Chapter 5
I'm sorry for the long wait, but school started, so the updates will slow down a bit. I will still try to update as often as possible.
Also, thank you revan193 for giving me the right names to use for a CSI fleet.
Now on to the story
"Normal talk"
"Thought"
"Hologram & communicator"
Battle of Ryloth
Republic victory is at hand!
Clone troopers, under the command of the Jedi,
have successfully invaded
the Separatist-occupied world of Ryloth.
Anakin Skywalker battles the enemies in the skies,
while Obi-Wan Kenobi frees villages
from the grip of vile Separatist leader Wat Tambor.
Now, Jedi General Mace Windu leads the attack
on enemy lines in the final offensive
to liberate the capital city of Lessu.
However, another may enter this battle,
and his decision could change
the flow of the war...
On his flagship, Naruto lounged around, bored. He had nothing to do, as the almighty Sidious had decided that he was not needed for the war. The stupid old man thought that he would be killed by Naruto if the young Sith was given half a chance. Naruto was outraged that the man would think, even for a secon – Ah, who are we kidding?
He'd have killed the old bastard in a heartbeat.
As Naruto sat there on the Bridge, he thought about a citrine-blue-skinned Twi'lek woman with who he had an interesting relationship. They were doing great and got along very well. OK, so that was all true if you just forgot about the little things, like her trying to blow him up, slice him in half, cut off his balls, shove him into a sarlacc pit, set him on fire, freeze him to death, feed him to a pack of really hungry Nexu and also throw him off the top of the highest building on Coruscant while being tied to a bomb.
He still remembered the last time he saw her…
[Flashback-Felucia]
"Sure, go to Felucia and take the planet, we're winning so it's merely a formality that you're there, you don't even have to take your fleet!" Naruto spat, anger dripping off every word. "Fucking bastard of a Sith, when I get my hands on him… The stupid thing is that I actually listened to him!"
Naruto was currently running as fast as he could. Some may wonder why someone as powerful as Naruto would be running; well, it's because he was being chased by the most terrifying creature that had ever lived.
"Get back here, you son of a Hutt! I will kill you for stealing my first kiss!" yelled an extremely pissed off Aayla, that was currently running after him, hot in pursuit.
Yes, Naruto was being chased by an angry woman. Now, you could laugh at the scene that was unfolding, but everyone knows deep down that a woman is not someone you should anger. Unfortunately, Naruto learned that a little too late, and thus we find him in this predicament.
"I said I was sorry!"
"Oh, kissing me was that bad for you that you're sorry about it! I'm going to kill you!"
Naruto paled when he saw that Aayla was actually gaining on him. He himself was pushing his stamina to the limit, and if this went on for much longer, he would get caught again. He pressed a button on his communicator and screamed into it.
"R3, GET THE SHIP READY, NOW!"
R3, in response, made some beeping noises and started up Naruto's ship. Naruto picked up speed and started to go towards his extraction zone, Aayla hot on his trail. As he burst through a layer of dense foliage and landed in the small clearing where he had landed his ship, he was just about to jump into the cockpit when he was suddenly pulled back by an invisible force.
He landed on his ass and rolled a couple of times before he got onto his feet. When he looked up, he saw Aayla coming in from above, lightsaber poised to strike. He quickly activated the yellow and green lightsabers that he'd got from the Jedi he'd killed on Coruscant.
They started to do battle. Aayla used an overhead strike to try and cut him in half, but was blocked by Naruto's green saber, while he used the yellow one to make her move back. When Aayla saw the yellow blade, she jumped back, but she just as quickly went back in. She Twisted her body for three hundred and sixty degrees to get the power she needed to break the young Sith's guard. When the blades met, she was successful, but when she went for a strike that would cut him in half, Naruto dropped to his knees and slid under her blade.
When it went all the way over, he kicked himself up and got into a defensive posture. It was not a moment to soon, as Aayla came at him again, aiming to cut off his head. He blocked it, if only barely, the bright blades of the lightsabers so close to his skin he thought he could feel himself getting a suntan.
As they were in a standstill Naruto spoke.
"Aayla, listen to me."
"What, so that you can get me to lower my guard and you can take advantage of me?" she demanded
"What?" Naruto asked, honestly flabberghasted. "No, I would never do that to you!"
