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: The last chapter was pretty dark and heavy. This chapter is much lighter. I just want to reiterate, there is light at the end of the tunnel, I don't intend on letting the bad guys win. There are just going to be some rather dark points in that tunnel where you wished there were some lights, some tissues, and a stake to burn me at.
Review Responses: Chime's dress is pretty powerful but there are 3 ways of getting around it, although only one is really considered a weakness. The first is simple, it can be overwhelmed by a curse/blessing greater than that of the dress. Not really an easy method to utilize considering how powerful it is, but it's there. Second weakness is that she's a Sekirei. If Naruto goes down, she goes down dress or not. And the third actually is a weakness. The dress only protects against direct attacks (any attack that disturbs the body). Gae Bolg, despite the curse is still very much a 'direct' attack. The dress provides no extra protection against attacks such as Genjutsu or those that bypass the physical body to strike at the spirit like the King of Hell technique or the Shiki Fujin.
Also, Ayesha wasn't Minato's first time. That technically goes to Matsu WAY back when she tried to wing him.
Many people have commented on why Naruto does nothing about Ayesha. Let's put it this way, Naruto and Co. aren't really around Izumo Inn much anymore. They don't see what we see. Regardless, for those of you upset that Naruto has done nothing… well I think you'll like this chapter.
I messed up the Gae Bolg a little. The Gae Bolg possesses two unique traits. Reverse causality and a curse that prevents healing so long as the wielder or the spear still exists. The spear does not guarantee a one-hit kill, that came about due to Cu Chulainn's peerless skill with the spear. While Kaho is certainly skilled… I don't think she's on the same level as Cu Chulainn. If I had known that beforehand I could have delivered a far better fight that was more in line with Kaho's personality. So I apologize for messing that bit up.
Chapter 31: The Sixth and the Second
"How is she?" Naruto asked as he walked up to Miya. The landlady was standing outside Homura's room as if protecting it against unwanted intrusion.
He had arrived early to see how Homura was recovering from the battle last night. Like him, Homura was one that would rather die than receive treatment from MBI. That however that put them in the delicate position of trying to treat someone with neigh fatal wounds without the use of any specialized hospital equipment by people without any medical expertise. The blood and soldier pills had helped, as did some of that advanced medicine he had acquired from MBI, however none of that was a good substitute for real medical treatment.
Miya looked up at Naruto as he spoke and gave him a small smile. Seeing him always made her heart flutter and her body warm, even if the pain of separation hurt. "Homura-san will make it. It was not always a sure thing but she pulled through." Her soft smile turned into a grateful one, "Pass my thanks on to Hanabi-san. Those pills seemed to have been the deciding factor."
Naruto and he let out a sigh of relief at the good news, "That's good to hear," he said as he glanced at the door. He could sense Minato inside, "Minato has been in there all night?"
Miya nodded her head slightly and glanced at the door as well. "Yes, he seems to be a changed man. What happened Naruto-kun?" she asked as she looked the blonde haired shinobi. The tone of her voice was deadly serious but there was a hint of curiosity in it as well.
Minaka had set up cameras all over the junction to monitor the battle but the explosions Naruto had set off had damaged most of them. Few cameras had remained functional, especially those with vantage points of the battles. They had been able to pick up bits and pieces of Homura's fight with the disciplinary squad but nothing of the battle between Naruto and Minato.
She had seen the sniper round take off Minaka's head. That had brought a smile to her face. She had been a little disappointed that it had not been the real one.
Naruto grimaced as he remembered the battle from the night before. The end of it had left a sour taste in his mouth he still hadn't gotten rid of, "It started like any other Sekirei battle. Violent, brutal, and utterly pointless. Homura fought the disciplinary squad, minus Karasuba, and came out the victor," he said and glanced back at the door leading to Homura's room, "Well if you can call that victory anyways. Minaka seems to enjoy removing the deactivation on damage command on a whim. That battle was brutal, but typical of a Sekirei battle of that level. As for Tsukiumi and Kaho, they fought against Akitsu and Chime…" he paused for a moment as he swallowed his distaste again. A scowl creased his face as he remembered Tsukiumi's betrayal. "The power they all displayed was very impressive, especially Chime and Kaho. Chime defeated Kaho's strongest attack and broke her weapon. Kaho then surrendered which Chime accepted."
Miya's eyes narrowed as she registered the distaste in Naruto's words and the scowl on his face, "Something else happened." It wasn't a question.
"Tsukiumi happened. She used her norito incantation and deactivated Kaho." It was a betrayal of the highest order. Kaho had trusted Tsukiumi and loved her as a sister, despite how often they fought. She had been downed, defeated and helpless. There was absolutely no reason for Tsukiumi's actions that Naruto could see.
"And you punished her for that?" Miya asked. She knew Naruto well by now. She knew how extreme he could get and she doubted he would have let Tsukiumi just walk away from that.
"I didn't need to. My own Sekirei took exception to her actions. Akitsu ended her, there was probably less left of her after Akitsu was finished than there was of Yomi."
"I see. That was probably for the best. Sekirei that have been subverted by Ayesha-san cannot be saved," Miya said sadly. At least she didn't know of any way to save them. It hurt that yet another of her charges had been influenced by that thing but the subversion was contagious. It could spread through the bond given enough time and that put all of Minato's Sekirei at risk.
It would spread even faster if the Ashikabi was influenced as well. She had been so worried when Minato had joined them for dinner the night before. She had seen the signs written all over him as clear as day. Despite the loss of Tsukiumi and Kaho, it had come as a relief that whatever hold over him Ayesha once had was gone when he had returned.
She had stood guard outside the door all night to make sure Ayesha didn't get anywhere near the two while Homura was recovering. She had also barred the doors and windows to Ayesha's room just to make sure, although that woman seemed to be so adept at escaping that she could turn most escape artists green with envy.
"Miya," Naruto started, dropping the honorifics. His voice was serious as he spoke, "Tell me about Ayesha, everything. I stood by silently because she never took an undue amount of interest in me or my Sekirei. However she has with my friend's and it's starting to affect me as a result." That battle last night could have been completely avoided if Minato hadn't been influenced by Ayesha. Naruto was certain he could have convinced Minato to not attend.
"Ayesha-san is my problem, Naruto-san."
"Not anymore," Naruto stated bluntly, he grimaced as Miya's eyes narrowed dangerously. That probably wasn't the best tone of voice to take with Miya. He softened his voice and tried a different angle. "You don't have to do this alone. Maybe there's something I can help with, I do have unique skills after all," Naruto said as he tried to reason with her.
Miya stared at Naruto for several long moments with an unreadable expression on her face. She wanted to take Naruto up on his offer, but Ayesha was her problem. Ayesha had caused her so much pain that she wanted to be the one to ultimately end her…
With a long drawn out sigh Miya relented. She couldn't let her pride cause any more harm to those she cared about.
"Alright, I'll tell you. Both of you." Miya finally relented. She quietly opened the door to Homura's room, "This is something both of you should be aware of if you're going to be staying here with Ayesha-san."
"Miya-san? Naruto-san?" Minato asked curiously, looking up as the two of them entered the room.
