Disclaimer: I don't own Naruto or Bleach
"Hmm…."- Black Zetsu
"Hmm…."- The Seikatsugakari

AN: The reason for the early post of this chapter was that I already had this written already when I went to write this supposed unwritten chapter, or so I thought. Apparently I wrote this at the same time as the previous chapter, but I don't remember why. I was probably planning on doing a double post but I must have forgotten it at the end. Whatever. Here it is now.

Chapter 6:
Two is better than One

Naruto contemplated his options as he stood calmly in front of a locked door. He was currently at the underground levels running all under the Uzumaki Inc. tower. The tunnels throughout the area connected with other tunnels running beneath the beach house that he owned, not that anyone knew that. But one might ask as to why these tunnels were even present in the first place. Answer? For security purposes. No one knew what could happen, especially at the level of power that he and Kushina were in the corporate business. Well, it was mostly for Kushina. After all, his existence to the public was nonexistent. Not only that, but their usage of chakra had been banded with Anko having had been the obvious exception.

But of course, that was half the reason. The other half was for the fact of what he had stored here many years ago. Mainly the Seikatsugakari, the sentient sword that made Naruto have the power that he currently possessed possible. Of course, Naruto hadn't talked with the sword for many, many years. And Naruto knew for a fact that the sword would be bitter about that, not that Naruto could blame it. Hell, he would have felt the same way if he had been in that position.

But there had just been no reason for Naruto to even be in possession of it any longer before any of this happened. It sounded harsh, true, but it was the truth.

Naruto shook his head. 'Great, I'm sounding like a hypocrite now…..'

Mainly that he was thinking in the exact same way in which the villagers would think of him and, well, every other jinchuriki and bijuu in every other village. And being a hypocrite was something that Naruto hoped to never become. He could deal with being called anything else…..okay maybe not anything, but certainly not a hypocrite. Even after that he had done, that was a line that he hoped he would never cross.

'Too late for that, though…..'

Well, there was no point in delaying any of this any longer. He had many questions for the sword, questions which the Seikatsugakari would no doubt have trouble answering. Well, not trouble per say. More like not having a single interest in even contemplating the idea of answering them. And once again, Naruto could not blame it. But he would have to find a way to convince it. There was too much at stake here.

Bringing his hands into the ram seal, the door glowed slightly for a moment, signifying that there were seals present within it. Only he or Kushina could be able to access this place. It was identical to the defensive seal system based on the island of Uzu that the Uzumaki clan had maintained for many long years with this one being weaker for obvious reasons. The most obvious would be to the fact that no one in this time could use chakra at all, period. So there really was no need for a complicated defense system as the one in Uzu to be in placed, even if it was around important locations like his tower or his home. But with the arrival of Violet and the realization that she could use chakra, that safeness was now thrown out the window.

But that was something of a future reference. Right now, he had more pressing matters to take care of.

The door parted as Naruto walked through, immediately placing him in a dark chamber-like room. As soon as he took his first step in, the whole chamber was lighted by torches which were similar to those that the Uchiha had had in place inside their compounds.

Resting in a coffin-like structure, the Seikatsugakari merely laid there, having been untouched for a long time.

'It really has been far too long…..'

Walking calmly towards the sword's position, Naruto prepared himself for the denial of the lifetime which was based on legal grounds. After all, like stated before, he had basically abandoned the sentient sword. And for petty reasons too. The second part was the key here.

Silently picking the sword up from its position on the coffin, Naruto soon found himself surrounded in all too familiar darkness the very next moment, one which he had not seen in quite some time. One which he also had missed all this time, if he were honest with himself even if he wasn't entirely sure as to why that was.

"So….look at what the cat dragged in….."

Naruto didn't respond to the jab, not that there was any need to. Besides, there were more important things that needed to be done rather than to get into an argument with a sword, even if it was alive.

"It sure has been a while, Seikatsugakari."

"Hmph. I'm honestly quite surprised that you even remembered my title, Uzumaki. But still, this is quite the surprise. I thought that you never wanted to see me ever again because of what happened that day."

And that was it. The real reason as to why he had locked the dark sword up. A stupid reason, perhaps. It was just another reminder to the silver haired rinnegan wielder of how pathetic he had become after he destroyed Konoha. It was just too sad really. But that was the past. And feeling sorry for himself wasn't going to get anyone anywhere, least of all himself.

Naruto sighed. "I know. I've just simply been running away for all these years. I guess that I just didn't want to let go of the past. But now…."

"You think that you've changed, is that it? I have to wonder, though, as to what brought this sudden change into fruition? Let me guess…..is it a purple haired girl that has apparently kicked your ass every time that you have clashed with her so far?"

Naruto frowned. "How do you know about that?"

Soft chuckles were heard all around Naruto. "Despite what you may say or want, you are still my wielder. The second that you took a hold of me was the second that I learned of everything that you've been doing since the last time that we were together. I must say that you have truly become pathetic, Uzumaki. And I'm sure that that red-haired vixen of yours thinks the exact same thing."

Naruto smirked lightly as he ran a hand through his silver locks. "Now that's something that we must all agree on. Of course, it's just something that I myself just recently realized. I've been a coward all this time."

"And yet you want to kill the very same people that made you realize that. Ironic, is it not?"

Naruto shrugged. "Maybe it is, maybe it isn't. But that doesn't concern me. What that old bastard's intentions are….why he gave me these eyes in the first place….I don't give a shit about any of that. I simply want to kill him, plain and simple. That little follower of his is also on that list."

