Shinobi's lament

by youngmark

After the end of the Old World and the beginning of the Elemental Countries, the Lord of Darkness has returned as the Chosen One. How will the Shinobi Realm fare against the Return of Count Dracula?

8. Chapter 8: Unnatural powers

Hey... yeah, this chapter was originally a little over 5000 words, but I decided to, once again, combine two chapters, since they were mostly filler arcs. Enjoy!

Ultima-owner: That's a pretty good idea. Unfortunately, I don't think Orochimaru is a legitimate sensor. That, or the Cursed Seals having a Hive Mind, could have done the trick. Then again, if the seals had a Hive Mind, Orochimaru would have realized Kimimaro's defeat, both in canon and here. He only suspected it after Kimimaro didn't return on time. I think a candle was used to represent Kimimaro's lifespan.

Disclaimer: I own nothing.

Chapter 8: Unnatural powers

Naruto was relaxing in Training Ground 7. But that moment was interrupted by a surprise visitor.

"How's it going, Kyuubi brat?" The familiar man in front of him asked.

"It's been a while, Mizuki." Naruto said. "A year, if I remember right. You certainly put on some muscles since then."

It was true. Mizuki was quite bulky compared to last time.

"I'm not the only one who's changed, it seems. I heard you're quite the hero. It disgusts me that the village can't see you for what you are!" Mizuki scowled.

"And you risked getting into the village to get revenge against me?" Naruto asked.

"Don't worry about me getting found out, I have friends that will hold people off." Mizuki smirked.

"Is that right? Well then, since you're so desperate to be beaten to a pulp, I'll comply." Naruto said as he pulled out Muramasa.

"Wielding a sword now, huh? Won't do you much good." Mizuki said as he pulled out a kunai.

Both charged and clashed blades. Muramasa cut through the kunai and made a bleeding wound on Mizuki's upper body.

Mizuki backed away upon receiving the wound, but Naruto didn't hesitate in kicking him in the face.

"You hit much harder than you did a year ago..." Mizuki said as he got up and held his bruising cheek. He pulled out bottle filled with red liquid. "I was right to make this before coming here. Good thing the Nara Labs had all the ingredients needed."

He drank the content of the bottle before dropping it on the ground. He grew in size and in muscles, tiger stripes appeared on his face and biceps in a similar fashion to the Cursed Mark.

"So, Orochimaru was behind what you did back then." Naruto said.

"I wouldn't say 'behind'. I wanted to take the Forbidden Scroll to him as an offering." Mizuki said. "Be honored. You'll be my first kill in this form!" He said as he charged with greater speed than before.

Naruto jumped aside from Mizuki's punch, making him hit the ground. From the dent of the ground, he also gained a lot of strength.

"You're not the only one who can go faster." Naruto said as he discarded his coat.

Both of them charged at each other. Naruto had the speed advantage, considering Mizuki's size did not help his mobility. Naruto swept Mizuki's legs and kicked him in the air. He jumped and was about to use Muramasa on Mizuki, but the criminal twisted himself to dodge and landed on the ground.

"This isn't enough..." Mizuki growled to himself. "I underestimated you last time, fox brat, and I almost did it again. Not anymore." He roared and went into a second stage. He looked like a humanoid tiger. "Shall we?"

"I've seen enough of Orochimaru's doings to know that such things have dangerous side effects." Naruto said. "I wonder what will become of you..."

Mizuki snarled and charged. His new form made him lose a lot of speed. Naruto dodged again and the ground had an even larger crater than with Mizuki's dent on the ground. More strength for the sacrifice of speed.

"Strength alone isn't power, Mizuki." Naruto said as he dodged Mizuki's attacks and swiped Muramasa at Mizuki with every dodge. By the end, Mizuki had a lot of bleeding wounds.

"Damn fox brat... Even with this power..." Mizuki growled.

At that moment, two large men were thrown in the training ground. Tsunade calmly walked up to the large men she finger-flicked in the training ground.

"I sure met you in a weird place, Raijin, Fujin." Tsunade said to the men.

Team 10, along with Iruka, followed after Tsunade. They all noticed Naruto and...

"Mizuki?" Iruka asked in shock.

"Hey there, Iruka." Mizuki grinned sadistically, despite his injuries.

"That's Mizuki-sensei!?" Ino asked with disbelief.

"Good job handling Mizuki, Naruto." Tsunade said.

"He was too slow for me, especially after he revealed this tiger form." Naruto shrugged.

"You damn brat..." Mizuki growled, but fell on his knees and cried out in pain. He shrunk in size and his skin wrinkled until he looked four times his age. "What's...happening to me!?"

"And there's the side effect I was talking about." Naruto said.

"Your cells are destroying themselves." Tsunade explained. "All because the medicine you made, according to its recipe, was incomplete."

"That's a lie!" Mizuki yelled. "It's the Kyuubi brat's fault! I know it is!"

Naruto sighed and turned to the confused Team 10. "The Yondaime didn't kill the Kyuubi, he sealed it within me. As you can tell from hearing Mizuki, there are people who see me as the Kyuubi in human form."

"That's stupid." Ino said. "Sure, you have cute whiskers on your cheeks, but there's nothing else that proves that you're the fox in human form." Shikamaru and Choji nodded in agreement, except for the cute part.

"Regardless, this is a beyond S-rank secret. If you reveal this to anyone, the consequences will be dire." Tsunade warned. Team 10 nodded in acknowledgement.

Later, Mizuki and the Legendary Stupid Brothers (Naruto snorted when he heard the nickname) were taken back to prison. He had heard that every inmate had escaped, but were recaptured with the exception of Mizuki and the brothers. Thankfully, the brothers returned after being scared by Tsunade and Mizuki couldn't struggle.

---

A few days later, Naruto was summoned to the Hokage Office. Inside were Team 8, except Kurenai due to being injured during the inmates' escape, Tsunade and Shizune. Hinata blushed when she saw Naruto enter.

"You called for me?" Naruto asked.

"I did." Tsunade said. "Shino said he may find a bug that can help us find Sasuke. I want you to assist them."

"Yes, Ma'am!" Naruto said.

---

After taking some time to gather some preparations, and something of Sasuke's in his old apartment, Naruto met with Team 8 at the entrance. Shino told him that the bug in question could possibly evolve to a specific stage during the mission and they would need something with Sasuke's scent right away.

In two days, they reached their destination. They had to climb down a cliff to reach the Bikouchu Forest, as Shino said it was called. As they walked in the forest, they saw all kinds of bugs.

Shino showed the others a picture of a female Bikouchu, with the main characteristic being its head; it had an elephant-like trunk.

During the search, Shino, Kiba, and Hinata found out that there were people concealing their presence and observing them. After all, all three of them have techniques useful for tracking someone or something. Naruto and Team 8 agreed to wait and see, otherwise conflict might put the Bikouchu in danger.

During sundown, Naruto told Shino he found a bug that looked like Bikouchu, but was way bigger than a horse. Shino said it was called Bikouchumo and that they were very vicious. If you touch its nose, it may try to eat you.

---

During the second day, they made no progress and the observers hadn't made a move yet. By the third day, the trackers of the group felt that it would rain sometime during this day. Shino said they had until the next morning to find Bikouchu.

Unfortunately, they didn't find anything before it rained. Fortunately, Hinata's Byakugan was advantageous in the rain, as the environment's temperature dropped, making plants and animals more visible to her.

She found the Bikouchu, which was on a tree close by. Naruto, with his speed, easily caught the bug and put it in a container, provided by Shino.

"No mistake about it." Shino said. "That's a female Bikouchu."

Knowing the capture mission was a success, they headed for the cliff to leave. But before they could leave, they were attacked by the observers. They were Iwa Shinobi.

"How unfortunate." The girl of the group said. "We were hoping to capture one of you and exchange them with the Bikouchu, but you never left each other's sides. Still, we can deal you all easily." She went through some handsigns. "Ninpo: Hachimitsu no Jutsu!" A large swarm of bees charged to the Konoha-nin.

Naruto stepped in front of the team and cut down the bees with Muramasa. But every time he cut a bee, some sticky honey would get on him and make it harder for him to move.

"It's no use." The girl smirked. "This honey is strong enough to immobilize you."

Naruto chuckled, to everyone's confusion. "Good thing I have just the thing to get me out of this." He said as he flared Kyuubi's chakra. The corrosive chakra quickly melted the honey.

"A Jinchuuriki?" The glass-wearing male said, confusing Team 8 with the title. "He looks skilled as well."

"Suzumebachi, we don't stand a chance against a Jinchuuriki." The other male said.

The girl, Suzumebachi, cursed. She hated to admit it, but it was true. Jinchuuriki, due to using their tenants' power, were very powerful. That was why they were always in the frontlines during the wars. They also had his allies to consider. An Aburame, a Hyuuga and an Inuzuka. She wasn't sure if her summon could handle them all.

The Iwa team had no choice but to retreat.

Naruto sighed, knowing he had to explain this again. He turned to Team 8. "What I used was the Kyuubi no Kitsune's chakra, sealed within me by the Yondaime Hokage."

"Wait, so the Yondaime didn't kill the Kyuubi?" Kiba asked.

"He did not." Naruto said. "For what reason he sealed it within me, I don't know." He lied. "At any rate, you shouldn't say anything about this. This is a beyond S-rank secret."

Team 8 nodded and they all headed back to Konoha.

