Naruto sighed wordlessly as he trode down the moutain. The young rouge ROOT ANBU had gone through a lot ever since he entered Gensokyo. This place is so, so much different than the places he's used to. Perhaps calling it different would just be underestimating it. Naruto had also discovered problems that could potentially cause havoc in this place. And God knows that he'll do anything to stop said disaster from happening.

But in order to do so… he needs help. Not just help from some people, but help from a lot of people. And when he meant a lot, he really means a lot. Danzo has an army, his army of soldiers capable of storming countries in just a matter of days, and his army that will do anything as they are instructed to. ROOT is one tough dilemma. The more he thinks about it, the more complicated it gets. Not to mention, he must solve this whole upcoming problem without the knowledge of everyone in here.

Well, everyone, except one particular Alice Margatroid. God help that woman… to be able to stand up to him, to be able to hurt him… these… youkais are really, really strong. If they are strong, then why should he worry about this land getting overcome by little pesky humans?—if one might ask. Well, there's this certain somebody in Gensokyo, the Gap Youkai and from what he's been hearing about her, she's the real deal. The biggest bozo, the Don, the boss lady, the leader, the… yeah the point's there.

But it looks like that she is too 'occupied' for the moment, resulting him having to resort on facing this whole problem on his own. This is a real cluster fuck, and things haven't even gone to shit yet! It's at times like these where Naruto wished he never actually left ROOT. At least they didn't need him to think about stuffs like this.

The boy walked silently, his footsteps thumping above the thick layer of snow that coated the mountain's pathway. As he walked, he tried his best to ignore the cold sensation enveloping him. His jacket was torn due to today's small scuffle with the group of infiltrators, which has been taken care of by Alice by the way, and he's barely covered. The shirt his wearing, aside from being all blood soaked, is also torn from the torso level to the mid riff. His wounds are healed, but that doesn't ease him up with his current situation of trying not to freeze to death.

In the midst of walking, he wraps his arms around himself, making use of what little warmth his short yet well built body has to offer. He shivered, feeling a cold yet thankfully brief wind blowing past him. Then, in the middle of warming himself up, an idea shine upon him. He released his chakra, the seemingly intimidating vile and horrendous red chakra began seeping out from his body. His vision is clouded in red, and chains began spurting out from his back like tentacles. The chains swayed harmlessly, though it is useless to think so due to the atmosphere they give away.

The chains wrapped themselves around their host's body, like a makeshift towel to keep his body from freezing to death. As the chains finished wrapping themselves around his body comfortably, he adds a little of his fire affinity, and almost in an instant, he could feel his body temperature returning to a suitable degree. His affinity in fire is weak, probably weaker than his affinity in earth, but it's useful for purposes like these. He's not some copycat Jonin who's good at everything… dirty copycats always playing dirty…

Somewhere in a place that probably has relation to this story, a certain scarecrow sneezed.

Okay, back to business.

So, now, he decided to return and by return, he meant Alice's house. And by Alice's house, he meant base. The blonde sighed once again, this time deeper. He really, really does not want to involve that woman in this. But unfortunately, she had seen things long enough to piece them together. She's too dangerous to be kept alone. He needs to keep her under his watch and what better way than to make her join him in whatever thing it is that he'll have?

The Uzumaki chuckled. A funny thought. Him, planning? He was told that he wasn't much of a thinker in ROOT. Thinking is the other's job. He's there to fix things quick, quiet and simple. No need to think even. Of course, this way of thinking affected the mission outcome. But he could care less about that. He has no business with ROOT again. Until now at least. He doesn't know what Danzo really plan on doing, but that man has an entire freaking army under his thumb, and what kind of power hungry man wouldn't use that kind of advantage on invading a land like this?

Gensokyo's dangerous, he learned that the hard way sadly, and it'll be real shit storm if all ninjas and Youkais, shrine bitches and bratty fairies were to go against each other. Well, it'll be a mass homicide on the human's side but the point's there. In any case, he must stop Danzo's army the moment they arrived here. That's no easy thing. Danzo has good people with him. And not that kind of 'good', it's the other meaning.