"I'm curious as to why that is, though. Even before this Violet girl summoned those old buddies of yours, you've wanted to kill them. Why?"

"Because I'm no one's pawn. What I do is because of what I want to do, not because someone is actually pulling the strings behind my back."

"Hehehehe. You're going to find that there is always someone pulling the strings, Uzumaki. Haven't I told you this before? Everyone is a tool at the hands of destiny. Destiny always finds a way to use every single piece on the board. You, unfortunately, are not a small piece, though. So it's of no surprise to find you being simply used as well in whatever game that we currently find ourselves in."

Naruto growled. "I don't know as to what you're exactly hinting at, but I do know that the whole reason I'm even here is because of my choices. Stupid as some of them may have been, they were still mine. No one has any control over me."

"…Unfortunately, you are not at that level yet. If you truly don't wish to be a pawn any longer, you must aim for the top, just like you did before. You must recover that idiotic and insane attitude that you once had. It's the only way for you to have any chance at succeeding."

Naruto shrugged his shoulders again. "That's something that no one has to explain to me. But I'll get to that at a later moment. As of right now, I have more pressing matters."

"And what exactly makes you think that I'll even consider helping you at this point? You've simply discarded me as a broken tool."

Naruto smirked. "Please. The mere fact that we have talked for this long is proof enough. Hell, you could have zapped me with some of your energy if you really didn't want to speak with me. But we both know that, in reality, it is the exact opposite. So why don't we just get right to it, shall we?"

"Don't misunderstand me, Uzumaki. I am merely interested by these recent events just as much as you are but for entirely different reasons. I don't care if you actually succeed, not anymore. I merely want to know the real truth of what is currently happening."

"And you can learn that by being on my side."

"Hahahaha! Do you actually believe that!? It seems to me that you're in the dark once again just like you were in the past. Except that no one will give you any answers this time. Not even the Shinigami. Not to mention your so called 'former self.' Where has he been this whole time by the way?"

Interesting question that was. And it was an answer that Naruto just didn't have along with basically everything else that was currently happening. Something which just plainly irritated the hell out of him. And why shouldn't it? Like the sentient sword had so kindly put it, he was basically in the dark again.

"You should already know the answer to that if you've looked through my memories," was Naruto's response. "And you're right. I am in the dark. I don't know a single thing besides a few hints here and there. But I assure you, that will change. Not to mention your status as well. Unlike last time, I won't abandon you or the choices I make."

"And you expect me to believe that? I calculate. I prefer hard facts rather than something as abstract as a promise or a vow. Those things are irrelevant to me."

Naruto smirked. "Then tell me something. Looking back at how I started, would you have ever imagined me being where I currently am today? That I would have chosen revenge over forgiveness? That I would basically forsake everything that I ever believed in? Not to mention betraying everything that I once built as well."

The Seikatsugakari paused at this, obviously not having had had expected the question. It had a rather simple answer, however, and both Naruto and the sentient sword knew that.

"No….."

Naruto nodded. "Exactly. Sometimes things like logic and facts aren't enough in the end. Sometimes you just have to bet in lady luck. A high risk gamble, true, but one just can't help it. After all, things don't always go the way that one plans them to be. I'm a prime example of this. I went forward with the plan I had, not knowing or expecting for it to have been just simply part of someone's else scheme at the end, even if I did choose it myself. And finally, when I have found the greatest puppeteer in all of this, I will not stop. I won't let myself be stop. Even if I have to kill the real Kami in order to brake myself from those strings, I'll do it. It's not fate. It's not even reality. Not yet. I'm the one that will make it happen."

"…..And how can you be so sure that you won't fail in the end? That you, along with everyone that is following you, won't simply die at the end of all of this?"

Naruto could only shrug. "I don't. But that doesn't mean that I won't be willing to try. Someone once told me that if you're handed everything in a silver platter, then you'll never be truly strong. And I agree with her. It's the fact that I don't know whether I'll survive this but keep pushing forward that makes me truly strong. Not the rinnegan. Not the Juubi's power. Not my heritage. At least, that's what I believe. And I don't give a damn if someone else were to think differently. And do you know why?"

Naruto smirked. "Because I'll simply kick their ass."

"Oh? Still using force, are you?"

Naruto snorted. "I think you're misunderstanding something. I'm not aiming for something like peace, or trying to defend an ideal, or trying to make someone accept those ideals. I only wish to brake myself from the chains that have been put up a long time ago. Humanity…..I don't really much care for it. Not that I very much did so in the beginning either….."

"So you're denying your humanity now, are you, Uzumaki Naruto? You're basically trying to ascend yourself into a higher position, to that of a god. Am I right?"

Naruto grinned. "You know me too well, it seems. That's exactly it. A god makes the rule. A god is not bounded by anything. Instead, he's the one that binds others. It's that simple."

"Your actions contradict your intentions, though. For thousands of years now, you've been doing nothing. Even if you have all that potential in you, all of that raw power, you can't control it. You're the exact opposite of that Violet girl. She has all of that control that you lack. And she even has that raw power as well to back it up."

"The bijuu chakra…."

"Exactly. It's the whole reason that brought you back here to me in need of assistance again. So tell me, Uzumaki, what is to stop you from simply discarding me again once you have no use for me any longer?"

