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

Chapter 8:
The Disciples

Ichigo stared at the medium sized shop in front of him, a shop looking like none other from anybody else's point of view. But Ichigo knew better now. He knew that this wasn't a regular shop. It was just a front. A front for something bigger. Well, to those who cared at least. There were probably some people who wouldn't give a rat's ass about it, even if it stood in order to protect their pathetic lives.

Ichigo stopped his train of thoughts right there. Since when did he start thinking like that? Something must really be starting to affect him. Either that, or maybe it was just because he was tired and cranky. But he just couldn't find it in himself to sleep. Not when he knew that his sisters were at the hands of….whoever those guys that took them were. That was the one thing that confused Ichigo the most: just who were they? And what did they even want from him in the first place? It was all just too troublesome.

"Well, I could say that I'm surprised to see you, but we both know that that would be a lie."

Ichigo immediately saw the form of one Kisuke Urahara standing by the doorway of the infamous Urahara shop. The older blond was simply leaning by the doorway with his arms crossed in front of his chest and a look of some amusement present in his gray eyes.

Ichigo huffed slightly at seeing him. "So you and my old man have really been meeting with each other, haven't you?"

Urahara was quite, not giving anything away that would deny or confirm Ichigo's statement. Said individual simply noticed this with some annoyance but knew not to press. Urahara was just that type of person.

After a few more moments of silence, Urahara sighed as he looked up at the morning sky…well, the really early morning sky but that was beside the point.

"Ya know, no sane person comes to another person's house at five in the morning…."

"They do when they know all the stuff that I do," retorted Ichigo. "But don't try to change the subject. It's obvious that you were waiting for me so you must know why I'm here. And the only way you could know that is through my old man…."

Urahara looked at him in amusement. "If you already knew that, then why ask me about it then?"

Ichigo looked at him without any hesitation. "I'm just trying to get confirmation. The lives of both Karin and Yuzu are on the line here. I can't afford to make any mistakes."

"The mere fact that they got captured is a mistake, so it's too late for that," commented Urahara in a detached tone.

Ichigo didn't respond to that. He had no retort for something like that.

Urahara looked at him. "So….not going to go back to the quiet life that you were hoping for? If you go any further, there is no turning back."

Ichigo was taken back by the sudden seriousness in Urahara's voice, but he shouldn't have had been surprised. Urahara was a carefree person most of the time just like his father. But when the situation called for it, he was a whole different person. And Ichigo greatly admired that. Not that he would ever let him know that of course.

Not waiting a moment later, Ichigo nodded without a word.

Urahara smirked slightly. "Well, I'm glad that you're going to cooperate. It'll just make all of this a lot easier for all of us."

Ichigo placed both of hands inside his school pants, the school uniform having been the only piece of clothing that had survived from the his now destroyed home thanks to the fight between Naruto and that 'Violet' girl almost a week before. Ichigo hadn't bothered to go out and buy any more clothes. His sense of fashion was the last thing on his mind.

"Feeling annoyed that your father is only focusing on Uzumaki, are you?" It was a question but was said as a statement.

Ichigo didn't stumble as he made his way to stand in front of Urahara by the doorway. It was quite obvious to him now that his father had indeed been talking to Urahara.

"Kind of," he admitted as he came to a stop by the steps. "All they've been doing this past week is train, them and those other two women. And while I don't mind training, I can't really be a part of the kind of training that they're doing."

Urahara smiled. "Missing your powers already, are you?"

"No, I'm not," was the teen's answer even though he knew somewhere in his heart that that was a lie. "But I'm going to need them if I want to be of any help in rescuing my sisters."

Urahara was silent for a few moments before replying, "Your dad left that to me. That's why he's focusing with Uzumaki right now. You and I are going to work on getting you back into shape."

Ichigo narrowed his eyes slightly. "You and the old man know more of what's going on than you're letting on, aren't you?"

Urahara tried his best to look innocent which didn't work. "And what makes you say that?"

Ichigo scowled slightly. "Don't try that. I know you." He then paused. "But to be honest, I'm not sure that I even want to know."

Urahara looked at him in surprise. "Really now? And here I had thought that you would be screaming bloody murder for me to tell you."

Ichigo shrugged. "Yeah, the thought crossed my mind. But I know that if it concerned the safety of either Karin or Yuzu, the old man would have told me by now. Since he hasn't, I'm guessing that it has to do with Naruto…."

Urahara sighed. "You're half right. Well, more like a third right. But that's beside the point right now. Trust me. You won't have to worry about any of that if you don't reacquire your shinigami abilities."

Ichigo merely nodded. "And how exactly are we going to do this? And why didn't anyone tell me of this before?"

Urahara shrugged. "You said that you didn't want anymore to do with the shinigami life. So we respected your wishes. But now, it can't be helped. The choice has been taken out of your hands now. Well, if you want to survive that is."

"Let's not waste anymore time then. Where do we began?"

Urahara smirked as he put one of his arms around Ichigo. "Now that's what I like to hear. But first, why don't we got something to eat? I'm starving!"

And just like that, the carefree Urahara was back. But Ichigo couldn't complain. It was refreshing. And all of this led him closer to his objective.

It was his turn now.

The Shinigami grinned to himself as he watched the two individuals appear out of nowhere in his private chambers. It was quite amusing to him really. After all, he quite remembered one of the two individuals having had promised to never enter back into his domain because it was….filthy. Well, it wasn't like the god of death cared about the sentiment. It just made him more excited. After all, if someone didn't like a place, why would he ever want to visit it? It allowed him the freedom to do some…..illegal activities. More recent….the whole fiasco with Madara and that portion of that Obito's soul. Of course, the Shinigami had his suspicions as to if Kami had really not been been expecting that. But that was a whole different topic altogether, better saved for another time.

