A Serendipitous Key of Hope
Disclaimer: My imaginary lawyers tell me I do not own products owned by Disney, Masahi Kishimoto, anything from Shonen Jump, or Square Enix.
- Omakey -
Nagato walks down a path into the deeper chambers. After his skirmish with his friends, his resolve has shaken a bit. "Master Xehanort is the only one I can count on."
"Hey, you're Nagato right?" He looks to the left to see a man with a red scarf, dressed in a military uniform, and has brown eyes. "You see I got a problem; there's this old coot who's been talking about you, so I looked for you so he'd clam up."
"What do you mean?"
"Xehanort, whatever he's called. Got him chained up downstairs." Nagato scuffs.
"You suck at lying."
"Oh really?" He then walks down the steps.
Nagato watches him. "As if he'd have Master Xehanort. But, wouldn't hurt to check." Nagato goes in after the man, and upon reaching a new opening he sees to his horror Master Xehanort chained up to a post. "Master Xehanort!"
"Told ya," says the guy, before putting out a bowgun and firing energy bullets. Nagato blocks them. "I found out about those Keyblade things, and I realized just how good they are. He told me all about it, what a weapon like that could do. Who WOULDN'T want one?"
"Yeah? Well they're pretty picky about their owners!" says Nagato.
"Tell me about it; you're what he called Master material." He smirks. "So if I defeat you, I wonder if it'll change its mind." Nagato prepares to charge him. "Ottou! One move and the geezer goes boom! What, you think I'd fight fair?! That key's too powerful mano a mano." He pulls out another and relentlessly fires at him.
The bullets overwhelm Nagato, knocking him over. Xehanort from up above says, "Nagato, fight! Don't worry about me! You can't let this ruffian win, or you'll bring shame to your master!"
Nagato takes his advice to heart, and begins to push himself up. The guy fires, and as if in synch, the Keybearer fires a dark bullet at him. The bullet slices through the right side of his face, burning his eye and blowing open the chains sealing the Master. He scrambles over the ground in pain, crying out before running away. "...This..."
"Well done Nagato… You managed to channel the darkness inside of you," says Xehanort, before he jumps off the ledge. He then limps over. Nagato however looks down in disgrace, ashamed that he succumbed to darkness. He didn't channel it at all. As he expresses this, the old man walks forward to him. "It's okay. Your master, you see, is so afraid of darkness that he too has succumbed, to the tyranny of Light. He forgets that they are equals, a balance that must always be maintained, and has engraved it deeply into his pupils Yahiko and Konan. But you, are a perfect example of being able to control the darkness. You show the true Mark of Mastery."
He takes his hand. "You and I can do the world a great good; by wielding Light and Darkness in equal shares, we'll bring the worlds the balance they desire." He then turns around and says, "Seek out Vanitas, and destroy the darkness that upsets the balance, Master Nagato."
This gets to him. His heart overfilled with joy, he bows to him.
After their meeting, Nagato can be seen walking up to the garden while flexing his fingers. He then hears his name being called, and glances over to see Yahiko calling for him. As he joins him, the boy says, "Take me with you."
"I can't."
"What..."
Nagato smiles before patting his head. "When I need you, I'll find you." He then summons his armor and flies off.
Elsewhere, Konan wanders Radiant Garden. She honestly feels like she betrayed her friends. Coming to the center plaza, she spots someone up on the other side. "You… You're the boy in the mask Yahiko mentioned!"
"Oh, hey. Has he learned how to fight better yet?"
"What?"
"The only one asking questions is me. After all, you're expendable." He summons his Keyblade. Konan summons hers, and they stare down one another. She prepares to attack, but he relaxes himself. "No, you know what? I'll do this later. We could always use a backup."
He then disappears into a dark void. Konan catches her breath. 'That boy… What is he after? And what did he mean backup?'
"Konan!" She comes out of her thoughts to see Yahiko, and becomes calmer.
"Yahiko..." She prepares to talk about the boy she met, only to shut her mouth. "Did you find Nagato?"
"Yeah, but he left."
"Right… Yahiko, please go home. I'm going after him," she tells him.