Naruto closed the door behind them and took a quick glance around the room. This was his first time in the room. Miya had gently, but firmly, rebuffed his attempts to enter last night. Something about women needing their privacy.
Which Naruto found a little strange since up until a few weeks ago Homura had been a man and Minato hadn't been barred.
The room was rather nondescript. There were a few basic pieces of furniture decorating the room but it was completely devoid of personalization. Minato was sitting on a stool beside the bed where he had been all night. Apparently because he was Homura's Ashikabi he had been exempted from the rule that Miya had forced upon him.
Homura appeared to be doing much better though from what Naruto could see. Her complexion had regained its color and her breathing was even. Bandages covered most her chest, which did an adequate job of protecting her modesty, and arms, one of which was in a makeshift split to help set the bone.
"Miya is going to help us make sense of what happened last night," Naruto said to Minato. There was no need to directly reference what he was talking about.
Miya moved to stand at the foot of the bed. She looked down at the injured Homura with a sad expression on her face, "Naruto-kun told me what happened last night. Most of the blame falls on Ayesha-san's shoulders but I share some of it for not preventing it."
"No one is perfect Miya-chan," Naruto said softly.
Miya shook her head, rejecting Naruto's platitude, "This is one situation where I cannot be anything but perfect."
Minato bit his lip and looked back and forth between Miya and Naruto, "I don't understand, what did Ayesha-san do? Isn't she just a normal woman?"
Miya shook her head, "No, to properly understand I need to explain something else. However before that I need you all to promise me that what is said in here is not repeated to anyone else." She gave Naruto and the hidden camera, one of many that Matsu had hidden around Izumo Inn, with a pointed looked.
Naruto hesitated for a moment. He usually told Hanabi-san everything he was told. There was little, if anything, that he hid from her. And what little he did keep back was for her sake.
"Naruto-san, if you cannot agree you are free to leave. I do not want what is said in here to leave this room." The two of them had the right to know because they were the Ashikabi in direct contact with Ayesha. Matsu was an exception being the first amongst her charges. However she didn't want anyone else to know, including Naruto's wife.
Selfish it may be but speaking out about it was hard enough, she did not want others to know as well.
Naruto sighed in defeat, as much as he didn't want to keep this from his wife he needed to know and if keeping his silence was the only way then he would do so. "Alright, I won't, I promise."
Miya nodded in satisfaction and began, "Originally there were eight Sekirei Pillars. A Sekirei Pillar is the Sekirei in charge of the other one hundred and seven Sekirei under their command." She couldn't go into too much detail with Minato here. While she didn't mind telling Naruto everything there were some things Minato was not yet ready to hear. "I am the eighth pillar, and all the Sekirei fighting here in Shinto Teito are under my charge."
"You're a Sekirei Miya-san?" Minato asked incredulously. Unlike Naruto he hadn't been privy to some of the more intimate knowledge that Miya had kept close to her heart.
Naruto had always known she was a Sekirei, and he had assumed she was important, but he didn't know what her exact role was.
"Yes, I am No. 01."
"And how does this relate to Ayesha?" Naruto asked.
"Ayesha-san is a Sekirei Pillar as well, the sixth one to be precise."
What?
Naruto blinked in surprise at that startling revelation. That didn't make any sense though. If Ayesha was a pillar like Miya that should have shown up as clear as day to Hanabi. Miya had a special core within her plus her chakra reserves, even without the core, were absolutely enormous.
Naruto had no doubt that had to do with being connected to Gyuki. If she was the eighth, then it would make sense that she was connected to the eighth Jinki. Which would make Ayesha linked to Saiken.
Her chakra reserves should have been just as enormous as Miya's.
As if reading his mind Miya explained the discrepancy, "She wasn't the original Sixth Pillar. The sixth died a few years before we arrived on Earth." Minato already knew that much about the Sekirei from Matsu. "Ayesha-san was brought in as a replacement. There wasn't anyone else that could… take the sixth's place. Even Ayesha-san wasn't exactly suitable either but her unique abilities allowed her the control required, even if the connection was never established."
Despite the vagueness of her response Naruto understood. The rest of the pillars were all probably jinchūriki, or at least had the potential to become one. Ayesha did not, but had the ability to control them despite that. There had been many techniques that could be used to control or restrict the Bijuu during his era, even more had probably been developed later. And in the purified state they were all in now who knew what could be used to control them?
"So Ayesha-san is a Sekirei?" Minato asked curiously.
Again Miya shook her head, "No, she's not a Sekirei. Sekirei are special. As much as it pains me to admit this Sekirei are not natural creations. Each and every one of them is grown in an embryotic pod. A Sekirei can reach full maturity within five years. The genes of the greatest heroes and the most powerful individuals in history are used as a base stock for them. Each and every Sekirei represents an individual of unparalleled power in the past."
"So that's what the last names mean," Naruto said as he mulled over this information. "The last name of each Sekirei corresponds to the individual from which their genes are based off." That meant Kusano wasn't 'really' a descendent of Hashirama. She was like an advanced version of Yamato. However instead of being experimented on and given his power she had actually been grown using his cells so she had completely control and full range of abilities just like the original.
A Zetsu clone, only done properly and not like the bastardizations that Madara and Obito created.
All the Sekirei were probably like that as well. None of them were natural 'descendants.' That probably explained the odd way the power manifested itself. The more dangerous elements of each bloodline or ability was probably locked away or omitted entirely during the creation of the Sekirei.
"So they're clones of other people?" Minato asked. This came to him as somewhat of a shock. To think that the people he was bound with were connected to powerful heroes of the past.
"No, they're not clones. Clones are copies, Sekirei are new individuals created based on the originals. In a sense you could say they're the descendants of those past heroes but unnaturally created and with greater emphasis placed upon utilizing the certain special abilities that made said heroes famous."
"I don't understand how that's possible though," Naruto said with a frown, "Some of those heroes died thousands of years ago, leaving no descendants behind." If their descendants had lived on it would be one thing but most had not.
"A gene vault was created soon after the Great War, that was when most of the genetic stock used to create the Sekirei were added," Miya said as she thought back to the massive structure that had dominated the center of Val'Amon, the old capital of her world.
The capital had been a desolate, empty ruin during her time. The land around it was not only barren, it was deadly. The area around Val'Amon had been turned into a toxic wasteland after the final battle of The Great Betrayal. She would have liked to have seen it during the height of their civilization. She had caught a glimpse of the city once when the toxic fog had lifted for a brief moment. The delicate spires still kissed the sky even a hundred years later, completely untouched by time.
Its fall had been well documented. It had been written that a large number of states had risen up against the democratically elected government in a mad bid for power, land and resources.
The armies of the traitors had reached the very gates of Val'Amon near the end of the war, and that was where the final great battle took place. The first generation of Sekirei had been utilized during that final bloody battle. They had been quickly grown in weeks and had subsequently aged just as fast. Only one of them had lived long enough afterwards to have children and she had died during labor.
It had been said that there were qualms about creating the Sekirei, the term had been coined even back then, but it had been touted that they would be the saviors of their world. Powerful individuals based on the heroes of the past that would restore their world to its former glory. And the people, desperate for any solution to the growing problems, accepted this at face value.