---

By dawn, the Bikouchu laid an egg. By the time they made it back to the village, it became a pupa and was about to an adult Bikouchu. They placed the belonging of Sasuke that Naruto brought with him, a shirt, and waited until the insect smelled the shirt. Strangely enough, the Bikouchu went inside the village and into Sasuke's apartment. Naruto sighed, having a theory.

"During the mission to get Sasuke back, he was in a barrel, probably for some sort of ritual to access the second stage of the Cursed Mark. The ritual probably changed his scent as well, alongside adjusting his body to the Mark and some other things. Since the Bikouchu couldn't find the source, it went for what had a similar scent."

Team 8 altogether sighed at this. When they reported the mission, Sakura was even more devastated. They had been so close.

---

A few days later, while walking along a river, Naruto found three unconscious men floating on the water. He carried all three of them to the hospital. Unknown to him, Lee saw him and started redoubling his training.

In the hospital, they explained their predicament to Tsunade. Apparently, a family took over their village and killed for no reason. Tsunade sent Team Guy, except Guy due to having another mission, and Naruto on the mission to escort the men back to their village, and get rid of the invading Kurosuki Family.

When they recovered, the three men guided the team to their village.

---

They eventually arrived in a curry shop that Lee was familiar with. The old lady tending to the shop even remembered him.

"Sanshou-obaasan's curry saved my life." Lee said as they waited for the food Sanshou was cooking. "It was around the time I became a Genin. Guy-sensei was teaching me offensive and defensive moves."

"Ah, yes. I remember those days." Sanshou said. "Lee-san and his sensei were jogging along the road. Eventually, they jogged by the shop again, sleep-jogging. That was a surprising sight, indeed. By the third day, Lee collapsed. My son, Karashi, and I tried to wake him up, but to no avail. Even my curry couldn't wake him up. Karashi and I then made an even spicier curry, which woke him right up." She said as she gave them all a plate of curry.

"Since Sanshou-obaasan put all her efforts making this, let's eat!" Lee said enthusiastically. "Itadakimasu!" Lee took the first bite while everyone watched intently. It was so hot, his face was glowing pink. "So good! The spice is perfect!" He then started eating with gusto.

Naruto didn't take any chances. He focused a bit of Kyuubi's chakra on his tongue to heal whatever burns he would get and started eating.

"Holy shit, it's burning hot!" He thought. He highly doubted he would be able to eat this if he couldn't heal his tongue. Lee was a tough guy indeed.

The others weren't so lucky. Tenten and Neji were red in the face from the heat and the three civilians fell face first on the table.

"By the way, where is Karashi-kun?" Lee asked.

Sanshou slumped. "After seeing you train so hard, Karashi became a happy and energetic boy. But he became so energetic that he left the village. I suppose it's my fault for always saying he should be stronger. 'I will become a man! I will enter the Kurosuki Clan!' he said."

Lee's eyes were shadowed by his hair. "It's my responsibility." He turned to Naruto. "Naruto-kun! Please add Karashi-kun's retrieval to the mission objective!"

Naruto nodded. "Of course."

Sanshou was relieved.

"From now on, this place will be our meeting point. We shall observe the village, make a plan and put it into action." The trio of Genin agreed. Naruto turned to their clients. "It would be best if you remained here. You may get in trouble if you're found out." The three of them stayed silent.

---

That night, however, one of the three clients, Rokusuke, disappeared. Apparently, he went back to the village on his own. Because of the man's recklessness, the team had no choice but to attack now.

By morning, they reached the village.

They found the people being enslaved into mining workers.

When an old man collapsed because the work was too much for him, four members of the Kurosuki clan threatened the old man with a funeral. Lee charged in and knocked the four members out.

"What have you done...?" The old man asked when the team landed next to Lee.

A bell sounded soon after.

"Have we been found already?" Tenten wondered.

"No... It's the Funeral Bell." The old man said.

"Funeral?" Neji asked.

"The Kurosuki family rules this village. Their boss, Raiga, makes funerals for those who have betrayed them while they're still alive."

"Buried alive!?" Tenten gasped.

"The worst part is... Raiga cries and grieves openly every time."

"Whose funeral is it?" Naruto asked.

"I hear Rokusuke was found and captured." The old man said.

The team quickly rushed to the graveyard and hid.

Neji used the Byakugan to see through the soon-to-be-buried coffin. "The old man spoke true. Inside the coffin is Rokusuke, still alive. There's still time to save him."

The team threw smoke bombs at the Kurosuki clan members surrounding the coffin. Most removed their cloaks and prepared for combat while one ran away and hid in fear.

Each Konoha-nin quickly and flawlessly took out the members before them. Tenten used a staff to knock out those surrounding her. Neji knocked them out with the Juken. Naruto and Lee also used Taijutsu to knock them out.

The last one was cowering in fear. He tried to step back, but tripped. His hood fell from his head and revealed his face.

"Karashi-kun?" Lee asked. "Please tell me you joined the Kurosuki Family of your own free will, like Sanshou-obaasan said."

"So what if I did?" Karashi asked. "Raiga-sama is a great man. He freed the village from the evil people!"

"And makes the people work in the mines and buries people alive." Naruto countered.

"Naruto-kun... Leave this to me." Lee requested. Naruto stepped back and used the opportunity to free Rokusuke. "Karashi-kun, didn't you save my life with the Curry of Life? Why would you, who can make such wonderful curry, join a family that takes people's lives?"

"No one praises you for making curry." Karashi said bluntly. "Since I was born a man in this world, I must gain power and use it to control Heaven and Earth! It's better than working in a store that's falling apart and rarely has any customer."

Lee punched Karashi in the face, sending him to the ground.

"Karashi-kun, it wasn't just my life that was saved by the curry that you and Sanshou-obaasan made. If you put your whole heart into it and make a lot of curry, you can save lives. Even for a person like myself, if I put all of my heart into it, nothing is impossible. That's what you taught me after I ate that curry. I see the Karashi-kun of back then as someone stronger and better than the Karashi-kun in front of me."

At the end of the speech, Karashi was crying.

"Please, promise me that you'll leave the Kurosuki family." Lee requested.

Karashi bowed to Lee. "I understand. I'm sorry. I'm sorry!"

"We're being watched." Neji suddenly said. "Most likely, it's Raiga. On top of that mountain."

They climbed the mountain and reached the top. A mist suddenly appeared.

"Everyone, be careful." Naruto warned. "For a mist like this to appear so suddenly away from water, this is definitely the Kirigakure no Jutsu."

"Very good." A male voice echoed through the mist.

"Guy-sensei said that Raiga Kurosuki was once a member of the Seven Swordsmen of the Hidden Mist." Lee said as he read through a notebook in which he wrote whatever advice Guy gave him.

"And this Guy-sensei of yours would be right." Raiga said.

"The Sharingan was useful during the last mission my team had to deal with this Jutsu. Neji, what can you see with your Byakugan?" Naruto asked.

"Nothing..." Neji said, shocking the team. "I can't see a thing!"

"I thought no Jutsu could block the Byakugan." Naruto said.

"There isn't supposed to be any." Neji said.

"Ninpo: Ikazuchi no Kiba!" Raiga called out.

The team saw lightning crackling in front of them before shooting up in the sky, which became filled with thunder clouds.

"Ikazuchi, surge!" Raiga said as he dropped a lightning bolt on the team, destroying the part of the mountain they were standing on. Fortunately, they all managed to jump down the mountain before they were hit.

"The enemy was so close, yet I couldn't see anything. Even the Kirigakure no Jutsu shouldn't be able to interfere with the Byakugan." Neji thought as he reactivated the Byakugan. This time, he could see clearly. There were enemies around them. He told his comrades their location and they all attacked but the enemies disappeared. They were illusions. Neji rechecked the surroundings with his Byakugan and they were still there. Illusions with chakra pathways?

They were suddenly all hit by lightning, knocking them unconscious.

Raiga jumped down to the group and was about to finish Lee off first, but the Genin sleep-fought Raiga.

Naruto regained consciousness during the fight and got up. Neji and Tenten also regained consciousness.

"Raiga! Make your move!" A young voice called out.

Raiga tried to cut down Lee, but unconscious fighter dodged and kicked Raiga on the bump on his back. A cocoon of cloth was ripped out of Raiga's cloak.

"Raiga!" A voice inside the cocoon called out.

"Ranmaru!" Raiga cried out as he ran toward the cocoon, knocking Lee aside. When he couldn't find Ranmaru in the mist, he became enraged and turned to the newly-conscious Lee and was about to finish him off, but Naruto stood in his way, with Muramasa unsheathed.

"Naruto-kun..." Lee muttered.

"You damn brat!" Raiga growled.

Naruto and Raiga clashed blades. Raiga focused lightning on his twin swords and Naruto focused wind on Muramasa.

"Please, stop!" Ranmaru called out.

Raiga was distracted by Ranmaru's voice, allowing Naruto to hit the swordsman with a Rasengan, making fall down the cliff.

"Raiga!" Ranmaru called out.

Neji unzipped the cocoon and they found a young boy with red eyes.

"Kill me." Ranmaru said. "Without Raiga as my arms and legs, I have no reason to live."

"Our mission is to deal with the Kurosuki Family." Naruto told the rest of the team. "We're going back to the village."

They left Ranmaru in a shack, where they will get him back once they calmed the people of the village.

---

"Looks like everyone in the village is waiting for us." Lee commented as the team approached the village.

"They all seem to be all right." Tenten said.

