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Iron DeMan

3: The Iron Demon

Naruto looked over the schematics for his armor within his cavern that Sasori had made in his home, his right gauntlet out of it's normal seal and set on an anvil. He had cracked it in a training session a few hours ago, and now was trying to fix it on his own. After the successful test of his Mk one armor's speed a month ago, he began focusing on the defensive and offensive capabilities.

"Naru-chan, your gauntlet's fracture is a few millimeters in depth but its barely visible," Kyuubi said through their link, almost confused.

Yes, but one weakness in my armor is a weakness nonetheless...the young blonde armorer replied before tossing a hammer from one hand to the other as he heated the gauntlet up with a furnace. Naruto mentally counted to sixteen before he grabbed the nearby tongs to get his gauntlet out. He set the glowing glove onto the anvil and lightly tapped on the crack, sealing it with ease. Quickly, he grabbed two clamps and put them on the gauntlet to ensure the seal would stick.

"Hey Uzu-Gaki!" Sasori greeted as he and Goliath came down to the forge where Naruto was making his second home. The blonde preteen turned, his red orb pulsing slightly with each pant he took due to the heat, and quickly caught the bottle of water he was thrown. Sasori flicked the bottle of sake in his hand open and quickly took a swig. Swallowing, he looked to his apprentice and said, "We've got visitors."

Gaara took in his surroundings as he sat in the Puppeteer Hermit's home. The walls were covered in sketches and metal appendages. Gaara snorted as he realized something, Kankuro would love it here...

"Ah-ha! See, I told you we had guests!" the familiar voice of their host called out, making the redheaded Jinchuriki look up. The first thing he came eye to eye with was a shirtless teen blonde, wearing only a ragged and soot-covered pair of orange pants. Directly in the center of the teen's chest was a glowing red orb.

"Gaara?" the teen asked before rubbing his blackened face to clear it of soot, "Gaara is that you?"

Gaara stood and gave his friend a small smile, "Uzumaki."

A sudden fist made of sand socked Naruto, making the blonde fly back and slam into the wall. Warning alarms went off in Naruto's head thanks to his newfound connection with his demon and he groaned, rubbing his cheek where his was hit. He pushed the limb that he had knocked off the wall on impact away from his midsection and brushed himself off.

"Ok, I deserved that I guess..." the blonde groaned out as he stood. He pushed his hands into his back and sighed as he heard several pops. Naruto gave a grin to the redheaded Suna Nin, "How've ya been, Gaara?"

"...I've been well, Uzumaki." The stoic teen replied with a small smile before he frowned, "The Uchiha went to Orochimaru."

Naruto's smile fell into a scowl and he abruptly went back towards the furnace. Without another word, the steel door was slammed shut and locked. Sasori frowned.

"Guess he's still a bit angry over that..." the puppeteer mused before beaming and clapping a hand on Gaara's shoulder, "Now! Tell me why those fools at the Council want me to be the Kazekage..."

"DAMMIT!" Naruto roared as he tossed the anvil his gauntlet was on at the furnace. The gauntlet fell to the ground with a clatter and the fires in the furnace engulfed the anvil. The blonde's eyes were a blood red, the same as his chest, and his fists were clenched tight enough to draw blood from his hands.

"Naruto. You need to calm yourself, Kit," the Biju within him cautioned. Naruto panted and gripped a scrap rail tightly, crushing the bar within his grip. He fell to his right knee and put a hand over his CSC, his teeth gritting tightly as his eyes clenched shut.

He awoke within his mindscape, staring up at the disguised demon that was smirking down at him. The Kyuubi crouched down, her arms crossing under her impressive bust as her eyes met his.

"I told you to calm down," she said tauntingly. Naruto scowled and pushed himself to his feet before approaching her cage bars and staring the woman in the eye.

"Why should I? That bastard got away..." Naruto swore under his breath, "And I still have that damn promise..."

The Kyuubi frowned, "You're going to hold onto the oath that nearly killed you?"

The blonde looked up with narrowed eyes, "Yeah, well, I promised...And Uzumaki Naruto keeps his promises, dattebayo."

"That's five," Kyuubi said with a smirk, making the blonde swore under his breath, before she continued, "But yes, I guess I can see where you're coming from, a demon's oath is stronger than blood ties."