And thus had the Sekirei Plan become common knowledge.
She didn't know what the actual truth was though; Naruto's revelation about the first Great War had shaken her faith in the knowledge provided by the history books. It no longer mattered either way. That had been a hundred years prior to their departure, and over a thousand years since the present day.
That war had destroyed nearly every last vestige of habitable land and had forced them to put most of the surviving humans into stasis until such time that the Sekirei Plan succeeded and their world was restored.
The stasis was never meant to last a thousand years. Five hundred at most, there wasn't enough chakra in the generators to last any longer than that.
"I can see where this is going. Genes of all the great heroes were stored in that vault," Naruto said as he mulled over what Miya had said.
"Yes, and as more powerful individuals appeared later they too were added to the vault."
That explained why Naruto didn't recognize some of the names. However something worried him a great deal. He could understand the creation of the vault when they realized their world was falling apart to help develop the Sekirei Plan.
But from the sounds of it this vault was created long before anyone was aware of the eventual demise of their world. That meant this Sekirei Plan had been devised from the very start.
That coupled well with the incredible Fuinjutsu array embedded in the Sekirei. It would have taken at least several millennia to create something that complex. There were just so many variables that had to be taken into account that it would have taken a thousand years alone to work out all the kinks. Everything had to be absolutely perfect.
Once it was created it was relatively easy to understand, but to create something like that from scratch would have been a monumental task.
Those thoughts chilled Naruto to the bone. This meant that the original Sekirei Plan had absolutely nothing to do with the salvation of the Sekirei or their homeland. There was some other ulterior motive behind all this.
And someone capable of living long enough to see the plan through to fruition.
That worried Naruto a great deal. Had Obito truly been killed when Gai had overloaded his dimension or had he simply been trapped for a time like he and Hanabi had been? Had Madara somehow survived? Or was there some other threat he was unaware of?
He knew of several ways to achieve limited immortality. Orochimaru's body switching technique and an artificial body created through the Impure World Reincarnation technique were two such ways. Kakuzu, Hidan and Sasori had also all achieved a form of immortality. That was five techniques alone that he knew of that could have been used to extend someone's life.
What other methods were available that he didn't know about? What new techniques had been created in the time since?
Which brought Naruto's mind to the crux of the matter.
Why?
What was the goal of this Sekirei Plan if not to save their world?
"So what does this have to do with Ayesha-san?" Minato asked, snapping Miya and Naruto from their thoughts.
Miya raised a hand to her mouth and chuckled, "I apologize, it seems I got side tracked. Not everyone was placed in stasis as some were required to complete the final steps of the Sekirei Plan such as building the ships and creating the final generation of Sekirei that would be used to travel to this world. Ayesha's grandfather created the fluid that sustained us through our dimensional travel, and the thousand years afterwards. He created it using a method he called 'Alchemy.' I don't know the details, it's a closely guarded family secret, but it has the ability to create incredible miracles unattainable through technology or chakra. When the Sixth Pillar died the First Pillar approached Ayesha's grandfather and asked if Ayesha would take her place. Her grasp of Alchemy far surpassed her grandfather's."
"So why is she going around causing so much trouble?" Naruto asked.
"I don't think she realizes she is causing trouble," Miya said softly, "That's what makes her so dangerous. She honestly believes she is doing what is right. She understands what she is doing, but she never sees anything wrong in anything she does. If you ask her to do something, she'll do it, no matter how despicable it may be because she is not capable of understanding that her actions are wrong."
"I don't understand what's going on," Minato said, he was completely clueless.
Miya sighed and rubbed her eyes. It would be easier if she could say everything in front of Minato but she couldn't. She decided to go at it from a different angle, "Ayesha has the ability to make anyone unconditionally loyal to her. This unique power stems from her lack of moral compass. In a sense she is all-loving, all-accepting. Just by being near her you can't help but wish to be with her. She accepts everything you have to give without judgement or reservation. No matter what you say, what you do, what you think, or what you are, she accepts it completely. It's such an endearing feeling to be so overwhelmingly accepted that you can't help but become enthralled by her. She is like a beacon of light so unbelievably bright that it burns everything else from sight. She changes you, you become willing to do things you never would before because the light begins to blind you from your own sense of right and wrong. This manifests itself around her like an aura, one she can amplify and enhance through various ways such as adopting certain postures or facial expressions. Her touch is especially dangerous."
"And as a result of that you lose sight of everything else that is precious in life and she becomes your sole focus," Naruto said with an angry snarl. Ayesha was more than just dangerous. In a way she was a greater threat than Minaka and all his armies and Sekirei; greater than the threat of genocide looming over their heads in the form of the Jinki.
"Yes, that's what happened to my Sekirei. All of the Sekirei that were supposed to take the trip were meant to be fully grown. However shortly before it was time to depart Ayesha subverted all of them. They all became unconditionally loyal to her and… she asked them to kill me."
Their eyes widened in horror.
"I don't know why though. She herself would never have done it of her own free will but if someone had asked her to, she would have given the order, simply because she was asked to. I couldn't allow that though, the Sekirei Plan was more important than their lives. That's what I believed at the time." That was what she believed then anyways, now however she no longer placed any value in the plan, "I had no choice, I was forced to kill all of my Sekirei because of her." Miya almost broke down right there as she relived those painful memories. She had overwhelmed them easily. Even with their powers unrestricted she had been more powerful than all of them combined.
That battle however had left deep scars in her heart.
"And that's why your Sekirei came as embryos instead of fully grown ones," Naruto said in a horrified voice, "There wasn't any time to create fully grown Sekirei in the time before you left."
"Yes."
"And why is she still alive?" Naruto asked incredulously, "If that was me I'd have torn her apart piece by piece."
Miya sighed and lowered her head, "I did. I chased her down and killed her, violently," she said softly. She raised her head and looked Naruto straight in the eyes. He could see the pain and sorrow as clear as day deep within there, "But Ayesha-san is immortal. She cannot be killed, not permanently. It doesn't matter how severe the wounds are, she will heal afterwards completely unscathed. You can cut her into tiny pieces and vaporize what's left and she will still regenerate. Even age is defied by her ability. She created some sort of alchemic miracle that automatically restores her to her prime whenever her body starts to break down, be that from old age, sickness, disease, or physical trauma."
Immortality. It was back to this again. Naruto was getting tired of facing immortal opponents. What happened to the good old days when people simply died when you killed them? Was that really too much to ask for?
"So she can't be killed, only contained," he said as he finally realized why Miya hadn't just done away with the woman. It was better to keep her here where she could restrict Ayesha's movements than to let her roam free, especially if killing her wasn't an option.
In a sense it was cold hard numbers that made Miya keep her here. Minato only had five Sekirei. Better those five than the scores that were still alive out and about in Shinto Teito. He understood her reasoning completely. He too had once been forced to sacrifice the few for the betterment of all, even when many of his friends were counted among those few.
"You are correct Naruto-kun."
Still Miya's confirmation was interesting and did raise some possibilities. Perhaps he could help Miya after all. He knew of several containment seals that could incapacitate Ayesha temporarily without actually killing her. He'd present his idea to her when he had something more permanent figured out.