"I don't see the members of the Kurosuki Family." Naruto said. "Neji?"

"They are hiding." Neji said, Byakugan active. "They are preparing to drop boulders on us should we get closer."

"No problem." Naruto said as he made four Kage Bunshin, three of which turned into his comrades. The four of them saluted before they ran toward the village.

When the clones were crushed by the boulders, the Kurosuki Family tried to look for their remains.

Four more Kage Bunshin then surrounded the Kurosuki Family.

"Ninpo: Kuro Tatsumaki!" One of them called out, making all ten of them pile on each others' shoulder into two pillars of five members. Then, they all revealed claws within their gloves and started spinning around, making black tornadoes.

Their attacks were able to cut right through the rocks and destroyed the clones.

The real Konoha team charged from above.

Tenten blocked one of the tornadoes' claws with her tonfa while Lee managed to kick each guys of the other tornado.

The Kurosuki Family split up, cancelling their tornadoes, and attacked each members of the Konoha team in groups.

Neji and Lee knocked their enemies out with their Taijutsu, Tenten with her tonfa and Naruto with a sheathed Muramasa.

The people of the village then started glaring at a nervous Karashi, who hadn't been as sorry as he claimed.

"Please, don't harm him." Lee pleaded as he bowed before the people. "It is partly my fault that Karashi joined the Kurosuki Family. He thought power was everything, but the life-saving curry he once cooked is even greater power than the Kurosuki Family! Allow him to atone by making this curry! If he goes astray once more, I shall punish him myself." He said, before bringing a fist inches away from Karashi's face, making the latter gulp. "Sanshou-obasan can also punish him accordingly."

The people muttered to themselves in agreement.

Naruto turned to Neji. "I guess there's one thing left to do."

Neji nodded.

---

The Konoha team returned to the shack.

"Are you alright?" Neji asked.

"What difference does it make?" Ranmaru asked. "I can't go on living alone. Without Raiga as my arms and legs, there is nothing for me out there."

"You need nutrition to be able to walk on your own!" Lee said. "You need the curry of life!"

Tenten turned to Lee, her eyes filled with dread. "Don't you think that will make his health worse?"

"Not at all!" Lee said as he carried Ranmaru on his back. "You just watch! The curry will save his life just like it saved mine!"

"If you are going to carry me like that, then I have one request." Ranmaru said. "I wish to see if Raiga really is dead."

The team walked to the edge of the cliff. There was a large pile of rock down below, with Raiga's arms and twin swords sticking straight out.

"I can't see his lifesigns." Neji said, his Byakugan active.

Ranmaru's eyes glowed red. "I can't either." He said neutrally.

"Let's go." Naruto said.

---

They all headed back to the Curry of Life shop, along with Karashi.

Karashi bowed behind his mother as she made curry. "I'm sorry! Please forgive me!"

Sanshou placed a bowl of curry, different from the ones she had made for the team the previous day, on the table. "After you eat." She said.

"The Three Hundred Spice Punishment Curry." Karashi said shakily before determination filled his eyes. He sat down and picked up a spoon. "Itadakimasu!" He started eating the curry, his face red the entire time and tears in his eyes.

Sanshou then prepared more curry for everyone. Naruto was now able to eat it without the Kyuubi's chakra.

Ranmaru didn't eat anything, despite Lee's insistence.

---

The next day, another storm started brewing. Lee and Naruto cut down some trees to reinforce the curry of life shop.

"Help!" Karashi cried out as he ran toward Neji, Lee and Naruto. Wasn't he supposed to be inside the shop with Ranmaru? Why did he come from the village? "Tenten-san said she'd train me instead of Lee, because of your work, but lightning struck a tree and she fell down a cliff!"

"We have to go help her." Lee said.

"I'll get the first aid kit and join you guys later!" Karashi said.

"Understood." Naruto said as the Konoha trio ran toward the cliffs.

"Do you think Tenten would fall down a cliff like that?" Neji asked the others.

"I don't know her that well." Naruto admitted. "But even I know something like that wouldn't keep her down."

"Was Karashi threatened into leading us into a trap?" Lee asked.

"But who? The Kurosuki Family was dealt with." Naruto said.

"Are my eyes untrustworthy?" Neji wondered aloud.

Naruto understood what Neji meant. "I highly doubt that. Maybe Ranmaru saw Raiga's lifesigns in a different way than the Byakugan does."

---

Eventually, they arrive at the place where they first clashed with Raiga. He was there, waiting for them.

"There you are!" He roared as he crackled with lightning.

The trio rolled out of the way of the lightning strike.

They all charge toward Raiga, but were struck by lightning.

"Fools! Unlike you, who only have chakra, I have no limit through the storm's lightning!" Raiga said.

Neji fell unconscious, Lee stood up and removed his weights, with Naruto following suit and using Kyuubi's chakra to heal his wounds.

Lee sidestepped a lightning strike and kicked Raiga in the gut. Raiga roared and stabbed his swords on the ground, sending a wave of lightning toward Lee, who couldn't dodge and was electrocuted. Lee wobbled for a moment but stayed on his feet.

"This guy..." Raiga said with astonishment.

"Don't count me out!" Naruto said before he punched Raiga in the face.

Raiga stumbled backwards before he swung one of his swords in Naruto's direction, also hitting Naruto with a wave of lightning. But any injuries he got, Kyuubi's chakra was healing it.

"You too!?" Raiga growled. "How are the two of you so tough!?"

"I heal quickly." Naruto joked.

"So long as Guy-sensei looks at me with a smile, I have the strength to go on!" Lee said as he got back into his stance.

"Then this Guy-sensei of yours will give you a funeral and weep about how hard you tried!" Raiga said as he was struck by lightning and spun like a tornado. "Ninpo: Rairyuu no Tatsumaki!"

The tornado then took the shape of a dragon's head and struck the duo, sending them in the air and electrocuting them.

Naruto fell to the ground and Lee fell down the cliff.

Raiga looked down the cliff and couldn't find Lee. "Did even his bones turn to ash?" He wondered.

Naruto grunted as he tried to get up. Even Kyuubi's chakra took a while to heal certain wounds.

Raiga turned to Naruto. "Still alive? Then I'll finish you off!" Raiga said as he raised his swords.

"Raiga!" The two of them looked to the side and saw Ranmaru, standing perfectly fine.

"Ranmaru, you're alive!" Raiga said as he walked to the boy. He placed the boy on his shoulder. "This one is the only one alive. We'll deal with him and leave."

"Sure thing." Ranmaru said before a thick mist escape from his clothes, surrounding him and Raiga.

"What's with this fog?" Raiga asked.

"There's no need to worry, Raiga, I am your eyes." Ranmaru said. "The blond one is that way."

Raiga started walking toward the edge of the cliff.

"Naruto." Tenten said as she walked up to him.

"Tenten." Naruto said as he sat up. "Am I really seeing this?"

Tenten nodded as she handed him a plate of curry. "It seems Ranmaru will sacrifice himself to save us."

Raiga suddenly stopped as he heard a battle cry. They all turned to the source and saw a drunk Lee charging toward Raiga. Lee's attacks dispatched the light mist around Raiga, who tried to block the attacks with one arm since the other was keeping Ranmaru steady. Raiga stumbled back, almost falling down the cliff, when he received an elbow to the gut.

Raiga took out one of his swords and launched lightning at Lee, who kept dodging in the oddest ways before charging and kicking Raiga in the chin, sending him in the air.

When Raiga was hit, He accidentally let go of Ranmaru, who was falling down the cliff before being caught by Naruto, who had finished eating just before he acted.

When he climbed back up, Raiga was about to attacked an unconscious Lee. He jumped and landed between the two. Ranmaru got off of Naruto and shielded Lee from Raiga.

"Ranmaru?" Raiga asked.

"I ate a wonderful curry while you were fighting." Ranmaru said. "Through it, I learned the feeling of living. I want you to eat it as well. You'll realize that we don't have to hurt people."

"Don't say things like that!" Raiga said as he clutched his head. "You are my eyes and ears! If you say such selfish things, we won't be able to remain as one anymore!"

"Then strike me with your lightning." Ranmaru said. "If I die, then you, who are strong, will die as well. Because the two of us are one."

Raiga looked at Ranmaru with wide eyes. "I can no longer remember the time you were good. I have to give you a funeral so I can remember!" He brought his twins swords in the air and was struck by lightning. "Ranmaru, you broke the promise that we would always be together. You were my only companion. But, you made friends with those of Konoha. We can no longer be two in one."

"Raiga..." Ranmaru muttered.

Raiga grew enraged as lightning crackled around him. "Who do you think taught you about the Outside World!? It's time for a funeral!"

Naruto unleashed a tail's worth of Kyuubi's chakra, to Raiga and Ranmaru's shock, and charged at the swordsman. Raiga aimed his lightning at Naruto, who kept dodging with animal-like agility before slamming a Rasengan in Raiga's gut, sending him flying down the cliff.

"Ranmaru..." Raiga muttered. "You are free, now."

Somehow, Ranmaru felt his words from deep within his core.

"Lightning!" Raiga called out. "Give me my funeral!"

Multiple lightning bolts struck Raiga at the same time, making a large ball of lightning. When it disappeared, not even ashes remained.

"Raiga..." Ranmaru muttered.

Naruto sighed as he stopped using Kyuubi's chakra and stood next to Ranmaru. "Let's go meet up with the others."

Ranmaru nodded as Naruto picked Lee up.

