Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto nor Sekirei, all characters, thoughts and ideas that exist in this story that were taken from the original works belong to their specific creators, Masashi Kishimoto and Sakurako Gokurakuin. Only original thoughts and or characters created in this story are my own.
Author's Notes: I think one of the greatest joys I get out of posting my story on this website is reading the reviews; more specifically the reviews of those that are trying to piece everything together. It's very fascinating and kind of exciting. Getting feedback like how you want the next chapter, or enjoyed the current one, or even legitimate critic are fine and I like to read those as well but what I love the most are the theories people are putting together. There is a lot more to come. There is a massive spider web of plots and intrigues criss-crossing my story and I've only shown a few thus far.
Review Responses: Hard to respond to the reviews, there wasn't a whole lot of things I really needed to correct and I can't really respond to most of them without giving away stuff that I want to keep secret for the time being.
Just keep guessing and working through those theories of yours. I'll be revealing more and more hints as the story unfolds that will help you put the pieces together. Some will be obvious slaps to the face others will be far, far more subtle.
Chapter 15: The Web
"… So it means that a new Sekirei might be responding to me…" Naruto heard Minato's voice float up from the small sphere he held in his hand. It was tiny, being only a few millimetres in diameter. It was a new seal he had created yesterday based on his analysis of the Sekirei sealing array, specifically the focal point in which the Sekirei crest sent and received signals.
It was also his first three dimensional seal. While Matsu had been sleeping in Minato's bed he had snuck into her little hidden room and planted a similar sphere in there. He had created an entirely seal based communication device. However this went beyond the standard one. First it was small, compact, and easily malleable into any shape or form. His seals were normally squiggled in a two dimension form across a surface. He was no longer restricted in that way and could imbed far more complex seals in smaller areas.
They were also easier to hide since they could now be hidden within an object, instead of being forced to reside on the surface.
In addition the communication device did more than just transmit sound. It transferred images as well. Floating gently above the orb was a hazy image of the room. Matsu was sitting in front of her computers with Minato just behind her. Kaho was at her master's side as always. The image wasn't perfect but Naruto had no doubt that he'd be able to fix that issue with a little time. He fully intended to have Mikogami's mansion rigged with dozens of these before the day of the assault.
He hadn't realized before yesterday just what type of Sekirei Matsu had been but based on her last name she was either extremely versatile in many areas, which she didn't look like, or she was a master of information, much like Jiraiya had been. The computers seemed to reinforce the latter.
If Matsu was going to bug and spy on his room, well, it was only fair if he did the same to her.
"Yes, that's right." Matsu replied.
"It's not polite to spy on people Naruto-kun." Yume said as she turned to look at him. She and Akitsu were sitting on either side of him. Despite her words she seemed just as intent on the images as he was.
"Hey, if she's allowed to spy on me I'm allowed to spy on her, it's all about equality." Naruto said that as if it was the most logical and acceptable reason ever.
Yume just laughed and went back to focusing on the image.
They watched as Matsu turned to look at Minato with a concerned look on her face. "By the way Minatan, the girl you saw in the dream… was it by any chance her?" She asked as she pointed a finger at the screen.
Thankfully Naruto had placed the device in a location that allowed them to see the image. With that many screens Naruto had opted to place the device in the place that allowed them to see the most, unfortunately that still left a few screens hidden.
"She's the only girl that matches the description that Minatan gave." Matsu said as she indicated towards the profile of a busty blonde Sekirei.
"Ah! Yes! That's her, that's her! She really was a Sekirei." Minato exclaimed as he pointed at the picture. A soft blush crossed his face as he realized just how beautiful she was, the dream had faded too much for him to remember details perfectly. However he became worried as Matsu pretty much collapsed in front of his eyes, "Hey… Matsu-san?"
"Of all the possible things, this is bad Minatan, this girl is really bad." Matsu looked up and gave her Ashikabi a deadpan look. She looked at Minato with pity, "She's the worst, Minatan could really be killed." Minato stiffened as a chill went down his spine, "No. 09, Tsukiumi. She is a Sekirei with water abilities. I would have no objection to having her powers with us but…" Matsu let out a long sigh.
"So-so what is it Matsu-san?" Minato was really getting paranoid with how long Matsu seemed to be dragging this on.
"She famous for hating Ashikabi's. If she has responded to Minatan, as her Ashikabi… Well it would really hurt her pride."
Fear gripped Minato as he envisioned himself being killed in a variety of horrible and painful ways, "Wha, wha, wha, wha, what shall we do? I'll be killed by her!" Minato quivered in fear as he held his hands to his mouth.
"Don't worry Minato-sama." Kaho said as she reached out and held Minato's hands gently. "It'll be alright, I believe in you, you can show her that not all Ashikabi are to be hated." Kaho had a gentle smile on her face as she gazed up into her Ashikabi's eyes.
Kaho's confidence rushed into Minato and washed away his fears. He stood up and a determined expression crossed his face. "You're right Kaho-chan! I will look for the girl from that dream and somehow I'll make her our friend. I will try my best."
"You might get killed." Matsu said.
The fear rushed back into Minato, "Don't say that, don't say that. Please don't say that."
Kaho held her smile and brought one of Minato's hands to her chest. "If you had a telepathic connection with her then you were meant to find her." Kaho said with conviction, "And if you words don't work I'll just poke her with my long stick until she agrees!" Kaho said as she reached down and picked up her naginata.
For Naruto that one statement brought so many wrong images to mind that it wasn't even funny. To make it worse they couldn't see her naginata from where the device was set up so it looked like Kaho was reaching for Minato.
A large sweat drop rolled down the back of Minato's head, "Kaho-chan…"
The door to the secret room swung open and Miya stepped in, "Everyone, have you finished with your secret meeting? Shall we eat lunch now?" She asked. Naruto couldn't help but admire her; she looked as radiant as always, even in the fuzzy image the device transmitted.
"Ah yes landlady!" Minato said as he quickly hurried out of the secret room.
After the three had left Miya paused at the door. She turned her head and looked directly at the device Naruto had planted in Matsu's room. She brought a hand up to her mouth and chuckled for a moment before she left.
A sweat drop rolled down the back of Naruto's head, "I swear by the Log that woman is omniscient. How does NOTHING get past her?"