"So Ayesha-san subverted Tsukiumi-san," Minato said as his mind put together the pieces. "And Ayesha-san…" he trailed off and his eyes widened in horror.
"Yes, she got to you as well yesterday," Miya confirmed Minato's fears.
"Then I am…"
He stopped as Naruto raised his hand, "You were, it seems a sufficiently large enough shock is capable of breaking her hold, provided the hold is not very strong. To use the analogy Miya used earlier. It's like you were blinded by the light but someone punched you in the face and you were forced to look away for a moment. In that instant you realized just what was going on and the shock of the events you saw happening around you blocked out the light."
"I'm sorry Naruto-san," Minato said as he bowed his head and apologized. "If only I hadn't let Ayesha-san seduce me yesterday would have never happened."
"Apologizing won't bring back the dead, just promise me you'll use your head next time. The one on your shoulders, not in your pants I should add," Naruto said.
"I promise, I'm not going to fight you again. I just want to live happily with my Sekirei. With Homura-san, Matsu-san, and Kuu-chan." With Kaho and Tsukiumi as well, but they were gone now, because of his stupidity.
"You have a plan don't you Naruto-san," Matsu said as she walked into the room. Her glasses were off, she was in a serious mood.
It seemed like Matsu was no longer content on just being an observer.
"For Ayesha? Yes, I may have a way to seal her up completely and permanently," Naruto admitted with a nod of his head, something had come to him during Minato's apology, "But it will take about a week to prepare it. I have some quick temporary ones but I'd rather go with a permanent one from the start, less chance of there being complications later."
Without knowing everything that Ayesha was capable of with alchemy it was best not to give her any chance to plan. Trapping her temporarily would give away his plans for her and could potentially give her the ability to thwart future attempts. Best to stick with the permanent one first.
His idea would require the retrieval and deciphering of the sealing array on the stasis pod that held the ancient Sekirei in stasis. It was still going strong after a thousand years and was more than large enough to house Ayesha. A week should be all he needed to find it, retrieve it, decipher it, unlock it, and prepare it to accept a new occupant.
Miya's eyes lit up with hope but kept her features schooled, "Does Naruto-kun's method invite violence?" Violence was not tolerated at Izumo Inn but she would not mind breaking that rule, just once. There were always exceptions.
"No, the issue is what to do between now and then. You can't keep guarding all the time Miya-chan. Homura, weakened as he is, and Minato, having already succumbed once, are both probably extremely vulnerable to her," Naruto mused. He missed the hint of disappointment in Miya's eyes
"We just need to leave until Ayesha-san is dealt with," Matsu said, "I can come up with a list of good locations in minutes."
An idea popped into Naruto's head, "Actually…" he said with a small smile, "I have a good place you can all crash at for a week." It had actually meant to be for just him and Chime but he could always get a new ticket later. This was more important.
"Oh, I hope it's nothing exotic or dangerous Naruto-kun," Miya said warningly. She knew what Naruto was like. Anything he suggested almost always had a hint of crazy associated with it.
"Nope! Nothing like that!" Naruto said happily as he pulled out a ticket of some kind from his pocket. He had used a sleight of hand trick to pull it from his seal without anyone noticing. "This is it, a seven day, six night stay at a hot spring resort in the west end of Shinto Teito. It's for the luxury suite with its own private hot spring."
He had been sent the ticket as an apology some time ago from the Yakuza. When they had learned that the real-estate broker had betrayed them they had opted to make it up to him. They took care of their own.
Matsu immediately began to salivate. "Narutan, you are a god amongst men," she said as drool ran rampant down her chin. The thought of being alone with her Ashikabi at a hot spring.
Oh all the experimentation she could do without Miya to interfere.
"I thought you might like this," Naruto said with a little smirk as he handed Minato the ticket.
"This is expensive!" Minato gasped as he saw the cost normally associated with such a reservation.
"I got it for free as an apology. Please don't concern yourself with the price tag. Just be sure to thoroughly use all the time you have available and obey the rules while you're there. They are a stickler for following their own rules, even if they are rather liberal with others."
Miya frowned as she looked at the ticket, "I believe I will be keeping Kuu-chan here. I do not believe she is ready for such things yet," she said. There was no doubt in her mind what was going to happen when they got there. She couldn't stop them but at the very least she could prevent Kusano from seeing it.
Plus, Kusano was already influenced. There's no way she would go without having Ayesha at her side and that was unacceptable. Kusano might be a lost cause. If she did not recover from Ayesha's influence after Naruto incapacitated Ayesha, she would be forced to…
She didn't want to think about that. She would only cross that bridge if all others were burned.
"Of course. I wouldn't want to Kusano to see something like that yet. I remember when I was there with my Sekirei, the orgy last for over eight hours." Naruto said and grinned at Minato, there was a twinkle in his eyes, "Can you match my record Minato? I exhausted my girls, I wonder if you can do the same."
"Fufufufu, don't worry Narutan! I will milk Minato dry over and over!" Matsu said and her hands began to make groping motions in the air.
"Don't forget Homura-san, she needs some loving now too," Naruto pointed out.
There was a wet slurping sound as Matsu noisily licked her lips, "Don't worry, a threesome sounds fine to me as well!" The look in her eye was positively lecherous.
For a brief moment there it almost looked as if Matsu was about to ravish Minato on the spot.
Minato gaped at the two of them. The conversation had gone from an incredibly serious tone to one of complete and total perversion in under two minutes flat. His mind couldn't keep up with the sudden change in mood.
"Naruto-kun…" Miya started warningly. Homura was still injured; she should not be involved in any strenuous activities.
Naruto intentionally misinterpreted Miya's warning as he barreled onwards, "Oh don't worry Miya-chan. If you're feeling left out I can oblige you!" Now it's was Naruto's turn to make groping motions in the air, only this time towards Miya.
Shing!
Suddenly there was naked steel at his throat. Naruto had no idea how she managed to do it but the katana that was in her room was now in her hand and pointed at him.
"Naruto-kun…" Miya started to growl ominously as a dark aura erupted around her. A hanyou mask began to peek over her shoulder.
A sweat drop rolled down the back of Naruto's head, "…I think it's time to… exit stage left!" he shouted and dove through the door, smashing it apart in the process.
"Get back here Naruto-kun!" Miya shouted in anger as bolted from the room, intent on chasing the blatant pervert down.
Matsu's perverted grin transformed into a small smile as she listened to Miya chase Naruto around the Inn. The subject had been incredibly heavy and painful for Miya. This was the best way to end it for her, by replacing it with their usual antics. Naruto wasn't as stupid as he sometimes appeared. He had deliberately turned the subject perverted just to get a rise out of Miya.
Just to get her mind on something other than her painful past.
~o~
"Can't we just talk about this!?" Naruto cried out as he bounded over one of the flower beds, being careful not to damage the flowers. Who knew what Miya would do to him if their chase damaged the flowers.
"Stay still!" Miya shouted and swung her blade.
Boom! The flowerbed exploded under the impact of Miya's strike.
So much for the flowers.
"I wasn't being serious!" Naruto fired back as he bolted around the corner of the Inn.
