HIDDEN DREAM IV - MISUNDERSTANDING

After separating at the cave and entrusting the kids with Yaizu, Naruto makes his way to the Hidden Dream Village, with instructions on the safe path given to him by the old man.

"Are you okay leaving them like that?" Kurama asks. "He's a complete stranger."

"Maybe. But there's something about him that… I don't know, I just know I can trust him. You ever met someone like that?"

"No."

Naruto laughs despite himself. "Right, I forgot who I was talking to."

"Ah, shut it. Then, about this Great Beast; you got any ideas?"

"Hrm… not really, no."

"Of course. I forgot who I was talking to." Kurama sneers.

"Very funny. Well what's your idea, wise guy?"

"We first need to figure out why its chakra is mixed with the fog. If it was actually awake, I'd have sensed by now but since I haven't…"

"Then there's still a chance it's sealed somewhere around here?"

"Maybe, but that would mean someone besides Tamamo sealed this Great Beast here which I find unlikely. This location may have some sort of connection to the Rashomon Gates and chakra is leaking through there."

"You sure have a lot of faith in Tamamo, huh? Alright, then we'll ask that Enzo guy Yaizu mentioned."

"You do know that's a terrible plan, right? I can barely even call it a plan. These people think you killed their leader and wrecked half the village, they're not going to talk."

"I'll just explain what happened. If I come back with no intent to fight them, they'll hear me out and realize something ain't right."

"It's not gonna work."

"It will." Naruto speeds forward. "It has to."

Not long after, Naruto finally reaches the village, helped along by more or less following the correct path and Kurama being more aware to fend off the fog's effects this time. Before he actually gets inside, he takes a moment to compose himself and meditate on a branch.

[Sage Mode]

Naruto scans the area and finds his target in no time. 'I sense two strong chakra signatures. One of them has to be this Enzo Tenrō.'

'Stick to the shadows.' Kurama advises.

'I know how to be a shinobi, thanks.'

He makes note of the fog's mysterious effects; not only does it induce genjutsu but it apparently also interferes with his sensing, meaning he can't check up on the kids from here. Even though the fog should be behind him, there's still a lingering effect. This thing is definitely potent. They got lucky it was Yaizu who found them by the forest's entrance.

With [Sage Mode] active, it's an easy enough task to avoid the Dream shinobi since he can sense where they're situated.

When he finally gets a good look of the destruction on the other side of the village, he has to take a moment to take in the terrible sight in front of him. He's immediately reminded of how he felt when he got back during Pain's attack on the Leaf.

'This is terrible… Why would anyone do something like this? We're supposed to be at peace, damnit.'

'Unfortunately, it's during peace that such attacks are most effective. It's just the reality of the world we live in.'

'Maybe we can put an end to incidents like this in the future, or at least get people to realize we'd never do this.'

'It'll be a tall order.'

'But it'll be worth trying.'

Naruto heads into the village. He sticks as close as he can to buildings, hiding behind corners and even inside empty ones. It pains him to see just how many of them are torn down and ruined.

'Who could've done all this…'

'I don't know, but if they were able to imitate us then they're no slouch. Whoever did it, I don't think they're here, though. I don't sense any chakra strong enough to pull this off.'

There do seem to be regular patrols out, as Yaizu said, that sweep the edge of the village and go out into the forest. He lays low until they pass and then proceeds with his infiltration.

He makes his way to one of the stronger chakra, which is located in the same building as dozens of other weakened chakra signatures.

He makes his way to a building that, upon peeking through a window, he recognizes as a field hospital.

He slowly makes his way to the hospital roof where he finds an older man of grey spiky hair, wearing a kimono shirt and a dark fur collar. He matches the description Yaizu gave him.

'Here goes…' Naruto breathes in to calm himself before he steps out of the shadows. It's not every day you get framed for the destruction of a village. "Enzo Tenrō? Please hear what I have to say."

"Who-" Enzo doesn't even get halfway through his question before he turns around and sees the man who stands before him.

