The Nymph's Blade

by Redacted Author

Larxene is dead,but when you fight the keyblade, death is not always the end. Watch as the Savage Nymph guides Sora to his true strength. SoKai ?LarxenexSora?

5. Chapter 5

I don't own Kingdom Hearts, Naruto, Trinity Blood, or anything else besides the plot of this story and things which do not appear in any canon.

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The Nymph's Blade-Chapter 5

"talking"

"Larxene talking from mind"

"Larxene talking in mindscape"

'Larxene thinking'

'Sora thinking'

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As the last traces of energy faded into the crystal, a burning sensation erupted in Sora's flesh. It felt like he was being ripped apart, like his heart, soul, and body were being separated once again, except that they weren't being separated, they were being torn to pieces, and then melted back together. As the pain overtook him, one last word echoed through his mind, 'Larxene…'

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If Sora had been properly aware, he would have seen Riku and Kairi fall to the ground beside him, screaming as loud as he, unknowingly, had. The crystal glowed brightly and the light and darkness engulfed them.

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As Sora's consciousness fled, the pain progressed past him, and Larxene collapsed. As she tried to remain conscious, lightning leapt from her. It sought to reach the source of the pain, and failed. Roxas could only watch in horror as Larxene and Sora fell unconscious in Sora's mind, and await the pain…but the pain never came, and Roxas was pushed out of the forefront of Sora's mind.

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Sora slowly regained awareness, grabbing his chest at the remembered pain. His palm felt something odd. He looked down at himself, and found a strange upraised tattoo in his flesh, a mark identical to the one they had just created form mana. His clothing had burned away, revealing the mark emblazoned on his skin. 'I wonder if Larxene knows anything about this. Wait…LARXENE!' He jumped up as memory rushed back fully. His eyes rapidly scanned the area, and found Larxene laying face first on the glass floor, scattered electrical energy surrounding her unconscious form. 'She has to be unconscious, she can't be…she just can't.' He sprinted to her, flipping her over to check for signs of breathing. She didn't seem to be breathing, he placed her hand on her chest, desperately searching for a pulse, and found one, although faint. He breathed a sigh of relief. Then he realized what else he had felt, he looked down at her. There was a mark identical to his own resting upon her chest, standing out against her bare… skin….'Shit!!' She opened her eyes.

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Larxene opened her eyes slowly, expecting the absolute darkness of Sora's mind. Instead, she found herself staring into a pair of terrified blue eyes. 'Why is he so scared, I mean what could be so…' it was then that she registered the pressure on her chest, 'He wouldn't actually…' She looked down his arm, and lost all rational thought at the sight of Sora's hand on her bare chest, completely missing the fact that her cloak had had a hole burned in it, the strange tattoo, and the fact that Sora had already looked away and was blushing furiously. Because of this, Sora found himself being thrown hurled off the edge of the platform by a bolt of lightning. Luckily, it was his mind, and the platform expanded to accommodate him. Larxene calmed down enough to realize everything else, including the fact that Sora had the same mark on him. "Sora, you sure as hell better have a good explanation!""You weren't breathing…a pulse.... the mark….' Larxene realized what had happened, but was still more than a little tempted just to shock him again for fun; it isn't that often that one gets the opportunity to torture the guy who killed you. Besides that, she couldn't help but think that she'd been going too easy on him recently. She sure as hell wasn't here to joke around with him and discuss torture methods…not that he would ever really get into it, but he at least seemed to appreciate the thought that she put into it, and she had to admit he really did have a nice grasp of what people can survive-probably because he'd been most of it… 'Focus!' "What happened Sora? What was that?""I don't know; we had just cast the spell, and— I forgot Riku and Kairi! I'll be right back." He vanished. 'He thought of me first?'

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Sora sat up to find Riku and Kairi slowly waking up. Glancing at their chests (and quickly averting his gaze from Kairi's, he'd learned his lesson about that), the same mark was visible on each. As the other's became aware of the situation they turned to inquire, but were interrupted by a surge of mana through the seal on the ground. Looking out from the Altar, they could see a large gummiship overhead, Yen Sid, the Generals, Donald, Goofy, and Mickey standing atop its deck, raining spells towards the seal's barrier.

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Yen Sid was irritated, very irritated. He had no clue how novices like them could cook up a substantial barrier like this so quickly. From his underling he could hear calls of "Blizzaga!", "Ira Lux Lucis!", and "Aeroga!" However each spell was easily stopped by the barrier. He addressed them, frustrated, "Stand back, I will remove it." He gestured extravagantly towards the barrier (an impressed follower is an obedient follower after all), and shouted, " Solaris!" The spell he was most proud of formed. Behind him, light energy gathered until it resembled a small star, and then the energy was released in a beam, trying to pierce the barrier.

The barrier started to give under the onslaught, and Yen Sid prepared to order an assault. Suddenly, as he began to speak, a surge of energy flowed into the barrier, reinforcing it at the contact point.

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Back at the World that Never Was, the group was shocked to see the embedded keyblades glow brightly, their energy flowing into the seal. Clearly, the mana already present had been insufficient to hold off the assault, so it had drawn on power from the keyblades. As Sora watched the event, Larxene spoke, "Sora, you do realize this is a problem, right?" 'A problem? Why? It held up fine.' "This time, yes, but in the future it may not. Besides, that it needs the keyblades for power, so you'll have to leave them there." 'I prefer Savage Nymph anyway.' "You may have other options, but what about Riku and Kairi. They both have only one keyblade, without those, they'll be left unarmed. How are you going to remedy that?" 'I'll figure something out.' Larxene could only roll her eyes at his "It-will-all-turn-out-okay" mindset. As everyone calmed down, the marking forgotten for the moment, Kairi, seeing the same problem as Larxene, spoke, "So, the barrier works, but what are supposed to do if we can't use our keyblades? We have to fight back somehow." Sora, after a moment of thought, responded, "I could lone you each a keychain, until you can get your own back or find another. " He dug through his pockets-enchanted for special distortion- and pulled out One Winged Angel, which he had won from Sephiroth at Olympus Coliseum, and tossed it to Riku. "Here Riku, it isn't perfect, but it is dark-aligned, so it should work fairly well with your abilities." He started to grab one for Kairi, but she stopped him. "Don't worry about it Sora, I'll find another one, and I use my magic mainly anyway." "Are you sure?" "Yep!" "Alright then…" Sora stopped his search and the discussion resumed. Riku, looking contemplative, spoke, "Alright, if that's out of the way, then the next order of business is what to do, we can't just stay here all of the time." It was Sora who answered, "First, we need to find a way to strengthen the barrier, it needed those keyblades to hold together, who knows what will happen if it is a stronger attack next time." Kairi looked at Sora, "Could you just add another keyblade or two?" Riku shook his head at the suggestion, "Ultimately, all of Sora's keyblades draw power through Sora, if you add another, then all that you'll do is divide the mana. For that matter, just using the keyblade could weaken its owner's keyblade here temporarily so we should avoid doing that unless necessary. As for strengthening the barrier, we would need a keyblade which isn't connected to any of us. Now, I may have an idea. During my time with Maleficent, she told me about the hearts of worlds, our target at the time. In order to guarantee the consumption of a world by darkness, you have to defeat or bypass the world's defense mechanism, this comes in three parts. The first is the keyhole, a keyblade must be use to open the keyhole, this opens a gateway to the world core. This is where the basic components which create, sustain, and in fact make up a world are. This includes, but isn't limited to, the heart and soul of a world. A world's soul contains the world's rules and principles. This ranges from things like physical and magical laws, to basic structure, such as the organization of power, flexibility of the events in the world-as many worlds are naturally inclined towards a set path. This force is known as destiny. To consume the world, one must interfere with this. By using spells or interfering directly, you can push a world from its set path; this in turn strikes at the soul. Normally Destiny makes It impossible to access the world's heart, because the continuance of existence is the strongest force of Destiny. Natural forces, intelligent beings, even laws of magic will bend or change completely to maintain the existence of the world. This is the second security feature. By breaking the world's path away from the one dictated by Destiny, it shatters Destiny itself, and leaves the heart exposed. The last security feature is the world Keyblade. It draws upon the heart of the world itself, and the soul grants it to the individual on the world who is closest in nature to the world itself. The keyblade effectively absorbs the World Heart. In order to consume a world, the wielder must be killed, this in turn shatters the keyblade and exposes the heart, which is in turn is fed to the heartless. Now as I see it, our best option is to do the same, we'll open the keyhole, and then influence the world until Destiny shatters. Once that happens, the exposed heart will form a keyblade and choose a wielder. After that we will have to convince the wielder to part with it voluntarily. We can then place the keyblade here, and bolster the barrier with the power of the World Heart. In addition, we will hopefully gain new allies for the upcoming fight."

Sora, Kairi, and Larxene were listening intently, although Sora could here Roxas snoring loudly in the back of his mind. It sounded like it would work, but there was one question on his mind, "Will we need more than one? I mean, it is the heart of a world. It isn't like it is a single person's keyblade, which only has the power of the single individual." Riku nodded, "That is a good point, but we will need a lot more than one. That last spell would have ripped through a single World Heart like nothing." Kairi looked at him skeptically, "But, our keyblades held it off, and they can't be as powerful as a world's keyblade." Riku shook his head, "Actually they're much stronger than that. Consider the world's you've been to. Most had no more than, and likely less than, a dozen people there. Some had a higher population but the majority of the populations were relatively small. A World Heart derives much of its power from the populace, so a handful of people grant little power. Besides that, consider how easily the Organization interfered with Destiny. This shows that the world as a whole is relatively weak; a fragile Destiny is a sign of a weak Heart and Soul. Our keyblades, however, have fed on the thousands of heartless and nobodies we have killed." Kairi, not familiar with the concept, couldn't help but ask, "What do you mean "fed on"? Thoughtlessly, Sora answered, forgetting that he shouldn't know either, "The keyblade is a weapon which cleaves off and absorbs a portion of the victim's heart. This leads to what some people have foolishly termed "experience." This would suggest that we grow stronger simply as a result of practice and battle experience, but that is hardly the case. In truth we are absorbing both power, and, to a lesser degree, knowledge from those we defeat. If you kill a heartless, you absorb a portion of its heart's mana, which can in turn strengthen your physical or magical abilities. It also absorbs knowledge which was imprinted on the opponent's heart; this is normally only knowledge from after becoming a heartless, however, someone who managed to remain conscious of their past self, such as Xehanort's heartless, will have a portion of their original knowledge passed on as well. This knowledge accumulates over time and we eventually harness these fragments of knowledge in order to create more advanced techniques, such as the scan ability." By the time he stopped the other two were gaping, until Riku recovered enough to speak, "That's right…but how did you—" Sora, realizing the situation, searched for a response until Larxene, who had expected something like this to happen, provided one. "I just found it in the library, you know, when we were looking for a book on barriers." Riku, with no other possible explanation (as far as he knew) nodded, "Alright, well as I was saying—" Kairi, looking slightly ill, had one more question, "Wait, so we're cutting and consuming people's hearts? Am I the only one who thinks that sounds a little, well, demonic?" "You're thinking of souls, a person's heart handles mana and emotions, as well as being the source of light and dark power. The soul is what contains a person's identity, we leave that intact." "Oh, well, I guess that's...a little better, thanks Riku." "Hey, I had trouble dealing with it too, as I suspect Sora did as well." 'I was busy being threatened by Larxene, I didn't have time to worry about it.' Sora thought, before he turned to Riku, "You were saying before…?" "Oh, yeah, as I was saying, our keyblades contain the equivalent of thousands of hearts. The whole group is equivalent than several dozen World Hearts. So, we'll need to gather a massive number to strengthen the shield sufficiently." Sora nodded excitedly, "So first we gather these keyblades, then I would suggest we gather our allies and try to free Yen Sid's prisoners, I'd feel a lot more comfortable with Vincent, Leon, or Cloud on our side." "We'll have to just get a few keyblades for now then, and focus on the rest later, after all Vincent is scheduled for "purification." Kairi, remembering something suddenly, spoke, "Hey, who was the other person Yen Sid wanted to trap?" "I think he said his name was A…Av….Abel! That was it, Abel Nightroad." "We should try to find him, if he managed to escape, then he could be a useful ally." Riku saw a flaw in the plan though, "How are we supposed to find him then?" "We should start at his world of origin." Kairi offered, but Sora countered, "And we should find that how?" "Don't you remember? Vexen's files would probably list him, or did you forget?" 'Larxene, unlike you, I only have pieces of your memory, while you can see all of mine.' "You think that is an excuse?!" she 'shouted.' He could tell she was joking. He realized that, strangely, he wouldn't have known that a week ago. It was odd. He'd only known her for a few months, but he couldn't imagine not having her with him anymore. Returning to the task at hand he spoke, "I may know a way." He hurried to Vexen's room, explaining he'd seen the computer when he got the ether. Following Larxene's instructions, he typed in a search for "Abel Nightroad." After a few moments a result appeared.