For some reason that comment only served to anger her more. How dare he suggest that he wanted to do illicit things to her and not mean it!
"So I'm not worth being treated seriously?" Miya asked in a dark voice and swung her blade as she rounded the corner. A shockwave rippled outwards and shot across the yard.
Naruto bent backwards and slide across the ground on his knees. The shockwave just grazed him as it shot overhead.
Naruto hopped to his feet and shot across the lawn again, "No that's not it! You're beautiful! I would love to ravage your body! Ah crap…" That was the wrong thing to say. Blanching Naruto picked up speed, he would need it.
That comment both annoyed and aroused her at the same time, "Oh? So is that what you truly think Naruto-kun? That I am nothing more than a piece of meat to ravage? Has your beastly urges truly pushed you to the point where you can't control yourself?" Her tone was deceptively soft but Naruto knew better than to assume that he had assuaged her feelings.
"You're going to kill me aren't you?"
"Whatever would give you that impression?" Miya asked. She suddenly blurred and with a burst of speed Naruto had never seen before she stood before him.
"Shit!"
Pain lanced through his head and the next thing he knew he was laying on his back on the grass. The blade of Miya's sword was embedded in the ground just next to his face, close enough he could have shaved with it.
In fact, Naruto realized, Miya may have done just that considering there was a portion of his cheek that was now completely smooth and free of stubble. He normally did a close shave every morning but this took it to a whole new level.
Miya was straddling his waist as she glared down at him.
"Now, now Miya-chan, I was just trying to lighten the mood!" Naruto said as he tried to defend himself.
One misstep here and Hanabi would be a widow.
"So you decided to use me as the source of your amusement?" Miya growled.
"It cheered you up didn't it?" Naruto said with his best smile.
As angry as Miya was right now, it was better than the pain and sadness from before. That alone was worth being knocked on his ass.
Miya glared at Naruto for a moment before she sighed, the anger draining from her system, and shook her head helplessly. The anger that once radiated from her was now all but gone. She slowly rose to her feet and pulled the blade out of the ground. "Thank you," she said as she extended her hand to help Naruto up, which he graciously accepted.
"Anything for you Miya-chan!" Naruto said with a grin as he was pulled to his feet.
"Anything?" Miya asked with a sickeningly sweet voice.
Naruto gulped, he could only imagine all of the menial and degrading chores and tasks Miya had lined up that she could force him to do.
Miya just laughed at the concerned expression on Naruto's face and gently stroked his cheek, "From now on, don't say anything like that unless you intend to follow through with it," she said and with one last lingering touch she turned and headed back into Izumo Inn.
Naruto brought a hand up to his cheek and watched her walk away. He couldn't seem to pull his eyes off her backside, especially her hips, as there was a hypnotic sway to them that he found mesmerizing. A confused look crossed his face as he processed the odd look in Miya's eyes. There had been an emotion in in there he had never seen on her before. He wasn't sure what to do about it. It wasn't like he was unfamiliar with the look.
After all he saw it every day, whenever he looked in the eyes of his wife and his Sekirei.
Love.
x~X~x
"And then it was like all 'chittah chittah bang whoosh!'" the young man said as he made exaggerated motions with his hands.
"Are you sure there wasn't an extra bang in there?" Naruto's Kakashi clone asked with a raised eyebrow.
The man tilted his head and then bobbed it back and forth quickly, "Ya, ya, 'bang bang' and a few zipity zap zaps as well. Can't forget the zipity zaps."
The two of them were in the break room at MBI. They were both dressed in the standard janitorial attire that was given to them upon hire, although Kakashi's companion seemed quite a bit more disheveled than him.
"I'm surprised you can tolerate Chad," a third individual in the room muttered.
"Mah, he's not that bad," Kakashi said in a relaxed tone of voice. Chad certainly had a few screws loose but he still had a long way to go before he reached Gai's level. "It's amusing to some extent."
"Oh man you'd be all 'shaky shaky wee bang' too if you saw what I see! Here, have some," Chad said as he offered a joint to his co-workers.
The third man looked at the joint in disgust and turned away. Kakashi just waved his hand, "I'll pass, a few too many 'bang bang zaps' happen when I get all fuzzy headed."
"Ahhhh…" Chad said as he understood. He nodded vigorously, "I've had that happened too man, not fun when there are tooooo many bangity bang bangs. The zaps just make it worse."
"I can't believe this is the idiot they have cleaning the high security areas," the third man said in total bewilderment.
Kakashi could understand. It made a lot of sense if one thought about it. Chad was so doped up on drugs he couldn't remember anything from a week ago. It made him the perfect candidate to clean those high security areas because he'd just destroy those memories with massive amounts of drugs. The few memories he did have were immediately dismissed out of hand as hallucinations.
"One for you!" Chad said as he took a long drag on the joint, "And one for you," he continued as he snorted some cocaine, "And again some more for you," he popped a mushroom into his mouth.
Kakashi had no doubt that Chad hallucinated most of what he saw, but some of it was rather interesting. He was used to sorting the wheat from the chaff. For instance zipity zap zaps referred to lightning or electrical based attacks, probably either new weaponry or one of Minaka's Sekirei. Whoosh for wind, bangs for explosions, etc. Some of it was garble but Chad was definitely seeing Sekirei training or advanced weapons development of some kind or another and that was his way of describing what he saw because he no longer had the mental capability to describe it more thoroughly.
An interesting thing about the whole situation was that MBI actually provided the drugs for Chad to use and encourage liberal use of it. They made sure it there were regular medical treatment to fix the damage caused to his body by said drugs, easier than trying to find a replacement.
It gave them the perfect individual to clean up their messes in their most sensitive areas because it would be nigh impossible for anyone to glean information from him.
"But man, why you always have a book?" Chad asked Kakashi.
"Oh this?" Kakashi held up the orange book in his hands, "It's one of the greatest pieces of literature ever written."
"It's smut," the third man said, he had gotten a peak at it once when he had glanced over Kakashi's shoulder.
"It's more than mere smut! If you took the time to read it instead of stealing glances over my shoulder you too would understand its greatness!" Kakashi proclaimed as he waved the book in the air as if it was the greatest thing ever.
"Wow man, that's deep. Can I see?" Chad asked eagerly.
"You can't read," The third man pointed out. "You're illiterate, I don't even know how you can figure out where you're supposed to clean."
"Hey! The pink signs never lie! And don't make fun of me because I dropped out of third grade! That shit's hard you know, those damn squares wouldn't fit into the circles!" Chad said indignantly as he pointed his fingers at random locations in the room.
"That's kindergarten…"
"Whatever man, same difference."
Kakashi moved over beside Chad, it couldn't hurt to show him and besides, who was he to deny others the greatness that was the Ichi Ichi Paradise series?
"See, this is where I am at…" Kakashi said as he showed the page to Chad.
"Oh wow, can her legs really bend like that?" Chad asked in amazement.
Kakashi blinked and looked back at the page, indeed there was a passage where Elaine's legs were bent back behind her head.
"You can read this?" Kakashi asked. The wonders of the Ichi Ichi Paradise truly were great.