Acting on absolute pure instinct and boiling rage, Enzo immediately leaps and rushes at Naruto to grab him and shove him off the hospital roof.

"I said wait!" Naruto calls out as the two fall, pulling his arms away from Enzo's grip.

"YOUR JUDGEMENT WILL NOT WAIT!" Enzo roars and immediately undergoes a transformation.

His face transforms more canine, his whole body grows two-fold and becomes covered in greying fur the same as his hair.

[Human Beast Transformation: Heavenly Wolf]

Enzo slashes at Naruto but he manages to block the sharp claws with his armguards and push the wolfman away.

"I didn't do it! I was framed!" Naruto tries to reason with him.

"You think we wouldn't recognize the power of a Tailed Beast?! You dare belittle us even further?!"

Enzo's fur grows and whips around as if it's gained a mind of its own. It lashes out and goes after Naruto, circling him from all directions.

[Wild Wolf's Mane]

Naruto manages to push it aside by using Sage Mode's increased reach to hit the fur before it even comes close to him.

"I know how it looks, trust me! But I'm telling you the truth!"

The strands of hair surround him once again but this time don't try to grab onto him. Instead, the separate hairs stand on edge, sharp points directed at Naruto, and fire all directions.

[Hair Needle Senbon]

Naruto is impaled by dozens of needles but Enzo's victory doesn't last long. Where Naruto once stood is now a log, broken to pieces from the senbon.

[Substitution]

The real Naruto appears just outside of the dome the [Wolf's Mane] had created.

By this point, the commotion has been heard by other shinobi who surround him.

'How's it working out for you?' Kurama chuckles.

'I'm getting there.'

"Capture him alive." Enzo states. "We need to know what more the Leaf and their little Union have planned."

"I can already tell you that- we've planned nothing! This is a misunderstanding."

"You can tell that to Lord Gensui and Yomitatsu when you meet them in the afterlife."

"Dad!" Ryuka comes running out of the hospital.

"Stay back, Ryuka! Make sure everyone is safe."

"But-"

Enzo interrupts her. "No 'but's. Leave the jinchuriki to us."

A pile of stones rises up from the ground to grab Naruto by the feet but he jumps up in time. In the air, a gust of wind and stream of fire come at him, combining to make for a devastating combination. Naruto uses a [Shadow Clone] as a platform to jump out of the way.

A dozen Nuiba come running at him and take turns to attack him. When one misses, another one immediately swings to try and catch him.

"What are these things?!" Naruto eyes the weird creatures. 'It's weird… I should be sending their movements but I'm not getting anything from them.'

He makes note of each of their positions and strikes in a swift movement. The ones closer to him, he strikes directly, while relying on [Sage Mode]'s extended reach for some of the others. The ones near him do react in pain, but the ones further away show no signs of being hurt at all.

'Senjutsu doesn't work on them?'

The Dream shinobi come running amidst the Nuiba to continue their assault.

Naruto dodges a series of shuriken and kunai, wire strings, explosion tags, and he notes that each of them are directed at him in such a way to force him away from the hospital. Even in this situation, they're thinking of their injured comrades.

He'd be impressed if they weren't trying to kill him.

"That's... ENOUGH!"

His attire takes on an orange glow as his whole body becomes covered in chakra.

[Nine Tails Chakra Mode]

He extends multiple chakra arms from his body to grapple and push back anyone and everyone who's gotten too close for comfort. Most of them jump out of the way on their own, but others prove too slow as do the Nuiba.

"LISTEN TO ME! I only arrived today, I wasn't here when the village was attacked."

"Then surrender." Enzo steps forward. "If your words hold true, then you've nothing to fear, RIGHT?"

Enzo charges at Naruto with his claws outstretched. He swings his hand with all his might but Naruto catches it easily enough. The sheer impact forces Naruto downward, creating a small crater in the ground, but he otherwise blocks all damage.

Enzo Tenrō continues his assault but Naruto swiftly dodges out of the way. After a few moments of this, Naruto grabs Enzo's arm and punches him in the gut to send him flying back.

