Chapter 17
Blanket disclaimer: I do not own Naruto, Ninja Gaiden or DOA
AUTHOR'S NOTE:
Chapter 16 was a bit short because it and chapter 17 were more or less one big chapter that was too massive and had to be split up. Here is chapter 17:
Last time:
"….I was hoping that a battle at Aoyama Cemetery would leave them in disarray or at least injure some of them but I'm under the impression that it hardly slowed them down."
The elderly male said, "I was hoping our contact could feed them some more disinformation about the Kadokawa Family but that's proven impossible and the information at the Kadokawa Shrine has already been processed. In spite of the fact I'd relish in burning that place to the ground it would use up valuable time and resources. What's worse is the police have been very diligent in keeping tabs on the Kadokawas. It may be coincidence but our targets are under surveillance. We may need to choose alternate members of the Kadokawa line."
A younger female voice piped in. "The problem I see is everything is being coordinated through the detective named Arii Maya. She's the glue that keeps the Tokyo Police Department in touch with the ninjas to begin with regardless of what clan they're from. If we wipe her out their organization would be in shambles for weeks. Why not have our contact kill her?"
"Now there's an idea I can get behind!" said the angry sounding male in approval.
"Our contact specializes in information gathering, not killing. It's just not possible." explained the male elder. "Still, the idea of killing Detective Arii Maya without a doubt has merit. It would certainly buy us some time and right now time is our most precious commodity."
"….And time is running short." said the elder female. "Whatever we do we must do it quickly!"
Nyotengu had her eyes closed and was feigning sleep but inside she was smiling viciously. She could hear the desperation in the voices of the Yoru Clan. They were completely baffled that their little army was wiped out so easily. All Nyontengu had to do was survive until Sage Uzumaki and his clan arrived. These would be immortals would soon find out that death comes for everybody eventually….
Shibuya, Tokyo at the Uzumaki safe house
Naruto and his wives were back in their safe house resting up after a long night's work. Aoi had managed to extract from the prisoner that Tokyo Dome was where the Yoru Cult's sacrificial temple was and that they (apparently) had a female tengu there to sacrifice so they could summon the Shinigami to grant them eternal life. He died shortly thereafter from blood loss and all the chemicals Aoi shot him full of to keep him lucid and not pass out from the pain of the torture. Inspector Otaki and Detective Arii had been less than thrilled the prisoner died under interrogation but the general attitude of the Uzumakis was the prisoner was no longer of any use to them and should be disposed of like the garbage he was.
At any rate, the target was the Tokyo Dome Attractions which was an amusement park. Kasumi and Aoi both commented that the Thunder Dolphin roller coaster was there as well as the Big O Ferris wheel. They weren't too subtle they wanted to ride them after things were settled but Naruto was more concerned they might destroy the attractions in the process. Detective Arii hadn't been too happy about Aoi and Hinata stealing a Police bike of all things but couldn't argue with the results (and the bike mysteriously reappeared out of nowhere at Police Headquaters). The resulting bloodbaths from the battles here and there were carefully being covered up from the media as accidents and brutal Yakuza fights.
Frankly, Otaki had been shocked at the Uzumaki's brutal actions but couldn't argue that the ends didn't justify the means. He didn't admit it to anybody but having seen several of the ritual murders he felt the Yoru Clan deserved what they got. He even threw in his support of the Uzumaki clan being under contract with the Tokyo Police Department which was virtually unheard of from the traditionally conservative Inspector Otaki (who never supported the idea of outside help). He figured other criminal groups would think twice seeing what had happened to the Yoru Clan. Of course, it wasn't his decision since Detective Arii was the expert. Still, he figured his support couldn't hurt.
The Uzumaki Clan was looking over a map of the Tokyo Dome Attractions amusement park and found there were a plethora of places to hide there. They had to give credit where it was due; the Yoru Clan chose their base of operations well.
The ninja's quietly polished their gear and made preparations until 8:00PM when the received a call from Inspector Otaki. "The Yoru clan has Maya in a hostage situation at her apartment! She may have already been killed. I don't know how they found her but they did. Our people are scrambling to recover her. I need your help!" Naruto relayed the information to the girls.
It's obviously a distraction to buy time Naruto-kun." said Momiji.
Kasumi sighed. "She's still our biggest ally here; we need to look into this and help her if we can."
"It's probably a trap." said Ayane in an edgy tone.
