And we're back! Welcome to Twilight Key, Chapter 36!
It's our 6-month anniversary! We actually got this far without the story going to complete shit! (Partial shit doesn't count, so shaddup) Our current story statistics are: 460 Favorites! 502 Follows! 548 Reviews! And 2 Communities! Thanks for favoring/following/reviewing/and reading!
Holy shit, we actually got to 500 follows. That's pretty awesome given the fact that there are only 6 other Kingdom Hearts crossovers on the entire site that have reached this point. And I'm still blown away that only 1 has over 1k follows…And it is from freaking 2007.
I envy those people who have such good timing that they follow a story only like an hour or two before there is an update. That's always a good feeling.
Good to know I'm doing their personalities right. The only problem I can foresee is forgetting to include Gray's stripping habit.
I'm glad to see that you guys liked the location of the keyhole.
I don't like the first portion of this chapter much. I just felt like it was a mess.
LordGhostStriker: I'm gonna be honest. I have no idea what you're talking about. Even after looking it up, I don't know what a mini heart is. Can you give me an example?
OmegaDelta: Short answer is no, she won't.
Yatsushiro Ryko: Thanks! I like to think that I set things up pretty well, so it is nice when I get people who say that. As for the update schedule and length of the chapters, I don't really stick with it too well, but I try to not let it get out of hand. And I really didn't expect for this thing to be so long when I started!
DarkLord98: Yep. This story is set before the first game.
Kairitrion Cerulean: If you had thought of it then I wouldn't have felt as satisfied with using it. Catching you people off guard makes this thing a lot more fun. :) And get out of my head!
HeartlessNobody13: One of the things I keep coming back to in the planning is which characters to add to other worlds. And finally! Someone who actually realizes I can't do those worlds yet!
Cha0ticM3ss: Why are you suggesting them? I haven't even mentioned One Piece at any point in the story. And Port Royal is a world that is still being considered!
redlox2: Pretty much, yeah. I'm not even going to bother to avoid that question as there is no point to keeping it a secret. As for worlds that Sora visited… :P
prototype gear: Please…Never do that again. It seriously took me up until "shine" to realize what you were doing. Just…No…
Dark Natsu Dragneel: No worries, I wasn't planning on it.
BlackxDragonxEmperor: I originally began with the intention to make this a Gen fic and that is something that is still very possible. I'm just entertaining the idea of a pairing.
risengaku: I realized it was a bad choice for music after. The reason I used it was because I wanted Magical Mystery during the Yen Sid scene, but I felt that it would have given away that it was Yen Sid before the end of the letter. So to counter, I began it earlier. After this, I remembered that It Began with a Letter would have fit just as well and probably wouldn't have given away that it was Yen Sid, but I forgot to move the start of the song. And nope, not in the least. I have never touched WoW. The game started with a different letter, but the game's timeline starts soon. I want to keep the group relatively at this number.
Anyways, on with the story!
I don't own Naruto, Kingdom Hearts or anything else. I'm just a broke college student...
Normal Talking: "Insert witty remark here."
Normal Thinking: 'Insert witty remark here.'
Biju/Deity Talking: "Insert witty remark here."
Biju/Deity Thinking:'Insert witty remark here.'
Scene Change: Insert Place Here
Jutsu/Magic/Technique: Insert Jutsu Here
The Konoha delegation wrapped up their business with Kumo a few days later and made their way back home. Because of their current situation, Natsu, Gray, and Happy decided to head back with them, and while many of the Konoha shinobi were curious who the strangers were, they didn't ask questions after Minato assured them that the three meant no harm.
Despite saying that they would, the discussion from the hospital room was never finished. This was partly due to Naruto himself trying to sort out how he felt about his parents and because Yoruichi again suggested they wait, only this time so Urahara could be included.
When the group arrived back in Konoha early in the morning, Naruto sent the Fairy Tail members off with a clone that took them to Urahara's place before dispelling. While this was happening, Minato dismissed everyone and told the jōnin to report in the next day for further discussions. Because of his duties, Minato was needed at the Hokage tower, but he, Kushina, Naruto, and Yoruichi would be meeting soon after.
Uzumaki-Namikaze Household
"So, you think they are being manipulated like we were?" Minato had a heavy frown on his face at Naruto's theory.
Naruto shrugged. "I can't be too sure, but it wouldn't surprise me. It wouldn't hurt to check, at least. I only noticed the darkness in you two recently, so there is a good chance that I missed it in them as well."
Kushina bit on her bottom lip in worry. "But how do we tell? Are you going to…read their hearts like you did for us?"
"Yeah, that is the only way I know how to check."
"How are you going to do it?" Yoruichi asked from her spot where she was leaning against the wall. "All at once? Or one at a time?" Naruto considered the question.
"All at once would probably be best." He glanced over to Minato. "How long until they get here?"
Checking the time, Minato answered. "Should be here any minute now."
A scowl appeared on Kushina's face. "And what about Kakashi-kun?"
Minato smirked. "I gave him the correct time." At the disbelieving stares, he continued. "I threatened him to be here on time or he would be stuck on D-ranks with Gai and his team for the next year." Kushina grinned at that.
Their attention was drawn by the sound of the front door opening and a someone entering the house. "Hello?" Apparently Tsunade was the first to arrive.
"We're in the living room, Tsunade-sama!" Minato called. A moment later, Tsunade walked through the doorway. Her eyes swept over the room and took in everyone who was present, but she stopped on Yoruichi. Not recognizing her, she frowned.
"Nice to meet you." Yoruichi said neutrally. "I'm Yoruichi Shihōin."