"I've already told you: I'm not changing." Naruto then released a sigh. "Unfortunately, there is still some human in me. That part was what kept me from moving on. I was just simply afraid. Afraid that something of what happened that day could happen to the others that survived that day. But in the end, it was that same fear that took Anko away from us. As bad as it sounds, it was the loss of Anko that woke me up, caused for me to realize the mistake that I had and still was doing. But now that I have acknowledged that mistake, I plan not to make it again. It was that same mistake as well that has made me realize that my human self is just simply a hindrance. It's why I have no control. But like I have said, I know that now. As a result, I plan to rectify that now that I know it. That I assure you."

"Oh? And what guarantee do I have?"

Naruto smirked again. "I've already told you: sometimes you just gotta take a leap of faith. Reason isn't going to help you here, buddy. We're beyond that point now. But you're still here which means that you're at least considering it. And that's enough for me at the moment. Besides, what do you have to lose?"

The Seikatsugakari was silent, contemplating this new development. Well, it wasn't really contemplating on what to do per say. It wasn't like there was anything else that it had planned. And as far as things went, it would have a front row seat to the next hand of this game or play or whatever someone wanted to call it. Not to mention that the sword could just pump all of the reserve power that it would have in order to kill Naruto so that it at least got something if Naruto did decide to discard it once again. But besides that, the sentient sword was trying to see where the path of following Naruto would lead him to. Success? Or failure?

Many would say failure, but the sword wasn't interested in popular opinion. More often than not, popular belief was simply wrong. There was another issue, however, that was influencing its choice. And that was the fact that it didn't have much energy left. And without energy, it would cease to function. In his formal life, Naruto had made sure that it had had enough reserves to last for several millions of years. But this time, Naruto had not. It had been using the bare minimum all these years in order to stay conscious, but it was nearly depleted. The sword felt extremely weak.

'Well,' it mused, 'in the worst case scenario, I'll simply kill Uzumaki if he does become an empty shell again or we'll both be destroyed by the hands of this…..entity.'

Either way, it seemed better than just laying in this dark, empty room to the sword. The sword preferred death over boredom, not that anyone could blame it after just simply being stuck in the dark chamber for who knew how long. The sword had lost count already.

"You have my support, Uzumaki….for now that is. Make no mistake, though, that if you choose to abandon me again, I will kill you. And you can't hide it from me either. Your thoughts will be mine as well."

Naruto grinned. "Believe me, I have no intention of doing that. Besides, I'll need a cool sword at my side with what I'm planning on doing."

The Seikatsugakari didn't respond.

The grin on Naruto's face fell the next moment. Well, part one was complete which was basically to get the soul taker to agree to join him once again. Part two, however, was the one that interested Naruto more in a sense.

"I see that you have many questions for me….."

Naruto crossed his arms in front of his chest. "That's an understatement. If you've seen my recent memories, then you must know what my pressing concerns are."

"Ah, that I do. Mainly the revival of your fellow jinchuriki along with their respective bijuu including the Kyuubi."

Naruto merely nodded. "Exactly. What I want to know is as to how this is even possible. You told me that you devoured all of their souls that day, meaning that it would have been impossible to revive them ever again, even with the contract with the Shinigami that I had at that time. Not to mention that you also absorbed every single part of all of the bijuu's chakra in order for you to absorb the Juubi's will and soul. So how is it that this has happened? Or is it that you just lied to me that day?"

"Hehehehe. You would prefer for that to be the real truth behind this, don't you? That I simply lied to you? But you know somewhere deep in your cold heart that that is not the case. Far from it. But to put it bluntly: no, I did not lie to you. What I told you was the truth. In normal circumstances, the jinchuriki should have been gone forever along with those bijuu. Well, unless you decided to split your power up again, but that's an entirely different matter."

"Get to the point already, would you?"

"What I'm basically saying is that not even I know how this is possible. From all the knowledge that I have, the jinchuriki are dead. And so are the bijuu."

Naruto frowned. "That's not what I just saw….."

"Please. I thought that you would have learned by now not to believe everything you see. There is always something hidden in the shadows. Of course, neither you nor I know what that is just yet. But we do know one thing: somehow, this entity got his hands on the power of the bijuus and also resurrected the jinchuriki somehow as well as implanting within them the power of their bijuu as well. Although, it seems that this Violet girl has the power that you once had."

Naruto narrowed his eyes. "Kurama….."

"Exactly. Even though I don't know how, that is the chakra from the Kyuubi that she has in her possession. I would know since I consumed it, after all. The rest of the jinchuriki have their respective ones as well."

Naruto growled. "So what you're saying is that Kurama, along with all of the other bijuu, are trap within Violet and the rest?"

"Hmm….now that's a complicated answer. Is there perhaps a Kyuubi within this Violet's subconscious? Highly likely. Is it the same Kyuubi that you once knew?….highly unlikely."

"I see your point….."

"Good. But without any additional information, we can't discern as to how any of this has occurred. So for now, we are still in the dark."

Naruto sighed. "Yeah, I was kind of expecting for you to say that…."

"There's nothing that can be done about this except to get a move on. We need to be a move ahead of our enemies from now on. They have been playing you from the beginning. I'm sure that you'll figure out a way to rectify that."

Naruto chuckled as he turned the other way, throwing a wave behind him.

"That I do. It's our turn now."

Opening his eyes, Naruto found himself back in the chamber. Looking at the sword in his hands, Naruto placed it at his side as he began to walk towards the exit. There was much planning to be done. But first came the Ichigo boy. Naruto still needed to figure out as to what the deal was with the guy. Just what was so interesting about him?

Zetsu emerged from the ground in front of the door as silent as usual.

Naruto stopped in front of the spy. "What is it?"