All ROOT operatives are trained differently. Each of them trained by Danzo's best. He was also an instructor once and he has to admit, letting his stress on the poor trainees is a really good experience. But enough of his past in that hell hole, he really, really, need to think of something or else he'll be responsible on causing a major world—could he even call it world?—or inter dimensional war between both realms or something. ROOT's members consist of people—no, monsters that are capable of going through a shinobi's limit. He is one of the many in ROOT who is capable on overcoming his limit, with or without certain inside interference.

There's him and six others, three of them are Danzo's best generals while him and the remaining three are—excuse him, were Danzo's second in command. The reason why he left ROOT… it really pains him to remember it. But no matter, no matter how hard he tried, he just can't get over it! As he walked, the chains and red aura around him flared brighter and deadlier. Unknowingly, his rage has seeped through him, letting lose whatever negative energy he has inside of him. This caused the snow he stepped on to melt to water before eventually cooling again into ice.

If he has to face them in order to end this whole soon to be cluster fuck… may whoever up there help him.

He may be badass, but even badasses out there know when to or when not to act fucking stupid. Going against them is like going against… three Kage leveled Shinobi! He's just pissed off that a certain prodigy Uchiha isn't here anymore to settle things like this. The clinging sound that his chains made as he walk is quite an unusual sound. After all, this idea was literally just made a few minutes ago. As he walks, he is nearing the foot of the mountain. There is still a long way to go before reaching Alice's house but thankfully…

He is a ninja.

The chains around his body disappeared, sinking back into their host. Then, he did the same, he disappeared in cloud of smoke.

On second thought… maybe a bowl of ramen or two won't hurt.

"So… this is it…?"

A cold yet distant voice muttered. The voice belonged to a male, and judging from the sound, the speaker is obstructed by a face protection apparel. Or, to be precise, a mask. Before him is a view that is both familiar and alien at the same time. He had seen forests, lived in one, fought in one… but this place is not a place where he came from. This place is a strange land for him. For him and his allies. Standing on the tallest tree he could find, he figured that it would make a good vantage point.

His division arrived first, followed by the 14th and the 15th division. After a short yet massive briefing from their captain, they were tasked to individually start scouting the area for their V.I.P, or call sign 506. He knew better than to refer to him as 506. After all, he knew his name.

"Naruto…" the voice let out a soft whisper that is carried by the chilling wind of winter. "I'll find you." The figure jumped down from tree to tree, heading towards the small society he scouted a few kilometers ahead. Most of his division went north, figuring that they will find more people there, but he knew better than to follow them. As he jumped from trees to trees, he recalled a memory that began playing in his head.

The memory shows him and another masked individual standing on a clearing stained with blood and littered with dead bodies all around. There are scorch marks all over the place, and some small sized craters. After that, all he remembered was red. The color of death. The color of anger.

He closed his eyes, ending the memory. Opening them once again, he brought his hand to his mask, pulling the mask off and strapping it to his waist. Once the mask was off, the visage of a boy no older than fifteen comes to view. His face as pale as the moon and his eyes and hair as black as night. His expression held a mix between anxiety and alarm, it is rare for him to be showing this kind of emotion. In fact, if it weren't for his brother, he wouldn't even be able to show one.

After many minutes of tree jumping, he reached a suitable scouting location, a branch that is covered by the thick dense snow covered tree. His uniform is white, the usual black was replaced for the sake of the mission, and it blends in perfectly with the surrounding. With narrowed eyes, he scanned the place in front of him.

The place is a village, quite large yet not as big as the one back in the Elemental Nations. The village's gate are simple, two wooden gates that could be manually opened by three if not four men. And it seems to be poorly guarded too. The guard's sleeping on duty, one of them looks like he's drunk on sake. This is easy… too easy. Of course, he is aware of the dangers and threats this place poses. The reports about this foreign land is too much of a fairy tale to be called real… but that was proven to be a fact from the later reports by first group of people who were sent here to retrieve the V.I.P.

The ROOT operative's hands slowly draw closer, then he began to flash into a series of hand seals. "Genjutsu: Nehan Shoja no jutsu." There is no need to shout the technique's name aloud. In fact, there is no need to use it in the first place. The reason he's using the technique is because it will make it look natural for the guards to be asleep. So, even if he were to get spotted, there's no blaming him. Unless they're smart enough to figure him for the one who made these guards asleep.