"…Tsunade Senju." Tsunade greeted. "So, what's this about?" Minato shook his head.
"Sorry, but we're still waiting on two others before we discuss the reason. For now, please take a seat."
A delicate eyebrow rose. "Others?" When she got no response, she huffed and walked over to the nearest chair. She had only just sat down when a large plume of smoke exploded out from the center of the room.
"Never fear, ladies! Lord Jiraiya is here!" The Konoha natives all sighed in unison at the over the top entrance. Standing there in a ridiculous pose was Jiraiya. Unlike the others, Yoruichi was actually slightly amused by the sannin's antics. Almost at the speed of light, Jiraiya's eyes zeroed in on the unfamiliar woman, only to turn into hearts. "Why hello there!"
Naruto blinked, only to realize that Jiraiya had vanished in the time he had taken to do so. Looking over, he gained a slightly disgusted look when he saw the pervert fawning over Yoruichi.
"My name is Jiraiya, beautiful." A hand slowly moved its way towards her backside. "You may know me as the man of your dream-Gah!" That was as far as he got when Yoruichi punched him in the jaw, sending him into the opposite wall. After watching his flight, everyone turned back to Yoruichi.
She shrugged. "I'm all for a little flirty fun, but touching is off limits."
"Ugh…Understood."
Tsunade snorted. "Not very likely…" She muttered. Internally, she was surprised by the speed the woman, Yoruichi, had used to beat the idiot back and the strength that was behind it.
It was at that point that another person entering the house attracted their attention, but unlike Tsunade, this person didn't call out to the others, instead choosing to silently walk into the room. While the face was hidden behind an orange book, the silver hair gave away who it was.
Kakashi came to a stop and glance up. His eye lingered on Jiraiya and Yoruichi for all of half a second each before moving to Minato. "You wanted to see me, sensei?"
Minato smirked again. "Good to see you're on time."
"…How could I not be…?" Kakashi couldn't completely suppress the shiver that went down his spine.
They watched as Minato walked over to the wall with a privacy seal and activated it. Pausing to think about what to say, Minato spoke. "I've requested that the three of you came here today because it has been brought to my attention that some of our mental processes may have been compromised." The mood in the room turned tense immediately. Tsunade sat up from her slouched position, Jiraiya shot to his feet with his usual goofy countenance nowhere in sight, and even Kakashi snapped his book shut and put it away.
"Please define 'compromised', Minato." Jiraiya said seriously. "Are you saying that we are being controlled and don't even realize it?" It was then that his eyes moved to Naruto and Yoruichi. "And is it really the best idea to have this conversation here and now?"
Minato nodded. "Yes, it is. This directly involves Naruto." He sighed with a pained look. "We only realized it happened because of Naruto."
"Maybe an explanation would be a good idea…" Tsunade said slowly.
"I'll explain, but when I'm sure that you are in your right state of mind." Minato replied.
"Sensei…What makes you think something is wrong?" Kakashi asked. "I'm not sure how much me saying so is worth in this situation, but I don't feel any different than I always have."
Yoruichi shook her head. "You wouldn't." All eyes snapped to her. "Let me ask you this, why did you dedicate so much time training Menma-kun and Narumi-san over the last six years."
"Well…" Kakashi would have shifted if he wasn't as experienced as he was. "Because they needed it if they were going to become shinobi." Naruto's lips twitched down minutely.
"Is that so…Then what about Naruto? Shouldn't he have also received the training?"
Tsunade had a blank look on her face. "He got training from us too." Yoruichi's eyebrow rose.
"Did he?" A nod. "When did you train him?"
"Obviously wit-" Tsunade cut herself off with a perplexed expression. "When…" Why couldn't she remember when?
"You can't remember because it never happened." Yoruichi supplied. For a brief moment, she felt a surge of protective anger on Naruto's behalf, but she kept in under control. "That's what this is about. Someone made you all become indifferent to Naruto."
Jiraiya rolled his eyes. "Yeah, sure. Sorry, but I think we would have noticed something like that happening. Not only that, but what would the point of that even be?" He shook his head. "I don't know what convinced you guys of that, but I'm sorry to say that you've been misled." Minato traded glances to Kushina.
Suddenly, Kushina thrust her arms out and launched chains at the three of them. Because they didn't expect something like that to happen, all three targets were unable to evade them. The chains wrapped around their bodies, constricting their arms to their sides and keeping them in place.
"What the hell?! Kushina! What are you doing?!" Tsunade shouted in anger. Like the others, she was struggling, but not even she could break free.
Kushina had a conflicted look on her face, but she didn't release them. "I'm sorry about this, but we need to be sure-ttebane!"
"Senpai, please be reasonable!"
"I'm sorry…" Minato said quietly. "But the fact that none of you are even taking this seriously makes me think that it's true."
Naruto formed a hand seal. "Shadow Clone Jutsu." Two puffs of smoke announced the creation of a pair of clones. "Just give me a sec…" Each Naruto stepped up to one of them and placed a hand on the sides of their heads. Closing their eyes, they concentrated. For some reason, it wasn't as strong of a connection as with a fist bump, but it worked well enough.
"What are you doing, gaki?" Jiraiya asked menacingly, only for Minato to slap a silencing seal over his mouth, which was soon followed up by two more on both Kakashi and Tsunade. After a minute, Naruto finally dug deep enough to feel the aura in their hearts. What he found brought a scowl to his face, which the others noticed.
"…Well?" Minato asked nervously. "Did you find something?"
