A/N- Whoa! Almost 1,000 more hits since I posted the last chapter! (Only around 200 or so actually read the last chapter though, so, I dunno.) Anyway, thank you all who reviewed!
WARNING! The latter part of this chapter contains scenes of explecit violence and gore, not to mention some rather dirty language and bad situations not meant for kids, as well as some fluffy stuff! You have been warned!
Chapter 6, The Fight for Konoha part 1, Sword of the Executioner
Naruto didn't know how long he'd been running. At times, it felt like he'd only been running for a few minutes, at others like days, yet he never grew tired. He had no way of knowing how long it had been, for nothing ever changed in this odd, shadowed place, but he knew that he had to continue, his sense of urgency driving him ever-onward over the seemingly endless path.
And so Naruto continued his journey along the timeless path between worlds, in the land of the dead.
Naruto began to tic off the miles as he ran, jus to see how long it would take him to get home, where ever home was, though after nearly a thousand miles, he grew bored with that. He'd tried multiple times to veer off the path, to wander across the vast plains and see if there could be another way, but he could never get more than a dozen feet in either direction before he was abruptly stopped by an unseen force, as if an invisible wall would suddenly spring up in front of him. Cursing after slamming into the wall for the seventh time, Naruto decided to just continue along the path ahead.
He'd taken no more than a dozen steps though, when Naruto felt an eerie, yet familar presence directly behind himself, and his stomach began to tingle. Whirling around, Naruto came face-to-face with a large creature, maybe fifteen feet tall, hovering there, wearing a ragged black hakama. It's hair was white and unruly, it's face pale and pointed, and it's mouth full of needle-sharp teeth. It's eyes were narrowed into cruel slits and trained directly onto Naruto's face. "HOLY JEEZUM-CROW! IT'S THE SHINIGAMI!!" Naruto screeched, leaping back, his hair standing on end.
"What are you doing here, little shinigami? Your kind does not belong here." The death god rumbled, reaching into it's hakama and drawing a rather large knife.
"Waitwaitwait! I'm no shinigami! I'm Naruto Uzumaki, ninja extrodinare!" Naruto exlaimed, eyeing the large blade that was pointed at him with trepidation. "Besides, I can't be the shinigami, 'cuz that's you!" He followed up, pointing at the large creature.
The ghostly being gazed at Naruto. "...If you are not a shinigami from the other world, then why do you have the powers and garb of one?" It asked.
Naruto looked down in surprize at his own shinigami attire. "WHAT THE HELL?! Where's my jumpsuit?!" He questioned, searching under the robes, finding nothing but his own chest. "So is that what those guys were? Shinigami? I thought you were the only one!" He exlaimed, pointing at the floating figure again.
The shinigami tilted it's head, looking at the strange little ghost before it. "So you came into contact with others... and it awakened your own latent powers..." It stated slowly, floating forward a bit as it bent over slightly to get a closer look at Naruto. "I have the form of a shinigami, yet I am not truely one. I am one of the three paths of the dead, given this form to help those of your realm find their way to the afterlife. You, however, have already gone down the path, met the real shinigami, and have come back along the path. Why do you come back? You have died." It stated.
"Because I've gotta get back to save everyone, beat the hell outta Akatsuki and that bastard fox, and become Hokage!" Naruto exlaimed, striking (what he thought was) a heroic pose, one hand on his hip and the other pointing upwards into the distance.
Something seemed to spark in the Shinigami's eyes. "Fox?" It asked.
Naruto nodded, squinting his eyes as he crossed his arms. "Yeah! The Kyuubi no Kitsune, the greatest of all the tailed demons! That stupid idiot managed to convince me that he'd turned a new leaf, and he wanted to help me kill our enemies and save all of my friends, even though we'd die in the process! I agreed and released him, and we attacked those Akatuki bastards, putting everything into one last attack! But at the last second, they unsealed some giant statue and the Kyuubi willingly went into it, taking my chakra with him! Then that orange-masked freak told me that they'd been planning that all along! Fucking assholes!" Naruto yelled, waving his arms about in frustration.
The death god nodded slowly. "That explains a lot, young one, and tells me who you are, for I was the one who pulled half of the Kyuubi into you." It stated, it's rumbling voice unchanging.
Naruto looked up at the Shinigami in shock. "Wait, only half?! So there's another half sealed somewhere else?" He asked in surprize
The Shinigami nodded silently.