Abel Nightroad (Nightlord)

Age: Unknown

Species: Vampire(Unknown Variety)

World of Residence: Terrarum Cruor

Alignment: Dark-natured, Allied with Light

Occupation: Priest

Warning: Extremely dangerous, should not be approached without caution.

"He is a rare variety of vampire, and also a priest. Am I the only one who finds that odd?" 'Hardly, but it isn't our prime concern.' The others seemed to agree with Larxene. Sora clicked on the world, "Terrarum Cruor." A map appeared before them, there was a suggested path which required one to pass through three worlds: the World of the Hidden, a world known as Zanmort, and lastly, the World of Balance.

Riku spoke with confidence, seeking to encourage the group, "Alright, first we'll gather the keyblades of those three worlds, and then we'll seek out Abel for assistance, alright?" "Right!" "Yeah!" As he declared his support (a little loudly) he could feel Larxene's excitement, it was nice to know that she was enjoying this, despite the danger and urgency. Feeling that was so comforting for him, that he didn't think to wonder why he could sense her emotions.

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An hour later they were gathered at the Altar of Naught and Sora was preparing to open a portal, he drew on his magic, just as Larxene had taught him. Filling it with the intent to rip apart the natural order of reality, he cut a rift in space-time and formed the portal. Riku and Kairi, once again, were staring. As before, Sora had exhibited an ability or knowledge that they weren't aware he had. Realizing the situation, Sora jumped through before they could respond, not noticing how easily his body flowed through the dark portal, as opposed to the past, when he had felt a resistance. Kairi and Riku quickly followed. On the other side, they found themselves in the first world, and the only one which there was an open path to. They seemed to be in a forest but there was a large town visible some distance away. It would take a day or two but they had to start somewhere, they began the trek.

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6 Hours Later

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Sarutobi, AKA 'The Professor', took the letter from the messenger falcon. Within was a message from the Kazekage. It seemed that the immense burst of chakra he had felt earlier that day, had also been felt in Suna, goodness knows, it should have been. It wasn't said outright, but it was clear that they thought it was a new weapon of Konoha, and he had no desire to change that belief.

The Kazekage was proposing an exchange of Genin as a move to ensure lasting peace—something that could only be a result of fear, as the two villages, while at peace, were hardly friendly. Hiashi wouldn't like it, but it would be good for promoting goodwill between the villages. He quickly sent a response in agreement.

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Hiashi Hyuuga was not always a kind man, and his relationship with his eldest daughter was rocky at best, but he was still unhappy to hear that she was being sent to Suna for a year to promote peace. Unfortunately, he could hardly argue, it was a reasonable and useful proposal, and preventing a war was as always the first priority. He grimaced and threw away the Hokage's letter. Reluctantly, he went to retrieve Hinata.

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A short time later the two Kages and their respective charges met for the exchange. Sarutobi was bringing Hinata Hyuuga, of the prestigious Hyuuga Clan; the Kazekage was bringing his only daughter, Temari. Temari was brought back to be placed with the Konoha Genin, while Hinata would take Temari's place in Suna.

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AN: The meeting with Mizuki went the same as the canon.

Naruto Uzumaki, soon-to-be Genin of the Leaf, was traveling to the academy to be assigned his team, he entered his classroom to a rush of inquiries about his presence, which is to say that Kiba could be heard shouting. "What the hell are you doing here?! You didn't even pass!"

"I took a different exam, a tougher one!" A slight "hn" could be heard from Sasuke at his shout. Iruka hurried to quiet the class, and began to list the assign the teams, in reverse order. (I'm skipping extra teams.)

"Team 10 consists of Shikamaru Nara, Choji Akimichi, and Ino Yamanaka; your sensei is Sarutobi Asuna."

Ino's head drops to her desk and a moan of "Saasukee…" can be heard.

"Team 8 is composed of Kiba Inuzuka, Shino Aburame, and Sakura Haruno. Your sensei is Yuuhi Kurenai."

Sakura imitates Ino.

"Team 7 is composed of Sasuke Uchiha, Naruto Uzumaki, and a newly arrived exchange student, Sabaku Temari. Your sensei is Nii Yugito, who has recently transferred from Cloud."

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Sarutobi watched, smiling. Naruto better appreciate how many strings he had to pull to get that girl, it wouldn't have been possible if everyone didn't think Konoha had a new weapon, but it had provided enough leverage for a threat or two. Having a Jinchuuriki sensei should make his life much easier. , and having anyone but Kakashi, even more so.

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A blond woman, her hair hanging loose, as was her preference outside of missions, walked into the room. She motioned sharply towards Team 7, and after a moment's hesitation they followed.

Leading them towards the roof, she sat down, and addressed the group, "In this village it is traditional to discuss ones likes, dislikes, and dreams. In my village there is a belief that comrades should have no secrets from each other. It is also our acceptance that information must at times be concealed, so we created a pair of jutsus, and in the tradition of my village, I will use these. Kusari Enzetsu no Jutsu! Kusari Shin no Jutsu!" A field of energy expanded out from her, engulfing the group.

Nodding, apparently satisfied, she spoke, "Now no one who hears us may speak of it without permission, and none of us may lie until we leave the area. So I am going to ask you to answer a few questions. We'll start with you, the Uchiha. What is your name?" "Sasuke Uchiha."

"Your likes?" "Training."

"Who are your friends?" "I don't have—"He choked on his sentence, caught by the jutsu. "I don't want to answer this."

"Too bad, we don't have secrets between teammates."

"My only friend, as of right now, is-is-," he finally gave up resisting, "Uzumaki Naruto." "Why would you be MY friend I HATE y—" Naruto choked on his sentence, and resigned to dropping the act.

Smirking, Yugito moved on, "Your dislikes?" "I dislike ramen, wasting time, Sakura Haruno, Ino Yamanaka, and the rest of my fangirls. I despise my brother's betrayal." Yugito, understanding his evasion, let him off.

"What about your goals?" "I will avenge my clan and then go on to resurrect t it."

"Is that all you hope to do, is the clan all that you are?" "Ye—. " He choked, "No, I also want to establish a village, I hate this village. The people here are foolish and the government, with the exception of the Hokage, is corrupt. I hope to make a village for those who have been harmed or rejected by their own. If this village was as such, then Naruto wouldn't have gone through what he has, I wouldn't have been seen as nothing more than the last Uchiha, and, I can't help but wonder if Itachi would still have massacred the clan."

Everyone, including Yugito, was shocked. Naruto was staring, seemingly in horror, but there was a slight look of contemplation is his eyes…after what he'd been through, he couldn't help but wonder if Sasuke was right.

Temari was surprised, at first she started to dismiss it as none of her concern, but then she remembered Gaara. Would her little brother have become what he was if he'd had a place to go to, a way to escape the pain...she didn't know, but she thought he might not have.

Yugito, Yugito was much like Naruto. She had had a good life, her Bijuu hadn't terrorized her village, it had been tracked down and captured, so she wasn't hated, but she'd seen what happened to people who were rejected by their village, for one reason or another. It wasn't a pretty thing.

Sasuke wasn't quite done yet either, "Look at this village, Naruto is hated for something I'm not sure of, but Naruto couldn't have done something on a scale to deserve this. As for me, I may be treated like royalty, but did you know that up until today, no one has once asked about my goals beyond my clan, I am the clan in their eyes—well I guess I am in a sense—but what I mean is, they think my clan is the entirety of my existence. It's like there is no Sasuke, just Uchiha."

Naruto understood where he was coming from, what is worst for him, isn't being hated, it is being hated because they don't see him as anything but Kyuubi. Sasuke is only beloved by the village because he is the last Uchiha, not for his own identity.

Yugito, trying to relieve the tension for Sasuke's sake, spoke, "I think I understand what you mean Sasuke, and you don't need to worry, none of us are extremely loyal to the village. I'm a transfer. Temari is only here temporarily. Naruto is hated by it, and whether he agrees with the plan, I don't doubt he agrees with your beliefs. For now, let's move on. Temari, you're next. What are your likes?"

"Training, wind jutsu, and my fan."

"Dislikes?" "Idiots, fangirls, idiots, and anyone who tries to assassinate my brother."

"Friends?" "My little brother, Gaara—when he isn't homicidal, my other brother, Kankuro, and besides that, I'd say this group composes the closest things I have to friends, not that that is saying much."

"What about your goals?" "I want to help Gaara regain his sanity, and," she hesitated, "if Sasuke tries to start a village, I would like to help. It is the same problem you have here which drove Gaara insane."

Sasuke smiled slightly, before giving them a look that said, 'tell anyone I smiled, and I'll shove a kunai through your throat.' "I'll need all the help I can get, so you're always welcome."

Yugito smiled, she was glad to see them opening up a little. She continued where she left off, "Alright, Naruto, you're last. What are your likes?"

"RAM—," Naruto choked, "Oh, alright, Ramen is decent, but mostly, it's cheap. As I was saying, I like Sakur—," he choked again, "Dammit, can't I finish a sentence. Ok, so I don't like Sakura, but I know she'll always reject me, so she's the best person to obsess over."

"Why do you need someone to obsess over?" "I'll explain later. I like training, learning jutsus, reading (although I'm still not very good at it), and dropping my act."

By now, everyone, excepting Sasuke to a small degree, was confused, after all, what 'act' was he talking about? Since when did he not like ramen and Sakura? Who was Naruto Uzumaki?

"Umm…friends?" "This group, Iruka, and the old man…I mean…Sandaime-sama."

"Who would you say you are closest to?" "Sasuke."

"Goals?" "To become Hokage and reform the village, but I'm beginning to wonder if I should seek an alternative, I mean, if that worked, the old man would have fixed it already. Sasuke…Sasuke may have the right of it."

"If you want to help, feel free. It's too big for just me and Temari, besides, you are the person I trust most right now." It was clear Sasuke still wasn't used to having to be truthful, by his expression at admitting this.

"Okay, now, I need you guys to answer some…more difficult questions. Sasuke, do you think your brother may have been justified?"

"N-," he choked, "I don't know, but there had been rumors of an attempted ku de ta, and he would have followed orders if they were given by the council. I know the Hokage wouldn't order it, but that Danzo guy seems suspicious to me."

"Temari, why are you here?"

"I'm here to promote pea—," she choked, "I was sent to study the Leaf's new weapon, and see if it is safe to attack, a combined effort by Suna and Oto was planned up until now. We're considering withdrawing our support of the plan. I wouldn't tell you this if you could tell anyone else."

Naruto and Sasuke were staring in horror, but Yugito just nodded thoughtfully, "I thought as much, the Raikage thinks I'll report to him as well, but he should have considered the fact that giving me away isn't the same as selling my services. The real question here is, what are you going to do?"

"What do you think? I told you, I hate anyone who tries to assassinate my little brother, which includes our father! This village is full of idiots, that village is full of idiots who don't even care about normal people, much less a Jinchuuriki. The people of Suna…I know two people in Suna that I care about: Gaara and Kankuro. Beyond them, I don't really care. I'm not telling him anything."

Yugito smiled happily at the response, glad she wouldn't have to give the girl to Ibiki, "Alright then, I'd encourage you to warn the Hokage, but for now, let's move on." Yugito took a deep breath, preparing for the hardest question, "Naruto, why do the adults here hate you?"

Naruto's face had drained of blood; this was the one question he didn't want to her to ask. If they found out, his team would hate him…he would be alone again… "They don't hat—," he choked, "there is no rea—," again, "I'm not allowed to sa--," he gave up.

"They hate me because—because—they, they think I'm the Kyuubi." He cringed, waiting for the explosion, but none came. Sasuke was confused, while Temari had a horrified, but also sympathetic look, and Yugito—she clearly knew already, as she hadn't responded.

He continued reluctantly, "When Kyuubi attacked years ago, the Yondaime couldn't kill it; instead, he sealed the Kyuubi within a child, a newborn."

A look of comprehension appeared on Sasuke's face, and for a terrible moment, a hint of fear, before he returned to normal and spoke, "You were the child, weren't you?"

