AN: Vulp's rhyme was changed thanks to parthaker, whose alternative I prefer. I love that all of you enjoy my fiction, so let us resume from the last transmission.
Disclaimer: I own no rights to DC or Naruto, this is something you should already know. Since I have had to say it twice, if I do so three times...I won't be as nice.
Tome Two: Wonder, Part 1.
~Kansas City, July 25th, 2010, 4:32 PM~
"...And so I made the Bitch Boy run home crying to his MILF of a mother. Then I broke that iron thing you hate so much. The kids here got turned back to normal, you snapped out of your trance, Kansas City won't be low on wood for bonfires and the rest is national news for the next few days," Vulp explained as he, The Team, and Etrigan walked back to Miss Martian's Bio Ship. The young demonic hero watched his mentor grumble before glaring at the teen.
"None of this would have happened if you hadn't insisted on acting like a fool with that girl during the auction last week," Etrigan growled. The Team looked at the exasperated vulpine as he groaned.
"It's something called flirting, Etrigan," Vulp replied before stopping the shorter being, "And I'm not going to argue with you about "the inferiority of human courting to demon mating", again. Can you please just change back so I can talk to my dad?"
"Grr...Gone, Gone Etrigan! Resume once more the form of man!" Etrigan snarled out before he was engulfed in fire. The Team, once more save Robin, watched as The Demon returned to his human alter ego, Jason Blood. The man grunted and adjusted his clothes before looking at the grinning fox-like head of his son.
"You're still grounded this weekend, and so you will have to miss that party."
"Damn..." The Team looked on with amused faces as the six-foot bipedal fox pouted. Sighing, Vulp shrugged before ripping the rest of his shirt off and tossing it at his father.
Vulp closed his eyes before he spoke, "Gone, gone this hellish state; return the demon to its fate. Leave the Evil, embrace the storm; once more this mortal changes form. I have defeated and banished my foe, now return the face of Naruto!"
The Team watched as the vulpine hero was engulfed in a bright red flash of light. When the light died down, the blonde eighteen year old they met earlier that day returned, only this time he was missing his shirt and sandals. Robin snickered as he saw Miss Martian fade away from view at his revealed chest.
Jason tossed the remnants of his son's shirt back, allowing the teen to tie the article of clothing around his waist in an impromptu belt and to cover the gaping hole in his trousers. The blonde then went to his destroyed sandals and sighed as he picked them up.
"Well, they lasted for a few years, I suppose," Naruto mumbled in disappointment before he tossed them aside. He pointed at them with a finger, "You served me well, now burn in hell!"
Jason sighed as the shoes went up in a blaze and were melted to nothing. The immortal glared at his son, "How many times must I tell you not to use spells Etrigan teaches you like that?"
"Ah, c'mon Dad, they're a blast!" Naruto replied with a grin as they boarded the Bio-Ship, "Way easier than the stuff you give me, too."
"All you have to do is study, Naruto," Jason sighed out. He loved the boy, but sometimes his laid back attitude was a real pain to deal with.
The blonde rolled his eyes and sat down between Robin and Wally, the latter staring at him intensely, while his father sat in the row ahead of him with the clone and Atlantian, both of who were asking questions about magic. Superboy was curious due to the information he was given about magic being a weakness of Kryptonians, whereas Kaldur wanted to learn more because of his people's study of the art. Naruto listened in for a bit before the feeling of being watched became too much and he turned to look at a staring Wally.
"Can I help you?" The older teen asked the speedster. Wally nodded and looked around before leaning in.
"So what are you really using?" he asked quietly. Naruto immediately lost his relaxed attitude and frowned.
"What do you mean?" the blonde asked in confusion.
"Your powers," Wally continued, "Some experiment gone wrong, right? And those 'spells' were just side effects of your experiment, right?"
"Oh dear God," Naruto groaned as he sat back, "You're a skeptic!"