"I'll take that as a compliment Naruto-san, will you be joining us today?" Miya asked as she poked her head into his room.
"You weren't supposed to hear that." Naruto said as another sweat drop rolled down the back of his head.
"I know, now will you be joining us for lunch?" Miya repeated her earlier question.
Naruto sighed clipped the device to an earring he had donned for that purpose. He wasn't normally one to wear jewellery but this was more of an earpiece disguised as jewellery.
"Sure, we'll be down in a moment Miya-chan." Naruto responded with a grin. He could use a good meal before he headed to Charlie Point.
Miya just shook her head helplessly in amusement and left.
x~X~x
"Interesting, you have a hidden base under this warehouse." Yume said as the four of them descended the ladder into the bowels of the warehouse.
"It's pretty standard." Hanabi said as she looked around the place. It had been renovated since the first time she had been here with Naruto.
Naruto had decided it was time that everyone knew his plans for Mikogami Hayato. He had picked Hanabi up from the Hospital and had brought her here. The Hospital didn't know she was gone, and they likely wouldn't since he fully intended to get her back there before they realized she was gone. They had left a shadow clone in her place, it would suffice for basic checks but the moment they tried to do something more serious it would become known that she was gone.
Naruto had gone down first, mostly so he could enjoy looking up the gowns, skirts and dresses of his Sekirei. They were well aware of his reasons for going first, his stare was more than proof enough of that, but he was their Ashikabi and he had already seen far more than the view he was currently getting.
Akitsu and Yume had quickly followed.
Hanabi had no problem getting down the ladder to the underground complex. As a Shinobi they were used to climbing without their hands so that they were free to use hand seals or wield weapons.
"This place was designed after many of the hideouts we had back in our home country." Hanabi continued as she walked over to the map on the table in the center of the room. There were some reports and documents stacked neatly on one side.
"It's nice and cool." Akitsu said as she admired the place as well. She disliked overly hot locations, unless of course the heat came from her Ashikabi.
The temperature down here was a few degrees cooler than above ground. It had to do with the climate control seals that Naruto had placed around the complex after it was built. They had been designed in the Elemental Nations to help keep the air cool and recycled properly without having any noticeable external vents.
There were others in the main room as well. The shadow clones only had so much chakra and while they could last awhile if they didn't expend it too quickly they would still run out eventually. All of the shadow clones aside from the Namikaze squad were currently there in the underground complex.
Those two were scheduled to have their chakra restored tomorrow. Naruto didn't want too many people coming and going from this location. Sakura, Ino and the Controller had never left and the ANBU squad had been moving incognito the entire time so no one was aware that they existed. Only the Yakuza squad and the Namikaze squad were visible to the general public. While they all used stealth to arrive in secret one could never be too careful.
Naruto fully planned to visit the Namikaze squad personally instead of having them return to the complex. The couple had been requested to set up a Hairaishin seal in their place so that Naruto could teleport there instantly.
As Naruto went to each of the clones to refresh their chakra supplies Hanabi poured over the documents that were sitting on the table.
One of the reports had a sketch of various individuals along with their arrival and departure times from Mikogami's mansion. Some of the sketches had names that were written beside them but others were blank. It had the words preliminary at the top so it was obviously a work in progress.
Hanabi gingerly moved the report to the side and glanced over the next one. This report had a list of names. These were individuals that were related to Mikogami Hayato. They were listed in order of value with close family and Sekirei being considered High Value Targets while extended family and acquaintances were considered Low Value Targets. There was a small amendment to the bottom where a few financial backers of Mikogami Hayato and his family were listed.
One of the names was already crossed out.
Hanabi moved this report to the side as well and continued on. The next was a rather large pile of financial statements. It seemed that despite this digital age that everyone lived in people still wanted physical copies. The statements here were all copies of the originals but it painted a rather interesting picture. Mikogami Hayato wasn't just wealthy, he was disgustingly so. He had never been for want of anything. From the moment he was born he had everything literally given to him on a gold platter.
"It looks like you want to do more than just save Kusano." Hanabi commented as she went through more documents.
Naruto looked over at Hanabi from behind the Sakura clone. He was just finishing up the last few clones. "Of course. I'm going to make an example out of him. Anyone that wishes to treat Sekirei as nothing more than pieces on a chess board or trophies to collect better wake up real fast and realize that it's not acceptable. Otherwise I'll make sure they 'never' wake up."
"It seems you've already started in on him." She commented as her eye scanned over the list of HVTs.
Naruto frowned and walked over to Hanabi's side. He was done restoring chakra to the clones; they would be good for several more days. As he scanned the same document that Hanabi was the Controller spoke up.
"We had no choice." He said, "When ANBU squad reported it to me yesterday I had to make the call to take him out. What we didn't realize before we started this operation is that the apartment complex that the Namikaze squad is staying at was owned by Mikogami's family. It was managed by a sharp eyed banker who realized that the money the Namikaze squad used to buy the apartment couldn't be traced. That would have made them suspicious of the Namikaze Squad once the Yakuza Squad started to bring attention to the underworld. We had to silence him before he could raise the alarm."
The ANBU Squad leader stepped forward, "I made sure to make it look natural. He had a known heart condition. We just sped it along and caused a premature heart attack. Everyone thinks he died of natural causes."
Naruto nodded his head, "Alright, that's acceptable. Keep an eye out however; if others start to get suspicious we may need to move our plans ahead of schedule. If worse comes to worse we'll take out all his Sekirei and keep him imprisoned until I've finalized the plan for freeing Kusano. I'd rather not move until everything is accounted for, I don't want any loose ends hanging around after this."
"Naruto-kun, you really intend to take Mikogami out of this Sekirei Plan, don't you?" Yume asked seriously as she approached the table.
"Yes." Naruto said as he went through a couple more documents. "All at once. Since we'll be attacking his home directly we'll need to take every Sekirei out at the same time. I don't want them to be able to organize themselves and reinforce each other. The bastard has a lot of Sekirei. I don't want interruptions or rescue attempts while trying to free Kusano."
Yume nodded grimly. "Just tell me where you want me and I'll defeat them." This went a little further than what she had originally envisioned for the S-Plan but large scale Sekirei battles were not inconceivable. She would put her all into this. She knew Naruto had no intention of holding back and letting the Sekirei he faced live so she needed to defeat as many as possible. The more she defeated, the less Naruto ended.