"I agree but we have to enter this trap with our eyes open." said Naruto. He got back on the phone. "Otaki, we'll meet you at the Shibuya Police Headquarters out back."
"I can send a van directly to you." said Otaki.
"They are counting on that to learn our location Otaki. We're not going to let that happen." said Naruto. "Also, we need to transfer safe houses to one in Shinjuku."
"Why?" asked Otaki. "The one you are in is perfectly safe."
"Call it a gut instinct. I think there's a mole in the investigation team. The enemy was expecting us at the Cemetery. This will keep them off balance." Then Naruto added, "Don't let anyone know we moved outside of yourself and Detective Arii once we rescue her. I'll see you at the Shinjuku Police Department."
An hour later in the Shinjuku Ward….
Otaki was riding in the van with the Uzumaki Clan. "I still think you're paranoid but I made all the arrangements you asked for."
"There's a lot going on Inspector." said Aoi. "A lot we don't know yet. It never hurts to be too careful."
They heard the sirens and saw the flashing lights reflect back into the back of the van as it gently came to a halt. "We're here Inspector." said the driver. "This is Detective Arii's apartment building."
"What's her apartment number?" asked Naruto.
Otaki took out his notebook. "It's apartment 5115 on the 51st floor."
"We'll meet you there." said Naruto as he and his wives vanished into thin air.
Otaki sweat dropped at the stunned looks on the faces of his men. "You didn't see that and neither did I." His men slowly nodded as they got out of the truck to begin the investigation.
When Otaki and his men arrived at room 5115 they saw the ninjas were already there. Naruto was giving out the orders. Momiji-chan, Ayane-chan; you know what to do. The two nodded and teleported out. Naruto turned to Otaki. "Detective Arii isn't here. There's a body in there but it isn't hers. It's someone else."
"How can you be so sure?!" screeched a coroner indignantly. "I don't care if you are so-called ninjas; the butchered body's identity can't be confirmed without a thorough forensic investigation!" He turned to Otaki and said somberly, "Inspector Otaki, I fear Detective Arii Maya is dead but I can't be 100% certain at this point. The body was ritually butchered in a similar manner to the other bodies we've seen with the exception of the head being removed."
Otaki took off his ever present fedora and lowered his head. "Damn…."
Hinata said in an irritated tone. "If you look at the left femur and hip you'll see seven metal pins are inserted into the bones that were obviously put there surgically from a previous injury. The scars are obvious. Detective Arii had no such injuries."
"What do you know blind girl? Do you have x-ray eyes?" shrieked the coroner. "This girl is getting in the way of our work Inspector!"
"You have two metal plates in your neck and two fused vertebra at the base of your spine coroner." said Hinata clinically. "These eyes see all."
The coroner stared in shock. Otaki shook his head. "I hate to say this but somehow she can see things we can't. Can you look for the scars she says are there coroner?" The coroner dumbly nodded and went to confirm it.
Otaki wiped the sweat off his brow and put his hat back on. "Now that you've upstaged my people, what are you planning to do Uzumaki?"
"Four of us will deal with the unwanted observers from the Yoru clan while the other two find Detective Arii. We'll be in touch Inspector." At that, Hinata and Kasumi went down the hall and Naruto and Aoi vanished from Otaki's view.
Otaki just shook his head and muttered, "Ninjas…."
With Hinata and Kasumi….
The pair was standing outside a set of doors to a gymnasium and Hinata was examining the room with her byagugan. "I count twenty one in ninjas there with night vision goggles. Most of them are lower ninjas from their ki levels. It's pitch black to prevent us from seeing anything."
"How do you want to handle this Hinata?" asked Kasumi. "You should be able to see fine but I'll be limited."
Hinata smiled and pulled out a kunai with a tag tied to it. "This is a flash-bang tag. I'm going to crack open the door and throw it in there. They'll be blinded by the initial flare and the noise will disorient them. After that the lower light will have the room illuminated and you should be able to see fine."
A predatory gleam was in Kasumi's eyes (her face was hidden by the facemask the Uzumaki clan had adopted). "They'll be like lambs to the slaughter then."
"Precisely." replied Hinata. "Shall we?" Kasumi nodded and drew her wakizashi. Hinata drew a kunai and cracked the door open enough to throw the flash bang tag in.
After the tag went off they heard the screams and phrases like "My eyes!" and "Fuck!" and "What the hell happened?" When the light died down to a normal level the pair rushed in and began the slaughter….
With Momiji and Ayane….