The boy looks down ashamed. "Why won't you let me help you?"
"I'm sorry. But this isn't over, and I don't want you in harm's way." She summons her Keyblade armor and takes off for space.
Instead of following her orders, Yahiko lies in the garden staring off into space. He twirls around the wooden Keyblade. "Konan, Nagato… What's going on?"
As he reminisces about the past, time passes by. He notices two people walking by, one with red hair and the other having blue. The red head picks up his dropped Keyblade. "What's this? You still play with toys?"
"Hey!"
Yahiko converses with the two, who end up being revealed as Isa and Lea. A part of him feels better gaining a new friend, and he leaves to set out on a new adventure; he can't let Nagato go off alone just yet.
As Yahiko leaves, Master Xehanort watches from the inner chambers. "Hey!" A black arrow fires at him from behind, blocked by his very energy. Firing is the guy from behind, a bandage over his missing eye. "You said I wouldn't get hurt! I didn't sign up to be collateral damage!"
The moment he gets in close, Xehanort summons his dark Keyblade, positioned to his throat. Fearing his life, he backs away. "Whoa, hey, calm down! I mean, I just want you to own up to what you promised. You still need me, right?" The annoyed old man retracts his sword. He then sighs with relief. "I mean, who needs depth perception? I'm just glad he didn't steal my heart."
"Not likely." The old man turns around. "A powerful light still exists inside of Nagato. You see Braig, people like him don't have the power to steal hearts."
"Wait, so he's not the one who stole Princess Whats-her-name's heart?" At that moment, his Keyblade gains a gold shine.
- End Omakey -
The XXXI Keyhole: Ultimate Sacrifice! Hollow Bastion Arc 3
Ichigo faces the black dragon, wielding his merged blade buster style. "Tensa Zangetsu!" He leaps up and swings down, his full force combating the dragon's claws strong enough to summon shockwaves. Forced to wield his sword with both hands, Ichigo unleashes all his power to blow back the beast.
Maleficent the dragon rolls back upward recovering, before glaring forward at Ichigo. It fires its unholy green flare. The Soul Reaper looks back at his friends, noting they've moved out the way, and dodges with ease. The flames spread around to produce a ring of fire, and the dragon crawls forward; each step trembles the castle and sends shockwaves towards the group.
"Reflect!" Donald uses what little magic he has left to block, but the barrier shatters like glass afterwards.
"I got it!" Naruto jumps in behind it, but the dragon smacks him aside with its tail. It then shoots a giant fireball at him, which is blocked by Goofy's shield at first. He gets blown away, his shield shattering to pieces. "Goofy!"
"Getsuga Tenshou!" Ichigo's strongest attack blasts over the dragon, completely enveloping it. Though as the smoke clears, Ichigo and Naruto see that the beast is in one piece. "Whoa."
"This is gonna suck..."
As the fight progresses, Sasuke watches from afar with contentment. "Don't disappoint me Naruto. You still have some time left."
Back to the fight, Naruto gets blown in the air along with Ichigo, Donald and Goofy. They fall sprawled on the ground in pain. The dragon roars while crawling the ground. "Goofy, Donald, you two okay?"
"Yeah," says Donald in response to Naruto. Ichigo picks himself up as Goofy pulls out his original shield.
The dragon snarls, which seems to hide her voice with laughter. A field of thorns form around them, slamming into Ichigo and tangling him up. "Ichigo!"
"Goofy, Thunder Shield!" Donald says before summoning Thundaga. Goofy throws up his shield to let it get struck, and Naruto slams it at Maleficent. It smacks it aside, leaving it stuck in a thorn vine. "CRAP!" They say in unison.
The dragon charges another fireball and fires, forcing Naruto to run up and forms the Rasenkyugan. This absorbs the fireball and blows up, allowing Naruto to jump in and use his chakra arms to pull himself forward. "Rasenrengan!"
The first strike gets him through the stream of fire it sends, while the second is to slam straight in the dragon's skull, driving it down in the ground. The others use this chance to escape, though as they do Naruto's Limit Form disappears. "Uh oh."