Naruto nodded. "Yeah, I did. The same darkness is here…but it is still active, unlike with you. They're still under its influence." Minato frowned.
"Can you do something about it?"
"…I think so…From what I can tell, it has weakened considerably over the years, so it should only take some light to break its hold…but…" He trailed off. 'This darkness absolutely has some of his mixed in, but not all of it is his…'
"But what?" Yoruichi prompted, only to get a shake of the head.
"Nothing. I'm going to proceed now." Not waiting for a reply, Naruto and his clones drew upon some light and started to channel it towards the bound shinobi. All three of them squirmed slightly at the strange feeling, but then they jerked as if shocked before finally going completely still. Like he expected, it didn't take much. The foreign darkness contaminating their hearts died away upon contact. Once it was all gone, the three sagged as a wave of inexplicable exhaustion hit them.
Removing their hands, Naruto and his clones stepped back. "Done. Just give them a minute and they'll be fine. The darkness is gone now. Taking a closer look at it, I can confirm that some of Orochimaru's aura was definitely present." Kushina and Minato scowled at the information.
Releasing her chains, Kushina spoke up. "But when did he get the chance to? It doesn't make any sense!"
Naruto shrugged absently, too preoccupied with his thoughts. "I don't know, but it obviously happened…" He turned and made for the door. "I'll leave explaining the fact that they were manipulated to you. I don't really want to go through another explanation." That, and Naruto was also unsure how he felt about them. It could be argued that because they weren't his parents, Naruto did not feel as hurt by their indifference as with Kushina at Minato. However, this also meant Naruto himself did not feel as inclined to reconcile with them.
"W-Wait! Where are you going?" Kushina asked.
"I'm going over to Urahara's. I need to talk to him." He only got partway before Minato's voice stopped him.
"You are? Great! Do you mind waiting for us? I would like to have a word with Urahara-san as well."
The request made Naruto blink and turn to his father in question, but he only got a smile in return. After some thought, Naruto slowly nodded. "Yeah, sure…I'll be by the front door." With that, Minato deactivated the privacy seal to let him out.
Stepping into the hall, Naruto's steps came to an abrupt halt. He could feel a battle between amusement, exasperation, and fatigue begin inside him as he stared at Narumi and Menma…who were crouching right outside the door.
Narumi smiled nervously at him. "Um…Hi, Nii-chan?" She offered, earning a snort from her older brother.
Naruto crossed his arms. "You know…People normally set up privacy seals when they don't want any unwanted listeners." He said offhandedly.
A smirk grew on Menma's face as he and Narumi stood up. "That's true, but so is the fact that it isn't normal for a privacy seal to get set up in said person's own home. So…You wanna tell us what that was all about?"
"Nope." No consideration was needed.
"Oh, come on, Nii-chan!" Narumi whined. "Please? We can keep a secret!"
"I'm sure you can, but you don't need to know this one."
"Then why did you get to hear it?" Menma asked suspiciously.
"Probably because I'm the one that found it out?" Their eyes widened. "Anyways, forget about it…I honestly wouldn't be too surprised if you find it out eventually."
"Then there shouldn't be a problem with you telling us now-ttebane!" Narumi said with a grin.
Naruto denied her. "Not happening." The next few minutes were spent with Naruto shooting down each and every plead his siblings made. Their persistence proved to be both slightly surprising and slightly expected, but Naruto's resolve on the matter didn't waver.
"Is this how you guys spend most of your time together?" An amused voice asked. Turning, the triplets saw a smirking Yoruichi standing there.
When he registered the question, Naruto shrugged with a smirk of his own. "Sometimes. You know how it is…The big brother has to put up with the younger siblings."
"Hey!" Two indignant shouts were heard at the same time.
"No fighting." Kushina moved to cut them off before they could really begin. On the inside, she was happy to see the three of them were able to get along so well. The other adults soon joined them in the hall. Jiraiya, Tsunade, and Kakashi were all giving Naruto poorly disguised looks of regret and shame.
Jiraiya opened his mouth, but Naruto cut him off. "So? You ready?" Naruto asked, looking pointedly at Yoruichi, Minato, and Kushina.
Minato placed a hand on Jiraiya's shoulder, eliciting a sigh from the sage. "Yes, we're ready." The Hokage said.
"Where are you going?" Narumi asked curiously.
Naruto's smirk returned. "We're going to meet that candy shop owner I know. You remember how I've mentioned him a couple times?" Her eyes widened.
Nodding, Narumi replied. "Yeah, but most of the time you're cursing his existence or something…" She said dryly.
"Ha, I can see that." Yoruichi grinned. "But don't let it fool you, Naruto keeps going back because he can't get enough." Naruto snorted.
"Yeah…In the same manner that a genin keeps going back for D-ranks. There's a point to it somewhere, but it's overshadowed by the fact that it's arguably the biggest pain in the ass in existence." His eyes shifted to Narumi. "And no, you can't come. This has to do with what we were talking about in there."
"Aww!"
Urahara Shop
Naruto, Yoruichi, Minato, and Kushina walked through the front door of the shop and found the owner actually present for once.
Urahara glanced up from the stock listings he was reading from. "Hello! Welcome to the Urahara Sh-" His smile froze in place and the words died on his lips at the blank look Minato was giving him.
Dead silence.
The two men stared at each other in silence while the other occupants of the room looked on. Eventually, Urahara seemed to unfreeze.