"The Kurosaki boy has yet to awaken. Fuka is keeping an eye on him for now in case he does. After all, we don't want him running off once he finds himself in an unfamiliar environment."

Naruto nodded. "And Kushina?"

White Zetsu looked uncertain. "That…we don't know. She said something about taking care of some personal business…..whatever that means."

"I see….."

Walking around Zetsu, Naruto once more headed towards the exit, intent on finding Kushina.

Black Zetsu turned towards him. "What do you want us to do for now?"

Naruto stopped on his tracks. A few moments later, he answered, "Do what you do best and what we intensively need at the moment." Naruto looked back at him with a calm look. "Gather information."

White Zetsu grinned. "We're on it."

Naruto resumed on his way out of the chamber.

One Uzumaki Kushina sighed calmly as she stared at the computer screen in front of her. Currently we find the female redhead in the designated control room of their operations. It was basically one of the many hidden rooms within the Uzumaki Inc. tower which contained the best possible technology that this era had to offer.

But what mattered to her the most was at what she was starring at in front of her. It was a message. Mainly a message from the now deceased Anko. Really, Kushina should have expected this. Within the line of work that Anko had done, taking precautions was second nature. But with everything that had been taking place, it had completely slipped her mind.

'As well as Fuka's….'

Shaking her head, Kushina was about to close the laptop until another message popped up on her screen. But this one was a request. A live video request.

Kushina frowned. Not many people had the necessary access to reach her in this location. So who in the world…..

"Main screen…..now."

Spinning around on the chair that she was currently sitting on, Kushina let out a squeal in surprise at seeing a calm looking Naruto standing before her.

"When did you-"

"Later."

Kushina had no time to ask him again as the request was accepted through the main screen which hung at the center of one of the far walls.

A second later, a man appeared on it. The man had jet black hair which stopped closed to his shoulders and dark blue eyes. His age was close to that of early twenties, mid twenties at the oldest. He could only be seen wearing a black dress shirt similar to the Naruto's navy blue one as well as a necklace of a fang that hung around his neck.

Naruto crossed his arms. "Who the hell are you?"

The man chuckled as a cigarette appeared in his hands which he lighted instantly.

Placing it in his mouth, amusement was clearly present in his eyes. "Straight to the point, are you? Well, Anko did say you were like that."

Naruto raised an eyebrow. "You still haven't answered my question."

The man sighed as he flicked the cigarette away, making both Naruto and Kushina wonder as to why he had even bothered to light it in the first place.

"You can call me Ken. And before you ask, no, I'm not your enemy. Well, I'm not exactly your ally either but circumstances have made us work together."

Kushina stood up from her seat, narrowing her eyes as she did so. "Oh? And what circumstances are those?"

Ken snorted. "Please. Your little group has caused a major shit storm across the whole world. And you must know as to what I'm talking about."

Naruto frowned. "You're talking about Saudi Arabia."

Ken nodded as he leaned back on his own chair. "Exactly. Now, I don't know exactly what you were expecting to happen, but the United States is currently being blamed for everything. Well, no one can blame the other countries for pointing their fingers at us, since all the evidence already does that."

Realization hit Kushina. "You're from the CIA…."

Ken smirked. "Ah, that I am. I'm one of the best agents that it has, if I do say so myself." The smirk then disappeared. "Or should I say, I was."

Naruto raised an eyebrow. "And what do you mean by that?"

Ken sighed. "First, let me tell you that I already know what you guys can do, mainly that 'chakra' power that you all wield."

Both Naruto's and Kushina's eyes widened at this.

Ken continued, "If you haven't realized this, Anko told me. Now as to why she did….I would rather keep that between me and her. But the point is that I have known about what you guys were up to when you decided to head to Riyadh."

"Then you must know that we aren't the ones that caused that incident," Kushina retorted.

Ken shrugged. "I don't really see a difference between you or them. They have powers and so do you. But my opinion about you is irrelevant. As I'm sure you know, Anko controlled the CIA. Hell, she had a strong grip on the American government as a whole."

Like Ken had said, both Naruto and Kushina knew of this already. After all, Anko had told them as to how she had accomplished this.

Ken ran a hand through his hair. "Anko explained to me how once you die, your chakra also stops….working as well, if that's the right word."

Naruto t'ched. "So the clones that Anko had in place, the genjutsus….they all disappeared. Is that what you're trying to say?"

Ken nodded. "Yeah. Once that happened, I knew that she was dead…." he finished quietly.

Kushina narrowed her eyes. It seemed that something had happened between Anko and this Ken. Of course, that should have been obvious the moment that he had said that he knew about them and what they truly were. But the question was: what? What had happened between them? And why hadn't Anko told them about this person?

"Once everyone caught sight of this as well as the 'director' suddenly vanishing in a puff of smoke, it brought the whole country into disarray. As of now, the CIA is no more."

Naruto could only scowl as he processed this information. They had been so caught up in dealing with Violet and her master that they had completely disregarded what the aftermath of Anko's death would bring.

"So I'm guessing that Anko told you to contact us if this ever happened?" Kushina said with a small frown tugging her lips.

Ken nodded. "Precisely. Now, I don't trust you. Hell, I'm not even sure that I even like you. But I owe Anko big time. She knew that with her gone, you guys would lose a major intelligence gathering." He paused for a moment before adding, "Well, I'm here to fill that void."

"And how would you do this?" Naruto questioned. "As you have said, the CIA is no more."

Ken grinned. "Ah, that I did. But I've been simply transferred. Like I've said, I was one of the CIA's best. America needs me, especially at this moment."