"Yes, I was."

"Well, it looks like I pick my friends well. After all, I'd rather have the Kyuubi's container on my side. Besides, once you get control of it you'll make a better sparring partner, eh dobe?" Naruto smiled slightly, "Thank you, Sasuke." This was muttered quietly, probably not meant to be audible, but Yugito caught it and smiled as well, "Alright, last question, then we'll call it a day. Naruto, why the hell were you trying so hard to lie about simple likes and dislikes?" "If I scare them, excel too much at anything, they attack me. They take any success as a sign of 'the Kyuubi showing its true self,' and decide that, with such evidence, they can get away with trying to kill me." Well, that certainly killed the mood. They said their goodbyes, each having a lot on their minds, and parted ways, Yugito tossing a pair of bells off the roof; she didn't think that they would be necessary after all.

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Riku P.O.V.

Sora, Riku, and Kairi stood before the central tower, looking for the 'Hokage,' who was apparently some type of village leader. They entered and were soon led to speak to him, although there were guards present.

The man, who they knew as 'Sandaime,' spoke, "So, who are you?" Riku, who'd been chosen to speak for the group, being the calmest by nature, introduced the group. "Now, please tell me, why are you here?" "We are searching for…an artifact you might call it. It is of substantial value to our group, and we would like your assistance in finding it." "So, what rank of mission are you willing to pay for?" Sora tried to hide his confusion, 'Missions? Payment? What type of village is this?" Riku, who was having similar thoughts, acted like he understood, "What would the costs be, this is our first time dealing with this village." Sandaime nodded, apparently having dealt with such things before, "It will be 2,500 Ryo for a D-Rank, 25,000* Ryo for C-Rank, 35,000* Ryo for C-Rank, 50,000* Ryo for an A-Rank, and 100,000* Ryo for an S –Rank. A D-Rank hires three Genin, good for minor tasks, but not really practical if leaving the village. A C-Rank hires three Genin and one Jounin, or three Chuunin; this is good for minor battles or skirmishes against normal mercenaries or bandits. A B-Rank will cover the equivalent of two Jounin, but could be composed of large numbers of Genin or multiple Chuunin. A-Rank is higher than B-Rank, and is usually all Jounin, and S-Rank has a larger or more elite force than A-Rank.

"We are lacking in funds (they have no clue how to convert their money, so they're effectively broke), but would it be possible to arrange some other form of payment for, say, a C-Rank. We aren't incapable ourselves, so we won't need too much help, mostly just someone who knows the area and can survive any conflicts between us and an…opposing group."

The Sandaime nodded, apparently vagueness was relatively common, and answered, "I would ask you to carry out a task for me, one to be carried out in trade for the mission."

"What type of task?"

"There is a group of individuals who may attack the village or attempt to infiltrate it soon. There target would be a Genin in our village, one by the name of Naruto Uzumaki, I need you to protect him during the upcoming Chuunin exams. I'll need you to impersonate Genin and take part in the Exam, as there will be places that higher ranking Shinobi can't go to protect him. They are all powerful and extremely dangerous. If you don't think you're capable—and it is nothing to be ashamed of, our own Jounin would have extreme difficulty, and likely be killed— then I can find another method of payment."

'Well they can't be worse than Organization XIII.' "That would be acceptable, but, before we finalize the deal, I would like to ask, why do they want this 'Naruto' person?"

"Are you familiar with the Bijuu?"

"I've heard of them, but don't know any details." 'Bijuu? What is a Bijuu?'

"Well, as you are probably aware, there are nine Bijuu, nine demons, who each hold immense power, their power corresponding to their number of tails. Fifteen years ago the Kyuubi no Kitsune, or Nine-Tailed Fox, attacked our village. The Hokage at that time, the Yondaime, sealed the demon into an infant, losing his life in the process. Unfortunately, that infant came to be seen as Kyuubi, and is hated by the populace. That boy is Naruto Uzumaki. The group is known as Akatsuki, and they are seeking out the Bijuu, although we don't know why. If Naruto is captured, they will have access to the strongest of the Bijuu."

Riku, understanding, speaks, "Alright then, we'll do what we can to protect him."

"Seeing as the risk is so great to your group, I will offer you compensation of another variety after you complete this task for me."

"Thank you, Sandaime."

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Sora POV

"Riku, what were you thinking! We can't go fighting a group on par with the Organization for something as minor as this! We should have asked for another option." "Sora, I would have, but that kid, and his Bijuu, this Kyuubi, will undoubtedly be essential to the Fate of this world, this way we can find the Keyhole and shatter Fate simultaneously. Hell, if we're lucky, we may even find the Wielder."

"Oh, I guess that does make sense."

"Unlike some people, Riku thinks quickly Sora."

Sora smiled, Larxene's insults had lost their edge, it was just friendly at this point, 'I'll have you know, that it is very hard to think clearly when I have my mind full of other people.'

"You just keep telling yourself that."

They were waiting outside the Hokage's office while the team for the mission gathered. Various individuals, all wearing a strangely marked headband, cycled through the room, and they were an interesting group indeed. 'Was that green spandex? You, we, are seeing things, right Sora.' 'I hope so.'

Five minutes later, a group of four people walked into the Hokage's office.

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Inside the office:

Team 7 had returned from catching Tora—again. The Sandaime was offering mission options, "You can either bathe and groom the Inuzuka nin-dogs, assist Ibiki in int—no, no, forget that one," he stopped, exasperated, 'Why does Ibiki always add that to the D-rank missions, Genin aren't supposed to be dealing with such things yet.' "As I was saying, you can go cook dinner for one of the civilians," 'These kids are supposed to be Shinobi, not a catering service.' "restrain and guard—er, I mean babysit my grandson, Konohamaru, or—."

He was cut off by Naruto, "Come on old man, we want a real mission, can't we go help Ibiki? Maybe you could give us a C-Rank?" Sasuke supplied an excited sounding monosyllable/grunt, Temari was still twitching from her discovery of the hell Leaf Genin had to go through, and small amounts of blue fire were flickering around Yugito(luckily, no one else had noticed).

Iruka, who had been doing paperwork, interrupted, "No Naruto, you have to understand, Genin have to do D-Rank missions before they move up to—." He was interrupted by a clawed hand courtesy of a rabid-looking Yugito.

The Hokage decided to spare the poor man's life, "Alright then, you have two options. First is an escort mission to Wave, you will be guarding an alcoholic bridge builder. Second is another escort mission, but there could be more powerful opponents to deal with and it the mission could continue indefinitely, as it is a mission to locate something, not simply reach a known location. You will be escorting another group around your age, but from what I can tell they are at least Jounin level. Your main purpose will to simply serve as guides, so don't expect much combat. Now, which will you take?"

Yugito didn't give them any choice in the matter, "I'm not going to put up with some drunken fool; we'll take the latter." Choice or not, the team seemed to agree.

"Alright then, I'll call in the clients."

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Sora walked into the room to see three teenagers, a few years younger than him, and a woman who seemed to be in charge of the group. That would mean the kids were Genin, and the woman was a Jounin.

Sandaime spoke, "This is the team who will be escorting you, consisting of Naruto Uzumaki," the blond grinned broadly, 'So this is the Jinchuuriki.'

"Sasuke Uchiha," The black-haired one nodded seriously, reminding Sora of Riku,

"Sabaku Temari and Yugito Nii." He couldn't read Yugito and while at first Temari seemed disdainful of the three of them, he noticed that it looked a bit false.

"Let's head on to the gates then, we can discuss the mission there."

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The group stood just within the gates to Konoha. Sora spoke first, "Alright, you're here to show us around, any major location could have what we're looking for at it, and no, you can't tell just by looking. We'll know when we find it. Now, I figure we can find it faster if we divide into groups. Riku and Sasuke, you search east, Kairi and Temari can search west, and the rest of us will search north and south. We can search the village tomorrow, let's focus on the forest for now."

The group members show their respective signs of agreement, and they set off.

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Riku POV

Riku was sprinting through the forest, sensing Sasuke in the trees guiding him. They came into a clearing. Before them stood a tree, said tree wasn't necessarily unique in size or shape. The thing which marked this tree was that the limbs were wrapped around an object, seemingly grown naturally into this shape.

Sasuke spoke from behind him, "This is the Kichuu Sakura, or Tree of Mourning. This tree was grown by the Shodaime as a tribute to his closest friend, whose coffin is held tightly by the branches. It saddens me to admit this, but this man was killed by my ancestor, Uchiha Madara, in combat. It is one of the lesser known, but most significant monuments in Konoha."

Riku fully expected One Winged Angel to appear at any moment, but it didn't occur, it seemed that this was not the place they were looking for. Still, he took a moment to pay his respects to the dead, then rose and spoke to Sasuke, "Sasuke, I'm surprised you brought me here, to a grave for your ancestor's victim, why?"

Sasuke shrugged uncomfortably, "I wish this hadn't occurred, but this is a true symbol of our lives as Shinobi. We kill, and we die, but it doesn't always mean we are heartless. My ancestor killed this man, but yet our clan came here annually to pay respects to one of our village's forgotten heroes. We kill from necessity as often as desire; it is the core principle of our society and profession."

"I believe, strangely enough, that this is right. This is a society where people grow, where we have to grow to survive, and I think that if we hope to succeed and be happy, then we must have a reason. We fight, we learn, we progress, and, through conflict, we become closer. Bonds closer than blood form. Even as individuals alone we succeed, we achieve our goals, and through this we all progress grow closer to our respective ideals. My ideal is not necessarily a peaceful world, but a fair one. One where each person progresses on their own merit, not on the bias of fools, or the political games of a council, but on their own talents and hard work. I want to create this world. I may never achieve that, but I will at least build a home for that ideal, a place where people thrive and grow without interference. In order to achieve that, I'll have to surpass my ancestor, who lost to the Shodaime, and the Shodaime, whose village has become impure. I'll have to surpass them all." Riku contemplated his words, sensing the passion and desire Sasuke tried to hide. Indeed he too had once sought an ideal. He had pursued the ideal of freedom, a limitless world without boundaries, and had found it. "Sasuke, I want to give this too you," he pulled an object from his pouch, enchanted to compress space. The object was a katana, the flat of the blade covered in runes. "This was given to me by my…teacher…to help me grow stronger. It helped me achieve my ideals; maybe it will help you achieve yours." He tossed it to Sasuke, who caught it by its hilt. "This is how it works…"

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Temari POV

She and the girl, (Kairi was it?) had been combing the forest blindly since splitting from the group. Honestly, what good was she as a guide if she didn't know the area? Unfortunately, it hadn't occurred to her beforehand.

The girl spoke, "So, your names Temari, right?"

"Yeah, what of it?" "I was just curious, why do you carry that fan?"

Chuckling at the question, she answered, "This is my weapon, I can use it combined with chakra to create gusts of wind." "Could I see it?"

Proud of her fan, she quickly complied. "So, why the circles?"

"It was a training exercise. In order to learn the proper technique you have to learn the primary widths to open it to. They are often referred to as the first, second, and third moons."

"Temari, I think I may be able to help you some, if you'll let me."

"What are you talking about?" How was this girl supposed to help her with her fan technique?

"I know a decent amount about seals, so I think I could open some new doors for your techniques, if you'll let me modify your fan's design slightly?"

"I don't know…" "If you don't like it, I can use a jutsu to undo it."

After a moment of thought, Temari reluctantly agreed, "I'll give you one chance, and only one." She hesitatingly handed over her beloved fan.

Kairi took out a brush and created a peculiar pattern on her fan in black ink. The pattern worked its way around and integrated with the moons, the entire time she was chanting and runes were noticeable in the ink. The pattern was organic-looking, not quite plant-like, but not composed of hard angles either. It reminded Temari of the wind, the currents and patterns she felt with her chakra, and had learned to alter and manipulate for her techniques. The girl drew a flask containing a strange, greenish substance and went back over the pattern with it. Temari could see the wind interacting with the pattern, seemingly of its own accord.

Kairi smiled, seeming satisfied, and handed it back. "Here, try one of your techniques."

Temari opened the fan and performed Kamaitachi. A strange feeling accompanied the movement; she felt additional energy flowing into the technique from the pattern, seemingly from the wind surrounding her.

The simple move became a flurry of destructive wind blades, slicing apart trees where it struck. The blades, in the past invisible, were now a outlined in a faint green. She stared amazedly at the scene of devastation. "How-" She was at a loss for words.

