These eyes have strained,

these eyes they focus on blood and hate.

Control myself,

this memory that will not fade away.

In Every Breath - Distrust

Chapter 10: Out To Get You

Rain, it seemed like the very gods themselves were against them. It had been three days since Minato Namikaze had assembled a search party in the hopes of locating his missing child. Eight official ranked shinigami had left Sereitai six days ago, in hopes of escaping their monotonous duties of being a shinigami.

This mission was supposed to be their chance for a real adventure, but not all things are as great as people believe them to be. This was one of those times, as only five members of the original party remained to endure through the cold wind and troublesome rain.

The first four days were spent finding and purifying stray hollows that ventured into the world. Minato had hoped that they would run into the man that had commanded the army of fox hollows, and single-handedly took out a squadron of shinigami.

When that particular idea failed, Kakashi, the third seat, had recommended returning to the original spot where Naruto was first seen. After fifteen minutes or so of hiking up Mount Fuji they could see the peak of the mountain approaching.

"How much further Kakashi?" Said a blonde haired shinigami captain.

"The Forest of death should be on the other side of the mountain." Replied a man with silver hair that defied gravity, and a mask that hid the bottom half of his face.

Minato turned to said man with a frown etched on his tanned skin.

"Kakashi…your absolutely positive about this?" Kakashi cast a critical eye to his captain's direction before moving to Minato's side in an amazing display of speed. He whispered into the blondes ear and Minato responded with a nod.

Minato raised his hand into the air and signaled for the group to come to a stop. Each shinigami halted in their movements and instantly stood still, on the shifting granite beneath their feet.

"Okay, we've got at least four hours of sunlight left. So we continue on until the moon ascends. From there we'll make camp and rest for three hours, which I suggest you all take advantage of, because from then on we move until dawn." Once receiving four nods Minato flickered before his form completely vanished.

He appeared at the edge of a great forest known by many today as the Forest of Death.

The second he heard the distinct sound of grass bending under four sets of feet he leapt away, landing on a tree branch, pumping his legs full of reishi he leapt again from where he landed and traveled twice the distance of his first jump. His subordinates following closely behind him keeping up perfectly with his quick pace.

The process continued for a long time as the team of shinigami kept jumping from tree to tree, scouting the area. No matter how much they looked, all they could see was trees, leaves, and...blood? Coming to a stop, Minato quickly leapt from the canopy and landed softly on the ground below. Four other figures soon joined him standing around a pool of dried up blood.

"Taicho should we…" Jiraiya was quick to stop talking by the look on his leaders face.

Minato had his eyes closed and couldn't help but feel he was missing something, something very important. He remembered this exact spot, where so many shinigami had fallen before a man dressed in a black ANBU style outfit. The very same man he engaged in battle and stared into his dark crimson slit eyes.

His face was scrunched up as he tried to remember what he had seen, what had happened at this exact location. Then he remembered, it struck him like a lightning bolt and he scooted back until he was leaning against the side of tree. When his attacker had smirked at him, before escaping, his eyes had momentarily changed blue.

He pushed off the tree and turned to his third seat. "Kakashi, do you remember anything about your battle?" Minato said quickly. "Anything at all?"

Minato's lips were drawn into a thin line and he seemed to be peering straight through his third seat and directly into his soul with his startling blue eyes. Kakashi didn't even blink before responding.

"Just that he wore a black ANBU styled cloak, and he had the eyes of a fox..." His eyes widened as realization dawned on him. "Minato-Sensei, you don't actually believe that…Naruto is?" Kakashi's blood turned cold as he stared at his taicho's blank face.

Jiraiya looked concerned as he gazed intensely at both of his friends in life and death.

"Minato! What is going on?"

Minato flinched slightly at the tone of his friends voice. It was the same tone he had used whenever the two of them argued. It was a voice that left no room for discussion, when Jiraiya used that tone he meant business.

"Naruto...he…"

Minato just could not bring himself to say it. To think they had spent close to a week searching for a person that had sided with the enemy. It was sickening feeling to know his son was against them all and had sided with those hideous creatures.

