Chapter 44

Blanket disclaimer: I do not own Naruto, Ninja Gaiden or DOA

AUTHOR'S NOTE:

This was started before my latest chapter of Tornado of Souls so I've actually had time to flesh it out properly. Updates will continue to be slow until I get a new computer at home. I'm saving up my nickels and dimes to buy one. 'Nuff said. Here is chapter 44. Enjoy!

[ ] Signifies hand signs

Last time:

DOATEC Tritower Headquarters

Deep in the bowels of DOATEC's Headquarters, Victor Donovan was taking stock of his current situation. His plans to eliminate Fame Douglas were going to be pushed back since his two best assassins were out of commission. Bayman had vanished for the time being and no doubt was being patched up be some physician in the criminal underworld. As for Christie, He'd seen the medical reports and heard her verbal statements regarding the battle with Uzumaki Naruto. He looked at the photos of Christie's injuries and she looked like she'd been through a meat grinder. 'According to Doctor Oda; Christie won't be back in fighting trim for six months which is after the DOA Tournament.'

It had been Donovan's intention to eliminate Kokoro since she could possibly inherit the company. Likewise he intended to eliminate her older half sister Helena but as things stood he didn't have assassins skilled enough to do so. 'Damn it. Fame Douglas watches over Maria and Helena like a hawk. Killing Kokoro should have been a simple task. I have to wonder why Uzumaki was there.' Victor leaned back in his chair looking over the projected plans for Project Alpha and Epsilon. "On the positive side, Christie was crafty enough to leak the information about Raidou to Uzumaki Naruto." thought the scientist aloud.

It took a lot of time and money but from what Donovan and his staff concluded; the former Mugen Tenshin kunoichi Kasumi was the best choice for hyper cloning into a weapon, Project Alpha. Her now crippled brother Hayate would make a fine backup as Project Epsilon. Of course it was teeth gnashing for Victor Donovan to give up on Uzumaki Naruto as Project Zeta but his new subordinate Lovelace was working on an alternative….

"I can't make my move against Fame Douglas for six months then." concluded Donovan. "It's frustrating but there is nothing to be done about it. On the plus side; Project Lambda has worked beautifully under Lisa Hamilton's guidance. Perhaps Project Zeta was simply too ambitious at our current research levels. Once we start Project Alpha we will be armed with more and better knowledge and attempt cloning Uzumaki Naruto once again."

Donovan's never ending game of cloak and dagger continued….

….

Tokyo Dome, Tokyo, Japan

Uzumaki Ayane had one thing on her mind as she stepped into the ring: 'Crush him.' Her opponent was a very large man that was a professional wrestler and had twelve wins to his credit so far. His stage name was 'The Kodiak' and he was known to be brutal (He put most of his opponents in the hospital). To Ayane this six foot seven inch muscle bound idiot wasn't even on her radar. 'This oaf is nothing but a stepping stone in the grand scheme of things.' thought the violet haired beauty. Her red eyes burned with passion.

The ring was a huge affair designed for multiple tag team battles and was surrounded by an 'electrified' fence. The promoters explained that it would spark and crackle wildly as if some major power was flowing through it but the fact was it wouldn't give much more of a shock than a hand held battery. It was 'part of the show purely for entertainment value.' as the promoter put it. Entertainment value or not the crowd was huge and wild. "AYANE vs. KODIAK" scrolled across the massive screens above them as the fighters stepped into the ring.

Kodiak laughed, "You've got to be kidding me. Who are you little girl?"

Ayane locked eyes with him and said, "Let's see how strong you are." The purple clad kunoichi assumed her opening taijustu stance.

The overhead announcement blared out; "READY? FIGHT!" and the crowd let out an explosive roar.

The big wrestler immediately tried to backhand Ayane but she easily avoided it and hit him with a brutal mid kick in the stomach that sent him tumbling. Kodiak growled angrily and got back up. He then charged and tried to hit Ayane with and overhead two fisted hammer. The kunoichi said, "Too slow!" and hit him with a scissor kick that sent the big man up and back. Deciding to dish out some serious damage Ayane charged in and hit the still airborne hulk of a man with a six punch combo followed by another brutal mid kick that sent Kodiak flying into the electrified fence.