He jumped down the branch, landing near the group of now asleep guards. He scaled the wall, using chakra to aid him and before he knew it, he's on the other side. 'Getting inside… success.' Now all that's left is to get information on his target. It will be hard, knowing that his target is fully aware of the fact that they are here after him. Naruto is not dumb. He is smart, even smarter than what the blonde gave himself credits for.

He made his way outside of the alleyway he landed on, now he's entering the busy if not crowded street. From the way he's dressed, he might attract unnecessary attention from the villagers, something that he definitely doesn't want. He performed a simple henge seal, changing his attire to one that would make him blend in the picture naturally. He is dressed in a blue and purple kimono, complete with the sash or obi to keep the clothing in place. The clothing he's wearing contrasts with his place skin very well. But fortunately for him, people aren't paying attention to him.

He made his way into the crowd, blending in from crowd to crowd. He knew Naruto. And his gut instinct is telling him that he's here. He began searching, from every alley to every store, from every street to every stands… yet, there are no signs of his target. He could use chakra to find him, but that'll risk intervention from his fellow ROOT operatives. They were all given the same mission: capture Naruto Uzumaki and restrain him alive. That is the current mission given to him at the moment, but knowing what kind of person Danzo is… there is much more danger to be expected.

As he was walking into an unparticular direction, something yellow went pass him. His eyes widen in a fraction of a second. His head whipped back, it's a surprise that he managed to keep it intact. But to his disappointment, such miracles won't happen after all. Someone that isn't Naruto pass by, a woman with blonde hair. A random passerby. Sighing in disappointment, he thought that it is a waste of time to be walking aimlessly like this. If he could bring more people into this, he would. But the problem is that ROOT operatives were trained to be loyal and obedient to any order given to them.

Him? He's thankful that a certain orange loving person snapped him out of that mindset. He paused, feeling his stomach rumbling. Getting hungry on the job is normal, no matter how surprising that is. Ninjas who are about to be sent out on a mission were given time to prepare first. This includes eating. Unfortunately for him, he wasn't even given time to prepare and not to mention that he was quite busy with a painting. Looking around, he began to search for a place to eat. He needs to find a place that is rather plain and not eye catching.

His eyes settled on a place. He walked towards the place of his choice. There is no need to worry for payment. He had retrieved some earlier with a little help of transformation. These people use a currency that he has no knowledge of, so he must result on using a jutsu to advance. He went through the stall's curtain, peering from behind. The stall's fairly small, yet not so narrow. Three seats are available and only one is vacant. He took the one on the further right, leaving the seat in the middle empty.

"Ah, welcome!" the stall owner, a middle aged man, greeted enthusiastically. "What would you like to order?" he asked him. There are no menus, but he knows what the man is serving.

"I'll have a large bowl of tonkotsu ramen. And also a cup of tea." He answered the stall owner monotonously.

"Comin' right up!"

The place is rowdy due to the commotion coming from outside. He's surprised to know that this particular stand isn't crowded. Or maybe ramen isn't that popular in this place? He enjoys ramen and had the leisure of trying different types in his earlier days. It was a rather memorable experience, seeing that there is no ramen in ROOT's base. He had to sneak out in order to get some and of course, he's not alone.

"Puuah!" a satisfied gasp came from his left, or to be more precise, from the other customer. He did not even bother to look, seeing that it was none of his business. "Hey old man, give me another bowl!"

"Yer sure kid? Well, kids these days need ta grow up 'fter all!"

"Thanks old man!"

It was no longer than three minutes that his food is served. He picks up the chopsticks before breaking them, say a silent prayer, adding some extra seasoning into his bowl, before picking strands of noodles with his chopsticks. He opens his mouth, planning to eat the noodles. Then, his eyes snapped open. Slowly, his head turned to left where he is greeted by the person beside him in a similar manner.

Black eyes meet blue.

It'd been almost two hours—at least from her perspective—ever since Alice returned from Marisa's house. They chatted over a cup of tea or two, just for the sake of wasting time. Of course, she hadn't forgotten about the choice that she made earlier today. She don't like it one bit, but it's necessary to protect Gensokyo from the incoming danger that a certain potty mouthed ninja predicted. In all honesty, Alice is not ready for a responsibility this big. Because she knew that this is going to be different than the usual incident solving that she usually do with her friends.