After peace had finally returned in the village, the team prepared to leave.

"Thank you for taking care of us." Neji told Sanshou.

"Take care of Ranmaru." Tenten requested as she looked at the young boy stirring the spices.

"As an heir of making my Curry of Life, I'll raise him well." Sanshou swore. "But Konoha is a long way from here. I made an especially strong batch of curry for you to eat before you leave." She said as she pointed the table.

The team looked at the curry on the table...the spices were boiling red.

Lee was overjoyed, Naruto was very glad of his Healing Factor and Tenten was scared. Neji said Tsunade would be upset if they were late. He and Tenten dragged Lee out of the shop. Naruto shrugged and followed.

---

A couple of days later, a big mission arrived.

It all started with a small mission for Naruto, Sakura and Shikamaru to capture an escaped pet ferret and bring it back to his owner's village. They caught the ferret and headed for the client's village. They eventually stood on a bridge where they could see the village in the distance, but there was a problem.

It was in the middle of noon and they couldn't see anybody.

"We'll have to do some scouting." Shikamaru said. "Something may have happened. I'll take the forest on the west. You two keep going through the mountain path."

The two members of Team 7 agreed and went on their way.

"Do you really think something happened, Naruto?" Sakura asked.

"Nami no Kuni." Naruto said.

Sakura was confused for a moment before she realized what he meant. The mission to Nami no Kuni was supposed to have been simple, yet turned into an A-rank mission. He basically just told her that this easy mission may have turned for the worst.

However, the ferret that was inside Naruto's backpack started fidgeting.

"What's with him?" Sakura asked.

"Animals are beings of instincts. He must be feeling danger close by." Naruto explained as he braced himself. Sakura did the same.

Suddenly, three armored giants wielding large maces jumped at them, their maces ready to strike.

Naruto pushed Sakura out of the way and jumped away.

Naruto pulled out Muramasa and stabbed one of the armored giants. The armored giant stopped for a moment before it started moving again. Naruto quickly jumped back, Muramasa still in hand, and started dodging attack after attack. He finally managed to cut the armored giant's head, sending it to the ground.

Naruto sighed and turned around, only to see a blond man wearing knight-type armor. The knight gave Naruto a thumbs-down.

"You grading me or are you saying you'll bring me down?" Naruto asked, but the knight remained silent.

Naruto charged and attacked, but the knight dodged with surprising speed. Naruto discarded his coat. The knight was curious about this action until he saw the coat make a crater, making his eyes widen in realization. Naruto charged and kicked the knight straight in the helmet, sending him back.

Naruto charged with Muramasa and attacked the knight. The knight's left bracer turned into a shield, which was easily cut down by Muramasa. The knight then pulled out his sword and clashed with Muramasa, only to also be cut down.

Naruto was about to strike, but a cry from Sakura stopped him. He rushed to her location and found her being held by another armored giant.

The knight landed next to the armored giant. The giant then tried to strike the knight with its mace, but the knight jumped aside to dodge.

Shikamaru had been controlling the armored giant through the Kagemane no Jutsu.

Naruto charged at the knight again. The knight still had his sword in hand, despite the blade being cut. The blade grew longer and glowed with strange energy.

Naruto didn't like the look of the energy and created a Rasengan.

"Rasengan/Raging Thunder!" Naruto and the knight called out at the same time as the Rasengan and the knight's glowing blade clashed. It caused an explosion that destroyed the cliff, making both of them fall down the mountain.

---

Naruto regained consciousness somewhere unknown. He sat up, feeling pain coursing through his body. He was in his underwear and was in bandages. He channelled a bit of Kyuubi's chakra through his body, as well as the Giant Worm soul, to heal faster. He then looked around. He was in a large tent of sorts. People were outside, playing instruments and games around campfires, and a blond man was on a futon next to his own futon.

"Now that you're up, try not to move too much." An elderly voice said.

"I'm fine. I've already mostly recovered." Naruto said as he pulled out the bandages.

"Have you really?" The elder said as he entered the room. He was shocked at Naruto's lack of wounds. "And here I was, expecting you to be unconscious for another few days."

The old man had a bulbous red nose and neck-length white hair with a long white beard.

"I've always recovered fast." Naruto shrugged off. "Where am I?"

"You're in our caravan. I'm Kahiko, elder of the caravan."

"So you're travellers?" Naruto asked.

"That's right. The people of the village call us The Wandering People. We travel all over the place, depending on the season. You were lucky, young man. You would have been washed away by the river if we hadn't passed by."

"Then it is safe to assume that the guy next to me is the one that fell along with me." Naruto said.

"That's right." Kahiko said.

The knight opened his eyes.

"Oh? He regained consciousness as well." Kahiko said.

The knight tried to get up, but lied back down in pain. A bump in his futon started moving and was revealed to be the ferret.

"There you are, Nerugui-chan." Kahiko said.

Naruto raised an eyebrow at the elder. "Nerugui? Are you the ferret's owner? The one who hired Konoha?"

Kahiko nodded. "That's me."

As time went on, something surprised Naruto: The knight recovered from his wounds almost as fast as he did. Was he a Jinchuuriki? Or something else?

---

The next morning, the caravan was on the move.

"How long has this caravan been travelling?" Naruto asked.

"We've been on the road since our country was destroyed." A black-haired lady, Emina, Kahiko's granddaughter, said.

"Destroyed?" Naruto asked.

Emina nodded. "It's a legend that's been passed down by our clan for a long time. There was a great catastrophe that destroyed our country and scattered our clan. We became wandering people..."

"And it seems some of us crossed the sea." Kahiko said from behind the two.

"Crossed the sea, huh?" Naruto said.

"That's right. Nerugui-chan is a ferret that was kept at our ancestor's palace... He's the living proof we had a country, long ago."

"Wouldn't that mean that Nerugui was alive for a really long time, then?" Naruto asked.

"I am a toddler compared to Nerugui-chan." Kahiko said, shocking Naruto. "And the caravan has taken of him throughout the generations."

This made Naruto wonder... Was the ferret immortal or something?

---

Eventually, the caravan stopped for a break.

The knight approached Naruto and asked him something that surprised him.

"What is that strange power of yours?" He asked.

Naruto looked at him with a raised eyebrow. "You don't know about chakra?" He asked.

"Chakra?" The knight asked.

"Most people in the Elemental Countries know about chakra." Naruto said.

"I see. It explains why I didn't sense any Gelel..." The knight thought.

"Why did you attack me and my comrades?" Naruto asked.

"I came to build a Utopia." The knight claimed.

"A Utopia?" Naruto asked.

The knight nodded. "That's right. You should come with me and help me in my goal. Your chakra could be of great help."

"If chakra is so foreign to you, then what was that...Raging Thunder was it?" Naruto asked.

"That was Gelel." The knight said. "I can explain more if you decide to help me. Think about it." The knight said before walking away.

"Gelel, huh? A new power... I'll have to see about...'acquiring' it." Naruto thought.

Moments later, there was a light commotion. One of the kids tried to climb a tree to retrieve a ball and fell, but the knight, now wearing his armor, caught him before he hit the ground.

"I've now repaid my debt." The knight said before putting the kid down and walking away, with Nerugui following him. That ferret seemed to really like the knight.

---

During the night, everyone realized that the knight legitimately left, with Nerugui following him. Naruto gave chase quickly.

When Naruto caught up to him, they were in the middle of a great mist and in front of a...castle? Fortress? It was kinda hard to know for sure in this mist.

"Who are you, exactly?" Naruto asked.

"My name is Temujin" The knight, Temujin, said. "Come with me, I'll introduce you to Haido-sama." He walked inside.

Naruto complied. He may find out about Gelel in there.

"Haido-sama is a man with a wonderful belief." Temujin said as he guided Naruto through the halls, walking passed some armored giants. "You'll understand when you meet him."

"I see... So, what are those large armored giants?" Naruto asked.

"Faithful soldiers." Temujin answered as they went up an elevator.

The elevator led them to a throne room, where a man was reading a grimoire. The man had light brown hair, with bushy eyebrows and sideburns. He had a stubby chin, a broad nose and green eyes. He wore bishop clothing and looked very much like a preacher of peace, so much so that it made Naruto suspicious.

Temujin dropped on one knee before the man. "I have returned, Haido-sama."

"Ah, Temujin. You're back." Haido set the grimoire aside and stood up. He then looked at Naruto. "You're the one, aren't you? Temujin informed me that you have an interesting power."

"Show Haido-sama your power." Temujin said as he drew his blade.

"Stop, Temujin. Unnecessary fighting is no good." Haido said before he noticed the state of Temujin's sword. "What happened to your sword, Temujin?"

"His blade was the one that cut mine." Temujin answered.

"A blade of such sharpness? Interesting." Haido muttered.

The metal walls rose to reveal windows.

"Naruto-kun, we have journeyed to create a Utopia. Our homeland is in a far-off continent with continuous wars. Wars are unsightly and sorrowful. It brings misfortune to all people. Temujin lost his homeland to war. He was left behind in his war-torn village when he was young. I made a decision. I wanted to protect the weak... I wanted to create a world where no one had to fight. That...is my dream. For the sake of my dream, I've travelled the world, gathering comrades. It has taken time to get this far. Unfortunately, there were people who became noble sacrifices along the way... Won't you join us, Naruto-kun? I want you to help me make this world a better place."

"Your dream and determination is admirable." Naruto said.