"Hello! Welcome to an average, every day, ordinary, boring, and run of the mill candy shop!" He greeted cheerfully. "I am the equally average, every day, ordinary, boring, and run of the mill owner! How may I help you today in this fine establishment? Please keep in mind that we only have candy here, nothing else of significance in any way whatsoev-"
Naruto slumped his shoulders and groaned. "For the love of Kami, Urahara, shut up. You know perfectly well that the fact that I've brought them here means the situation has changed." Hell, the entire reason he said all that was because he knew that and wanted to mess with them.
Like magic, Urahara's fan was in his hand and he was waving it lazily. "Well, why didn't you say so? Welcome, welcome! It is a pleasure to finally officially meet the parents of my loyal minion!" Naruto took a deep breath to calm himself. "I don't believe we had the chance to speak properly the last time we met, Hokage-sama."
Minato was extremely confused by the man's behavior, but he nodded in greeting. "Right…You don't have to use titles…" This was seriously the man that taught Naruto kenjutsu? "I've been meaning to talk to you ever since the chūnin exams, but I recently learned that you were the one has been teaching my son over the past six years…"
Urahara nodded with a lazy smile. "Yes, yes. Naruto-kun has been a fantastic student. Should we continue this discussion in the back? It would be more comfortable that way…" Getting a nod, he turned around. "Then please follow me!" He led them towards the back of the building and into the tea room.
The moment Naruto walked into the room, he found two impatient faces in front of him. "Finally!" Natsu yelled. "Now you can take us to that friend you mentioned that can help us!"
Gray sighed from his seat. "Idiots. You do know that Urahara-san is most likely the friend they mentioned, right?" The jaws of Natsu and Happy dropped as they turned to said shop owner.
"Y-You are?" Natsu asked in disbelief, getting an amused look in return.
"Yes, I am."
"But you said you were just an average, every day, ordinary, boring, and run of the mill candy shop owner!" Happy cried. Naruto closed his eyes and restrained himself from showing any other visible reactions.
Was it really possible for people to be this stupid?
Urahara shrugged unrepentantly. "I apologize for any deception given, but it was necessary." He gestured towards the other seats. "Now then, how about we all sit down so we can start talking?" He suggested. Once they had done so, he continued. "I don't think I've properly introduced myself to anyone yet. My name is Kisuke Urahara, proud owner of this fine establishment and researcher." He looked over to Naruto and Yoruichi. "Would someone please catch me up on recent developments? I'm still out of the loop here."
Yoruichi nodded. "I'll keep it short. Orochimaru showed as expected and confronted Naruto, but I interfered. After a brief skirmish between him and myself, Minato-san and Kushina-san appeared and restrained him. It was the betrayal of Naruto's friend, Misa, who gave him a chance to escape." Naruto kept his face carefully blank at this mention. Natsu and Gray both simultaneously scowled and traded looks at this new piece of information.
"…I see…" Urahara muttered while glancing over to Naruto. "How did she create an opening."
With a sigh, Naruto answered. "Apparently, Misa is a keyblade wielder. One that's fighting for the enemy." Urahara's eyes sharpened.
"…What happened?" He could tell that Naruto was hurt by this fact, but had already reached his own conclusion on how to react, so Urahara would trust his student for now.
"My darkness went out of control and I had to fight it in my heart." Naruto explained. "While this was happening, my body was moving on its own and was attacking the others. During that fight, they" He gestured to the Fairy Tail members, who waved in sync. "apparently fell out of the sky and got involved."
Urahara raised an eyebrow and glanced at the three. "I'm assuming their world was consumed by darkness?"
"Got it in one." Yoruichi confirmed. "Anyways, the fight went on, Naruto eventually undid the damage and woke up, but passed out soon after. He regained consciousness a few days later while in Kumo and we explained to them the concepts of other worlds, keyblades, and a little about light and dark." She shrugged. "And that pretty much sums it all up." Naruto smirked.
"Well, maybe not." He got a couple curious looks. "B-san later took me to a waterfall where jinchuriki go to confront their darkness. He said he wanted me to get the chance to go while I was in Kumo."
Yoruichi nodded slowly. "Makes sense, but you have already done that, right? I can't imagine that the trip was very productive for you."
Naruto shrugged. "Maybe not the waterfall itself, but the what it held definitely made the trip worth it."
"And what exactly did the waterfall have?" Yoruichi asked.
Minato's eyes widened in realization. "Are you saying that…"
The smirk Naruto had turned into a full grin. "If you think I'm saying that I both found and locked the keyhole for this world, then you would be correct." He greatly enjoyed the stunned silence that his declaration created.
Happy tilted his head and traded a confused glance with Natsu. "Um…That's good…right?" He asked, getting a shrug in return from the dragon slayer.
Gray rolled his eyes. "Yes, that's extremely good."
"Great!" Happy and Natsu instantly began to cheer. Their noise spurred the others out of whatever stupors they had found themselves in. Urahara smiled at Naruto.
"Great job. That really does take care of a lot of our worries." Naruto nodded in agreement.
"I was actually really surprised that I got so lucky with it." He admitted. "I'm not sure how long it would have taken to find otherwise." Naruto leaned back. "So we're all caught up to what's going on now." He looked over to the three that were new to this world. "As he said before, this is Kisuke Urahara. He is the one that Yoruichi and I mentioned to you back in Kumo. Both of them are from a world that was consumed by darkness."
Natsu shot to his feet in his excitement. "So you know how to fix it?!" He asked.
Urahara frowned behind his fan. "I thought they explained to you what happened to your world?"
Sighing, Yoruichi nodded "We did explain. Natsu-san, we already told you that we don't know how to undo the process. As far as we know, a world has never returned after the darkness consumed it…" She hated saying it, but it was true.