The dragon raises its head and turns to face them, standing tall. Goofy from there sees something. "Hey, what's that?" He points to a scar on her chest.
"Looks like she's not so invulnerable afterall." Naruto switches his Keychain with the Mysterious Abyss, and forms ice magic. "Donald, let's hit her at once!"
"You got it!" The two combine their magic into a glacier. They fire it at Maleficent, who counters using a fireball. "Now!"
Naruto then jumps in and slashes at her scar; the dragon grabs him just in time however. "Dang it!"
"Stay right there Naruto!" Ichigo, revealed to have escaped the thorns, is pulling on his sword's chain the way of a bow and arrow. A red ball forms into an arrow as he pulls, before unleashing its full wrath. The arrow travels at high speed before striking the inner belly and sending it flying into the upper walls.
The destruction wrought brings everyone together. Ichigo goes to Naruto released from its claws. "You okay?"
"Thanks man," he replies, turning his attention back to the dragon. Green flames rise up from where it landed, accompanied by a huge explosion. Ichigo and everyone gets sent flying by her power, the green flames giving Dragon Maleficent an intimidating and dark appearance. Ichigo and Naruto raise their swords ready to continue fighting, before he sees something. "Huh?"
All of a sudden, the dragon stops. It then snarls in pain, wildly shaking about like it digested deadly poison. This continues for a bit, before it drops. The thorns around them disappear into a mirage of green flames, and her body melts down into her cloak.
Silent, everyone relaxes. That is until Sasuke makes his return. "How ironic. She was another puppet after all."
"A what?" Naruto questions.
"Maleficent was being used by the Heartless, from the beginning." As he speaks, he rubs his foot with her cloak, a distasteful way to signify her end. "She failed to notice the darkness in her heart eating away at her. A fitting end for such a fool." He then disappears into a portal.
Naruto watches as Sasuke leaves, even staring at where he stood. "Something's not right..."
"What's wrong?" Goofy asks him.
"Let's head back. We still have a job to do." The four heroes make their way out the portal they came in.
On the other side, Elsa can be seen nursing her wound. "Naruto." Going to her, Naruto casts Cura to heal her leg. "What's next?"
"We still have Sasuke in our way," Ichigo tells her. "We need to defeat him to save the princesses."
"We're almost at the homestretch. Let's get him!" Naruto helps her up, and together all five head out to the only other exit. They come out to the Lift Stop again, and with Elsa's magic sweep through the Shadow Heartless.
They soon come to a large door, blocking their entrance to the Grand Hall. Together, Naruto and Ichigo open the door and come to the main room; the hall is blue and red carpeted with a Heartless emblem with six lanterns lightning blue flames, before six cases that contain the Princesses of Light.
"Orihime/Anna!" Ichigo and Elsa spring towards the cases confining their loved ones. Unfortunately they receive no response.
Donald counts each girl. "Four, five, six… Someone's missing."
"Hinata!" Naruto shouts, realizing the last princess not on Donald's list. "Where is she?"
"She must be at the top," Goofy says as he points up the staircase. The Uzumaki doesn't hesitate to run up the carpeted steps with Donald behind him. Goofy follows close after.
Though as they reach the top and enter the main floor, Goofy ends up hitting an invisible wall. Donald looks back in shock seeing him fall over. "Goofy!"
"Hinata!" Naruto sees the girl who adores him lying face up on the floor. He kneels in front of her to lift her up. "Hinata, wake up! It's me, Naruto!"
"It's pointless," says the two layered voice of Sasuke from atop the giant Keyhole. "Little miss princess over there has lost her heart. She cannot wake up."
Naruto looks up at him, and feels something strange again. "Sasuke… No, you're not Sasuke."
"Oh, you can tell?"
"Yeah, I don't know how… But I can feel something up. I can feel him inside you. What did you do to him?"
"That's not important; he's not coming back. All that matters is that girl. As long as her heart is missing the Keyhole cannot be complete." Sasuke lands down in front of him.
"I don't know who you are, but give Sasuke his heart back!"
He scuffs, before saying, "As soon as you give back Hinata's heart!"
"What?" With a snap of his fingers, Naruto's heart twinges. "Ah! My heart!"
