Author's Note: Hello everyone, welcome back! The time has come for the first installment in a three-parter season finale. The Dragon Knight story has come a long way, but it's alas time for the secrets and trickery behind the Uzumaki and Namikaze families to be brought to the spotlight.

After being pushed to his limits in his battle against Takeo, Naruto has been captured by a mysterious enemy named Nox and his soldiers. Not only that, the devilishly trickster Mito Uzumaki is seemingly working for Nox and is now spying on Night Raid.

Who is Nox? What is Mito's role in all of this? What dark fate awaits the Dragon Knight? Begin to unravel the truth now.

Original "Dragon Knight" Story by: AZ23AJ

Written by: Mercer_am (Wattpad) / Merceram ( )

Chapter 10: Rising Dragon Saga (Part 1: Into the Abyss)

The foul stench of death welcomed Naruto Sieghart as he struggled to open his eyes. Though his vision was blurry, he could see what appeared to be a dimly lit, small room closed off by metal bars. It took him a moment before he realized that he was indeed inside a jail cell.

"Ugh… my head," he mumbled under his breath. Naruto shook his head a little, the headache he felt right now was almost unbearable, but even so, he managed to get off of the ground and stand up slowly.

Sieghart was then hit by the pain left behind by his battle wounds. A large cut ran down across his abdomen, a blackened burn mark hurt his back when he moved, and to make matters worse he was shirtless. The dense, cold atmosphere of that cell amplified the pain he felt a thousandfold. It was enough to make even someone as fearsome as Naruto tremble.

Slowly but surely, the Dragon Knight made his way to the metal bars separating him from the rest of the prison. He reached for the cell's door in hopes of attaining an understanding over how much force would be required to break free, but a surprise event caught him off guard.

"What the hell?!" he remarked in absolute disbelief as he came upon the realization that the cell was unlocked, "What kind of prison lets its prisoners just walk out?"

Apprehensive over the situation, Sieghart took slow steps. The area outside of his jail was lifeless, full of bones and limbs scattered across the crimson flooring. A staircase could be seen to the far left, it ascended like a spiral towards a new floor. Along the walls, Sieghart could see what appeared to be human skulls carved into stone.

"Damn… I thought I had seen everything by now, but this place right here… just damn, " he said to himself. Truth be told he could hardly fathom the thought of being suddenly attacked right now. With no mana, no weapons, and no allies to back him up, he was no more than a mortal man fighting against an impossible situation.

"Takeo… he really did a number on me, " he thought as he ascended up the stone stairs. In the back of his mind, Naruto felt as if they could crumble beneath his feet at any given moment, but nonetheless, he continued to march onward using whatever semblance of hope he had left in him.

Alas, he reached the next floor. What awaited him there was a large series of torch-lit hallways that spread in eight different directions.

"Great… a labyrinth, " he sighed. Little did he know that this was merely the beginning of his struggles.

Just as he had finally relaxed, Naruto felt the ground quake beneath his feet. His eyes widened as he looked to his right only to see a seemingly endless legion of strange, ghoulish, humanoids darting towards his location at breakneck speeds.

"Goddammit!" Naruto shouted as he dashed forward like a man running for his life. He had no time to make an informed decision, so he just ran forward and into the narrow hallway directly ahead of himself.

"Today couldn't possibly get any worse!" he complained out loud. The thunderous sound of a hundred ghouls chasing him down the hallway kept him moving.

"Duck, shrimp!" a commanding voice reached Naruto's ears. In that same instant, he instinctively dropped to his knees as a kunai flew right past his face, mere inches away. It hit one of the ghouls in the center of their chest only to explode into a ball of bright flames that consumed the crowd of ghouls and caused them to be reduced to no more than ashes.

A short young man with spiky blond hair then appeared in front of Naruto. Like Najenda, he wore an eye patch over one eye, but his exposed eye had a golden iris. He wore an outfit resembling that of a military uniform consisting of a long black trench coat with golden epaulets and a suit underneath. That said, his clothes looked fairly worn out and dusted.

"Running around like that is gonna do nothing but get you killed," the male chastised Naruto before offering him a helping hand, "Come on, get up."

Naruto could tell that despite his short stature this man was definitely strong.

