Disclaimer: I don't own DC or Naruto. I think I've said both enough that the point came across.

Senkō

4: Memories

"This is torture..." Naruto said to his lab partner Corey Mills. The boy stood a few inches taller than Naruto and was of African descent. After Naruto's first day in March, Corey proclaimed he was the best friend of Nathan Garrick, which quite frankly Naruto was okay with. Corey seemed very familiar for some reason, possibly similar to someone he knew before he lost his memories.

"You're telling me, Nate." Corey said. Both of them held a different test tube with different colors, labeled only with the elemental number. "Do we add this and then stir that in, or do we add that and stir this in?"

"...Maybe we add both and stir them together?" Naruto said, not sounding too sure of that. He'd only been in school for two months and he knew now that he didn't want anything to do with science or math. He was barely scraping a C average out of those classes, and that was with effort.

"What could go wrong?" Corey asked.

Two minutes later, the lab was on fire and the school was evacuated. Firefighters and their trucks were parked on the front lawn and students were gathered behind the barrier. Since no one expected the chemistry wing to suddenly go up in flames, people were stranded until parents arrived. Of course, Naruto acted fast and got separated from Corey so he could double check that no one was stuck in the school.

"Well that was fun!" Corey said with a grin. Naruto shook his head with a chuckle.

"We're so failing that class." He said with a depressed sigh. "My grandma's going to kill me."

"My dad's going to never let me have a social life." Corey said, nodding in agreement. He clapped Naruto on the back with a smile. "Oh well, I guess we'll have to just party tonight!"

"Excuse me." The two boys turned at the sound of a disapproving voice. A girl with short black hair stood behind them, dressed in tight jeans and a Bears shirt. She had her arms crossed over her chest and was glaring at them with accusing black eyes. "Did you two have something to do with this?"

"Uh...no?" Naruto said, getting a small look from Corey. "Er, I mean, no."

"Really?" the girl asked, scrutinizing them. "Because I've been asking everyone who was in the chemistry class today and they also said that they hadn't caused this."

"Well someone is obviously lying then." Corey said, rolling his eyes. "And it's not us. We were doing exactly what the teacher told us to do."

"I'm sure you were." The girl said. "Listen, my dad is a cop and you can bet he'll get himself assigned to this case. If you guys figure out who might have caused this, let me know so I can try and get them off a bit lighter if it was an accident. Plus, I want the first scoop."

"What are you, a reporter?" Corey asked.

The girl smirked. "You bet your ass I am. Linda Park, I just transferred to this school and I need a good story to break into the paper."

"Why not try what everyone else does and get a interview with Flash?" Naruto asked, remembering a day when reporters swarmed him, KF and Flash, and the scarlet speedster chose only to speak to the Central High student.

Linda frowned. "That's not a serious story, that's a publication stunt."

"What do you mean?" Naruto asked, frowning now.

"Heroes always get first page priority. It doesn't matter what story follows after the picture. The Flash saved the kitten in a tree. Invigorating." Linda said, rolling her eyes. "That's not news, that's not journalism. That's taking hard work and spitting in its face. A real story is about something that doesn't involve heroes."

"Like a chem lab fire? Stop the presses." Corey said, rolling his eyes.

Linda scowled at him and put her hands on her hips. "I'm being serious here."

"So you want to be like Iris West-Allen?" Naruto asked.

"Maybe? I don't know." Linda said, rubbing her neck.

"That's cool." Naruto said with a grin. He offered her his hand. "Nathan Garrick."

Linda looked at him for a second before smiling back and taking his hand. "Pleased to meet you."

"I'm Corey Mills." Corey said, thrusting his hand out. He grinned charmingly at Linda. "It's a pleasure."

"Maybe for you." Linda said, taking her hand back from Naruto. She gave Corey a once over before walking away. "I'll see you around, boys."

"Oh you know it." Corey said with a grin.

Naruto shook his head. "I'm surrounded by perverts."

"You'll convert," Corey said. He smirked at his friend. "They always do."

It was a beautiful spring day on May fifteenth. Mercury, his school closed for the week to rebuild the science labs, was on patrol in downtown Central City. Kid Flash was not as lucky and with Flash doing his paid job, as it were, Mercury was on his own. Currently he was taking a small break, sitting atop a gargoyle overlooking a visit by the state representative at City Hall and enjoying a burrito.