If these people are as the way Naruto described them to be, then she needs to improve her capacity further. The few ones that were here was easy, but she's not too sure on the future ones. What she's sure of, though, is that things are going to get turned upside down later. The blonde haired doll maker paused on her knitting, her doll; Shanghai flew over to her carrying a book. It's an amazing sight, seeing magic string controlled puppets controlled and seemingly brought to life.

Shanghai then flew over to the table, placing the book that it is carrying. "Thank you Shanghai." Alice thanked the autonomous puppet, emitting an expression of joy from the doll. It was a nice and peaceful moment for the doll maker.

BAK!

"Alice! Alice!"

The teacup on her hand dropped, creating a mess that will need to be cleaned later. She immediately stood from her seat, rushing towards the door. At the door was a rare sight. There's Naruto and another man. She then notices the uniform the man is wearing, it's the same as the group of people that attacked Naruto!

Seeing the look in the woman's eyes, Naruto stepped in to prevent something troublesome from happening. "Wait Alice! It's fine, he's with me." The woman calmed down, yet the fiery look never disappears from her face. Naruto stepped forward, the black haired man behind him following in suite. "We need to discuss something important. I'll explain everything."

The puppeteer did not answer for a few seconds, soon, she nodded. "Hm… sure you will…" her yellow eyes narrowed, glaring at the newcomer hotly. "Please wait in the living room while I prepare refreshments… I'll have Shanghai accompany you." The doll appeared just as her creator requested.

"Thanks Alice." Naruto thanked his fellow blonde with a smile.

"S-Sure, just go and wait first." She then made brisk movement to her kitchen while hiding her face all the way.

Naruto stared weirdly at the woman, scratching his head in wonder. "Hm… weird. Anyway, let's go and wait for Alice." He turned and faced his company. The man is a foot taller than him, a fact that he desperately tries to ignore. He along his black haired companion made way for the house's living room. This is actually his second time inside Alice's house, yet he felt familiar with this place already. Not to mention, this is also going to be his soon to be base. Which means that planning and briefing will be done here. As soon as the both of them reached the living room, Naruto took his place and sit on the sofa. The other male took his spot on the one that is across of the blonde haired boy.

"So… tell me again, why are you here… Sai." Began Naruto slowly. He analyzed the ever so smiling boy in front of him. He is just the way he remembered him to be. Black hair, eyes, pale skin and a really absurd sense of fashion… he knew that his sense of fashion sucks but come on dude. Sai merely smiled. He did so with his eyes closed. Naruto sighed, crossing his arms. Sai is… well, Sai. Sai is someone that he knew from ROOT, a junior in fact. He'd been in missions with him, even some training sessions.

The black haired boy in front of him changed his expression almost remotely. It's rare seeing Sai being getting serious instantly. This means that things are as important as Naruto thought it would be. "Danzo is sending out men worth of three platoon just to get you out of this place, Naruto." He said.

Naruto gritted his teeth, his palms turning to fists as they clench hard enough to turn white. Anger and rage flashed in his eyes, causing them to turn red for a second before returning to their usual blue. "I knew it." His deduction was right. Danzo… that cynical fossil... the blonde haired Uzumaki turned to Sai again. "Surely, that is not all, right? I mean, if he wants me back, he could've just sent the Spec Ops, right?"

Spec Ops is a terminology used in ANBU to refer to higher ranking and better performing members. They are the elites of the elites—if one could say. The Spec Ops in ROOT and the normal ANBUs are different though, in all ways there is. These people are trained not as a human, but as a weapon. If ANBU training regime is hell, then he has no idea on how to describe the Spec Ops' training regime… he remembered seeing a training field becoming an empty wasteland of grass in the past…

"I thought the same too." Sai stated. "Danzo is no doubt planning something, but our orders now is to secure you and bring you back to base." He continued before pausing. "Our base is at a Mountain east of east of here, we've sent scouts earlier upon arrival to cover more grounds."

"A mountain…" Naruto muttered thoughtfully. And it's east of here… that means it's the mountain that he visited this morning earlier! It's a good thing that he scouted the area earlier and it's also a good thing that he didn't get spotted from ROOT scouts. The mountain seems uninhabited… except for the shrine on top of it.