"Shh! Megan might hear you," hissed the speedster, who glanced at said Martian in fear that she had heard the blonde. Naruto rubbed his temples before glaring at a snickering Robin.
"Watch it Bird boy," growled the blonde. Robin stopped snickering, but didn't lose the amused smirk on his face. From past experiences with the blonde, the Boy Wonder knew how defensive over the mystical arts his older friend could be and with how stubborn Wally was in the belief that there was an explanation for everything, this was bound to be a good source of entertainment. If only he had the forethought to grab some popcorn.
"Listen, what I did back there was magic, period. I used a branch known as Rhythmic Demonic to be exact. I don't care what you believe, but don't try and get me to 'explain' how I used my 'tricks'," Naruto said sternly.
Wally stared at him before he snickered, "Oh man, you really believe in that mumbo jumbo stuff, don't you?"
"Robin, we need to switch seats. I might kill your friend if we don't."
~Mount Justice, 5:12 PM~
The whole flight back, Naruto and Wally argued over the existence of magic. Both did so quietly, but eventually the rest of The Team and Jason Blood noticed the tension. It was a godsend to finally arrive at the base in Naruto's opinion. If he had to be around the skeptical user of Speed Force for even another moment, Naruto would surely strangle the teen with his bare hands. Then reanimate him and do so again.
The Team and their two guests returned to the main briefing room and Jason headed towards the Zeta-Tubes.
"Come along then, Naruto," Jason said, noticing his son's discomfort with Flash's nephew. Being several centuries old, Jason knew how to hide his disagreement with skeptics. His son wasn't as fortunate in that regard, something he hoped would change in time.
Naruto nodded and his shoulders dropped their tension as he bade Wally farewell. He gave Robin a fist bump, shook both Superboy and Kaldur's hands, and then gave a very surprised Megan a kiss on the back of her hand with a bow. That last bit was just to spite the nephew of Barry Allen, who looked ready to kill for the first time in his life as the Martian girl completely vanished from view.
I will always regret ever teaching him the art seduction, but I couldn't allow Morgan to use that against him, Jason thought with a shake of his head as he stood on the Zeta-Tube platform. Looking at Red Tornado, he gave a nod when Naruto stepped on his platform.
"Outgoing: A06: Jason Blood, B23: Vulp" Mount Justice's computer echoed through the cave before the two members of the Blood household vanished from view. Wally ground his teeth and sped off to the training room, leaving a laughing Robin and two smirking boys with an embarrassed Martian girl.
~Gotham City, 5:24 PM~
Naruto and Jason both reappeared at the gates to their estate home. The blonde stretched and yawned as he walked towards the gate, while Jason lingered behind with a reassurance that he'd be in shortly.
After Naruto entered the mansion, Jason turned to the shadows and crossed his arms over his chest, "You could've talked to me in the morning, Bruce. Naruto loves to see his godfather every now and then outside of work."
The Dark Knight stepped out of the shadows with his cape hiding his form and his cowl on his face. The man's masked eyes narrowed before he replied, "This is a conversation best had at night, Jason."
"I'm sure it is," the old Knight drawled in disbelief, "Surely it can wait?"
"I'm afraid not," Batman said with a shake of his head, "We've lost contact with Kent Nelson-"
"Kent can handle himself," Jason interrupted with a frown, "Your paranoia has even spread to my son and I'm not sure if I'm pleased with that or not. I will tell you what I keep telling him: Kent Nelson is the host for the world's most renowned mystic and has Nabu at his back like I have Etrigan at mine. He's a grown man, Bruce."
"Unlike you, Jason, he doesn't have youth granted to him by his aid," Batman replied with a scowl.
"Fine, send Diana or Zatara over to check on him if it will make you feel better," the head of the Blood household replied with a frown, "He's most likely meditating with Nabu."
"Fine, but this isn't the last we'll speak of this," Batman grumbled, "I want him on my Team."