"Mm...Grilled chicken," Mercury said. He took a bite and sighed in bliss at the taste of chicken, spices, corn and sour cream hit his buds. The food was appropriated and swallowed, Mercury letting out another sound of enjoyment. "Good food and I'm getting a paper done? This is an awesome day."

Mercury reached up and cranked the knob hidden in his wing. The radio turned up and he grinned. "Welcome to Central City, Mr. Duncan."

About half an hour in, Mercury rolled his neck for the third time and readjusted his lounging position on the gargoyle he named Benny.

"Oh my god, Benny, this is taking forever..." Mercury draped himself over Benny's head, his chin resting on the stone's forehead. "I know it's so wrong for me to say this, but I wish things would get interesting."

The sun shone down on his visor and Mercury squinted, groaning at the glare. He shifted his position and a gleam caught his eye. Mercury shifted his position and looked for the gleam. He found it, a building not to far from himself.

"Magnify," Mercury said, his eyes narrowing. The lenses he had were bestowed with high value tech from S.T.A.R. Labs; digital enhanced vision up to twenty miles away was the best feature they had. Night vision was a close second and infrared was at the bottom. He had yet to find a use for it. Regardless, Mercury found the source of the gleam. A blond man wearing a hockey mask was aiming a big gun at the speaker.

"Aw man...This has to be that Murphy guy that Kid Flash talks about." Mercury said. He stood up and cracked his neck. "See ya later, Benny. It's hero time."

The speedster did as the Flash Family did best and ran at the shooter-to-be. His fist cocked back and he swung for a surefire hit. In the back of his head, he wondered what his face looked like when he missed.

"Almost got me." The voice of the shooter-to-be said. A hand grabbed Mercury's arm, spinning him around and slamming him into the roof on his stomach. Mercury coughed in pain as a knee was driven into his back, his helmet was ripped off and a knife was pressed to his neck. "Not bad...for a child."

"Why?" Naruto asked, turning his head to glare at the man. "Why are you doing this?"

"Why?" The masked man chuckled. "Because kid, I've got a job to do. Nothing personal. I'm just a greedy demon sent from hell."

Naruto paused at that.

"The Demon of the Mist...Do you know why they call me that?"

"The boy that killed all of his classmates."

"Wh-what? Why!"

"Because I could. Just like I'll kill that bridge builder."

"You'll have to get through us, first!"

"Oh, I'm so scared. You're just a bunch of kids playing ninja."

"I am not a kid!" Naruto said stubbornly, vibrating himself through the stranger's grip and through the roof. He turned around and jumped up, vibrating even faster than before. The blond's teeth were gritted tightly and he stopped vibrating. "And I'm taking you down, Zabuza."

"Zabu-what?" The man tilted his head and Naruto's vision swam. Instead of the masked blond man that stood in front of him, Naruto saw a man lacking eyebrows, his hair dark as the night, and his mouth hidden by tape. He was tall and lean, wearing strange pajama-like pants, a strap over his chest and camouflaged arm and legwear.

Naruto's eyes dilated and widened at the same time, running forward with a yell. Naruto hit 'Zabuza' with a strong right, the man spinning with the momentum and hitting him in the gut with a kick. Naruto slid back, falling to a knee and looking up at 'Zabuza' with a glare.

"Not bad, kid. But not good enough." 'Zabuza' said. He crouched down and grabbed the he helmet on the roof. "I thought this Flash retired...Guess he's got his own protégé now."

"Give. That. Back." Naruto said, his eyes narrowing. The cerulean blue flashed bright blood red for a brief moment, gone in a blink. He did not see the helmet. He saw a blue headband with a metal plate, a spiral carved into it. Teeth grit together and the blond hero moved. He gave a high-speed barrage of punches and kicks that 'Zabuza' blocked before bursting into a run around his enemy.

"You think this intimidates me? I fought the Flash, kid. And you ain't him." 'Zabuza' said, his eyes narrowing. 'Zabuza's arm shot out, catching Naruto with a clothesline that had him sliding away on his back into the edge of the roof. Zabuza snorted. "This is pathetic. You can't win, kid."

Naruto groaned and glared at 'Zabuza'. The image blurred and returned to the hockey masked blond man instead of the strange figure from his past. His scowl turned into a smirk as he held his helmet up. "Who said I was trying to be the Flash?"

"What? Is that your super helmet or something?" The man asked.