"He stabbed me through the chest, my own student and friend tried to kill me." Kakashi blurted out.

"Uh...um...Minato-Taicho does this mean the investigation is over and will be heading back to Sereitai?" Natsu Tsunami suggested not understanding, at all, what her superiors were discussing. She seemed to shrink back and hide behind her friend, when three powerful, unnerving glares were directed at her.

Minato reached into his robes and after a little effort of searching each of its ten inside pockets finally retrieved a small black device. Flicking it open he pressed a single button and placed the soul-phone to his ear.

"Natsu Tsunami, of the third division and Hachi Kaneda of the sixth division will be returning immediately." He said after a moments pause into the phone.

He grunted something else into the device that sounded like a yes, then closed it and placed the small item safely back into his robes.

Natsu and Kaneda both stood frozen with surprised expressions.

"What the hell are you waiting for? Get going, your dismissed!" The blonde snapped. Minato knew the two had the right to be shocked. Since it wasn't often he yelled and talked to people the way he just did. As most captains of Sereitai spoke, as if they were superior and everyone else was below them and not worth giving the time of day too.

Kaneda bowed stiffly and walked away like any dignified shinigami, Natsu unfortunately stayed behind and stared at her captain with her jaw on the ground. A cough from Kakashi seemed to shake the girl out of her stupor and she turned hurt brown eyes away from the man she admired, and stormed off after her friend.

Sighing Minato turned to his companions. "Maybe I was a little to harsh on her." Jiraiya and Kakashi both just shook there heads.

"Sensei…what are we going to do. I mean knowing Naruto's, you know…do we quit?" Kakashi asked nervously.

"I got to agree with Kakashi kid." Jiraiya said with a small nod. "Naruto is no longer who he used to be, he very well could be a hollow himself."

Jiraiya was taken by surprised when the blonde appeared in front of him with his hands clenching his shinigami robes tightly.

"You're wrong Jiraiya! I've seen him and he's no beast!" Minato snarled in fury at his former sensei.

"Okay, okay Minato calm down, I love Naruto too like my own grandson." He said in a placating manner to calm the enraged shinigami captain.

Minato released his grasp on Jiraiya and shun-po'd away from the immediate area. Jiraiya and Kakashi waited patiently as they heard crashes, booms and yells. They both looked at each other and shrugged their shoulders in nonchalance. Both had come to the same conclusion without words, that their captain was taking some of his agitation out on some poor defenseless trees.

Minato returned a few minutes later looking flustered, and this in itself was a surprise to the other two shinigami. Growing up with the charismatic blonde had taught them that he was never serious or concerned unless he was making no breakthroughs with his techniques, or his loved ones were in danger.

"I swear I'll kill them, I'll break each and every one of those bastards masks!" Both members of the third division were stunned at hearing the harsh words from there captain.

"With my Zanpaktuo I will you avenge you Naruto, I promise!" Minato said as he paced furiously back and forth.

Deciding he couldn't stand anymore of his Sensei's pacing and violent outbursts Kakashi decided to intervene.

"Sensei…" Kakashi paused and mimicked the actions of his fellow members and stared in the direction where Natsu and Kaneda had gone.

Minato had a terrible feeling in his gut as he felt the reiatsu of not only Natsu, but that of a hollow. An extremely powerful hollow, if he was to guess he'd probably say it was a...

"Adjuchas."

As the words left his trembling lip, all three shinigami members of third division disappeared via shun-po.

Grimmjow Jeagerjaques circled his downed opponent, growling at the bloodied shinigami.

"Tch...didn't anybody ever teach you not to mess with your superiors shinigami?" Grimmjow asked in a taunting manner.

The Adjuchas scoffed as the pathetic shinigami rose to her feet, her blade was shaking in her trembling hands as it was clear she was fighting a battle just to hold the blade.

"All of you are the same, weak pathetic mortals who think they're strong," Grimmjow drawled. "because ya have shiny toys."