"Lies, you are just trying to distract me!"
Naruto got angry and used his impressive ability in lightsaber combat to releave her of her weapon. When Aayla saw this, she was about to make a move to jump, but Naruto saw it, grabbed her wrist and brought he close to him.
"Listen! I didn't mean that kissing you made me sorry, that was the best thing that happened to me all day, but I meant that I was sorry that I couldn't do it when it was more special for us." He took a small pause to look her in the eyes with a serious look. "If you don't believe me, I'll give you two things."
He then loosened his grip on her and moved one hand to the communicator on Aayla's forearm and started to type in a code. When he finished, he looked at her again.
"This is a holocommunicator code that will allow you to contact me once and you can ask for anything you want and I will do it but be careful as it will only work once."
"Alright," Aayla said guardedly, "that is one thing, what is the other?"
Naruto smiled. "This," he said, and kissed her for the second time.
Aayla was shocked again. He kissed me again, she thought. I know that this is wrong, but it doesn't feel wrong. She then let herself go and kissed him back. This went on for much longer than the last time, as they kissed for at least 1 minute before they parted for air.
As they looked at one another Naruto smiled at her before kissing her lightly on the mouth once more, and moving away. He then jumped into his ship and waved at Aayla, who seemed completely unaware that she was waving back. With that, he activated his engines and flew of into the unknown.
[Flashback-end]
As he was remembering, a button on his chair started to flash, and when he saw it, he pressed it. A blue image appeared in front of him, fuzzed with static, then cleared and he saw the very woman he was thinking about.
"Well hello, Aayla! How are you today, and what does such a lovely lady as yourself want with a terrible Sith like me?"
"Hello, Naruto. I'm doing fine, thank you. I need to call in the favor that you promised me back on Felucia."
"Okay, and what exactly do you need from me?"
"Well, you do have a fleet, right?"
"Yes, I do, as a mater of fact - but the question is why you need it."
"Fine, I won't beat around the bush. I need you to go to my homeworld and save my people from the Separatist leader Wat Tambor," she said while looking down.
"Wow, you want me to help the Republic take Ryloth and take it from one of the most greedy and egotistical people in the Separatist alliance," Naruto said, and Aayla started to look a little more down. "Well," he said, "since you asked so nicely, I really can't refuse. Just send a message to your forces and tell them to not shoot any ships that have a red fox painted on them."
"Thank you, Naruto…I wish you the best of luck," she said with a slight bow.
"Don't mention it - and I mean, don't mention it at all, if someone heard about this, I would be in big trouble. As far as the Republic is concerned, you and the other Jedi won the planet," said Naruto with a serious tone.
In response, Aayla nodded and turned off the communication. Naruto got off his chair and walked to the edge of his platform.
"Well, you all heard her! Set a course for Ryloth, we have a planet to save, and perhaps we can get some new goodies for me to play with!"
"Roger, Roger," spoke one of the droids .
[Ryloth-surface]
Mace Windu and his forces had been heading to Lessu along a cliffside path with AT-TE walkers, when they were suddenly ambushed by several Separatist AATs.
"Take cover!" yelled Mace Windu.
As they took cover, the hovering tanks incapacitated the first walker in the line. It crumpled to the ground like a dead animal, its massive hulk blocking the narrow path of the continent spanning rift the Republic forces had been forced to take to reach Lessu in time.
"We have stopped the enemy advance," one of the droids who was looking through binoculars said.
"Give me those," snapped the other droid, this one with a yellow painted circle on its chest, as it took the binoculars from the first droid, and looked through them. "Good, I've stopped the enemy advance…Now order our cannon to target their rear units. We'll box them in and blast them to pieces."
The tanks then targeted the rear walkers, seeking to trap and destroy the Republic forces. While this was happening, Mace dragged the gunner from the destroyed walker's hatch, and Commander Ponds ran up to the the pair as the Jedi put the gunner down.
"We're pinned down!" the Commander reported, leaning out of the way as Separatist fire blasted chunks of rock from the Cliffside above them, sending stones falling down like rain.
"Commander, bring out the lightning squad," Mace Windu said.
"I want lightning up here now!" Commander Ponds shouted, turning to his men. "Get the injured back. The General is going to clear the road."