Sparks and smoke flew everywhere and the crowd went wild as the Kodiak struggled to get back up but Ayane hit him with three more kicks that sent him back into the electrified fence again and again. Smoke, sparks and the smell of ozone permeated the air as Kodiak finally managed to roll clear of the petite kunoichi's vicious corner trap. He managed to stumble back to his feet and bared his teeth at Ayane.

'I guess I'm supposed to be scared.' thought Ayane with a mental shrug. She charged in and hammered his face with several punches that left Kodiak bleeding and dizzied. He made a feeble attempt at grappling the red eyed girl but she countered and took half his teeth out with a roundhouse kick across his face. Ayane continued to spin and then hit him in the chest with a kick that sent him crashing back into the electrified fence once again….

….Kodiak's eyes rolled back in his head and the wrestler collapsed like a puppet with its strings cut….

"Idiot." growled Ayane. "How boring."

"WINNER AYANE!" announced the overhead as the crowd went wild. The commentators raved about Ayane's flawless victory for a good fifteen minutes after that as the screens showed replay after replay of fight.

The kunoichi shrugged and left the ring without further comment….

….

Tokyo, JSDF Headquarters, Ishigami Ken's Office waiting room

Maya, Naruto and Hinata were in the office waiting room watching the fight on Maya's laptop. "Looks like Ayane-chan was pretty bored during that bout." said Maya.

Naruto nodded in agreement. "It was a victory so she'll be able to advance to the next round. That's what is important."

….

Flashback….

The Uzumaki Clan was in Miyama in the Mugen Tenshin Village having a meeting. Maya said, "There are four DOA venues in Japan. They are Tokyo, Osaka, Nagoya and Sapporo. One of us needs to go to each. Ryu-sama is also participating but he went to Hong Kong so Japan is ours. The question is who among us is going to enter."

"Ayane-chan and I are entering no matter what." said Kasumi in a steely tone.

"That goes without saying." said Naruto. "Just don't lose your cool."

"I want to test my skill; I'll enter." said Aoi.

Maya looked self conscious. "I'd enter but I'm afraid I might be recognized. Since I'm MIA with the Tokyo Police Department I think it's a bad idea even if I look a bit different."

Momiji said, "Then I'll enter. Naruto-kun and Hinata-chan are stuck dealing with the Defense Secretary so they can't enter."

"We also need to investigate DOATEC covertly in the meantime." said Hinata. "Naruto-kun, Maya-chan and I can do that while you four participate in the matches."

Flashback end….

….

Hinata sighed. "I had hoped we would be doing something more productive than sitting in an office waiting on the Defense Secretary."

"Welcome to bureaucracy." said Maya with a lopsided grin.

Naruto smiled at his wives and said, "I think being in a suit and tie is worse."

[At least it's just a henge.] signed Hinata. [Getting through their security system was pathetically easy with genjutsu. By the way; nicely done Maya-chan. Your skills with genjutsu are growing everyday.]

Maya blushed slightly. [Thanks; but entering maximum security buildings armed to the teeth isn't something I expecting to do.]

The blonde signed, [We're Uzumaki ninjas. It's in the job description Maya-chan.]

A page came out and said, "Uzumaki party of three. The Defense Secretary will see you now."

Naruto stood up along with Maya and Hinata and muttered, "It's about bloody time." under his breath.

The Uzumakis were walked in through security doors and two armed guards checked their identification (again). "You may enter." said one of the guards.

….

Ishigami Ken was reading over the very concise and precise reports submitted by Naruto and Hinata on the assassination attempt at the High School. 'It seems my agents could learn a few things from these ninjas. Their reports are short and sweet just as I prefer them.' He looked up and saw the three Uzumaki shinobis come in. "Welcome Uzumaki, Please have a seat. I've met Naruto and Hinata but I'm afraid I haven't made your acquaintance Miss."

Maya bowed. "I am Uzumaki Maya. I was also in on the Alyssa Graves case. I helped coordinate the defense."

The Defense Secretary nodded. "Welcome Maya." After all the Uzumakis were seated Ishigami wasted no time in getting down to business. "I can honestly say you ninjas did a top notch job. I've been reading your reports that claim Kokoro Douglas was the actual target and the reasons why. I have a team following up on that."

'In other words our reports regarding Kokoro have been round filed.' thought Hinata to herself.