"It gathers mana, a form of energy similar to chakra, from yourself, where it lies untapped, and from the inherent wind-natured mana in the wind. This is stored and then released through your technique. Now, it is important to understand something, this is actually a seal that works in stages. The first stage activates when you reveal the first moon and, in turn, the first section of the seal. It allows you to gather mana from the wind, in a sense the wind itself, into the seal. The second allows you to unleash it. The third is the part I'm most proud of though. It allows you to leave the mana dormant in the air, the technique's power being stored there. When you close the fan-or more accurately-return to the second moon, where the energy is released, the dormant mana is unleashed, allowing you to prepare attacks before hand, then activate them from a distance or at the proper time."

Temari was awed. The things she could do, the techniques she could create-! "Thank you, thank you so much!" She very nearly hugged the girl, but that wasn't something she wanted to be seen doing, so she bowed politely and smiled, trying her best to convey her thanks. They started moving again, the silence, previously cold and uncomfortable, now companionable. In her mind, Temari was mulling over new techniques.

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Sora POV

The remaining group members were being lead by Naruto, who had been informed that Sora had been told of his tenant. Eventually, they arrived at a large pillar, carved into it was a statue of the Yondaime, smiling benevolently. At the foot of the statue was a plaque. It read,

Here lies Minato Namikaze

Brave Leader, Caring Teacher, Powerful Shinobi, and Savior of Konoha.

May his sacrifice be remembered for eternity.

Naruto spoke, "This is the place where the Yondaime breathed his last breath after defeating Kyuubi."

Sora, nodded solemnly, understanding the significance for the village and for Naruto. He touched the uncarved portion of the pillar as he paid his respects, and pulled his hand back. "Naruto, this isn't stone, this is…"

"A fang of the Kyuubi, placed here by the villagers in his memory. Even now Kyuubi is straining for this fragment of his body, I can feel him fighting the seal."

"I wish I could help you with your burden."

"I do too, but this is something only I can do."

"He may be wrong about that Sora, we can't help directly, but… do you still have that book?"

'What book?'

"You know very well which book. I mean the one you were hoping would give you advice on getting me to cooperate and tell you who else you've absorbed."

Sora cringed; he'd hoped she hadn't known that. Still, she had a point. He pulled said book from his pocket, "Here Naruto, I don't know how much it will help, but you should at least look over it." Naruto took the copy of "Listening to the Voices: A User's Guide to Sealed Demons, Angels, Spirits, and Others" that Sora had found in Zexion's library.

"I hope it helps you."

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Naruto POV

He looked at the book Sora had given him, but as he prepared to open it, was interrupted. "Naruto, I need to talk to you." He turned to find Yugito indicating he should follow her. He did so as she shot into the forest, moving just slow enough to track. They stopped in a clearing, and she turned to face him. "Naruto, it is time that you learn to control the Kyuubi, to use its power."

"And how am I supposed to do that?!"

"The same way I do this." Yugito suddenly was enveloped in blue flames. Naruto panicked and lunged to save her, but was stopped by her hand. From inside the flames, Yugito was smiling at him, "Don't worry, I'm fine. You see, I was made into the Jinchuuriki of the Nibi no Nekotama to be a weapon for Kumo. I will be training you once you can use Kyuubi's power. Now, I want you to go back to camp and try to meditate and get in contact with the Kyuubi. Find a way to gain access to its power. Next time we have an opportunity I'll educate you in wielding a Bijuu's youkai. Naruto nodded and returned to camp.

As he prepared to meditate, he remembered the book from before. Grabbing it, he opened the book.

This book was written for the purpose of assisting the innumerable minority of people who have become a container for a supernatural being. Now, before continuing to read, please apply the being's mana/chakra/youkai/other form of energy which it controls or is composed of to the seal below.

An intricate seal was just below the text, and Naruto, for once, figured out how to get the youkai. He quickly took a kunai to his hand, and then ran the cut across the seal, supplying it with the chakra used to heal the wound. The book glowed momentarily. He turned the page.

You are the container of a youkai, not to be confused with (what this book terms as) a demon. A youkai is not an essentially evil being. In this, they are much like humans. A demon is a being which devours souls, youkai are simply called demons on occasion do to the fear of humans.

Now, as the container of a youkai, there are certain guidelines that should be followed when communicating with it. First, you should be respectful, youkai are generally very proud. Second, do not be submissive; if they think you're weak or fearful, they will not work with you. Speak to them as an equal, a person you acknowledge and respect, but don't see as above yourself. Third, when working with a youkai, always make a deal. Youkai are many things, but oath breakers they are not. You can trust a youkai to keep their word. A warning, it is their word, not what you think they promised, but what they did promise. Lastly, remain calm; if you make a fool of yourself it is the same as acting submissive. If you grovel, you're telling them you're weak; if you undignified, they think you're trying to hide your weakness.

One other thing, please understand that a youkai's behavior varies between individuals, indeed, this book's information is based off the testimony of only a few youkai, the main contributor being a dog demon of notable power—and even more notable arrogance.

You're particular youkai is a fox youkai, and if I'm not mistaken, a Kyuubi. Now it is worth mentioning that you should not address him or her as Kyuubi, as this is a title, not a name. You should address one of this rank as "Kyuu Jisannin" or "Bearer of Nine." This is the proper title for the position. In addition, one should, although it may seem strange, wear an illusion upon meeting him. This is because failing to do so suggests that you look down on him as one who is too harmless to bother concealing one's true self from. This would be overlooked in this situation, as you contain him, and thus are safe, but will doing so nevertheless is a sign of respect. The illusion should be strong, but not excessively so. Not so strong as to suggest fear, but not so weak as to seem mocking. Also, as a side note, a false name is sometimes used, and may be considered polite. Yes, I am aware that this is all quite odd, but it is the byproduct of the Kitsune personality. They are a balance of bloodlust and mischief, and also take pride in their illusions and deceptions.

Needless to say, Naruto, who called the Hokage "old man," was already despairing of success. If he tried to be respectful, he'd probably fail miserably! After a few more minutes of reading, he nodded weakly and began to meditate.

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Naruto's Mindscape

Naruto opened his eyes, and sickeningly, found his mindscape to be a sewer. Was he really this messed up, that his mind would take this disgusting form. Shaking it off, he walked through his mind until he felt a presence.

Remembering the instructions of the book, he quickly performed one of his better illusions. It was the true basis for the Oiroke no Jutsu. The classic henge only created the appearance of something else. More advanced forms modified sound and scent as well. The version that he created simulated all three, but it also simulated touch and solidity. It fooled the brain into thinking it had made contact, and even reacted to outside stimulus. The illusion wasn't terribly difficult to dispel, but otherwise was indistinguishable from reality. The illusion even forced the other individual's muscles to stop acting on "contact." There were flaws of course, most notably the fact that it couldn't stop things from passing through it that weren't alive or couldn't stop themselves, although he was toying with compressing air as he did with Kage Bunshin.

When the smoke cleared, he was about six feet tall, had forest green eyes with slit pupils, and silver hair hung down to his chest. He wore a silver yukata with black trim, with a black metal chest plate. On the back of the yukata was the Kanji for hope. His features, once somewhat rough, now resembled Sasuke or his brother's more. His features were now fine and precise, as if each bone had been carefully created by a master artist. He'd even adjusted his bone structure to lend a natural coldness to his gaze, in hopes of seeming more dignified. On his forehead a green four-pointed star was visible. Finding his appearance correct, he stepped into the room.

Looking calmly at Kyuubi, he spoke, doing his best to remain calm in the face of the massive fox. "Kyuu Jisannin, I greet you."

The Kyuubi looked at the being before him—although he must be the container, he certainly seemed different. This being had addressed him properly, even appeared properly before him. What was going on?

"My name is Soseimaru, and I would like to make an agreement with you. I need access to your power, and would like to offer you a contract for this."

Kyuubi, who was slightly impressed by the false persona, decided to respond properly, as opposed to what he had had in mind for his jailer originally. He spoke calmly, "What do you offer for this?"

"I offer you my eyes and my ears. I offer you a chance to see the outside world again."

Kyuubi contemplated the offer, it was a reasonable exchange, but conditions had to be set. "I will agree, but I will only offer power below a single tail. Anything more than that will be denied you."

Soseimaru looked calmly and smiled almost imperceptibly, "I agree." He quickly envisioned a scroll stating the terms of the contract and it appeared. He quickly signed it and slid it through the bars.

Kyuubi, taking a human form within the concealing blackness, took the contract and read over it thoroughly. This Soseimaru (he didn't know his jailer's real name, the contract had absorbed the blood after being signed) was smart; he'd prohibited possession or any attempt to influence his personality. He must be left mentally stable while using the power and the power must be his to use at any time, not only on particular occasions. Kyuubi nodded to himself and signed. He tossed it back through and returned to his fox form.

Soseimaru took it, and, seeing that it had been agreed to, nodded. He gestured towards the wall and the world became visible. Admittedly, the world consisted of his eyelids for now, but it was there. Kyuubi in turn gathered up a large amount of youkai, just short of a tail, and pushed it into his container's body. The youkai created a pool for itself in his body, alongside his chakra, and Soseimaru vanished from his mindscape.

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The Next Day

Team 7 had met at the gate with Sora, Riku, and Kairi. Yugito addressed the group. "I must apologize to our clients, but the mission will have to be delayed for a short while. The Chuunin exams begin in exactly one week, and I want you ready for them. It is up to you whether you compete or not, but if I know you then you will. If you want to compete, please return these forms by the exams." She handed them the forms, which none of the team hesitated to sign on the spot and return. Yugito smiled, and training began.

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Sandaime addressed the Jounin before him, "Who will recommend their students for the exam?" The three Rookie teams' senseis stepped forward and recommended their teams. Iruka objected immediately, "No, they're just kids. They aren't ready for this, I am their sensei and-." He was cut off by Yugito, "You do remember what happened the last time you argued with me, right?" Needless to say, the Chuunin shut up. The Hokage allowed the Genin to enter, and was surprised when she handed over the papers. "The students actually have to agree, you can't just sign them up yourself." "They already agreed, I asked them just before arriving." Somehow, the Sandaime wasn't surprised.

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Exam Day

The three travelers were already in the antechamber before the exam room, and team 7 was entering the building. Quickly slipping past the false entrance, they entered the antechamber. As soon as they stepped foot inside, Sakura and Ino squealed and abandoned their teams, latching on to Sasuke. Temari, irritated with the incompetence of the Konoha kunoichi, pried Ino off and tossed her at a nearby Kiri nin.

Hinata, who had arrived with Temari's siblings, watched Sakura—the girl who Naruto-kun was always chasing; the girl who refused to acknowledge him beyond a punch—latch on to Sasuke right in front of Naruto, felt her blood heat. Walking up behind the girl, who had her arms wrapped around Sasuke's shoulder, she activated the Byakugan and closed off a few choice tenketsu. The girl dropped like a rock.

She quickly lifted Sakura up my the collar and handed her to Kiba, with a glare that just screamed, "Control you teammate." However, it may have been something more along the lines of, "If you can control Akamaru, then you can control this one too."

She heard someone behind her. She happily spun around to accept Naruto's thanks—and froze. Sasuke Uchiha, the frozen demon of Konoha, smiled at her and spoke, "Thank you for that, I can't stand those two." Hinata, who was still in shock at the slight act of kindness, reverted back to stuttering, a habit she'd broken in Suna, "Um…um… your welcome?" She made it sound a question. Sasuke turned and walked back, while Naruto flashed her a grin. She smiled, she was glad he was happy with her actions.

She walked back to her team, smiling at Gaara; who, shockingly to most, nodded back at her respectfully. Kankuro shrugged uncomfortably, he was still freaked out by the lack of sand coffins.

A silver haired Shinobi walked over to the rookie nine and the Suna Genin, smirking. "So, you're the new Genin this year?" Kiba grinned widely, "Yeah, we are, and we are going to beat the shit out of everyone here! You got that?" Naruto couldn't help but wonder, if he hadn't dropped the act, would he be the one saying this?

The Shinobi chuckled, "I bet you are," he said condescendingly, "but how about I help you out a bit. My name is Kabuto, and these are my Nin info cards. I can tell you about anyone in this room, mission details, specialties, you name it."

Surprisingly, it was Hinata who spoke, "Neji Hyuuga." "Your cousin? Well, alright." He poured chakra into the card and data appeared. "He has completed six c-rank, three b-rank, and one a-rank mission. The last being with more than one team of Genin involved. He specializes in Hyuuga clan techniques, including certain main-branch techniques he has managed to replicate. His ninjutsu and genjutsu are virtually nonexistent however." Hinata nodded.