The response Naruto got was a growl and a violent shake of the head. "And I told you that I'm not leaving it like that!" He rounded on Naruto. "You have one of those key-thingies! Can't you fix it?!"
Naruto rubbed his eyes tiredly. "I can't give you any definite answer. It may be possible, but it has never been done, as we have now said three times. If it is possible, no one has ever found out how to do it."
Gray chose to interject when Natsu opened his mouth to yell again. "Urahara-san, you said you were a researcher, right?" A nod. "I'm guessing one of the things that you research is light and darkness?"
The candy shop owner nodded his head. "That has especially been a main focus of mine since arriving in this world."
"And you have never come across something that may have indicated how the process is undone?" Gray couldn't keep the hope completely off of his face, but it died when Urahara shook his head.
"I'm sorry, but no. Much of my breakthroughs have only happened in recent months, and majorly in thanks to Naruto. He would know just about as much as I do, if not more."
Gray grit his teeth. "So there is no hope whatsoever?" Natsu's anger spike again while tears formed in Happy's eyes. This question immediately made Naruto shake his head.
"I never said that. I'm just saying that I don't know how you would do it. I would have helped Yoruichi and Urahara a long time ago if I did." Naruto said.
"Then let me ask you again." Gray began. "What would be the best place to start if we wanted to undo this? Who should we talk to?"
Naruto frowned. "I can say with near certainty that all of the people who are knowledgeable when it comes to this subject are in this room." He paused. The other occupants of the room were surprised when he suddenly slumped. "…I'm freaking stupid…" He muttered. Not giving anyone the chance to ask, he sat up and got into a meditative position. "Give me a bit. I can probably get some more information." Urahara and Yoruichi's expressions showed they understood what he meant, but the rest were left confused.
"Wha…?" Happy tilted his head.
Yoruichi smirked. "You heard him, just be a little patient." Although curious, they relented.
Station of Awakening
Naruto opened his eyes and saw that he was in the station. Taking a quick glance around, he spoke up. "Hikari? Yami?"
"Naruto?" Turing his head, Naruto saw them standing nearby. Both of them had expressions of slight surprise on their faces. "What are you doing here? We didn't think you would be back until it was time for us to get back to training." Hikari said.
Rubbing the back of his head, Naruto answered. "Sorry about that, I just have a quick question for you two."
A dark eyebrow rose. "Go for it." Yami instructed.
"I can't believe I've never asked this before, but what happens to the worlds that get consumed by the darkness? I know you've said they go into some kind of stasis, but is that it? Is there no way to bring them back?"
They frowned and traded looks. "…There is a way…possibly…" Hikari considered. "When a world is consumed by the darkness, a small fragment of that world's heart remains. It…could be possible to restore a world using that fragment."
Naruto's eyes lit up as a wide grin split his face. "Really? And that fragment? Is it just in the place that the world used to be in?"
Yami shook her head. "No…As the rest of the world is consumed, it would not stay in place. It would drift through the Ocean Between. We can't say for certain where it would end up, but it is likely that it and other fragments would congregate in one spot…Maybe even make up a pseudo world of their own."
Although this piece of information is slightly disheartening, Naruto didn't give up. "So it would be harder to find, but it could be found eventually? And it is possible for the damage to be undone with the inhabitants coming out of the stasis as well?"
"…Yes, it would be possible."
"Awesome-ttebayo!" While it would be difficult, that was still very doable! "Thanks for the help!" They gave him slightly amused expressions.
"No problem."
"Happy to help."
Urahara Shop
Naruto opened his eyes back up and grinned widely. Leaning back again, he gained the attention of the others.
Upon seeing the expression on his face, Urahara smiled. "Judging by the look on your face, I would say that you have some good news?" The answer he got was shrug, but the grin was still there.
"I have some good news and I have some bad news, but I think the good news outweighs the bad by far." He admitted. "I was able to learn that when a world is consumed by the darkness, a piece of that world's heart remains. It is possible to use that piece to restore the entire world and its inhabitants." Grins all around were formed. "Finding the fragment could be problematic, but a saving grace is that it eventually gathers with fragments from other worlds, and they possibly form some kind of world of their own. Looking for that would be easier."
Natsu grinned excitedly. "So we just have to find that to fix it? No problem, we can do that! Right, Happy?"
"Aye!"
Urahara took in the new information. "That is some welcome news. And it relieves much of my worries…"
"Uh…" Minato began. "That's great, but how did you get that information, Naruto?" Naruto's eyes snapped to his. "It seemed like all you did was meditate for a bit…"
Naruto's grin dimmed as he thought about how to answer. "That's something that keyblade wielders can do. We can enter our hearts and get information on certain things that way. I'm not too sure on how it works, but it does." He half lied. It was true that keyblade wielders could sometimes enter their stations and hear some voice, especially when undergoing the trial to receive their keyblade, but he was pretty sure that he was the only one that was able to directly ask Hikari and Yami.
Not knowing this, Minato nodded in acceptance. Without letting his relief show on his face, Naruto turned back and was amused to see that Happy and Natsu were now dancing together as they cheered. "So, we just need to find this world with the fragments and restore them?" Gray's newest question brought a nod from Naruto. "Alright…Thank you for the information." He said sincerely.
"No problem, I'm happy to help…but…" He sighed, which prompted Natsu and Happy to quiet down and give him confused looks, along with the others. "…How the heck would we look for the world? We can't exactly walk there and I can't yet use a corridor for that…" Who knew how long it would take for Urahara to finish the ship?