Ishigami scratched his chin. "The DOATEC assassin does interest me though. Given DOATEC has a connection with the Lords of Alchemy that wrecked a good part of Tokyo I'm going to be setting up a thorough investigation of that company. I think I'll ask for your services on that case once the initial investigation is done." He pulled out a piece of paper with a picture. "Have you ever heard of creatures called fiends?"

….

Hotel New Otani Osaka, Osaka, Japan

Momiji had just gotten out of the shower. Her advancement round in the DOA Combat Tournament had been rather lackluster in her humble opinion. Momiji's opponent had been a foreigner that used mixed martial arts but simply wasn't as powerful or fast as the Uzumaki kunoichi and the black haired beauty had an easy win. Suddenly her radio blared to life.

"Momiji-chan, do you copy?" asked Naruto.

The kunoichi was glad to hear from her husband but was worried since it was on an encrypted frequency. "I'm here Naruto-kun, what's going on?"

"Hinata-chan, Maya-chan and I just got an assignment. We're coming to Osaka." said Naruto. "Keep your eyes and ears open for a serial killer called the Quatrain."

"The Quatrain?" asked Momiji. "Couldn't this person have thought of a better name? Quatrain is really kind of a weird moniker."

"Maya-chan says this person took the name from some from some French seer's predictions." said Naruto. Momiji heard Maya talking in the background before Naruto started speaking again. "The guy's name was Nostradamus and his poems or predictions were called quatrains is what Maya-chan says."

Momiji raised an eyebrow. "Okay….so we're hunting a serial killer?"

Naruto said, "All evidence points toward there being fiend activity behind this. The whole serial killer and Nostradamus business is probably a front since the targets are corporate heads. Lady Ishtaros has a lieutenant in Osaka named Teiji and we believe it's his doing because this Quatrain can summon fiends to do his dirty work."

"Are you sure this isn't some fiend that is a loose cannon?" asked Momiji. "The Greater Fiends in Tokyo always stuck to the shadows and never revealed themselves. We never found out who the one named Asuka really was. One operating openly is very unusual. This could be a trap."

"I know Momiji-chan but we have to investigate regardless." agreed Naruto. "Are you still at the New Otani Osaka?"

The amber eyed kunoichi answered, "Yes, I'm still in room 512."

The blonde said, "Alright, we're going to stop by the Hayabusa Village and stock up before we head to Osaka so we'll see you tomorrow. I love you Momiji-chan."

"I love you too Naruto-kun." said Momiji. "I'll see you tomorrow."

….

Hayabusa Village

Naruto, Hinata and Maya arrived from their meeting with Ishigami Ken looking a bit tired. The last few weeks had been a whirlwind of activity between bothersome high schools, entering the DOA Combat Tournament and now the fiends. They were supposed to meet a liaison officer from the JSDF in Osaka to coordinate with the Police Department and Public Security Intelligence Agency there.

Naruto took a shower and then started meditating to relax his mind. He was soon having a conversation with his partner Kurama.

Naruto's mindscape….

'It seems there is no rest for the wicked Naruto." said Kurama. 'Between whacked out liaison officers and fiends I don't know which is worse.'

'I don't know either Kurama.' said the blonde. 'That nutcase Kimura was perving on my wives and Subaru….well, she was just perving period. It blew my mind when I found out the Subaru was bisexual and made a pass at Momiji-chan.'

'On the positive side you can kill fiends.' said the ancient fox helpfully. 'You can't kill your so called helpers –at least not publically.'

'This is true, half the time we end up rescuing our liaison officers anyway.' said Naruto. 'Although in Maya-chan's case it worked out great.'

'Who would have guessed she'd be a descendant of Shion?' Kurama chuckled. 'But you had to rescue Subaru as well. How would you like to have her as your wife?'

'No thank you!' said the young sage. 'The gods only know what kind of decadent fantasies would go through her head.'

'You're probably right –that and she's just not ninja material.' said the nine tails. 'In spite of the fact she's tiny Subaru was about as stealthy as a charging elephant.'

'That's the truth.' agreed the blonde. 'I wonder what kind of liaison officer we'll have this time….'

….

Kenta Entertainment Offices, Osaka

Hōritsu Teiji was the President of Kenta Entertainment and a well respected member of the Osaka business community. Aside of his career in the movie entertainment industry he had served two terms on the Osaka City Council in the 1980s and 1990s. Teiji was an elderly, gray goateed man that was in his late 70's now. He was also one of Lady Ishtaros' five Captains.