While Pods called for the squad to move the injured, Windu used Force-push to move the fallen walker off the cliff, thus clearing the path. Lightning squadron, a group of clone troopers riding machines that looked like mechanical taun-tauns, deployed from the AT-TEs and moved up to the front.
"Sir, the enemy is advancing again," spoke the first droid, which had managed to reclaim its binoculars again.
"Let me see." The yellow one wrenched them out of the first droid's grasp for a second time, then exclaimed in surprise, "They're advancing again!"
The clones got their fighting spirit back and started shouting while moving towards the droids. One of the clones from Lighting Squadron stopped in front of the Master Jedi and got off his AT-RT.
"He's all yours, General," the clone said.
"We'll lead the way, Commander," said Mace to Pods as he rode the AT-RT alongside, taking long strides that ate up the distance in no time.
Almost immediately, they were among the tanks and droids, using their superior speed and maneuverability to destroy the enemy, showering them with grenades and dancing out of the way before any of the tanks could bring its weapon to bear.
"How many men did we lose?" asked Windu in the aftermath of the battle.
"Thirty-two, I think, including command crews for three walkers," reported commander Pods. "The good news is General Kenobi's broken their lines. We have a clear path straight to the capital now."
The telephoto lens of a recon droid, its red blinkless eye constantly adjusting, zooming, captured every word. A burst transmission, encrypted and unjammable, sent out an urgent report to the Separatist general staff.
"This battle was costly." Mace spoke on the recording being watched in the heart of Lessu. "We're going to need help to take the city."
"The Republic is advancing faster than I expected," said Emir Wat Tambor, Foreman of the Techno Union and Executive of Baktoid Armor Workshop. Behind his face-concealing iron mask, the green alien was frowning.
"I calculate they will reach the main gates by morning. I recommend we prepare our retreat," spoke the tactical droid that was standing beside him.
"I will not retreat," Wat Tambor declared. "That Jedi does not have the troops to take this city. Bring our units inside the walls and secure the bridge."
Meanwhile, the Republic forces were reporting their success in their battles to Chancellor Palpatine.
"What's your progress, Skywalker?" asked the Chancellor.
"My fighters have secured control of the space around Ryloth," said Anakin while taking a small pause. "We have the Separatist cruisers on the run."
"Very good, General Skywalker," spoke Palpatine.
"Master Kenobi has taken the Jixuan desert, so the southern hemisphere is ours," added Mace Windu.
"Then it's almost over," Senator Orn Free Taa, a massively fat, blue Twi'lek spoke with relief clearly heard in his voice.
"Not yet. The key position is the capital of Lessu," interrupted Mace Windu. "Our spies are certain the Separatist leader, Wat Tambor, has his command center there."
"When taken the city we have, capture Tambor we must," spoke Yoda
"It's not going to be easy, Master. Tambor has chosen his stronghold well." Mace Windu pointed at a map that had a red holographic bridge on it. "This plasma bridge is the only way in or out."
"I'm afraid a siege could drag on indefinitely," the Chancellor spoke up.
"My people have suffered so much already," Senator Orn Free Taa said with worry in his voice.
"A plan you have to take the bridge, Master Windu,hmmm?" asked Yoda.
"With our forces stretched so thinly, I'm going to enlist the help of the freedom fighters led by Cham Syndulla. His fight against the droids has made him a symbol of hope for the people."
"Cham Syndulla was a radical before the war," the Chancellor spoke. "He is very unpredictable."
"He can't be trusted. I know Syndulla seeks to gain power. We were political rivals," Senator Orn Free Taa said angrily.
"I'll leave the politics to you, Senator. I'm going to do whatever I can to help these people," said Mace Windu.
"Perhaps we could send you Republic reinforcements instead?" asked Palpatine.
"There are no reinforcements available, Chancellor," spoke up Admiral Yularen. "Our forces are already committed in other sectors."
"We can't win without Syndulla's help," Mace said simply.
With a nod, the holograms all disappeared, and Windu was preparing to leave when he received another transmission. When he answered it, he saw that it was none other than Jedi Knight Aayla Secura.
"Master Windu, I come with some information that is of the upmost importance."
"What is it, Knight Secura?"
"I have called in a favor and have arranged for…him…to help you, but you have to make sure that no one knows of his involvement, and that no one shoots at ships marked with a red fox."