"The answer is still no."
"He's eighteen years old, I should just take this to him," Batman argued. Jason sent his longtime friend a glare.
"He's still young and learning how to control his powers," Jason countered, "One step out of line with his training and the entire planet would face the wrath of his demon."
"This coming from Camelot's Cursed Knight?"
"That was a long time ago and you know better than to bring it up!" Jason replied with a scowl, "He's still my son. I refuse to let him off his leash to work with your band of misfit children who have yet to learn how to co-operate."
"He did fine today," stated the Dark Knight, "and the Team seems to like him. They need a mystic."
"Take it to Zatara, then," Jason snapped, "His daughter is more in their age range anyway. He's too old."
Batman arched a brow beneath his cowl, "Too old? You just said he was a child. Which is it, Jason?"
"I will not play these mind games with you, Bruce," the former Knight stated, "Today was a one time thing. The fact that he even has a Zeta designation upsets me. You're not acting like a hero anymore, you're acting like a soldier that needs more troops."
"Sometimes they're one and the same," Batman replied coolly, "With each day that passes, more and more meta-humans come out of hiding. How much longer will it be before you reveal yourself to the world?"
"The day Etrigan and Jason Blood's relationship is revealed is the day the world stops turning," Jason said as he turned on his heel towards the estates, "Have a good evening, Batman."
Batman narrowed his eyes at his friend's dismissal. When Jason shut the large door to the Blood estate, Batman raised a hand to his built-in comlink and activated it, "Jason was a no-go, just like I said he would be."
"Then what do you suggest, Bruce?" A male voice said from the other end of the transmission, "The Team needs a mystic and from what we saw, Vulp is the best sidekick to pair with them."
"Give me a few days to work on Jason," the Dark Knight replied as he turned on his heel and left through the forest that surrounded the Blood Estate, "In the meantime, talk to Zatara about his daughter and ask him to check on Nelson. We cannot lose track of Dr. Fate."
"Alright, I'll see what I can do," the voice on the other end replied after a sigh, "Superman, out."
~Gotham City, July 26th, 2010, 3:05 PM~
Naruto yawned as he approached the bookstore his father sent him to in search of a book on alternate dimensions and the demons in them. There was a title he couldn't pronounce, but that was the gist of what the book would contain. The reason his father/mentor wanted the book was to get a better idea of what sort of dimension Naruto came from. They knew he came from a dimension where humanity managed to advance more in the biological sense than the technological from the information Naruto obtained from his demon.
The demon he contained, which allowed him a portion of its power to change into Vulp, was actually a powerful force of nature with the title of Kyuubi no Kitsune from the natives of another dimension. Unlike the demon of this dimension's Japanese lore, Kurama, as it labeled itself in their eightieth encounter, couldn't manipulate the minds of men, but could use the equivalent of magic that was chakra. The two energies were similar enough that Naruto's skill in the art wouldn't be hampered, but the blonde did know one thing: It was a pain to learn Japanese to get a conversation between himself and the giant rabbit-eared fox.
As to why the 'demon' was sealed, Naruto didn't know. Kurama was tight lipped about it and refused to comment, often growling out the word 'Uchiha' with enough hate that convinced the blonde to drop the subject. The last thing he wanted to do was upset the creature he housed as according to his father, who had done so before with Etrigan, the "guest" in a human's body could cause a decent amount of harm to the host and those around him if not respected.
Well, at least we're passed the 'I'll Devour You!' phase, Naruto mused as he entered the shop called Dark Knight Readers, opened obviously by someone who supported the "Batman Family" as the others in the cape community called the masked heroes of Gotham City.
As he entered the practically empty store, Naruto nodded to the clerk, a piercing covered teen that looked rather bored while scratching his nose, and veered towards the section labeled 'Alternate Realities and Different Dimensions'.
That sounded promising.