The next question was from Gaara, "Naruto Uzumaki and Sasuke Uchiha." "Your sister's teammates, huh? Well, let's see. They've both taken part in two dozen D-rank missions, and are presently midway through an A-Rank." Naruto's eyes widened, "A-rank? We were told it was C." "Apparently the rank has been changed since then. Now, as I was saying, Uchiha specializes in Uchiha-clan fire techniques and is excellent in all area, but I have virtually no info on anything since the academy, looks like it's been kept pretty quiet. Uzumaki has poor skills overall, but there have been periods during which this ceased, and he performed on par with Uchiha. His specialty is the Jounin-level technique, Kage Bunshin. Oh, I almost forgot, recently there have been signs of advanced wind jutsu being used by him, but all I have there is hearsay."

Sakura, who had finally awoke, as usual, scoffed at the idea of Naruto being capable, "You got your information wrong, Naruto is the dead last, a complete loser, you really think that he knows a Jounin level jutsu." Needless to say, she got another sample of the Jyuuken.

Ibiki interrupted their conversation for the first exam.

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Sora POV

The first exam was a written one, and Sora had no clue about any of this. He was just glad Larxene was there.

"Alright, number one. If a kunai is thrown a 40 mph at a nin who is 50 feet away, performing the hand signs for Kawarimi at 90 signs a minute, while an enemy kunai is flying at 55 mph towards a point 7 feet from the enemy nin in hopes of intercepting the kunai, will it hit the target? If it does, will the target perform Kawarimi in time? If it does not, how fast would it need to be moving to hit the target before the Kawarimi is finished? After answering the above questions, if the kunai killed the target, list three ways to stop it time from the perspective of a 4th individual 60 meters from the target. If it failed to hit him, list three ways to guarantee it hits."

Sora was already confused, but felt Larxene nod and she began listing answers.

Riku POV

Riku connected his mana to the shadow of the false student's pencil, and then created a connection, causing his own pencil to follow the same pattern. He replicated the feat on Kairi's as well.

Sora POV

After Ibiki's warning about the tenth question, Sora watched, grinning, as Naruto broke Ibiki's carefully crafted tension and the intimidation tactic dissolved.

"Your examiner for the second exam w-" He was cut off by breaking glass. A banner stood at the front of the Room, proudly declaring Examiner for the Second Exam: Mitarashi Anko! Before said banner stood the woman herself, and Sora couldn't help staring a bit. He could tell Riku was having the same problem. After all, who wouldn't stare? She was wearing a beige trench coat, a miniskirt, and some fishnet, nothing else. Now if she would just shift just so-"GET YOU MIND OUT OF THE GUTTER!" Oh, right, he had Larxene in his head.

Anko instructed the group to meet at the Forest of Death the next day.

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Sasuke POV

As the bell rang for the exam to begin, Sasuke shot into the forest beside his teammates. He knew his team could move at full speed for hours on end, unlike some of the other teams who's member lacked stamina. As they headed for the center of the forest the group kept an eye out for other chakra signatures. About half way to the tower, an extremely potent one appeared, they shot off to avoid it by silent mutual consent. It seemed to have seen them though, as it was growing closer. Suddenly a gust of wind struck the group, but before they could be blown away, Temari quickly flicked her fan to the first moon, draining away the wind's mana, and in turn draining away its strength. The group quickly blurred into a defensive formation as an immense snake shot forward. Naruto shot at the snake, gathering a small portion of his/Kyuubi's youkai and used it to strengthen his attack, struck its head, launching it back a short distance. From there Sasuke took over and roasted it with a Goukakyou, dispelling the snake. The summoner, a grass nin by his headband, stepped from the shadows, "Very good, Ssassuke-kun. Now, let us begin." His head shot towards Sasuke, who sidestepped it and stabbed kunai into the nin's neck. The fatal attack seemed not to faze him though as he changed directions, hoping to disable Temari. Naruto met him with a glowing crimson arm, and squeezed down on his head, the nin's skull shattered, and he collapsed—and promptly disappeared. Naruto immediately knew, "Kage Bunshin, look out!" The warning was too late for Temari who was hurled into a tree and knocked unconscious by the nin, who was presently wrapped around a tree—multiple times.

Sasuke threw several kunai, which were easily dodged. He sprinted forward, and sliced at the nin with his katana. It was dodged, but just in time for Naruto to hit the nin with a wave of youkai—pure youkai. In moments, the nin's skin had melted away, revealing a new face under the old one. This one was serpentine, his pupils slit, and killing intent enveloping the entire area. Both Genin were immobilized momentarily, and that was all the time the nin needed to seal off Naruto's chakra, leaving him unconscious. Sasuke was about to stab himself and break free when the nin's head shot for his neck. Moments from impact, the head froze—literally.

A feminine voice echoed from the shadows. "This is your last chance to stop, or I'll have to kill you." A deep masculine voice followed, "Why are you giving him a warning, just behead him and get it over with." Another followed, slightly higher, "Really Kairi, I don't think this is the time to be polite." Sasuke's eyes widened as he registered the name, "You guys get out of here! You can't beat him!" Riku melted in from the shadows behind him, quite the feat considering he'd been on the other side of the clearing just a moment ago. Gesturing towards the nin, black flames flew towards him, but were overcome by a signless Katon jutsu. Too bad for the nin that it was a distraction.

From behind a kunai shot into the clearing, piercing the nin's shoulder, but doing little harm. He laughed, "What was that supposed to be?" The laughing cut off as lightning leapt from Sora to the kunai, sending the nin into screaming convulsions, writhing about in pain, unable to escape. He collapsed. Sora stopped shocking him, believing him dead, when the body crumbled away.

The nin reappeared, looking exhausted, "I can't believe I had to shed my skin because of someone like you!" His neck extended for one last shot at Sasuke, but before he could bite he disappeared spontaneously thanks to a 'warp' spell from Riku.

Riku spoke to Sasuke as he dug a heaven scroll from the remains of the shed skin, looking slightly disgusted, "Alright, we both have both scrolls, let's get your teammates to the tower. He waved a hand and a dark portal appeared.

He gestured for Sasuke to follow as they carried Naruto and Temari through. Sasuke, deciding to trust them, hurried through. They appeared inside the tower where, after Kairi cast a pair of Curaga spells to bring Naruto and Temari semi-conscious, Sasuke and Riku opened their teams' scrolls. Iruka and the Sandaime appeared. Sasuke looked at the Sandaime. 'Why is he here, I thought it was supposed to be your sensei.' Sandaime seemed to realize Sasuke's question, "I'm not their sensei, but I was the one who entered them in the tournament, so…" Sasuke nodded as Sandaime trailed off.

Riku spoke to Sandaime, "You were right, there was someone else there. He moved strangely, like a snake. His eyes appeared reptilian, and his hair was black, hanging to his shoulders.

Sandaime sighed sadly, "That would be my old student, Orochimaru. Was anyone hurt, beyond the obvious I mean? "

"No, he tried to bite Sasuke, but was intercepted before he could do so."

Sandaime was relieved, 'So he didn't receive the curse mark, thank goodness.' "Well then, settle in and rest up until the end of the second exam. You're the second and 3rd team to arrive, after your brother's team." He said, indicating Temari.

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Two days later, the time limit ended and the remaining examinees, consisting of the keyblade wielders, the rookie nine, Gai's team, the Sand team, and the three Sound teams, met for the final exam. This however, was not to be, and the preliminaries began.

The Hokage spoke first, "Now, if anyone wants to stop now, feel free to, these battles will be dangerous, and death is quite possible. There will be no intervention if the opponent is not defeated short of dying, and a fatal attack is used. Do you understand?" When no one responded, he continued, "Alright then-" He was cut off by Sakura Haruno, "Hokage-sama, I'm forfeiting, I'm not ready yet." At the Sandaime's nod, she left.

The Hokage began where he left off, "Let us begin the preliminary rounds!" The Genin walked onto the observation deck above the arena and watched the screen flicker through names. If finally stopped.

Shikamaru Nara vs. Zaku

Shikamaru sighed heavily, and with a muttered "Troublesome…" jumped into the arena. Zaku was standing there waiting for him. He just shook his head, "Let's get this over with."

"Don't worry it will be over in moments."

The match began.

Zaku pointed his palms at Shikamaru, the steel pipes imbedded in his arms channeling chakra forwards, "Zankuuha!" Shikamaru's eyes widened and he leapt out of the way, the edge of the blast catching his shoulder and throwing back. He caught himself and flipped back onto his feet. Zaku blurred into existence in front of him, and raised one palm. "Zankuuha!" The torrent of sound burst from his palm….straight into the wall.

"Kagemane no Jutsu, success." Shikamaru had latched on to Zaku's shadow with his own and redirected the blast. He quickly reached behind his back and pulled a kunai from a hidden sheath, holding it to Zaku's throat, Zaku imitated the motion, but lacked the kunai to make it significant. Shikamaru spoke, sounding bored, "Give up, it would be really troublesome to have to kill you." Zaku was happy to oblige, and Shikamaru returned to the observation deck.

The screen flickered through combinations once again, finally stopping on:

Tenten vs. Kin

The girls jumped into the arena and the battle began. Tenten opened by throwing a few dozen kunai and shuriken at Kin, who blocked a few with senbon, and dodged what she could, but still took a kunai to the shoulder and had numerous cuts from shuriken. Tenten prepared to finish the battle, pulling out several more kunai, and then stopped. She suddenly felt dizzy, her vision was blurring, and she was presently counting a total of fifteen copies of Kin. The Kins spoke, "So, which one is real…which one is it safe to attack, and which one will kill you if you miss." Tenten made a desperate last attempt, throwing shuriken at every copy. Kin took a couple cuts, but the genjutsu finished Tenten off before Kin collapsed from blood loss, winning the match.

The screen started up again as the two were carted off. The next match was shown to be:

Uchiha Sasuke vs. Rock Lee

Sasuke leapt into the arena and faced his opponent. Lee was wearing the most hideous green spandex—actually the only green spandex—he' d ever seen someone wear(he hadn't seen Gai yet), had an equally hideous bowl cut, and, well, he wasn't even going into the eyebrows. Of course, this was all tossed aside once Lee spoke, "LET US HAVE A YOUTHFUL BATTLE, MAY THE MOST YOUTHFUL MAN WIN!"

One more moment and Sasuke just knew he would hemorrhage, so he interrupted with a kunai. Lee jumped aside and shot towards Sasuke, seeking to engage him in Taijutsu, but was instead forced to dodge a Housenka no Jutsu courtesy of Sasuke, who didn't want to get to close the older Genin. Unfortunately for Sasuke, Lee wasn't taking no for an answer, and quickly charged back in before Sasuke could stop him He threw the first punch, but leapt back when we he wasn't blocked by a fist, but by a katana.

Sasuke was holding the katana that Riku had given him, hoping to negate the option of Taijutsu, but wasn't so lucky as Lee leapt over his head…and dropped his weights. Sasuke just barely avoided the deadly projectiles, leaping away at the last minute, and then moving to block Lee's newest assault. Lee appeared in front of him without warning, a fist hurtling at his face with enough force to shatter his skull. Sasuke dodged aside and used the technique Riku had taught him in the forest on their mission. He remembered their lesson…

"Sasuke, this sword has the ability to draw on a person's inner darkness in order to strengthen them. There are three primary categories of technique, the first is known as the "Blade of Ambition" this draws power from your ambitions, your goals, to strengthen you. The stronger the ambition fueling it, the stronger the technique, but if you lose sight of your goal, if you hesitate, there will be a backlash, so you must only use technique when you have no doubts about you actions, if you're afraid or unsure, it will only hurt you in the end.

The first technique breaks a limit on your mana, a so called 'Mana Chain.' If you use it to long though, it will drain your mana supply dry and likely kill you. Mana is much like chakra, but it isn't compatible with Jutsus, seeing as it has no physical component, just a spiritual one. It can be used to strengthen the body though, by amplifying your physical energy."

"Is that all it can do?"

"No, there are techniques it can be used in, but it would take to much time to teach them now, so I'm going to help you improve what you can already do, which is fight physically. I'll teach you a bit about the Blade of Ambition and the other categories, and then help you with your swordsmanship a little."

Sasuke nodded, excited.