Besides she couldn't condone Mikogami Hayato's actions. She had fought to ensure that the little birds would find their Ashikabi and Mikogami robbed them of that ability just as surely as the foreign militaries had tried to.
"Ah, me as well." Akitsu said as she put in her two cents. She didn't want to be excluded from this.
Naruto gave them both a grateful smile, "Thanks, you'll both probably have multiple battles that day. I'll be dealing with Mutsu, Mikogami and the Sekirei at his mansion. You three will be dealing with the Sekirei outside." Naruto said as he included Hanabi in his plans. If he accepted Hanabi's time line on when he arms would be fully healed she should be ready to go by the time he had everything in place.
Naruto pulled out a document and placed it on the middle of the table. It was a timeline of events and deadlines. "I'm aiming for late next week. That's when we'll begin our strike. Hanabi said she'll be healed by then." Naruto turned to the ANBU Squad, "Your primary duty from here out will be to keep tabs on Mikogami's Sekirei. Bug their clothing, watch their movements, learn their habits. I want a list with all of their locations and possible routes here on the table the morning of the operation."
"It will be done." The ANBU Squad captain said as he saluted Naruto.
Naruto pulled out the document with the sketches. "This is from Namikaze Squad?" Naruto asked for confirmation.
The ANBU Squad captain nodded, "Yes, I picked this up from them before coming here. It's the list of everyone they've seen enter and leave the compound since they started their surveillance. I've added names to the few I knew."
Naruto nodded and went over the list. It was smart of them to use pictures instead of words. It was much easier, and less risky, to track someone down based on an appearance than a name. If all one had was a name you had to ask questions to get their appearance.
Naruto picked out four of the women in particular. They didn't keep the regular work hours, which meant they were live in maids, but they did leave on a regular basis to gather various things for Mikogami. The Yakuza Squad could tail their vehicle from the rooftops and take them out when they reached their destination.
He looked up at said clones, "These four, follow them and take them out. Try to avoid permanent damage but I want them removed. Make it look like a kidnapping or mugging with the Yakuza involved. That will draw the attention in that direction." The three shadow clones nodded their agreements. Naruto turned to the Sakura and Ino clones, "Be ready for the call. With the loss of that many maids they will need new hires."
"Of course Naruto-sama, whatever master requires I will provide." Ino said as she curtsied.
Hanabi frowned at them, "I'm going to borrow those two for a while." Hanabi said as she approached Sakura and Ino.
"What's wrong?" Naruto asked.
Hanabi turned and regarded Naruto with an exasperated look, "They may look female but they're still you. Their posture and movements are all wrong. I'll not only have them look and talk female, but walk and act it as well."
Naruto smiled at Hanabi, "Good, you're free to use and abuse them as you see fit until they're on par with your standards." Hanabi had been raised in a rich family, she knew how live in maids were supposed to walk, talk, and act. If anyone could mould those two into the perfect maids she could.
The two clones gave Naruto a worried look as Hanabi beckoned them to follow her. Naruto just waved them good bye as the two let themselves be carted off into one of the side rooms.
"So these are all different versions of you?" Yume asked as she gazed intently at the various clones. She had been particularly interested in the female versions.
"Yes, I can make solid copies of myself and transform them into any shape I desire. There are limits as I can't transform into anyone or anything too large or too small but it has its uses." Naruto answered. He couldn't transform into anything the size of a flea or an insect; small rodents were about the smallest he could cram his body into. Again he also couldn't expand himself to any more than twice his normal size. He didn't mind divulging his abilities to Akitsu and Yume, not when he was in the safe confines of his underground bunker where he was sure no one could listen in on him. He had Akitsu's undying loyalty and Yume wasn't a scatter brain like Musubi, she knew how to keep quiet when it was important.
Speaking of clones though, "Kage Bunshin no Jutsu!" Naruto shouted and two more shadow clones appeared to either side of him.
Naruto left the table and approached one of the walls. His hands flashed through a series of signs, "Doton: Shichūka no Jutsu!" He shouted as he slapped his hands against the wall. The ground rumbled slightly as a portion of the wall dissolved and disappeared. Behind the opening created a large area, approximately the same size as the room Naruto was currently in, hollowed out.
The technique was an earth version of a technique one of Naruto's old captains, Yamato, had used to build houses out of wood. Only instead of wood Naruto was simply expanding and creating rooms carved out of earth.
Naruto pumped some chakra into one of the storage seals on his body. A dozen scrolls appeared from thin air which Naruto quickly caught. He glanced back over at the two clones he had created. "These are for you two. I've created a new room for you to work on sealing." Naruto tossed eight of the scrolls to one of the clones. "You're in charge of working on three dimensional seals. The only one we have so far is pretty basic. Half of those are blank, the other half are seals I created years ago. Your task is to transform the old seals into a three dimensional version." The blank scrolls could be used for notes or cut up and formed into balls or other three-dimensional shapes as needed. Naruto turned to the last clone and tossed him the rest of the scrolls, "And as for you, it's time I completed the technique that got my father the 'Flee on Sight' label. You've got two weeks." It was probably too much to ask for it to be on time for the assault but Naruto didn't think he would need it for the attack anyways.
The two clones adjusted the scrolls they had hastily caught from the air headed into the new room that Naruto had created.
"What kind of technique is it?" Yume asked curiously. It must have been a pretty impressive ability if it caused someone to get that sort of label. Karasuba had that title as well. Compared to the majority of the players in this game she was on a level far above them and was blood-thirsty to boot.
Although that said Miya had a 'Do Not Anger' title because heaven help you if you did. There wasn't anywhere one 'could' flee to if one enraged Miya.
"It's a technique that lets you instantaneously teleport to a specific location." Naruto said as he returned to the table, "It doesn't 'sound' impressive, but in the hands of someone powerful it's a deadly tool. You become someone that can't be hit, and someone you can't get away from. There's no limitation on range. So long as a seal exists, you can teleport to it regardless of how far away you are. It can't be stopped because you're not actually moving, you're forcing time and space to move around you."
Yume could very easily see that how powerful the technique was. Karasuba, Herself, Miya, they were all extremely quick individuals but even they couldn't move between locations instantaneously. There were always tell-tale signs that they were about to move, it was just that they moved so fast no one was able to take advantage of it even if they did see the signs.