However, the second he entered the isle he was pleasantly surprised as he found that he wasn't the only shopper. The other browser was a raven-haired girl around his age, wearing a black tank top that did nothing to hide her impressive bust and silver bracers covering her wrists. Tight black pants protected her very shapely legs and a silver belt hung around her waist. Her pants were tucked into equally dark heeled boots. Arching a brow in interest, Naruto walked closer and looked at the cover of her book.
'Historically Accurate Records for Dimension Hoppers' There's actually a book out there for-oh. Written and published by Dr. Kent Fate...Seriously? We let this get published? The blonde thought in confusion. The girl clearing her throat broke him from the thoughts.
"Can I help you?" She asked, her blue eyes narrowing as her looked at her. It was then he realized two things: The first being that this girl was drop dead gorgeous and the second was that while he knew that he was reading the title of the book, it could be seen as him staring at her chest.
Oh...Shit, Naruto thought as he fought the urge to run away screaming. Thinking quickly, the blonde said the first appropriate thing that popped into his head, "That's an interesting choice of literature you have."
"Really, I couldn't tell," she replied in tone that labeled him as an idiot for saying that.
Naruto shook his head, "No, I mean, uh, the fact that you're reading a book for people from different realities is interesting. Makes one wonder..."
"Wonder what?" the girl asked defensively. She was scrutinizing him with her gaze, looking for any hint of him being a threat. Unknown to the blonde she was giving him the same once over he gave her. Like any other teenage girl, she'd be intrigued by the red hooded jacket over a wife beater and jeans combo that showed off his physique.
"Uh...W-Wonder if she's studying for a philosophy class or-or a history class!" he quickly covered while mentally patting himself on the back. Couldn't drive her off with the thought that she would read it because-
"Or I might actually be a dimensional traveler trying to blend in," the girl said with a small smirk. Naruto straightened and tensed as he looked around for an exit in the worst-case scenario.
"But that'd be stupid, wouldn't it?" she replied with a shrug before closing the book and putting it back on the shelf. She turned and smiled at him, holding a hand out, "Donna Troy."
Smiling back and relaxing, Naruto took her hand and shook it, "Nicholas J. Blood, but you can call me Naruto."
That got a raised eyebrow from her. It always did. Chuckling, he pulled his hand back and explained, "One of my birth parents were from Japan, or at least that's what my father thinks."
"You have more than two parents?" Donna asked with confusion. They started to wander around the bookstore, with Naruto half-heartedly looking for the book he needed.
Naruto nodded, "I landed on my Dad's lap with only this necklace."
He offered the pendant to her, which she took and examined with interest, "Oh wow...It's beautiful. What do these characters on the back mean?"
"They're kanji, written Japanese, for Naruto, hence my nickname," the blonde replied as she released the pendant. Rubbing the silver with one hand, Naruto smiled softly, "It's probably the most important thing to me."
Donna wasn't sure of what to say at that statement and a long silence overcame them before Naruto asked, "You wanna get some coffee or something?"
"Uh...Sure?" replied the raven-haired girl in uncertainty. She was rewarded with a beaming smile from the blonde.
"Sweet," he replied before holding a book that he grabbed up, "Let me just check this out and we'll go."
Donna froze as she caught the title of the book he had: Demons, Dimensions, and Dust; A Record of the Known Multiverse by Dr. Kent Fate.
Her blue eyes focused on the back of the blonde's head while he checked out, making short conversation with the teen at the counter.
~Gotham City, 3:31 PM~
Naruto and Donna walked away from the coffee shop, with Naruto drinking a solid black cup and Donna enjoying a nice latte. The two had spoken about their families, Naruto about his father and Donna about her mother and elder sister.
The blonde learned that Donna enjoyed playing sports and idolized her sister. She wanted to follow in her sister's footsteps, but wouldn't go into detail about what that meant when he asked. It didn't deter him though. Her dodging of the question peaked his curiosity and he planned on finding out, but not through shifty ways like that hero The Question would.