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Sasuke focused on his goal, to defeat Lee. The bigger the goal was, the bigger the backlash would be if you lost focus. Then he mentally cut the Mana Chain with the sword. 'Blade of Ambition: Severing of the First Chain!' He poured mana into his body and disappeared, reappearing behind Lee and slashing him across the back, leaving a bloody cut, but failing to incapacitate Lee, who had moved at the last moment. The audience was trying to stare, but having trouble finding something to stare at. From the stands, Gai shouted, "YOU HAVE MY PERMISSION LEE! LET YOUR FLAMES OF YOUTH BURN BRIGHTLY!" Lee nodded and focused, then called out the technique, "FIRST GATE: GATE OF OPENING: OPEN!" Lee sped up drastically. Now moving at approximately the same speed as Sasuke he lunged, sending his foot into Sasuke's chin and launched the prodigy up. Lee materialized behind the Uchiha—who was replaced by a log.

As Lee fell towards the ground alone, Sasuke appeared beneath him. "Blade of Ambition: Ascendant Dragon!" He launched Lee back into the air at a forty-five degree angle with his sheath, before appearing under Lee and launching him at the same angle, in the other direction, further into the air. He knocked him further up until Lee reached the center point between the two previous strikes, and flicked through hand signs as he materialized above Lee and used his jutsu, "Katon: Goukakyou no Jutsu!" To the onlookers the technique created a draconic image. A serpentine pathway of flight, followed by an all consuming flame from the 'Dragon's Head.' Lee fell to the ground scorched and unconscious from the pain, but still alive.

The proctor called the match as medics arrived, "Winner: Sasuke Uchiha!"

Sasuke returned to the viewing deck, ignoring the stares of the other Leaf Nin, including Kiba, who decided he needed to yell his comments instead of keeping his mouth shut. "WHAT THE HELL WAS THAT! He's one of us, a Konoha Ninja! Does that mean nothing to you! He could have died! How dare you, you bas-!" He was cut off by-surprisingly to many-Naruto, who had slammed Kiba into the wall, "Shut up you mutt! It doesn't matter where he's from; this is a competition where we compete individually! Villages don't matter, and if you ever talk act like that to one of my friends again, I will beat the shit out of you until you are eating from your dog bowl through a straw!" His eyes were glowing crimson and the killing intent was tangible. Luckily, Naruto had enough control to hide it from the others in the room, and while Kiba was scared to death, he just nodded shakily, while the other Genin gaped.

Naruto drew back, his rage subsiding. In his mind, Kyuubi chuckled, unheard. 'This one is very protective, I guess when you feel this alone, anything which threatens those close to you can set you off. It's strange, I really can't see Soseimaru doing this, but they must be the same person. Either way, it will be useful if I hope to escape later…'

The next match-up appeared as the Jinchuuriki calmed down.

Naruto Uzumaki vs. Kimimaro Kaguya

A white-haired boy with a pair of red dots on his forehead appeared in the arena, his red-rimmed eyes gazing at Naruto, who leapt down after him. The battle began as Kimimaro's finger tips ripped open and small bones shot from the open holes, knocking Naruto back and leaving him bleeding.

Naruto responded by creating a few Kage Bunshin which proceeded to hurl dozens of shuriken and kunai at Kimimaro. They were easily avoided by the Kaguya, who launched more bones at Naruto, who dodged and then charged.

Kimimaro met the charge by ripping his spine out, blood gushing from the wound before it closed, and swung it at Naruto. The Uzumaki leapt back and used a Jutsu that Yugito had taught him. "Raiton: Raibokei!"

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Above, Sora watched; as he saw something appear momentarily, then disappear from his senses. However, Larxene saw as a field of electrical energy appeared. The arena was now home to paths of charged particles, the perfect way to guide an electrical charge. Below, she could see the young Shinobi release lightning-elemental chakra along the paths, and understood. By creating that matrix of electrical energy, he could strike any point with a small amount of energy. If he used too much though, he'd probably overload the system and electrocute himself as well.

Below, Naruto watched as the chakra he'd released reached Kimimaro, whose muscles locked up under the steady stream of electricity. Naruto shot forward while he was immobile and moved to finish Kimimaro with a kunai, but was stopped by a plate of bone appearing over Kimimaro's chest—his target. The kunai snapped, but Naruto didn't stop, drawing Kyuubi's youkai and sending his new claws straight through the bone plate. His hand came away soaked in blood, but he'd avoided making It fatal, instead merely severing some major arteries. It could be healed, but only if the battle was ended now, not later. The match was called as Kimimaro collapsed and the medics rushed him to be treated. Naruto vanished in a burst of youkai, reappearing beside his team and releasing the youkai simultaneously. Sakura looked terrified, and Naruto couldn't deny that it hurt a little. The crush had been false, but he had hoped she might at least think of him fondly. Hinata seemed a little shaken, but smiled weakly and did her best to be encouraging. Shino nodded at him calmly, while Kiba had an odd look in his eyes. Temari was the worst though; she looked scared—not of him, but for him. He knew she was seeing Gaara at that moment, not him. The screen switched to the next match-up.

Shino Aburame vs. Kidoumaru

Shino appeared in the arena, as did a fairly averaging looking Shinobi (so a little violent and insane)…well, if you ignored the extra arms at least. The match began as Shino sent his Kikai bugs, hoping to drain Kidoumaru's chakra, but was met by his natural enemy—a legion of spiders. The swarm met the horde and a scream was heard—no one was worried, they knew it was Sakura, not one of the combatants. Kidoumaru launched webs at Shino, who drained their chakra with his Kikai bugs, and then cut them with a kunai. The war raged for about and hour, with neither side falling back, until Kidoumaru was caught from behind as numerous scattered insects from around the room suddenly swarmed and latched on, draining his chakra until he collapsed, his summoned spiders doing the same.

The next match-up appeared as Shino returned to the viewing deck.

Sakon vs. Ukon

The twins immediately surrendered—how were they supposed to fight each other? Ukon could be heard muttering, "Damn Kimimaro, "We're short a team member-sign up separately." Now I don't even get to fight."

The next match was between Gaara and Dosu. The two entered the arena, one via sand shunshin, the other just jumping in. Gaara extended his hand, and before Dosu could move, he found him held in the air, wrapped in a cocoon of sand. Gaara half-closed his hand, "Give up, now." There was no sign of any merciful desire, no kindness, no fear of killing, just an offer of escape. Dosu nodded and was released. As Gaara returned to the deck, ignoring Temari's stare, Hinata was virtually glowing as she smiled at her teammate. Gaara spoke to her, "Is that what you wanted?" "Yes, thank you so much Gaara-kun." She smiled at him and there was an almost invisible hint of reciprocation by Gaara. The screen revealed the next set of combatants:

Temari vs. Kankuro

The brother and sister stepped into the arena, neither speaking. This was a place for battle, not conversation. Kankuro threw a poison smoke bomb, which was blown back into his face, a fact that he blatantly ignored. This told Temari that the outer Kankuro was the fake, while real one was wrapped up on his back. She sprinted forward and opened the fan fully, swinging it at point blank range, but generating no gust. Next she used her fan to glide behind him as he braced himself for the nonexistent wind technique. Behind him, she repeated the maneuver. Realizing what had happened, Kankuro exited his wrappings using a kunai, placing Karasu between himself and Temari. He sent the puppet at his sister, its body breaking apart to wrap around her, in hopes of crushing her. The puppet was inches away when she smirked and brought the fan back to the second moon with a snap of her wrist. Her first swing's gust drove Kankuro towards her, while the second was a Kamaitachi, slicing at Karasu and wounding Kankuro, who had collided with the puppet. She placed her foot on the throat of the fallen Kankuro, who forfeited. He looked at her oddly before walking away. After congratulations from her teammates, the next match began.

Kairi vs. Jirobou

The redhead jumped into the arena to fight the sound nin. As the fight began, he immediately enclosed her in a dome before she could react, slowly draining her chakra.

Within the dome, Kairi was finishing a chant, she pointed towards the wall, "Shakkahou!" The wall cracked—and then reformed. Growing angry Kairi prepared the strongest spell she knew and pointed at Jiroubou, whose mana she could sense:

Bone of a straggling beast, spire, crimson crystal, disc of steel, when the wind shifts, and the emptiness ceases, let the clash of lances resonate through the relinquished castle! Hadou Sixty-Three: Raikouhou!

A wave of lightning leapt forth, uncontrolled and all-consuming, slowly filling the dome, unable to pass through. Kairi, realizing her mistake, slowly forced it under her control. She focused the energy towards Jiroubou and pierced the dome—and then Jiroubou himself. She quickly released the kidou and the medics Jiroubou away, she returned to the viewing deck, a little shaken from nearly killing a human.

Riku rested his hand on her shoulder comfortingly, hoping to relieve some of her uneasiness. The screen declared the next match and Kairi gasped, terrified. It read:

Sora vs. Riku

The two nodded to each other and leapt into the arena.

As the match began, they took it slow, keeping to basic swordsmanship, Savage Nymph and One Winged Angel meeting in midair again and again, each blow always blocked by the other blade.

It began to speed up, as Sora's Firaga met Riku's Dark Aura fireball. The two canceled each other out, and Sora just dodged another fireball in time to call down a Thundaga. Riku caught the bolt on One Winged Angel and hurled the electricity at Sora, who caught it in his palm, absorbing it. Riku followed up with a Darkga spell, calling Darkness up to bind Sora, who switched the Savage Nymph for Oathkeeper and blocked the spell with Light energy before switching back.

The battle was now going full force as some of the Genin collapsed from the huge amounts of mana in the air. Riku called out all his Darkness, the cloak from the arena reforming, while Sora wet the keychain of the Nymph's Blade, summoning Larxene's organization cloak and powers, although sparing them both the stress and side-effects of integration. Lightning struck at Riku from out of nowhere and shadows cut at Sora, leaving him bleeding. The remaining Genin were finding it hard to breathe, and many seemed rather terrified. Jounin could be seen assembling protective barriers to prevent collateral damage.

The battle reached its climax as a shadow-cloaked blade met a lightning charged one, the mana released by the clash striking the barriers, Darkness and Lightning writhing against invisible walls. The Genin were staring intently, some in awe, some in frozen horror. The Jounin were having to struggle to maintain the barriers. It seemed that they would all die.

Suddenly, it stopped. The two stood alone in the arena, both clearly exhausted, gasping for breath. They charged one last time. A wave of Darkness radiating from Riku's fist enveloped Sora as he slammed an electrically charged palm into Riku, overloading his nervous system and knocking him out as Sora was forced unconscious by the shadows.

The judge declared it a tie and both were marked down as a loss, despite the…impressive…performance.

The next battle was between Hinata and Neji Hyuuga. The pair both leapt in and fell into their Jyuuken stances. Neji looked into Hinata's eyes 'Where is the hesitation, the fear, she seems so different…' The battle began without a word.

The two sprinted forward, each using Jyuuken, but neither actually harming the other. Suddenly Hinata leapt back and fell into a stance that was familiar to Neji. She was using a normal Jyuuken technique, but had found a way to adapt it only moments ago. "Jyuuken no Rai: Hakke Rokujuu Yonshou!" She trapped him in her field of Divination, much to his dismay and struck. Neji had determined that he'd take the first two hits, then move when she prepared for the next four, but his plan fell apart when he felt more than a Jyuuken strike. The technique also brought and electrical surge, so it attacked his nervous system and organs through both the chakra system and by physical means using electricity. The strike left him immobile for a moment or two after each as his neurons overloaded, preventing escape. When she finished the combo with a palm to his forehead, Neji collapsed unconscious. "Winner, Hinata Hyuuga!" Gaara nodded towards her and spoke, "Well done." She smiled at the praise, and then blushed brightly as Naruto shouted his congratulations to her as well, followed by more subdued support from Sasuke. She made a mental note to think Sora for inspiring her technique. The screen soon showed the next match-up, Choji Akimichi vs. Kiba Inuzuka.

Choji immediately attacked with his human boulder technique, which dodged before countering with a Jujin Bunshin followed by Gatsuga, which was launched in time to meet the human boulder. The clash knocked all three unconscious, and they were both marked down as a loss. It was time for the final pair to enter the arena, as the screen stopped on:

Ino Yamanaka vs. Tayuya

Once the two landed, the battle began. Tayuya struck immediately with Genjutsu, but they were canceled by the Yamanaka heir, who responded with several kunai, but missed with all of them. Tayuya laughed, and prepared her next song, only to be cut off as the kunai circled back around, restraining her. She was already nearly free when the Shintenshin no Jutsu hit and Ino entered her mind.