But to be able to avoid that entirely, to go from one place to another without any signs of movement beforehand? Even someone weak could become almost unstoppable in that situation and Naruto was anything but weak.
"You may want to prepare yourself when you meet Namikaze Squad." The ANBU Squad captain informed Naruto cautiously.
"Why is that?" He hoped there wasn't something seriously wrong with them. It would take time for any new clones he made to get mimic the personas those two had adopted perfectly.
"It's just that the two of them seem to be more…" The captain stopped for a moment as he looked for the right word to describe what he was trying to say, "Immersed in their roles. You're going to have some rather interesting memories when they finally dispel themselves."
Naruto opened his mouth to say there was nothing wrong with that before he snapped it shut. A queer look crossed his face, "Please tell me I'm not fucking myself." He asked, he really hoped that wasn't the case. That would be one very odd set of memories that he did NOT want to have.
Silence was the only response Naruto received.
With a groan Naruto covered his face with his hands and began to sob quietly. Yume just started to laugh and even Akitsu seemed to find the situation amusing.
x~X~x
"Na-They are late; it's almost time for dinner." Miya said in concern as she gazed out into the street. She rubbed her cheek with her free hand. There was a partly folded bed sheet around her left arm.
Homura just smiled and laughed as he caught her slip, "You're like a mother dutifully waiting for her husband and children to come home." He was dressed in a simple black shirt and black pants.
Miya quickly turned her head and smiled at Homura, "It should be onee-chan. Right?" She said as a dark aura appeared around her and a demonic mask rose above her shoulder.
Kagari turned away shaking, "Ah, yes, it's onee-chan." He wasn't scared or anything, it was just better to not provoke Miya sometimes, or ever.
Miya turned back to the street and held a hand up to her chin, "Takehito-san is my husband, and from the view of those little birds I'm definitely an onee-chan." There was a gentle smile on her face.
Kagari just looked at her with a soft expression on his face and humored her for the moment. He could tell, even if she didn't want to admit it. She was getting a little soft on Naruto. He was getting away with things that would have anyone else chastised; they were small things so it was possible that Miya didn't even realize it.
"Anyways, your hands aren't working Kagari-san, please hurry up and finish folding the dried clothes." She said with her closed eyed smile look.
"Such a demanding landlady." Homura said lightly as he heeded the warning and began to fold the laundry again. Even if he did pay rent he still had to do house chores. Naruto was the only one that didn't have to.
Voices drifted into Izumo Inn and drew their attention to the entrance, "Eh? I hear talking, are they back?" Miya asked curiously as she waited patiently for the voices to draw near.
A few moments later a group of people walked in. Minato lead the back with Kaho and Tsukiumi to either side. He was drenched head to toe in water and was covered in dirt. He had a rather sheepish look on his face as Kaho and Tsukiumi pressed their breasts into either arm and glared at each other behind his back.
Following Minato was Seo. He raised a hand greeted Miya as he walked through the gate. Trailing behind him was his two Sekirei. They looked embarrassed by the actions of their Ashikabi and kept their eyes on the ground as they followed a few paces behind him.
"Minato, who is that woman?" Tsukiumi asked suspiciously. She had been rather upset to learn that she was Minato's third Sekirei. If he was hiding others behind her back…
"She is the Landlady of this place, Asama Miya-san." Minato answered.
"Sahashi-san, who is she?" Miya asked warningly, she was already aware of who the woman was but it was fun to tease Minato.
"Er, well, it's hard to-."
"I'm his wife!" Tsukiumi interrupted Minato.
Miya adopted a surprised expression and covered her mouth in feigned shock, "Wi, wi, Wife?!" Minato exclaimed as his eyes widened in shock and his pupils shrunk.
Tsukiumi blushed as she looked over at Minato with a petulant expression, "Why are you surprised? We're married, of course I am your wife."
"No you're not!" Kaho said as she grabbed Minato and buried his head between her breasts, "I was his first Sekirei! I'm his wife, you're his concubine!" Kaho declared hotly as she glared at Tsukiumi.
"I think not!" Tsukiumi growled as she approached Kaho. She reached between the other Sekirei's breasts and pulled Minato's head out and into her own. "I'M his wife! I declared it first!"
Kaho stepped forward and ground her forehead against Tsukiumi's. "That doesn't mean anything!" She shouted as she pressed her breasts against Tsukiumi's.
"Step back! I am his legal wife!" Tsukiumi glared at Kaho. Lightning shot between the two as they fought for dominance over the other.
Matsu poked her head out the door and began to chuckle ominously, "This is just like a soap opera!"
"Aren't you going to join? You're his Sekirei as well."
Matsu adjusted her glasses as she turned to look at Homura, "I don't have to join their soap opera, Matsu has her own way of rap, er, I mean jumping him." Matsu began to giggle perversely.
"Wow, what a way to go." A new voice said from above, "I mean if I had to die, being smothered to death by large busty beautiful women is definitely near the top of the list. Good job Minato! You've finally grown a pair of balls!"
There were some light thumps as Naruto jumped from the roof of Izumo Inn to the yard below. Hanabi, Akitsu and Yume landed soon afterwards.
"Minato!" Kaho and Tsukimui cried together as a limp Minato slid from their suffocating embrace. His face was blue and his eyes had rolled into the back of his head. He was still alive but whether he had passed out from lack of oxygen or from bliss it was hard to tell. There were two streams of blood trailing from his nose and there was a most perverted expression on his face.
"Oh my!" Miya said as she looked down at Minato worriedly. Minato was one of the few that actually paid rent; it wouldn't do to lose someone like him.
"Ah, Miya-chan, there is someone I wanted you to meet." Miya promptly forgot Minato and turned her attention towards Naruto, "I need to take her back to the Hospital before they realize she's gone but the two of you never got to formally meet." Naruto said as he brought his hand around behind Hanabi and gently pushed her forward. "This is my fiancée, Hanabi Hyuga-Uzumaki." He brought his other hand forward and pointed it towards Miya, "Hanabi, this is the Landlady of Izumo Inn, Miya Asama."
Hanabi bowed her head just enough to be respectful but not enough to show deference, "It's nice to meet you Miya-san, I've heard much about you." Hanabi said with all the grace and etiquette she had been raised with.