"Well," began the death god, "what do I owe this most surprising visit to my realm?"

"Cut the crap," said the one on the left. Both beings were dressed in completely white robes, something which the Shinigami found extremely amusing. "You know why we're here."

'I'm getting a sense of deja vu here…..' The Shinigami put the thought to the back of his mind. "Maybe I do. Maybe I don't. But if you haven't realized, I'm currently dealing with some problems of my own. So if you wouldn't mind…."

"We would mind actually," continued the one from before. "What's happening here affects everyone else."

The Shinigami was thankful for the black hood that shadowed his face. If not, they would have seen the look of annoyance appearing on his face. Really, couldn't they mind their own business for once? The war he could understand. That was everyone. But this….this was his problem. A problem which he also planned to fix very soon, now that his pieces were finally on the move.

It was at this time that the third individual finally spoke, a small grin on his face. "Why must we always have this bickering every time that we come together? Really. Even at the meetings! Can't we all just get along?"

"We aren't kids anymore, Kami," stated the Shinigami with some amusement. "That thought process doesn't work in our worlds. Hell, no where! Especially with our dear brother over here…."

The unnamed individual simply scowled. "If it weren't for your constant disregard of our set laws, none of this would be happening right now!"

Now that pissed the Shinigami off. Sure, he wouldn't mind being called out or blamed for something which he clearly was the cause of. Like the destruction of Kami's plan with humanity. Okay, maybe not destruction. More like delay. But he was damned if he was going to just sit back and be blamed for something in which he didn't have a part in.

"Don't take that tone with me, Izanagi. Just because you stand at Kami's side doesn't mean a thing. Neither of you have any power here. This is my domain. I'm the true god here. Remember that well before you try to act like you're the one in charge."

Seeing an argument beginning to occur, Kami stepped in between them both. "We didn't come here to fight with you, brother," began Kami, his playful tone disappearing.

The Shinigami snorted at this. "Now that is funny! Then what exactly would you call what's happening, brother? Because I don't see any other term but a struggle, or conflict, or any other synonym! And all of this because you couldn't simply kill that damn aide of yours….not only did he steal a portion of your power and gave it to some girl, but he also has the power of the Juubi in his possession! Another one of your failures, if I may add," the Shinigami finished, looking at Izanagi when he said the last part. Said being simply scowled again.

Kami didn't respond, not that the Shinigami gave him much time to as he continued, this time looking at Kami. "I can't help but wonder if this is somehow all part of your plan, though, brother."

A small grin now appeared on Kami's face. "Oh? And what makes you think that?"

The god of death waved one of his hands in dismissal. "This is all far too convenient. The Juubi's imprisonment, that mere human which you chose to be the first one to activate the hidden power that you granted humanity with that said human being the father of the man to whom you entrusted with some of your power with that same man now having been resurrected and now quite literally being the new Juubi…just what are you planning?"

Kami chuckled. "You give me far too much credit. It was-"

"It wasn't that damn aide that's responsible for this," interrupted the Shinigami. "Well, he is, but only because you're only allowing him to do so. Am I right?"

Izanagi glanced at his brother. Now, this was interesting. He had never looked at things from this angle. What if the Shinigami was right? Then their brother was a lot more cunning than they gave him credit for.

Seeing Kami not responding but simply keeping the same grin on his face, the Shinigami sighed. "Not going to answer me, are you? Well, I'll just find out the hard way then. Through this war."

Kami frowned at this. "Are you really going to-"

"Yes!" screamed the Shinigami in outrage. "It may be part of your scheme to let your damn aide run loose with your power, thinking that he's now some kind of god as well that can change the human race, but once he started trespassing into my domain, it was game over! I don't give a crap what you want to do with humanity. Hell, you can even give them the right to use chakra again. All I care about is putting that damn asshole in his place! And since you two already have your own little representatives on the board, I'm putting my own as well. But it seems that ours are planning on teaming up, so I can't really say that we'll be enemies on this one, brother."

Izanagi chimed in, "What about the gate? It seems that this simple aide that you have no respect for is alluding you, quite well I may say. It won't be long before your realm falls into a civil war. The loose souls would then spread to the human world and to our own domains. We would then have no choice but to step in and settle matters on our own."

"Which is exactly what he wants," retorted the Shinigami. "I don't really know how he thinks that the humans will survive if a war amongst ourselves breaks out, but I really don't care either. You two are falling right into his hands. Me? I'm doing things differently. Do whatever it is that you must. Just don't interfere with me, and we won't have any problems. Understood?"

Izanagi growled at this as he stepped forward. "You sure are full of yourself, aren't you? Do you really think that you can take both of us on by yourself? The Juubi isn't around to help you anymore. You're all alone now."

The Shinigami mentally scowled. Now there was something which he didn't like to be reminded of: the fact that the Juubi had indeed been his only ally anywhere, and the fact that he did nothing to save him when he had been imprisoned. Or what happened to him to him after his reason had been taken away. Okay….so maybe all of this was personal to him in a way. But he refused to admit to that. Why? Because he was the freaking death god!

Izanagi smirked to himself once he saw that he had hit home. The Shinigami pissed him off that much.

"It would be better if you get out now before we all do something which we will regret…..some more than others."

Kami frowned as he saw the anger within his brother barely restrained. And he knew why the Shinigami was restraining himself. Despite everything that he had said so far, they all knew that he was in no position to fight him or Izanagi. His world was going down the path towards a civil war if things kept going the way they were. And Kami knew that it was partly because of him that this was all happening. Even so, he believed that this was all necessary. Just like his brother had guessed, all of this was part of his plan, a plan to atone for the mistake that he had committed.