"No. It's just got all these neat little machines. Including a frequency emitter." Naruto smirked as he cranked the knob around his wing. Immediately, the man fell to his knees holding his head. "And unlike you: I've got some protection from high frequencies thanks to my powers."

"Doesn't...Mean...Anything..." The man said, whipping a gun out and aiming at Naruto. Blue eyes narrowed. "I can still...kill you!"

"Doubt it." Naruto said, grinning. He vanished from his spot on the ground and reappeared in a crouch in front of the masked man, his foot shooting out and nailing the hockey-face in the chin. "U!"

The stranger shot up into the air as Naruto pulled his helmet on. Mercury rushed to an air conditioning unit and jumped off of it, kicking his foe in the stomach. "Zu!"

Mercury ran to another building, rushing back up to the rooftop and jumping from the edge to deliver another kick to the gut. He followed with a quick kick to the jaw. "Maki!"

Mercury landed on the roof in a crouch and vibrated his legs before jumping up higher than the masked shooter. The blond hockey mask wearing shooter widened his eyes in shock as Mercury interlaced his hands above his head into an axe handle. "Naruto Rendan!"

The following blow sent the masked man down through the roof and the floor below it. Mercury landed on the roof and looked down into the hole with a grin.

"You just got your ass kicked, dattebayo!" Mercury blinked. "Wait, what did I just say?"

The man pushed himself out of the rubble and shook his head. He turned his head up and narrowed his eyes. "Not bad, kid. But it takes a lot to knock Sportsmaster out of the game."

Sportsmaster reached into his belt and pulled out one of his collapsible javelins, throwing it up at the spot where Mercury was. The javelin struck the part of the roof that Mercury stood on and exploded. The speedster cried out as he fell from the roof, hitting the ground with thud. Sportsmaster smirked and walked over to the groaning teen, stomping down onto his stomach and pulling another javelin out.

"Game over," he said, lifting the javelin above his head.

"The game's just begun, Sport!" A red fist came from the side and sent Sportsmaster spinning to the ground. Flash stood between Mercury and Sportsmaster with a smirk on his face. "A bit out of your league, aren't you?"

Sportsmaster made a grunt and rolled his arm. It snapped back into place with a sickening crack. "Maybe. I thought you already had a sidekick."

"He's a...family friend," Flash said.

"May want to consider swapping out," Sportsmaster said. He cracked his neck and looked outside. Blue eyes narrowed. "Not only did he stop me from getting a single shot off, he managed to dislocate my shoulder and sent me through two floors. When's the last time Kid Flash stopped an assassination attempt?"

"I'll be sure to tell Mercury you think so highly of him," Flash said with narrowed eyes.

"I've got a feeling I'll be able to tell him in person." Sportsmaster held up a remote. "Try and follow me, and I will blow the City Hall."

"Contingencies," Flash said, groaning as he held his head. "Fine. But if you so much as try to press that button..."

"Oh I know the best way out of this city. Good game, Flash. Until next time," Sportsmaster said, dropping a smoke bomb on his way out. When the smoke cleared, Flash stood only with the groaning teen speedster.

"Jerk." Flash turned and knelt down, grabbing Mercury's shoulder and jostling it. "Hey, Mercury. Wake up, kid."

Mercury's eyes snapped open and he shot upright. "Zabuza, no!"

"Easy! Easy," Flash said, keeping Mercury in place. "Sportsmaster's gone, kid."

Mercury groaned and grabbed his head. "Where'd he go...? Where's...?"

"He left." Flash patted Mercury on the shoulder. "Who's Zabuza?"

"He...I...I don't know." The helmet came off and Naruto threw it away before holding his head. "I feel like I'm going to blow up!"

"One of your memories must be coming back." Flash said. He started to help Naruto up when he fell right through him, stumbling passed the young hero. "Hey!"

"Sorry...My head...Barry...Help..." Naruto's eyes rolled into his head and he fell to his back unconscious.

"Don't worry, Naruto," Flash said, walking over to him and picking the blond up. He dashed to the helmet, picking it up and putting it on Naruto's head. "We'll get you somewhere safe."

"When a person has something important to protect, that is when they become truly strong."

"Huh? You really think so?"

"I know from experience. It was a pleasure to meet you, Naruto."

"Yeah, nice meeting you, too."

"Oh, and Naruto?"

"Yeah?"

"I'm a boy."