"You just don't listen, do you?"

"I listened, jinchūriki. I listened to the dying screams of our people. I listened while you-" Enzo suddenly falls to his knees and coughs up blood.

"Dad?" Ryuka takes a hesitant step forward.

"Hey… are you okay?" Naruto reaches out his hand, wanting to help but knowing any movement he makes right now will be treated as hostile.

Enzo begins coughing more and more blood until he can't even properly breath anymore. He crumples to the ground, clutching his body.

"DAD!" Ryuka runs over to him and holds his head in her arms. "Wha- WHAT DID YOU DO TO HIM?!" She screams at the top of her lungs.

"Nothing! I- I didn't do anything…" Naruto steps back now that the Dream shinobi are closing in on him again. 'There's no way I hit him hard enough… What's going on here?'

Medical ninja rush over to heal him but their efforts seem in vain.

"Ryu...ka…" Enzo manages to wheeze out. "Save… us…" He convulses on the ground before his body falls limp.

Enzo Tenrō lies unconscious in his crying daughter's arms.

"No." Ryuka gently shakes him. "No. Dad, wake up. Wake up." She looks to the medics. "Heal him. Heal him!"

"Lady Ryuka, I'm… I'm sorry." The medic whispers.

The Dream shinobi charge at Naruto. "YOU BASTARD!"

Once again, they use every conceivable jutsu in their arsenal in a barrage of attacks. In a state of panic, an Explosive Tag catches Naruto off guard and sends him flying back. A Fire Jutsu follows that he manages to swat away with his chakra arms, but a Water Style hits him directly. It'd normally not be a problem to resist were it not for the Lightning Style added to it, giving a shock to his system.

"Lady Ryuka, get away from here! Save yourself!" One of the Dream shinobi calls out.

Naruto manifests nine glowing tails to surround himself and sweep the area around him. The shinobi and Nuiba unfortunate enough to be near him are sent flying away.

"We can't win…" Ryuka's body trembles. "There's nothing we can do…"

Then, her father's final words hit her.

-x-

Not long after parting ways with Yaizu, before the dreadful attack on the village, Ryuka notices that the path they're taking is not one that leads home.

"So where are we going, dad?" Ryuka looks up to Enzo. "This isn't the way home."

"Talking to Yaizu just now got me thinking. It's true that you not needing to know some things means we're in a better place, but there's also a lot of uncertainty in the world. It's my responsibility as village council, as clan head, but most importantly as a father to prepare you for that uncertainty."

"I don't think I like where this conversation is going…"

"I'm sorry, little one." Enzo pats her on the head and pulls her into a hug as they walk. "Let's just consider it training, yes?"

"Okay." She nods with a slight apprehension.

They walk to the very edge of the town, beyond any houses, and into the forest where the village is no longer even visible from the fog and thick trees. Enzo leads her to a particular boulder that he weaves hand signs in front of, causing it to shift when jutsu formulae appear on it where there previously were none.

Walking into the cave entrance, Ryuka is greeted by a cavern covered in jutsu formulae from wall to wall, and pedestal to the back of the room. There, the jutsu formulae come together to form a more complicated seal.

"What is this place?" She looks around with a slack jaw.

"Quite possibly our clan's greatest secret. A powerful weapon that can protect the Hidden Dream Village in its time of need, a weapon that can even rival the Five Great Villages and their Tailed Beasts. Something that can only be unsealed by the blood of the Tenrō clan."

Ryuka takes in his words with great care, absorbing everything her dad says.

"Watch carefully, Ryuka. I'm going to show you how to undo the seals. Whether you'll need to use it, or your descendants…"

-x-

"I have to… save the village…" Ryuka darts off while the shinobi of the village keep Naruto occupied. "Please survive. I'll save us. I'll protect us from the jinchūriki."

Meanwhile, Naruto continues to dodge all attacks thrown his way. The Nuiba and transformed members of the Hirasaka clan gather chakra in their hands and unleash it in the form of dark purple jets of chakra. The transformed members of the Tenrō clan barrage him with their animated fur. Other shinobi utilize their ninjutsu to aid the leading clans.