"I see…."

Kushina glanced at Naruto before looking at Ken in the screen. "What's the status on that, by the way? Is war apparent?"

Ken snorted. "War is the least of concerns for us. The problem is whether or not the Arabs will shoot their damn missiles at us. That's what we're trying to avoid. Of course, the other nations are siding with them at the moment. So if war does break out at the end, we're all alone."

'Which is exactly what that bastard wants,' thought Naruto in anger. Well, this certainly put them in a disadvantage. Hell, it wasn't as if they didn't have enough disadvantages to begin with!

Kushina sighed as she rubbed her forehead. "And here I thought that we would have had more time to prepare for this…."

Ken threw a bored glance to the side. "Yeah, well, that's how these things go. But to the original point that I was getting at: I'm on your side….for now at least. But like I've said: don't consider me as one of you. I'm only doing this because Anko instructed me in case something happened to her. I'm taking enough risks by contacting you."

Kushina shrugged. "This is still helpful. More than you can realize….."

Ken waved his hands in dismissal. "To be honest with you, I really don't give a crap about any of this. Or any of you for that matter. If it weren't for Anko, I would have retired after the CIA collapsed at the age of twenty-four. Hell, I'm pretty sure that this country doesn't have that long to last."

Naruto grinned slightly. "Believe me: you're more like us than you realize. But once again, this is still all helpful. Whatever you give us will be extremely helpful. Especially in our current predicaments. We will send you the files of the people that we will need for you to look into immediately."

Ken didn't respond. Instead, he simply gave a mock solute before shutting off on his end. He had said all that he had wanted to, which was all that he would do, mainly being the bare minimum.

Kushina looked at Naruto. "Well that was interesting. Who would have thought that Anko would have something like this planned? Better yet, why didn't she ever tell us?"

Naruto closed his eyes, having an idea as to why but not wanting to hurt Kushina's feelings. After living as long as they had and being the only ones that truly knew each other for what they were, it was no surprise that they basically became a family. Albeit, a small one but still a family. So if one member of that small family turned her back on it, it would deeply hurt the others.

Naruto took hold of Kushina's hands with his own, causing for the redhead to look at him in the eyes. "Don't worry about it now. We still have a lot to do. And I'm going to need you."

Despite herself, a small blush appeared on Kushina's face.

Turning towards the elevator that lead to the main levels of the tower, Naruto guided Kushina along with said redhead stating at his back.

The old Naruto was really coming back. And more than that, he was learning more control.

'Which is why I couldn't sense him…..'

A small step, but it was a step nonetheless.

A smile formed itself on the redhead's face. Maybe all of this wasn't so bad after all. It brought her back the Naruto that she fell in love with at least.

Fuka sat quietly in one of the chairs present within the room where Ichigo was currently recuperating in Naruto's beach house. It had been a couple of hours since she, alongside Kushina, had managed to retrieve the bijuu chakra that Fu had obviously placed inside of Ichigo's body.

The teenager was a tough son of a gun, Fuka had to admit. Most people would have died a few seconds, a minute at best, after having had had been exposed to the toxic chakra. Well, the people of this age at least. But not this boy. Something which peaked Fuka's interest greatly. Maybe it tied as to why The Watch was so interested in him in the first place?

Fuka had a feeling in her gut that she was close to the truth. Unfortunately, she still didn't have all the pieces of the puzzle in this, a fact which irritated the hell out of her.

She was becoming less and less patient, she had to admit to herself. But she didn't much care. She just wanted to see girl along with the old bastard at the bottom of her feet, begging for mercy before she killed them both. A bit sadistic, true, but once again she didn't care.

A groan broke the female Uzumaki out of her thoughts. Turning towards Ichigo's form, she saw the orange haired teen slowly rising into a sitting position, one of his hands on his head as he groaned for a second time.

Well, he certainly woke up earlier than expected. It seemed that this boy was full of surprises.

Ichigo held his head in pain as his vision started to clear, immediately recognizing that he was most certainly not in his room. But where the hell was he then?

"You're finally awake, eh?"

Immediately turning towards where the very feminine like voice came from, an act which just brought another wave of pain to his head which he ignored for the moment, Ichigo saw one of the hottest redheads that he had ever seen. Well, not that he had seen too many redheads in his lifetime either, but that was beside the point.

Fuka raised a small eyebrow as she saw a small blush appear on Ichigo's cheek. Well, she certainly worked fast all right.

Ichigo shook his head to clear his thoughts, making another wave of pain hit his head. Groaning once more as he held his head, Ichigo looked at the redhead for a second time with no blush present.

"Where am I?"

Fuka crossed her arms under her bust as she looked at him. "Safe. Which is more than what I can say about your sisters." To hell with being subtle. Fuka wanted to know what was so special about this boy, and she wanted that information now.

Ichigo's eyes widened as his brain finally recalled what had just happened to him a few hours prior. But more importantly, what had happened to his sisters.

Scowling, the orange haired teen made to get out of the bed in order to….well, just basically go on a manhunt to find his sisters. Of course, he didn't know where to start this search, but that thought had not crossed his mind at this point.

Seeing this, Fuka was in front of him the very next moment, a hand on his shoulder which she used to push him back down on the bed.

"And just where do you think you're going?"

Ichigo frowned at the woman. He could already tell that his body was in no condition for a physical confrontation. Although something told him that even if he was, he still wouldn't win against this woman. Well, not without his powers that was.

Fuka raised an eyebrow. "Well?"