"...What?!"

Naruto shot up in his seat. "There's no way you're a boy!"

"Well I would hope not," Joan said with a laugh as she eased him back into his bed. "Otherwise all those days at the hair salon back in college were a waste of time."

"What? Grandma Joan? What happened to...? Another memory." Naruto groaned and rolled onto his side.

"Here, swallow this." Joan held out a pill and a glass of water. Naruto quickly took and downed both. "I know it won't help much, but it should ease your headache for fifteen minutes or so."

"His metabolism is faster than mine, Joan," Jay said as he walked into the room. Behind him was the scarlet speedster minus his cowl, Barry with a notepad in his hand. Jay walked over to his adopted grandnephew's side and smiled. "How are you feeling, Nate?"

"My head is pounding and I feel like I'm on fire." Naruto groaned and his eyes squeezed shut tightly.

"Memories resurfacing after how knows how long in the Speed Force will tend to do that." Barry came over and put a hand on Joan's shoulder. "Iris is in the kitchen preparing a second lunch."

"Eager to get that interview?" Joan asked with a knowing smile. "I'll get out of your way. Just keep me informed."

"Of course."

Joan nodded and smiled at Naruto, brushing her hand through his hair. "Feel better, Nathan."

Naruto smiled gratefully at her despite his pain. "Thanks Grandma Joan."

"Anytime." Joan got up and left the room. Jay took her seat and Barry moved closer to the bed.

"I know it's probably the last thing you want to do, Nathan, but we need you to think about the memory that resurfaced during your fight with Sportsmaster," Barry said. "You mentioned the name 'Zabuza'."

Naruto held his hand up to his head and closed his eyes again. "It's some guy...I fought him. He was about the same height as Sport guy-"

"Sportsmaster."

"Right. He was the same height, but, leaner. Pajamas and camouflaged shoes...Bandages around his mouth and he was missing eyebrows," Naruto said. He groaned. "I thought I was fighting him...He pissed me off so much."

"I suspect you've fought this person before." Jay scratched his head in thought. "And it was after you ran from building to building?"

"Yeah...I passed out again after..." Naruto trailed off, going back to the memory he woke to.

"You were moving really fast. At the peak of supersonic speed," Barry said. He scratched his chin. "You were vibrating afterwards...Naruto, just how fast did you go when you were fighting Sportsmaster?"

"I don't know." Naruto said.

"...I'll have Joan call Max and have him meet us at the treadmill." Jay said, zipping out and reappearing in his getup. "She's dialing now I'd bet."

"The ol' zip by and leave a message on the counter trick?" Barry asked as he pulled his cowl back on. Naruto started to get up, but Flash stopped him. "You're catching a ride, Naruto."

"What? I can run it easy!" Naruto said, getting out of bed. His legs acted like noodles and he fell forward, Jay catching him and helping him upright. "Okay...I'll take that ride."

"Well, it's a pleasure to finally meet face to face. I'm sorry we hadn't sooner and that it's under these circumstances," Max said to Naruto as he greeted the three speedsters outside of the warehouse. "The last time I saw you, you had just come out of the Speed Force."

"Sorry I hadn't come visit," Naruto said with an apologetic smile. He shook the older man's hand. "So you're Max Mercury? What was it like starting out?"

"Back when I first began, all I had to worry about was supplying food for the tribe." Max stared off into the distance, thinking of days long since passed. He shook his head. "No matter, we have other things to worry about at the moment. We can catch up later."

"We'll have lunch. No objections!" Jay said as Max made to open his mouth. The Native American chuckled.

"Alright. Let's see if we can't put a cap on this boy." Max said, waving them to follow him in. They walked to the treadmill, Naruto whistling in interest at it. He pulled his sunglasses down over his eyes and grinned as he stepped on the treadmill.

"Ready whenever you guys are." Naruto said, tapping the button that brought his helmet out. He gave the older speedsters a thumbs up, getting nods from the older speedster.

"Barry will run alongside you in case you start to fade again," Max said, the scarlet speedster appearing next to Naruto in a blink of an eye. "Jay will watch your vitals and I'll be monitoring your connection to the Force."

"Yes Master Yoda." Flash said, Jay chuckling at the reference.

"I don't get it." Naruto frowned, a bit jealous that he didn't get the joke.

"Don't worry, you're not the only one." Max shook his head at the Flashes antics. "Alright, you two may begin."