"THEN WHAT IN THE HELL ARE WE SITTING AROUND HERE FOR?! I'VE GOTTA GO FIND THAT THING AND MAKE SURE THAT THOSE BASTARDS DON'T GET THEIR HANDS ON IT!" Naruto screamed, getting ready to sprint off.
"Hold, boy." The Shinigami said, floating around in front of Naruto, blocking his path. "The fact remains that you are dead, Naruto Namikaze. While it is possible for you to reinhabit your body, due to your being a Shinigami, it will most likely disrupt the new balance that has been created. Millenia ago, the Shinigami and the mortals of the realm that is the twin to your own feared the power that your ancestor developed, and created great machines that tried to sever the ties that bound the worlds, disrupting the balance. I was born, as well as a psuedo-demonic plain to pull everything back into the great balance, and the powers of the Shinigami were forever sealed from your world. Your going back could very well disrupt this tenuous balance again. Could you live with the consequences? Would you risk bringing the world to chaos and ruin?" It asked.
Naruto glared up at the great being before him. "Listen up! You talk as if my going back will bring about the end of the world or something, which is an uncertain thing in any case. But if I don't go back and stop Akatsuki, they WILL destroy the world, that much can guarantee, because that's the only possible reason why they could need such an incredible power as the nine great demons to make a weapon! I don't know how or why, but I do know that I need to stop them!" He retorted angrily.
The Shinigami nodded lowly, as if mulling over Naruto's words. "That is correct, young Namikaze. You are mentioned in prophecy, but I cannot reveal anything to you due to the fact that revealing such things could imbalance the possible outcomes of what may yet come to pass. I will tell you this, however; When you return to the world you are from, your natural power will be multiplied many times over, due to the fact that it took a considerable amount of your own power to contain the Yin of the great fox demon. That, along with the powers of the Shinigami and the hollow that have been unlocked within you, will make you a terrible force to be reckoned with. Know this though, it is unknown to how these powers will react to one another, and they may very well tear you apart, soul and all. So be cautious, for I do not know how they will react to your unique bloodline. The Hyuuga and the Uchiha were created due to the influences of the angelic and demonic energies exposed to the unborn children of your ancestor, so your own powers may have a unique effect on your eyes as well. Are you ready?" It asked.
"HELL YEAH!" Naruto shouted, pumping his fist in the air.
The Shinigami nodded, holding out one arm as a shimmering portal appeared, showing Naruto the close face of a horse-thingie with really sharp teeth, looking like it was going to bite him the second he came through. "Go through then, Naruto Namikaze, and embrace your destiny." The Shinigami said.
Nodding again, Naruto leapt at the portal, ready to pummel the horse-thingie first thing, then go after Akatsuki and that damned fox. 'What in the hell was that crazy guy talking about though? A bloodline? And why in the hell did he keep calling me by the Fourth's last name? Ah well, who cares, I've got more important things to deal with!' He thought, hitting the portal head on.
As Naruto went through the portal, the Shinigami closed it, sending a spark of the life energy it had collected over the millenia with the boy to revive his body, knowing that his innate abilities would take care of the rest. Having caught Naruto's parting thoughts, the great beast slowly shook it's head, wondering how such a pivotal peice in the fate of the great balance could be so dense. "Baka..." It muttered, before disappearing itself.
-Konoha-
The horse-headed demon leaned closer, intending to bite into Naruto's neck when it felt a slight pulse of energy.
Already feeling his chakra reserves beginning to refill by some unkown power, Naruto quickly formed a Rasengan in one hand, his years of trining with Jiraiya paying off as he was now able to do it one-handed. Naruto was about to use it, when a sudden dea hit him, and he delved back into the core of his being, where he felt the presence of his slowly rebuilding chakra, his reiatsu, nd his hollow energies residing. Mentally reaching out, Naruto grasped at he reiatsu, carefully melding a portion of it into the spinning ball of chakra in his hand, causing the energies of spirit and body to fuse together a Naruto felt a small twinge inside of himself, taking the Rasengan to another level of power as he slammed it into the belly of the beast that held him, watching as it's eyes flew wide in surprize as the chaotic powers that propelled it shred it's upper half into small strips of gore and splatters of blood that rained down on the large group of demons that stood between him and his friends. Landing in a crouch, Naruto slowly stood up and opened his eyes, letting them adjust to the light as he locked gazes with Hinata, who gasped in surprize. Naruto let his gaze flit past Hinata, towards the greater portion of Konoha, which seemed to be partially ablaze as demons and ninja fought. 'THOSE BASTARDS!' Naruto thought angrily, watching the demons attack his preoccupied friends, feeling the powers within him surge together in response to his anger, causing another twinge deep within his being.