While Natsu, Happy, and Gray wilted, Urahara grinned widely. "Oh, is that all?" His dismissal got him the full attention of everyone. "I thought you had a serious problem." Naruto frowned at him, but his eyes soon widened in realization.
"You didn't…" He said quietly.
Instead of answering, Urahara got to his feet and turned towards the door. "Ladies and gentlemen, if you would please follow me!" Yoruichi shrugged and moved to follow while Naruto scrambled after him with an excited look, everyone else soon following as well.
"As you know," Urahara began. "I have been studying into the gummi block that was recently acquired in order to build a ship." They walked up to a blank wall. Tapping a part of it with his cane, Urahara revealed a hidden hallway that slid into view. Unlike the other parts of the house, this one was completely metallic and led underground, but not to the training ground. Urahara continued walking. "It took some time, but I was eventually able to make a breakthrough with it and replicate it." Reaching a door, Urahara placed a hand on the panel next to it and turned to them, grin still in place. "And I am now happy to tell you…" The door slid open.
Play Kingdom Hearts 2.5 ReMIX OST: Sora
"That I have succeeded in making a ship." He took great pleasure in the shocked looks he was getting. The door opened to large, underground hangar. On the far side of the hangar was a big tunnel. All eyes were on the thing in the center of the hangar's floor.
Docked there was a large ship. Many of its features were cubic, but there was no mistaking the general shape of it. The flight deck of the gummi ship was in the center of a red hull and encased in a blue dome. Attached to either side of the hull was a pair of yellow stabilizers that had extensions going toward the front of the ship. On the outside of the stabilizers were wings that were colored purple and red.
Urahara led his awed audience down into the hangar and up to the ship. "This here is the Stingray. It is a gummi ship that is nearly capable of traveling between worlds while housing a small crew, even complete with a kitchen. The Stingray is fully armed and capable of dealing just as much damage as it can take. And of course, it has a communication system that, if I'm right like I usually am, can be used to communicate from anywhere in the Ocean between." He stopped and turned to them. "And you wanna know the best part? It even has a built in cappuccino maker." He wagged his eyebrows. "So? What do you think? Feel free to lavish me with your praise and or worship now. I promise to only let my ego inflate a little."
Naruto took in the ship with an unhinged jaw before looking to Urahara. "You actually did it. You really made this damn thing in…What? Two weeks?"
"Well, if you want to go into specifics, then it took me about thirteen and a half days. I had to also make the hangar, after all…" Urahara said smugly. "You should have never doubted me. I said I would do it."
"I have to admit that I was wrong, this time…" Naruto muttered as he shook his head in disbelief. His eyes drifted back to the ship. Soon, he smirked. "So…You said nearly capable. Would the reason that it isn't completely capable be because you are still missing a navigation gummi block?" Urahara's smiled dimmed.
"Yes, I'm afraid that without it, this ship isn't going anywhere." He said, but paused when Naruto hummed in thought.
"Is that right? Well, then I guess it's a good thing I have this then, huh?" Grinning, Naruto reached into his pocket and pulled out the thing that shot out of the keyhole. This time, Naruto was rewarded with a rare look of surprise on Urahara's face.
"You found one?" Urahara asked.
Shrugging, Naruto held it out to the man. "Did I forget to mention that? It kinda shot at me when I locked the keyhole. I am nearly positive that this is a navigation gummi."
Smiling, Urahara accepted the gummi. "Well, I would need to check, but you're probably right…" He turned and walked over to a nearby computer. Inserting the gummi block into a device identical to the one he used to analyze the first block in his lab, he started scanning it. After a minute, his smile grew. "Well, what do you know? It is a navigation gummi! With this, the ship will be ready to go as soon as I upload this information."
"Awesome." Naruto said. Feeling a hand come down on his shoulder, he looked over and was greeted with a grinning Yoruichi.
"Now you have a ship to get to other worlds with." She said, getting a nod in return. Off to the side, Kushina frowned.
"Great!" Slightly surprised, they turned and saw Natsu jumping up and down. "We can go with you to other worlds! It works perfectly!"
Happy flew in circles above their heads. "Aye!"
Gray smirked with a shrug. "I admit; this does work out pretty well…" He looked over to Naruto. "Would you be cool with us travelling with you? We would also be willing to help out however we can…Especially in fights." Kushina opened her mouth to cut in, but didn't get the chance to.
"Of course he would be!" Natsu yelled. "If he is gonna be fighting against this darkness stuff, then it would be better for other people to help out!"
"Uh…" Naruto hesitated. "…I…guess…?" Did he really want to deal with their antics on a permanent basis?
Urahara clapped his hands, gaining their attention. "Wonderful! I was actually slightly worried about Naruto having to travel alone, but this works out perfectly!"
Naruto frowned at him. "You weren't going to come with me?" His eyes moved to Yoruichi. "Neither of you were going to?" Naruto was slightly hurt by that, but he would wait to hear the reason.
Yoruichi shook her head. "I'm sorry, but we weren't planning to. I would have if it was absolutely needed, but this works better." Urahara nodded.
"She's right. We would gladly help, but there are still…other things that I want to look into. And travelling with you would have made it, if not impossible, then extremely difficult to do so." Urahara explained.
"Oh…" Cerulean and violet eyes went back to the Fairy Tail members. "Then I guess…Sure?" The backup would be something he gratefully welcomed.
"Yes!" Natsu and Happy cheered while Gray nodded. Off to the side, Kushina's frown deepened and she was about to speak up again.