"Those monsters were easily on par with a trained soldier yet you took them all out in one move… just who are you?" Sieghart inquired as he accepted the stranger's helping hand. In one pull, the mysterious fighter had brought Naruto back on his feet.

"I'm not sure myself honestly… but call me Najasho, that's the one name in my head anyway, " the golden-eyed man explained.

"Well… thanks for the assist. Where are we anyway?"

"You don't know? This place is called 'The Mausoleum' for its infamy as a location where the Empire's most dangerous criminals are left to rot and die of either starvation or by the hand of other prisoners who have turned to cannibalism in order to stay alive. But of course… this place is also full of people unjustly sentenced to a life of suffering," Najasho spoke in a heavy tone. It was clear that he had been stuck in this place for a long time.

"Is there a way out of here?" Naruto questioned curiously.

"There is one. We need to cross this labyrinth and find the staircase which will lead us to the next floor. As far as I know, there are around a total of ten levels. The furthest anyone has ever gotten is the ninth."

"Then I guess I'll be the first to break out of here, " Naruto spoke confidently whilst smiling.

"You really are a cocky shrimp, " the one-eyed assassin remarked snarkily before reaching under his trench coat and tossing over a small sword to Naruto who promptly caught it midair.

"You'll need it if you want to get out of here, " he concluded.

"Not just me, I'm getting you out of here too. I could use another powerful friend!" Naruto went on to proclaim those words in a tone full of his usual youthful excitement.

"Alright… try to keep up then, shrimp!" Najasho put it bluntly before darting down the hallway at lightning speed.

"Hey wait up!" Naruto shouted as he chased after the mysterious assassin.

To escape this hell – the two would do whatever it takes.


Naruto's allies gathered around the meeting room. As usual, Najenda comfortably sat upon her all too modest throne while her subordinates went on to form an incomplete circle around the room. Akame, Leone, Tatsumi, Chelsea, Susanoo, Sheele, Spear, Leyasu, Sayo, Mine, Lubbock, Air, Fal, and Luna. All members in Night Raid's current formation with the notable exception of Naruto's servants now surrounded a lonesome, kneeling figure chained up in front of Najenda.

"Where did they take Naruto?! Answer or you will be killed right here and now!" the Boss demanded information without an iota of mercy present in her voice.

"It's too late for your little band of misfits, bitch!" Takeo spits out his hateful words, "Nox took that fool to the Mausoleum! He's more than likely dead by now! And once I regain my strength you lot won't be far behind! These chains can't hold me forever!"

"Cut the crap! You're gonna tell us where that Mausoleum is or I'm gonna personally squash your fucking balls!" Najenda put it extremely bluntly whilst closing her metal hand into a fist.

"Tch… go north if you want to find it, but be warned Night Raid… the entrance to the Mausoleum is a one-way ticket to certain death. An impenetrable fortress surrounds the prison, and you would need an entire army to get through those defenses. Nox made sure no one could ever get in or out without his consent."

"It doesn't matter, we'll save him anyway, " Najenda spoke confidently as she calmly stood up.

"Alright, everyone… send word to Naruto's servants and ready the air mantas. We'll be splitting into small groups to cover more ground till we find the fortress, " she explained.

"What about Takeo?" Chelsea asked. It was a fair question, after all, the Panther was extremely dangerous and could not be left unsupervised for even a single moment.

"Oh it's simple, " Najenda smirked slyly.

"Oh, you bitch! You fucking bitc—

Takeo could not finish his sentence. Shortly before he could do so, Najenda delivered a swift strike to his face using the full might of her metal fist. A violent splash of blood hit the ground as the sound of Takeo's nose breaking apart mixed in with the echo propagated when a metal object collides with something.

In the end, the brash young panther became an unconscious kitten.

A range of surprised and even horrified expressions could be seen across the faces of those present, but Najenda kept things down to business.

"Now then… he won't wake up for a while. Call up Naruto's servants and let's move out!"

"Yes, Boss! everyone said in unison.

In spite of their loss, spirits were high among the assassins. Naruto's light and unyielding spirit had made them far stronger than they were not too long ago. However, that growth might not be enough to keep them safe from the oncoming storm.

