Chapter 7

The Name Never Spoken

Music

Response of Souls; Naruto Shippuden OST; Raw Breath of Danger; Bleach OST; Come to Lend a Hand: Bleach OST

He was back in the recesses of his mind again. The long corridor, Dark and dank stretched out before him, water leaking from several cracks and forming puddles on the tiled floor. Without thinking he began to walk into the depths of his mind, nimbly sidestepping the puddles of dirty water.

Before he knew it he was in that same chamber he remembered from so long ago, the water still reached up to his ankles, the prison of steel bars was still in front of him, the paper seal was still in place. But there was no fox in the darkness, not anymore.

"Find me!"

He heard it in the deepest recesses of his thoughts, a small voice calling out to him. It was barely audible, and several times he needed to stop for silence to hear it.

"My name"

He slowly walked towards the great iron bars of the empty prison, hearing the voice rise by a few decibels with every step he took. The voice seemed to be part of an echo. Every time it spoke the sound seemed to reverberate through the walls.

"Reach out to me!"

"Hear me!"

He stopped at the threshold, looking into the darkness beyond. His mind told him that there was nothing to fear, not anymore. Yet a voice in the back of his head cried for him not to go in any further.

He silenced the voice, took a deep breath and stepped through the steel bars.

------

"What a disappointment"

Aizen looked down emotionlessly upon the skirmish taking place a few hundred feet below him. The blonde girl was down, her life force blurring between life and death. The pink haired girl had been captured by his snake, which was now tightening its coil, slowly crushing her. The boy with the ponytail was shakily getting to his feet to fight not one, but three of his creations as another two slithered into the courtyard. Two other students were unconscious, one partially buried under a pile of rubble, the other lying in a heap across the square.

And the one he was most interested in was lying on the concrete, hollow eyes looking up at the moon. He would be dead soon. The wound he had suffered was severe for a student. He didn't have the knowledge of medical Kido to heal himself. Even if he did Aizen doubted the boy was lucid enough to use it.

"I expected great things from you Naruto-kun" Aizen muttered under his breath, turning from the battle "Looks like I overestimated you"

------

The darkness dissipated, and Naruto found himself overlooking a nostalgic landscape. He was standing on a stone mountain, seeing the faces of the seven Lord Hokage's of Konohagakure carved into the rock with exquisite detail.

There was just one problem. The rules of gravity didn't seem to apply. He wasn't standing on top of the mountain, but on the side. In fact he was balancing himself on the nose of the Third Hokage.

In front of him was a grey sky with small wisps of white cloud slowly following air currents. Behind him, in similar shade of greys were the rooftops of Konohagakure. He could make out the building where the Lord Hokage and the council of Elders resided, the apartment building he lived in, heck he even saw the ramen place he used to frequent.

"Okay" he said to himself "This is weird"

He felt a presence then, a spike of spiritual pressure so like his own that he thought his mind was playing tricks on him. He turned to see a figure standing on the edge of the cliff, looking down at him. His facial features were rounded, silver eyes bored into his sapphire orbs, his spiked black hair fluttered with the wind. He wore the battle dress of a Jounin of Konoha. Black baggy pants with the symbol of the leaf etched just below black hip pockets, a green sleeveless flak jacket with pockets and satchels, a black long sleeved shirt under it and a pair of black laced boots, and most noticeable of all was the headband of a Konoha Ninja tied to his forehead.

Naruto looked at this stranger for what seemed like an eternity, before clearing his throat "Who are you?"

"What, you don't recognise me" the stranger asked, taking a few steps from the top of the cliff. It was then that Naruto noticed the weapons satchel tied to his right leg, and the sword sheathed to his back with a dark blue scabbard "How many times must I call my name before you hear me? It's me-"

The stranger's mouth continued to move, but Naruto couldn't hear what he said next. The ninja looked at him for a moment, before sighing in agitation "I see, so you still can't hear my name"

"Where am I?" Naruto asked.

"You are in your inner world" the stranger replied "This is the inner most depths of your mind"

"My mind" Naruto repeated to himself, then he remembered getting pierced through the back "I was stabbed in the back"

"You are near death" the ninja agreed "And you will die unless you act"

"How can I act" Naruto growled back "I…I failed them, I failed them again"

The ninja sighed and vanished from view. Naruto looked up and blinked in astonishment. One moment he was fifty feet away, the next he was right in front of him. The two stared at each other. After a long moment he spoke.

"What matters most to you?"

Naruto looked him in the eyes.

"Why do you want my strength" the man asked, not breaking eye contact with him "Wealth, riches, power?"