"That's Youkai Mountain." Both boys' eyes are directed towards the hall, where a figure of Alice is standing near the frame with a tray in hand. "Making that place as your base is a big mistake. Don't you know that you have things in Gensokyo to worry about?" the blonde haired doll maker set the tea cups onto the table as she asked. Her eyes are glued to the newcomer's form.

"We know." Sai answered with his smile on. "That is why we immediately set out to find him," he gestured towards Naruto. "immediately. Waiting will be a waste of time and we intend to return, should there not be further plans, after we have captured Naruto." He finished explaining.

Naruto, feeling a little left out, decided to speak. "Okay, okay… I got your point. Now, about this army… did Danzo really sent an army consisting of hundreds of men just to get me out of here?" that revelation shocked Alice. She hadn't heard any of this.

Sai nodded. "Yes. There are also some extras for last resort."

"And let me guess, these… extras… are just who I think they are, aren't they?" Naruto asked.

"Yes." Sai nodded. He showed a bitter reaction, as if he's just about to taste poison. "All the Elite Seven are here."

Then, silence.

"Shit." Naruto cursed, dropping his head on the table top.

Alice was lost. She lost them at about the last minute or so. "What do you mean? Who are the Elite Seven?" she asked, not knowing the terms.

"Let me Naruto." Sai volunteered. He coughed into his fist, before explaining. "The Elite Seven are ROOT's top and finest members. Each of them are famous for their flawless records in mission…" his eyes trailed almost pitifully at Naruto's direction. "Well, almost all of them."

"Fuck you Sai… fuck you…"

"Anyway, they are also listed as the most dangerous members of the foundation. Naruto is one of them, followed by Kirin, Hattori, Issei, Jin, Lao, and Ming." He finished introducing the names. "It must be a miracle that they, excluding Naruto, are listed as back up. Should they be sent as a primary unit…"

Sai need not finish his sentence. Naruto was there to do it for him. "We'll all be fucked." He said silently, leaving a bad and uncomfortable aftermath to the mood.

Alice made a grim expression. But she steeled herself strong, not planning on being brought down by Naruto's negative attitude. She shook her head. "No. We won't. We will win this." Her eyes darted towards Sai, who stares back at her. "You, are you really not a spy sent by ROOT?" she asked. While she knows how ridiculous this is, she should at least try.

"No." Sai said flatly. There's no reading this person. He's all smiles and stoic… Alice can't trust him, but it looks like Naruto could. Then that alone means that she could trust this person. But this does not mean that he'll get away even after this whole thing is over… and if he turned out to be a snitch…

"There's no need to worry about him, woman. Sai is a trustworthy person, though you'll have to get used to his attitudes though." Naruto commented while lifting his cup of tea before chugging the entire content down his throat. It's cold outside, so having a hot cup of tea for the night is a good thing. The blonde Uzumaki sets his cup back on the table top. He changed his sitting posture into a more relaxed one.

"So…" Naruto started. "I've got a plan." Both people in the room listened. "Our main objective is to drive Danzo's men away. It's both easy and hard. It's easy because we knew what this place has to offer, you girls here are crazy after all and," Alice rolled her eyes at the remark. "it's hard because we don't plan on inviting more people to the party. Unless they can keep their lips shut. I've thought of a plan, but it'll require a lot of time and planning."

Alice suddenly speaks. "Why not just we find the ones leading the operation? If we could, surely…"

Naruto shook his head, crushing whatever hopes that are left in Alice's mind. "No. Do I need to remind you that these are not a regular army we're dealing with? Even if their leaders are killed… ROOT will still carry out their mission." Sai nodded in agreement to his senior's statement. "But that will put us to an advantage. We will then gather intel from the generals, no matter how tough of a nut they are to crack… I got something in me that'll make them talk." He flashed his grin. "Anyway, Sai I need you to keep us updated on their movements. Alice, we will still work on our side. With Sai's intel we will have more advantage on their movements."

"Roger."