Gracefully floating above the clouds without a care in the world, Mito Uzumaki crossed her voluptuous legs as if she was a queen sitting upon an imaginary throne. With a sly smirk, the strange girl watched the killers depart in a desperate search operation. In Mito's devious mind, she could already envision their deaths playing out.

" Oh my dear Naruto Onii-chan~ your friends are going to walk right into Nox-sama's death trap… it's gonna be sad but I'll have fun seeing your reactions when they end up dead because they try to save you! Kakaka!" she laughed in her mind.


Naruto and Najasho traversed the hallways of the labyrinth as fast as they could without drawing much attention. Above all else, one thing was clear in both of their minds: They needed each other if they hoped to escape.

" Enemies up ahead!" Najasho pointed out as the pair approached yet another horde of rotting, ghoulish prisoners. These strange monsters roared like animals as they charged towards the duo.

"I got this!" the Dragon Knight enthusiastically let his voice resonate through the halls only to then blast forward at high speeds. He quickly made sure to bring his short sword in a horizontal motion going from right to left. Almost in that same breath, his rusty blade cut open the guts of three prisoners with ease.

Najasho followed behind him but kept a cold silence ever-present. In one swift dash, the killer became a blur in the eyes of his foe as he moved past Naruto's targets and struck the last subhuman creature with his sword. Without mercy, he put his full might into penetrating the center of the ghoul's chest. The impact was so great that his blade could be seen going out of the target's back.

"Gah….Ah!" the remnants of the creature's humanity came back to him in his last breath of life.

"You're already dead… Find peace in the underworld, " his killer spoke into his ear before he violently twisted and pulled out the blade he had used.

Naruto watched his new ally act with a careful gaze. He knew Najasho was skilled, easily on par with Akame in terms of raw talent and intellect, but he could tell that he carried a lot of explosive emotion in the way he fought.

"It's up ahead, " Najasho suddenly spoke. He pointed towards the end of the hallway where a large arcing gateway made of bronze metal could be seen. Beyond it, a set of ascending stairs awaited the pair of deadly warriors.

"How did you know the correct path?" Naruto questioned whilst catching his breath.

Najasho sighed in embarrassment. "It's obvious, shrimp. The wind currents have to flow from the direction of the opening… but I'm not surprised at your lack of skill, " he muttered, clearly annoyed by the carefree attitude of his partner.

"Geez… I might not be much help now, but when I'm at full power there's not much that can stop me!" Naruto expressed his enthusiasm by punching his right fist against his open palm.

The two then shared a fair bit of awkward silence as they moved ahead entering the gateway.

"Hold on…" Najasho stopped dead on his tracks.

"What's up du—

Sieghart wouldn't get the chance to process what would happen next nor could he have predicted it.

Suddenly a young, voluptuous woman with alluring silver, neck-length hair and tantalizing golden eyes jumped down the center of the spiraling stairs before gracefully landing on one knee. From up close, Naruto could see that she wore a dark headband that allowed her bangs to hang beneath it. Nevertheless, the most worrisome part about her was the rusty, dual daggers she carried.

"Wait!" Naruto pleaded.

She did not heed his words. Instead, the nimble femme fatale thrust her blade like a missile toward the knight's exposed abdomen. However, Najasho was quick to slap away her weapon with a quick movement of his sword.

"Hya!"

"Not so fast!"

The female attacked using her remaining dagger, this time aiming it at the man who stopped her from killing her original target. Nonetheless, Najasho showed himself to be the best fighter out of the two as he proceeded to deliver a precise downward slash by bringing his blade up only to violently cast it down upon the woman's rusty dagger. Without delay, the object shattered like glass. Likewise, the female retreated as she felt a small cut on her hand.

"You missed… on purpose?" she pondered.

"Consider that a warning, Mashiro. Next time I'll go for your entire arm," Najasho spoke crudely.

"Wait you know her?" Naruto immediately jumped into the discussion.

"You could say that, I suppose. We were thrown in this hellhole together, " he clarified, "For the first few months we worked together… but she did not hesitate to abandon me when we failed to clear the ninth floor."

"That's not fair, Najasho! I had to look for a way to kill that monster… you however just kept trying to fight it again and again, " Mashiro tried to argue.