"Oh my, how polite, it's nice to meet you as well Hanabi-san. It's refreshing to speak with someone so respectful." Miya replied as she bowed her head the by the same amount.
"Just wait until you get to know her." Naruto murmured under his breath. "Ouch!" He yelled as Hanabi kicked him. He turned to glare at her but she had adopted the perfect mask of innocence.
Miya started to chuckle, "Oh I think we'll get along just fine Hanabi-san."
The two women shared identical smiles and suddenly everyone at Izumo Inn felt a sharp chill run down their spines.
"Ahem." Naruto coughed, he needed to get these two away from each other. He suddenly had a very bad feeling about leaving these two alone for any length of time, "Anyways me and Hanabi need to return to the Hospital before they realize she's missing. I just wanted to make a quick official introduction since she'll be moving in next week once her arms heal." There was a basic examination scheduled for tonight and Hanabi needed to be back for that.
"Will you be back for dinner? It's almost ready." Miya asked.
"Yes, just keep it warm for me." Hanabi kicked him again, Naruto held back a wince, "Please."
Miya brought a hand up to her mouth and laughed, "Don't be too late." She said in amusement.
Naruto grinned and waved farewell. As one Naruto and Hanabi turned and jumped onto the room of Izumo Maison. A moment later the two flashed across the rooftops perfectly in sync with one another.
Yume watched them leave with a gentle smile on her face. She brought her hands up and held them to her chest, "Those two are perfect for each other." Yume said softly, "I've never seen a love for another as strong as the love those two have for each other."
Akitsu shifted slightly, "A little jealous." She muttered.
Yume grinned and placed an arm around the ice Sekirei's shoulders, "Don't be, he loves us too. It's just that he and Hanabi-chan have known and loved each other for years." Yume said as she guided Akitsu into the house.
Miya gazed into the distance, the same direction that Naruto and Hanabi had disappeared. Yume was correct, Hanabi was good for Naruto. She had been worried earlier when she had seen how Musubi had been corrupted by Hanabi but now that she met her in person, it was a different story.
However Miya did notice something off, something that did concern her just a little. She hadn't noticed the last time she had met Hanabi, she had been too concerned about the girl's condition, but Hanabi had a Sekirei core inside her.
But Hanabi wasn't a Sekirei; at least she wasn't one of 'her' Sekirei. She couldn't feel any connection with her. This worried her as the other seven arrived over a thousand years ago and those Sekirei should all be long dead.
Was he right after all? Was the ninth pillar really here? He always was very secretive; nothing was ever revealed without cause.
Miya frowned and looked down at her unadorned hands. And why did the ring on Hanabi's finger bother her so much?
x~X~x
That night found Naruto once again walking through his mindscape. It had made marked improvements over the last time he had been in here. The sky still had a rusty tinge to it but the ground was once again covered in vibrant green grass.
He had managed to get Hanabi back to the Hospital before they had realized she was gone, which was good because that would have been a rather difficult thing to explain to the staff if they had seen her clone go up in a puff of smoke.
Naruto was honestly glad that she had decided to come with him to Charlie Point. The pointers and tips she had given the Ino and Sakura clones were invaluable and would serve them well. To be honest by the time she had finished with them he had troubling envisioning them as clones at all.
Although he had to talk quickly to explain to Hanabi why there was an unconscious civilian in one of the rooms. He didn't want her to think he had taken up kidnapping as a hobby. He was simply keeping here there for safe keeping until the operation was over and then she'd be returned to her home.
Provided everything went well they would be ready to execute the attack late the following week. At the rate at which his analysis and understanding of the sealing array was going he had estimated he would be able to nail down his plan to free Kusano by early next week. He had given himself an extra couple days of leeway in case of unexpected issues in the analysis.
Naruto looked to either side of him. The orbs floated calmly to either side of him. Hanabi's orb looked as healthy as always. The shards that used to be Musubi were gone now; all of them had been absorbed into Yume's bond with him. Yume's orb was no longer a pure white color either; there was a hint of pink in it now.
As he crested the next hill he reached his destination. There was Kurama. He was looking far better than he had before as well. It seemed he was well on his way to fully recovering.
Kurama snorted and opened his eyes, "Ah, Naruto." He said as he slowly sat up.
"How are you feeling old friend?" Naruto asked.
"Hmph, who do you take me for?" Kurama said with a grin as yawned widely, "I'm the great Kurama."
"That doesn't really answer my question."
Kurama stared at Naruto for a moment before he shrugged. It was a very odd sight, "Better, still feel a little sluggish at times" He replied, "But I'll be fine soon."
That was a relief to Naruto; he'd have his partner back in full force very soon, "Good, I'll be getting a new Sekirei soon. When I do I want you to forcefully take control of the imprint immediately. I don't want a repeat of last time."
Kurama snorted, that much was obvious; neither of them wanted a repeat of last time, "I'll handle it. Did you ever figure out what it was that attacked us?"
Naruto sighed and looked away, "Yes." Now that Kurama was almost fully recovered there really wasn't any reason to keep it from him, in fact it was probably best that he knew considering he was in charge of dealing with mental assaults.
"I'm not going to like the response am I?" Kurama asked suspiciously.
Naruto sighed, "It's hard to tell. I've learned several things while you've been unconscious. The Sekirei crest can be used to transmit and receive signals." He said as he sat down on the grass. This may take a while, he might as well get comfortable, "In this 'Sekirei Plan' Sekirei are supposed to fight each other until there's only one left standing. There are multiple ways of defeating a Sekirei. The way I've been doing it up till now is the most final. I've just been outright killing them. This causes the core to deactivate simply because the Sekirei is dead."
"Wait, deactivate the core?" Kurama questioned, he wasn't aware that the Sekirei core could even be deactivated.
Naruto nodded, "Yes, think of the core like a mechanism or machine. It creates a continuous supply of chakra but it can be forcefully deactivated by several means. I mentioned the first. The other way the core can be deactivated is through a command sent directly to the core from an external source."
Kurama's eyes darkened. He knew what Naruto was getting at; he now knew exactly what it was that he had been fending off.
"If a Sekirei takes too much physical damage, to preserve the 'physical' aspect of the core and the Sekirei's body itself a signal is sent to the core from an external location to forcefully shut the Sekirei down. The external source knows this because there is a constant communication between the Sekirei and that source belaying the state and condition of said Sekirei. When it breaks a threshold, the deactivation command is sent."