At that moment, Nerugui climbed on Temujin's shoulder, surprising the knight and getting the others' attention.

"What is that?" Haido asked.

"I'm sorry." Temujin said as the ferret growled at Haido. "He hasn't left me alone since I passed by that caravan."

"A caravan?" Haido asked. "I see."

"Haido-sama! Bad news!" A woman's voice said from an intercom.

"What's wrong?" Haido asked while turning his attention to the rest of room.

"The fleet that landed in the Kaze no Kuni was annihilated."

"Kaze no Kuni... Suna." Naruto thought.

"I'll go." Temujin said as he ran toward the elevator.

"Naruto-kun, please accompany him." Haido requested.

Naruto followed Temujin.

---

A beach in Kaze no Kuni became a shipyard. They looked like battle cruisers.

"What happened here?" Naruto said.

"That's what we're going to find out." Temujin said as he walked inside the wreckage of a battleship, with Naruto following him.

The inside was a giant mess. They eventually entered a room full of corpses. But the bodies weren't dressed for combat or a voyage.

"What is this?" Naruto asked.

At that moment, Karasu dropped from the ceiling and wrapped its arms around Temujin to restrain him.

"Karasu? Then Kankuro is nearby." Naruto whispered to himself.

"That's right." Kankuro said as he landed next to Naruto. "Why are you here?"

"Long story short: I fought this guy, he didn't know about chakra so he took me to his leader and we came here after we heard of the battle." Naruto said.

"I see..." Kankuro said before turning to Temujin. "You may have thought you could sneak up on us, but don't underestimate Sunagakure no Sato of the Great Five Ninja Nations."

"We have simply come here to build a Utopia." Temujin said before he suddenly broke free of Karasu and kicked the puppet away.

"What are you doing here, idiot?" A girl with similar armor as Temujin said as she entered the room. "Your primary duty is to scout." She told Temujin.

"That doll-using loser is a lookout." Another girl said from behind the first one. "There's another unit waiting nearby."

"But...!" Temujin tried to say.

"Why are you so worked up?" The second girl asked. "We're leaving before this becomes troublesome."

However, the girls were immediately attacked by sand blocks. They managed to jump in the air to dodge.

"You're not getting away." Gaara said as he gave chase, with Kankuro following him.

Temujin pointed his new sword at Naruto. "You never intended to join us, did you?" He asked.

"All I said to Haido was that his dream was admirable, I never said I believed it or that he'd succeed." Naruto said.

Temujin channelled Gelel through his blade and clashed with Naruto's Muramasa. They jumped around, trading blows, until they reached the outside.

As he fought, he saw one of the girls transform into a bat-monster-thing. "Could she be using Gelel as well?" Naruto thought as he saw the place where Gaara finished off the other girl, who had also turned into a monster. "That one probably used Gelel as well, in that case. I'll have to try and get one of their bodies back in the castle. Maybe Temujin's as well. Not the one Gaara buried, though. He may find out through his sand."

The transformed girl made some fog and flew away, taking Temujin as well.

"Hey, Naruto, Gaara! A little help here!" Kankuro cried out as was hanging from a high place and was about to fall. Naruto pulled Kankuro toward him with the Chakra Chains. "Thanks, Naruto."

Naruto nodded.

"We should all get moving." Gaara said. "Kankuro and I have matters to attend to. I'm sure you do as well, Naruto."

"I do. I have to find Sakura and Shikamaru." Naruto said before walking away. Gaara and Kankuro also left the beach.

---

Later, Naruto found Sakura and Shikamaru, who had Temujin hostage.

Temujin was interrogated in a hiding spot beneath a tree.

"Why do you want the Stones of Gelel?" Kahiko asked Temujin.

"Because they're important." Temujin answered.

"You don't know the horrors of those stones." Kahiko frowned. "We mustn't bring them back."

"Are you lecturing me?" Temujin asked.

The tattoo on his torso glowed through the armor and showed a projection of a crystal.

"As I thought..." Kahiko sighed.

"What is that?" Sakura asked.

"That is a Stone of Gelel, the source of life energy." Kahiko explained.

"I know more about the stones than anyone." Temujin claimed.

"It certainly explains your recovery powers." Kahiko said. "Where did you get that stone?"

"I received it from my lord, Haido-sama" Temujin answered.

"I see... Is the stone the only thing you have?" Kahiko asked. "What about the Book of Gelel?"

"Haido was reading an old book when Temujin took me to him." Naruto said.

"As I though..."

"What are you talking about?" Temujin asked, looking at Kahiko.

"The only ones who can fuse their physical bodies with the Stones of Gelel were the Royal Family of our clan." Kahiko explained. "The Royal Family took the last Stone of Gelel and the Book of Gelel with them when they crossed the sea. Temujin, you are a member of our clan! We do not know how that stone was created, but, long ago, a mine with veins of minerals was found. Our ancestors refined and crystallized it before naming it 'Gelel'. Our ancestors then created an empire on this continent that was founded on the Stones of Gelel. They built wells that didn't dry, livestock that grew overnight, trees that continuously bore fruit. And they even tried to find ways to stop living things from ageing."

Naruto's eyes widened at that last piece of information. This was perfect! This was the perfect replacement for the Crimson Stone Soma destroyed! He needed to get one of those stones and the book...

"That's the first I've heard of it." Shikamaru said.

"That was a long time ago." Kahiko said. "But often, great power brings catastrophe. People fought and quarrelled disgracefully for the power of the Stones of Gelel. In the end, war was waged with the stones' power. Mountains and the earth split and, finally, the battle obliterated the empire. Only a handful of young people survived. Our ancestors sealed the Gelel Mineral deep underground and vowed never to revive the stones ever again."

"Why didn't you try to rid yourselves of such a terrifying thing?" Sakura asked.

"Only the royal family is able to destroy the stones. We've lost the royal family, so all we could do is watch over the stones throughout the generations. Legends were supposed to fade and be lost, but..."

"Fade? Destroy? Never." Temujin interrupted. "Hearing that, I made up my mind. I'm going to get those stones, no matter what. Power is only power. What matters is who uses it."

"It's a power beyond what humans can handle." Kahiko insisted. "You mustn't revive the stones!"

"Whatever power it may be, Haido-sama will use it in the right way." Temujin said. "Haido-sama said: 'Wars only breed misfortune. But wars can't be stopped without someone standing at the top.' The truth of those words deeply touched my heart. In the confusion of war, my village was attacked by thieves. We survivors were orphaned and Haido-sama adopted us. I want to grant Haido-sama his wish to free the world of wars. My friends all think the same. No matter what the sacrifice...this is my dream and I need the Stone of Gelel to achieve it!"

Temujin broke the ropes that restrained him and jumped behind Kahiko, holding his blade to the elder's throat.

"You will tell me where the mine of Gelel is." Temujin demanded to Kahiko.

"I refuse to tell you." Kahiko said.

Temujin knocked Kahiko out, used a flash grenade and escaped while taking a child and Kahiko hostage.

"We will give chase." Naruto commanded.

"Emina-san, where is the mine of Gelel?" Sakura said.

Emina looked down in shame. "Only Ji-chan knows where it is."

Shikamaru sighed. "If only we had a ninken."

Naruto pointed at Nerugui, who was scratching against a wall. "This little guy has followed Temujin around since we ended up with the caravan. He can track Temujin better than any ninken."

The trio exited the cave through a secret passage inside the wall Nerugui scratched and followed Nerugui.

They followed the ferret through a series of tunnels and they eventually caught up to Temujin and Kahiko. He must have let the kid go earlier.

They eventually arrived in a large room. There was a suddenly quake as a drill pierced through a wall. Haido had arrived.

"Haido-sama." Temujin bowed. "The mine of Gelel is down here."

"Thank you, Temujin." Haido said. "I've put you through so much trouble. Thanks to you, our utopia is right before our eyes. Everyone, let us go." Haido said as he walked away.

Only to be restrained by Shikamaru's Kagemane no Jutsu.

"I have a few questions before you leave." Shikamaru said.

"Is this rude person your friend, Naruto-kun?" Haido asked.

"I trust him more than I trust that lie you call a dream." Naruto answered.

"What do you plan to do with the Stone of Gelel?" Shikamaru asked.

"I will create a utopia." Haido answered. "A world without wars, where the weak aren't oppressed."

"It seems to me that you're doing the exact opposite." Shikamaru commented.

"It is all in the name of true justice." Haido said.

"Then why attack the caravan?" Sakura asked.

"I had no choice. We've made great sacrifices too." Haido said. "These are all noble sacrifices to make a world without wars. It cannot be helped. We all made the dream of peace and have done whatever is necessary to accomplish that goal."

Suddenly, the platform Temujin and Kahiko were standing on was lowering itself beneath the floor.

"This abomination should be destroyed!" Kahiko told Temujin. "Along with us!"

"Destroy the stones!?" Haido said as he searched through the Book of Gelel before throwing it away. "What does he know!?

"I must get that book." Naruto thought.

Haido jumped down to the floor that closed itself after Temujin and Kahiko went through it and broke it with a single punch.

"We are going after them!" Haido ordered.

"Haido-sama! To the stronghold!" One of the armored girls said.

"Not enough time!" Haido said as he made himself some wings out of some weird tentacles. "Bring the stronghold with you!" He floated down the hole, with the armored giants following him.

One of the girls transformed into a bat and floated in front of Shikamaru. "You're not going anywhere!"

The other girl was about to enter the stronghold, but dodged a kunai thrown by Sakura.