"Traitor…" Najasho coldly retorted back.

"Listen!" Naruto stepped in between the two, "We really don't have time for this! Now that I'm here we'll beat whatever is on the ninth floor, so let's work together."

Mashiro raised an eyebrow. "What makes you so sure? You could barely keep up with me, " she put it bluntly.

"Up till now… I've let Najasho take the lead because I was absorbing the little mana left in the environment in addition to recharging my own. I should be able to use this now..." Naruto spoke before snapping his fingers. Suddenly a bright white radiance began to emanate around him, it was akin to a flaming aura.

"Goddess Bliss, " he uttered as the various battle wounds covering his body started to close one after the other.

"You…" Najasho felt petrified in the presence of such a strange occurrence.

"What are you?" Mashiro could not help but wonder.

Alas, Naruto smirked confidently as a black armor materialized onto his body amidst a burst of translucent flames. Not only that, a robotic mask with bright cerulean blue eyes enveloped his entire face as he used his left hand to reach out as if trying to grasp something.

"Come forth! Balmung!" he proudly shouted. And thus the fabled dark silver blade materialized onto his hand. It was a two-handed, golden greatsword with a blue jewel embedded in the hilt that boasted a magnificence and enormity that made it seem as if it was created by inhuman hands. Armed with this great weapon of legend, Naruto Sieghart was now effectively back to the peak of his strength.

"You… you're not human are you?" Najasho inquired.

"Just sit back and watch, chief, " the Dragon Knight spoke whilst smiling beneath his mask. He then aimed his new blade up at the next floor.

"—O sword, Let thee be filled!" Sieghart proclaimed as an orange radiance had begun to fill his blade.

"Clear a path for us ― Balmung!

The twilight aura of its might swelled around the sword only to be released as a flash of light, a surging wave with the simple purpose of destruction. Compared to the straight line released by Mordred's Clarent Blood Arthur, Balmung let its powerful beam form a semicircle that centered around the user.

That pure wave of destruction drilled through the upper levels of the Mausoleum; thus carving a path with its almighty silver light.

"Impossible…" Najasho trembled.

"Woah!" Mashiro spoke in awe. The light of twilight produced by Balmung had pierced a giant hole that seemingly led all the way to the ninth floor.

"That's our way out, " Naruto remarked while the mechanical mask that covered his face vanished into sparks of blue energy.

"Just… who are you?" the golden-eyed femme fatale inquired in disbelief.

"Sieghart, Naruto Sieghart, " he spoke in a calm tone only to immediately afterward leap to the next floor and then again to the one after that.

Najasho and Mashiro exchanged confused stares before following after the Dragon Knight. Regardless of what awaited them — they were glad to have met this powerful ally.


"Fire everything we got!" a bald man dressed in a military getup shouted as loud as he possibly could. The thunderous, bellowing noise of cannon fire echoed across the land as an endless barrage of death cascaded upon a lonesome target.

"Give it your all, mongrels. Fools you may be… but isn't the foolishness of the few a more precious commodity than the wisdom of the masses?"

Resolute in her superiority, the King of Heroes stood proudly with her arms elegantly crossed over her voluptuous chest.

With a mere thought, she summoned a hail of weapons from the Gate of Babylon to befall upon her targets which would then tear them apart like simple beasts. As for the cannonballs shot at her, they did their best to lightly bother the king, but they were clearly nowhere near enough to make her flinch. In fact, they basically disinterested into subatomic particles upon touching her perfect body.

Above in the brick and steel walls of the fortress, soldiers scrambled to load their cannons and madly shoot their weapons at Gilgamesh. That said, meaningless, man-made and mass-produced weapons like those could not hope to harm the body of a being full of mystery such as the King of Heroes — or any other servant for that matter.

"Like a moth is drawn to a flame — fools seek certain death."

A mere snap of Gilgamesh's fingers was all it took to call forth a legendary weapon. Ig-Alima – a massive grey blade, commonly known as the Mountain-Felling Sword. It was an incredibly powerful Divine Construct that could easily tear apart entire forests simply from the force of being swung. However, due to its immensely large size, Gilgamesh could not truly wield it. Instead, it can solely be used as a devastating projectile from the Gate of Babylon.