"Who is this man that you've asked to aid us?"
"Well…ah, how should I put this…he is someone you have already met, but I do not think you would like it."
"Knight Aayla Secura, you will tell me who this person is, now!" said Mace with narrowed eyes.
Aayla winced at the voice the Master was using before she looked at the floor and spoke in a mumble "His nameisnatouziki."
"What?"
"His name is namutouzumaki."
"Aayla, you are going to speak clearly, or by the Force, I will tell the forces to fire at any ship that has a red fox on it!"
"Fine. His name… is… Naruto Uzumaki," she said in a defeated tone.
"What? Aayla, how could you trust a Sith that has KILLED not ONE, but TWO Jedi already, as well as numerous clone troopers!" yelled a now furious Mace Windu.
"He owed me a favor, and I used it to get you some help, and he said he will do it because he disagrees with the current dictator in control of the planet…"
Mace put a hand on his chin and thought it over, weighing the pros and cons of the involvement of the Sith apprentice. After a while, he said:
"Very well, we do need all the help we can get. I can't put lives in danger just because I don't trust him."
"Thank you, Master. He will arrive shortly, and I hope he is of some use to you," Aayla said with a bow.
"I hope you are right, Aayla, I really do," said Mace as he turned off the transmission.
Mace then set the transmission for the Republic ships that were around the planet, and spoke.
"This is Master Mace Windu. I have message for forces in Ryloth System. Do not attack any ships that have a red fox on them, no matter what they look like. I repeat, do not attack any ships marked with a red fox."
[Space above Ryloth]
Anakin Skywalker and his Padawan, Ahsoka Tano, were currently shooting down droid fighters when they heard the message.
"What is Master Windu talking about, master?" asked Ahsoka
"I don't know, Snips, but if that's what Master Windu wants, then we better do it," said Anakin
Just as he said this, commander Rex spoke through the communicator.
"General, we have ships incoming from hyperspace!"
"Friendlies?" asked Anakin
"No, sir, it appears to be Separatist ships."
Just as the Commander finished, they all saw something that made them scared for their lives. Out of hyperspace came an enormous fleet, comprised of fifteen Providence-class Destroyer/Carriers, fifteen Munificent-class Star Frigates and ten Lucrehulk-class Battleships, with thirty supply ships following in their wake.
"Master, what do we do now? I don't think we can handle this on our own!" asked a worried Ahsoka.
"I truly don't know, Snips, we are pretty much outgunned and surrounded," said Skywalker.
They were about to regroup when they all got an open signal, unencrypted and in the clear, on their communicators. Turning it on, they saw the very familiar face of the now infamous Jedi Killer, one of the rare people who had escaped not only the Republic homeworld, but also the Jedi themselves.
"Hello, everyone! If you do not yet know who I am, let me introduce myself. My name is Naruto Uzumaki, Sith apprentice to Count Dooku and a proud member of the Confederacy of Independent Systems. Now, many of you are probably wondering what I'm doing here and why would I even talk to you. The answer is very simple; someone one your side has called in a favor that, and so now, I am here to help you win Ryloth.
"Understand this first and foremost - I will not be doing this again. It was a once in a lifetime thing, and the next we meet, I will destroy you all."
He spoke the last part in a serious tone. "Anyway, while I take some of my forces to the ground, I will also be sending some droids to repair some of the more damaged cruisers. The most damaged ones appear to belong to Jedi Master Mace Windu, he must not want them that much if he takes such bad care of them." He spoke in a thoughtful pose.
"Nevertheless, expect a visit from my droids for repairs, also, they should be done by the time we take Ryloth.
"Oh, and one more thing. My ships are jamming the signals around the planet so none of you contact the Republic for help. Well, have a nice day."
With that, the communication went silent. Everyone was surprised at what had just happened, and that they had a member of the CIS helping them a Sith no less. They were brought out of their shock when red and black droid fighters started to destroy the normal‑looking ones, and landing crafts started to head to the planet surface, as well as to the ships of Master Windu, Obi-wan and even to that of Skywalker.
Despite the help, none of the Jedi felt relieved. They were all too aware that facing this new droid army on the battlefield would be nothing like anything they had faced before.