"Naruto! Go on ahead!" Sakura said.

Naruto nodded and jumped down the hole.

Just as he fell down the hole, he made a Kage bunshin that hid in the darkness, waiting for a chance to get the book. And he got that chance when the girl on the stronghold turned into a werewolf and chased Sakura. With luck, he may even get one of the girls that had a Stone of Gelel in their body like Temujin does. As luck would have it, Shikamaru made a plan that used the hiding Kankuro to trap and kill the one who could turn into a bat-like monster by cutting her in pieces. Kankuro's new puppet, Kuroari, discarded the body pieces on the floor lower than their platform after killing her. When Shikamaru and Kankuro left to assist Sakura, Bunshin Naruto used this opportunity to take the stone out of the remains. He also went to the stronghold and took the book before returning to the castle. All too easy.

---

Down in the hole, Haido revealed that he was wearing a glove that had a Stone of Gelel attached to it. He started testing the power around the room and on Kahiko. He even used it to 'protect' himself from Nerugui, making the ferret spit out a pebble of Gelel. Since Kahiko accused Haido of destroying Temujin's village, Temujin was more and more seeing how Haido was in reality a power-hungry warlord.

"A warlord hiding as a 'preacher of peace'..." Naruto said as he entered the room, catching everyone's attention.

"You certainly are persistent, Naruto-kun." Haido said with a sadistic grin.

Temujin's eyes widened. This was the grin of the one who led the destruction of his village!

Haido saw the look in Temujin's eyes and grinned even more. "You finally realized it, didn't you? I can finally get rid of you." He said as his skin turned grey and his hair white. Haido approached Temujin and ripped the Stone of Gelel out of Temujin and crushed it with his new strength.

"Now, the world is mine!" Haido said as he threw Temujin aside.

He then walked to the key of the mine, only to have Naruto stand in his way.

"You are using such a terrifying power." Naruto said. "I hope you don't mind if I use my own."

Haido was curious about what Naruto meant until the blond flared Kyuubi's chakra.

"Not bad..." Haido said. "But not enough."

Haido disappeared and appeared before Naruto and tried to punch him in the gut, only for said punch to be stopped by Naruto's hand, to the warlord's shock.

Naruto made a Red Rasengan and slammed it in Haido's gut, sending him straight to a wall.

Haido knocked the rubbles off of himself. His whole body was dislocated and his abdomen was burned. "I see... Temujin was right. Your power is interesting." He started glowing with Gelel and his body healed itself.

Haido sent a Gelel Lazer to Naruto and Temujin, but the armored giants took the attack for them. Souls left the bodies of armor.

Temujin started crying. "Everyone... What have I done?"

"What pieces of scrap. I told them not to interfere." Haido said.

Haido's words earned Temujin's rage. He then saw the pebble of Gelel and picked it up. "Naruto! Use your attack again! We shall work together!" Temujin said.

As Naruto made a Red Rasengan with one hand, Temujin helped Naruto make a Rasengan with Gelel on his other hand.

When Haido sent another Gelel Lazer toward them, Temujin stepped in front of Naruto, blocking the lazer with the pebble of Gelel. The two of them ran toward Haido. Haido reinforced the lazer, with knocked Temujin away, but Naruto kept charging. Haido used his tentacles as a shield, but they were destroyed by the Gelel Rasengan. Haido's Gelel Fist collided with the Red Rasengan. The Gelel stone broke and Naruto slammed the Gelel Rasengan straight to Haido's torso, sending him straight on the Key to the mine, breaking it.

Haido had a bubbling wound on his torso and fell down, dead.

Suddenly, the room trembled and started collapsing.

"With the key destroyed, the seal has been broken!"Kahiko said.

"What's happening!?" Temujin asked.

"The mine of Gelel is going wild... If we consider the scale of the ancient temple, it may very well blow up half of the continent." Kahiko said.

"There must be a way to stop this!" Temujin said.

"There is no way to stop it from going out of control, but there is a way to destroy it before it destroys the continent." Kahiko said.

"The Jutsu Summoning Formula?" Temujin asked.

Kahiko nodded. "The Jutsu Summoning Formula works only with the royal bloodline. Place your hand at the center of the formula! It will summon a time-space rift that will swallow the mine whole! The one who activates the Jutsu won't come back alive."

"If this is what I must do to atone for all I've done, so be it." Temujin said as he walked to the center.

Naruto and Kahiko ran away as the Gelel mineral fell around the centre platform whole. Temujin used the pebble of Gelel to protect himself as he walked to the centre of the formula.

Naruto and Kahiko went up the caves and outside of the temple, meeting up with the others.

When they looked around, the whole wasteland was now full of nature. Even Nerugui had been healed from Haido's attack. Did the Gelel do this before being swallowed in the rift?

Well, whatever. Naruto got what he wanted, if the Kage Bunshin's memories were to be trusted.

With everything calmed down, it was clearly a completed mission.

---

One morning, Shino, followed by Ino, told him that the Hokage requested all three of them.

When they entered the Office, Tsunade and Shizune were obviously there, along with Anko Mitarashi. The four of them would be going to Umi no Kuni to escort a delivery ship and solve a mystery about a sea monster called Kaima.

Everyone got prepared and met at the gate. They went to a port that would take them to the largest island of Umi no Kuni: Hahajima.

Anko said she had matters to attend to, so left the job of arranging a boat to the duo of Genin and the Chunin. In the town, they saw a girl wrapped in a lot of bandages getting paid a low amount of money by a man that hired her for delivery. Ino was displeased and had no trouble saying so to the man, who only said that Kaima's attacks made their country poor. The bandaged girl seemed sadden at the old man's explanation and walked away. The old man told them that the girl was from a village on Hahajima and that she came to this town because the people of Hahajima refuse to do business with her. Apparently, there was a time where people disappeared and she was the only one to come back. He even said there were rumors she was living outside of the village by herself. That very much reminded Naruto of his own life in Konoha. He separated himself from the team and followed her.

When he caught up to her, two men stood in her way. He immediately stood next to her, a still sheathed Muramasa in hand. That alone scared the men away.

"Are you alright?" Naruto asked.

"I am." She said. She then noticed his headband and ran away.

Naruto shrugged and met up with the others, who had a boat ready.

"Where were you!?" Ino demanded.

"I followed the girl." Naruto said. "Good thing I did, otherwise these two guys would have beaten her up."

Ino was horrified. "Why would they do such a thing!?"

"For the same reason as the Konoha civilians do what they do with me." Naruto said. Both of them knew of his condition as he told their teams at earlier points.

"They do not understand her condition and, therefore, fear her. The lash out at her because of that fear." Shino said logically.

"Exactly." Naruto confirmed.

Just then, Anko met up with them and they went on the boat for Hahajima.

Naruto was the one rowing the boat to Hahajima. Halfway across the ocean, however, the oars got stuck and they were heading toward a whirlpool that suddenly appeared. Naruto, to the team's shock, jumped in the water and saw the problem, there were elongated arms holding the oars. Naruto pulled out Muramasa and cut them off. Someone grabbed him from behind and started draining his chakra. He smirked and activated Kyuubi's chakra. The attacker was forced to absorb the chakra and died of corrosion. Due to their proximity, the soul was absorbed instantly. Naruto then followed the retreating arms and found the scared culprit, whom he cut down, receiving another soul.

Those souls...they were Kabuto's teammates during the preliminary rounds. While he had little use for controlling a 'boneless' body, being able to absorb chakra through physical contact was a boon. Hell, the two of them would make a good combination.

Naruto rose to the water's surface and climbed back on the boat.

"So, what was down there?" Anko asked.

"Two enemy shinobi, I think." Naruto said. "One was able to lengthen his arms to block the oars. Just when I cut both arms, I was caught from behind by someone trying to drain my chakra. By the time I freed myself, the first one had drowned, since the loss of blood and his arms prevented him from swimming back up."

"How did you escape the chakra absorption?" Anko asked.

"A little help from the fox." Naruto shrugged.

Anko looked at the other two and saw that neither of them was shocked or surprised.

"We were told beforehand due to circumstances." Ino said. "My team and I found out when the escaped Mizuki blurted it out."

"My team found out when Naruto-san used the chakra to escape a Jutsu." Shino said.

Anko accepted their explanations and Naruto started rowing the boat to Hahajima.

---

The next morning, they talked with the client, who said the departure was rescheduled for the next day instead of later than that.

After that, they did some more investigation about the Kaima. They mostly found out about which island the Kaima lived in, which was also the place where the people were 'spirited away', and where the only one to return, Isaribi, lived. They decided to head to Isaribi's place to find out more. On the way there, they saw Isaribi head inside a cave.

The followed her inside the cave and saw her turn into a sea creature. Isaribi was the Kaima.

"So you're the Kaima!?" Ino asked.

To Anko, the Kaima seemed familiar as her head started throbbing.

Isaribi started swimming away and tried reaching a different exit, only for the Genin to use Water Walking to chase her.

Ino threw a kunai with an explosive tag on the exit. The explosion made it crumble. When Isaribi rose to the water's surface, she was restrained by Shino's ninja-wire.

Isaribi broke out of the wire and tried to escape, But was caught by Naruto's Chakra Chains.

"Good job, Naruto!" Ino cheered.

Naruto pulled Isaribi closer to the team. "Why are you doing all this?" Naruto asked.

But Isaribi stayed quiet.