The two kunoichis were in the building on the opposite side of the street from Detective Arii's apartment building. There were snipers there on one of the upper floors and up on the roof presumably waiting to pick off the Uzumaki ninjas when they entered Detective Arii's room. Hinata spotted this early on and Naruto sent Momiji and Ayane to deal with the snipers. They went to the roof first and found three snipers that were slacking off.
"Are these Uzumakis ever going to show up? I'm bored" said one man.
"Orders are orders." said one that was obviously the leader. "Until we hear from the Red Ninja we are to stay put."
"That Red Ninja is a sick psycho." said the female of the group. "I hate to be even near him."
The leader said, "He's sent a lot of people to the Shinigami and he is skilled. Still, his views on women are sick. I try not to associate with him either."
"Do you think we'll really get immortality?" asked the first man.
"Who knows?" said the woman. "Unlike you I'm a hired gun. I'm it for the money, not everlasting life. What do you guys think?...Guys?"
That's when the female sniper noticed her two compatriots were dead. While she'd been looking down cleaning her rifle two kunai came out of nowhere and hit her two comrades in the heads killing them in an instant. She gasped as she felt a kunai at her neck right by her jugular. An iron grip held her fast. A female voice behind her said. "If you cooperate with us I won't slit your throat. If you don't cooperate you'll be disposed of…."
With Hinata and Kasumi….
Three-fourths of the enemy ninja were down by the time the overhead lights were switched on. There were four middle ninjas left and a flamboyantly dressed ninja in red who was a high level ninja. He laughed, "Ahahaha! Well, you Uzumakis took out the fodder as expected but they weren't worthy of the Shinagami's blessings anyway. I am the Red Ninja and if you are lucky enough to get by my men you'll have the challenge of facing me and my katana! Do it if you dare but I'd run now if I were you!" He cackled as he ran through the doors to the emergency stairs.
Kasumi and Hinata sweat dropped. "The Red Ninja? That's really….lame." said Kasumi.
"Don't knock our boss!" said one of the four ninjas facing them as he drew a pair of nunchaku. "He trained us personally and we are elites in the Yoru Clan!"
Kasumi smiled under her mask. "You elites look like ordinary middle ninja to me."
"How dare you bitch! You won't live to face Red-Sama!" The ninjas charged with the one with nunchaku leading the pack.
Hinata said "Water bullet!" as she released her jutsu sending them sprawling. The one with the nunchaku evaded and charged straight at Kasumi. She nimbly vaulted over him and hit him with an aerial kick in the back of the head that sent him flying head first into a weight lifting set. The barbells came down on him with a horrendous crash. The other Yoru Ninjas had recovered by now and one was facing off with Hinata in a fierce taijutsu match. He used a bastardized version of the hard fist that Gai and Lee used. Hinata found he wasn't nearly on par with either one of them and her fast and deadly jūken strikes were soon finding their marks.
Meanwhile, having temporarily disposed of the nunchaku user, Kasumi took on a sword wielder. After ten minutes of dueling she deflected an overhead strike that sent him rebounding back. With his stomach wide open she eviscerated him. He died shortly thereafter with his intestines littering the floor.
The nunchaku user roared back into the fight seeing his friend gutted like a fish. Though he was very skilled with his weapon of choice he simply couldn't keep up with Kasumi's speed and agility. (The concussion he had didn't help either). Swinging wildly he was getting rather frantic trying to land a hit.
Across the gym Hinata said. "You are in my field of divination." and landed a thirty two palm strike on her opponent that finished him off. The hits she made to his heart caused catastrophic damage and he was dead with seconds of hitting the floor.
About that time Kasumi got behind the nunchaku user and beheaded him in one vicious stroke.
The last one Yoru ninja who wielded a staff simply turned tail and ran after his master. Apparently he felt discretion was the better part of valor.
Kasumi and Hinata paused a few moments. They were tired from all the fighting and need a breather.
Twenty minutes later they carefully stepped though the doors and found the staff wielder with his neck snapped halfway up the stairs. Apparently the Red Ninja didn't tolerate his subordinates retreating.
They carefully treaded up the stairs with Kasumi on point to defend against the Red Ninja's katana should he use it….
With Momiji and Ayane….
The now unarmed female sniper was staring into Ayane's cold red eyes. Momiji was still behind her holding her at kunai point.