In turn, Naruto's own responses peaked Donna's curiosity. She had learned that he planned on studying further under his father and opening his own private investigation unit was his end goal. He didn't reply specifically what kind of cases he and his father worked on, which only further drew Donna in to the mystery that was Nicholas "Naruto" J. Blood. She also learned that he loved to eat ramen and watch the theatre, something his father introduced to him early on. In fact, when asked whom he idolized the most, Donna wasn't all that surprised when he said it was his father, Jason Blood.
They were currently walking down the street, just continuing their conversation when Donna felt a tingle in the back of her head. A feeling she learned to dread over time and looked apologetically at the teenage boy that was still chatting away about his friend Richard. She liked the blonde, and felt bad that he was about to be dragged into her problems.
Hence, why she suddenly pushed him through a glass window to avoid the blast of energy that was aimed at her.
Naruto dropped the book he was carrying and his coffee as he flew through the glass. The last thing he thought before impacting with the ground was: Damn, Donna's strong!
Donna rolled out of the way of a follow up blast and glared at the woman with snow-white skin. The woman laughed evilly, her ruby red lips pulled back in a smile and her long raven locks flowed behind her with power. She wore a tantalizing red dress that clung to her hourglass figure and her pupil-less eyes locked on the shorter raven-haired girl.
"Donna, Donna, Donna...Tsk, tsk, tsk," the woman chided with a shake of her head, "You should've let me kill the poor boy that was hovering around you. After all, you know how lives like this usually end. Could you handle it?"
"Shut up!" Donna cried as she flew at the older woman and cocked a fist back. The woman smiled insanely before catching her punch. She kneed the younger girl in the gut, knocking the wind out of her lungs, before she spun around midair and threw Donna back towards the ground.
Donna impacted with a grunt of pain and created quite the crack in the street after doing so. She recovered relatively fast and just barely managed to roll out of the way of the woman's heel impaling her through the head. The woman's foot made a crater on impact and she grinned.
"Just hold still, Donna, this will only hurt forever!" the woman ensured with a tone sweeter than candy.
Donna managed to push off the ground and started to fly away from the area, only for her ankle to be caught in a vice grip by the snow-white woman. The woman growled, "Oh, no you don't you little bitch!"
Donna was whipped into a parked sedan, which caved in on her impact. The woman laughed haughtily as she watched Donna struggle to escape.
"Oh my, I seemed to have made quite the impact," giggled the woman. She raised a hand at Donna and prepared another magical blast, "I suppose I should end this now and be on my way to find you again, yes?"
Donna's eyes widened and she increased her struggling at the threat. The woman laughed and fired off the blast. Donna watched as the mystical blast approached, hopeless not for the first time, but for the last time in this dimension.
Hopefully she could stop the woman known as Dark Angel in the next dimension.
"The blast of magic has no chance, obliterate by my lance!" A familiar voice cried out as a red lance of magical energy shot out and intercepted Dark Angel's attack. Donna and Dark Angel looked at where the attack came from and found a scowling Naruto standing in a post throwing position.
He righted himself and cracked his neck before smirking, "What, you gonna give up already?"
"Foolish boy! I'll kill you where you stand!" Dark Angel sneered as she prepared another blast. Naruto shook his head and cupped his hands over his chest.
"I think not," he replied before crying out, "Nabu, Lord of Fate, hear my plea; Act now and slow Time for me!"
A golden ankh appeared behind the blonde and the Helmet of Nabu appeared in the upper noose. The eyes of the helmet shone brightly and all around the blonde, people began to slow down. Dark Angel and Donna both also felt the effects, as their bodies began to slow down despite their minds comprehending how much faster the blonde moved.