"I'll try to keep up, Merc." Flash said, grinning at the helmeted blond. Naruto grinned back before setting into a steady pace of sixty-seven miles per hour. Flash laughed. "Two miles over the top speed? Come on...You can go faster than that."

Naruto smirked and cranked it to just under the sound barrier.

"Faster!" Flash said, urging Naruto on. He saw the unsure look on the newest speedster's face and grinned. "The League will take care of any unwanted attention, don't worry about it."

"If you say so." Naruto grinned once more at the sonic booms that followed him and Flash.

"Mach one...and increasing." Max said.

"Kid topped out at Mach Two, knocked out for two days." Jay said, watching the vitals worriedly. It was fine for now, but the fact that there seemed to be no stress yet worried him.

"Faster!" Flash urged.

Naruto pumped his arms and narrowed his eyes.

"Mach four...four point six...four point seven..." Max said. His eyes went wide. "Jay, he's going to reach hypersonic!"

"Can the treadmill take it?" Jay asked.

"It's designed to be powered by Barry's top speed."

"That's Mach nine..." Jay looked at the read-out. "Mach eight...point three...point four...point five..."

"He was in the Speed Force much longer than we anticipated!"

Flash was huffing, feeling the burn. He glanced at Naruto. "Okay...Now I'm feeling it. Tell me you are, too."

"You're tired already?" Naruto asked. He panted and looked at the Flash. "I feel like – like I can run forever!"

"At-At Mach Nine?" Flash had a look of disbelief on his face.

"Faster!" Naruto said. A bead of sweat fell down the side of his face. "I can...I can go faster!"

"It's going past Mach Nine! Barry get off of that thing, he's going to go hypersonic!" Max said.

"Nathan! Naruto, slow down!" Jay said.

"No! Gotta find my limit!" Naruto said. The treadmill started to groan under the strain.

"If he breaks the treadmill he's going to be running through walls and around the planet," Max said. He looked at Jay worriedly. "And if this isn't his cap...he could rip the planet apart with his speed alone."

"So what do we do?" Jay asked. He looked down at the vitals at the sound of a flat line and looked back up. "That's...!"

Max looked at the readout. "He's going too fast for the monitor to read! We need to stop him now or he's going to rip loose and tear the city, if not the world, apart!"

Jay looked at the panting Flash. "Barry, stop him!"

"Stop him? I can barely keep up with him." Flash said to himself. He looked at Naruto, whose eyes were half lidded. An idea, stupid, but clever all the same, hit the scarlet speedster.

Flash stuck his foot out and Naruto tripped.

Naruto's eyes widened before he landed face-first on the treadmill, being shot off it and through two pillars of solid concrete and metal. Flash was lucky enough to fall forward, turning to land on his shoulder with a grunt. Max walked over to Flash while Jay raced to Naruto's side, looking down at the blond with concern. Naruto blearily looked up at Jay, a light shining behind him had Naruto blinking slowly. Jay's face was replaced with a man far older, shorter and balder.

"Jiji..." Naruto reached up and then passed out.

Jay pressed two fingers to Naruto's neck and listened. A faint pulse was there, slowing to a normal human rate. Jay sighed in relief and took the helmet off of Naruto's head, twisting the wing and letting it collapse back into Naruto's sunglasses. Jay placed them back on Naruto's face and picked the unconscious speedster up. He looked to Flash, who was being steadied by Max.

Barry pulled his cowl off and looked at Jay. He was drenched in sweat. "Kid's fast...real fast."

"Dangerously fast." Max helped Barry over to a chair and let him rest. "He needs to learn restraint."

"Easier said than done." Flash said. He tapped a spot on his wrist and a hidden energy bar popped out. He ripped the end off and took a bite. "After his last flashback, I think he lost control. That's why he vibrated so fast I fell right through him after he fought Sportsmaster."

"Then he needs to learn how to control not only his speed, but his body." Max said. "That was a defensive mechanism you just described. Unable to touch when the mind is so desperately in jeopardy? Sound familiar?"

"You want him to meet J'onn?" Barry asked.

"I think a counseling session or two wouldn't hurt," Max said.

"Let's get on that after we get back home." Jay looked worriedly to the speedster in his arms.

AN: So there's chapter four for you. The first memories to return are without a doubt probably one of the best arcs in Naruto. I'll miss the manga when it's gone.

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