Alright! 20th Chapter! (Finally...)
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Listen, I'm sorry about not updating for...2 weeks? I've been quite...well...Ah, I'll come out and say it! I've. Been. Procrastinating! That's right folks! Also, fakeivy pointed out a small flaw, that, since Naruto gained Kyuubi's genetic memory of fire resistance, that he should not have been affected. Well, fact of the matter, He gained only a resistance to fire, not a constant stream of it, which still acts as a kiln. But thatnks for pointing that out! You get...well...your name in writing...I guess...
Disclaimer! As much as I'd like to own Naruto, as well as Elric, I don't own them...Nor, at this point, would I WANT to own Naruto! Has anyone seen that poor excuse of a fanfic they called the latest manga chapter? I mean, honestly, EVERYONE takes Zabuza's sword! Heck, even I did! ...ON WITH THE SHOW!
"Blah"-person speaking...'Blah'-person thinking..."Blah"-Demon speaking...'Blah'-Demon thinking..."Blah"-Memory speaking(they don't think)...'Blah'-Pyron speaking through mental pathways.
Leaves of Steel, Chapter 20
Chunin Stadiums 8:25AM
Tenten was searching for the Blond Genin for 25 of the 30 minutes, but could not find him, buns bobbing in frustration.
"NARUTO! WHERE THE HELL ARE YOU!?" she screamed, rattling the kunai in a nearby ANBU's holster.
Said ANBU was wearing a dog mask, leaning against the wall. He or she had been instructed to watch over this particular competitor, as each ANBU had a charge in their care. The ANBU was a specialist in emotions, and said ANBU was thinking only one thing:
'Whoever that Naruto is, he had better not piss her off further.'
In truth, Naruto was in the hospital wing, looking over the Hyuuga's Branch House Prodigy, Neji. He could feel it. He could see it. He knew the cut was there. He knew what was going to happen to him. So did Hinata.
Hinata was standing outside the room, re-reading her notes. She had been there. That day, when Naruto had cut his teacher. She had visited the dying man, and knew, by use of her Byakugan, what was happening to him. She saw his coils loosening, and, by some odd paradox, she had seen Neji's go through the same process.
'Pah, he was weak anyways!' thought the emboldened Hyuuga Heiress, 'It was his fault he refused the armor I offered him before the exam. Oh well, at least that means Naruto-kun will get stronger!' she ended, on a happy note.
Lee ran by her, into the room, "Neji!" he called to the unconscious male, before switiching his sights to Naruto, "I'm sure that, whatever you did to my team-mate, it was EXTREMELY un-youthful! I will pay you back, during our fight, and that is a promise!" he shouted in Naruto's face, before a bony appendage ripped him away.
"Well, well, what have we here? Threatening my master? I will have none of this!" the skeletal figure, who had stepped out of the shadows, said, in a menacing tone.
He lifted the green-clad warrior, and stepped towards his Necromancer, his link to life, "I wish to fight this upcoming battle in your stead, Naruto-sama!" he demanded, a shaking finger pointed at Lee.
Naruto simply nodded, and left Neji's ward. As he did this, Yonshu gripped Lee by the collar of his suit, and slammed him against the wall, before relaxing his grip, and letting him slide down. The Undead left, with a vicious grin upon his bones.
Lee's breaths came rapidly, as he saw the bones of the left hand, bleached white, form into the seal of the demon, middle and ring fingers down, pointer and pinky up. Resting to the side of the pointer lay the thumb, extended to its fullest. Said seal flashed green, and Neji convulsed in pain.
Lee ran to his friend's side, "Neji! I swear, upon the name of Gai, that I shall avenge you!" the boy then left, unaware of the cut, bubbling spiritual energy, increasing output by the second.
Stadium: 8:30 AM
Hayate called the competitors to their box, and signaled that the break was over. The Kages had been sharing a bottle of Sake, laughing about the old times, which they promptly stopped, regaining that regal look they always maintained. A flare signaled that the matches were about to start.
Hayate silenced the crowd, and called out to them, "Lee vs. Uzumaki Naruto!"
Lee ran down at full speed, which appeared to be shunshin. Naruto simply sat at the base of the stairs, waving Yonshu into battle. The animated dead walked to the center of the ring, bones clinking like wind-chimes.
Hayate yelled "Start!", and so they did.
To be more precise, Lee did. He performed his sensei's famous "Dynamic Entry", and followed up with bone-shattering punches. Or at least, they would have shattered bones, had he connected.
Yonshu was simply standing his ground, one hand blocking the kick, and all punches. He pulled his right hand back, so that the back of his hand was parallel to his chest cavity. He stepped forward, into his attack. The slap connected, and pressure seemed to slow, as Lee did not move. Then, Yonshu followed through, pulling said back-hand to the right side of his body, launching Lee into a wall.
The green-clad boy bounced off the wall, and began to spin into a whirlwind round-house. Yonshu was sent flying this time, cracking against the wall. He raised his right hand calmly, into the demon seal, and focused energy. A stream of old language, harsh to the ears, was uttered, and a glob of green, purple, and black encircled the seal. Yonshu then whipped the seal forward, and sharply back. thus was a large ball, which all signs meant "danger" was rocketing towards the Leaf Genin.