Teiji was currently in his office having a conference call with his fellow Captains Asuka (Tokyo), Eclissia (Hong Kong), Boazhai (Shanghai) and Chakrii (Bangkok). Lady Ishtaros hadn't put her foot down yet but things were out of control in Osaka and everyone was concerned.

Asuka's red eyes blazed and she said, "Teiji, are you saying your group in Osaka has broken out into a faction war?! What kind of an idiot are you giving your lieutenants that kind of power and influence?!"

Eclissa giggled in amusement. "You really are getting old Teiji. If you give your subordinates that much leeway then you are bound to see a revolt." She giggled some more and said disdainfully. "You are pathetic old man."

Chakrii looked bored as he rested his chin in his hand. He was shaved bald and looked slovenly and tired. "The fact your people are out of hand is irrelevant to me but them becoming publicly visible is a real problem. Your servant Hanran Kensuke must be insane. I mean really; building up a cult reputation among your followers by becoming a serial killer of his financial rivals? Not only is it tasteless; the fool is painting a huge target on his own back and ours in the process. Expect no help from Thailand. Call me once this tabloid newspaper circus is over." Chakrii's screen then went blank.

"Well, I suppose I'll follow suit." said Boazhai. The heavy set Chinese woman took a puff on her cigarette and said, "You called in the last of your favors with me a long time ago Teiji. You are on your own when Lady Ishtaros finds out about this fiasco." Her screen went blank as well.

Teiji looked nervous. "What about you Asuka; Eclissia? Are you going to abandon me as well?"

Asuka drummed her fingers. The Japanese beauty sighed. "Ordinarily I would send support given I prefer to maintain the order of our status quo here in Japan but the fact is I can't. Tokyo is still recovering from the attacks from the LOA and my personal army is rebuilding from our clash with the Uzumaki Clan. The only thing I can offer is advice."

"And what advice would that be?" chortled Eclissia. "I want to drink from the fountain of your knowledge as well Asuka-sama."

Asuka glared balefully at Eclissia and the younger fiend quickly recoiled and shut up. The red eyed fiend of Tokyo said, "Pick a side to support Teiji. You don't have the power to crush either of them so side with one to destroy the other. Personally I'd get rid of that idiot Hanran or Quatrain as he calls himself. He's too out of control to be useful to Lady Ishtaros as it stands and I don't think your reputation could handle another blow in our Lady's eyes anyway."

"You think Lady Ishtaros will retire me then?" asked Teiji.

Asuka nodded. "If you put your house in order the she will let you live in retirement but if you fail or flee….pray you are killed before Lady Ishtaros catches you." Asuka reached over to her keyboard to cut the connection and said. "Best of luck Hōritsu Teiji." Asuka's screen faded out as well.

That only left the oldest and the youngest fiend Captains of Lady Ishtaros. Eclissia said, "Well, I suppose I actually can spare a couple of enforcers to help you out. I ordinarily wouldn't but you did help me in my training when I served under you."

"What's the catch?" asked Teiji warily. Former subordinate or not, Teiji didn't trust Eclissia in the slightest.

"That's a good question…." answered Eclissia cagily….

….

Sapporo, Japan

In the northern climates of Japan was one Uzumaki Aoi dressed in her blue denim jeans and an emerald sweater over a white button up shirt. She had easily beaten her opponent earlier that day in the DOA Tournament. He was a local kick boxer named Jo and he made a huge fool of himself with his bragging as the fight opened. After several minutes of his incessant blathering Aoi concluded that he wouldn't shut up until she made him shut up. The auburn haired kunoichi's opening move was to break his jaw and she dismantled him from there with ease. Aoi finished the fight by saying, "All bark; no bite."

Now Aoi found herself surrounded by Jo's well meaning fans (Read: people who lost a lot of money betting on him). They were armed with bats. "You foreigner bitch; you cost us a fortune!" yelled a man.

Aoi said, "It's not my fault Jo has a glass jaw. If I hadn't beaten him then somebody else would have. I'm not a foreigner either; I just had an Irish Grandpa."

"Whatever! Don't you know Jo-kun is in the hospital with his jaw wired shut?!" screeched a girl.