"You..." They all turned to Anko. "You're the one Orochimaru experimented on..."

Isaribi's eyes widened.

"What do you mean, Anko-sensei?" Ino asked.

"I can't remember much." Anko admitted. "But I remember, back when Orochimaru brought me here before leaving me to rot, he had made experiments to create human-sea creature hybrids. He's definitely the type to 'spirit people away.'"

"You worked for Orochimaru." Isaribi muttered. "Do you know if there's a cure to my condition?"

Anko sighed. "Orochimaru never makes any cure to his experiments, he just lets things go as they are."

Isaribi started crying. "He lied to me." She muttered. "Amachi lied to me. He said if I did these things for him, he'd give me the cure.

Anko's head then started throbbing again.

The group brought her back to shore. Ino placed a wet cloth on her forehead and waited until she recovered.

"So you've been attacking the boats in the hope of getting a cure to your Kaima form?" Naruto asked.

Isaribi, back in her human form, nodded. When she turned back in her human form, they saw that the bandages were meant to cover the parts of her body that still had scales. "Amachi said if I provided him with enough data about my Kaima form, which is a prototype, he'd give me the cure."

"Data..." They heard Anko mutter as she got up. "Odds are, he made you do this to create a better Kaima form, if we're talking about data."

"Then shouldn't we stop him before he succeeds in making a new Kaima?" Ino asked.

Everyone agreed and headed to the island of Kikaijima, where Orochimaru's base was located.

When they reached the island, they entered a cave. They walked through the hallways and entered a room full of human-sized water tanks.

"These are...Kaima?" Naruto asked.

Suddenly, a wall opened and let three feline-like creatures in the room.

"What adorable kitties." Anko said, licking the blade of her kunai. Ino and Isaribi looked disturbed at that. Naruto: not at all. Shino: he's doing an amazing job hiding it if he is.

One was quickly finished by Shino's bugs. Another tried to bite Naruto, only to be cut down by Muramasa. And the last one was knocked through a water tank by Anko, with the glass shards piercing it.

They all kept going and ended up in a dark room with a silhouette sitting on a throne. When the silhouette stood up and walked closer, it was revealed to be a light-green haired man.

"Amachi!" Isaribi called out angrily.

"Isaribi... To think you would betray me like this... Oh well, at least I no longer have to hide my desire to dissect you." Amachi smirked.

"Not gonna happen." Naruto said.

"So you say." Amachi said before looking at Anko. "Anko, long time no see."

"Where's Orochimaru, Amachi?" Anko demanded before her seal made her feel pain.

"Oh, so even though Orochimaru is no longer here, the seal is reacting to his lingering presence." Amachi said anatically as he cupped his chin. "Still, to think his presence would linger for half a month... Regardless, my continued research will make me stand above everyone."

"Your research to create underwater ninja." Isaribi said.

"That's right! With the Kaima form, I will create an army and control all of the sea routes in the Elemental Countries!" Amachi claimed.

"I've heard enough." Naruto said as he approached Amachi with Muramasa in hand.

"Sorry, maybe someplace else." Amachi said as he ran away and they heard explosions that made the base start to crumble.

The group managed to escape the crumbling caves and saw Amachi standing on the water in front of them.

"Glad you could make it." Amachi mocked. "Now I will test the fruit of my research against you!"

As he said this, his skin turned into scales and he grew fish-like features. He had become a Kaima.

Naruto grunted and charged at Amachi, Muramasa in hand.

"Wait!" Anko called out.

Amachi spat water at Naruto, who sidestepped before being hit by another shot of water.

Naruto got up on the surface water. "Not gonna let me get close, huh? All right, then. Let's make this monster against monster." He said as he flared Kyuubi's chakra. The water around him made small waves.

"What is this adnormal chakra?" Amachi wondered.

Isaribi was shocked. What happened to Naruto?

"This is the Kyuubi no Kitsune's chakra." Anko said, getting Isaribi's attention. "The Kyuubi attacked our village 13 years ago. The Yondaime Hokage sealed the fox inside Naruto. Since then, a lot of people see Naruto as the Kyuubi in human form instead of the container."

Just like her. Naruto was just like Isaribi.

"So you're a monster, huh?" Amachi smirked before spitting water at Naruto. The corrosive chakra turned the water spat at him into steam. "What!?"

Naruto charged with speed Amachi couldn't follow and gave him an uppercut to send him in the air. Naruto made a couple of Kage Bunshin that kicked Amachi around in the air. Amachi faced the sky. Naruto was falling toward him with a Red Rasengan in hand. Amachi spun around to try and dive underwater, but there was another Naruto jumping toward him with a Red Rasengan as well. Both attacks collided with the advanced Kaima, creating an outburst of chakra around them.

Where the chakra disappeared, there was a single Naruto standing above Amachi's human form. Amachi appeared to still be breathing.

Anko approached the two and tied Amachi up. "Once we bring him to the village, he'll be in for it." She said.

---

They returned to Hahajima and informed the official payment's crew that the Kaima was dealt with. They rejoiced and set sail while the group returned to Konoha with a prisoner the next morning.

Before they left, however, Anko investigated something that was nagging her in the back of her head and discovered as well as remembered something. Orochimaru didn't abandon her, she willing chose not to follow him. That was a heavy weight off her shoulders.

Isaribi requested to come along the Konoha-nin and they agreed, saying Tsunade may find something to help the Kaima girl. It didn't matter to Naruto. She was too weak-willed to be a monster.

---

A few days later, Naruto was eating dango with Sakura, at her request. She wanted to talk about Team Guy's Genin's new mission: a guard duty in Hoshigakure. He had heard of the stories of the star that fell in their vicinity, 200 years ago, and how Hoshigakure uses it for their own benefits, hence how they received their name. It was definitely worth investigating. Once they went their separate ways, Naruto went to Tsunade with the request of joining Team Guy's mission. Knowing of the possible dangers of the mission and of Naruto's reliability, she complied.

After finishing his preparations, Naruto caught up to the trio in a flash.

They quickly arrived to a chasm, filled with a yellowish smoke, close to Kuma no Kuni, where Hoshigakure was situated. They met up with a Hoshigakure shinobi named Sumaru.

Sumaru guided the quartet to Hoshigakure and met up with the Substitute Hoshikage, Akahoshi. Apparently, the Sandaime Hoshikage died a year earlier and they haven't had a true leader since.

"As I am sure you've been told, Hoshigakure has a star that has been envied by the Five Great Villages. Our search party managed to gather information about enemy shinobi seeking to take the star shortly. That is why we requested your aid."

Before the conversation could continue, they received an emergency call. The star had been stolen! And whoever stole it has had Star Training, according to Sumaru, meaning the village had a traitor in its midst. Akahoshi left the retrieval of the star to the Konoha shinobi.

"Akahoshi knows something we don't know." Neji said once the team was alone.

"He did look pale when Sumaru mentioned the thief's abilities." Tenten said.

Neji nodded. "I'll look around the village to find some clues. You three should observe Akahoshi." The trio nodded.

---

That night, Naruto, through his improved stealth thanks to recovering his powers as the Lord of Darkness, entered the Hoshikage building and overheard Akahoshi talking with two of his shinobi about the thief. Apparently, it was someone they thought had died and was the last shinobi to fully master the star's powers. They seemed to have a foolproof plan against the thief, however. Akahoshi also spotted Tenten and Lee within the bushes outside of the building. The two shinobi left to deal with them. Naruto wasn't worried. They could handle themselves.

Naruto followed Akahoshi, who disguised himself and waited at the chasm, Hell's Ravine, while flaring the Star Chakra. Sumaru and his age group surrounded him and restrained him with ropes made of their star chakra. However, they all exhausted themselves. Akahoshi approached Sumaru and was about pick him up, but had to block incoming shuriken from a charging Neji. No need to hide. He charged and also started throwing shuriken, which Akahoshi blocked with the star chakra before taking Sumaru and flying away in Hell's ravine.

"Naruto?" Neji said. "How long have been there?"

"That wasn't the thief you just saw, that was Akahoshi." Naruto said.

Neji's eyes narrowed. "Why would he trick his own shinobi?"

"It's like you said: he knows something we don't. Whoever that thief was, Akahoshi knew him and has a plan to trap him. I imagine Sumaru is the bait."

A moment later, Tenten and Lee found them.

"What happened to them?" Lee asked.

"They were attacked by Akahoshi." Neji said, shocking the duo. "He also kidnapped Sumaru, but helping them is priority."

"Are you sure it was Akahoshi?" Tenten asked.

"I've been following him this entire night." Naruto said. "There's no doubt about his identity."

With that said, they carried the group of Shinobi to their cabin, where they met Hokuto and Mizura, who was ill. Neji looked at Mizura with his Byakugan and made a discovery. He explained the discovery to Naruto in private outside.

"Even if Mizura is resting, his chakra is rising to its limit." Neji said. "At this rate, he will be killed by his own chakra."

"It's the star training." Hokuto said as she approached the duo. "The star has the power to increase chakra. But many shinobi have been unable to control the amplification of that power. It has weakened their bodies and killed them. Mizura ended up like that in the middle of his training... The Sandaime Hoshikage cancelled the training, as he didn't want more victims from the training."

"And Akahoshi reinstated the training?" Naruto asked, his eyes narrowed. He was smelling a ploy.

Hokuto nodded. "Nobody objected, as they don't fear the star that gives us this power. If we can support the village by completing the training, then it's okay."