"What? Of course not! This is a picture book right?" Chad asked as he continued to read, "Wow, man he's packing some fire power down there. That's enough to make me jealous man! Oh wow, she screamed and creamed the moment he… whoa can someone actually pound a woman that quickly?"
Kakashi was actually trembling at the startling revelation he had come to. When Chad was this doped up on drugs, he couldn't just read, his mind actually translated the words into pictures right there on the page. He was literally seeing Icha Icha Paradise come to life before his very eyes.
For a single moment, Kakashi actually contemplated doing drugs just to see his beloved Icha Icha Paradise come to life. If only his mission didn't conflict with his innermost desire.
"That book was sooo good man, I may need to get me one of those picture books! But oh man freaky deaky is the name of the game these days," Chad said as his head bobbed from side to side. He wasn't reading the book anymore, his attention had diverted again.
"Oh, more freaky than the 'chiky bang cracky poop' that happened last week when the mushrooms tried to take over?" Kakashi asked in amusement. He pocketed his book; his break was almost over.
"Oh yes man, those eyes just floated all around me. Freaky eyes man, straight out of a horror movie. All black and red with squiggly lines, definitely devil eyes. That star shaped pattern is definitely a summoning pentagram!"
It took every ounce of willpower Kakashi had not to show any shock on his face. "Mah, it's probably just the mushrooms out to attack again. Did they not try to take over the world last Friday?" he asked as he tried to brush off the comment as if it was nothing. He had to get this information to boss as soon as possible.
MBI had Sasuke's Sharingan, and that meant Minaka had it. If Minaka figured out how to tap into the potential of the Sharingan it was all over.
"You know, you may be onto something man. Those mushrooms are tricksy. They've disguised themselves before! I better get my potato gun ready, those mushrooms hate potatoes."
He couldn't make a move himself, boss placed him here to gather information. If Chad saw the eyes that placed them in the high security area, a place he had no access to as of yet. However he had no doubt Naruto would do something about those eyes.
MBI probably had them for months already, that was far too long. They needed to be destroyed as soon as possible.
x~X~x
Naruto saw his Sekirei, Blanc, jump in surprise as he suddenly appeared in front of her. He quickly glanced around the room and saw that not much had changed from the last time he had been here.
"I'll never get used to that," Blanc muttered under her breath.
Naruto sheepishly scratched the back of his head, "Ah well there's not much I can do to change it you know. It would sort of lose its effectiveness if I just slowly faded into view," he said.
Blanc glared at Naruto in annoyance, "I didn't say you had to change it."
Naruto chuckled and looked at Yume, "Has there been any change?"
"She hasn't woken up yet but she is on the mend. I watched as the doctors changed her bandages earlier. Whatever they put on the wound is healing it very quickly. There won't even be a scar by tomorrow," Blanc said as she looked at Yume.
She had threatened one of the doctors when she felt his hands hand lingered too long on parts they shouldn't have. She had made herself very clear that certain things would not be tolerated. Takami had been more than a little annoyed at her when she arrived to find the door smashed to pieces and the doctor's head embedded in the wall across the hallway. However once Blanc had explained her reasoning Takami had ripped the doctor from the wall and dragged him away with a rather angry look on her face.
From what she heard afterwards, from the whispers going around after that incident, the doctor had been admitted to a mental institution due to extreme mental trauma. Takami was extremely protective of the Sekirei.
She didn't think there was any need to inform her Ashikabi about that incident since it had been taken care of already.
"That's good, but I'm concerned that she hasn't woken up yet," Naruto said with a hint of concern in his voice.
"Takami said she should wake up in the next few days," Blanc said, "She's under a lot of anesthesia right now."
Naruto moved to the bedside and gently caressed Yume's cheeks, "I see, Blanc, it's time to go."
"Go? You told me to watch Yume."
"I did, and you have, but it's been twenty-four hours. You need some rest, I'll take over now," Naruto said and a shadow clone appeared soundlessly beside him. A moment later the clone transformed into a perfect copy of Blanc.
"I'm not that tired, I can watch her still," Blanc protested.
Naruto smiled at her and rubbed her hair, "I know, but the two of us have a big day tomorrow and I don't want you falling asleep in the middle of it."
"Stop that," Blanc muttered irritably as she batted Naruto's hand away from her hair. She hated being treated like a child just because she was small. "And what do you mean by a big day?" she asked curiously.
Naruto grinned at her, "It will be a surprise. I think you'll like it."
He placed one hand on Blanc's shoulder and another on a potted plant beside the bed. With a flicker the two of them disappeared.
And reappeared at their home.
Blanc eyed the plant in Naruto's other hand oddly, "Why did you bring that with you?"
Naruto winked at Blanc, "I'm certain the cameras saw me create a clone that transformed into you, so I created a second that they don't know about." There was also a third hiding on the bed but he didn't think it was necessary to say that.
"Oh."
"Now, get some sleep, that's an order," Naruto commanded with a gentle smile on his face.
Blanc nodded and started to turn. She stopped and looked down at the tablet that she had brought back with her from the Hospital. Her fingers quickly flickered across the touch screen for a moment. After finding what it was she was looking for she turned it around and offered it to Naruto.
"What's this?" he asked as he took the tablet from her. On the tablet was an image of a warehouse.
"That's the warehouse that the stasis pod is stored in: Waterfront District, Aomi block. It's warehouse number fifteen. That's it right there on the tablet so you should be able to find it," Blanc explained.
"Oh, thank you," Naruto said as he made sure to remember that information. This was good; they needed to get that pod back as soon as possible so he could reuse it to trap Ayesha.
Assuming that whatever was IN the pod wasn't so dangerous that it needed to be re-trapped after it was freed.
Blanc nodded and let out a wide yawn. Now that she was back in the safety of her own home she had to admit, at least to herself anyways, that she was exhausted. She silently thanked her Ashikabi and made her way down to her room in the basement.
"Time to find Hanabi," Naruto murmured as he went off in search of his wife. He couldn't bring his Sekirei with him on this mission. He wanted to get in, grab the pod, and get out without anyone even knowing he was there. As much as he loved his Sekirei, none of them were really suited for stealth missions.
x~X~x
Across the city from the west a cool, but steady, wind blew, erasing some of the heat that the day had brought. The sun had just set and darkness had settled comfortably over the city. The number of lights that lit up the city at night made true darkness all but impossible.
As the wind reached the docks it billowed around two dark shadows as they crept silently across a warehouse rooftop. The two of them, one male and one female, were cloaked head to toe in black clothing. Porcelain masks covered their faces, their normal lustre dulled and darkened with soot to prevent light from reflecting off them.
One of the cloaked individuals, the male, leaned over the edge of the roof, glancing at the lights that shone down on the ground. The lights were standard fluorescent and there was a hood over them so as to channel the light down towards the ground. Whoever designed the building obviously never anticipated someone would be on the roof.
With a feat that seemed to defy the laws of gravity the cloaked individual went over the edge and stuck to the wall of the warehouse. The individual quickly reached one of the lights, fingers lightly touching the point where the light met the wall. The air around the fingers seemed to shimmer for a moment before the light inexplicably went out.