"And that's what it was that I fought off within your mind." Kurama finished as he glanced over at the silvery orb that hovered around him. "There's another one of these silvery orbs out there that the Sekirei are all connected to and it was that orb that sent out the deactivation command."
Naruto started and blinked in surprise, "Wait, what do you mean?"
Kurama fixed an even stare on his container, "Yume and Hanabi's bonds are set to send and receive signals from a specific source. While the imprint may be slightly different between each source the core of it must be the same for it to work correctly."
Naruto stared at the silvery orb. He and Kurama knew a little bit of what the orb could do, but they still had absolutely no idea 'what' it actually was. "So there is another one of those things out there?"
"That's what I said isn't it?"
"Then we definitely need to get Akitsu attuned to you instead of that other source." Naruto suddenly frowned as a thought occurred to him, "Wait, if that orb is attuned to Hanabi and Yume then does that not mean you're capable of monitoring their conditions?"
"Yes, I can to some degree. I can assure you however that I have no intention of sending any 'deactivation' commands." Kurama said as he tried to reassure Naruto, "I'm well aware that you humans always seem to get power ups when you're on the verge of death. Being taken to the brink always seems to allow your kind to surpass your normal limits."
That was a relief, "What else can you do?" Naruto asked curiously.
"At the moment not a whole lot. I don't know nearly as much about this as I wish I did." Kurama said regretfully. While the orb was a constant companion and a good source of amusement it was still very much an enigma. They were learning more and more about it every day but it was still slow going. "As much as this orb loves to hang around me we're still separate to some degree so I'm limited in comparison to the other sources."
"Alright, well take care, I need some sleep, there are a lot of preparations to make for next week." Naruto said as he slowly faded from the mindscape.
Kurama watched Naruto disappear and flopped on the ground tiredly. It was hard to maintain a mask in front of Naruto. The blonde was an expert on masks after all having worn one most of his life. Kurama looked up at the orb and sighed. He must be getting soft in his old age. If something like this had happened in this past he'd have raged uncontrollably.
"You just love absorbing my chakra don't you?"
x~X~x
Ayesha Altugle was humming a tune as she walked through the parking lot to her ride. She had gone to the nearby supermarket to pick up a few extra herbs and spices they had run out of unexpectedly. It was odd that they had, she was certain she had ordered enough the previous week to last the rest of the month. She would have to speak with the cooks about using too much spice in the meals.
No matter, she enjoyed these little sojourns. Her life was rather tedious so she liked to get out whenever she could. She wondered at times how things would have been different if she had decided to follow in her grandfather's footsteps and make homemade medicinal remedies. She had all the skills and knowledge required, just never the time. She still gathered unique herbs and spices that she came across.
Her life had changed quite drastically since that day she had been approached. Not that she minded. One life was as good as another in her eyes.
Still she couldn't complain too much. She worked for a wonderful, if interesting, man. Mikogami Hayato always treated her with kindness and respect although she did wonder if he saw her as anything more than a maid. More and more she found her jobs being done by those women he keeps bringing home.
Although the last one he brought home was absolutely adorable.
Ayesha stopped for a moment as she tilted her head and looked up into the sky. She placed a finger on her cheek and thought, "Hmm, what was her name again? Oh yes, Kuu-chan!"
She had spent a couple hours just cuddling with her the other day. The little girl had the most interesting abilities. She could make flowers and plants bloom instantly. Ayesha tried to play with her as often as she could, Kuu-chan always seemed so sad.
"Well, the sketch didn't do you any justice, aren't you a cute one." A voice broke her out of her reverie.
Ayesha looked at the three men gathered around her and blushed. She brought a hand up to her cheek and began to twist and turn, "Oh don't say that, I don't think I'm all that cute." Ayesha said in embarrassment.
"But you are, you're definitely very pretty."
"Oh, stop that, you're just teasing me." She said as she blushed even more. She had always considered herself rather plain.
She had bland wavy blonde hair that went down just past her shoulders and vibrant brown eyes. Her milky white skin and perfectly formed B-cup breasts were clothed in a mid-thigh length green dress with floral patterns that was held up by two thin white straps. The dress had sleeves that left the shoulders bare but covered her biceps. Her wrists were covered with a pair of green frilly wrist bands. The entire outfit was accentuated with a pair of six inch platforms and a cute light green maid's cap.
"But we're not, you're actually very pretty. Anyways we need you to come with us." The one in the middle said. He had short dark blue hair and piercing black eyes.
Ayesha blushed again, still denying the praise. "I dunno, I just met you and I need to get these herbs and spices back to my master." She replied, while the man in the middle was quite handsome she had been taught by her grandfather that she shouldn't follow strangers.
"We could always take them for you." The small wiry man spoke up.
Ayesha brought her hand to her mouth and started to smile with her eyes closed, "Oh thank you for the offer but I couldn't let you do that, I just met you I shouldn't burden you so much."
"I swear this is the strangest kidnapping ever." The large heavy set man grumbled as he face palmed.
Ayesha jumped and her eyes widened in surprise "Oh my! I'm being kidnapped! Oh dear, what should I do?"
The man in the middle sighed softly, "You could just come quietly with us. That would make things easier for us."
"But I can't be kidnapped without leaving a note behind or something…" Ayesha said in a panic. She started to look around frantically for something to write with.
"Here." The same man said as he handed her a pen and paper. If it got her to come with them quietly, why not? It's not like her employer would ever be able to find her.
"Oh how kind of you, thanks!" Ayesha said with a smile and accepted the items, " Let's see now, 'I have been kidnapped by three kind strangers, please help, oh and make sure that Kuu-chan has her little foxy-kun when she goes to sleep and make sure the cooks don't use too much spice in the meals for master, signed Ayesha Altugle.' And done." Ayesha said happily as she put the note in her bag of groceries.
"Are you ready to be kidnapped now?"
Ayesha nodded her head affirmatively "Yes, thank you for waiting so patiently." She replied as she placed the bag of groceries on the ground.
"Alright, come along." The man said as he started to lead Ayesha out of the parking lot.
"Right!" Ayesha said as she quickly caught up with the man, "So what do I need to do? I've never been kidnapped before. I'm afraid I might do something wrong."