The redhead said, "You people talk as much as that idiot you worship!" She got in her offensive taijutsu stance and said, "Put up or shut up!"

Everyone got quiet as one man charged with a bat. Aoi struck like lightning and the man flew backwards spitting blood and saliva as he crashed into the others. Then Aoi jumped among her other would be attackers with a vengeance.

'Alright cowards! Let's see you take an Uzumaki kunoichi on!' Aoi thought with a vicious smile. Moving like a green whirlwind she cut through the throng like a chainsaw through tissue paper.

"God damn!" hollered a man as Aoi broke his bat into splinters barehanded.

Another man yelled as he cradled his broken arm; "She hits like a hammer!" His friend's ribs broke from a kick square in the chest and the first man turned tail and ran.

"Get me the hell out of here!" cried out another as Aoi flipped him into a metal dumpster and knocked him unconscious.

"Run; just run!" yelled one of the women as the crowd got demolished.

….

Ten minutes later Aoi dusted herself off and pulled her auburn hair back into her usual low tail with a band. 'Pathetic.' thought Aoi as she shook her head. 'They must be living to die young if that's the best they can do.' The redheaded kunoichi stepped into a nearby alley and vanished into the darkness….

….

Nagoya, Japan

Kasumi was in a restaurant enjoying some of the Nagoya cuisine, hitsumabushi. 'Hmmm….rice and eel unadon. This really isn't too bad.' she thought as she finished her tea.

"Hey there beautiful; ever consider being a model?" said a fifty year old man out of nowhere. He held up a sake bottle and said, "Why not come over with me instead of sitting there all by your lonesome?"

Kasumi sighed. 'Oh gods; first I spend my afternoon fighting off a greasy sumo wrestler and now I have to fight off a greasy old man. I should have stayed at the hotel and ordered room service.' She called for the waitress and said "Check please!"

….

Kasumi was soon back in her hotel talking to her little sister Ayane on the phone. Ayane said, "It pays to be antisocial Kasumi-chan. I would have just kicked the old man in the balls and sent him packing but you're always so courteous. Did he seriously ask you about being a model?"

"It was the worst pick up line I've heard in some time." answered Kasumi. "How was your day after you beat that pro wrestler? Nice spin kick you finished him with by the way."

Ayane chuckled. "You finished your fight with a scissor kick that flipped your sumo wrestling friend completely out of the ring. I was showing a little restraint."

Kasumi sighed. "The man was so….greasy. I swear he must have perspired oil. It was disgusting."

"Was he as disgusting as the old guy trying to pick you up at the restaurant Kasumi-chan?" asked Ayane humorously.

"I guess it is a tossup between being physically or morally disgusting Ayane-chan." laughed Kasumi. "For what it's worth I felt safer with the sumo wrestler though. At least I could hit him legally."

The two siblings laughed and talked until bedtime….

….

Yanmar Stadium Nagai, Osaka

The next morning, Hinata, Maya and Naruto arrived in Osaka via bullet train and contacted Momiji via encrypted radio. The amber eyed beauty was watching the DOA Tournament fights for potential competitors in future rounds. Momiji said to Hinata via radio, "I'm at the Yanmar Stadium Nagai watching the fights, where are you?" The Dragon Priestess was having a hard time hearing over the roar of the crowds.

"We just got off the Nozomi bullet train here in Osaka." answered Hinata. "We are going to the Public Security Intelligence Agency here to meet our Liaison Officer. I'll contact you later. When do you think you'll head to the hotel?"

"Give me till 6PM. The fights end at 5PM." replied Momiji.

"Alright Momiji-chan; we'll contact you then. Hinata out." said the Byakugan Princess.

….

PSIA Bureau building

The three Uzumaki ninjas showed up in their 'business attire' henges as Naruto called them. While Maya was quite comfortable in a suit/skirt combination, Naruto hated suits even as a henge. He wasn't complaining though, they had a part to play. It took a bit of time to go through the numerous security checks but they finally made it to the Director's Office. The secretary was a pretty young woman who welcomed them. "I wasn't expecting you all to look so young." She said conversationally. "You are right on time. Director Sumiyoshi will see you now."