Lee barely dodged, losing a great deal of his balance, and soon found that a sword, gleaming red with blood, had been lodged into his side.
"This is the part where you scream..." reminded Yonshu, as fire began to run the course of the blade, searing Lee's wound, inside and out.
Lee jumped away, forcing open two gates. Unknown to either participant, Naruto had flipped a switch in Yonshu's body as well, but this one was different.
'Yonshu is becoming burdensome. Time to rid myself of both him and this "Lee" fellow.' the necromancer thought.
Yonshu paused. He felt powerful. He knew what was happening, to some extent. He could feel each gate open. He counted off each burst of power, 'One, two, three, four, five, six, seven...eight?!!'
It activated. The bones cracked, and the twisted nether flowed into him.
"What are your wishes, Naruto-sama?" the new beast asked.
Naruto smirked, 'Kill him. Once you finish with him, move on the land of sound. Kill them all' he ordered mentally.
The Demon smirked,, and turned to Lee. It looked into the scared boy's eyes, paralyzing him with fear. It stabbed its right claw into the ground, pulling out the sword that had been jammed into it during the transformation. The blade grew. It didn't stop until it was the size of a horse. It ran to the left of Lee, slicing upwards, cutting the boy in twain. The Demon then barreled through the wall, towards the land of sound.
Sarutobi saw the boy cut, and shunshin'ed down to Naruto, "WHAT DID YOU DO, NARUTO?!" he yelled at the boy, a series of tears leaking down his face.
The boy's head turned upwards, "I'm sorry, Naruto isn't here right now, please leave a message, and I'll tell him...maybe." his mouth moved, and his arm pulled back.
The ANBU were focusing chakra as fast as they could, but the boy's actions were a blur. The very same ANBU that had been watching over Tenten saw an arc cut through the Hokage's head.
The head left the body. The boy vanished, only to re-appear in the Kage's booth, giving the same service to the Kazekage. The ANBU, along with the Sand's personal guard, all rushed at the boy, who drew his black blade from their stomachs, killing each in a hit.
It was at this time that Neji's heart stopped beating. It was at this time when Tenten fainted,. It was at this time that Hinata grinned. What remained of the Konoha shinobi all charged at the murderer, except for Hinata, Tenten, Sakura, Sasuke, and Shikamaru. Sakura blacked out from the terror, Sasuke was still unconscious, and Shikamaru's very soul was broken.
A glimmer appeared in the Blond's eyes, as black metal poured from his pores, covering his body in dark armor, replete with spikes, tastefully placed. The new dark visage swung his sword, cutting many in a single stroke. As the dead fell, the citizens began to flee.
The newcomer would have none of that, as he rushed, cutting down Old Man Ichiraku, his daughter, their customers, the relatives of those customers, and finally he came to a single standing person.
"Shikamaru..." the voice said.
The pineapple-haired genin gulped, before he found himself without a neck.
"It was nice to know you." he stated, before beginning his slow walk to the hole in the wall, made by the demon.
Iruka jumped in front of him, "Naru-" he was yelling, before he felt the cold grip of sudden death.
The boy paused for nobody, and then took off, like a comet, headed for collision with a major city. Indeed, EXACTLY like that.
Hidden Village of Sound 10:00AM
The Demon had been enjoying the blood of the Oto-nins, and was rudely interrupted by a white-haired medic.
"You!" shouted the medic, "You killed them!"
"Wow, did you just figure that out? Leave it to humans to state the obvious." the Demon pointed out, before returning to his little "feast".
Before the medic could strike, he was struck down by a blaze of black steel.
"Glad you could join me, Stormbringer-sama..." the Demon stated.
The boy tilted his head back and laughed.
The Demon ignored the maniacal laughter, and continued to feast.
Stormbringer stopped, and motioned for the Demon to do the same, "Would you like to hear some poetry?" the god asked.
"Very much so." his pet Demon replied.
"Too all those killed on the battlefield, I call your spirits, bodies healed. I ask you you dead to serve me now, but in what way, I dare say not how. From Death are your souls deterred, your weapons sharpened, movements spurred. I RELEASE THEE FROM THE VOID!"the god recited, greeted by the sounds of movement.
The bodies rose, lifeless eyes lifeless no more, but soulless still.The Demon clapped. The sword swung, the applause stopped.
"I have no use for you anymore, other than your power." Stormbringer said to the fallen Demon, red soul running into the sword.
The god then pointed at the bodies, which arranged themselves into a line, which was walked by Stormbringer, cutting the heads off of each one.
"All this power...So close...I need the other 8..." the God stated, making his way to a particular mountainside.
End of Leaves of Steel, Chapter 20
I BET YOU DIDN'T SEE THAT COMING!!!! Hey, I finished the exams. I never said anyone would become a chunin, or that there would be villages left to be a chunin to! Please, I want to hear what you have to say on this chapter! And that means all of you! Even if you don't have an account! Just voice your outrage at the deaths of Kiba, Ino, Shino, Choji, Shikamaru, Lee, Gai, Kakashi, Asuma, Kurenai, Anko, etc...!
This doesn't mean the story is over! I still have 5 chapters to go!
-Johnhamsta