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Ino looked around at the room she stood in. It was a pleasant, simple room with wooden walls, throughout the room there were musical instruments, all polished and shining. Sheet music was neatly stacked throughout, some finished, some half-written. Everything was well taken care of and perfect—with one exception. Resting in the back of the room, hidden, was a case, within which rested a familiar flute. The box was covered in strange, angular markings, which flickered like flames. The flute inside was covered in a black mist, she could see scratches covering the once polished surface, dust covering the delicate instrument.

Ino inhaled sharply at the sight. She'd been taught to recognize the symptoms when within a person's mindscape. The flute was incredibly important to Tayuya; it was a part of her identity, and to see such a thing happening to it could only be one of two things, insanity…or possession. If it was insanity though, the whole mindscape would be damaged, not just this, so that left possession, and not the type Ino used, but long term, damaging possession. She immediately began to do as she had been taught. It was the single most important rule her father had taught her. "If a person's mind has been violated or damaged, then fix the problem before doing absolutely anything else." She recited under her breath. Now she just had to figure out how. She started, thinking aloud. "Alright, this is an instrument, which means that in here her identity is interwoven with music…if I can reinforce her natural characteristics, then that should weaken the hold on this aspect." She looked around the room for what she needed, and soon found it. On a shelf she found a piece of paper, balled up. She unfolded it, and found what she expected. It was a piece of sheet music, entitled simply, 'Tayuya.' In the mind, this was a common thing; one thing symbolized the person herself, while another recorded the person's identity throughout her life. In order to fix this kind of problem, the first option was to find the record and re-invoke the person's identity as recorded. A possession could only affect the person; not this kind of record, as it was simply data. By reminding the person of the recorded identity, the possession would weaken. It helped that this wasn't a full possession, so the person was still aware—just heavily influenced and altered by the possession. Hopefully this would allow her to interact more deeply with the affected portion of Tayuya's identity. She moved a nearby piano, which she had been taught to play as a child, and placed the sheet music on the stand. Taking a deep breath, she began to play.

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Outside, Tayuya began to shake slightly.

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The music was in full swing within Tayuya's mind, and there was a slight change around the flute case, the mist was thinning out. Ino played, pouring all of her effort into the music, devoting herself to what she'd been raised to do. She struck the final note victoriously, and the mist disappeared. As Ino examined the case, the marks and damage were still there, but at least the flute was free of the mist.

"Alright, then the next step is…" She carefully grasped the case, avoiding the marks, and pulled. The case didn't move an inch. She looked at it again, and noticed that the marks stretched down onto the podium as well, anchoring the glass case.

She sighed; she'd hoped to avoid this. She began the next, most dangerous, step, and wrapped her hands around the markings, her hands flowing through the case to grasp the marks. She slowly pried them off the case and podium. Once they came free, they writhed in her hands, feeling solid, before beginning to dissolve—lacking anything to feed on. Suddenly, the last fragment latched on to her arm, and she screamed.

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Outside, Tayuya convulsed as a purple mist poured from her body, slowly dissipating. Above, Orochimaru watched, worried. He didn't think his seal could be broken—but it appeared to be happening. Suddenly Ino's body, lacking a mind, screamed. Intricate lines appeared on her arm, and began to expand over her body.

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Ino pulled against the mark, trying to dislodge it, but it held on tight, her eyes wide in panic and despair overtaking her as the possession progressed; a flash of light filled the room. On the podium, the flute had begun to play, the case containing it shattered, and the song 'Tayuya' bathed the room.

Suddenly, a hand shot out and grasped the mark on Ino, pulling it from her flesh and crushing it ruthlessly. Ino looked up, and found her opponent standing beside her. The redhead was grinning brightly as the last remnants of the curse seal vanished. She spoke, "Thank you." Ino smiled back, then vanished, her jutsu having timed out.

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The pair awoke in the arena, where Tayuya's curse mark had disappeared from both herself and Ino. Both struggled to their feet, and Ino drew a kunai. She had done her job, now she had to win. Before she could move, Tayuya spoke, "I forfeit; I'm out of chakra. The…events…just now have left me exhausted." Ino was nearly gaping and started to get angry at the charity, when she realized it wasn't a lie. Tayuya was visibly panting, and Ino could barely sense her chakra. She nodded, and the preliminaries ended.

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The contestants descended to be assigned their match-ups for the finals. The results showed the first matches to be:

Shikamaru vs. Gaara

Kin vs. Temari

Naruto vs. Ino

Shino vs. Kairi

Hinata vs. Sasuke

The Hokage spoke, "You all have one month to prepare for the final round, so go forth, train hard, and strive for victory!"

The contestants left the room, followed by the others who were present and conscious. The training was about to begin.

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The next day Team 7 had joint training, and Yugito had a look on her face which roughly translated into: "I hope you brought anesthetics." She addressed her team, "I'm very proud of all of you, now that you have reached the finals, it is time to prepare. I encourage each of you to seek out help from other individuals besides me, as I am not capable of giving you each specialized training, and can't set aside two of you for the sake of another. So we will train together every three days. Now, the first thing today is this, I have constructed an obstacle course for you—yes I know, it seems pretty pathetic after the Forest of Death, but I didn't do it alone. I got help from an acquaintance of mine; you may remember her, Anko Mitarashi." They were scared now. "All who survive will take part in a spar with me. If you fail to make it through, I hand you over to Gai." The Genin of Team 7 twitched simultaneously, the viewing deck had been bad enough, they were not training with him. "If you lose to me in less than ten minutes, I hand you over to Anko," they were staring at her in horror, and her smile widened, "and if you win, I'll teach you all some Raiton jutsu." The team nodded shakily, it was risky, but the reward was worth it. She lead them to the obstacle course, which, she had failed to mention—was in the Forest of Death, they entered and began the course.

The three traveled as a group, avoiding the kunai, shuriken, and trip-wires well, until they were about a quarter of the way through, then some of the kunai came with explosive tags, one knocking Naruto into a tree, with Sasuke just barely pulling away from a cloud of shuriken in time.

Sasuke, now more worried, launched a Goukakyou down the course, burning away a large number of traps, only for a virtual wall of kunai to fly at him from the far end, having been triggered by the fireball. Temari stepped in front of him, bringing up a tornado to protect them, deflecting aside the kunai.

The group continued on, avoiding the various weapons, but were stopped halfway by a massive snake, presumably summoned by Anko. It lunged forward before anyone could respond, its mouth closing down on them—only to be wrenched open by a seething, youkai-cloaked Naruto, who promptly tossed it back into the forest. The group reached the end after a series of several more ordeals, including several similar snakes, numerous Genjutsus and an explosive tag minefield. The exited, only to be attacked by Yugito with a Raiton: Rairyuudan. The dragon struck Naruto, who just managed to call up youkai, which blocked most of the blast, allowing him to attack Yugito immediately, scratching her slightly, but doing nothing else. She ignored the cuts in favor of appearing behind him and knocking him across the clearing, only for her to take a Goukakyou from behind, which the Nibi's youkai absorbed as she called it out. Flames leapt from her, seeking Sasuke who only barely evaded. Temari meanwhile had sent a Kamaitachi her way, finally landing a strong hit and pushing Yugito back quite a ways, as well as opening several small wounds.

Yugito smiled to herself, they were getting better, but....she leapt at Temari, grabbing her shirt with her claws and throwing her at Sasuke, knocking them both into Naruto, who'd been moving to attack after recovering from their earlier exchange.

Sasuke decided to stop holding back, and cut the mana chain. He blurred into existence in front of Yugito, swinging at her, but was dodged and caught by a blow to his back, launching him away from her. A youkai covered Naruto caught him and inclined his head towards Yugito, Sasuke nodded, and they charged. Yugito dodged Sasuke's katana, only to catch a wave of Naruto's toxic youkai, burning her arm. She grimaced, and made to counter, only to be stopped by Temari's fan striking her arm.

The match continued until the time limit. In the end, the group survived, although just barely and each received a jutsu scroll.

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Time skip—The Final Exams

AN: Other training will be revealed during the exams

The exam began as Gaara appeared in the arena, cutting off the nearby conversations. Naruto decided to play the part this time and pushed Shikamaru in, while his teammates shook their heads at it all.

The battle began and the sands pursued Shikamaru, who retreated. He knew that he restraining Gaara couldn't stop the sand, so Kagemane wasn't an option, so instead…as the next sand wave approached, Shikamaru set off an exploding tag on the sand, the heat melting it into glass. The glass was vibrating as Gaara tried to control the melted sand, and Shikamaru knew it would break down into sand again soon, so he acted quickly, flooding the area Gaara occupied with exploding tags attached to kunai, and dived into the dust cloud in the wake of the explosion, hoping to strike put one on Gaara himself before the Jinchuuriki could react. He stabbed the kunai at Gaara—and felt his sand strike his arm. As the dust cleared, Shikamaru found sand flowing from the edges of the arena and binding him, then forming the coffin. He immediately forfeited. He returned to the stands.

Kin and Temari filed in, Kin throwing kunai as the match began. Temari, anticipating this, sprinted forwards and slammed her fan into Kin's head, putting her whole body into it, knocking the Sound Nin unconscious immediately.

The proctor blinked at the quick finish, then called the match. Kin was carried to the medic wing, while Temari returned to the stands.

Next were Naruto and Ino. As Naruto walked in Ino spoke, "So it's me and the dead last, well this will be easy." She knew that it would be anything but easy, but an angry opponent was a vulnerable one, and Naruto was prone to anger. Unfortunately for her, it didn't work. Naruto quoted his closest friend, "Hn," and the match began.

Naruto lunged forward, his youkai cloak glowing around him, lashing at Ino with his claws, he was right on target—and then the world went black.

He looked around, seeing nothing. He was awake; there had been no impact or moment of darkening vision. One moment he could see, the next he couldn't. Ino's voice echoed from the darkness, "So, how do you like it, this is one of my family's jutsu, which was given to us by the Shodaime Hokage. It's called Kokuangyo no Jutsu, or 'Bringer of Darkness.' Do you like it?" Behind him, Naruto sensed something; he spun around to see nothing, until it struck his youkai. It was chakra that, unlike normal chakra, felt like Ino. Not like Ino's chakra, but like Ino was running towards him. Not taking any risks, side stepped, then grabbed onto the chakra with his Youkai. He examined it more closely, and his eyes widened. This was Ino, her mind at least. So that made it some kind of possession technique, her mind to override his. He smirked mischievously, and poured a few drops of youkai in.

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Ino felt a jolt, as if the jutsu had succeeded, only to see a strange person step from the darkness, silver hair resting on his shoulders. The person—creature spoke serenely, but with a slight edge to his voice, "I wouldn't recommend trying that again if I were you, things might get violent. Now, I'm afraid that it's time to return to your body."

She felt herself ejected from wherever she had been, and looked around. She was in the arena, with a kunai at her throat, she knew that the Kokuangyo would break down, but she should have possessed Naruto with that Shintenshin, not been caught by that entity. She forfeited and they returned to their seats, Ino staring off into space, still confused.

The next match began, and Shino and Kairi entered. Shino immediately sent a swarm of Kikai at the redhead, who were burned by a series of Firagas. Kairi followed up with a Shakkahou, striking Shino head on, and ending the battle as knocked unconscious by the explosion.

After that was over, the last fight of the first round began. Sasuke appeared in the arena from the stands, glad he wasn't later or he would have missed his match. It started with Hinata charging him, palms alight with electricity, and tried to hit him, he sidestepped and knocked her off her feet with the hilt of his Katana, before stabbing down at her with his sword. She rolled out of the way of the descending blade. Then caught him in the back with her palm, he recovered in time to dodge the next blow, but was being pushed back. His black eyes followed her movements, trying to see where she was aiming, then suddenly began to burn. HE threw his hand over his face, trying to stop the pain, and took a Jyuuken strike to the side. He hurled himself back, and slowly the pain stopped. As Hinata charged, he saw her move just an instant before she did, and dodged. His eyes, now read with two tomoe in each, watched her movements and he countered. He brought his sword up to the back of her neck. "Forfeit now, I don't want to hurt you." She nodded, thankful, and did so. They returned to their seats, and the second stage of the Final Exam began. Gaara and Temari entered the arena, Temari looking slightly scared. Gaara spoke, "Temari, you should quit now, I don't want to fight you." She smiled sadly and shook her head, "I'm sorry Gaara, but I can't give up now."

