. All the while, the hoop swelled with flames, flickering along the edges and converging in the middle. For a moment, Haumea's apathetic visage shattered, resigned sorrow showing through. The golden hoop and flames now burned black, company 8 stared in horror. The sprawling glade of black burning skeletons now visible, familiar to one Kusakabe, introduced and petrifying to the heroes.

"Hell…" It was no question. Hinawa spoke with conviction, confirming the fears of his soldiers. In the distance, Shinra spotted the shiny robes of the 'man' responsible for the calamity that befell his life.

"The Evangelist" Obi frowned. Morale depleted rapidly amongst his men and he knew nothing he could say or do would fix it. No heroic speech to render, no explosive action to take. It was frustrating, everything seemed so… bleak

"We'll need a miracle to get through this one." Hinawa nod acknowledged. They would not be winning this one.

An ear-splitting crack rang. The ring bore multiple cracks and chips in its obsidian surface. The Evangelist's snarl was noticeable even under his overbearing hood. A large chunk of the otherworldly material crashed to the ground and the black flames petered out, destroying the connection to the Adolla. A new shout tore through the air -this time, the ninja's voice detectable- as Naruto stood, flames still clinging to his form. Making him resemble a burning effigy.

"Rrrrrraaarrrrrr" a great burst of steam swept through the arena, battering friends and foe alike. When it cleared, Naruto stood in a crater two feet deep, glowing with the golden energy of Kurama's stage one cloak.

"Whoa" Tamaki's tears forgotten, she stared in awe of the transformed fighter. Arthur and Shinra immediately charge at the stunned Haumea, who recovered on sensing their individual fire signatures. Arthur went into his 'knight's trance' attempting a swing. Successfully preempting her position, he swung his plasma blade at the shocked girl. Millimeters away, the blade's glow illuminated her face, reflecting off her crown.

A giant of a man burst through the wall behind them, knocking Arthur away. Before Shinra could react, an inferno pinned him to the metal floor. An inferno he'd recognize even with his eyes closed, whose true identity had recently been revealed to him.

"-Mom." She stared down at him, her head cocked to one side, her barbed tail caressing his cheek yet surprisingly soft. Her cratered eye sockets dripped with flaming tears. The black dude rose from his crouched position, standing protectively between Haumea and the rest of the fire force -minus Arthur, digging himself out of a wall. A wall of solid muscle, Shinra noticed he was larger than even Captain Obi.

"About time-" Haumea griped, "-what kept you?" Charon surveyed the scene, ignoring the girl behind him. Focus turned on company 8, he smirked before dashing towards their gun -Hinawa. Hinawa discarded his rifle, choosing instead to wield a bazooka. The shot echoed, traveling throughout the length of the railway, but when the dust cleared, Charon stood, arms crossed over his head.

"I would've expected that to have more kick. Perhaps I over-estimated you all." He rose to his full height -ignoring Haumea, who was attached to his neck, her feet dangling off the ground as she made faces at the fire soldiers- arms crossed imposingly as he stared down the 8th.

"Hmm" Forearms intercepted the kick which would have bruised his ribs. His body absorbed the momentum of the inelastic collision, driving him several feet backwards, while his charge leapt from her now unsafe spot on his back. Haumea's crowned vision looked into Naruto's red orbs, the mistrust in his gaze evident. A second later, he launched at Charon, feet indenting the spot he previously occupied. The 8th watched in amazement as he fought squarely against the black concrete mass that was Charon. Slews of blows were exchanged between the two juggernauts; flurries of fists and sets of kicks, stabbing elbows and prodding knees, even the occasional headbutt. Both fighters seemed evenly matched.

Naruto's elbow found Charon's solar plexus, but the dark-skinned male grabbed his opponent by the head, squeezing his meaty fists together. A chakra enhanced uppercut put a stop to that and as Charon spun full circle, a shrill sound bounced off his eardrums. He was prepared.

"RASENGAN!" The swirling blue sphere drilled into his abdomen but he held strong, relishing the surprised look on the ninja's face.

"Fortunately for me, I absorb energy." The orb reduced remarkably in size, but was relentless in its assault. The wince he held back, though, was not missed by the observant prankster. Pumping it with his internal energy, it swelled greatly, bulging grotesquely along its circumference. "Gaaahhhhh-" Charon sailed into a wall some fifty meters away. No sooner had he been bested, the demon inferno on the scene dove at his victor. Naruto spun on the balls of his feet, another death ball violently spinning.

"NOO! Don't hurt her!" The turned Kusakabe almost in him, her let the orb dissipate, choosing instead to grab her lashing tail and swung her into Haumea. The last set of the Evangelist forces down, Viktor yelled from the driver's seat of the matchbox.

"Come on. Let get out while we can." This jumbled the team into action.

"Everybody on board" Obi reigned in control of his squad, shuffling towards their getaway. They'd won this battle, it was better to leave while they still could. Though one fighter was reluctant to do so.

"Hold on- I have to get mom" Shinra struggled within the iron grip Maki had on him. Up till the point she gave up, and slammed her hammer against his head. The poor soul went white-eyed, hanging limply in her arm.

"Well?" Naruto looked at the owner of the outstretched hand. Obi's determined gaze stared back at him. "Get on."

Minutes later, they drove down the streets of the Tokyo Empire, Maki apologizing repeatedly knocking Shinra out. The dark-haired boy pouted, doggedly refusing her which caused more fussing on her part. His eyes caught those of Naruto, seated across him. A tap. He tilted his head down a fraction to look into Iris' blues.

"It's not nice to stare." The girl's soft tone brought forth a smile even as she 'scolded' him. He turned back to the older blonde.

"So… who are you?" the boy clenched his fists, examining his grip and for a moment, Shinra thought he would attack with that strange orb.

"Took you all long enough…" a pregnant pause- "yo! The name's Naruto" -followed by a blinding smile.

-OWBA-OWBA-OWBA-OWBA-

Woohooo! I finally finished. And my first work over 6 thousand words. New record.

*Confetti canon explodes*

Now, I'm sorry for the long wait but not to worry, we won't be having such dry months anymore, count on it. I've only just begun fitting in season 2. Have no fears, soon we'll be seeing whole arcs from the anime, not just cut-outs. Don't forget to hit the follow button, and please, do leave a review, else how am I to know you liked it. Keep a lookout for the next release and do check out my other fic, if you haven't. You won't be disappointed. In the meanwhile, I'll be working on a project for all you PJO lovers, but that won't be out till January, so… Yeah.

Lots of crazy stuff happening, stay safe, y'all, and stay cool.

GreenBar17. Going in sleep mode~