"It would be best if we take our leave now, Izanagi," Kami said as he gave a nod towards his other brother. Both the Shinigami and Izanagi looked at Kami in surprise. It was rare for him to take that respectful tone, after all. "However, this discussion is not over. That I assure you."

The death god gave no response as both Kami and Izanagi vanished like they had never been there.

After a few moments of silence, the Shinigami finally showed his frustration as he let out a growl.

"You let him get to you too much, you know."

The Shinigami sighed as he looked to the far side of the massive room to where a cloaked figure stood, and by the tone of the voice, the figure was female.

"You were here the whole time, were you? I'm surprised that they didn't sense you…."

The figure let out a snort. "Please. I know that Kami might have, but you know how he is with his sense of humor. As for Izanagi….well, you give him far too much credit. Stuck up asshole is all he is."

The Shinigami simply let out a few chuckles in amusement, not that he could blame her for hating his so-called brother. She of all people had the most right to do so. And the Shinigami wasn't going to deny that.

"So? Is there something that interests you? You never come out unless you've found something that amuses you."

The figure let out a small laugh as she walked forward until she was standing in the middle of the room in front of the death god's 'throne.' "You know me too well. As a matter of fact, there is. And I want to personally watch him…."

The Shinigami simply stared at her for a few moments, knowing immediately as to whom she was talking about.

"Why?"

The figure shrugged. "Many reasons. But the most important one being that just like you've figured out, Kami has indeed planned this out. There's way too many coincidences for all of this to be considered chance. And I think I might have an idea as to what the end result of this is supposed to be…."

Now that caught the Shinigami's attention. "Oh? And what might that be?"

The figure chuckled. "That's for me to know and for you to figure out. After all, this time, I'm the observer. You're a part of this now, big shot Shinigami-sama."

Now she was just messing with him.

"Whatever. Just make sure that no one catches you. It would be too troublesome if you were to be found."

The cloaked figure shook her head. "You underestimate me. How do you think I've been under the radar from Izanagi all this time? Not from lack of skill, that I can assure you."

"It's because I'm hiding you away," retorted the death god.

"Well….no point going into the details, is there?"

The Shinigami merely shook his head.

The figure was about to leave before something else crossed her mind. "By the way, you haven't told me where exactly you're keeping the souls of his companions…."

The Shinigami look at her in amusement. "Now, wouldn't you like to know that?" The death god then shook his head. "Don't worry about it. I have them secured. It would be too troublesome if he somehow finds a way to rescue them even without my blessing. The least I need is for him to get stronger with more allies on his side."

'Oh, I don't know about that,' thought the figured but didn't voice it out loud. Everyone had their secrets.

Throwing a wave behind her, the figured turned the other way. "I'll be seeing you then."

The Shinigami merely watched her as she disappeared into nothingness. It was time to continue on with his preparations.

Ken was scared, period. Okay, so maybe it would be a lot better to go into more details as to why he was even scared or at what….and the word 'scared' wasn't the most appropriate either. Coming to a decision, Ken would describe his current self as freaked the fuck out.

Really. He had always thought that the so-called 'Chairman' was a bit odd. He hadn't really been able to place his finger on it at the time. And because of that, he had just dismissed the whole thing. But now knowing what he and his corporation were, Ken now knew that his gut had been right all along. Even then, however, the thought had never crossed Ken's mind that the guy was this creepy.

Ken had been with the guy for the past week, following him all around the world on the 'man's' so called business meetings, meetings which the former CIA agent knew were just a front to fool him. But of course, Ken wondered as to why the guy didn't just simply kill him and replace him with someone else. It wasn't really a comforting thought, but Ken wasn't all too concerned about that. Whether he died a few seconds from now or in a few years, it was all the same for him.

But to the topic at hand…..oh right, the Chairman's creepiness. Looking around the gray room that he was currently in, Ken reassured his thoughts. As far as he knew, he was in Tokyo which meant that he was extremely close to the Uzumakis. It wasn't like he could get a message through to them, however. Not under these conditions. And those conditions were being monitored by cameras placed inside the room. Another fact going into the whole 'creepy' aspect of all of this.

'I wonder if all big powerful deities are this messed up….' he mused. Seriously. The guy didn't talk at all unless necessary. He looked like a statue half of the time with his eyes closed. Not to mention the fact that Ken wasn't even sure if the old guy even breathed at times!

Ken sighed again as he leaned back on the wall that stood next to his small bed for the moment. Really, this really resembled some sort of confinement for a crazy person. And Ken was sure that he wasn't insane….much. His only consolation was that this wouldn't last much longer. Just two more days before the stupid meeting in Geneva, and he would be reassigned to another assignment. If he survived whatever it was that was going to happen at least. Or if even the United States survived for that matter.

Coming out of his thoughts, Ken looked around the room, noticing that something felt odd. He wasn't entirely sure, but he thought that he had felt a sudden change in the air. Maybe it was just his mind starting to play tricks on him. A full day of confinement did that to a person, he supposed. He would have to complain to the damn bastard that he couldn't just be kept like a trapped animal! Then again, for all intents and purposes, the President had basically sold him. Of course, he hadn't used that term or anything like it. Officially, he knew that he was a bodyguard, but it was obvious that he was anything but that. More like a bargaining chip that could be given away at any moment for the sake of his country. For patriotism. In other words, he was expandable. He hated his job sometimes.

Ken was suddenly on his feet as he heard the only door present in the room open. Well, this was certainly surprising. Maybe they were going to let him out earlier than he expected. Now there was a comforting thought.