And then his vision shifted. Everything exploded into vibrant hues of colors, spanning what seemed to be the entire color spectrum, surrounding everything in brilliant auras. It was all so shocking that Naruto almost missed watching the aura surrounding Hinata shift colors as she fainted from shock. Blinking, Naruto notced that the demons that were standing between him and Hinata and the others tensed, their tainted auras flaring as the prepared to attack the downed girl. "HEY YOU BASTARDS, OVER HERE!" Naruto yelled, grabbing the attention of many of the demons.
Seeing the lone boy standing there, with only a wounded raiven-haired boy laying at his side, ten of the demons decided to leap at the boy, intent on taking out the lone target that had managed to kill their leader.
The sudden shft in the demon's auras told Naruto that they were planning on leaping before them before they even left the ground. Naruto closed his eyes, sensing that his chakra hadn't recovered anywhere near enough. So, he decided to seek out the power that the inner-persona of his Shinigami powers had mentioned. Holding his right hand out to his side, Naruto called upon the power, mentally grasping it as he pulle it forth. "See through those who stand before me and cut down my enemies as they are revealed, ENSIS EXEQUENS!" He yelled, reciting the words as they appeared in hs head. The effect was instantanious as Naruto was surrounded by a swirling nimbus of blue reiatsu, light shooting from his hand in a straight line, stopping at five feet as it took the definite shape of a claymore. The bottom of it was thick, almost seven inches across. The blade slowly thinned until it tapered off at the point, leaving the blade rather dangerous-looking. Inset near the base of the blade, just above the hilt, was a spiral design, exactly like the one on his back, and the handle was roughly a foot long, ending in a silver cap. Giving the blade a few experimental swings, Naruto whistled, feeling that the blade felt much lghter than it should have been given it's size, like an extension of himself.
The demons never stood a chance.
Naruto grinned at the bloodthirsty demons that had leapt at him, decending with their claws and weapons outstretched as they screamed for his head. "Let me intruduce you to a little technique of mine..." He said as his arm began to hum wth the power he started pushing into it.
The demons got close, and Naruto's arm blurred, the claymore disappearing. The demons never knew what hit them as they were suddenly cut into hundreds of peices, raining gore down on the silver-eyed boy as he calmly walked forward, glaring at the other hundred demons that stood between him and his friends, frozen in shock and fear at how quickly he'd dispatched their bretheren, and at the killer intent rolling off of him in waves. The demons, seeing the new and terrible threat that had checed on the unconious raven-haired youth and was now stalking towards them, decided that he needed to be taken out before anything else, so a number of them broke off from the group to go get the great demon that had come with them, while the others let out a battlecry and charged the blond.
Naruto kept coming as the horde grew closer. "You came, planning on destroying my home... You came, planning on harming the innocent... You came, planning on hurting my precious people... FOR THAT, YOU WILL ALL DIE! WILD LIGHTNING!!" Naruto screamed, disapprearing.
Kakashi, who'd just dispatched a demon with his chidori, heard the yell behind him, and turned, his eyes wdening in shock as he saw a silver-eyed Naruto standing there, so much power pouring off of him that it was visible as he faced down a huge group of demons, weilding a giant sword. Then he disappeared. "It... It's not possible!" Kakashi whispered in disbelief, falling to his knees as all of a sudden a group of the stopped demons vanished in a bright spray of blood, the others looking around in confusion for their attacker. More demons burst into sprays of blood and chopped meat, then a light pole fell into two-dozen peices, cut apart by an unseen hand. Kakashi's Sharingan caught a few, quick flashes as the demons turned to run in terror, many dying in their futile attempt to escape. Snapping from his confuson, Kakashi spun up and around an axe that smashed into the ground where he'd been kneeling, burying a kunai in the forehead of his demonic attacker as he spared one last look back at the quickly dying monsters, then rushed off in search of another enemy.
Naruto was moving so fast that he couldn't actually see anything, as everthing was just a blur, but he could still sense the general location of where the demons were, so he attacked without mercy. It was all over in less than a minute, Naruto stopping right in front of Hinata, beside a demon that clutched at what was left of it's right arm, the only thing remaining of that arm laying in an indistinguihable pool of blood and gore at it's feet. "Yuh-you monster! What the fuck are you?!" It asked, trembling in fear.