"Haah… alright." Alice's eyes narrowed, aimed at her fellow blonde. "But you better remember what you promised…"

Naruto stopped his grin from existing. He simply nodded, not saying a word. Sai looked out the window. He grabbed his cup and chugging the whole content empty. "Then, I must get going. I can't stay here for too long. Oh and Naruto, I suggest you wear something to hide your face. Putting up a henge or an illusion just won't do, ROOT has upgraded their standards." Sai warned the blonde and orange wearing teen who nodded at the info. He walked his way to the front door. "Then I'll be leaving, see you in a few days." He disappeared into a cloud of white smoke.

The day is just getting harder and harder to deal with…

The next day, morning

"Are you really sure this is a good idea?"

"Yup."

"…I'm not one for sneaking, so please do watch over me."

"Heh, you girls are just used to shooting things to death huh?"

He earned a whack to the head for that.

"Okay, I deserve that. But come on. Sai said that they are going to do a territorial takeover on this part of the forest." Blue eyes that were once filled with mischief are now brimming to the top with seriousness. His lips thinning out into lines, Naruto did not like what he learned, not even a single bit. This part of the forest is too near to the village, and ROOT is planning to make this one of their posts. From experience, he'll say that it will only take them about two or three days to prepare a base along this perimeter.

Alice surveyed the location. What she's seeing is the western part of the Forest of Magic. She knew why Naruto is looking so tense. It's because this place is near the human village. The bamboo forest is near here too, but they have things to worry about here first instead of there. "So what do you want us to do? The enemy has yet to arrive." She asked.

"We will create an ambush." Naruto answered without missing a beat. "A surprise attack will caught the troops that are approaching here off guard, we will use that moment to get them with all we have." He paused before continuing. "They won't send their higher ranking members on this one, sans for a few captains, but they'll be easy to take care off." He shrugged his shoulders.

"An ambush?" Alice said out in disbelief. "Just the two of us? Are you sure?" don't mistake her seriousness for sarcasm. She does remember well that this is an army they're dealing with. And with the two of them, what could they do? Much less ambushing a convoy that is coming this way. The puppeteer was surprised by the sound of her fellow blonde's laughter. She looked at him irately.

"Ye of little faith." Naruto smiled. "Here they come." From the distance, even if she couldn't tell the presences that are approaching, she knows that Naruto is able to sense them even from here. She heard her companion continues his talk. "We will move along the tree lines, I've prepared traps along the way. But that means that they'll be expecting something so be prepared." He warned.

Alice summoned Shanghai and her other puppets to her side. Her hands steady to strike at any moment. They waited, seconds became minutes, staring into the seemingly endless and dark, winter woods. Naruto narrowed his eyes, though the smile did not disappear from his face. In fact, it grew into a small grin.

"Now!"

Then, all hell breaks loose.

A small earthquake shook the whole ground, then followed by explosions coming from the forest in front of them. Alice couldn't fully tell what is happening, but it must be an exact replica of hell in there. "Now Alice, let's go!" they dashed off into the dark forest, weeding out whatever is left of the convoy that are sent to survey the area.

Naruto, being the first one to charge instead of his fairer friend, released his chains and began to pulverize those who are attacking him. He ducked, avoiding a strike. His chains did his job of disposing of his attacker from his own head, but that did not end well. He sensed a spike of chakra coming from behind, someone is using a jutsu. "Katon: Karyu Endan!" a dragon head shaped fire bullet is aimed for him, its maw opening wide. That did not intimidate nor falter him, four of his chains charged on towards the dragon head, taking it head on. Both the chakra chains and the fire based attack clashed, in favor of the chains. The ROOT ANBU who used the jutsu suffered from multiple chains stabbing him right in his gut, then his half dead body was lifted to the air, before being torn by the chains who were wielded by the blonde rouge.

It's raining red, staining the forest's white floor with fresh and warm blood. Naruto could care less for getting messy. The blood got on his hair, clothes and even chains. The chains grew redder than ever, seemingly to have absorbed the blood that was rained upon them. In an instant, he is surrounded by twelve ROOT operatives with their swords drawn out. The blonde, who is now the perfect and literal meaning of a bloody mess, grinned. The chakra chains behind him grew in numbers, multiplying to eighteen, double of what it used to be. Like a possessed human, he disappeared from his enemies' sight, appearing behind one of them.