"RUN!" one of the soldiers screamed.

Ig-Alima was propelled forward so fast it created an enormous sonic boom behind its length. The large walls of the fortress were pierced in an instant, and alas they came crumbling down like glass alongside a batch of dead soldiers.

"A mongrel though the one named Nox may be, he is still a figure of some slight renown… thus I shall offer his men swift deliverance, " the king mused to herself.

She was far more powerful than any who dared challenge her almighty rule. A walking arsenal by herself, she ruled the battlefield with unmatched brilliance and elegance. However, she was not alone. Soon enough a large formation of Air Mantas could be seen out on the horizon closing in on the fortress.

"You mongrels now face the wrath of Night Raid."


Naruto, Najasho, and Mashiro. This unlikely trio had, at last, arrived on the ninth floor of the Mausoleum. What awaited the group was a large, circular arena with crimson brick walls and stone flooring. At the heart of the structure, a lonesome black-haired man awaited. His arms were kept immobile by a white straitjacket. However what was truly frightening about him were the soulless, entirely whitened out eyeballs he had.

"There he is… that demon," Najasho locked his gaze upon the strange male.

Naruto could tell that his comrades were on edge, but for now, he elected to stay silent.

"This time… you won't defeat us!" Mashiro shouted.

Alas, Najasho and Mashiro darted forward like missiles moving at hypersonic speeds. The two gracefully cascaded their iron blades upon that one, seemingly unarmed, man.

"Stop…" the restrained male muttered as a black flaming aura suddenly spiraled out of his body.

"Guh!" the two attackers were frozen mid-motion, their blades suspended by a flowing, dark miasma.

"Get away!" the dark figure exclaimed whilst the black flames around him oozed outward and began pouring all over Najasho and Mashiro.

"Not so fast!" Naruto spoke as his mechanical mask closed over his face once more. The powerful Dragon Knight immediately rushed over, worried for his newest comrades.

"Balmung!" he uttered before his blade glimmered with a powerful light and was swiftly brought down upon the darkness-infused warrior.

"Umbral… Threshold!" the mysterious figure spoke in a forced, pained tone.

The dark flames that engulfed Najasho and Mashiro became ever more dangerous as they abandoned their original targets and jumped at Sieghart; thus blocking the path of his attack. Balmung's light was completely eaten by a wall of solidified darkness. However, Naruto thankfully did manage to accomplish the original goal of freeing his two comrades as both Najasho and Mashiro had fallen over on the ground, both unconscious.

Naruto continuously struck the dark wall in front of him to no avail. In fact, no matter how many times he would attack with all his might, the wall would only seem to grow larger.

"Umbral Prison, " the floor boss muttered in a distorted tone whilst his dark wall burst outward and embraced Naruto's body.

In a moment's notice, the shadows had begun to adhere to the shape of his body turning the Dragon Knight into a silhouette for onlookers to behold. The shadows soon began to grow tighter. It was as if Naruto had been caught in a bear's hug, only difference being that every inch of his body was being squashed. His armor had begun to crack, and soon the same fate would befall his bones.

"Grr… not like this! I refuse to die here!" he boldly shouted as a powerful flow of emerald green electricity erupted from his body.

"Blasted Tree!" his powerful shout echoed across the darkness as that electrical aura around him formed an extremely large shape akin to a tree. The shadows that once relentlessly bounded Naruto dispersed immediately only to return to their user.

"You're done!" Sieghart voiced his courage one last time. Without a second thought, he proceeded to mercilessly drive this empowered version of Balmung through his foe's chest.

What followed was an enormous explosion of both emerald electricity and white light. The blast was concentrated around Naruto and his mysterious opponent like a swirling beam of energy. It truly seemed as if this was the deciding moment of this conflict.

"Thank… you, " a husky, tired voice echoed into Naruto's ears. Naruto flinched upon realizing that voice came from none other than his opponent.

"Who… are you?" the Dragon Knight inquired.

The eyes once engulfed in unending darkness now morphed into the eyes of a young man. Red irises, dark pupils, fair white skin and fairly long, messy, silver hair with bangs draping across his forehead. All combined to form the visage of a handsome, youthful man. Moreover, the straitjacket that kept him bounded turned into particles of black energy.