"So you go by the handle of Snakebite and you were hired by the Yoru Clan the kill Uzumaki ninjas that appeared in the detective's room." mused Ayane aloud. "We plan to exterminate the Yoru Clan and you with them if you don't answer our questions to our satisfaction…."
Snakebite was terrified but tried to keep cool. She'd dealt with several Yoru Clan members in passing and thought they were deranged but the Uzumakis were just terrifying! "Just tell me what you want to know and I'll answer if I know the answer to your questions. I'm just a hired gun so this whole death cult thing is just a paycheck for me."
"Do you know how many others are in this building with the Yoru Clan or helping them?" asked Ayane.
"There are twelve of us; well actually ten now." she said as she looked at the two dead snipers in front of her. "There's another team of three snipers in room 5205 and six Yoru ninjas. I have no idea if the other snipers are mercenaries like me or part of the Yoru clan."
Ayane nodded. "How many ninjas are over in Arii's apartment building and who's this Red Ninja?"
"There were a lot of ninjas with the Red Ninja; at least fifteen or more. The Red Ninja is a higher up in the cult. He's some kind of sicko." said Snakebite. "He enjoys killing for pleasure cult related or not and I heard he's a necrophiliac."
"Do you know anything about detective Arii's kidnapping?" Ayane questioned.
Snakebite nodded slightly. "All I know is she's some kind of obstacle in the Yoru Clan's plans. Rumor had it they're keeping her alive in case the need a hostage. The main point was to draw out the Uzumakis. That's really all I know."
"Final question." said Ayane. "Do you know where the Yoru Clan's Temple is?"
"I haven't got a clue." answered Shakebite. "I was contacted through underworld channels and was told to be here. Everything I know about the Yoru Clan was stuff I picked up in the last couple of weeks I've worked with them."
Ayane nodded. "Alright, let her go Momiji."
Snakebite felt the kunai pull away and the iron grip restraining her release. "You're….really letting me go?"
Momiji said. "You are technically not our enemy and the Yoru Clan will soon be wiped out. You know if they find out you leaked information about them they will kill you as a traitor. If you leak information on the Uzumaki clan to them and they don't kill you we will hunt you to the ends of the earth for betraying our trust. If I were you I'd gather my things and leave. We have nine people downstairs to eliminate." The two kunoichis turned to leave.
Snakebite stood there dumbfounded and said, "Wait." Ayane turned back to her with one eyebrow raised. "I'm skipping town for a while but if you ever need my services here's my card. The business is a front. Call it and the business there will put you in touch with me."
Ayane nodded and took the card. The two kunoichis vanished in a teleport. "So those are real ninjas….I think the Yoru Clan is over." thought Snakebite aloud. She quickly and quietly gathered her gear and those of the other two snipers that were already dead. 'It's not like they need the stuff anymore anyway.' With that she caught the first train out of Tokyo.
With Hinata and Kasumi….
Hinata and Kasumi were facing off with the Red Ninja. In spite of his ridiculous title the man was very formidable. Kasumi was battling his katana with her wakizashi and Hinata was moving in to strike with taijutsu when she could. The problem was he was a large man with a much longer reach than theirs. -And he was retreating up a stairway where they couldn't double team him. "Ahahaha! Don't worry girls, when I'm done with you I'll defile those beautiful bodies of yours. There's nothing like the look in the eyes of a broken woman as I take her again and again before I slit her throat!" he said with a manic look in his eyes. "It's the ultimate satisfaction!"
"You sick motherfucker!" roared Kasumi as she closed the distance and engaged him in a fierce swordfight. It wasn't like Kasumi to lose her temper but she wanted this sicko dead. She was pressing her advantage with pure ferocity when he caught her off guard and viciously backhanded her, hard. Kasumi tried to catch herself but her smaller body simply had too much momentum and she went over the side railing. She crashed down into the stairwell they'd fought their way up and ended up losing a hold of her wakizashi in the process. When Kasumi stopped tumbling she was hurting badly but more importantly she was pissed.
Hinata was taken aback by Kasumi being knocked out of the fight and threw a brace of shuriken at him. He was able to block two of them but the last cut his cheek. He turned and ran out the door to the roof with Hinata hot on his heels. The Red Ninja was taunting her with rape and any other act of depravity he could think of but Hinata managed to block it out and concentrate on the flow of battle. Seeing his taunts weren't working he resorted to a fireball ninpo he projected through his sword that sent her diving behind an air conditioner unit on the roof.