He pulled out his kunai, burying it into one of the ROOT ANBU's neck, he then used the same kunai to stab the masked person in the ribs, before snapping his neck into two. Three of the ROOT ANBU went for him, not intending to lose more of their comrades. Naruto greeted them with the same manner, charging straight with a bloodied kunai in hand and chains swishing like tails behind him. The first ROOT ANBU swings his chakra infused sword in a horizontal arc. The blonde swiftly ducked out of harm's way, he then jammed his kunai into the operative's thigh and his chains were there to finish him before he could even scream.

Another immediately came after Naruto was done with the first one. This time, he is using a jutsu. The operative's hands flashed into a series of hand seals, which Naruto recognized. Naruto too began to do his own seals.

"Raiton: Dengeki!"

"Fuuton: Kaze no Yaiba!"

Naruto's wind based attack clashed with the lightning bolt, it caused a ripple of air and electrical current to occur before disappearing. The chain wielding ninja used this as a chance to deliver a preemptive strike. He dashed, blurring to red and yellow. He reappeared in front of the ROOT operative in a blink of an eye. STAB! STAB! Two of his chains impaled themselves onto the operative's chest, lifting him up in the air before ripping the soon to be corpse in half.

An incoming slash was delivered, but Naruto was not careless to get hit by the attack. He swiftly shifted his body to the left, letting the blade swooshed over him. With crazy speed, he managed to break the sword whilst it was swinging down. The steel was broken into pieces, delivering splinters all over the place courtesy of Naruto's chakra enhanced fists. He gripped the sword's blade too hard that the splinters are flying all over the place. Some nearly hurt him. Without delay, he used his other hand, the one that is holding the kunai, to strike his attacker by stabbing him by the shoulders. Then comes the final blow from his chains, going through the man's brain as quick as a hot knife would do to butter.

There are eight ROOT operatives remaining. All of them are on the defensive now. Naruto is glad to know that these people know who they are dealing with… because if they don't, he'll show them who they are messing with.

On the other side of the destruction, one Alice Margatroid is currently handling herself well. She has her own army with her, the one that does not feel pain, fear and horror. She is keeping a steady pace, even counting the body count. She had just finished dealing with five of Danzo's men, five of them suffering from multiple impalement and shot wounds. Since danmaku is not effective against them, she must resort to using her magic. Her spell cards are still useful, mostly because she used them lethally.

The puppeteer is currently fending off against the remaining four men that corner her. She couldn't fly due to the trees, and they are too quick for her puppets. Though some unlucky ones did suffered. Willing for her puppets to move, she sent them zooming after the four men. The four operatives, now that they have analyzed and familiarized Alice's attack patterns, jumped back to create distance to prepare their attacks. Two of them disappeared from Alice's sight, causing her to be more alert. The two that remained flashed hand seals simultaneously.

"Suiton: Suiryudan no Jutsu!"

"Raiton: Kangekiha!"

The combination of water and lightning will be highly lethal for Alice. She needs to think fast.

"Huh?!" but she wasn't given the opportunity. The two ANBU who disappeared reappeared beside her, their swords swung for her head. Doing an act of pure reflex, Alice flew out of the way, taking things to the air. She crashed along some branches and leaves but it's nothing compared to getting hit with that attack earlier. This allows her to catch a small brea—SWOOSH! Or not. Alice tilted her head to the sides to avoid incoming kunais, while they can't reach her here, that doesn't mean that they can't make her land. She needs to land anyway, there is a limit to how long a battle like this could last.

She flew down, her puppets armed with spears behind her. "Hyaah!" she released the puppets to rain down from the skies, hopefully getting all of them. But her chances were slimmed down due to a volley of fireballs aimed at her. Using her hardened instinct, Alice dodges the incoming fireballs like what she would do a danmaku, some of her dolls are burnt, but most still remains. The puppets soon disappeared into the forest, Alice hoped that all of her attackers are dead or injured. But she was not granted such miracles.

Immediately upon landing, Alice was greeted by a sword aiming for her head. She bent backwards out of pure reflex, one of her puppets came soaring through with a spear at hand. The spear managed to pierce through the man's sides, giving Alice the chance to sweep the man's legs. The man fell, and his life was ended courtesy of another puppet that rammed its spear onto his head. Alice scanned the area, careful not to be taken by surprise. The last thing she wanted was for her to be caught unaware, she'll be dead if it were to happen. These people are good… though they are not quite as to this place's standard. If Naruto was strong because of what training these people had gone through… she shuddered at the thought of meeting the Elite Seven.