He nodded and raised a hand, a wall of sand pursuing his sister. Temari just blew it away with a gust of wind. She then opened the fan fully, swinging around herself in a way similar to a dance, before launching a mana-strengthened Kamaitachi his way, green blades cutting through the sand shield and striking his armor of sand. His eyes widened and he grimaced, a dome of sand covered the two combatants, hiding them from others, and within Gaara called up a smaller dome, enclosing Temari from all sides. He spoke to her, "Please Temari, surrender now, I don't want to kill you!" She smiled within the dome, but it quickly became a confident smirk. She brought the fan down to the second moon, "Sensujutsu: Kaze no Tama!" A sphere of wind, formed by her earlier swings, roared around her, the mana unleashed, tearing away the sands that would soon crush her, and leaving her brother vulnerable, while at the same time a group of stored Kamaitachis were launched at him. He brought up his armor of sand at the last moment, then caught her in a sand coffin. She forfeited, her last option exhausted.

As they returned, the next combatants entered the arena. The most anticipated round(by the two at least) was about to begin, as Sasuke and Naruto appeared in the Arena.

Immediately, the youkai cloak formed around Naruto, and Sasuke severed his mana chain. The unleashed power was mildly affecting some of the Genin, although it was nothing compared to Sora and Riku. The civilian watchers, however, were having some trouble breathing.

Sasuke made the first move, swinging his sword horizontally, creating a black blade of mana in the air, which flew towards Naruto. Naruto cut through it with Youkai-infused claws, the remnants flying by, as he shot towards the Uchiha. Shards of crystallized youkai flew from the cloak as Naruto gestured, but were deflected by Sasuke's katana. Then Sasuke spoke, "Dark!" A tendril of Darkness ripped its way from the shadows of the arena, grabbing on to the Jinchuuriki and holding him in place for the next attack. The Uchiha flicked through hand signs, then launched a Goukakyou at Naruto. At the last moment, Naruto cast his own spell, learned from Sora, who had only recently relearned it himself, "Aero!" The flames burned around the wind spell, but then began to absorb the wind mana. Naruto followed up with a Reflect spell, deflecting the flames. He charged at his brother, and quickly hurled a kunai, wrapped in an Aero spell. Sasuke blocked it, but was still cut by the spell itself, leaving small wounds across Sasuke's body. Sasuke launched another pair of black blades at Naruto to stop his approach, then Dark Mana and, remembering Hinata, Lightning Mana into his right hand, until shadowy electricity engulfed it. He charged, aiming to strike Naruto and finish the battle.

Naruto, having seen the blades in time, summoned a Kage Bunshin, who used its Youkai to deflect the blades. Naruto gathered Youkai and Wind Chakra into his fist, charging to meet Sasuke.

Their fists met in midair, the conflicting energies engulfing the center of the Arena. Slowly the waves of energy gave way and a sphere formed in the center, destroying the land beneath it. Within the sphere, the brothers shook hands before a village that neither knew, but both cherished.

The sphere broke down, and when the smoke cleared, both combatants lay on the ground, unconscious. Yugito, Riku, and Sora appeared to carry them off. Sasuke looked up at Riku, barely awake, as was Naruto, and spoke faintly, "Did I do well, Riku-sensei?" The older boy looked down at his student proudly, "You did very well Sasuke, very well." Sora looked at his student, grinning widely, "You did great too, I'm very impressed, Naruto. At this rate, you'll be Kage in no time!" Yugito could be heard whispering congratulations to them as the five left, with Temari waving from the stands and cheering.

Unfortunately, things weren't over yet, as Kairi entered the arena to meet Gaara. The match began, and Kairi opened with a spell, "Eruptio Ignis!" the same wave of flame that she'd turned against Aqua burned its way to the Jinchuuriki, his sand shield melting into glass as fast as it could rise to protect him. It engulfed the shield and was about to strike him, when he screamed. Flame-like markings spread from his neck, engulfing him. Shukaku's form overtook his own, slowly growing to full size. The Bijuu launched a barrage of Air Bullets at Kairi and the nearby crowd. The redhead cast a particularly draining spell, "Doshimaku!" A dome of earth similar to Jirobou's enveloped the Inside of the Arena, leaving her trapped inside alone with Shukaku. The next air bullet hurtled for her, but was met with a powerful Mighty Guard spell. The burst of air flowed around her, doing nothing. She countered with one of the strongest spells she knew, hoping Gaara would survive, she recited the incantation in full, then called out the name, "Kurohitsugi (Black Coffin)!" A black box appeared around the Shukaku construct, a massive number of blades piercing it. The devastated Tanuki emerged, and then slowly began to reform. Kairi, near exhaustion, tried one last spell, "Niveus flamma, exuro omnis insquequo illic est nusquam!" Pure white flames, roared throughout the dome, melting away at Shukaku, turning the entire construct into liquid glass. Kairi's Mighty Guard barely held it off, and moments before it reached Gaara, she cast a Warp spell on him, dropping him in the hospital with Riku and Sora.

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The two in question were moving to stop the rampaging Shukaku and free Gaara when he appeared next to them. They relaxed, until his eyelids opened, revealing the eyes of Shukaku. Just before things got messy, Hinata ran in. Sora called out, "Hinata! Run, we'll hold him off!" She ignored him, then sprinted over and struck Gaara with Jyuuken in his stomach in neck. His eyes returned to normal, and he collapsed. They looked at her, "What did you do?" "I created the technique for Naruto-kun a long time ago, when I first found out about the Kyuubi—please don't tell him that I know—but never had to use it. When I met Gaara though, the Shukaku was constantly tormenting him, he thought it was his dead mother, and couldn't sleep. He nearly killed me the first time we met. So, during a sparring session, I chose to fight Gaara, which was apparently something only Temari had done in the past. Baki and Kankuro, tried to warn me, but I ignored them. I activated the Byakugan and charged. I got caught him in my Divination field and blocked the Tenketsu that Shukaku was pouring Chakra through. It left the Shukaku unable to interact with Gaara. Honestly, Gaara panicked that first time and tried to kill me. I'm just glad he was still in my Divination field. Eventually we managed to calm him down. That was the first night he'd slept peacefully and un-possessed."

"In how long?" Sora asked.

"It was the first night." The boys' eyes widened, slightly shocked.

Riku nodded in sudden understanding, "So that's why you two get along so well…"

"Yes, he's like an older brother to me."

"What about his neck?"

"I don't know, but there was this purplish chakra coming from it."

Riku bent over Gaara, examining his neck and shoulder. Three comma-like markings rested in his skin, they were surrounded by red marks from the Jyuuken.

Hinata continued, "I just did the same thing that I did with Shukaku, you should tell the Hokage, maybe he can explain." They went with the idea, grabbing Gaara and taking him outside, looking for Sandaime, but something was wrong. The arena was in chaos Sound nin attacking everything in sight alongside…no. Sora charged out summoning his keyblade he leapt towards the enemy, slicing it mercilessly in half. At his feet lay the fading remnants of an Unshadowed. Above, he could see the Sandaime fighting Orochimaru, a four-pointed barrier formed by Kimimaro, Kidoumaru, Sakon and Ukon, and Jiroubou keeping others out. Riku sprinted for it and Sora left to fight heartless and find Kairi.

Riku intercepted reached the barrier and extended One Winged Angel, opening it with the power of a keyblade. He quickly ran in, as the door closed behind him. Orochimaru had just summoned two of the other Hokages he recognized from the mountain. The first—the Shodaime he supposed-created a forest around them. While the other attacked Sandaime. The old man was holding up, so Riku charged at Orochimaru, and the Keyblade met Kusinagi. A vicious duel began as the two fought back and forth. He could sense the Hokage's fighting behind him. Orochimaru, looking desperate, moved to finish the battle. He performed a jutsu, his hands blurring as signs were formed, he hissed out the name, "Kokuangyo no Jutsu." Riku found himself staring into darkness, unable to see anything. Orochimaru hissed in the darkness, "You can't escape, you will die now!" There was no sound, no light, no warning, and Orochimaru struck. Kusinagi stabbed towards Riku's back from the Darkness. Riku smirked, leaping in the air, and came down on Orochimaru, cleaving both of his arms off with a single swipe from One Winged Angel. His voice came out calm and relaxed, "You thought you could defeat me in the Darkness? You are a fool." He taunted the Sannin as Dark Flames engulfed the Serpent and Riku himself. Orochimaru writhed in agony, while Riku seemed to be in a state of euphoria, bathing himself contentedly in Darkness. Outside, the Shodaime and Nidaime stopped fighting, their connection to Orochimaru severed by the Darkness Riku had summoned, and then broke down, leaving Zaku and Dosu's corpses behind. The Sandaime relaxed, it was over.

Orochimaru shed his skin and disappeared from Konoha, returning to Oto with his the remaining members of the Sound 5 and Kin.

Riku emerged from the Darkness, no longer the Kokuangyo, but his own creation shortly after, looking more alive than he had since the battle in the Stadium. However, he found no sign of his two companions. He found at that they'd pursued someone into the forest moments ago, and he followed them.

Sora and Kairi were fighting valiantly against the one who'd lead the attack, Terra. He was holding them off easily with that armor though, and they could feel defeat approaching. Moments later things changed as Riku burst into the clearing, black flame still flickering across his skin, and grabbed Terra by the throat, lifting him off the ground with pure Darkness, and then immolated the General in Dark Fire. As the flames burned, Sora prepared to add his power, summoning all of Larxene's and Roxas' remaining power, along with his own, creating a raging sphere of Light, Darkness, and Lightning, which her hurls at the suspended General alongside a "Twin Lotus: Blue Fire Crash Down" from Kairi. The General fell to the ground burnt, convulsing, and with arcs of light and darkness appearing occasionally on his body. The trio relaxed, it was over. They turned to leave—and were blown back by a shockwave. Terra stood and spoke, "Well then, let us begin." He summoned his keyblade again and charged hurling boulders at them. Sora dodged, but couldn't move as the keyblade came down towards him, blood covering his body and, luckily, a keychain in his pocket, Savage Nymph disappeared and was replaced by a different keyblade. In his hand, the Bond of Flame burned.

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Sora's Mindscape

Sora looked around, Larxene was on the ground, unconscious from exhausted, while Roxas was panting on his knees, he was the only thing keeping Sora moving right now. He barely noticed either when he saw who was in the middle of the room, a grinning face framed by spiky red hair looked at him, "So…you finally figured it out did ya? It took ya long enough. I won't ask about Larxene, although I hope she hasn't driven you too far off the deep end yet! So, you need my help kicking this guy's ass?" Sora smiled and nodded at Roxas' old friend, while Roxas was staring in shock.

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Outside his mind, flames leapt up around Sora and he hurled a flaming chakram at Terra, then appearing behind him, and saying softly, having slightly integrated Axel's personality, "My name is Sora. S-O-R-A, got it memorized?" He then slammed the chakram into Terra's back igniting it mid-motion, and knocked him into a nearby boulder. Riku and Kairi had apparently been knocked unconscious by the boulders so Sora didn't try to hide anything. He called up pillars of fire to engulf Terra, and succeeded. The general was looking much worse for wear now, and stumbled back as the chakrams hit him again. He thrust out a hand, and a shining doorway appeared behind him, he pulled himself through, barely escaping a wall of fire. This time, it really was over.

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Sora looked over the village from the top of the Hokage monument beside Kairi and Riku. They couldn't wait any longer, if Terra brought reinforcements, the village would be doomed. They had to leave before it could happen. Temari was off training, she'd decided to stay until her Team became Chuunin, while Hinata remained in Suna. The relations between the villages were growing stronger due to Suna's lack of voluntary participation in the invasion (Gaara's curse seal being involuntary). Kakashi was training Sasuke to use the Sharingan, as well as a few other things, but Riku thought that he'd regret it sooner or later—Sasuke was ravenous for knowledge and power, and would outgrow Kakashi eventually. Naruto was off with Jiraiya, seeking the retiring Sandaime's replacement, his student, Tsunade.

This was the best time, they'd come back for the World Heart later.

Riku waved a hand, and a portal appeared. As they were about to step through, Sora glimpsed a figure in the distance, a girl with black hair wearing an Organization cloak—brilliant blue eyes gazed back at him. He heard Riku's voice, "Come on, Sora!" He looked over, "Just one second." He turned back, and the girl was gone. He followed the others through the portal, a contemplative look on his face, "Who was she?" he muttered under his breath.