"Naruto!" Hearing the distress, Ichigo jumps into action drawing Tensa Zangetsu.
"Getsuga Tenshou!" He strikes at the barrier, but his attack reflects back and sends him crashing into the ground. Elsa goes to his side.
"You don't seem to get it, do you? Naruto Uzumaki, you have Hinata's heart inside of you!" Sasuke holds his Keyblade up pointing at him. "I don't know how or why, but you have her heart. This Keyblade made of the Princesses' Hearts is making a reaction of hers."
"Who are you? Are you that guy who attacked me before? Akatsuki?!"
"No, I am one of the Seekers of Darkness, Ansem." Now revealed to be Ansem, he steps forward towards Naruto slowly. Donald takes out his scepter to attack, only to be blown away by his blade. His scepter is destroyed, leaving Donald to roll down the steps and out the barrier in pain.
"Now princess, I shall set you free. Together with the others, you will open the Door to Darkness! And lead me into everlasting darkness!" He raises his sword to stab the down boy.
"Naruto, get up!" says Donald.
"Look out!" Goofy shouts.
"You gotta stop him, Naruto," adds Ichigo.
"Naruto, don't give up!" Elsa shouts.
The Keyblade comes down upon him.
"Naruto!"
He raises his Keyblade and blocks it. "Forget it; you're not taking my friend's heart no matter what!"
He kicks Ansem in the stomach and sends him back. Stunned, this gives Naruto the opportunity to run at him with a jump, and come down slashing at him. Ansem disappears at high speed dodging him. "I see exactly where you're going!" He throws the Keyblade Strike Raid style at Ansem from behind, who deflects the key back.
Ansem charges in midair towards Naruto to rapidly stab him. His opponent however recovers his Keyblade and easily blocks each stab, though struggles a bit. Ansem then knocks the Keyblade out of his hand while his left hand charges the Chidori. "Mahou Rasengan!" He blocks perfectly before the impact sends them flying.
Well, Ansem floats in the air recovering while Naruto rolls along the floor hitting the barrier. Elsa and the others gather around to see the battle, cheering Naruto on. "Oh look, your friends have gathered. What sporting friendship you have."
"The hell does that mean?"
"I speak at a level of intelligence higher than you," says the possessed boy before he jumps up and dives down. Naruto jumps away, avoiding his downward stabs that release dark shockwaves, before shooting off a Firaga. Ansem slashes it away and continues his assault, forcing Naruto to keep dodging. "You can't dodge my Dark Pulse forever!"
"You really name your attacks?"
"Look who's talking!" Ansem then changes tactics, swiping his blade to unleash several lightning spikes at him. Naruto gets knocked to one knee, staring up at the floating swordsman. "Behold, the power of Darkness!" He summons a dark aura around him and fires his energy in a slashing shockwave.
"Faith!" Naruto uses his strongest move to blow back the attack and even repel Ansem. As the spell fades, the two are at eachother's necks once more. Blades crossed, both try their hardest to push the other back. Naruto takes the time to lower his strength to have him slide down his sword and strike the floor, before striking his back. This sends Ansem into the wall.
"Please. Here it comes!" He strikes the ground, sending a wave at him.
Naruto jumps up and uses Cura, saying, "Heal!"
"Heal this!" Ansem appears before him as he does and slashes him down to the ground. "Welcome to oblivion!"
"Ragnarok!" As he's coming in, Naruto deflects his strike and in the same motion knocks him higher up. He then jumps, wildly slashing at Ansem as if he were fighting Sasuke from earlier. His blade manages to hit the mark plenty enough, before he aims and forms a seal. He fires another weak salvo, this one blasting Ansem and sending him crashing to the ground.
Naruto stands tall, breathing hard from using so much power. Ansem floats in the air as he recovers, his eyes turning to him with a smile. "I see you're at the end of your rope. But I have energy to spare."
"I'm not giving up until I save them," he tells him.
"'Them?' Sorry, but I'm not giving up either. Not until I set her heart free!" Ansem forms all of his dark energy around him, a golden aura rising off his Keyblade.