The two quickly got lost in conversation as he began to explain to Ayesha her roles and duties as a kidnapped individual.
The heavy set man and the wiry one just shared identical incredulous looks. "What the hell just happened?" They asked at the same time.
x~X~x
"My first question: What are you thinking?" Sasha asked her husband as she entered the living room. Her blonde hair was wrapped up in a towel and a second one could be seen wrapped around her body.
Naruto had met with them yesterday to restore their chakra. He had been rather explicit in his command 'not' to have any more sex. He didn't want to have any weird memories when they dispelled and returned to him. He hadn't bought their excuse that they had just wanted to be more immersed in their identities.
Sex, he said, wasn't required for this operation.
They had modifications to their orders as well. They had been given a list of names and a description of several individuals that they were supposed to keep an eye on. It was basically a make work project now that the Yakuza Squad was moving in on their targets. Three of the four had already been dealt with. The last one had yet to leave the mansion; the disappearance of the other three had probably put them on high alert.
Arthain had been given a seal he could be used to get in contact with the ANBU Squad. If there were any signs of the Yakuza visiting Mikogami Hayato's mansion he was to notify them and the ANBU Squad would deal with the rest.
"My second question: What are we going to do about Naruto's orders?"
Arthain sighed as he peered out the window into the street below; he was sitting on one of the couches near the window. "I'm going to ignore Naruto's orders." Sasha gave him a disapproving look, "I mean the one about no sex." Her smile returned, "He may be right, maybe we have become too immersed in our alter egos, I don't know. I don't even feel like a clone anymore. To me Naruto feels more like a commanding officer than an alternate version of myself. I'll aid him because I believe in the same cause as he, but outside of the orders and requests required to do this mission to be successful, I fully intend to ignore him."
Sasha moved across the room and sat between his legs, "My first response: I feel the same way. An added explanation: We may be clones, but our lives are our own, at least until Naruto feels we have out lived out usefulness."
Arthain wrapped his arms around her chest and embraced her tightly. A blush crossed Sasha's face as Arthain buried his face into her hair, "As for what I'm thinking about, I'm thinking about a way of us to still be us after this mission is over."
"My third question: Have you thought of anything?" Sasha inquired as she wrapped her arms around his.
"I've figured out our chakra problem. We have the memories of his clones when they dispel, I can easily make a chakra transfer array. Mikogami Hayato has plenty of Sekirei, we just ambush two of the less combat orientated ones, steal their cores, and instantly our chakra issues are resolved." It was cruel but they were going to be killed anyways. Might as well make their deaths have greater meaning than simply an extra number added to a body count. With a few tweaks he may be able to make the transfer go faster and less painfully for the Sekirei, perhaps a paralysis seal coupled with a sleep Genjutsu. Force them to stay still and fall asleep, that way they would die peacefully.
"My first response: That does not solve the durability problem." Sasha replied. Even if it allowed them to live indefinitely without the need to rely on Naruto for extra chakra it didn't solve the issue that a strong solid hit could dispel them.
And forget ever having children unless that problem was taken care of.
Arthain sighed as he leaned his head against the back of the couch. "Ya, I haven't figured that part out. Having that much extra chakra flowing through our bodies could allow us to reinforce our bodies so that we could take a stronger hit, but again it's only a band aid solution. It doesn't really solve the underlying issue."
"My first suggestion: Perhaps we could create a self-repairing sealing array within ourselves that is used to maintain the integral structure of a shadow clone." Sasha suggested. They were both clones of a Fuinjutsu master; they could create something like that with a little time.
Arthain thought about that for a moment. He laid his head back against the couch and stared up at the sealing, "It would require redundancy, alternative pathways to take if one pathway was disrupted."
"My second suggestion: Sekirei Focal point can be used to send and receive signals. An added explanation: Creation of possible focal points within body with the core acting as a central unit could allow for chakra to be sent to any part of the body regardless of disruptions."
Arthain nodded, "Could work, if we have a focal point at each of the gates and each extremity there wouldn't be any disruption of chakra flow. The Sekirei Core would ensure a continuous supply of chakra and the sealing array would help maintain the overall form of the clone should we take a decidedly strong blow."
This might actually be possible. They had a lot of work ahead of themselves and only a small window of time to do it in, especially since they needed to keep an eye on the mansion. Shadow clones were a perfect replica of the original in every way except for a few key details.
The first was that they couldn't replenish their own chakra. They could however draw upon external sources such as a Sekirei Core or nature chakra.
The second was that a sufficiently strong blow could dispel them. The more chakra they had in them the stronger the blow they could take. This is because that a clone, while a perfect replica of the original, could only maintain its shape so long as the chakra flowed smoothly through the body and wasn't disrupted at any point. The more chakra a clone had, the harder it was to disrupt the flow of chakra. Having a core would alleviate that problem but it wouldn't solve it. To solve it they would need to put something in place that would maintain the structure of the clone even in the case of disruptions, this is where the sealing array came into play. It would keep them whole, but only so long as it had chakra. To ensure that all points of the array had chakra the various focal points would be created. They'd use a less complex version of the Hairaishin no Jutsu to send chakra from the core to the focal points.
They'd have to keep this from Naruto however, who knows how'd he react to his clones desire for independence.
x~X~x
A loud cry pierced the air.
Mitsuki cursed and bolted down the street. She had lost Ayano Hikari a few minutes earlier. Hayato Mikogami's father had reason to believe that the Yakuza were targeting their family. For what reason she didn't know but he seemed pretty adamant about the whole thing. After the third maid had disappeared Mikogami-sama had decided that anyone else going out had to be escorted.
She was supposed to be Ayano's escort. She cursed again as she turned the corner and ran into the alleyway she had heard the scream come from. If only she hadn't gotten distracted by that cute puppy. It had the most adorable eyes and it had been whimpering pitifully.
She loved puppies; she couldn't stand seeing them left alone and hurt like that. Once she found Ayano she was going to hunt down and hurt whoever it had been that had dropped it from the sky. Who could do that to such a cute puppy like that?
Turning the last corner Mitsuki blanched at the sight before her. She noticed three shadows disappear around the corner at the far end of the alley. She wanted to chase after them but she had to help Ayano first.
Mitsuki was at the girl's side in an instant. Mitsuki cringed even more once she got a close look. Ayano's kneecaps were crushed and splintered and her arms were bent at unnatural angles. It also looked as if they had dragged her face across the wall for some distance.