The cloak figured moved on to the next light and within minutes every light on that side of the warehouse had been darkened. The cloaked figure beckoned to his companion on the rooftop. Despite the distinct lack of light the second person was able to see the signal perfectly and went over the rooftop. Like the first they too seemed to stick to the side of the warehouse in utter defiance of gravity.
The first individual had moved back up the wall and had positioned themselves near one of the windows. A dull metal blade appeared suddenly in his hands. Like before the air seemed to shimmer around the blade. Like a hot knife cutting through warm butter the blade easily sheared through the thick glass. A large circular opening, one easily large enough for a grown man to climb through, was cut into the window.
The second individual caught the glass as the first finished, sticking it to her hand like it was covered in glue, before it could fall inside and create a racket. She pulled the circular piece of glass out from the window and held it to the side, allowing her companion to enter the building through the opening. She quickly entered the warehouse after her companion. As she did so she brought the glass back to the window and carefully fitted it into the opening it had been cut from. When she pulled her hand away, like magic, the circular piece of glass remained firmly stuck in place.
She quickly made her way across the catwalk to her companion's side. He was crouched low, scanning the warehouse for any sign of movement. There shouldn't be but it never hurt to double check. There were a few areas of absolute darkness that his companion could not penetrate with her vision.
The man's companion had been able to analyze much of the interior of the warehouse before they had entered. She had identified all of the security cameras so he knew where to look for those. There were six in all, one in each corner of the warehouse and two in the office. The office was situated on the east side of the building on the same level as the catwalk they were currently on. The two of them had entered from the southern end of the building.
They had no business in the office so they ignored it.
The only security guards were the normal ones that patrolled the docks. There had been guards here before but with the fall of Higa Pharmaceuticals they were out of the job. Most of Higa's possessions were in the process of being seized and auctioned away. The warehouse, considered a minor asset, had been ignored thus far.
It wouldn't stay that way for very long so it was fortuitous that they had found this place when they did.
Four blades appeared in the male's hands, attached to each blade was a tag with strange alien writing on it. The hilt and blade too were marked with the same alien writing the tags possessed. The arm holding the blades disappeared as it moved faster than the naked eye could follow. Four dull blades silently cut through the air heading for four different targets.
Four dull sounds echoed through the warehouse as the blades found their target: The ceiling just above each of the cameras. A sphere of absolute darkness erupted around each of the blades, covering the cameras completely and obscuring their view.
Destroying the cameras was not an option as it would set off an alarm that would bring everyone within the dockyard running towards them. This mission needed to be done in complete incognito.
The two cloaked individuals shared a look, everything that needed to be said was passed with a single glance, and as one they vaulted over the railing to the warehouse floor below. The two of them quickly weaved their way through the various assets as they made their way to their target.
A large crate near the center of the room.
It was completely indistinguishable from any other crate in the warehouse. However this one was special. Their prize was inside it, something they needed to retrieve before everything in this place was sold to the highest bidder.
Along the way the larger of the two stopped as he saw something interesting. He pointed at a large vehicle situated just off to the side. It was absolutely enormous, it towered over everything else. The man really wanted it.
The woman glanced over at the label and scowled behind her mask. She shook her head vigorously and jerked her thumb back towards their destination.
The man sighed in defeat and, with one last lingering look at the item, made his way towards their destination once more.
A few moments later the two arrived at their target. The crate was ten feet tall, five feet wide and five feet long. The man looked over at his companion for confirmation. The woman gave him a slight nod of her head and laid her hand on his shoulder.
The man returned her nod. With another long glance at the vehicle he placed a hand on the crate and they disappeared, along with the crate.
x~X~x
"I haven't worn this outfit in some time," Naruto said as he stripped the dark cloak from his body, revealing a set of ANBU armor, modified to include modern bullet proof equipment.
"I like it," Hanabi said as she took hers off and carefully folded it.
The two of them touched one of the many seals engraved upon their bodies and with a flash of light the two were garbed in their standard civilian clothing.
They had teleported the crate to B3, the second subbasement of Epsilon Point. Unlike the others it wasn't really meant to be liveable space. The ceiling was concrete and thirty feet up. The floors and walls were solid dirt and there was nothing else down here save for a large sealing array set up around the crate they had brought with them.
The sealing array was designed to contain whatever was kept in the stasis container, just in case it turned out to be hostile. It had taken Naruto much of the day to create it.
The room was normally a training area. Chakra had been used to reinforce the walls and floors to ensure that the house didn't come crashing down. There were two large earthen support beams spaced equal-distance from each other and the outer walls to help support the ceiling. Those too had been reinforced with chakra.
Naruto eyed the crate up and down, "Well I suppose we should open this and see what's inside," he said as he walked to one of the corners. With a quick application of wind chakra the nails were quickly cut through. "I still think we should have taken it with us."
Hanabi scowled at Naruto again, "I am sorry Naruto-kun, but we did not need a Patriot Missile Launcher!"
"But, it would have been so cool!"
"Oh? And just where did you think you'd be able to hide a missile defence system?"
"In the backyard?" Naruto answered sheepishly.
"In the backyard, oh sure, that's SUCH a great idea, because having a massive anti-missile defence system sitting in our backyard makes so much sense. Why would we even NEED one of those?"
"Because they're cool?" He knew that wasn't an acceptable answer but he really couldn't come up with a more legitimate reason to want it.
"…" The look on Hanabi's face was downright frosty.
"Alright maybe the backyard wouldn't have worked."
Hanabi let out a long drawn out sigh, "Naruto-kun… the tank is one thing, you can drive that and use it somewhere, for whatever reason. The missile defense system has no purpose. If we have cruise missiles flying at our house we have bigger problems then what can be solved by a defense system."
Naruto sighed in total defeat, his wife was right once more. Not that he honestly thought that taking the missile defence system was really a great idea. It was more for the wow factor. How many people can say they had their own personal missile defense system?
Maybe he could hide it at Charlie Point. That was a warehouse almost as large as the one they had just left.
The side of the crate fell away as Hanabi finished cutting the nails on her side. The two glanced inside, the stasis pod was there just like they had seen in the picture. It was identical to the large pod that had been in the center of the ship on Kamikura Island. It was more scuffed up than before, obviously some extra attempts had been made to open it up, but the seals had held strong.
With the contents revealed they made quick work of the rest of the crate and soon the stasis pod was standing alone in the center of the training room.
"Can you understand the sealing array?" Hanabi asked curiously as she walked around the pod.
She knew a little Fuinjutsu but what was etched onto the side of this pod was far beyond anything she was able to comprehend. She was adept at using pre-made seals that her husband created for her but that was about the extent of her capabilities.
Naruto nodded thoughtfully as he followed the curves and patterns. His eyes began to widen as he made his way around the pod. He could see all five elements woven into the seal. Those were easily identified. But the more he read the array the more he realized that it didn't just incorporate all five elements. It incorporated every element, at the same time. It utilized the same form of energy his causality reversal seal did.
This was another reality defying seal. While his defied causality, this one defied time.
He understood intimately how the seal worked now. He even knew how to disable it. What concerned him was that someone had managed to duplicate the process in which he had created the Prime Chakra element.