"Where do you think I'm going?" he responded through gritted teeth. He was just wasting time, time which he could be using to find his kidnapped siblings. But once again, the thought of how to accomplish this had still not presented itself on the teen's mind.

But it didn't have to. Fuka did it herself. "And just how exactly do you plan on finding them? Do you know who took them? Or for what reason? More importantly, though, do you even know as to where they're being detained?"

Ichigo could only frown. Well…..that certainly put a halt to his thoughts on rescuing Karin and Yuzu. For the moment at least.

Taking a notice of this, Fuka retracted her hand as she stepped back a few steps. "Now, I understand why you would just want to rush out there right now. Hell, if I was in your position, I probably would have done the same thing. But since I know just how stupid doing that actually is, I'm going to stop you from doing it."

Ichigo merely turned his gaze the opposite direction, his hands turning into fists in front of him. This was all just too crazy. A day ago, hell a few hours ago, his life was how it was supposed to be: normal! And yet, everything went down the drain in a matter of minutes. Life really was a bitch. Well, to him at least.

The door standing a few feet away from his bed was opened with another hot redhead and a familiar individual walking in a moment later.

"It seems that you're finally awake." It was Kushina that said this as pleasantly as she could, but with what she and Naruto had just learned, being pleasant was quite difficult.

But Ichigo wasn't paying any attention to her. Instead, he immediately pointed at Naruto with wide eyes. "You!"

Said 'you' raised an eyebrow. "Yes?"

"You're involved in this!?"

Naruto chuckled. "More than you realize….."

Ichigo's surprised look turned into that of slight anger. "So are you the one responsible for-"

Seeing where he was going, Naruto cut him off. "No, I'm not." He then paused, thinking about his answer a bit more. "Well, if you're wondering if I'm responsible for the fight that took place, then yes. But only partially. Now if you're wondering if I'm responsible for what happened to your sisters? Then the answer is no, plain and simple."

Ichigo narrowed his eyes. "And how am I suppose to believe that?"

Naruto shrugged. "Easy. You're still alive. I'm sure that you must know that the whole reason those guys showed up was to kill you."

Ichigo closed his eyes as he released a sigh, contemplating his current situation. So he was basically at the mercy of a group of people that he knew nothing of, save for the silver haired individual. But even then, it wasn't anything really. This day just kept getting better and better.

"Now," began Kushina, bringing Ichigo's attention to her, "you mind telling us as to why those people want you dead in the first place?"

Ichigo shot her an annoyed look. "Do you really think that I would know that? If I did, I wouldn't be here right now."

Fuka hummed in contemplation. "So….you have no secrets is what you're saying. Am I correct?"

Ichigo averted his gaze from everyone else currently present who took this as a sign that he most certainly was hiding something.

Naruto grinned slightly. Maybe this tied with the boy's unnatural physical prowess. No, he was one hundred percent that it did. But if he knew what exactly…..

Kushina took care of the predicament herself, however. "You must have realized by now that we're not your enemy. If we were, we would have simply let you die as you soon would have had we not removed the….intoxicated substance from your body."

The redhead paused, letting her words sink in before continuing. "However, you must also know that we don't very much care for you. The only reason that we even helped you in the first place is that you are apparently tied with the current problem that we are facing. A very big part, if I had to guess. But the point still stands that we helped you. Now, you owe us. Not only that, but I'm positive that you won't be able to find your sisters without our assistance."

Ichigo wasn't so certain of that last part. He was pretty sure that his father would find a way. No doubt that the geezer must have seen what had happened to their house. He must be looking for them no doubt. But at the moment, Ichigo knew that he was at their mercy.

Running a hand through his hair, Ichigo released a sigh. Well, no point in keeping it a secret. He might not know these people, but they hadn't tried to deceive him just yet, Kushina having had proven that to him. While it wasn't much, it was something.

Looking at them, Ichigo decided to just come out with it. "I don't know why they're looking for me, nor do I wish to know. But I think that maybe the reason that they're even after me ties with what I once had in the past…."

Naruto leaned forward slightly, becoming even more curious now. "Which was?"

Ichigo looked directly at him. "I was a shinigami."

Of all the answers that Naruto was expecting, that certainly was not the one. But really, who could have blame him?….okay, maybe someone could. After all, after everything that he had seen so far, was this answer really that farfetched?

Fuka didn't share his optimistic opinion, however, as it was made evident by her huffing in an annoyed manner. "Do you really think that we'll believe something like that?"

Ichigo shot her an annoyed glance. "Not really. But apparently I have to be honest here if I even want a remote chance at seeing my sisters alive in the future. I'm not the only one that should be saying that, though." Looking at Naruto, Ichigo had connected the dots already. After all, just how many people possessed silver colored hair? No doubt that the person in front of him was the masked individual that had been fighting against that girl and…whatever those things had been.

Naruto smirked. "Ah, I guess you're right about that." His smirk fell a second later. "But you might want to explain in more details as to how you were a…..shinigami in the past. Right now, any relevant information, no matter how small, will be useful. But it seems that this is not. It's a major part of what is currently happening."

'You don't have to tell me twice…' Ichigo thought.

Well, it was explanation time.

Black Zetsu wasn't much for talking, something which ran the complete opposite for his counterpart. He didn't really know why he was like this, just that he was. Unless something was required of him or interested him, he would basically keep his mouth shut. With this present, his patience was extremely high, higher than any other being in existence perhaps. But being stuck with a being that had to be talking every few seconds about random things, even his patience eventually ran out.