Sumiyoshi was a steely eyed, hard man that was in his early forties. He sported a short haircut and looked very stern. "I'm Sumiyoshi." He said gruffly as he shook Naruto's hand. The older man locked eyes with Naruto to try and establish a dominant position in their working relationship but found that all three ninjas were unperturbed by his stare and the older man had to look away first. Deciding he wouldn't be able to win this fight Sumiyoshi decided to cut his losses and said, "I've read the reports on you ninjas and how you operate outside the law. I don't like it."

Hinata replied. "The PSIA does the same, you're just afraid of someone that does it better."

The director glared at Hinata but once again had to look away first. (No one wins a staring contest with a Hyūga). Sumiyoshi huffed. "I want you to know that if Defense Secretary Ishigami Ken hadn't recommended you I wouldn't let you in on this operation."

Naruto scowled slightly and said, "Instead of all this ridiculous posturing why don't you link us up with our Liaison Officer so we can do our job. It's obvious your people can't handle the fiend issue and resent the fact they sent professionals in that can. Let's get on with it."

Sumiyoshi stewed for a minute and said, "I just don't want public unrest in my city. I heard about the Sky City Tower fiasco in Tokyo. I want this to be surgical, not a butchering." He suddenly waved his hand around wildly trying to swat a fly that had been in the office all afternoon. "Damn fly!"

There was no sound and the fly seemed to vanish much to Sumiyoshi's shock. "Is that surgical enough?" asked Maya with humor in her henged brown eyes. "There were two flies by the way." she said as she pointed.

In the center of Sumiyoshi's desk and against the wall behind the Director's head were two senbon needles; each with a fly mounted on them dead center. Maya then used invisible chakra strings to pull the senbon needles back. Sumiyoshi was sweating a bit as he looked at the two dead flies. "I-I had no idea." he stuttered. 'I never saw a thing! She didn't even move. I thought this ninja thing was all hype but-'

Hinata said pleasantly, "So where is our Liaison Officer?"

Sumiyoshi said disgustedly, "Agent Surō Kobe is late as usual I'm afraid. He was supposed to be here before you were."

"Oh." said Naruto. "That doesn't bode well."

….

Ten minutes later a long haired, unshaven man with a long coat came in without knocking. The man looked half asleep and reeked of cigarette smoke and rotgut beer. "Yo! Sorry I'm late." He saw no one but Sumiyoshi in the room and said "Oh, I guess I'm on time. Where are the Uzumakis?"

Sumiyoshi face palmed. "The Uzumakis are standing behind you." 'Though I don't know how the got there. It was like they teleported out of their chairs.'

Surō tried to spin around but found a hand holding him still in a chokehold. (The kunai knife at his throat wasn't too reassuring either). "You really should learn to knock. People might mistake you for an attacker." whispered Naruto in a dark voice as he released the agent and pushed him forward.

The JSDF Officer rubbed his throat and coughed. "Ehehehe. Sorry I was late. JSDF Agent Surō Kobe at your service."

Sumiyoshi said, "As always you make a terrible first impression Surō. Sit down and-"

Surō was patting himself down rather frantically when Maya tapped his shoulder. She had his pistol in her hand by the barrel. "Looking for this? I took it so you wouldn't hurt yourself."

"Ummm….thanks babe, I was afraid I'd misplaced it." said Surō as smoothly as a terror struck man could.

Maya rolled her eyes, "A Nanbu M60 revolver won't help you much against a fiend. At least get an automatic like a SIG Sauer."

Soon proper introductions were made and the three Uzumaki ninjas were less than impressed with Surō but decided to make the best of it.

"I'm more of a detective type than a combat type." explained Surō. "Don't expect me to be chasing you into combat like Subaru Kimiko-chan. I'll hang back in the shadows and let you do your jobs while I do mine." Naruto, Hinata and Maya all let out a silent sigh of relief at this announcement. "Anyway, I've got the maps and all pertinent data in my office so let's head down there." He turned to the PSIA Director and said, "Catch you later Sumiyoshi."

….

Surō Kobe's Office, basement

As the Uzumaki's entered Surō's they noticed three things: ashtrays, papers messily scattered all over the place and numerous hi tech gadgets that JSDF Agents seemed so fond of.

'What a pit.' thought Maya.

Hinata was thinking along the same lines. 'This place is a cesspool.'

Naruto sweat dropped. 'Here I thought that I was messy….'