Grimmjow again clicked his tongue in a childish manner as the shinigami mustered up the courage to glare at him. Releasing a small margin of his reiatsu, the girls legs buckled but held against the pressure.

Natsu panted, heaving breaths as she tried to fight against the force bearing down upon her. However, it was all for nothing as exhaustion claimed her and she crumbled underneath the might of the hollow before her.

Never before had she ever fought a hollow as strong as this panther. Natsu was terrified as the hollow stared at her with disgust and loathing. The moment her opponent stopped pacing in front of her she knew without a doubt she was going to die.

"Well, it seems the cavalry is on its way, so that means I have to cut our time short shinigami!" Grimmjow said as he stalked closer to Natsu, like a predator would it's prey.

He smirked exposing gleaming razor sharp teeth. Natsu closed her eyes picturing an image of her captain, the man she loved and respected more then any other soul in the world.

Minato arrived first, just in time to witness panther-hollow finish off Natsu, one of the only three female members in his division.

"Yuck! Should have known she'd be disgusting, the weak ones always are." The blonde's eyes became as cold as ice as he glared at the smirking creature.

"I would have been merciful and offered you a quick death, but now you will suffer the pain you have inflicted upon my friend, beast!" Grinning Grimmjow intercepted the captain in mid shun-po and smashed one of his mighty paws against the blondes Zanpaktuo.

Sparks flew as Minato's blade grinded against the panthers large claws. Minato struck out with his leg, nailing Grimmjow in the gut and drove his blade through the hollows sternum.

Blood exploded staining the achromatic panther a dark crimson. Viciously Minato removed his blade from the withering hollows body and with a yellow flash Grimmjow was colliding with a tree.

Slowly Grimmjow got back on his feet, his wounds already healing. He glanced to where his opponent was and found that he was gone. Leaping to the side Grimmjow avoided another downward strike from his target.

Hollow opened its mouth wide and a large amount of reishi gathered, forming a small red orb of energy.

Reiatsu surged through Minato, his body blurred, vanishing in an instant and reappearing behind the panther.

Grimmjow felt the blade pierce through his muzzle and his eyes were wide as the energy he had been forming was now burning the inside of his mouth. Minato continued down with his thrust and slammed the point of the blade into the ground.

With Grimmjow's mouth now clamped shut, his focus was no longer on sustaining the cero he had been previously creating. So the energy was unstable and with no other way for the energy to escape the cero exploded, tearing Grimmjow apart.

Minato landed a few feet away from the pieces of the hollow. Jiraiya and Kakashi came flying out of the distance and skid to halt right beside him. The blonde didn't blink or even turn to acknowledge their presence. He had his gaze fixed on the crater where the explosion had occurred.

Minato narrowed his eyes as the ground started to shift and the top half of the panther emerged.

"You're one sneaky bastard I'll admit that much." Minato growled out in annoyance, but he had to give the hollow credit, for it was the beasts own quick thinking that had saved him from being completely destroyed. Not many of these creatures had the minds to think, all they cared for was devouring souls to gain more power.

However, if he was to guess then most Adjuchas probably had the same intelligence as any normal soul, or at least this one did. Not even he thought that the panther would swallow the cero so when the energy exploded it would only blow the bottom half, leaving the hollows head unharmed.

Minato eased himself into a low crouched stance as he prepared to finish the hollow off. His eyes darted to the left as three horrendous and injured looking hollows appeared.

"Holy hell Grimmjow, there's only half of you!" Exclaimed a boisterous and large ape like hollow.

"Shut the hell up, and help me up so I can finish them will ya." Said an infuriated panther, as he motioned to the shinigami standing directly across from the group of hollows.

All three hollows looked up and eyed the three shinigami as if just realizing they were even there

Minato acted quickly and brought his left hand forward yelling, "Walls of iron sand, a priestly pagoda, glowing ironclad fireflies. Standing upright, silent to the end. Bakudo 75: Gochuutekkan!" Instantly, all the hollows were immobilized as five giant pillars materialized around the group boxing them in a pentagonal field, rendering the four hollows helpless.