But instead of seeing the two men that had been 'guarding' him because of his importance in this matter….full of bullshit….all that Ken saw was a young purple haired girl standing at the now opened doorway.

Ken raised an eyebrow. "And who might you be?"

The girl simply let out a small grin. "You can call me Violet, Ken Washington."

Ken frowned at this. Just how the hell did this girl know his name? Hell, his full name for that matter! No one knew that except for himself, the President, and Anko. Things just kept getting weirder and weirder.

"And just how do you know my name?"

Violet shrugged. "Oh, I just know things."

One of Ken's eyebrows twitched at the answer. Okay, so the girl wasn't going to give anything up. Ugh, kids these days. Personally, Ken blamed the internet, but that was another issue better saved for later.

Ken released a sigh as he ran a hand through his hair. "Well then, miss Violet, are you going to tell me what exactly it is that you're doing here?"

Violet shrugged again. "Nothing especial really. I just wanted to see the CIA agent that my…..father brought along with him. You don't see one everyday, ya know. Well, with you knowing about it anyways."

On the outside, Ken proceeded all of this with a calm look. On the inside, however, things were going a lot differently. 'Did she just say FATHER?' Ken screamed in his mind. None of the records that the Uzumakis had sent him said anything about the bastard having any kids! Hell, not even in the files that the CIA had had on this corporation mentioned anything related to this. What the hell!

Violet on the other hand had to use her entire willpower to not break down laughing. She could already tell what was going on within the agent's mind. It was amusing to say the least. But unfortunately she didn't have much time here. She had used her powers to stop time in the area with the Watcher thankfully not being here at the moment. But she knew that wouldn't last forever.

"I do have one question though…."

Ken paused with his mental rant about poor intelligence and idiotic over powered beings as he heard this. "Oh? And what might that be?"

Violet walked forward until she was standing in front of Ken, now showing that Ken was taller than the girl by a few good inches. Looking up at him with their eyes meeting, a smirk appeared on the girl's face.

"I know that you already know what my father really is. I have my dear Naruto to thank for that. So why exactly are you here then? I'm sure that you must know that you can be killed at any second and no one would ever know."

Ken's eyes were wide in shock as he heard all the words that came out of the girl's mouth. Well, damn. What ever happened to the sweet innocence that had existed within every kid and teenager? The world was truly fucked up.

Looking at her, Ken narrowed his eyes. "And just how do you know this exactly?"

The smirk on Violet's face became wider. "Like I told you: I know things. But I don't know the answer to my question. That's why I'm really anxious to know it."

The gig was up. If this girl knew what he was really doing here, then so did the Chairman. At this point, Ken truly considered his life over. But unlike most people, it didn't scare him at the least. How odd….

To Violet's surprise, the shock disappeared from Ken's face with no fear present whatsoever, the complete opposite of what she had thought would happen.

"Because I have nothing to lose. Whether I die this instant or years from now, it makes no difference to me. That's my answer, Violet."

The smirk disappeared from the girl's face as she took a couple of steps back. "Is that so? Well, you might not be as worthless as everyone else on this planet then, Ken."

Ken chuckled without any real humor. "Oh no, you've got it all wrong. It's the complete opposite. The very reason that I'm even here for a reason like that makes me more worthless than anyone else on this forsaken planet. I'm a broken man, girl. And it's all because of your father. But that brings me to ask you a question….what are you going to do?"

The smirk returned on the girl's face as she turned towards the door. "Oh, don't worry. I'm not going to rat you out. You interest me, Ken Washington. You interest me enough to the point that I wanna see how you end up with my own eyes. If you had given me a different answer that would had made me lose interest, you would be dead now."

Throwing a wink towards him, Violet walked off. "My dear daddy doesn't know about you either. He's too busy with other bigger problems to notice a small detail like this. Not to mention that he's a bit too much arrogant to ever think that a spy would be inside his very own tower. I'll see you around, handsome."

Ken collapsed on the bed as the door closed. Not only that, but it suddenly felt like life returned to the area. Ken held his head at the ridiculous thought.

'I must be going insane…..'

Something was clear to him, however: that Violet girl wasn't the average girl. Now as to how different she was….well, Ken wasn't so sure that he wanted to find out. He really needed to contact the Uzumakis somehow and tell them that he was compromised. He wouldn't be surprised if he was killed at any moment.

But how? He had some planning to do.

The Watcher watched calmly from a hillside as thousands or perhaps even tens of thousands of corrupt souls tried to escape out of this part of the Shinigami's domain. This had to be by far the biggest breakout that he had pulled off so far. Before this, it had only been a few at a time, like a couple of thousand having been the maximum. This would no doubt catch the Shinigami's attention all right.

Looking around the hillside, the Watcher knew that he stood out. After all, everything around here was dark and depressing. And he was wearing white robes. Certainly this would have caught the attention of every soul in the vicinity. But said souls could care less about something like that at the moment. All they cared about right now was braking out. Which was fine with him. It was the whole reason that he even fed a bunch of his men to them as well as many other normal humans.

Now, one would immediately ask as to where in the world had he come to acquire regular human beings in a big enough of quantity to feed thousands of souls. And the answer to that was simple: a little thing known as the black market. The Watcher was basically now in control of most big slave traders on the planet. And as to how he accomplished this….no, he didn't do it the hard way. He was beyond that. A little bit of hypnotism on the leaders and bam, he was in. It was that simple.