[Ryloth-surface]
Naruto was currently unloading his forces from the three transport ships he brought to the surface. Each ship contained two Regiments that each had about two thousand droids each. They also had about a thousand speeders, as well as 500 tanks. He was quite proud of his collection, which he had carefully hoarded since the start of the war, and worried privately that some might be damaged in the coming battles. Well, he'd just have to grab enough sweet loot while he was down here to make up for any losses.
Naruto had also brought his personal speeder, the same model that was used by the bounty hunter Durge, except that instead of a skull, it had extra armor plating; it was blood red and black. As with his star fighter, Naruto had upgraded the engine, very nearly losing his life when overclocking the power relays had almost sent the entire machine into terrifyingly swift overload, but it had all paid off in the end, and now he had a better speeder than the rest. He was just happy he finally got to use it in battle. As he got on, he shouted:
"Move out, men! I want all those cities free of enemy droids by nightfall!"
"Roger, Roger," said the droids and followed in the wake of their speeding general.
Master Obi-Wan Kenobi was currently fighting an army of clattering droids, his small force gradually pushed back by the seemingly inexhaustible CIS army. No matter how many he cut down or how many the Clone Troopers under his command shot apart with their blasters, there was never any end to them.
Suddenly, all the fighting stopped, and they heard the deep hum of multiple speeder engines. When the Jedi master and his forces looked behind, them they saw a massive army of speeder droids and at front was none other than, Naruto Uzumaki, who had quite a lead on his forces.
As he reached the battlefield, he jumped off his speeder, which was still going forward without hitting anything. He then ignited his yellow and green lightsabers and started to run through the crowd of enemy droids, cutting through them like a harvester through a field, alternating between using his mastery of lightsaber forms, such as form three (soresu), form four (ataru), form five (Shien and Djem So), barely even pausing when he fried entire groups into blackened lumps with Force Lightning, knocking over units with Force push or simply Force crushing the droids into compacted lumps as he plowed through their ranks.
He quickly chough up with his speeder and, jumping back into the pilot's chair, he continued his journey towards the capital. Behind him, his droid army used their speeders weapons and advanced programming to destroy whatever he'd left of the forces in his wake, and then followed after their general.
The whole battle was over in minutes. The clones and Obi-Wan were speechless at what had transpired. They knew that if they were to ever face this man in battle, they would have a hard time defeating him, or even surviving. This went on for quite some time, as Naruto's army raced from battle to battle, destroyed their enemies with swift and decisive attacks while the tanks provided heavy fire for the droideka's and super battle droids, which cleaned the cities that the speeder forces went through.
While this was happening, Mace Windu had managed to enlist the help of the freedom fighter Cham Syndulla, and they were now almost at the city, the only thing stopping them the bridge that separated them from the capital.
"So how will we get inside, Master Jedi?" asked Cham Syndulla.
"I do not know yet, but I feel that an opportunity will present itself to us," said Windu in response.
"While I am willing to trust you, Master Jedi, I believe we are running out of time, as Wat Tambor will likely try to escape if we do not hurry," said Syndulla angrily.
"Do not worry, Syndulla, a fellow Jedi has called in a favor from someone that would normally not interfere, but she was able to convince him to help."
"I fail to see how this will help us in the event that Tambor tries to escape," said the even angrier freedom fighter.
"It will help us because he has fleet guarding the whole planet, and if Tambor tries to run, he will be blown up by the blockade," said Mace Windu, a hint of irritation in his voice.
"I apologise, Master Jedi, it's just that I am worried that he will get away before he can receive the punishment he deserves."
"That will not happen as he will be captured this day."
"Thank you, Master Jedi."
They saw a large dustcloud appear on the horizon. When they used their binoculars, they saw an enormous amount of droids coming this way. Cham Syndulla was the first to react
"Prepare your selves for battle!" he cried to his men "We have droids incoming."
But Mace Windu raised his hand and spoke:
"WAIT! They have red foxes painted on them. They are our reinforcements."
Everyone looked shocked at what the Jedi Master had just said, but nevertheless holstered their weapons. When the droids came in front of them, the Republic troops and Twi'lek freedom fighters clearly saw that who was leading this droid army.
He was in his early twenties, had long blond hair that was done up in a pony tail that went to the small of his back. He had a single bang hanging on the right side of his face that was braided. On his face he had a set of three whisker-like scars on each side of his face. On its left, he also had a tattoo that was a combination of Ziro the Hutt and Asajj Ventress.