Naruto's scowl turned into a look of confusion, making the Biju chuckle before she continued with, "Where do you think you got that ridiculous 'I always keep my promises' thing? Certainly not from how you were raised, Kit. Because of my presence within your body and your soul, you received one of my admittedly least favorable traits...Honor Bound."

"So what does that mean?" Naruto asked with a frown, "I have to take the Teme back to Sakura-ch-OW! Did you just hit me?"

The Kyuubi placed a hand on her chest in mock offense, "Why, Kit, I'm hurt. I'm stuck behind these bars, remember?"

Naruto was too busy glaring at the woman to notice a tendril of red chakra seeping back into the cage. Kyuubi's smirk widened and she crossed her arms once again before she looked at the blonde in front of her, "Anyway, the Honor Bound is the term for a demon's oath, swearing on our power to fulfill a duty. However, I would suppose your little human mind couldn't think of those at a young age, so you substituted swearing on your power with promises."

"Oh...That makes sense..." Naruto said with a nod before looking around, "Man...this place is a dump. I should really get my mind out of the gutter..."

Kyuubi arched her brow at the tasteless joke, "Well if you don't like it, change it."

Naruto furrowed his brows and the Biju rolled her ruby orbs, "It's your mindscape, Kit. I can't do a thing in here..."

The blonde smacked himself in the face, "Duh..."

He closed his eyes and relaxed, picturing the forests surrounding Konoha, and slowly the dark sewer shimmered into a forest, Kyuubi's cage becoming a large, dark cave with bars over the entrance. The demon looked around with awe before looking down at the blonde. Naruto's blue eyes opened and he grinned cockily at the Biju, "Well?"

"It's nice...But it'd be better if I could actively enjoy it," she replied with a pout, "Can you fix that, Kit? I'd really like it if you did..."

Naruto scratched the back of his neck with uncertainty, "Um...maybe? Let me talk to Sasori-sensei and see what he thinks. Giving you too much too fast might be asking for trouble."

"You're getting too smart," Kyuubi whined before smirking as the blonde faded away, "Soon you'll be ready, Naruto-kun...Soon."

"Good, you're up!" Sasori said with a smile as the blonde sputtered awake, his upper body dripping wet from the cold wake up call the puppeteer master had given him, "Pack your suit, boy. We're going to Suna!"

"I. Hate. The. Desert," Naruto grumbled out as he trudged along behind an impassive Gaara and Sasori. The hermit was riding atop Goliath with crossed legs, dressed in baggy pants and a blood red sash, different from his usual slacks and apron that the blonde was used to seeing him in. Naruto was also in different clothes, mainly a spare set of Gaara's, but had forgone his friend's shirts, deciding to wear his white tank top that allowed his CSC to be visible.

"Stop whining, gaki!" Sasori growled to the boy before his attitude flipped and he lovingly patted his puppet on the head, "You're scaring Goliath."

Naruto rolled his eyes and looked down at the lightly chattering puppet, "Sorry G."

The scorpion gave a rolling chatter-like sound back to the blonde, who smiled slightly before looking at Gaara, "That reminds me, what happened to you guys after the Chunin exams, Gaara?"

Gaara looked at his friend blankly before a small smile appeared on his face, "Temari-neechan was made a chunin, while Kankuro and I were made Tokubetsu chunin. It's the equivalent of being on a waiting list. As such, I am a teacher at the new Sunagakure no Sato academy, and a pupil of mine is waiting for our return."

Naruto blinked at the thought of Gaara teaching before he grinned, "That's awesome, Gaara. How's your problem been?"

"Shukaku has become less bothersome if that's what you mean," the Ichibi's Jinchuriki replied quietly as he looked forward, "Godaime-sama sent the Gama Sennin out to Suna a few months ago to assess my seal. Only a few weeks ago had he modified it to silence the tanuki's whispers, though I still hear its screams sometimes..."

"Remind me to have a long talk with Shukaku, Kit..." Kyuubi intoned making the blonde nod. A tendril of sand tapped Naruto's shoulder and the blonde looked at his friend with a bit of confusion.

"The item in your chest...what is it, exactly?" Gaara asked curiously. Naruto blinked before a scowl came over his normally cheerful features. The blonde shook the look off his face, deciding that Gaara had a right to know of his...problem.