Naruto uses his [Shadow Clones] to distract or to take hits meant for him and his chakra arms to pull or push himself away from dangers.

'Naruto, you need to get out of here!'

'I can't just run away. It'll only make things worse.'

'Things are already the worst they can be. We need to regroup.'

"No, there's something else."

Naruto powers down his chakra mode and releases his remaining natural energy. He raises his hands and gets down to his knees.

"What do you think you're doing?!"

"What I have to."

Naruto is immediately grabbed by a [Wild Wolf's Mane] and held by place. Another shinobi runs in and touches his chest to send a Lightning Style course through his whole body. Naruto screams in pain but doesn't resist it.

One shinobi in particular walks up to him and punches him. "For Lord Gensui." Another punch. "For Lord Yomitatsu." Again. "For Lord Enzo!"

Lastly, sealing tags are placed on his body, his arms, and his legs.

"He gave up too easily; it has to be a trap." Another warns. "Kill him now."

"No mercy for the murderer!"

"I know you're upset." Naruto spits out some blood. "But you have to believe me. Whatever happened yesterday, whatever happened to Enzo Tenrō, is not my doing!"

He's hit again. "Be silent."

"What do we do now?" A man asks.

"We have to wait for Lord Mōkin. He's…" A female member of the Tenrō clan looks back to Enzo's unconscious form. "He's the only one we have left now."

Naruto speaks up. "Check Enzo Tenrō's body."

"You will not speak his name." The woman growls.

"You have medics. You can see that I couldn't have injured him enough to kill him; there's something amiss here!" Naruto tries to reason with them.

"You jinchūriki are beyond understanding. There's no telling what abilities you possess." A man from the Hirasaka clan walks up to Naruto and gags him. "I don't know what your plan is but you'll be dead before you can act on it."

Naruto tries to mumble something through his gag but it comes out inaudible.

It's then that everyone falls to their knees from an intense pressure. A surge of chakra that renders them all trembling and afraid.

It's an immense killing intent that lets them all know that an apex predator has arrived and wants them dead.

"What… is he doing?" The Dream shinobi slowly turn their attention back to Naruto in a jittery motion.

However, Naruto doesn't seem to be doing anything. In fact, he seems to be feeling this pressure as much as they are.

'Kurama…'

'Yeah. This is a Great Beast.'

'But it's different from the others somehow. It feels… stronger.'

'You need to stop playing around and get there right now.'

'Yeah. We'll continue all this later'

Naruto envelops himself in a cloak of orange chakra once more and breaks free from every single restraint the Dream shinobi had placed on him. He rises to his feet with a pained groan, fighting against the pressure being released.

"I need to deal with what's doing this. I promise I'll come back to be your prisoner, okay? This is way too dangerous to be left alone."

The killing intent eases and the shinobi are able to breathe normally again.

Before Naruto can move forward, he sees a flash of light from the corner of his eye. It comes from seemingly nowhere with no warning but he catches it just in time to dodge out of the way of a bolt of light that zips past him.

Looking to the source, he sees an elder man dressed in heavy armour over his robes. "I'd advise against that, jinchūriki."

The other Dream shinobi stare at him with slack jaws. "... Lord... Gensui?"

Naruto takes a battle-ready stance, smelling something afoot. 'Gensui? Isn't that the leader who died yesterday? How is he here...'

A sudden pained cough brings everyone's attention to Enzo who's trying to push himself off the guard while spitting out blood.

"Lord Enzo! You're… you're alive!" One shinobi exclaims.

"What's going on here?" Another wonders.

Enzo looks around his surroundings in visible confusion. He sees Naruto, he sees his fellow shinobi, and finally… he sees Gensui.

"Gensui? But… how?" Enzo struggles to get to his feet but does so with the help of the medics next to him. He takes a step toward Gensui but stops when Naruto gets in the way.