She heard rustling coming from the bushes and trees nearby her, yet she can't pinpoint where it is coming from. More sounds were emitted, all of them seemingly to come from all directions. Now she is being lead around by her auditory sensor, her focus being kept busy. Steel glimmered in the dark, then came for Alice. "Gurk…!" a sharp, cold and painful sensation invaded her. She could not hear the sounds that were disturbing her earlier, all she could feel is the sharp and cold sensation of steel being embed onto her gut. She coughed out blood, splattering them to the ground. She gritted her teeth, not used to feeling this amount of pain. The ANBU in front of her did not live long to see her struggle, a doll came soaring with a spear before shoving the weapon on the back of his head, shattering the mask by piercing right through his skull.

Alice fell to the ground, panting and heaving. She coughed out more blood, she's bleeding more and more. She closed the wound to prevent more blood lost by applying pressure to it with one of her hand. But she can't rest easy, there is still three more to worry about. She should've be healed by now due to her regeneration, but the wound was too deep and her regeneration isn't as fast as Naruto's. she gritted her teeth in frustration over her own mistake. If she were to act as a liability… then she would be eating her own words against Naruto.

The woman was surrounded once again by shadows who swooped down to scene, which was revealed to be the remaining three ROOT operatives. All three of them rushed towards her, ready to end her life. Alice stood strong, she summoned three puppets behind her before letting them loose. The three masked men were too skilled to be killed by the dolls, they managed to cut the dolls to get their way to her. Alice closed her eyes, preparing to take the hit.

"Uzumaki: Kusari."

SPLRRRCH!

A sickening and bone shivering sound emitted right in front of her. The fact that she is closing her eyes seemed to have made the sound more and more audible. Alice then opened her eyes, they went wide the instant they see what lies before them. Blood soaked chains are lifting three screaming men by impaling them right in their chests, their screams of agony are loud and clear in the ears. But what terrifies her is not the sight of the grotesque or brutal scene, but the one who did it. She had never seen a person soaked in blood before, she knew that that vampire loves blood, but she knew that she did not bathe in it. But here in front of her is her fellow blonde covered with the strong smelling and red colored liquid from head to toe. Behind him are his chains, they are still impaling while lifting the three men at the same time. Then he launched the three corpses off to the distance, he approached her.

"Are you okay?" Naruto, who is covered in blood and grime asked. His eyes then wandered down to Alice's abdomen area. "You're injured… a deep one too. Must be a chakra enhanced wound right there." He concluded while muttering to himself. He looked around, before crossing his fingers into a hand seal. "Kagebunshin no Jutsu." Clouds appeared beside him and four blood covered copies of himself appeared into existence. "I want you guys to clean the scene, make sure as if nothing ever happened."

"Hai." Four consecutive affirmatives coming from the four clones before they disappear. Naruto approached Alice as she was about to fall. He held her by the arm, using his shoulders to support her. "Hey, you okay?" he received a moan in reply. "We will return back, our job's done here." Then, the two of them disappeared into smoke.

"Hm… interesting…" in the shadows of darkness, blanketed by the darkest shadows, a figure stands observing the whole entire scene that was happening before. Her eyes reflecting the color of the grey clouds, she stood elegantly with a dignified aura around her. "Mistress would like to know what happened here…"

Then, time stops.

Then, time resumes. And she was nowhere to be found.

A/N: WOW!

Sorry that this took a while, I've been busy with real life the past few weeks. I was real busy, and I meant real. I was busy with school, part time jobs, and other unimportant things that you guys have no need to know. Anyway, regarding this chapter, I was actually planning to introduce Sai later in the series, but I thought that it's best to introduce him now since I planned on the later chapters being more on the crisis point of this story.

It's safe to say that more and more characters will be introduced from this point onwards, both from NARUTO and Touhou.

I'm sure that all of you know who that last person was. If you don't, then God help you.

Oh, interesting news, I will be updating my Good end theater again. The next chapter is almost done, so please do wait for it.

Well, that's all for today, hope ya'll have a good day/night!