Naruto tapped the CSC, "This is my new heart, but Sasori-sensei calls it a Chakra Stabilizing Converter. After my fight with Sasuke-teme, my...original chakra source burnt out from overuse. If I had been left alone, I would have become unstable and died."

"Or worse, we don't know!" Sasori cheerfully chimed in, before cupping his chin, "But now I wonder..."

"Oi! I'm not your personal science project, Sasori-sensei!" Naruto shouted to the mad puppeteer, who waved him off. Naruto released an irritated growl before he continued, "Anyway, my CSC acts like a filter to keep Kyuubi's influence from getting to strong, but her chakra is still potent enough to hurt me, hence why I made my armor."

"...Armor?" Gaara intoned curiously. Naruto looked at his friend before grinning mischievously and came to a stop. Holding his hands in a ram seal, the blonde looked at his friend and warned, "Step back..."

Gaara did as he was warned, but a look of curiosity adorned his face as the blonde rolled his shoulders while his hands remained in the Ram seal.

"Seisoru Suru!" Naruto called before the seals that covered his body became visible and the armor he wore before returned. The bulk had been cut away and the form had become slimmer, and the tail that was once four feet now was an impressive six. Naruto crouched forward as his feet were forced into an arch-like shape, like that of a canine, and set his arms out to the side to retain his balance.

"So what do you think, Gaara?" Naruto asked as he looked at his friend with his red eyes. Gaara was slack-jawed, to say the least. Before him stood a frightening visage, but the stance it had was one of protection, not of aggression. The Ichibi Jinchuriki walked around the armored Jinchuriki before stopping in front of him.

"Its...very impressive, Uzumaki," Gaara said with a nod before his attention went to his left, which was their east, "Something's wrong. There's a large source of chakra being manipulated in the air to our east."

"Hm, the only thing to our east is a village," Sasori mused, concentrating on the area, "A small civilian one, hardly any shinobi reside there due to the Daimyo's cutbacks..."

"Nuke-nins?" Naruto suggested. Gaara nodded in agreement.

"That's the most likely scenario," the Suna Tokubetsu Chunin agreed, looking at the armored blonde, "Shall we?"

"Let me, I still have to test the combat capabilities of this armor," Naruto said as he flexed his claws. The red-eyed blonde looked at his redheaded friend, "Race ya?"

Gaara's smile turned into a smirk, "You know that I'm not made for speed. I'm more of a defensive fighter."

"Sorry, it's hard to remember that when the last time I saw you fight you were smacking me around with your sand," Naruto joked, getting a snort from the redhead. The armored fox crouched to all fours and said, "I'll check it out. Keep going to Suna, with Sasori-sensei. This shouldn't take long."

He dashed away with a large cloud of sand shooting up behind him, making Sasori cough while Gaara openly chuckled. His friend would make a good addition to Sunagakure, and if so, he would push for the instant promotion to Chunin. Uzumaki deserved that much, at least.

"Shit, MOVE INO!" A teen with a pineapple-like hairstyle shouted to a ponytailed blonde girl, who leapt to the right of a descending slice. The girl wore a purple skirt and shirt over her taped body, white armguards were on both of her arms, covering from her wrist to the elbow. Around her stomach was the headband belonging to Konohagakure no Sato.

Ino, the girl who had evaded a sword just barely, felt her eyes widen as the older and more skilled woman attacking her and her friend lifted her sword into the air. The woman smirked and lifted her blade, "Ready to die for a person not of your village? You're so pathetic."

Her sword came down and Ino screamed, but before any connection was made, a bestial roar broke through the clearing. The four people within took notice of the racing blur, and only one of them recognized it.

Gaara...Is that him, is that Uzumaki? Temari found herself wondering, recalling the way her brother had claimed the blur was his missing friend. The chunin didn't have enough time to wonder anymore because the blur had shot past her and stopped the descending blade with an extended arm.

"You know, a guy could think you were trying to hurt someone with that thing," a young man's voice joked. Shikamaru, Ino, and Temari were wide eyed at the voice, while the woman, who went by the name of Kujaku, scowled and struggled against the armored nin's arm.

"Who are you?" she asked through clenched teeth, "Another of the Five?"

The armored shinobi barked out a laugh and his large, foxlike head shook in amusement from side to side. His head lifted and Kujaku found herself staring into the angriest red eyes she had ever seen.

