j0! Howzzit goin?
What happened to all the reviewers?? Ah well, the hit count is the same as before, so I guess you're around.
same old news: I don't own Naruto. Just this story. And Bingo was his name-o.
After a few minutes of running and eventually being transported by nearby comrades, Naruto and Hinata arrived at an impromptu clearing in what used to be the downtown area of the capital. As the duo hobbled tiredly onto the massive concrete slab that was previously a factory wall, they saw several red-eyes established in a perimeter around the gathered apprentices and Sünden. The original crimson-eyed specialist was lying prone on the cool ground, breathing slowly and calmly despite the apparent pain that contorted his face.
"I see you're all here now," the Master spoke softly as his eyes glanced at the arriving easterners. "That's good. Shall we begin?"
"Master Sünden…" Uzi's words trailed off when his mind wouldn't verbalize his thoughts. His eyes flashed for a moment transferring his thoughts and emotions to the dying westerner.
Sünden smiled back in his kindly manner. "I know, I know. But we all knew this would happen eventually. May as well make it worthwhile."
"Master Sünden," Sheila said as she knelt to his side and laid her spiraling silver spear to the side. The calm wind ruffled her torn embroidered clothes as tears appeared in her eyes. "Thank you so much. You've done a lot for us…"
He lifted his hand placed it on her shoulder. "You grew into a beautiful woman, Sheila. I wish you the best in life."
Daemon stood resolutely over his ruler and held his already drawn blade erect against his face. "Master Sünden," he announced with friendly formality, "May you rest in the everlasting peace of heaven."
The dying man chuckled a bit. "You as well, Daemon. You're an excellent defender of mankind's souls. May your life be filled with happiness and joy."
Vahre Blus remained silent as he said his goodbyes through his blazing crimson eyes. His face portrayed a look of dwindling sadness and no more; although the Hyuuga could have sworn she saw a tear tugging at the corner of his eye.
"And farewell to you, my apprentice. I pray your long life will be filled with peace and grace."
The vampire nodded. "You shall be missed, Master Sünden."
"And Naruto," the progenitor red-eye turned to the blonde easterner and smiled. "You came a long ways and endured many hardships. I hope that from here on out your days will be lived in peace."
Uzi stood there, saying nothing as tears escaped his eyes and caressed his cheek. After an eternity of a few seconds, he finally spoke. "You've gone out of your way to help people like me; given us a second chance. I…" he choked. "I can't thank you enough."
"And you'll never have to," he responded with a sad smile. "Now get into position. I don't think I can hold these guys off much longer."
The red-eye specialists obeyed and stood in a cross pattern with Sünden in the center. Their eyes flared brightly and each specialist held out his or her open palms towards the dying man.
With obvious effort, Sünden opened his mouth to voice his final words. "I'll see you guys up ahead…"
"What are you doing?!" a panicked screeching chorus interrupted. The instant after, the master's body lurched upwards and pitch black inky smoke poured from every available opening. The jet black mist evenly split into four paths and rushed into the hands of the waiting red-eyes, obscuring their palms as it was absorbed into their bodies. The darkness screamed bloody murder as it was housed in its new prisons.
During the entire ceremony, Hinata all but bit her thumb off out of nervousness. Needless to say, she was concerned about the safety of the blonde red-eye, and the deafening shrieks of evil energy did nothing to ease her fear. She shut her eyes tightly and prayed to whoever was listening for everything to go well. Time passed unmarked in her mind and before she knew it, the process was finished. She opened her eyes to find that nothing appeared to have changed.
"Well," Daemon spoke sullenly, "I've got some things to finish up. See you guys later." With that, he sliced at the air with his smooth sword and it 'opened'. He stepped through the rift and disappeared before it closed, leaving behind a faint whisper of ebony smoke.
"Take care of his body," Vahre Blus ordered the red-eyes attending to the late master's corpse. "We'll have a proper funeral when we're finished here." He nodded to Sheila and they departed the scene to complete their respective objectives.
"N-Naruto?" the Hyuuga approached the blonde from the side with apprehension in her step. "Are… are you okay…?"
Uzi lifted his right hand and stared at it for a moment.
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"What did you do?!" the fox raged against his cage, screaming at the top of his lungs. "Insolent boy! Do you know what you have wrought?!"
"Yeah, I know…" he replied as he sat down with his back against the cage. "No use gettin' all pissy about it now, though."