---

At dawn, the quartet decided to search for the star. Neji sent Lee and Tenten to look around Akahoshi's place for any clues of where he could have taken Sumaru. A few moments after the two of them left, Akahoshi's followers appeared before them, saying the thief appeared at Hell's Ravine. Naruto and Neji nodded at each other before they followed the duo. They would have to play along for now.

When they arrived at the ravine, they saw Akahoshi crawling away from the thief, who shaped his star chakra into a beast.

"We can't use a frontal assault with these odds." Neji said.

"You probably can't." Naruto said as he flared Kyuubi's chakra. "But I can."

He charged with great speed and dodged any attacks the thief sent his way with the chakra. The thief had no other choice but to back away and block as many of Naruto's strikes as possible.

Akahoshi was shocked but smirked. This was the chance he was waiting for. He made a few handsigns. "Kujaku Myoho: Kemono!"

His chakra shaped into a beast and destroyed the part of the cliff both Naruto and the thief were standing on.

As they fell, the thief grabbed on to Naruto and used his chakra to fly away into his hideout.

"Thank you." Naruto said, once they landed, as he deactivated Kyuubi's chakra. He was glad it destroyed whatever gas tried to fill his lungs. Just a safeguard, in case the soul that gave him poison-immunity didn't work.

"An odd thing to say to someone who is supposedly your enemy." The thief, whose voice revealed was female, said as she took off her gas mask, revealing her face and long violet hair.

"While you are the one who stole the star, Akahoshi is the one who kidnapped one of his own shinobi. And that's even more suspicious."

The woman looked shocked. "So you know about Sumaru?"

Naruto nodded. "Two of my comrades are currently looking through Akahoshi's place to find out Sumaru's whereabouts."

"I see..." The woman seemed quite happy of the answer. "I am Natsuhi, Sumaru's mother."

"That certainly explains why she was so happy." Naruto thought. "Naruto Uzumaki."

---

As Natsuhi prepared something to eat, she explained her reasoning for stealing the star. She, along with her late husband, tried to steal it away, 10 years prior, to stop all of the deaths caused by the training. But they were caught by the shinobi of the village. Fortunately, the Sandaime Hoshikage promised to suspend the star training to stop the needless deaths, however there would be others who would wish to learn from the star. After the promise, the Hoshikage banished her and her husband and ordered them to steal the star away should the training ever be resumed.

Natsuhi felt a presence outside and focused Star Chakra in her eyes. Akahoshi and his goons were outside. Both of them stepped outside.

"So, both of you survived." Akahoshi snarled. "Yotaga, Shisou!"

Akhoshi's followers flared their Star Chakra before Akahoshi's Kemono absorbed it. The duo lost consciousness. Akahoshi's Kemono was now just as large as Natsuhi's, although they had different shades.

Naruto overlooked the battle from the top of the rock next to them.

When the Kemonos started clashing, Akahoshi's had the advantage, surprisingly.

"My star training is self-taught." Akahoshi said. "I shouldn't even be able to reach your feet, since you underwent the original training. You don't have the same power as you did before! It seems like the star's side-effects are starting to affect you after all." He finished with a smirk.

Suddenly, Natsuhi gained the upper-hand, making Akahoshi wince.

"Even if I die, I will never forgive you!" She said.

Suddenly, Team Guy, Sumaru and his age group appeared on the scene, making Natsuhi stop upon seeing her son.

Akahoshi used this opportunity to trap Sumaru in Star Chakra Rope.

"Akahoshi-sama!" Hokuto called out. "Why would you do this!?"

"It's all for the sake of the village and to return the stolen star. There is no better bait than Sumaru to get the attention of his thieving mother!" Akahoshi's words shocked the group.

"Being the sole survivor of the previous star training, she only sought to end the pain!" Naruto yelled from his spot.

"To die for the village is a shinobi's desire!" Akahoshi argued before he turned to Sumaru. "That is what you want, right Sumaru? To become Hoshikage and make the five villages pay for mocking us?"

"Yes, I want to become Hoshikage." Sumaru said as he struggled in the ropes.

"Then show your determination to your mother!" Akahoshi ordered.

"Yes." Sumaru pulled out a kunai and pointed it at his neck.

Neji looked at Sumaru with his Byakugan. Sumaru and Akahoshi's chakra were synched.

"Sumaru is being controlled!" Neji said.

"What will it be, Natsuhi-sama? The star? Or your son's life?" Akahoshi asked.

"I admit defeat." Natsuhi said as she made a handsign.

The rock Naruto was standing on started moving. It revealed a cave that had a coffin in it. The coffin's lid opened and revealed a decaying corpse and the star.

Naruto made a Kage Bunshin, which appeared before Akahoshi and swiped at him, leaving a bleeding wound. The pain for the attack freed Sumaru while the real Naruto took the star and protected it.

"Naruto-san?" Natsuhi asked.

"Forgive me, Natsuhi-san." Naruto said. "But my mission is to guard the star. Which is why I shall protect it from Akahoshi."

"Yatta, Naruto-kun!" Lee said.

"You damn brat!" Akahoshi growled as he launched Kemono toward Naruto.

At this rate it was going, Naruto couldn't completely dodge it. The impact made a lot of smoke.

"NARUTO!" Team Guy and Natsuhi called out.

Big red eyes appeared in the smoke and a roar echoed in the area. The smoke dissipated to reveal dark purple chakra covering Naruto as it started taking a shape.

"Impossible!" Akahoshi said.

Naruto looked at the chakra in awe. He had planned to use Kyuubi's chakra to protect himself from the attack. He didn't think the meteorite would enhance the chakra.

The enhanced Kyuubi Star Chakra roared once more as it took the shape of the Kyuubi standing on its crouched hind legs, its nine tails waving freely.

The shinobi of Hoshigakure were shocked. How did he manage to shape the chakra without any training?

Neji gasped at he looked at Naruto with the Byakugan.

"What's wrong, Neji?" Tenten asked.

"Naruto has red chakra within him and it's slowly turning purple, due to the star." Neji explained.

"Is Naruto-kun in danger?" Lee asked.

"I can't say." Neji said. "His normal chakra seems completely unaffected, but what is this red chakra and what could change within Naruto if this chakra is changed?"

Shisou and Yataga regained consciousness at that moment and were scared of the new shape of chakra.

"Damn you!" Akahoshi said as he sent Kemono towards Naruto once again.

Naruto's eyes turned to Akahoshi and the 'Kitsune' effortlessly backhanded the Kemono, to Akahoshi's shock. Akahoshi and his followers were then restrained by a tail each.

"I am your employer!" Akahoshi roared.

"And Natsuhi-san is acting on the orders of the late Sandaime Hoshikage. Your argument is invalid." Naruto said. "First, the Hoshikage suspends Star Training. Then, upon his death, you step in and restart the training? I'm not buying your lies, assassin."

The entire group, with the trio restrained, return to the village and explained the Sandaime's backup plan. Some of the adults questioned why Akahoshi would kidnap a child to reach the thief, even if the thief was the child's mother. Akahoshi yelled out that the Sandaime was foolish to stop the training when Hoshigakure had a star that no other village had. The crazed look on Akahoshi's face said it all: he had assassinated the Sandaime Hoshikage and proudly claimed it when questioned.

The villagers all agreed that the training had to be stopped and Akahoshi, Shisou and Yataga were given heavy punishment.

The children of Hoshigakure, as well as Natsuhi, would also be sent to Konoha to see if Tsunade could heal whatever damage the Star Training did to them. As luck would have it, all of them, even Natsuhi and Mizura, would completely recover.

On the way back to Konoha, Naruto had to explain the Kyuubi's chakra to Team Guy and told them not to say a word of the beyond S-rank secret.

When they gave their report, Tsunade was obviously worried about the way the Kyuubi's chakra was enhanced, but a quick medical checkup showed that he was perfectly fine. He was fortunate that, through having the Power of Dominance, his body had a much greater adaptability than any other human.

---

After checking the few next chapters, I decided that the next one will also be two chapters combined, so look forward to that.

Anyway, I got an important question. As some of you may know, once this story is over, I will be doing the Rosario Vampire fanfic with Tsukune having Emerl's abilities. What I wanna know is 'what about after that?' I have a few more Naruto-verse stories, it's the series I'm most familiar with, after all. Until the handful of Naruto-verse I have left are over, I want to alternate between Naruto-verse fanfics and other fanfics, to make sure I don't lose interest by only doing Naruto-verse stories.

Here are my stories:

1) Naruto with Broly's powers.

This is a challenge I chose at Challenger's request. Oozaru Broly attacks Konoha instead of Kurama and Naruto gains the Berzerker's powers. While he will bulldoze through the Shinobi Realm at first, I have some ideas to mix things up.

2)The White Maelstrom sequel.

This one is obviously a long time coming and I doubt I need to explain. Anyone who read The White Mealstrom knows what this story will entail.

3)Naruto-Bioshock crossover.

I thought of this idea while reading DragonOTDarkFlame's Big Brother fanfic, which is a crossover of those two series. Basically, Naruto ends up in Rapture and becomes the 'Big Brother', a lightweight Big Daddy that can go underwater, which would inspire the creation of the Big Sisters. What I'm doing with this story is simple: Naruto gets injected with Plasmids and his chakra, combined with ADAM, make him more powerful than the people of Bioshock and more versatile than the Shinobi.

Tell me which one you are more interested in reading. I will be doing them in the most-voted to least-voted order.