Noticing this, Urahara beat her to it. "Why don't the four of you go ahead and take a look around the ship?" Natsu and Happy looked excited by the idea. "I'm sure you're curious about it. Just go to the panel on the back of the hull to access it." The words were barely out of his mouth before Natsu and Happy raced over to it, Gray following behind with a sigh. Urahara looked over to Naruto. "You should take a look as well." Naruto frowned and glanced between his parents and Urahara. Seeing this, Urahara continued. "Yoruichi and I are going to stay here. I'm pretty sure that your parents still have some questions for the stranger who taught their son since he was six."
Naruto frowned deeper, but eventually nodded slowly. "…Alright…" He turned and made his way over as well.
End Music
Once he was out of earshot, Urahara and Yoruichi looked to Minato and Kushina. The four of them stood in silence for a few minutes, but Minato was the first to speak.
"What's the real reason?" He asked, only to get a raised eyebrow in return. "You didn't just stay here so we can question you, so why did you?"
Urahara considered the question. "…I couldn't help but notice the silence the two of you exuded throughout most of the talking." The usual carefree and relaxed persona was nowhere in sight. "I was wondering if you would be willing to share your opinions on what you've learned. What do you think of the role Naruto plays in this?"
Kushina scowled. "Our opinions? We are completely against it! How can you actually think that we will let our son leave the world so he can fight in a war?" She demanded.
"You think he shouldn't?" Yoruichi asked.
"No-ttebane! He is twelve! Why should he get dragged into this?!" Minato remained silent as Kushina spoke.
"You heard what he said back in Kumo." Yoruichi responded. "He was chosen to be a keyblade wielder. He is one of the guardians. You can say it is his destiny. And according to you, there is even a prophecy about it." Urahara filed that tidbit away for later.
"So? I refuse to let him leave like that! He should stay here, with his family, not getting involved in a battle like that." Something flashed across Yoruichi's face during Kushina's words, gaining the attention of Minato. With a small theory as to what it was, he spoke up.
"What do you think?" He asked quietly, drawing all attention to himself. His eyes looked between Urahara and Yoruichi. "What do you think of Naruto staying on this world with his family?" In just the interactions between them and his son that he has seen, Minato has been able to spot the obvious attachment he had to them. When Naruto learned that they didn't plan to travel with him, it was easy to spot the deep disappointment and hurt that he felt.
Instead of answering right away, Urahara and Yoruichi stayed quiet. After a minute, Yoruichi sighed. "I'm going to be completely honest with you, Minato-san, Kushina-san…I don't like you. At all." They seemed taken aback by her words. "I met Naruto when he was five. And you know how I met him? I came across him in one of the local parks as he was crying to himself." They were both shocked.
"He…He was crying?" Kushina whispered.
Nodding, Yoruichi continued. "Yes, he was. It turns out that he was crying because his parents were ignoring him and acting indifferently towards everything about him in favor of his siblings." They flinched as if struck. "I didn't tell him who I was at the time, but I made sure to listen to him as he spoke about his worries and feelings…I don't even know if you ever did that much for him."
"B-but, we were-"
"Manipulated by someone else, I know" Yoruichi interrupted. "But that doesn't change the fact that, instead of his family, the only one who was willing to listen to a child and comfort him as he cried was someone he met in a park…" She sighed and looked up. "…I guess you wouldn't know that he refused to give up on you?" Their eyes widened. "For years, Naruto tried to remain positive and understanding of you two. He was always saying how it would eventually get better, but until then, he would have to wait…It never did."
"…"
"Yes, it's true that you were manipulated, but Naruto still underwent years of questioning himself. Questioning if he did something that drove you away. Questioning that maybe he deserved it in some way…"
"No! He didn't!" Kushina denied.
Yoruichi nodded. "Of course not. After he met Kisuke and we became a bigger part of his life, we did our best to convince him of that."
Urahara joined in at this point. "When Naruto came to me to learn how to use a sword, he was just a small boy. I've had the pleasure of both watching and helping him grow into who he is today, and I have no doubt that he will continue to grow in the future. He has been a great student…I didn't even need to teach him what he needed to put into a blade to be effective. Naruto has spent the last six years putting up with me and my antics while he trained himself to the ground. He has passed out from exhaustion so often that we even gave him his own room here…And you know why he works so hard? The reason that he does his best to get stronger?"
"…"
Urahara smiled softly. "When I asked him after a month of training, he smiled and told me that it was because if someone had to be at risk, then he was going to make sure that it was him. His friends and family were the reason that he was doing it…A six-year-old told me that. And I have no doubt that his reason to fight has not changed since then." His gaze sharpened. "Naruto has now been working for half of his life for this. He is inspired to go out and help in a way that is just about unique to him because he knows that there are few others who could help in the same way." His grip on his cane tightened. "And I refuse to let you stop him." If Naruto asked him to, he would erase their memories of the last month and let Naruto leave without saying goodbye.
From her spot next to him, Yoruichi nodded. "I agree with Kisuke completely. I consider Naruto to be like a little brother, and seeing his relationship with his family is something that really pissed me off. I know he can really make a difference in this. He wants nothing more than to help however he can." Kushina and Minato stood there in silence.
"Hey!" They turned and saw Natsu running up the them with a wide grin on his face. Trailing behind him were the others. "The ship is awesome!" He came to a stop once he reached them. Noticing the atmosphere, he gained an uncertain expression. "Um…Am I interrupting something?"
Naruto frowned at the adults. He knew it was a bad idea to leave them behind to talk. "…Did something happen?" He asked.
Urahara shook his head, but didn't look away from Minato and Kushina. "Nothing serious. I was just asking your parents on their opinion on you leaving this world."