Naruto closes his eyes, muttering, "Ars Arcanum," before forming light around himself and his sword. He wields it in his left hand and draws the sword back in a stance, preparing himself for their final bout. With a tribal yell, Ansem flies in at high speed. But at the moment he comes within range, Naruto tosses his Keyblade aside.
To everyone's horror the Keyblade impales his heart, causing a dark light to unleash. This surprises Ansem, at least visibly.
"Mahou Rasengan!" With all his might, Naruto slams his attack into Ansem's heart, using all the magic left in his arsenal. The attack consumes Ansem and sends him flying backwards, Sasuke's body fading into the darkness. "Sasuke! Guh!"
The Keyblade still in his heart, the dark light comes out as a golden flare. He looks down to see the key floating over him, and transforming into six lights upon shattering. These hearts fly out and enter the bodies of the sleeping princesses. A seventh heart flies from Naruto, entering Hinata's body. She abruptly awakens, and their revival opens the Keyhole.
"NARUTO!" Everyone shouts running for him.
Hinata sees him turning into light, and immediately rushes for him. "Naruto!" She reaches out to touch him, only for Naruto to shatter into light. The poor heiress falls to her knees, stunned at what she saw.
The others come to Hinata with their own mixed feelings. Ichigo punches the ground in anger, Goofy drops his head in sadness, Donald begins bawling, and Elsa cups her mouth holding in her tears. "Naruto! Come back, NARUTO!"
"Naruto… Are you really..." Hinata feels like crying herself, only to hold it in. "No, I won't believe it. I won't let him go!"
Elsa looks on at Hinata, amazed at her sudden strength. Before she could talk, dark energy spills out from the Keyhole. Three apparitions fly out from it, entering the outside world. "Hinata, we have to go."
"Who are you? How do you know my name?"
"Naruto was insistent we save you and the others," Donald says.
"We're leaving, all of us. It's the least we can do for him," says Ichigo.
"So, you have awakened at last, Princess," says a new voice. From a dark void appears a new person; he has silver hair brushed down that still comes off as spiky, dark skin mostly covered in his extravagant clothes, and golden eyes. "The Keyhole is now complete. You have all served your purpose."
"You… You're Ansem," says Donald angrily.
"Not another step you dark freak!" Ichigo shouts before he, Donald, Goofy and Elsa get into attack position. "I'll make you pay for having Orihime and the others kidnapped, and for what you did to Naruto!"
"Please." Ansem steps forward without a care. But before he could make a move, he feels his body stop. "What?! What's happening!?"
The guys see an afterimage of Sasuke holding him back. "Everyone, get out of here! The Heartless are coming!"
"Sasuke?" Ichigo asks. "But, what about you?"
"I can't hold him back forever! Run!" An assortment of Heartless appear from the Keyhole, most being Shadows.
"Donald, Goofy, take Hinata out of here!" says Ichigo while wielding his Bankai.
"But, Ichigo-"
"Just go! I'll protect the girls, but come back with help! Only a Keyblade can seal that hole right?"
"But..." Donald contemplates his actions.
"No, he's right. We won't survive at this rate," says Elsa before taking Donald. "Let's get out of here." Soon, the four of them exit the Grand Hall. Ichigo then charges at Ansem.
As the fight progresses, a lone Shadow watches the four leave. It jumps off the ledge and follows after. It continues through the Lift Stop to the High Tower. How it knows where they're going doesn't make sense, but it's a Heartless. The Shadow passes by more Heartless on the way down, being ignored mostly.
Down in the Entrance Hall, Donald, Goofy, Hinata and Elsa make it down the steps. The Hyuga says, "I don't want to leave them behind."
"I don't either, but we have no choice," says Elsa. "I'm also leaving my sister behind."
"I'm sorry," she replies. She briefly looks back, just in time to see a Shadow coming after them.
"Gah, one of those Heartless!" Donald complains. "I'll fix 'im!"
The duck stands before the ladies and hits the Shadow with his scepter, though it doesn't fight back. It's just staring at them. "Confounded Heartless, get lost!"
Hinata stares at the Shadow. Her eyes widen when she gains a feeling in her heart. "Naruto?"