Naruto glared at him "No"

"Then why?"

"The Hollow" Naruto snapped "They don't give a damp who they hurt. They just hunt, they eat souls, and innocent people die!"

"It is instinct" his Zanpakuto replied simply "Will you sentence them all to extinction because they follow their instincts?"

"I'm not interested in hunting their kind to extinction" Naruto replied "As long as suffering and loneliness perceiver the Hollow flourish, they will never go extinct. No, I want to guard the innocent, I want to take up my sword to protect their victims, I am a defender"

"There is another reason" the man said "Someone you want to protect right now"

He hesitated, thought of Temari, covered in her own blood. Shikamaru, Ikkaku, Yumichika, fighting alongside him and being thrown like ragdolls. Sakura, caught in the tail of the beast. Just the thought of losing her, his closest friend, made him feel sick to his stomach.

"My friends" he said in a low whisper, yet full of conviction "I must save my friends!"

"You already failed them once" his Zanpakuto pointed out "Why put yourself through that again?"

"Because my friends mean everything to me" Naruto replied "They are my family, my life. They brought me from the depths of despair, they pulled me up when I thought I was drowning!"

"You would die for them?"

"I would die a hundred times to save them"

"Very well" the stranger conceded "I will tell you my name one more time, if you hold onto that conviction you will hear me"

He leaned to Naruto's ear "My name is-"

------

He whispered the name, and the uttering seemed to bring strength to his numb limbs. He got on his hands and knees slowly, crawling to within arms reach of the blade. It was a curved katana, a Zanpakuto sheathed in a dark blue scabbard, its guard was round and engraved silver with the black symbol of a leaf etched into every ninety degree angle, the hilt was wrapped tightly in dark blue and black cloth.

He gripped the scabbard and forced himself to a knee, then to his feet. His sudden movement did not go unnoticed by one of the Hollow, who turned to him, screamed, and charged with speed to finish him off.

He knew what he needed to do. Holding the sword horizontally in front of him, stretching out his arms, one hand gripped onto the top of the scabbard while the other rested on the hilt of the sword. He unsheathed the blade by a few centimetres, allowing a glint of silver to be seen before shouting his Zanpakuto's release command.

"Descend, Kazerasshu (Wind Lash)!!!"

The wind picked up, small wisps of barely visible blades which coalesced together and began to circle around him, faster and faster until he was in the eye of a small tornado. The Hollow slammed into the lashing winds and was torn to tiny pieces as the air lacerated its body with slashes and cuts. The wind exploded outward and Naruto stood, tall and proud with a strange blade in his hand.

------

Aizen turned around to see the funnel of a tornado reach up through the sky. He smiled, one moment the kid had been stabbed through the back, thrown to the ground and left to die, the next his rietsu flared and his presence returned to the battlefield, stronger than ever before.

Another flare of power and one of his Hollows was destroyed. Sliced to pieces, there was only one way for a young Shinigami to release that type of power, he had learned the name of his Zanpakuto.

A wind type from the tornado, it seemed to be one that could bend and manipulate the wind currents surrounding him. Refining the air into condensed blades of power, which could vary in size and number, Sosuke guessed that he could summon it too slice through a building with a single cut, or call upon them in great number to tear an enemy to shreds.

This was all speculation, but if he was right then the boy could be a force to be reckoned with.

"I knew you wouldn't be a waist of my time, Naruto-kun"

------

The pommel of the released state was shaped like an arrowhead with a half meter long hilt covered in grey cloth. The guard was a thin, grey cross-guard, the right side curving down into a finger guard reaching three quarters the length of the hilt. The blade was dark blue with a white edge along the sword, curved on either side with two spike-like protrusions on the top quarter of the spine.

He looked at Kazerasshu's released form and grimaced, the blade looked like it was designed so that when it was stabbed into a body it wouldn't come out again easy, it reminded him of a fish hook, designed for maximum damage.

A cry of pain got his attention and he looked over to see Sakura, the snake was tightening its coil around her, slowly crushing her chest and abdomen. She gritted her teeth to stifle her scream, closing her eyes tightly, as if silently wishing to wake up from a nightmare. A trickle of blood slid down the side of her mouth.

"Let her go" he shouted, and swung his sword. One moment the creature was about to crush her with its long coiled tail, the next the head of the Hollow slid from its body and it turned to dust. Sakura's limp form fell to the ground in a heap.

The last one looked to Naruto, roared and charged towards him, its long tail slamming into walls, sending debris of rock and wood in every direction. In response Naruto took a defensive stance, reached out with his free hand and reeled his sword arm back, he stood there, waiting for the Hollow to get within reach.