Naruto panted before he pulled his jacket off and tossed it aside. He took another deep breath before opening glowing red eyes. In a demonic voice, he spoke again, "Farewell to the comfort of skin and bone, now I bathe myself in an unholy cone. Embrace the evil, lose the storm; it's time for this mortal to change his form! Allow me to help, tails of nine; time for this human to become vulpine!"
Before the women's eyes, Naruto stretched and grew into his alter ego. Uncrossing his arms from over his face Vulp released a snarl after completing the transformation before he pointed at Dark Angel, "I got one rule, lady, and you just broke it! Now I'm gonna break you!"
"I'd like to see you try, little boy!" Dark Angel jeered. She could feel Nabu's spell wearing off and was confident in her abilities. This teen was but another wannabe hero, a fly in her eyes. It would only be a second before she got back on track.
That made Vulp growl, "Why am I always labeled 'little'? First Etrigan, then Bitch Boy, and now you!"
Dark Angel laughed and sent another blast of magic at him, which he merely leapt over to avoid. He ran forward and leapt up in an attempt to tackle the woman to the ground. Dark Angel laughed mockingly as she floated above his reach.
"What's wrong, little boy? Can't catch me?" she taunted. Vulp growled and pointed at her with two fingers on his right hand.
"Flying bitch your fun is over! Come over here like good ol' Rover!" the vulpine teen rhymed with a grin as an mystical chain shot out to wrap around her legs. Dark Angel's emissive eyes widened before she was pulled down from a strong jerk of Vulp's arm. Vulp's left hand curled into a fist and he let the punch fly.
Dark Angel released a cry of pain as her cheek was hit by the demonic fox's fist. She flew back and split a parked car parallel to Donna's in half before colliding with a building's stone wall, creating a spider web of cracks from the impact. She groaned and sunk down to her knees while trying to recover.
Vulp panted before grinning, "What's wrong? Can't keep up?"
"You insolent little brat! Do you know who I am?" The enraged dimension hopper asked.
Vulp put a hand on his chin before snapping his fingers, "I got it! You're Elvira! Ooh, what movie are we watching tonight, baby?"
"Fool! I am the Dark Angel! I am your end!" Dark Angel roared before flying at the teen. Vulp's ears twitched as he heard the groaning of steel and he grinned.
"You know what else you are?" Vulp asked the woman. As she got closer, he ducked when Donna swung the car she was stuck in and sent Dark Angel flying through the wall she already cracked. With a grin, Vulp got back to his feet and answered his own question, "You're outta here!"
"We've got to make sure she's down for the count," Donna said before flying through the hole her foe went through. Vulp sighed and looked at the sky.
"Can I have a day without people from other dimensions ruining it? It's not too much to ask is it?" the were-fox asked no one in particular. He sighed when, as expected, there was no response.
Vulp looked up when he hear Donna cry out in anger. He hurried to the whole and jumped through, entering what turned out to be a parking garage. Vulp looked around while calling out, "Donna! Donna!"
"I'm fine," Donna replied as she landed in front of him with a defeated yet angry look on her face, "She got away, dammit."
"Who was she? And why was she so interested in you?" Vulp asked in concern. Donna glared at him.
"I've got my own questions, fox-man," she said as she rounded on him. Pressing a finger against his chest, Donna asked, "What's with this fur? Something you left out of your life story?"
"I think we're both guilty of that, Donna Troy, dimension hopper," the fox replied with a frown as he gently pushed the hand away, "But before we get into that, we should probably explain what happened to the proper authorities."
"Yeah, like the cops will listen to a giant fox-man," Donna snorted. Vulp chuckled and shook his head.
"No, they'd probably shoot first," he agreed before pointing at the shadows behind her, "I'm talking about him."
"I believe you have some explaining to do, Vulp," Batman said as he stepped out of the shadows.
AN: If it wasn't obvious by what you read, it will not be a harem, but a pairing between Naruto and Donna Troy instead. I hope you enjoyed tome number two, now you all know what you must do:
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Next Time: Tome Three: Wonder, Part 2.