"Huh?!" Everyone turns to her in shock when she says that. Though as Elsa looks at the Shadow, she can't help but feel something off.
"Wait, is it?" The two girls reach out to caress the Shadow, before more pop up around them.
Donald and Goofy go to action, while the girls protect Naruto. As they jump them, the girls hug the Shadow shouting out, "Naruto!" Just as the Heartless reach the girls, a bright light expels out and reflects the Shadows.
Out from the light steps Naruto, hugging Hinata. "Hinata, thank you."
"Naruto-kun!" she speaks out in utmost happiness, hugging him back.
"Naruto!" yells out Donald and Goofy, surprised but happy to have their friend back. Elsa smiles happily before hugging him too.
The Heartless around them begin to gather. Naruto summons the Keyblade and swipes through them, making a path for them. But more come after them from where they left, and the recently revived teen holds his chest in pain. "Let's get out of here!"
"But, what about Sasuke and Ichigo? And the others?!" Naruto asks Elsa.
"There's nothing we can do. We have to leave and come back," she tells him, as Hinata helps carry Naruto and soon they take off. As soon as they break outside, they board the Gummi Ship before the Heartless vessels attack them.
Upstairs, Ichigo hits the ground a bloody mess. Ansem walks over to the Keyhole of Darkness. "Yes. Everything's going as planned. Now, to keep your end of the deal Xemnas."
Back in Traverse Town…
"So, what happened?" Yugi asks Naruto as he and Kakashi are with him and the other four in a living room. Naruto and Elsa recount the entire story to them, with Goofy adding details about Ichigo. Sakura listens in, and feels a sullen gratitude that Sasuke managed to redeem himself if even a little.
"So, basically, the Realm of Darkness has their Heartless coming through that Keyhole," says Yugi, obviously the confident one.
"No wonder more and more Heartless are everywhere," says Anzu with worry.
"All we have to do to stop this is seal the Keyhole right?" asks Naruto.
"Maybe," says Kakashi. "But no one knows what will happen once it's sealed. Plus there are still the super Heartless that came out."
"Well regardless I can't just stick around! I got some friends back there!" Naruto retorts.
The one eyed Jonin nods. "That's right. You have one more friend to worry about. Sasuke's Keyblade was born from the captive princesses' hearts, just like that Keyhole you saw. But without Hinata it wasn't complete, so when you set her free you destroyed the sword and awoke the other girls. With the Keyhole open, now stronger Heartless are around and even in space they'll keep you from reaching Hollow Bastion. If it was tough earlier, now it'll be impossible. Kaiba-kun should be able to help you get around it."
Naruto nods before heading out. As they do, Yugi turns to Kakashi asking, "Does Naruto seem different?"
"Looks like he got contacts. But why?" questions the Jonin.
As the trio make their way out the house they head for the first district through the shortcut, escaping the Heartless that make their assault. There they spot Kaiba by his workshop. Donald then says, "Kaiba!"
"I know exactly why you're here," says the billionaire. "You've damaged my ship too much escaping Hollow Bastion. It won't fly."
"What about the other one?" asks Naruto.
"It's been improved, but it won't matter. You won't be able to get back through that horde coming out the front door of Hollow Bastion." The trio look among themselves as they think. "However, there is a way to get around them."
This gets their attention. The duck, dog and dedicated turn towards Kaiba. "I stored a Gummi Piece in the secret underground waterways in case I needed a way out. Dive down there and pull it from the mural."
"Mural huh? Got it." The three nod before going off.
On their way to the waterways, they run into Heartless. Naruto forces himself to use Faith to blow them away, leaving Donald and Goofy to help him along due to its drainage. After jumping into the sewers they continue down until reaching a wide opening.
In this area surrounded by water with an opening above to have moonlight shining down on a crescent mural, they see Hinata and Sakura conversing with Temari. "Girls!"
"Oh, Naruto," says Sakura before looking to Hinata.
"Naruto..." Hinata looks up at him before standing.
Seeing this, Donald and Goofy go off to procure the Gummi Piece, while Sakura and Temari step back to give them space. Free, Hinata clears her throat preparing to speak. "As I came down here, I saw the moon shine on that mural. It reminded me of a story from my grandmother."