When he saw Hinata poked her head around the corner of the air conditioner to look he tried to cut her head off. She dodged back. His blade hit the roof spraying sparks and Hinata's foot lashed out and struck his wrist causing him to drop his sword. Hinata immediaitely lashed out with taijutsu. She felt she had the advantage now but between her exhaustion from the previous fights and his incredibly brutal hits she was taking a beating. Still, she managed to get several solid hits in and hoped Kasumi would get there soon to help her. He threw a kunai at point blank range and she nimbly evaded it but it was just a distraction. He gripped her wrist and slammed his other hand into her elbow causing it to hyperextend. Her arm was brutally broken.
She was unable to keep herself from crying out in pain as she cradled her shattered arm. Before she could recover he slashed the tendons in her other wrist with a kunai and gripped her in a ruthless strangle hold. Hinata was totally helpless….
"Ahahaha! You were good little kunoichi but you're no master like I am." He had her by the throat and was choking her. Hinata's vision was starting to go spotty from the lack of oxygen. He said in a soothing voice. "Don't worry my dear; I won't sully that wonderful body of yours as much as I'd like to. You're too dangerous to live and the other one is coming so I won't be able to treat you right. I'll take good care of your friend when she arrives though." He held her out over the edge of the building and said, "It's a long way down. But don't worry, the fall won't kill you. Hitting the ground will though! Ahahaha!" He continued to cackle as he threw the young woman off of the roof well clear of the building or any chance for her to grab onto something and save herself. Then he regained control of himself. "Now to take care of the other one. Phew, who'd have thought a little blind girl could put up such a fight?"
"Who indeed?" said Hinata from behind him as she shattered his spine with a sixty-four palms attack. He was now paralyzed from the neck down and completely at her mercy.
"B-but how?" he stuttered through the pain.
"You we were fighting my supercharged shadow clone from the minute I dodged behind that roof air conditioner unit." Hinata explained. "You wore yourself out fighting my duplicate while I regained my strength. Too bad Red Ninja." She nudged his body with her foot so his face was looking down over the edge of the roof and peered over the edge herself. "You are certainly right. It is a long way down. It's 55 stories to be exact. Maybe you can count them on the way down."
His eyes widened "Y-you wouldn't! Don't you need to question me? Don't you care about the detective?! You should turn me over to the Police! I'm helpless here!" he wailed.
Hinata answered cooly, "The situation with Detective Arii is well in hand; thanks for your concern. As for you; turnabout they say is fair play. You can tell your precious Shinigami how you failed. I doubt you'll earn his blessings though. By the why, the fall won't kill you. Hitting the ground will." She unleashed a brutal chakra enhanced kick to his family jewels that crushed them (she coincidentally left the nerves intact so he could feel it) and he screamed in agony and fear all the way down. With her byakugan eyes she saw the impact. The Red Ninja was history. "I think Ayane is rubbing off on me…." she said to no one in particular.
Kasumi came up to the roof with her wakazashi in hand and her hair disheveled with vengeance blazing in her eyes. She arrived just in time to see Hinata brutally kick the Red Ninja off of the roof and then saw her walk over and seal up the rather interesting katana that the Red Ninja had been carrying in a scroll. "So what about the Red Ninja?" Kasumi asked.
"He's road pizza now." answered Hinata as if nothing interesting had happened. "No need to worry. Let's go help the others."
With Momiji and Ayane…..
The pair exited the stairwell down to floor 52 and found a mess awaiting them. The iron scent of blood was in the air. 5205 where their targets should be was relatively untouched (only the lock was broken) but 5203 and 5207 on either side of it had the doors forced and had the stench of blood permeating the air around them. The two kunoichis peered in and what they saw could only be described as a blood bath. In spite of their training and strong stomachs they both wanted to get sick. The people inside had their mouths taped shut and were literally torn apart and butchered horribly. It was obvious they hadn't died slowly either.
The girls looked in the opposite rooms in the hall and found the doors forced on 5204 and 5206. 5204 was the same as the other two rooms but 5206 had more bodies in it that obviously were killed quickly and quietly in a surgical manner. They suspected these victims were dragged out of 5205 across the hall to make room because many of them were piled in the entryway. They heard noise through the wall of the next room, 5208. A woman was pleading for mercy for her children and the response seemed to be a man's perverse giggle. Momiji said a short prayer for the many victims.