Minato wiped his brow as a large amount of sweat was pouring down his dirtied face.

Jiraiya quickly assessed the situation and came to the sad realization that Natsu, and Kaneda were both devoured by the now trapped hollows.

"Kid what do you think about my shikai?" Jiraiya laughed. "I think its finally time I showed it to you."

Minato shared his sensei's smirk as Jiraiya pulled his Zanpakuto from it's scabbard.

"Ink: Golden Quill." The toad hermit muttered. Instantly black lines spread from the hilt and travelled to the very tip of the blade. When the transformation was complete the hilt was wrapped in golden feathers and the blade appeared as if someone had drawn thousands of seals upon it.

Stabbing his blade into the ground, Jiraiya yelled out loudly "Sealing art 3: Ink Sewing!" The symbols on the blade began to move until four tendrils of black ink extended from the blade and traveled along the ground, heading straight for the immobile hollows.

The fastest tendril reached the ape like hollow first and pierced a hole straight through it's mask, killing it instantly. The other two were next and finally the last tendril reached Grimmjow and climbed up his body, heading for his head.

Reaching the hollow's face the ink hardened and was about to kill the Adjuchas, when Minato grabbed Jiraiya and pulled him to the ground, just as a tremendous cero blast passed overhead.

The tendril retracted immediately and returned to the Zanpakuto stuck in the ground.

Clapping followed as a man dressed in white, wearing a plain stark white hollow mask, walked towards the panther still being held by the kido spell.

"I must say, you have an impressive ability shinigami." His voice was neither loud nor soft. It was just at a level that you could hear every word the mystery being spoke.

He reached out with one hand and touched one of the five pillars with a single finger. The effect was instantaneous as the five pillars glowed with a crimson hue before shattering into millions of different pieces.

"Who exactly are you?" Minato questioned calmly, not at all disturbed with the fact his powerful kido spell was destroyed effortlessly.

"But your Zanpaktuo has one major flaw." Naruto remarked with a knowing smirk, ignoring the question directed at him.

"If you lose concentration your attacks will immediately cease, as you need to direct such attacks with your own spiritual energy." A predatory grin spread across his face.

"Explaining why my dear friend Grimmjow here, does not have a hole through his head."

Stepping closer to the gawking shinigami Naruto carefully placed his palm against the cold porcelain mask adorning his face.

He held the mask at his side and glanced at the three souls before him with sparkling sapphire eyes.

Jiraiya and Kakashi both gasped at his appearance while Minato just stared at the being in front of him as if he were looking into a mirror.

"Long time eh? Jiraiya, Kakashi." Shifting his gaze to the stunned blonde shinigami, Naruto's eyes narrowed and bled crimson. "Father."

"Naruto, what the hell are you?" Kakashi questioned while getting back on his feet.

Casting a quick glance at his former Sensei. Naruto's eyes changed back to their normal radiant blue.

"I thought that would be obvious by now." He scoffed, clearly annoyed. "I'm what you shinigami call a hollow."

That stunned all three shinigami as they stared at Naruto in confusion.

"Of course, I'm the first of new breed of hollows, an Arrancar." He said with a toothy grin.

"And just what exactly is an Arrancar?" Jiraiya questioned his curiosity getting the better of him.

"Well I'd love to stand around all day and chat but," Naruto drawled. "I'm a very busy man." the blonde hollow stated viciously.

Both Jiraiya and Kakashi gasped and stepped back, as raw energy and bloodlust flooded the forest.

Naruto placed his mask to his face, and let his hand fall to his side.

"For your sakes, I hope you don't blink." Naruto said, pointing his hands towards the three soul reapers, discreetly cutting his pointing finger with his thumb.

All of there stances became a bit tighter as they recognized the crimson orb gathering at the hollow's fingertips.