Mitsuki looked up and paled even more as she noticed the streak of blood smeared on the wall.
"God damnit, those fucking Yakuza, I'm going to kill them all!" Mitsuki shouted as she quickly pulled out her phone and dialed 119. This was bad. Mikogami-sama was going to be so mad at her for getting distracted like that.
But she couldn't just leave the puppy, it was too cute. It wasn't her fault that someone had tossed it from a building.
Said puppy was currently 'asleep' and curled up in the front of Mitsuki's dress. Mitsuki was so focused on getting Ayano the attention she needed that Mitsuki never noticed the decidedly human like grin that crossed the puppy's face.
x~X~x
"Miss Haruno Sakura I presume?" An aged butler asked.
Sakura flashed him a smile and curtsied, "Yes Mr. Klaus." Sakura replied.
Seishirou Klaus was the butler for Mikogami Hayate. He was an older gentleman with short grey hair, blue eyes, glasses and a mustache. He wore the standard butler attire that being a full suit with the only difference being that he had opted for a bowtie instead of the standard full length necktie.
From the file that Sakura had read before arriving she had learned that the Hayato family had picked him up after his previous employer, an incredibly rich spoiled girl, even more so than Mikogami, had dumped him for a much younger man.
He was incredibly strict and had high standards, but if you met them you were golden. He was also a closet pervert so Sakura had opted to show more skin then was normally appropriate at an interview of this level.
A lot more skin.
It also seemed to work since the butler couldn't seem to keep his eyes off the gentle rise of her breasts as they peaked around the edges of her dress.
Ino had employed much the same strategy yesterday and had already secured a job within. She had given Sakura some tips as to what did and didn't work on the butler. There had been a couple occasions where she had almost lost the opportunity due to a careless word here or the wrong gesture there.
She paid close attention as Seishirou Klaus went through the duties and tasks that would be required of her. These tasks ranged from watering the garden to doing laundry, from getting the young master his favorite bedtime snack to reading a bedtime story for Kuu-chan.
It was pretty standard affair, as he asked her questions she replied with precision, answering the questions perfectly. The answers were never 'exactly' what the butler wanted to hear, but they were always more than sufficient. The key to blending into a role perfectly was to avoid perfection. Perfection drew attention.
The interview went on for almost two hours. Sakura was sure it could have ended much sooner but every time she 'adjusted' the straps on her dress the butler always seemed to find another reason to draw the conversation out.
Eventually it couldn't be dragged on any longer.
"Normally there would be multiple interviews but I'm certain that it's not required." Seishirou Klaus said as he held a hand out for Sakura. "If the conditions of the job are acceptable I'd like to welcome you as a new maid at Mikogami Hayato's manor.
The butler wasn't too worried. They had done some background checks on Sakura Haruno and nothing had come up. That meant she hadn't done anything to warrant them to worry. She wasn't affiliated with any gangs or organizations and hadn't committed any crimes. She didn't even have so much as a parking ticket.
Besides, look at those legs, and those breasts….
Sakura gave him her best smile as she reached out and gently shook his hand. She made sure to let her fingers lightly brush his as she withdrew her hand. The aged butler almost melted on the spot.
"Thank you for having me. I accept."
x~X~x
Naruto gazed over the maps and documents one final time from within his underground complex. Everything was ready.
Sakura and Ino were both in place and busy rigging several rooms per his instructions. He had given them additional orders after they had been successfully placed inside the enemy HQ. They were to set up a barrier seal around the mansion. Naruto didn't want anyone getting out once he began his assault.
No one suspected them in the slightest. Sakura had the head butler wrapped around her pinky finger, and her legs. Those were memories that Naruto didn't want back but sacrifices were sometimes required. At least she kept it to a minimum and it did give her complete freedom to go anywhere she wanted in the mansion.
The ANBU squad had kept tabs on everyone and he knew the movements of every Sekirei, sometimes even before they did. From their last report fifteen minutes ago there were going to be eleven Sekirei outside the compound tomorrow with the rest staying inside to protect Mikogami Hayato. One ANBU squad member had even managed to snuggle its way to a Sekirei's side. That particular Sekirei would be dead before she even knew what was going on.
The Yakuza Squad had already dispelled, their tasks were done. There was now a full fledge war going on between the south and the east. Some nights there was literally a river of blood flowing through some of the back alleys. The police were stretched thin and run ragged. They had given up on most of the streets and had focused on protecting the rich areas and critical businesses. They had even requested help from MBI.
For some reason Naruto had heard that Minaka had declined saying he had no interest in the 'affairs of mortals' as he put it.
The Namikaze Squad had finished their duties as well, although they hadn't dispelled yet. Naruto wasn't too worried about them. Despite his misgivings of their private behaviour they had performed their duties perfectly and he really had no complaint.
Plus those were some memories he didn't want back and the longer they delayed the better. They would dispel on their own when they ran out of chakra anyway.
The seals were ready. He could tear Kusano away from Mikogami Hayato. Kusano wouldn't feel anything, but Mikogami was going to feel it for sure. Naruto would teach him the harsh realities of life and then he would end him.
Everything was ready. Tomorrow they would strike. Tomorrow would be the day Mikogami Hayato took his last breath.
Author's Note: Yay! I'm sure you can all guess what starts in the next chapter!
Anyways I have a couple questions for my readers because I can't for the life of me figure them out.
Going off the manga how long has it been since Musubi fell on Minato up until chapter 144? I know it is AT LEAST two months since the start due to the fact that Miya has visited her husband's grave twice since the start of the story but that's all we've been 'shown' thus far. She could have visited more, I don't know. So I wonder if anyone else has a better idea. If you have an idea could you please post it in a review or something? PM would work if for some reason you absolutely can't review (I know there are some sneaky folks out there that are hiding from their fans).
Also does anyone know the proper term for the area in the hallway in Izumo Inn with the large sliding door that open out into the back yard? I always thought it was a veranda but I may be incorrect. You can see it in multiple chapters such as when Higa attacks Izumo Inn to grab the Jinki in the fourth stage and when Kusano gets her wings from Minato (those are just 2 instances that I remember off the top of my head.) If anyone does know what its official name is, please tell me, otherwise I'm just going to stick with veranda.
Thanks.