Taking control of the most prominent slave traders of this time had been the first thing that he had done before building his company. And it was because of this that he had been able to acquire his most important tool: Violet. With that being said, it had been him who had sent both of those men that day to kill Violet's parents. It had been a delicate plan. He hadn't wanted to send too many of them in case things got out of hand. So in the end, he had decided to go with only two. And the two idiots had gotten the job done perfectly, especially Gunn. The young girl had been traumatized enough to join him in his quest instead of going off and wasting the talent that he had given her with the power that he now had.

Now that also brought another interesting question: why did he choose Violet out of all other humans on the planet? This too had a simple answer. Not just anyone could handle the power that he had given her. It might only be a fraction, perhaps even less than that, of the being who he had once served under, but it was still no ordinary power. So he couldn't just give it to a random person who would just be killed the instant that he or she came into contact with it. The answer lied with Violet's mother. The woman had come from a long family that possessed a strong resilient life force accompanied by higher than normal chakra reserves, even by the shinobi standards. The family had once been known as the Terumi clan, the branch of the Uzumaki clan that had split off from the main clan. Even so, it seemed that Violet's mother had been one of the rare exceptions where both the chakra reserves and the resilient life force weren't present all that strongly. Her daughter was the complete opposite. The only thing that bothered him the most was as to how strong both of these forces were present within the young girl. This hadn't happened since that woman, Terumi Mei, had died.

'I guess I shouldn't dwell on it….'

Turning his attention back down below, the Watcher saw that most of the souls had gotten out through the main gate, if it could even be called that. This sudden and massive release would no doubt weaken the barrier to the point where it would only need one more little push for it to break.

In the many years that he had worked as one of the most prominent messengers for heaven, he had learned quite a few things. For example, like how this barrier separating the two main parts of the Shinigami's domain worked. It was quite ingenious in a sense, he had to admit. It basically operated on the natural power emanated by every soul captured, both on this side and the other. This way, there was literately an endless supply of energy that kept the barrier from collapsing or being overrun. This also kept the souls in check, reducing their power to the bare minimum, especially on this side. The only exception to this being the shinigami of course. But of course, in order to break this system, all that was required was to tip the balance off in one of the two halves. And it was much easier to disrupt things from this side than the other. After all, all souls here were corrupt. They would take the chance at power and freedom any day, no matter the consequences. And that was basically what he had given them. But of course, he forgot to mention what the consequence was, but he knew that they wouldn't have cared anyways. In order to empower them, all he did was give them other human souls to consume. As a result, however, they became Hollows even before they got out. And once they did get out, they continued on their endless consuming campaign on other souls in the human world. The other shinigamis were not pleased.

The balance was no longer present. Without souls in one half to sustain the barrier, it wouldn't take long for the barrier to collapse. The end result? The two halves would fight against the other, resulting in a civil war. A civil war which would then spread to the human realm. Once that happened, Kami would no doubt have to step in, breaking one of the oldest rules present in the universe: gods don't meddle in the problems of other gods. Of course, this rule was constantly broken in the shadows. But in the open? It would result in chaos amongst the other gods. All sense of a rule based society would cease. But he wasn't concerned about what would happen with them. No, he was most interested with what would happen in the human realm. He had already set in motion for the humans to go down the path of a nuclear war, the greatest power at their disposal now. The destruction that would result from this combined by the consequences of the civil war that would then later occur there would be more than enough for him and Violet to appear before them as the new rulers, the new god and goddess. It had always been his dream. And he was now close to achieving it.

But first, he would have to take care of Naruto and Ichigo. They were the two other representatives of this upcoming conflict. The Watcher mused the idea. 'Disciples' was their title. Those chosen to represent one god in whatever conflict that emerged. This rule had been created as a means of ensuring that the most peaceful resolution could be achieved. Sure, it still involved violence. But the damage would be greatly lessen than the gods themselves doing the fighting with their many followers. The Watcher wasn't sure why Kami was going with this, but he didn't much care either. He would win at this as well. He had all the best cards in his hand. He knew that his tactics weren't the most honorable, but he believed that the end justified the means. Humanity, Kami's greatest creation, would be transformed under him.

He would no longer be simply known as 'Kami's simple aide.' As a nobody. No, he would ascend to greater heights. He would become a god.

Kurosaki Isshin had to admit to himself that the situation that he found himself in was definitely not one that he had ever expected to be in. Like, seriously! Then again, his life hadn't gone the way that he had expected ever since he met Masaki. Not that he was complaining either.

Still, as he watched the calm scenery from within the passenger's seat of a black BMW, Isshin had to admit to himself that what he was about to do was certainly one of the craziest things that he had ever planned on doing. He couldn't wait.

"So, do we really have a plan here?"

Looking back at the only other passenger on the backseats, the shinigami agent could only shrug. "I really don't know. The only reason I'm here is because of our stemmed leader."

Uzumaki Fuka sighed as she leaned back on her seat. Discarding her previous attire, she now wore a female version of Naruto's 'combat outfit,' which perfectly outlined her knockout body.

Looking at Naruto who was the one currently driving, she restated her question, "So, what exactly is the plan?"

Naruto, now wearing his combat attire save for the mask, simply shrugged. "Does it look like I have a plan?"

Isshin looked at him in contemplation. "Well, you are driving without a care in the world. Certainly not the type of behavior one would expect from a person who has no idea of what he's doing."

"Or that he's afraid," chimed in Fuka with dull tone.

Naruto chuckled. "Well, that's just it. I don't really have a plan, but I'm not afraid either."

Isshin nodded in understanding. "I see….I understand you completely."

Naruto glanced at him with a small grin. "I knew you would."

Both men chuckled.

Fuka on the other hand could only look between the two males like as if they had each grown a second head. "Do you understand how stupid that sounds?"

Naruto shook his head in obvious amusement. "No, I don't think I do. Mind enlightening me, Fuka-chan?"