"A story?" She nods.
"She said that the worlds used to be connected, and that she herself came from another one. That there was a single light that everyone liked. But people wanted it for themselves, and fought for it; that created darkness, and drove the light away. With everything that's happened, I now see what she meant."
"You know, there's something funny about all this..." Hinata looks over at him. "I was trying to find you this whole time when I heard you got kidnapped, but you were with me all along. You were in my heart." She turns bright red at the implications, still not over her violet behavior. "Now that we're together, I have to get Sasuke back."
"You think things will ever be the same between you two and Sakura?" she asks amidst stutters. "He could be a Heartless by now."
"When I became one, you saved me remember?" This surprises her. "I was lost in the darkness; I couldn't find my way. As I fell I started forgetting things: my friends, my appetite, myself. It almost won, but then I heard your voice." Naruto's face brightens up at this. "I didn't want to tell Elsa, but you were the one who brought me back."
Hinata brushes some hair aside. "Naruto, I didn't want to just forget about you. I couldn't. We're connected."
"Connected… That's it!" He grabs her shoulders at his epiphany. "Our hearts are connected. And the light from our hearts broke through the darkness. I saw that light! That's what saved me; no matter how deep the darkness, a light always shines through."
"Naruto, we got it!" says Goofy as he holds up the Navi-G.
"Great! Let's go!" says Hinata, with a little more confidence thanks to the compliment the boy she loves gave her. "We'll go save Sasuke in Hollow Bastion."
He frowns, and shakes his head. "Hinata, you can't go."
"Why not?"
"It's too dangerous!"
"Naruto, I was with you so far. I want to go further by your side," she admits. "You can't go alone."
"The only ones who can go with me are Donald, Goofy and Elsa. Donald and Goofy are still looking for their king, and Elsa's sister is trapped there. Anyone else, I'd worry more about them while I'm fighting."
Hinata closes her eyes with a sigh of defeat. "I guess you win." She takes out a box and hands it to him. "Take this with you."
"What's this?" He opens the box, and inside is his gift; it's a keychain made of Thalassa shells in the shape of a star. The top shell has a face on it. It's wrapped up in a red scarf with orange swirls in it.
"Your birthday was a while ago, so I got that for you. The scarf..." she says, taking out the cloth for him.
"And what's this?" He picks up the star.
"That's mine!" Sakura shouts from where she stands, before covering her mouth in embarrassment. She then comes out to say, "That's from me to you."
"What is it?"
"It's my lucky charm. It's shaped like one I saw a long time ago, and I made it for good luck," she tells him.
"Okay, but why are you giving-"
"JUST TAKE IT!" she shouts, causing him to agree. Sakura then grabs his collar. "Now look! That's not a permanent gift; I expect you to give it back to me! Don't go forgetting about us and end up dying without giving that back, or I'll never forgive you."
Naruto looks between her and the scarf, before realizing the true meaning. He then smiles saying, "Don't worry, I'll bring it back. And Sasuke."
"Promise me that you'll be safe first before you do anymore," she replies. "I don't want to lose anyone else Naruto."
He nods in response to Sakura's feelings, before Hinata leans in to kiss his cheek. The act takes everyone by surprise not realizing she had it in her. Her words to follow are, "And Naruto, don't ever forget; no matter where you go, I'll always be there with you."
Kenshin: And that ends the Hollow Bastion Arc.
Kei: Oh by the way, you'll notice we did some things with Ichigo's Bankai. It's smaller but still retains the shape of the canon sword.
Claire: We theorized that since Ichigo didn't have much control over his powers, his Hollow form would appear as the Bankai since his Shinigami powers are also Hollow powers. And, why wouldn't he be able to mimic a Quincy's Heilig technique?
Yusei: Wish there was a better description on his powers in the manga. It just showed Yhwach stealing his powers and ending, not knowing whether it was permanent or not. Because when you get right down to it, the Hollow is his Zanpaku-
Kei: Can we PLEASE cut this short?! I wanna rest for the rest of the holiday season. Merry Christmas everyone!