When the creatures jaw was a few centimetres from his face he stabbed out with the blade. The Hollow stopped dead in its tracks, like it slammed into an invisible shield, it gave off one last strangled cry before several thin cut marks appeared along its snout and face, the mask cracked and shattered, followed by the rest of the body.

He didn't give the disintegrating body a second glance. He rushed to Sakura's side, just as Shikamaru regained his footing and looked to Naruto in amazement. Just like in life Naruto continued to completely surprise him, and he found himself thinking if that was really Naruto.

He stood up and staggered over to his friend's side, he guessed that his own left side was badly bruised, but as he got closer he noticed that Naruto's injuries were worse. The wound in his side was open and spewing blood, staining his hakama crimson. He seemed to be keeping himself up by shear force of will. Temari was still unconscious, but thanks to Sakura's healing Kido all of her major wounds were sealed. Sakura was worse off. She was in pain. Blood trickled down her mouth, most likely from internal injuries. She was having trouble breathing, her breath coming in ragged breaths.

Naruto fell to her side, shaking her with his free hand "Sakura-chan?" She didn't answer, instead gasping in pain, and he panicked "Sakura-chan!!!"

"Naruto"

He cranked his head to see Shikamaru, Zanpakuto in hand, starring down something at the other end of the courtyard. It was another one of those Hollow snakes, three more of them. As they slithered into the square they were followed by a half dozen smaller Hollows of different shapes and sizes.

Naruto tried to stand, but fell to a knee, he had lost too much blood and Kazerasshu was getting heavy to wield. Forcing himself he got to his feet, swayed and staggered forward a few steps, he fell into a kendo stance, his sword held with both hands.

The lead Hollow looked him in the eye, then reeled back to scream. Something blurred and the Hollows face exploded into a dozen bloody pieces. Another blur and two of the smaller ones were cut in half. A figure appeared in front of him. Hand on the hilt of his unsheathed Zanpakuto.

"Sorry I'm late" Aizen apologised "I needed to get reinforcements"

The sliding doors of the Senkaimon (World Penetration Gate) appeared a few meters behind them. It slid open, and a sudden, extremely powerful spiritual pressure assaulted Naruto's senses. He turned to see a man, dressed in black Shinigami attire with a long sleeved Captain's Haori. He had long blonde hair reaching down to the small of his back, a grin which showed his upper teeth, and green eyes.

Naruto recognised him immediately, Captain of 5th Company, Shinji Hirako. The Captain looked around and grumbled "What a mess"

He stepped past Naruto, patting him on the head "You did good kiddo, we'll take it from here" he drew his Zanpakuto as he walked, his very presence making the Hollows back away in fear.

A combat squad of Shinigami filed through the gateway, half followed their Captain and Lieutenant to the small horde of Hollow. The other half rushed to the injured, dragging the unconscious forms of Madarame and Ayasegawa away from the fight, two others rushed up to them and carefully lifted Sakura and Temari into their arms.

A hand grasped his shoulder.

"Time to go kid"

------

The Sotaicho looked over the report again, his wizened mind taking in every detail and confining it to memory. Finally he looked up to his assembled captains. All thirteen of them had answered his call, assembling from across the entirety of the Soul Society.

He looked up and berated himself, eleven, there were now eleven. The Captain of the 12th Division, Kirio Hikifune had only recently been promoted to Zero Division, the Royal Guard Corps, and the Captain of 10th Division, Isshin Kurosaki, was reported missing in action hunting Menos-class Hollow in the world of the living some six months ago.

To his left stood Yoruichi Shihoin of the 2nd Division, Rojuro Otoribashi of the 3rd Division, Retsu Unohana of 4th, Shinji Hirako of 5th and the old Genrei Kuchiki of the 6th Division. To his right stood Love Aikawa of 7th Division, Shunsui Kyoraku of 8th, Kensei Muguruma of 9th, the tall and ragged Kenpachi Zaraki of 11th and Joshiro Ukitake of 13th.

He turned to Shinji "Is the report true"

"It is" the Captain replied, his usual carefree antics replaced by a serious and grave mask "Out of the twenty Shinigami sent to monitor the exam seventeen were killed in action. The sixty students taking the exam have been whittled down to twenty. Of those twenty nine have been injured in combat, seven seriously"

He nodded "And the reports on the Hollows. Are they accurate?"