Disregarding the suffix added to her name, the only redhead present did just that, "We're going into one of The Watch's buildings, the main one I might add, to try and destroy it without even having a plan? Oh, and if I might also add, I should also say that we're unarmed!"

Naruto merely shook his head again. "Ah, but that is where you are wrong, my dear Fuka-chan. We are not unarmed for we are weapons themselves. As for not having a plan….well, plans are overrated. Not to mention the bomb that I have stored in the trunk of the car set to blow a few minutes after we get to the tower."

Fuka blinked in astonishment. "Hold up….did you just say that you have a bomb in the trunk?" At Naruto's nod, she exploded. "WHERE DID YOU GET A FREAKING BOMB FROM!"

Naruto shrugged. "Oh, from a guy….."

Isshin looked at Naruto with a raised eyebrow. "And here I thought that your corporation wasn't in the terrorist business…."

Naruto shrugged again. "We aren't. But that doesn't mean that we haven't acquired contacts over the years. Especially through Zetsu who, indirectly, was also the one that found out that The Watch's main tower is here in Tokyo….just a few minutes from ours." The last part was said in a more quite tone, not that the others hadn't heard it.

Isshin continued to look at him. "And you didn't know of this before because…..?"

Naruto looked right back at him as he stopped at a red light. "Do you really have to ask?"

Isshin shook his head. "No, I guess I don't."

They had just simply not paid any attention to their surroundings. Not to mention the fact that there weren't any real signs that the Watch owned the freaking building. The only reason Zetsu was able to find this out was because the two halves had had a lot of free time throughout the past week….and torturing a few people here and there, mainly White Zetsu threatening to eat them if they didn't talk. Of course, he still ate them even if they did talk. Where all of that was going to, Naruto didn't want to know.

Fuka cleared her throat, catching Naruto's attention. "So if I'm understanding this correctly, you plan to just waltz into The Watch's tower and bomb it, effectively killing many innocent people…..why?"

Naruto looked at her with a surprised look. "Since when are you one to care about the innocent?"

Fuka immediately shook her head. "Don't get me wrong. I don't. I'm just trying to make sure that you know exactly what it is that you're planning on doing….if it can even be called planning anyways."

Naruto smirked as the light turned back to green, making him focus back on the road again. "Oh, but I do. I don't care if the workers there know what exactly the person who they're working for is or what he's planning on doing. They chose their side the second they decided to work there. As for the why part…..it's a sort of test for us. Even though I doubt that the old bastard himself is right there right now, I'm sure that he left some security there. It's too bad that Kushina wasn't able to join us, though."

Fuka already knew as to what security he was talking about: the jinchuriki. Naruto, Kushina, and herself had been training nonstop for the past week under the guidance of Isshin to prepare themselves. Of course, there was some things that they just needed to remind themselves in, but the shinigami agent came quite in handy in getting their bodies back to what they had once been during the Shinobi era. Or as close to it as possible anyways. And he was a great training dummy for their many techniques so that their bodies could get used to performing jutsus too. And Fuka had to say that she certainly liked the feeling of it.

Naruto continued, "Besides, it's still a Watch tower. That mere fact makes me want to blow it up…..any problems with that?"

Fuka shook her head no.

Naruto nodded in satisfaction. "Good."

Isshin then joined in, "Any particular reason why we're taking a car? You could use that teleportation ability of yours."

"I would," agreed Naruto, "except that you're forgetting the precious cargo that we're carrying. I'm not exactly certain what a space-time jutsu would do to a technology as delicate as that, and I would rather not find out."

Fuka chuckled. "Now there's the smartest thing I've heard all day."

Isshin turned back to looking out the window. "I see."

Fuka then hummed in thought, a particular fact coming to mind. "Does this suicidal plan of yours also have to tie in to the fact that you haven't heard from the Ken guy if a few days?"

Naruto didn't respond as the car came to another stop in front of The Watch tower. A brief silence reigned within the car until Naruto broke it, "A little. Before my baby blows up, I want to see if his cover has been blown. The last thing that he told us was that the President had placed him as a sort of bodyguard for the old bastard." Naruto then shrugged. "Of course, there's also the possibility that he betrayed us, but I'd already took countermeasures of preventing that from being a serious blow."

Isshin looked on in interest at this, not having heard of this Ken person before this. "Such as?"

"Not giving him full information. This way, the old bastard doesn't know everything that we know if he does turn out to be a traitor."

"But doesn't that hurt us if he's not a traitor?" questioned Fuka. "I mean, he wouldn't be able to perform efficiently without proper intel."

Naruto chuckled. "True. I mean, that is us most of the time, so I can see where you're coming from. But I already know the risks involved. I am fully prepared to act with as little as information as possible. Besides, you're forgetting one thing, Fuka-chan."

Fuka raised an eyebrow. "Which is?"

Naruto looked at Isshin, an unreadable look on his face even though a grin formed itself on his lips. "You're forgetting the fact that the shinigamis haven't shared all their knowledge to us about this matter."

Isshin didn't show any expressions on his face that would give anything away of what he thought of that statement, not that Naruto had been expecting one anyways.

Fuka, however, looked at Isshin in surprise. It seemed that one really couldn't trust anyone nowadays.

"So you know, eh?" said Isshin with a smile.

"Yes, I do."

"How long have you known?"

Naruto crossed his arms in contemplation. "Honestly? I don't know. I just got the feeling that you were hiding something from me. This just confirms it."

Isshin's face took on a confused look to it. "And you didn't push why?"

Naruto shrugged. "Because I need you just in the same way that you need me apparently. We are simply using each other. The only difference begin that you have more knowledge regarding to everything that's happening, so you have the advantage…..for now that is."