"Yes, I understand it perfectly. I can undo it right now if I wanted to but I think I might want to write this seal down for future study," Naruto said as he got lost in the beauty of the seal before him. "Did you know this seal actually defies time itself? Time does not exist within this pod."
"You already know one reality defying seal, do you really need a second?" Hanabi asked curtly.
"Three actually," Naruto murmured in an offhand manner.
"There what?"
"Three reality defying seals. This would be my fourth,"
Hanabi's jaw dropped. It wasn't often that Naruto could surprise her but this time he did, "What? How? When? Was breaking the laws of causality not enough for you?"
"I've been sending clones to Charlie Point for some time now to experiment with new seals. That base may be compromised but it's still a good place for my clones. They can dispel themselves the moment anyone gets close to it." Plus he had added extra seals to that base to block out the Byakugan, just in case Hiashi decided he wanted to do a little spying.
"Do I even want to know what they are?" Hanabi asked in a tired voice.
"Causality is one of them, which you already know. Conservation of energy is another, I know how to both create and utterly obliterate energy, and by extension, matter," Naruto answered distractedly. He was still completely absorbed in the pod.
"And the third one?" Hanabi was almost dreading asking this question. At this rate he'd be making his own personal, self-sustaining dimensions soon complete with its own set of unique laws.
"I'm not sure what it's called exactly, relativity something or other. I can make light travel faster than itself, although that's not something I want to do ever again. It basically existed in multiple places simultaneously and replaced everything between the start point and the end point with itself. I punched a hole through the planet with that technique."
"YOU WHAT?!" Hanabi yelled at him.
"Don't worry, I plugged it up as quickly as possible. Only a tiny bit of magma escaped from the hole," Naruto said with a wave of his hand as he tried to placate his wife.
"That's not the point!" Hanabi snapped. With a sigh she calmed herself and rubbed her aching temples. She needed help; she couldn't keep her husband reined in by herself. She glanced back at her husband as he quickly devoured another God Tier technique. "Alright, you don't need a forth reality defying technique!" she said as she pulled Naruto away from the pod and forced him to look at her, "Just open the damn thing and be prepared to put whatever inside it down if it turns out to be hostile."
"No problem, I just finished figuring it all out. It really is rather ingenious. There's even a perpetual energy generation technique built in. There are portions of the seal that take the chakra channeled into it and amplifies it. So long as the technique isn't disrupted it'll last forever." Naruto said in total amazement. This was perfect for trapping Ayesha. All he had to do was toss her in this, seal it back up, and then drop it into the deepest darkest hole in the ground he could find.
Hanabi let out another long sigh. She was too late, he had already absorbed the technique. As much as she didn't want to admit it his abilities were becoming a trifle bit unnerving. The thought of someone capable of duplicating himself thousands of times over with the capability of turning reality into his own personal play thing was very disconcerting, especially since said individual enjoyed pulling pranks. She could only shudder at what would happen to the world after this whole Sekirei Plan was over and he became bored.
The leash she had around his finger only seemed to be able to do so much these days.
"I'm releasing the seal now," Naruto said as he placed his hands at two different points on the sealing array.
The seals glowed brightly and the room filled with multi-colored chakra for a moment as all the excess energy stored within the seals was released. The chakra sank into the walls and coated them, further reinforcing the walls and adding an extra layer of security to what was already there.
Naruto and Hanabi never noticed the strange reaction with the chakra that was released; their gaze was fixated on the individual that floated slowly to the floor of the pod. She was small, childlike even, but there was a maturity to her features that belied her size. She wore a long Miko dress that pooled around her feet. The dress had red edges and was tied at the waist with a large red bow. She had long brilliant red hair and two flowers were clipped onto either side of her head.
She was definitely a Sekirei. Hanabi could see her Sekirei core and Naruto could feel it but there was more to her. Like Miya she also had her own fully developed chakra network, and an enormous amount of chakra flowed through it just as with Miya.
However this chakra was different, special. Hanabi could tell right away. She had only felt it in a few select people.
The childlike woman's eyes slowly opened to reveal a pair of dull blue eyes.
"Naruto-kun, she's like Miya-san, she has a core and a chakra network," Hanabi warned him. If she was anything like Miya than that meant she was probably just as powerful.
For Naruto however her words meant something even more. This wasn't just a regular Sekirei.
This was another Pillar.
The Sekirei Pillar kept her gaze on Naruto, matching his even gaze with one of her own. She slowly raised one of her small hands and placed it upon the glass enclosure. The both of them felt a miniscule flare of chakra and the glass began to dissolve. It started at the top and slowly made its way down as the glass melted into liquid form and disappeared into a storage area beneath the pod.
Silence reigned for a few minutes as everyone sized each other up.
Hanabi was the first to break the silence as she moved to Naruto's side, "Who are you and why were you placed in stasis?" she questioned the Sekirei before her.
The red-haired woman glanced at Hanabi, "Is it not proper etiquette to introduce oneself first?" she asked calmly in a soft melodic voice.
The two stared at one another for a few moments before Hanabi sighed and tilted her head slightly apologetically, "I apologize, my manners seemed to have left me there. I am Uzumaki Hanabi," Hanabi introduced herself.
The Sekirei tilted her head curiously, "Odd, you do not appear to be an Uzumaki. Your eyes identify you as a Hyuga."
That came as somewhat of a surprise to them. So far none of the Sekirei, Miya included, had been able to identify Hanabi from her eyes alone.
Naruto stepped forward, "Well, she is my wife, I am Uzumaki Naruto," he said as he introduced himself.
The small Sekirei nodded to herself as she looked back and forth between the two, "Yes, that makes sense." Her gaze rested on Naruto and she smiled, "I am glad to finally make your acquaintance, Uzumaki Naruto, the Ninth Sekirei Pillar. I am Uzumaki Yuuchi, the Second Sekirei Pillar," the now identified Yuuchi said as she introduced herself.
"Uzumaki?" Hanabi and Naruto asked at the exact same time.
Uzumaki Yuuchi nodded and smiled at them.
Author's Notes: Isn't that an annoying place to end a chapter? ^_^
I'm not just playing Miya's secrecy card just for the sake of it. She's like that in the anime/manga as well. She only reveals the absolute minimum and only to the select few she deems worthy of hearing it. She keeps more secrets than most Shinobi even have.
Besides, that conversation was more for you, the readers, than for Naruto. I was going to save it for later but that was the perfect time to introduce it so I did. Originally Naruto wasn't even supposed to know about all that until after a certain event and I'll be damned if that event doesn't happen.
I explained Ayesha's ability, hope it makes sense, or at the very least it's believable enough you can use your suspension of disbelief to accept it. In our society everyone is on guard. No one is totally and completely accepting of everything. Even toddlers and babies have things they dislike and will avoid (such as 'icky' food). Ayesha by contrast accepts everything without reservation. She'll eat everything with equal amounts of gusto because she loves everything, there's nothing she hates.
It also tends to make her very easy to exploit.
Oh, and Yuuchi, she's canon. She was just never given a name in canon that I know of.
Also for the record, Pillars are different than Sekirei. They're Sekirei, but at the same time they're not. Which is exactly how the manga explained it but at the same time I'm certain my Pillars are different in a different way.