Ayane and Momiji silently slipped into room 5208 and saw a man coated in blood. He seemed to have body piercings all over and was carrying two hooks. Now it was obvious now what happened in the other rooms. The victims were torn apart with the hooks this monster was carrying. He giggled again with a sick smile and savored the look of horror on the woman's face. She had two toddlers with her that didn't know what was going on. "God please help…." she muttered hoarsely. I was obvious that she'd been screaming for help and her voice was nearly gone.
The man said with pure depravity in his eyes, 'Don't worry, I'll take care of you first and then the children. The Shinagami loves kids after all." He rolled up his sleeve and made three shallow cuts in his forearm that already had dozens of others. See these?" he asked the woman pointing at the marks. "This is the way I pay tribute to my victims. That way you'll live forever in my heart. Why don't you be a good girl and try to run? It's more fun that way."
Ayane had heard enough. She launched four kunai into the nerve clusters it the man's shoulders and the backs of his knees and he fell to the ground disabled. He said "Pain, glorious pain!" as he kept giggling. Momiji and Ayane tied him up with ninja wire quickly and gagged him.
'This guy's a masochist.' thought Momiji. She said to the woman. "It's all right now. We're good ninjas. Well make sure he doesn't bother anyone ever again. Gather your things and take the elevator downstairs and call the police. All your neighbors are already dead."
The woman was very intimidated by the two kunoichi in their combat gear but quickly complied. "Remember to be quiet as possible." said Momiji. The woman nodded gratefully and led her two children out.
After the woman was well clear Ayane pulled the kunais out of him and rolled him over on his back. Then she took the gag off. She searched him quickly and found he had a two-way radio that was turned off. It was the same kind the woman had back at the cemetery. He seemed at bit incoherent his eyes were glazed, so she slapped him across the face and he started giggling again. "Oh yes dear, do that again!" he said insanely.
Ayane turned to Momiji. "Conventional torture won't work and we don't have mind-altering drugs like Aoi has. I say we slit his throat and be done with him."
Momiji shook he head. "I have an idea. I have some of those silencing tags. Do you have any?" Ayane nodded. "Let's set them up." said Momiji. It took the girls about ten minutes to set them up before they activated them with one of Naruto's chakra tags.
Momiji bent down over the man and undid his shirt exposing his chest to her. ""Are you going to pleasure me to death my dear?" he giggled "I'll be very happy if you try."
Momiji's eyes narrowed as she took a necklace off from under her uniform. It had a magatama on it that looked like a miniature Eye of the Dragon. "Let's see if this gets you off. Tell me where detective Arii is and I won't use it."
The man started laughing hysterically. "You think I'm afraid of a piece of jewelry? That's pathetic. Do your worst with that trinket. I dare you!"
Momiji nodded and said. "Very well. This magatama was thrice blessed by the Dragon Gods. It doesn't due physical harm. It attacks the soul. The more impure your soul is the worse it will hurt as it purifies you. This is your last chance before I use it."
The man just continued to laugh and Momiji shook her head before she placed the magatama directly over his heart and started chanting quietly. Ayane was extremely curious about all of this but remained silent. She watched as the man stopped laughing and his eyes grew huge. Sweat started pouring out of his body like he was in a desert's heat and then he started screaming his head off as the magatama started to glow and the skin around it started to smoke.
Ayane watched in morbid fascination as the Yoru Clan ninja grew more and more pale and screamed bloody murder in absolute agony. It seemed the magatama also had some paralysis effect because he was lying there as if frozen. He finally yelled out. "No more! I'll talk; I'll talk! With that Momiji stopped chanting.
"Where is the detective?" asked Momiji in an iron tone.
The man had tears streaming down his face. "She is hidden in your safe house in Shibuya."
'Naruto-kun was right all along.' thought Ayane. She asked. "How many are guarding her?"
"I don't know." he said weakly. "There were fifteen that left with her including the Hierro Gladius."
Momiji quirked an eyebrow. "Who is the Hierro Gladius?"
The man shuddered. "He's unbeatable with a sword. He's the enforcer in the clan. You stand no chance against him."
"Alright." said Momiji happily. "Let's get back to it."
"WHAT?! I told you everything I know!" the hook wielder cried out.
"You're too corrupt to be allowed to live. I'll see too it your soul is properly purified for the next life." replied Momiji as she started chanting again. The man screamed and cried for mercy for the next fifteen minutes before his back arched convulsively and he went silent. "It is done." said Momiji.
Ayane cringed. "Remind me to never piss you off Momiji."