Isshin chuckled. "You're a very interesting person, you know that, Uzumaki?"

Naruto grinned as he turned his focus to the building in front of him. "I've heard that a few times before. But are we going to do this or what? It would be a shame for Zetsu's intel to go to waste."

Fuka rolled her eyes, putting what she had just learned in the back of her mind for now. "We're already here, so we might as well. Besides, we all know that you won't take no for an answer."

Naruto's grin became wider. "Isn't that the truth….."

Fuka glanced at Naruto through her peripherals. A major change had occurred within the blond the past week. This much was obvious to her. And neither Kushina nor herself were complaining. This just helped them a lot, having the old Naruto back on their side. It made things easier…..okay, not easier but doable at least. But of course, she would have to survive this insanity first.

Stepping on the gas, Naruto laughed like a madman as he rammed the car into the main entrance before heading down to the garage levels. It was go time.

It had been unexpected. Ken had been sitting on his bed, his back against the wall, thinking of a way to contact the Uzumakis on the outside. He at least wanted to share with them all the information that he had learned up to this point since it was obvious that his time was limited.

And then it happened. An explosion which rocked the whole building. Ken wasn't sure where exactly it came from, but he had to admit that it had been powerful. All the lights within the room went off the very next moment, making Ken realize that the explosion had taken place somewhere near the electric generators.

Not waiting a moment longer, he made for the door which he found to now be unlocked.

'It must have been powered by the electricity….' And now it was gone. So he was now basically free. Well, this was certainly his lucky day. Looking around the hallway outside the room, Ken found it empty. Where had the two security guards gone to? Well, he wasn't about to question this turn of events. He was going to profit from it.

Looking around for a few more moments to make sure that it was clear, he made his way out of the room and towards the stairs. It was time to get out of here.

Black Zetsu sighed to himself as he felt the explosion rocket throughout the entire building. Looking down below from the ceiling of one of the main hallways of the facility, the spy saw how all of the guards in the vicinity were in the move down towards the lowest levels of the building. No doubt that they were alerted to Naruto's presence and were now trying to stop him.

This worked out well for him. Now all he needed to do was find this Ken person which Naruto had ordered him to do while he took care of the real reason why they were even here in the first place…..besides blowing up the building for shits and giggles.

Seeing the area now clear, he began his mission.

Fuka dodged to one of the pillars within the garage as bullets flew all around her. Well, this wasn't how she had been expecting to go about her day.

Looking at Isshin who was also behind one of the nearby pillars, Fuka had to raise an eyebrow in confusion. Why was he even taking cover for? It wasn't like he could die from these bullets….then again, they could probably hurt him. On the other hand, how could these simply guards even see him? She knew that she could because of the Juubi's chakra running through her veins just as Zetsu could because he was created through the rinnegan's power.

But these guards…..

A bullet flew a centimeter from her cheek, making her focus back on the situation at hand. She could worry about that after she made it out of this insanity.

Naruto was crouched by the now nearly destroyed car, setting the detonator for the bomb that he had bought from the black market. Keeping contacts like that certainly did come in handy at times like these.

'And Kushina had said that it would be a waste of time…..'

Finishing up, Naruto was quick to appear besides Fuka, earning a small squeal of surprise from her.

Before she could say anything, Naruto said, "You only got about ten minutes here. You and Isshin can do whatever damage it is that you want in that time. But I want you out of here and at a safe distance before this thing blows up. Is that clear?"

Fuka could only nod, taking note of the seriousness in his voice as he said this. "But where are you going to be?"

The question earned her a smirk from the person in front of her. Leaning in, Naruto kissed the surprised Fuka for a moment before leaning in her ear to whisper, "Gathering information."

The next moment he was gone in a flash. Quite literally.

On the other side, Isshin rolled his eyes slightly at the look that Fuka currently wore on her face. A look of wanting if he had to guess. That was just great. All he had on his side was a horny redhead….

Sighing, he unsheathed his sword. He wasn't one for complaining. Might as well just go with the flow.

Naruto walked calmly through the many empty hallways, looking as if he didn't have a care in the world even though he knew that a bomb was set to blow this place up in a few minutes.

Coming to a stop, Naruto realized that he had forgotten something. Reaching for the kunai pouch on his backpocket, he quickly pulled put a scroll which he opened instantly. A moment later, the Seikatsugakari appeared in his hands in a puff of smoke.

"About time that you remembered, Uzumaki."

'You could have just reminded me, you know.'

"I was testing you to see whether or not you would forget about me.'

Naruto rolled his eyes slightly as he continued to walk. 'Did I pass?'

"Yes….if barely."

Naruto chuckled. 'I'll take it.'

"Right. So, it seems that your 'plan' is going just as you hoped."

'I guess so. But the most important part has just to appear. It's the whole reason I'm even doing this.'

"Going to go against the Violet girl again, are you? In all honesty, I hadn't been expecting for you to do such a bold action such as this. I had thought that you would do things slower."

'Then you obviously don't know me. I was known for my unpredictability, you know. Besides, there's something that I need to confirm as soon as possible…'

The sentient sword was quiet at that, already knowing what its wielder was so eager to know. Not that it could blame him either. This was also something that intrigued it.

Placing the sword on his shoulder, Naruto quickened his pace. Somewhere in this building was Violet, and he was going to find her and solve the jinchuriki mystery once and for all. For Fu….

Narrowing his eyes, he began to run.

Within the highest floor of the tower, Violet grinned to herself as she could see the commotion that was now happening outside. Mainly, the father of that other disciple massacring the Watcher's mindless agents. She doubted that the shinigami knew that she was the one currently holding his daughters. That went for his son as well since he wasn't even here. That only left Naruto.