The nine-tailed beast calmed himself slightly. He knew that if he was to keep the darkness from consuming the blonde and himself, he needed to possess a calm and concentrated mind. "Things are going to be a lot harder now…"
Naruto laid his head back against the cage and saw the lights of his mental prison flickering off one by one. As each fixture failed, a void filled with glossy yellow eyes filled the space. "Yeah, I know…"
"This will be the test," the demon observed as the final light above him and his container began to flicker. "If we die, I'll torment your soul forever."
Uzi smiled. "If," he pointed out. The fixture sputtered and died, casting the easterner and his tenant into the shrieking darkness of evil eyes.
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"Naruto," the white-eyed woman pleaded. "Please say something…"
His lips parted in the widest possible smile and he turned his head to gaze upon her. She flinched at the sight.
"Hey, Hinata!" he exclaimed gleefully. The right side of his face was burning with ebony fire that made night seem like day by comparison. "I've never felt better! How about you?"
She calmed her breathing when she felt that she was about to hyperventilate. "Okay," she consoled herself. "He knows who I am. That means he's coherent and might be in a stable frame of mind…"
"I- I'm fine," she replied with a forced smile, hoping that her assumptions were correct. What happened next surprised her.
Naruto frowned. "Oh, c'mon! What's with all the stuttering? You're scared, aren't you?" He strode up to her and stood tall, the visible part of his face showing something akin to compassion. "Everything's fine. The fox is balancing out the darkness, so I can use it without losing my mind. So please, don't be afraid." He placed his hands around her arms in a gentle yet firm grip.
At that moment, she felt at ease. This was the blonde she knew, even if his appearance was slightly different. "Yeah," she said softly. "I can do that."
His wide smile returned with renewed vigor. "Great!" He suddenly pulled her close and grasped her around the waist. "Now hold on, we still have to take care of that Uchiha!"
Hinata gasped as the red-eye suddenly melted into dark smoke and, still holding onto her somehow, shot through the air with incredible speed. The ebony fog hovered below the clouds for a moment before locating the quarreling brothers and melting towards the ground. The Hyuuga was alarmed by the fact that Uzumaki, while he still held onto her tightly, was non-corporeal. He was, for the moment, a massive stream of inky black haze.
The misty shadow slammed into the ground and parted as smoke would, gently letting the easterner down as it did so. As soon as the woman turned to locate the brothers, Naruto had reformed from the darkness and stood next to her.
"Sanvatas!" he exclaimed upon spotting the apparently unharmed Agende Vhansin leader. "Where are they?!"
"Back there," he gestured with his head, hands still in his pockets. "So… Master Uzi now, eh? Quite a title there…"
"Sorry to interrupt," the White Eyes interjected. "But are you injured?"
He shot a blood-stained grin at her. "Nah! Turns out my family's abilities are something of a natural counter to theirs." He laughed. "Both of 'em tried using mind games on me, but I turned it around and gave them a taste of their own medicine!"
"Really?" Uzi said dully. "Sounds like you had fun."
"Not really. That's the only thing special about them. Kinda boring, actually." He began strolling away casually. "I'll leave 'em up to you. Seems the older one's got a beef with you anyway."
"Right. See ya later!" He clutched Hinata by the waist again, melted into impenetrable mist, and passed over the Agende Vhansin's previous trail. Within seconds, the warring siblings were in sight. He let the Hyuuga down behind a concrete wall and reformed his body. "Alright, stay here. I'm gonna go finish this."
"What?" she argued. "No! I'm going with you!"
"Fine," he gave instantly. "But you're in no shape to fight." He gazed into her lavender eyes and saw the worry imbedding in them. "Relax, I'll be fine. That Itachi guy won't even be able to touch me." With that, he stepped out from cover and revealed himself to the Uchihas.
"That was quick!" Sasuke shouted. Strange tattoos had formed on his skin and he was practically leaking chakra. "Decided not to run away?!"
Uzi chuckled at the weak insult. "Nope! In fact, I came back to finish what he started…" He pointed to the older Sharingan user.
"And what can you hope to accomplish, Naruto Uzumaki?" Itachi inquired quietly.
"This!" The blonde's eyes went wide and inky mist poured from his body, enveloping him in an indistinguishable cloud of darkness. "And now," he spoke in a multitude of screeching voices. "You're gonna die!!"
Hey! Still enjoying it? Lemme know with a review!
I'd say: Bare minimum of two chapters left. Most likely though, there'll be three of four.
Also, since I've been such a lazy bastard, I'm gonna post the contest results with my own stuff once this story comes to a close. I've already got my rough sketch figured out, so all that's left is inking and some photoshoppin'.
Catch ya'll 'round!