Surō started moving papers around on his desk and muttered, "Where is that damned remote…? Oh, here it is! Everyone make yourselves comfortable and face the east wall with the screen that's lowering. Using the remote he turned on a wall projector linked to his laptop. The screen soon lit up with a map of Osaka with the points of the serial murders in red. "Each of the red dots is a place Quatrain hit. There doesn't seem to be much of a pattern other than they are prominent businessmen and women in the Kansai Region over the last twenty years or so. They all have one thing in common; they are shareholders in the Kansai Electric Power Company or KEPCO for short. I've found they all promoted nuclear power as well so we're looking at a possible political link even though the last nuclear power plant was taken off the power grid years ago after the Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Disaster in 2011."

"So these people were promoting reactivation of the nuclear plants in the Kansai region?" asked Maya. "That seems like a shaky political position."

Surō nodded. "Right or wrong, these folks all promoted reactivation of the plants as a business measure to get some profits out of KEPCO. I've seen political opposition but a serial killer? It doesn't add up."

"So what about this whole Quatrain business?" asked Naruto. "Where did the killer get the name?"

"At each murder sight one of Nostradamus's quatrains was found." said the JSDF Agent. "None of the quatrains we found have any links to the deceased and are vague and obscure so we figure it's just this person's calling card to generate fear."

Hinata asked, "So where do the fiends come into play? Is there proof?"

"There is plenty of footage involving fiends; I have access to all of that." explained Surō. "The public is being told that it's a hoax but information is slowly leaking out through the web and tabloids. It's only a matter of time before the public learns about the fiends and we can't afford that kind of panic. That's where you Uzumakis come in."

….

Mihama Nuclear Power Plant, Fukui Prefecture

The Fiend Hanran Kensuke was sitting in his self made headquarters at the Mihama -1 power plant. Plants Mihama -1 and Mihama -2 were crawling with fiends since they were shut down and scheduled to be scrapped. The problem was Mihama -3 that was scheduled to be refitted for a restart in 2020. The fiend had a simple plan: eliminate those in favor of touching the area at all. It was an ideal headquarters that Hanran had used for some time and it was easily defensible from his former superior Hōritsu Teiji. The only real threat Hanran Kensuke had was from his fellow usurper against Teiji, Chikara Chiyo. The two of them conspired to overthrow Teiji for a long time but couldn't agree as to who should be in charge after that….

Chikara favored a smooth transition from Teiji's reign and wanted to be the new Captain over Osaka under Lady Ishtaros. She was quite satisfied with controlling the Kansai Region. Hanran Kensuke was far more ambitious. He saw Japan as his goal and wanted to throw out Lady Ishtaros as part of the bargain. This split Teiji's former forces right down the middle. Teiji had about a fifth of his forces and Chikara and Hanran had the remaining four fifths split evenly in between them. Hanran concluded that showing he was a dynamic and bold leader to draw fiends to his cause was the best route to take. So far he had moderate success as "Quatrain."

'Human's ridiculous superstitions will keep them at bay but I need more power and I need it now if I want to take Teiji and Chikara out of the picture.' thought Hanran to himself. He looked over the map of Osaka that showed the areas he controlled. 'Old man Teiji's bureaucratic methods finally came back to bite him in the ass. Ruling with an iron fist is the only way to make your way in the world of fiends. Once I've knocked Chiyo out of the running taking Teiji out will be simple.' The ambitious fiend's eyes followed the map over to Tokyo. "Lady Asuka is the biggest threat because she's loyal to Lady Ishtaros. She's also incredibly strong….a lot stronger than old man Teiji."

Hanran nodded in self satisfaction. "It's only a matter of time before I control Osaka. Humans are a non issue and my fellow fiends will soon see the light. Fortune favors the bold."

….

POSTSCRIPT:

So we've kicked off DOA1. The fights will rarely be full play by play unless they are more pivotal like actual DOA characters fighting each other. There are hundreds of fighters at this point so most of what we'll see is people getting weeded out. I'm not really going into detail about the rankings, etc. until we get the numbers small enough to be manageable.

In the meantime Naruto, Hinata and Maya are fiend hunting -this time against a rogue fiend that the other fiends want silenced. We've also finally touched on all of Lady Ishtaros' Five Captains so some of the battle lines are already being drawn. Next chapter we'll see the Uzumakis tracking Quatrain with the help of their new ally Surō Kobe as well as more DOA action. See you next time. Blue Out. 4/10/17