"I saw them myself" Shinji rebuked "These weren't your garden variety. They were stronger, faster and smarter than your average beasts. Not Menos-class by a long shot, but more than enough to take down a platoon of unseated Shinigami and three times that number of students"

"They were easy prey" Ukitake muttered, clenching his fists "Most of those kids didn't have a chance"

"Speak for yourself" Kenpachi replied, his gravelly voice seemed gleeful "That's the life of a Shinigami, live by the sword and die by the sword" before the white haired Captain could glare at him he continued "Still wasn't right though, those students wouldn't have even made for good sport"

"A few of them were able to hold them off until reinforcements arrived though" Yoruichi spoke up "What were their names?"

"Haruno Sakura was in critical condition with several rib and bone fractures, but stable now. Kazekage Temari, in serious but stable condition, healed of high risk cuts and slashes. Madarame Ikkaku, suffered from bone fractures and a broken leg. Ayesagawa Yamuchika, serious concussion, two broken ribs. Nara Shikamaru, heavy bruising to the entire right side of his ribcage…and Uzumaki Naruto, stabbed through the back, serious concussion and trauma to his ribs" Retsu listed the names off, worry laced in her voice, she knew quite a few of those students.

"I heard the last one killed four of them" Kenpachi said "He sounds like just what I'm looking for in my squad"

"Good luck to you then big guy" Shinji rebuked "'cause my Vice-Captain just brought him to my attention. Apparently the kid just learned the name of his Zanpakuto, which makes him the cream of the crop"

"A prodigy eh" Zaraki said, his grin widening.

Yoruichi rose to the challenge "It was the 2nd Division who found him and backed him through the academy, he's come to us every time he needed extra training" she stuck out her tongue at the two other captains, earning a glare from them both "Sorry boys, he's mine"

The Sotaicho stamped his huge walking stick into the floor, the impact making the other captains flinch "Silence, enough of this foolishness" he starred at the three of them until they backed down "For know we will wait until these students have recovered, and shall pass them all with full honours for their bravery. I assume they have all passed the grade to graduate?"

"They have Sotaicho" Unohana clarified.

"Aikawa-Taicho" Yamamoto called "Assemble three squads of your most elite Shinigami and send them to the site, thoroughly search the area for any remaining Hollows and cleanse them"

"As you wish Sotaicho"

"Unohana-Taicho" the Commander continued "Make the care of those students your top priority, get them back on their feet"

"Of course Sotaicho"

"And the rest of you" he added "Until they have fully healed none of you are allowed near them" he leaned forward "Especially Uzumaki Naruto"

------

He woke up to be reintroduced to a white ceiling and pristine, yet very drab walls, a constant beeping from a heart monitor assaulted his ears, giving him a headache worse than the day after he went out and got plastered with Ikkaku last week.

He sighed, in the medical wing of the 4th Division again. For a moment he relaxed in the comfortable bed, wondering how he got here this time. Overdid it in training again? Got whacked on the head too hard again? Maybe he finally gave in to temptation and peeped into the girl's showers, maybe he got caught…Nah.

As he rolled onto his side it all came rushing back to him in a mass of barely coherent images. He shot up in bed, looking around the large wing for any sign of his friends. It was a large ward, a room with six beds, three on either side with bedside tables and a mass of medical equipment. Each bed was covered from his view by a simple white curtain.

"Ah you're awake"

He turned to see Unohana glide into the room, wearing her standard Shihakusho and Captains Haori. She walked up to Naruto and with her hand gently pushed him back into a lying position.

"Hold still" she said softly "Or you'll open up those wounds"

He looked up at her questioningly, and then took a peep under his bedding, thankful that he still had a pair of boxer shorts on. His abdomen was tightly tapped up with white bandages.

"The wound was deep" she explained, pulling up a chair and taking a seat beside the bed, eyeing him with a little relief "If you had suffered those injuries when you were alive then you would have died"

"I see" he said, more to himself than to the Captain "Thank you, Unohana Nee-san"

"Not to worry" she stated "You've been coming into my ward so often that the nurses are considering making you our official mascot"

He laughed, and then flinched when he felt a stab of pain in his abdomen "Don't make me laugh, please"

Then he remembered Temari in a pool of blood, Shikamaru thrown aside like a ragdoll, Ikkaku buried under rubble, Yumichika lying in a heap, and then he remembered Sakura, slowly being crushed under the vicelike grip of the Hollows muscled tail.

"What about the others" he asked suddenly "Are they alright?"

"Thanks to you" she replied "It was touch and go for a while, but all of them are now stable"

He sunk into his bed, breathing a sigh of relief "Can I see them?"