With a silent sigh Naruto unleashed his attack. "Gran Rey Cero!" He all but whispered as the red beam fired from his finger, the blood on it mixing with the cero, and becoming a giant beam heading for the three shinigami. Dust and debris flew in every direction, but Naruto paid that no mind as he rushed forward and vanished with 'Sonido'

Appearing in front of Kakashi he hit the masked individual with a palm strike to the chest. Before Kakashi could make it very far Naruto was above him, another cero already forming on his pinkie.

Jiraiya saw the red beam strike Kakashi, and he ran as fast as he could hoping to catch the falling shinigami before he hit the ground. Jiraiya didn't see or notice when he started to fall or that he had even been hit before his vision blackened and he fell to the forest floor unconscious.

Minato didn't flinch or move when a white form landed in front of him. "Then there was only one." Naruto stated blandly, as he eyed the man on his knees.

Sapphire met crimson once again as both hollow and shinigami stood completely still there gazes burning into the others. Naruto broke away first and nailed his father in the jaw with his fist.

"That was for my mother." Naruto said his gaze burning with hatred.

Minato eyes were glazed over as he returned his eyes to look at his son. "Kushina?" Before he knew what happened his head was hit again and he was barrelling through a tree.

"DON'T YOU DARE SPEAK HER NAME!" Naruto yelled in anger, his Reiatsu spiking, blanketing the forest in uncontrolled spiritual pressure.

Minato hit the ground rolling, he flipped back getting to his feet. He had barely a second to notice a blurry form approaching, before he found himself pinned to a tree.

"Naruto please…stop this, I love you…son." The blonde shinigami said weakly, tears building in his eyes, his hands gripping Naruto's arm.

The entire tree was shaking, as Naruto's body trembled. "You love me." He said, starring at the man in his grasp through narrowed eyes.

"You don't deserve my love." Naruto growled his grip tightening around his fathers neck.

Minato met his sons furious stare as his child raised a clenched fist preparing to finish him. Closing his eyes he accepted his fate.

One second he could feel the cold darkness consuming him, the next he was lying on the forest floor his son a few feet away decimating everything around him with constant barrages of cero blasts.

Trees were uprooted from the strong gusts or burned to ash, by the destructive force of energy.

"Cherish your life father, for you only live because she wouldn't have wanted me to kill you!" Naruto said coldly before his form vanished.

Minato blinked before closing his eyes and passing out against the only tree in the vicinity which was left unharmed.

"Damnit!" Naruto cursed as he destroyed another weak hollow. He was so consumed by anger he didn't notice the three beings closing around him until they were in plain sight.

"Ulquiorra, Szayel, Nnoitra, what do you want?" The blonde asked, his eyes darting back and forth between the Adjuchas class hollows.

Naruto could sense the spiritual pressure of all three hollows raising significantly, as they silently approached.

"Aizen-Sama, has ordered us to capture you alive Uzumaki Naruto." Ulquiorra stated calmly.

Naruto would have laughed had anyone else said that to him, but coming from Ulquiorra he knew it was the truth.

Without hesitating he dashed forward aiming to remove the biggest threat first. Drawing his blue steeled katana, the blonde drove it forward slicing the stoic hollow in half. Naruto's eyes widened as he sliced through an after image of Ulquiorra.

Time seemed to stop as blood erupted from the blondes head, and his mask split down the middle.

Okay here's the edited version, and yes I've taken most of your advice and changed the four hollows from Vasto Lordes to Adjuchas.

About Jiraiya's Zanpaktuo name well lets just say I'm not good with naming things and leave it at that. His attack "Ink Sewing" is based of Shikimaru's jutsu "Shadow Sewing"

If anyone can think of any good names and abilities for Kakashi, and Minato's Zanpaktuo let me know. Cause you never know I might just use your ideas, and of course I'd give you full credit.

I have an important announcement to make, there is only one more chapter to go until I skip to canon. I'm so excited, I've literally been waiting for this since I started writing this fic.

Finally how many of you were expected the end of this chapter. I really am sorry for leaving you all with such horrible cliff hangers. Please read and review, I'd appreciate it.