"Don't." Naruto says as he eyes the figure before them. 'I'm not sensing anything from him…'

Gensui sneers. "Excellent instinct, jinchūriki. Was it that instinct that woke you from your slumber? You were meant to die in the forest yet here you stand before me."

"What're you saying, Gensui? What's going on here? And you..." Enzo looks at Naruto. His eyes glance over the battlefield. He recognizes they're still in the same place they engaged Naruto, and also recognizes that not a single person has been hurt while he was unconscious.

"I don't really have the time to explain it to you, Enzo. I merely wished to give my congratulations for raising your daughter so well. She did exactly as she needed to, and once she unleashes the Tenrō clan's weapon, it'll be mine for the taking."

"So you're the mastermind behind all this?" Naruto grits his teeth. "You, who were the leader of the village? Yaizu said it might be a traitor but to think it was the village leader."

"Yaizu?" Gensui cocks his head. "Is that how you got here? That worthless scum, I knew it was a mistake to accept him."

Enzo takes a slow step forward. "Gensui, help me understand what's going on. This isn't like you! What're you saying…"

Gensui takes a deep, annoyed sigh. "Your simplicity is staggering, Tenrō, although it's what made you so easy to manipulate in the first place. That blockheadedness and your stubborn attitude of yours… With mine and Yomitatsu's deaths, I knew you'd resort to releasing your clan's secret weapon. I just had no way of knowing if you'd actually do it yourself, so I had to give your daughter some stimulation. Applying a curse seal to make you look dead was no simple task, you know."

"But… the attack yesterday, that was all…"

"A magnificently crafted illusion. A well disguised Lightning Style here, well placed Explosive Tags there… And you were none the wiser."

The Dream ninja fall to their knees. "No, that can't be."

"Lord Gensui… betrayed us?"

"You bastard!" Naruto screams. "You were their leader! They trusted you, they looked up to you! You were meant to guide them and to show them a better future! A village leader protects his people no matter what! People like you make me sick!"

"Oh, but I have protected my people." Gensui retorts. "I made certain that no members of the Amagiri were hurt in the 'attack'."

Naruto growls and turns around. "Talking to you is pointless, isn't it? You're just stalling for time. That chakra heading to the girl Ryuka's location, it's you, isn't it?" Before anyone can notice or react, Naruto throws a kunai that goes right through Gensui's body. "That's why I don't feel anything from you. You're an illusion."

"So you're a sensor? You become more annoying by the minute. It doesn't matter, though. Young Ryuka has already broken the seal; it's too late to stop it."

Gensui's form shifts and fades into nothing.

"I'm going." In the blink of an eye, Naruto also disappears from sight.

Enzo falls to his knees.

-x-

Within the cavern that her father showed her not even a week ago, Ryuka struggles to keep her focus. She did as her father instructed to break the seal but the pressure she's experiencing is beyond anything she's ever seen. It's taking every bit of strength and focus to keep herself from falling apart.

However, she must do this. For the village, for her father, for Gensui and Yomitatsu, she has to use this weapon, whatever it is, to protect everyone.

FInally, the seal fully breaks. The jutsu formulae that cover the walls begin to glow and gradually fizzle out. As more of them disappear, the cavern begins to shake. Pieces of the walls and ceiling break off and fall, forcing her to move back and out before she's buried alive.

She runs back as far as she can before the same pressure she felt before strikes her again and she falls to the ground.

The earth beneath her cracks and breaks, each individual piece rising and being pushed away like a wave out in the sea. Ryuka cries out as she hits the ground when her piece of earth topples over.

She manages to regain enough of her senses to get away as far as he can from the erupting earth that almost seems to chase her as she runs away.

When she gets to a safe distance, she witnesses a form emerging from the ground. A furred back first peaks out, followed by a massive claw that digs into the ground and pushes itself up. Finally a monstrous canine snout rises up.

The wolf unleashes a primal howl that sends a shiver down her spine. Similar to before, a killing intent is felt but this pressure is felt even beyond the borders of the forest, where even Yaizu and Team Nine feel it.