Naruto didn't even bother to turn his head, staring down at the fainted girl at his feet. "I'm Naruto Uzumaki, ninja of the village you guys are attacking."He replied, taking the demon's head off with a swipe of his sword. Hearing a shrill scream, Naruto looked up, spying a kunoichi that he didn't know that looked to have been beaten bloody, being forced to lean over the side of a squat building as a large demon stood behind her and held her by the back of her neck with one hand while he tore at her clothes with the other, the look in his eyes and the lust in his aura speaking volumes about what he was intending to do.
Naruto, growling in anger, clutched at his sword tightly in his right hand. Taking a wide stance, he twisted his body for more momentum as he started pushing energey throughout his entire being, his right arm, in which the most power was being focused, buldging slightly. With a mighty grunt of effort, Naruto uncoiled, throwing his right arm forward, slingshoting the large blade, which flew like a missle, slamming into the demon with enough force that it threw the fell beast backwards and killed it instantly just from the shock, pinning it against the wall of the building right beside it and it's intended prey.
Seeing that the girl was in no more immediate danger, Naruto turned hs attention back on Hinata, kneeling as he reched down and picked the girl up into a sitting position. "Hinata-chan, wake up, it's no time for sleeping." He said softly, stroking Hinata's cheek as gently as he could.
Hinata's eyes fluttered open as she heard the voice of the boy she loved. Looking up in awe, Hinata lost herself in Naruto's slitted, silver eyes. "Na-Naruto-kun? A-am I dr-dreaming?" She asked.
Naruto grinned and shook his head, only to let out an audble 'oomph' as Hinata tackled him backwards, clutching at him as she sobbed into his chest. "You fell back, a-and you wuh-wern't moving! I was so scared that I'd lost you forever!" She wailed, her voice muffled by Naruto's jumpsuit, which was growing damp wtih her tears.
Naruto smiled softly and held Hinata whle she cried, making soothing noises in her ear as he stroked her hair. "It's ok Hinata-chan, I was gone for a while, but I'm back now. I'm here, and I'll make sure your safe, always." He promised.
"Bu-ut... How?" Hinata stammered out, looking at Naruto through puffy, red eyes, tears still rolling down her cheeks.
Naruto grinned widely. "You think something as silly as death is gonna keep me down? I went to the other side, where I saw the god of death, and I was all like- 'Send me back, I've still got precious people to protect!' Buth then he was all like- 'Nuh-uh, nothin' doin' kid!' So, I kicked him in the nads, beat the bastard up, and made him send me back!" He exlaimed, causing Hinata to giggle, despite the fact that she'd been crying. Smiling, Naruto lifted Hinata to her feet, dusting himself off. "Now c'mon Hinata-chan, let's go kick some demon ass!" He exlaimed, pumping his fist into the air, even as he saw the gigantic demon step from behind the Hokage monument out of the corner of his eye.
"Right!" Hinata chirped, wiping her eyes as Naruto turned around. Gathering her courage, Hinata grabbed Naruto's hand. "Ummm... Naruto-kun?" She asked shyly.
Naruto turned around. "Yeah, Hin-" He was quickly silenced as Hinata brought his head down, kissing the boy soundly on the mouth.
"Now come on, Naru-kun, we've got a village to defend!" Hinata exlaimed, breaking the kiss and blushing a deep scarlet as she sighed happily, speeding off with renewed vigor.
Naruto could nly stand there, his mouth hanging open in shock and blushing a deep scarlet himself, staring at Hinata's retreating figure.
-End part 1-
A/N- Now, before any of you decide to flame me for letting Naruto have access to his Shinigami powers while in his human body, know this! This is a fanfiction, and as such, I can write what I like! Besides, it makes sense (and a better story), because Naruto knows that that power is a part of him, so he has access to it. It's really no different from the concept of Ki (or Chi, or Qi), which is supposed to be the power of the humman spirit. If you wanna know more about my thoughts, click on my profile and read my rant. If you'e got any questions about this chapter, feel free to ask in a review.
Trivia- Ensis Exequens, the name of Naruto's sword, is Latin for 'Sword of the Executioner'. I thought, given it's appearance, a Latin name would be more appropriate than a Japanese one. (plus, it sounds REALLY freaking cool!)