"You do realize what we're trying to accomplish, don't you?" Black Zetsu said, stopping White Zetsu mid-way on his plant fertilizer rant. Black Zetsu wasn't entirely sure as to why his counterpart had even been talking about something like that, but he didn't really much care either.

White Zetsu shot his 'partner' a grin. Currently they were at the scene of the crime so to speak where Naruto had fought against Violet and the jinchuriki. It was now nightfall, with the police having had left the area about an hour before.

"Hai, hai. We're trying to see if we can find any trace of Violet's chakra or any of the jinchuriki's or the bijuu's."

"Exactly. A task which requires silence. Do you understand that?"

White Zetsu gave his counterpart a bewildered look. "Eh? Since when?"

"Since I said so."

White Zetsu merely grinned again, finally understanding that Black Zetsu was just in one of his 'moods,' similar to that that one of the human females would have every month. Of course if Black Zetsu knew that he was thinking of this, he would kill him. But since he didn't, White Zetsu continued to enjoy the thought. Why? Well…..who knew?

Before the highly unusual duo could continue with their banter, they soon found a sword pointed at their connected neck, the owner of the sword being a man with spiky black hair and brown eyes dressed in black robes.

Despite the situation, White Zetsu continued to grin. "Well, isn't this surprising."

Unlike his counterpart, Black Zetsu was analyzing the situation. Something felt….odd about this individual. But no matter what he did, he couldn't very well place what it was. But one thing was sure: we wasn't a regular human, if he even was human to begin with.

"Where are my children?"

'Interesting…..'

White Zetsu had a different take on this. "Oi, oi! I know we look fishy, but we ain't no pedophiles! That's Orochimaru's trademark, not ours!"

If he could, Black Zetsu would have walked away right then and there.

The man's eyebrows twitched slightly at this, no doubt not having have had expected this answer. Hell, he didn't even know what they were even talking about. But this was as intriguing to him as it was to them, especially their appearance.

"Are you by any chance Kurosaki Ichigo's father?" Black Zetsu was quick to get to the point, especially since he just wanted to get away from White Zetsu as far as possible as well as soon as he could.

At the name, the man perked up. "Yes, I am."

Well, this just made things easier. And perhaps this could help them figure out the mystery surrounding the orange haired teen.

Black Zetsu looked at him impassively.

"In that case, you should come with us, Kurosaki."

In all of his years of living, Naruto would have never expected to once again be pulled into anymore complicated crap. Well, it wasn't like he didn't want it. But life had just become too boring…..in his mind at least. But that was beside the point at the moment.

After Ichigo had finished telling the three Uzumaki his tale, silence rained supreme, something which was to be expected. After all, it's not everyday that one hears of everything that had happen in his own backyard without him knowing of it.

Naruto could only sigh at this. 'Really, how did we miss all of this?'

Seriously. Evil souls with powers, good souls with power, a soul society…..and apparently that was just the tip of the iceberg. It seemed that the Shinigami's world was more complicated than Naruto had thought. Wait, if he remembered correctly, the Shinigami's world was called 'Soul Society'…..or something along those lines anyway.

Fuka looked at Ichigo with a shocked look. "Is all of this real?" she asked, breaking the silence.

Ichigo simply nodded, not really believing that they would actually accept anything that he had said. Hell, unless he had lived through it, he was sure that he wouldn't have believed it if someone else told him about it. And such was life.

Kushina rubbed her forehead, feeling another headache coming. First it was the revelation of Anko and this Ken, and now it was this. Really, karma was a big bitch.

Ichigo looked at them. "Well? Do you believe me or not?"

Naruto sighed. "It's not like we don't have a reason to trust you. And anyways, even if you were trying to lie to us, I'm pretty sure that you would have come up with something more believable than shinigamis and the sort." Well, believable in this day and age at any rate. In the shinobi world, this would have been a bit odd, but not completely ridiculed either.

Ichigo looked at him incredulously. "That's it? Just like that?"

Naruto had a feral grin plastered on his face. "Yeah, just like that. After all, you said it so yourself. We aren't exactly 'normal' either. Or have you forgotten what you saw earlier today?"

Ichigo gave a sideways glance to no one or nothing in particular. "Good point…."

Kushina stirred the conversation right back on track. "So, you said that lost your powers after you defeated this….Aizen fellow. Am I correct?"

Ichigo nodded.

Kushina sighed impatiently. "If that's the case, then you're just a regular human now. Why would they target someone like you if you have nothing special?" The redhead then blinked, realizing what she had just said. Looking at the teen with a sheepish smile, she quickly apologized. "Sorry about that. I didn't mean to-"

"Don't worry about it," interrupted Ichigo with a wave of his hand. "After all, what you've just said is true." Looking down at his hands, the teen sighed. "I'm no one special now. My life was supposed to have been quiet and normal. And then this happens to me." He then chuckled bitterly. "Actually, I could handle it with just me having gotten involved. Not Karin and Yuzu. But of course, it seems that's too much to wish for."

Naruto looked at Ichigo quietly as if measuring him.

Fuka for her part simply looked on silently before making her way out of the room.

Kushina looked at her with a raised eyebrow. "Where are you going-"

"To get some fresh air."

Not awaiting for a response, Fuka opened the door and quickly walked out, closing it behind her.

Looking at the door, Ichigo pointed at the direction to where Fuka had just walked out. "Did I do something to piss her off or what?"

Kushina sighed. "It's not you. We've just recently lost someone close to us is all. And it hit her hard….."

Ichigo closed his eyes at hearing that.

"What are you going to do now?"