Momiji shook her head as she picked up the magatama and wiped it clean. "Only a soul that was completely and utterly corrupt would have died from that. He is no longer of this earth. His soul was totally destroyed. It wouldn't kill a good person. How do we want to deal with the ones in 5205?"
"A shaped charge should do the job." said Ayane in a no-nonsense tone.
"A shaped charge?" asked Momiji.
"I know explosives." said Ayane. "In layman's terms a shaped charge is an explosive device where all the explosive energy and shrapnel explodes in one direction. I have some plastic explosives of a type that we can place on the door of 5205 and it will explode into the apartment and kill everyone in there –unless you want one of them alive to question it will be the quickest way."
Momiji shrugged. "We already have the information we need. Let's do it."
Ayane was soon in the hallway setting her bomb up when she whispered, "It's armed. Now to-"
They heard a woman's voice grumble "Why do I have to go to the vending machine for snacks?" from inside. Suddenly the door opened and a woman saw Ayane and said "What the hell?"
Ayane punched the woman in the face breaking her nose (you could hear the cartilage snap). The woman cried out as she was knocked her back into apartment 5205. Ayane slammed the door shut and ran clear. "Fire in the hole!" was all she said before she flipped the switch setting the charge off.
From the outside of the building a massive gout of flame blew out the windows of room 5205 sending debris and body parts spraying out into the street below. Since the police already had the area cordoned off no one was hurt on the street but the eight that had been in apartment 5205 ceased to exist. Momiji and Ayane briefly peered inside the destroyed apartment and saw the hole leading all the way out to the street. They could see detective Arii's apartment across the way. "Well, that's taken care of. Let's get out of here." said Ayane. Assured that no one survived that explosion; the two kunoichis vanished without a trace.
With Naruto and Aoi….
Naruto received the information that both Hinata and Momiji's groups eliminated their targets. He also got the unsurprising news that detective Arii was locked up in the Uzumaki's former safe house. He was curious about this Hierro Gladius character (and why the Yoru Clan had odd monikers. He guessed Hierro Gladius was better than Red Ninja though). Putting those thoughts aside, Naruto hoped they could deal with him separately after they killed his fifteen or so subordinates and rescued Arii. They were outside observing the safe house.
Inside….
Detective Arii was frightened but kept calm. She always prided herself in keeping a level head regardless of the situation. She was having a 'conversation' with the so called Hierro Gladius. He was a massive man that wore iron colored Samurai style armor and carried a wicked looking katana. "Don't worry detective, once we get rid of the Uzumakis we'll be taking you back to the temple to be sacrificed properly like the rest of the Kadokawas."
"What?! What do you mean Kadokawa?" asked Maya with wide eyes.
The Hierro Gladius chuckled. "I guess our contact neglected to tell you that you were on the list."
"Your contact?" she asked confused.
The Hierro Gladius nodded "Yes, he's a little cowardly man that is fascinated with religious cults."
Her eyes bugged out. "You mean Muna?! I'll kill that little cockroach!"
"You guessed it." said her captor. "He was the one that kept throwing you off the trail for months but apparently the Uzumakis saw right through is smokescreen. Of course they are ninjas." The Hierro Gladius made a humming sound. "Just between you and me; I think you could crush Muna like a cockroach. You are very attractive, have a sharp mind and a fit body. It's a shame we're on opposite sides."
Maya stared at him. "Now you're trying to seduce me? I'm afraid that won't work buddy."
"Perish the thought!" answered the Hierro Gladius. "I'm no Lothario and I'm well aware of it. I simply have a fine appreciation of the female form. I'm not some kind of rapist like the Red Ninja. But I digress. If it makes you feel better we plan to dispose of Dr. Muna anyway. Someone like him who is too frightened to take a human life himself isn't worthy of the Shinigami. He's a waste of space in my opinion though he has served his purpose well."
Outside….
While Detective Arii and the Hierro Gladius were having an enlightening conversation, Naruto and Aoi were making plans. "I'll make a mass of shadow clones of the six of us and let them enter first. If the clones wipe some of them out so be it but I mainly want to get a head count. You and I will enter with them and get the detective out of there if we can."
"Aren't you worried they'll kill Detective Arii Naruto-kun?" asked Aoi.
Naruto shook his head. "They would have killed her already if they were going to do that Aoi-chan. Trust me on this. We'll find out when we get in there. Let's hope she's still alive." He summoned a virtual army of shadow clones.