'So you found me, eh? Well, it was about time….'

Turning her head back, she saw the motionless forms of Fu, Roshi, and Han. Sending a signal to both Roshi and Han, the two former Iwa jinchuriki ran forward, smashing right through the glass window and flying down towards where the fight was taking place.

This would make things more interesting until Naruto arrived. Watching a shinigami slaughter humans got boring after a while. Time to see how he would fare against two jinchuriki.

Placing the leather chair behind her, Violet made herself comfortable for the show that was about to happen in front of her.

Kushina sighed as she continued to make the last of the preparations for the meeting in Geneva in a couple of days. Now dressed in the exact same attire as Fuka, the redhead leaned back on her chair, stretching for a bit. She could have just left a shadow clone to take care of this and accompanied Naruto and the others in their 'mission,' but she felt a lot better and secured doing all of this herself.

What was going to happen at that meeting was no small matter, after all. While Ken hadn't said anything about what the Watcher had been planning on accomplishing there in his last report, Kushina could make a few hypothesis herself. And quite honestly, she didn't like any one of them which was why their presence there needed to be perfect when stopping whatever it was that the Watcher would do.

Not to mention…..

"Are you done already?"

Looking at White Zetsu who was walking aimlessly around the room, Kushina had to wonder why both Naruto and Black Zetsu had insisted on leaving him here for 'security.' Now, that was the greatest bullshit that Kushina had heard in some time. She didn't need any protection. And even if she did, White Zetsu was certainly the last being for that job. It wasn't like she disliked him. It was just that…..well, there was just something wrong with him. Really, what was Madara thinking when he created White Zetsu? Maybe he just hadn't perfected his technique? Well, she would never know.

"Yes, I'm done," she answered as she stood up.

White Zetsu grinned at hearing that. "Great! Maybe if we hurry up, we can still take part in some of the action!"

Kushina shook her head. "No, that would be too risky. All the others have their parts set out for them. They don't need us. Besides, they told you specifically to stay put here. You wouldn't want to against Naruto and Black Zetsu, do you?"

White Zetsu turned pale at that.

Kushina got her answer right then and there. "Good. Now, c'mon. Maybe we can even relax for a bit before we have to set out for Geneva."

White Zetsu wordlessly followed behind her, obviously put off that he wouldn't be able to take part in what was happening at the Watch tower. It wasn't like he would screw things up!…..much. On second thought, maybe it was a good idea for him to have not tagged alone. It was going to be boring anyways. All that he would have done is to find that Ken guy. He wouldn't have been able to eat anyone, so who cared?

Kushina suddenly came to a stop, making White Zetsu look at her in confusion. "Eh…..any reason why you stopped?"

Not responding, Kushina turned her head back to all around the spacious room, her eyes narrowed.

It was at that moment that White Zetsu felt a change in the atmosphere. Also narrowing his eye, White Zetsu also looked around, now realizing that there was an intruder inside the room. He had been so caught up in his moping that he had missed this, it would seem. If Black Zetsu were here, he would have scolded him. Good thing that he wasn't.

Stepping forward, Kushina called out, "We know you're here. Show yourself now!"

There was a brief pause of silence until it was broken by amused laughter.

Looking at the spot where Kushina had been sitting a few moments earlier, both the redhead and White Zetsu came face to face with a cloaked figure.

"Well, it seems that I slipped up there," the figure, obviously female, said with much amusement.

Kushina narrowed her eyes at her. That was no screw up. Whoever this individual was wanted for one of them to have detected her. But for what reason?

Narrowing her eyes further, Kushina was instantly on guard. "Just who are you? How did you get here? What do you want?"

"My, my," the figure interrupted, shaking her head a bit. "You sure do have an awful lot of questions. Well, I can't blame you. You'll come to know as to just how I got here. For as to what I want….I'm here to tell you a small tale, Uzumaki Kushina."

"Is that so?" Kushina said with a raised eyebrow and a bit of sarcasm. "Well, isn't that nice of you? To come all this way just to tell me a tale. I'm honored. But what makes you so sure that I'm even interested?"

The figure shrugged. "Oh, I don't know. Maybe because it has to do with your precious Naruto."

Now that immediately caught Kushina's attention, something which the figure noticed instantly. "Well, that certainly did catch your attention, didn't it?"

Kushina growled. "I'm not in the mood for games."

"No, I suppose you're not," remarked the figure as she brought two hands towards the hood covering her face. Kushina took notice of the fact that the hands looked as if they belonged to an old woman.

"But first, I'll answer your first question." Seeing her remove the hood, Kushina came face to face with who appeared to be a very old woman. The old woman simply smiled at her.

"I really don't have a name. But I suppose that you would know me best as Izanami. It's a pleasure, Uzumaki Kushina."

Now, I know that a lot of things were revealed in this chapter, meaning that many of you will have questions, if not all. Honestly, I don't really know where to begin. So I'll just leave it up to you guys to ask whatever it is that you don't understand. And whatever wasn't explained in this chapter will be explained later on.

And as you can see, Naruto is now basically his old self. I didn't really want to go into the week in which he spent training along with both Kushina and Fuka, not really seeing any reason for it. Also, the story is picking back up. So be prepared for a few more revelations specially with Izanami and Kushina as well as the Watcher and Violet.

Finally, this is my present to you guys for the joyous day of Halloween! Hmm….doesn't sound the same as Christmas but whatever. Hope to see all of you with cavities and whatnot. That's the whole purpose for Halloween. And that's it for me this time.

Till next time.