"I belong to no nation," he replied before he growled, "I fight for my friends, and lady, you just attacked three of em!"

He backhanded Kujaku away from Ino, sending the woman skidding towards the river. The armored nin turned to look at his friend, who was showing fear at the armor he wore. Realizing this, Naruto whispered, "Helm, Fuin."

Ino watched in shock as the head of her savior glowed momentarily before vanishing, leaving a smiling red-eyed blonde that reminded her of a certain loudmouth. Three whisker-marks were on both cheeks, but they were thicker, and far more feral than before. The similarities were frightening, so frightening that she couldn't stop the quiet question that escaped her lips, "N-Naruto?"

Naruto beamed, "Hey Ino, how's it goin?"

"NARUTO!" She exclaimed in joy at seeing a fellow Konoha shinobi, reaching up and wrapping her arms around his neck in a hug, "You big baka! Where have you been?"

Naruto arched a brow as he slightly stood upright with Ino hanging off him. The blonde went to respond, but his demon gained his attention; "Naruto! Get out of the way!"

Trusting the Kyuubi in her warning, the blonde wrapped his arms around the girl hugging him and dove to the side as a large gust of wind shot past them. Naruto dislodged Ino from her spot hugging him and jumped to his feet.

Kujaku scowled in anger and prepared her sword, "Damn you! Die Konohagakure brat!"

Naruto's eyes narrowed and his helmet reappeared as he dashed forward, his thoughts going to his Biju, Ok, how do I stop this psycho? Put her down for good?

"Your weapons are online, but using them cuts into the active tails I can lend you. Try slicing her apart, but if that doesn't work use your weapons."

You got it, Naruto thought back as he brought his claw back, "Eat this! Tetsu no Tsume (Iron Claw)!"

The blonde's right hand caught some of his foe's clothing in his attack, shredding her shirt and revealing a bound chest. Ignoring the sight, only just, Naruto flipped forward and continued, "Tetsuo (Iron Tail)!"

The long tail came forward and the broad width of it smacked hard against Kujaku's left cheek, sending the woman to the ground with a loud cry. Naruto smirked and landed on his feet, his tail waving slowly in almost amusement as he watched his opponent.

"Naruto..." Ino whispered in awe. Shikamaru was wide eyed as his friend almost played with their strong foe, whom had outsmarted him and matched Temari blow for blow. When had Naruto become so strong? And why was he wearing such a frightening appearance? Did it have to do with his being a Jinchuriki? These were many questions that Shikamaru wanted to ask.

"Give up? It's your last chance before I become serious," Naruto said, testing his opponent with his newfound strategic mindset.

Kujaku's head snapped up and she glared, "You will not stop me, you...you...you demon!"

Naruto's eyes flashed a brighter red and a low growl escaped his throat. He failed to see his friends shiver at his vocal disapproval of her words and aimed his palm at her. His voice took on a demonic tint and he snarled, "A demon, eh? Fine then. I will show you the 'demon'. I will make sure it's quick...Biju-sen."

Red energy shined from the small circle in his palm, shooting out in a straight beam at the woman before him. She was struck instantly in the center of her head, a small inch-wide circle being the only sign of the demonic-armored blonde's attack. The woman fell back with her eyes wide, and gave a death rattle as the life faded from her eyes.

Naruto huffed his exhaustion away and sealed his helmet away, as it peeled back with a metallic click. The red glow in his eyes faded away and the blonde ran his gauntleted hand through his hair before looking at the fan using Sabaku with an arched brow. She was staring at him with the same awe that Ino and Shikamaru were, but there was something else in her eyes.

Something that frankly kind of worried him...

"Uh...T-Temari-chan?" Naruto asked with a hint of uncertainty before finding himself eating sand and the back of his head swelling from the blow. Temari stood over him in a post-striking position with her fan folded up and tears in her eyes.

"YOU FRIGGIN' ASS!" She screamed at him, grabbing the collar of his armor and pulling him to his knees as she shook him (as well as she could anyway), before she continued to yell, "YOU MADE MY BROTHER CRY DAMMIT!"

As she paused to catch her breath and get more energy to shake him, Naruto shook his head before furrowing his brows, "...I wonder if that's why he punched me..."

AN: Yeah, I'm back and I got a new chap for the ID, and if you're reading this message, you are preparing for the most important mission of your life...

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