"I am…" he tried to speak but his voice failed to come out. Once more the flowing darkness around him pushed outward sending Naruto back first against a far-away wall alongside his sword. Nevertheless, it was quite obvious something had changed.

The strange man once overtaken by shadows now commanded them almost effortlessly. Free from his chains, the young warrior healed his wounds and used his living shadow to form a new attire. He now wore a black tricorn, a gray duster coat, a pair of brown leather boots, a pair of black gauntlets with golden ornaments and a dark reddish bandana to cover most of his face. It looked like the attire of a fancy thief or a hunter.

"I'm sorry it ended like this… but your light woke me up from the slumber Nox put me in, " the masked warrior calmly spoke as he slowly walked towards Naruto who was still struggling to get off of the ground now that he literally had his back against the wall.

"Nox? Who…" Naruto struggled to speak. Blood left his lips, his armor was gone again, and both of his allies were still unconscious — not to mention his foe looked untouched. For the very first time in what felt like an eternity, he had truly lost to someone outside of his family.

"It's a long story… but I shall at least give you my name as a means of thanking you. Ichiro, Ichiro Hajime," the Red-Eyed Hunter introduced himself with a respectful bow.

"Hajime…" Naruto's eyes widened. That family name… he had heard it before.

"We can talk more once you have recovered. For now, rest easy… I promise to take you three out of here," Ichiro spoke reassuringly. However, unbeknownst to the young man his battle was not quite over yet.

"Away from him, mongrel!" a harsh voice reached Ichiro shortly before a golden blade pierced his spine killing him — or at least that's what would have happened if the projectile had not simply phased through his shadow-like body and hit the wall in front of him.

"Oh? Perhaps there is some worth to this one," Gilgamesh put it bluntly as she entered the room alongside the members of Night Raid and her fellow-servants. Likewise, Ichiro turned to face them, but he kept a calm and collected demeanor.

"Face me in battle, fool! To vanquish a threat my beloved Naruto could not match… Yes, it will be an achievement worthy of my full attention!" the King of Heroes proudly proclaimed as she took a step forward.

"I'm not your enemy, " Ichiro reasoned, "Naruto saved me from Nox's brainwashing… we don't have to fight."

"I do not care, boy. To hurt my property is to invite death, and I am too interested in your power to simply let you go. This world has been boring me for far too long… I need a challenge, " she put it bluntly.

"Uh… Gil-chan are you sure about this? He could be another ally, " Musashi voiced her concerns.

Semiramis sighed. "Forget it. Once this woman sets her sights on someone she just won't let go, " she remarked.

"But this is unfair… there's no way a human can beat a servant, " Atalanta jumped into the conversation.

"It's alright… I accept her challenge, " Ichiro suddenly spoke, "If fighting her is what it takes to earn your favor — I'll do it."

"WHAT?!" the servants reacted in unison.

"Is this guy serious? He doesn't look like much of a fighter, " Mine mumbled rudely.

"Yet he managed to beat Naruto… I must say I'm curious, " Akame interjected with her own observation.

"Not that we can do anything now…" Najenda concluded with a reluctant sigh. All present truly expected a one-sided slaughter.

But…

"As interesting as that peasant fight would be, I'm afraid this will be enough for today, " the cold, distorted, and bellowing voice of Nox himself echoed across the prison.

"No…" Najenda felt frozen in place. A realization came to her at that moment, one that ultimately came far too late.

The gateway and stairs Night Raid had used to descend from the tenth floor and down to ninth had quite suddenly been washed away from existence. What remained was no more than a wall.

"Show yourself, coward!" Gilgamesh's crude shouting echoed across the floor as all of the connected structures in the Mausoleum began to quake according to Nox's will.

"Nox… you're the bastard who sent Takeo after us aren't you?" Naruto inquired but there was no response.

"A trap?" Ichiro muttered to himself.

There was no time to find a way out. In but a few seconds, everything collapsed. The enormous prison complex, all of its ten floors, gave in at once plummeting those in its structure into a cascade of endless darkness.

"NOOOOO!" the Dragon Knight let out a blood-curdling scream as he, his comrades, friends, and loved ones hopelessly fell into the abyss.