Naruto's first clone nonchalantly opened the door and walked into an ambush. When he dispelled the Yoru ninjas paused in shock and the army of clones ran in launching kunai everywhere. One of the Yoru ninjas stood up and said, "Stop fighting! They're just illusions!" about that time a shadow clone slit his throat and blew that theory out of the water. These Yoru ninjas were more skilled than the ones that Naruto and the others faced at the park but the mass of clones was too overwhelming and the fighting soon spilled into the bedrooms and the kitchen. The initial plan of the Yoru ninjas to kill the Uzumakis with an ambush at the entrance was ruined.
The real Naruto was searching for detective Arii and the Hierro Gladius while Aoi was darting in between various shadow clones performing assassinations with her sais that she'd coated in poison. Naruto saw detective Arii tied to a chair in the furthest room from the entrance and body flickered over to her. She had a look of total shock on her face as he body flickered out with her into the alley, chair and all. Naruto created two shadow clones and said "Get her the hell out of here." One clone cut her bindings from the chair with a kunai and the other was going to haul her out when the Hierro Gladius came crashing out into the alley and dispelled them.
Naruto drew his chakra blade and parried the massive man's attack. "Damn you're strong! You must be the Hierro Gladius." grunted Naruto.
"….And you are the real Uzumaki Naruto that sent in those solid clones. I have to hand it to you; I really don't think my people will survive this but I will take your head." He saw Detective Arii struggling to get loose of her remaining ropes and said, "It's no use detective. You're one of the Kadokawa's on the list. Even if you escape temporarily the Yoru clan will hunt you down. A woman like you should face her end bravely unlike that fool Muna."
Naruto managed to regain his footing and pushed back. "So Muna's the mole. I guess it's pretty obvious in hindsight."
The two clashed and clashed again sending sparks flying. This lasted a few minutes with neither gaining a significant advantage. What the larger had in raw power was countered by the smaller man's agility. "Enough!" yelled the Hierro Gladius as he channeled a lightning ninpo though his blade. "Even if you parry my strikes you'll be electrocuted Uzumaki. Prepare to die."
Naruto steamed wind chakra through his blade causing it to glow blue and sharpen. He saw the shocked look in the eyes of the Hierro Gladius. "Surprised? Nothing cuts like the wind element." said Naruto as he rushed him.
The bigger man was stunned. 'He has a legendary blade! My trump card is nullified. He looks like a teenage boy but he seems to be growing stronger instead of weakening as this fight continues.' He saw Naruto's eyes suddenly turn slitted and red as Naruto started using Kurama's chakra to enhance his own. The Hierro Gladius paused for a moment and stared at those eyes. "What are you?!"
That pause was all Naruto needed to slice the man's sword arm off. The larger man fell to his knees holding the bleeding stump where his right arm once was. He never cried out. All he said was, "I am defeated. Finish it." A second later the giant's head rolled off his shoulders onto the ground and his massive body collapsed like a puppet with its strings cut.
Naruto wiped the sweat from his brow and turned to detective Arii. She'd managed to get the ropes off and was staring at him with an unreadable look in her eyes. Naruto was afraid she was horrified at all the violence she'd just witnessed (she was a civilian by ninja standards). Then she dashed over and pulled his mask down and gave him a passionate kiss, tongue and all….
Naruto was standing there stunned when he heard Aoi cough behind him. She said with narrowed eyes, "If you are done making out with the hostage perhaps we can get moving. Every ninja inside is dead." Naruto heard Kurama's raucous laughter inside his head which didn't help at all.
Gently disentangling himself from the detective and quickly pulling up his mask, Naruto said, "Ummm….Let me just seal up that blade and we'll be on our way Aoi-chan. We don't want to stick around too long. Contact the others and tell them the hostage situation is resolved. I'll body flicker the three of us up to the roof where we can rest for a few minutes." 'Aoi-chan's going to kill me! It really wasn't my fault! How do I end up in these ridiculous situations?!' he thought as he tried to block out the still laughing fox. Sealing up the Hierro Gladius' sword in a scroll, Naruto body flickered the three of them away into the night….
POSTSCRIPT:
Well, that concludes chapter 16 part 2 or chapter 17 depending on your preferences. More than likely this will be the last update on my three stories until after the dust has settled on the holidays. Next time Naruto and the girls will head to the amusement park for an enjoyable evening out filled with fun and amusement for all. Blue out. 12/22/14