"Temari-kun is in intensive care, and your friend Shikamaru-kun hasn't left her side for a while" she eyed his worried expression for a moment "But Sakura-kun can see visitors"

"Where is she?"

He heard a rustle and turned to see Sakura pull aside the curtain to the bed next to him. Wearing a simple but comfortable hospital robe, she flung her legs over the side of her bed so she could sit up and face him.

Seeing the two of them stare at each other Unohana took that as her queue and silently left the room, allowing the two old friends a measure of time alone. Naruto and Sakura didn't notice. They just kept starring at each other. Finally she broke the starring match and sighed.

"I got saved by you again" she said sadly "It doesn't seem to matter what world we're in, does it?"

"Sakura-chan" Naruto started "You did more than you're fair share. You saved Temari from death. You backed us up when we faced them, heck you memorized and caste binding spells I don't know yet"

She snorted softly "That's a lie and you know it"

"No it isn't" Naruto said lightly, swinging his legs over his bed so he was sitting up, he then made to rise to his feet "You know what you're problem is?"

"What" she asked testily.

"It's that you always think you're weaker than others" he said, leaning over so that their faces were but a few inches apart, she could feel his warm breath on her face as he talked "Even when you proved yourself in the living world. Killing an Akatsuki, finding cures for supposedly incurable poisons, saving countless lives with your unique abilities. Even when you do all this you still think you're useless. Let me tell you something Sakura, you're not, not by a long shot"

"Naruto" she breathed, unsure of what to think.

"Let me tell you something else" he continued "There's no one else that I'd rather have by my side in a fight than you, Sakura-chan"

The silence was almost palpable "…Naruto"

"Hmm" he asked.

"Close your eyes"

He looked at her incredulously, sighed and did as he was told "What are you pla-"

He felt soft lips close around his, and opened his eyes wide, Sakura was kissing him. Her cheeks were flushed, her eyes were loosely shut and the tentative touch of her lips against his left him bewildered. Then his senses caught up with him, and just a moment before any doubt began to linger in her mind he wrapped his arms around her slender frame, and leaned forward.

He sealed her lips in a kiss of his own, this one more demanding than her timid advance, she gave in, opening her mouth slightly to let his tongue circle hers. Her breathing hitched and a delicate moan escaped from her throat. Finally they pulled back slightly, gasping for breath.

Starring at him longingly, still wrapped in his arms, Sakura whispered his name between her intakes of breath. Their mouths sealed across each other again, and as he leaned forward Sakura leaned back, allowing him to carefully set her on the bed.

Gently he pulled on her white gown, bearing her slender shoulder and neck. He kissed the pulse of her throat, drinking it in, and was rewarded by a minor wheeze of breath from his partner. He then traced his lips down her neck, his hands gently pulling at the clasp which kept her robe tightly secured around her form. With a slight tug it came undone, and he rained kisses down her chin, neck, and down the valley between her breasts, the swells still partially hidden under the soft fabric of her robe. This was met with a small series of barely audible gasps.

"Naruto" she whimpered.

He leaned back and looked down at her. Her shoulder length pink hair had spread across the white pillow like a halo, perfectly mapping her pale face and reddened cheeks. He tilted his face towards hers and kissed her again, she wrapped her arms around his, pressing against him so that he could feel every swell, touch and curve of her body.

To Naruto she felt so soft, so smooth that he longed to explore further. So he leaned back just enough to gently pull off the ruffled and loose hospital robe. Careful not to put too much weight on her flat, bandaged belly. She went with the flow, making no move to stop him.

------

She didn't listen in, she didn't need too. The turmoil of emotions coming from that room was more than enough to tell her what was going on. The sudden feminine moan, which was slightly louder than intended, didn't hurt her hypothesis much either.

She knew that she should end what was happening in there before it got out of hand, but stopped. They needed this, much more than either of them cared to admit. So she would give them a pass, just this once. But she didn't want anyone to walk in on them, so she gently closed the doors, tiptoed to the nearest equipment store and returned with a sign, hanging it over the door handle.

It simply read 'Cleaning in Progress'

Taking a step back, satisfied that her time playing cupid had come to an end, she turned around elegantly and walked down the corridor. It was the middle of the day, and she had rounds to complete.

I did a little thinking about this story, and I want to try some trailing into new territory, just to see if I can do it, hopefully not to the point where I need to change the rating to M-rated. Probably have to though with this chapter and the next one lol. And the winner of the Zanpakuto poll was Kazerasshu with over 50 of the 84 votes, Kitsonimaru came second with 30. Thank you to everyone who voted and hope you keep reading the story.