The howl fills Ryuka with dread. It awakens the most basic primal instinct a living creature has- survival. She immediately knows that her life is in danger. Every single ounce of her body is telling her to run away.

This is an apex predator.

Great Beast, Ōkami.

"What- What have I done?" Ryuka mutters to herself.

The wolf continues to pull the rest of its body out from the ground, now using its claw to dig out the rest of its body.

"Dad… I'm sorry." Ryuka tries to slide herself back when her legs refuse to listen to her.

The wolf finally emerges from the ground, revealing its full monstrous form. It howls once more to establish its presence and might.

Just as Ryuka's mind begins racing through all of her regrets in her admittedly short life, she's swept away by… something.

Before she can even blink, she finds herself surrounded by a form comprised of orange chakra. In front of her stands a figure glowing the same orange chakra, a man she saw just moments ago. The very same man she ran away from to release his monster wolf.

"Are you okay?" Naruto looks back to her.

"You… stay away from me!" Ryuka tries to step away from him but her body feels strange. She's swimming inside dense chakra that almost makes it feel like swimming through mud, except she's somehow floating on top of that.

"I know you won't believe me and I don't really have time to explain in a lotta detail. Your dad's alive and that Gensui guy's behind all of this."

"What? You expect me to believe you after everything?!"

Naruto sighs. "Fine, then don't."

[Shadow Clone]

A second Naruto materializes and grabs Ryuka over his shoulder.

"Wh- What do you think you're doing?!" She demands.

"Taking you to your dad." The Clone answers and Flickers away to get Ryuka to safety.

"Now, then." Naruto cracks his neck and rolls his shoulder. "Let's deal with you."

The wolf lowers its head and bears its fangs in warning.

"Be careful, Naruto. Of all the annoying bastards, this one might just be the most annoying."

"You know it, Kurama?"

"Oh, I know Ōkami well," Kurama growls, "And if it's not being restrained by the Rashomon Gate, then we're in for a fight. Wait… that chakra..."

Naruto and Kurama turn their attention to a single chakra signature running up behind the wolf.

"It's that Gensui guy. Is he trying to get himself killed?"

Gensui leaps high up in the air to reach the Ōkami and that's when the wolf finally reacts to his presence. It turns its head around to bare its fangs at him and much to Naruto's surprise, the wolf eats Gensui with no resistance.

Naruto blinks. "Did… did…. he actually get eaten?"

"Sure looks like it." Kurama laughs. "Well that's one annoyance less to deal with."

The wolf drops to the floor as it whines in pain. It thrashes its body like it's trying to fight something off of it but is utterly unable to.

"Now what?"

Markings appear on its body. Jutsu formulae that cover its entire body.

"It's distracted! Take it out now!"

Naruto runs up to the Ōkami and tries to grab hold of it with his nine tails. However, there's a static present in the air that he senses early, but ignores in order to grapple the wolf. Before his tails can touch its fur, the jutsu formulae react and violently shove Naruto away.

Electricity fills the air.

A barrier forms around the Ōkami.

"That lightning, it's not an ability that Ōkami ever had. That means..."

"That Gensui guy's doing something from the inside?"

"I think… he's trying to seal it."

"Seal it? But it was just unsealed. Unless… Oh no."

"Yeah. He plans on becoming that thing's jinchūriki."

A layer of crust forms around the Ōkami's body, covering its back and front legs. Its head becomes hardened, as well, a single protrusion forming from its forehead.

With a burst of pure chakra combined with electricity, the barrier shatters.

Before Naruto and Kurama now stands a transformed beast.

An exoskeleton now has been attached to its body for additional protection, the horn of a rhinoceros beetle adorns its head, and it's standing hunched over. It's using it front legs for support but it seems the transformation has allowed it to stand on its hind legs and more freely use its front for attacks. The Ōkami has merged with the Amagiri clan's secret transformation to become a wolf-beetle hybrid.

"So," Gensui's much deeper voice fills the air, "This is what power feels like."

"This bastard…"

Ōkami (狼) - a powerful wolf spirit that either takes your life or protects it, depending on the actions one does in their life.