Frown deepening, Naruto turned to his parents. "And? What is their opinion?"
"…" Minato thought about everything he has heard and seen since being let in on this part of his son's life. "Naruto…" Said genin looked to him. "You aren't leaving this world." Kushina smiled at him while Naruto glared. Urahara and Yoruichi's faces gained frowns. Off to the side, the Fairy Tail members looked unsure if they should be there.
"I'm not?"
"No, you're not. Like your mother said, you are twelve years old an inexperienced. You have your keyblade, yes, but what else? Those other skills? They're good, but you can still be defeated. Just look at Orochimaru. Do you think that you can beat someone like that?"
Naruto grit his teeth. "I know I'm not strong enough, but I don't care. I'll still fight." Natsu nodded approvingly.
Minato frowned and shook his head. "I'm sorry, but that is a naïve way of thinking that will only get you killed." Naruto was about to speak, but stopped when he saw the cold eyes of Minato. It was clear that Minato was as serious as he could be. "You'll never make it."
"Then I shouldn't even try?"
"…No, you should get stronger." Naruto and Kushina blinked. Minato smiled softly at his son. "You aren't strong enough now, but that can be fixed."
Kushina turned to him. "Minato-"
"Kushina…" Minato cut her off. "We can't stop him. If we forbade him from leaving, he would just do so anyway as soon as he could. And…they're right." He said quietly. "Do we even still have the right to decide for him like that?" Kushina's eyes widened. "If Naruto really wants to do this, then I won't stop him." Kushina considered his words. "…What do you think?"
"…I don't agree. Not in the least" She finally said. "…But I understand what you're saying." With a heavy sigh, she nodded. "If you really want to do this, Naruto…Then I won't interfere."
Naruto's eyes widened even further. "You…You two will let me leave this world? Really?"
Minato nodded, smile still intact. "Yes." A grin formed on Naruto's face. "But on one condition."
Blinking, Naruto nodded. "Um…Sure?"
Minato raised two fingers to Naruto. "Two months. I want you to wait two months before you leave. In these two months, you will be training with us."
Naruto tilted his head. "You really think I can learn a lot in two months?" He wasn't expecting Minato to smirk.
"You may not have the chakra of the Kyūbi, but you're still an Uzumaki. The beauty of that is the massive chakra reserves." Kushina grinned proudly. "You can use that to train with Shadow Clones. Things should be easier with that." He lowered his hand and quirked an eyebrow. "So? Do we have a deal?" Naruto smirked.
"Yeah…sure." He was extremely surprised that they were going to let him leave, but he could ask Urahara the real reason why later.
"Good. Then we start tomorrow."
"Great!" Urahara said with a wide grin. "Then that gives you two months to learn how to operate the gummi ship and navigate! We can do that in between training." He paused as a thought came to him. "Who is going to be the copilot?"
Natsu looked excited by the idea, but Gray cut him off. "Me." He said hurriedly. "I'm copilot." There was no way he would let Natsu ever touch the controls.
The dragon slayer rounded on Gray with an angry expression. "And why the hell do you get to do it?!" He crossed his arms. "If someone gets to decide, then it's Naruto!" They turned to him at the same time.
"…Gray is copilot." There was no way he was ever letting Natsu touch the controls.
Natsu slumped. "Aww…"
Happy patted his shoulder. "It's okay, Natsu. There has to be someone who is useless. Just look at Lucy!" Naruto sweat dropped at this.
He didn't know who she was, but he felt bad for this Lucy person.
Yen Sid sat in his tower, writing a letter to his student. After heavy deliberation, he decided that the best thing for Mickey to do at this point was to wait a little while longer. If things did indeed get worse, then perhaps leaving his kingdom to investigate would be the best course of action.
He paused when someone knocked on his door. Frowning, he tried to think about who it could be. Yen Sid noticed the person's presence the moment they had stepped foot on his world, but he didn't recognize them. Putting his pen down, he leaned back.
"Enter." The door opened and the person walked in. After briefly taking in their appearance and taking note of a particular feature, Yen Sid raised an eyebrow. "I do not believe we have met. Would you please tell me who you are and why you have come here?"
Instead of answering, the person raised a hand to the side. Yen Sid's other eyebrow rose to meet the other in surprise at what happened next and he leaned forward with his hands steepled.
"Yes, I see…Very interesting."
There we go! All done with Chapter 36!
Hey, I've been thinking about this for a while, but would it be better for me to mark this story as completed and start the Kingdom Hearts storyline in a new one? I have some doubts about the point of doing it, but I thought I would ask anyways.
Do I say "on" or "in" when talking about location of a person in respect to a world? For example, I had Urahara say "…of mine since arriving in this world." Is that right, or should I switch "in" out? I feel like what I have is correct in this context, but I'm confused because I'm pretty sure that "on" would be used in real life…like when talking about an astronaut on the moon.
I'm not even going to even begin to think that I can do a good job describing that damn gummi ship. You wanna know what it looks like? Then look up the Kingdom Hearts Final Mix Stingray gummi ship. To be sure that you're looking at the right one, go to the khwiki. Or if you're lazy, use this link. (Remove spaces and replace "dot" with ".")
khwiki dot com / File : Model_ Stingray_ KHFM dot png
Props to everyone who noticed that DBZ reference.
For those of you who couldn't predict that 3 comes after 2, yes. Natsu, Happy, and Gray are the ones I have chosen as Naruto's travelling companions. I have literally had them written down as such since around chapter 4.
So…Guess what happens next chapter! We're finally here!
Questions? Comments? Concerns? Post a review!
Until next time,
Kog6943