He wore a black and red skintight long shirt. Over that, he wore black and red armor, similar to that of the Sith in the time of the Old Republic. Covering his legs was a dark robe with red tribal markings on it. He had a simple brown belt tied around his waist, and on it were two lightsabers that Mace Windu knew very well.
The Sith leapt jauntily off his speeder and turned to the people that were watching him.
"Hello, everyone!" he said. "My name is Naruto Uzumaki, and I'm going to take over the capital for you."
"Very nice of you to join us, Uzumaki," spoke Mace Windu, barley restraining himself from attacking the Sith.
"Well, hello to you too, Mace. I hope there's no hard feelings between us, and that we can work together to achieve this common goal," Naruto said as he extended his hand for a handshake.
Mace looked reluctant, but nevertheless shook his hand.
"Yes, let us get the job done as effectively as we can," he said in a serious tone.
"Ok, you guys wait here while me and two of my commando droids use our speeder to get across. Then we activate the bridge, and you all, with the help of my droids, get to liberate the city and be the heroes of the hour."
"Very well, you may begin when you are ready," said Mace Windu.
Naruto nodded, got on his speeder and gunned it for the city, two commander droids following closely, accelerating all the way. As they reached the gap at full sprint, he punched a button on his control panel, and a pair of supercharged repulsor pads beneath the speeder's hull sent the speeder flying, using their forward momentum for a massive leap across the chasm.
When they landed, Naruto quickly jumped off his speeder and started to cut down the droids, his commandos moving in to cover his back.
"You two, get that bridge back up now!" he ordered them.
"Roger, Roger," they both said and ran off towards the bridge control tower.
Naruto continued to cut down droids when he saw two hovertanks going towards him. He turned towards them and made a single clapping motion with his hands. The tanks were lifted off the ground and smashed into one another, thus destroying each other as well as any droids in the facility.
When Naruto turned to fight the rest of the droids he saw that the commando droids had got the bridge working and that the rest of the forces were coming across is, streaming into the city of Lessu. He got a small smile and then continued to strike down droids.
After the bridge was turned back on, they quickly dispatched any remaining droids as well as captured Wat Tambor, who had been left behind by his tactical droid, which tried to escape in a shuttle.
The operative word being try, as he was shot down before he was even out of the planet's atmosphere.
Naruto and his forces were packing up and leaving when he saw someone approaching from behind. When he turned around, he saw Mace Windu, Obi-wan Kenobi, Anakin Skywalker, his Padawan Ahsoka Tano and the ARC troopers Rey, Cody and Pods.
"I would like to thank you for the assistance in the battles that happened here," said Obi-Wan.
"No problem, it was a favor that I owned to someone, so it's okay. Besides, I got to try out my new speeder, so that was a plus," said Naruto.
"Either way, we thank you for what you have done, but remember that when we meet again ,we will be enemies," spoke Mace Windu.
"I know that, Mace." He gained a sadistic look on his face as dark side energy started to roll of him. "And if we meet again, I will be taking that purple blade from your dead corpse. Nice color, by the way."
While they were talking, all of Naruto's ships returned to the fleet. Then, all of a sudden, Naruto smiled.
"Well, it was fun but I have to go."
He jumped inside of his ship and flew off towards his flagship in high orbit around Ryloth. As the Jedi watched him go, Obi-Wan spoke:
"I have sudden bad feeling that we are missing something."
"What do you mean, master?" asked Anakin.
"Well, think about it, every time we saw Naruto, he took something from us. First it was some crates of weapons, then it was two Jedi lightsaber…but this time, he didn't take anything."
"Maybe he forgot?" joked Ahsoka.
Before Obi-Wan could answer, Anakin's communicator came to life, and from it came the voice of Admiral Yularen.
"General, all three of Master Windu's ships have left with the red fox fleet."
"WHAT!" Yelled all the Jedi and clones present
"Also, two of Master Kenobi's, as well as one from General Skywalker's have left as well."
There a moment of silence before it exploded.
"NARUTOOOOO!" they all yelled.
TO BE COUNTINUED
R&R
Remember The Dark Side Is Always Watching (Blazeknight26 TNX for the idea)