Opening them, Ichigo looked at Naruto who had just spoken.

"Do you really need to ask?" Ichigo said with some sarcasm. "I wasn't really expecting for any of you to believe me. Even without your help, I will find them."

"But you're weak," Naruto retorted without any hesitation. "Yes, you've got the physical abilities, but that will only take you so far. Especially with this bunch. You saw my fight, didn't you?"

Ichigo frowned but didn't respond.

Naruto continued, "In all honesty, though, I shouldn't really be lecturing you for I'm also weak. In all my encounters with that girl, she's always had the upper hand. But I'm also weak for many other reasons which I don't really feel like divulging to you. We have common enemies, Kurosaki Ichigo."

Extending his hand as he walked to stand next to the bed, Naruto looked at Ichigo straight in the eyes. "He has your sisters who you no doubt want to save. That's honorable. Me? I don't have such a reason. I'm doing it mostly for revenge as well as that I just want to kick that bastard's ass. But it looks like we're going to need each other's help to accomplish this. I'm sure that you won't mind if it helps you to save both of your sisters in the end."

Glancing at the offered hand, Ichigo looked at Naruto straight in the eyes as well, trying to find any signs of deceit and the sort. But he didn't. It seemed that he really just wanted to kill that man whoever he was. Well, in all honesty, it didn't really concern him. Whatever the problem between the two was, it was between the two of them. His priority now were his sisters.

Coming to a decision, Ichigo took Naruto's hand, making Naruto smirk.

"I'm Uzumaki Naruto. It's a pleasure, Kurosaki Ichigo."

On the other side of the world, one individual now identified simply as Ken was shaking his head in annoyance as he made his way through the private wing of the airport in Washington D.C.

Really, this was all just too annoying. He had more important things to deal with than to escort some VIP through the city and then to the White House. For example, he should have been looking up The Watch Corporation that the Uzumakis in Japan had sent him a file on last night.

It really didn't surprise Ken that a corporation such as The Watch was involved in something like this. Most big time corporations like that were usually involved in illegal business behind the scenes. It was just how the world ran nowadays. Although, the former CIA agent suspected that things have always been like this, no matter in what period of time one was talking about. It was just simply human nature to be greedy it seemed.

Hearing his phone vibrate within his coat pocket, Ken reached for it. Answering the call, he said, "What is it?"

Pausing mid-step as he was finally informed as to who he was supposed to be escorting, Ken grinned. "I see. Alright. Don't worry. I'll take good care of him."

Putting his phone back within his coat, Ken resisted the urge to laugh out loud as he made towards the roadway to where the private flights landed. He hadn't been entirely sure as to why he hadn't been informed beforehand as to just who exactly the VIP was, but now he understood as well as to why it was only him that had been assigned this. Mainly, it was to be kept a secret from the rest of the world.

'Really, we must be in deep shit to call him for help. But then again, this plays to my advantage in the end.'

Finally arriving at the gate to where the passengers of this particular flight were to go through, Ken leaned against one of the walls.

'It seems that keeping my promise to you will be a lot easier than I thought, Anko…..'

Thinking of the now dead woman brought great pain to the man, not that he showed it. In his line of work, there was no time to show weakness. Because if he did, he would die. It was that simple.

Shaking those thoughts away as he saw the approaching forms of those that he had been awaiting for, Ken retracted himself from the wall and walked forward in order to greet his assignment. But this is where his real mission began. And the safety of this man wasn't the top priority of that mission.

Placing the best smile that he could, Ken greeted the man as well as the two individuals standing behind him. "Welcome to America, Chairman. I hope your flight went well?"

The Chairman aka the Watcher simply nodded. Now dressed in a fine suit, he answered, "Yes. Thankfully it was. But enough of the pleasantries. I'm sure there's a lot of business to be done in the capitol. Am I right?"

Ken nodded. "Of course. But the President has requested your audience in the White House beforehand. So if you please….." Stepping to the side as he allowed for the Chairman and his two followers to walk towards the exit of the airport, Ken simply let his eyes wonder.

Following behind them, Ken took in the forms of the two people accompanying the Chairman. One was a strikingly beautiful blonde woman with dark colored eyes and a great body, even through the pant suit that she was wearing. The other was a tall, thin man with what appeared to be a pair of pale golden eyes and brown hair. One of a kind features, that was for sure.

Not having a single idea as to who they were or as to why they were even here in the first place, Ken simply decided to just do what was required of his official 'job.' The sooner he did, the sooner that he could be in peace with no one to bother him. If he had had the choice, he would have never had accepted the job as one of the President's handpicked agents. It was just too troublesome. But Anko held him back with rejecting the offer.

Ken mentally smirked. 'In the end, it seems that I really was whipped…..'

The trip to the private garage was made in silence. Making sure that they were secured within the car, Ken situated himself in the driver's seat, instantly turning the car on and driving out of the garage.

The destination now being none other than the White House.

Post AN: Well….I'm shocked right now. To be completely honest, I had not been expecting that the Juubi's final form would be a tree or that you would have some sort of chakra fruit like you would have in One Piece or that a woman was the one that fucked everything up apparently.

Meh, that's Kishimoto with his curveballs I guess.

On an entirely different note, I just have to say that I will be finishing this story, no matter what anyone says or how popular it is. From the moment that I posted the first chapter, I committed myself to that. I really do dislike when an author starts something and doesn't finish it. I don't want to be like that. The only thing in question here is simply how long that's going to take me. So for those few that actually like this sequel, don't worry about me not finishing this because I will. That's all.

Until next time.