Adventitious Key of Hope
Disclaimer: I do not own Kingdom Hearts, Shonen Jump, or any media affiliated with them.
Omakey...
Night falls over at just the entrance of a forest. Donald and Goofy lie sleeping in the grass, with Naruto on fireguard. A chronograph made from his Stop magic clocks down to sunrise. He yawns resting on a log. "I wonder how long we'll be traveling... Where did Pluto go anyway?"
With a sigh he checks the clock, noticing it will soon be Donald's shift. But then he hears a noise. Getting up, he walks along the road. Nothing but the grass blowing from the wind and the silver light of sister moon. 'I really need some sleep.'
"Along the road ahead lies something you need," says a mysterious voice. He goes on the edge looking around for the source. After turning around a second time, he spots a person in a black coat. This slightly girly voice says, "However, to reclaim it, you must lose something that is dear to you."
The person disappears. "That wasn't him... So who?"
He goes back to Donald and Goofy waking them up. "Guys, get up! I found one of those guys in black!"
"What?!" Donald yawns before grabbing his scepter. Goofy gets his shield, and they follow down the path it leads.
This night trip eventually leads them to a black void surrounding a white continent. The only thing of interest is the golden castle plastered in the midst of it. A familiar one at that, but not to them.
Naruto looks at the door, before curiously opening it. The interior has a Romanesque design of white. There also exists symbols neither of them has ever seen. Goofy then asks, "Is it okay to just barge in?"
"We gotta look everywhere if we're gonna find the King," says Donald.
"He is?"
"Something just told me he'd be here," is Donald's answer.
"Weird. I was thinking that too." Goofy chuckles after giving his response.
"Wait, you both were too? That doesn't sound right..." Out from Naruto's coat crawls out Jiminy Cricket, having been silent and out of focus since his introduction back at Disney Castle yet with everyone since. "It can't be just a coincidence."
"I was feeling that way as well... Maybe there's something up with this place..." Naruto thinks further on about it. "Let's get to the bottom of this."
"Don't you mean the top?" All four turn to the door and spot the person in the black coat.
"You!" Naruto immediately summons his Keyblade, as the door slowly closes. They're practically trapped there. "You're the one who led me here!"
"Time for some magic!" Donald casts Thunder, or so he thought. When he tried, nothing comes out. He then attempts Fire, and then Blizzard, only for nothing to happen. "Why isn't it working?"
"What did you do?!" Naruto shouts, demanding to know who this guy is.
"It's obvious isn't it?" says the now recognized to be a male person. "Ever since you stepped in here, you have forgotten every technique, spell and attack you've known. That is the magic of Castle Oblivion."
"What?" They look up around them.
"This castle takes away every memory from you. To find is to lose, and to lose is to find." He then moves in towards Naruto, passing him by just like the guy from before at Hollow Bastion.
He falls flat on his behind. "What the?" Naruto then gets back up, ready to pulverize him. "What did you do?!" He jumps up and slashes him, only to hit an afterimage of rose petals.
The guy returns just above the steps leading further into the building. He takes out a blue card with a crown shaped top, saying, "I sampled this from your memories. This is the key to reclaiming your memories."
He throws the card to Naruto, who catches it. "If you wish to learn more, come forth. Will you lose and claim anew, or claim anew only to lose? I am Marluxia by the way."
Naruto looks down at his card. "... I'm not good at card games though. Where's Yugi?"
End Omakey...
The II Path: Prologue – Wake Up the Hero
Deep in a lab elsewhere, a couple of men watch over Xutaron. One has bandages wrapped over his face while the other is wearing the black coat. The man in the coat asks, "They were real, weren't they Kira?"
"Yes. Those Organization miscreants have found us. It's only a matter of time until they send someone stronger. Youko must hurry."
Back in the laboratory, the hooded men converse. The one in the black coat looks over at the man in red, Kira, while juggling a pink, mini bag single-handedly. He asks, "Is it really that hard to make a beach?"
"We'd be giving our enemies another entry point," replies Kira, tapping away at his multi-screen computer.
"And this?"
"What, you don't like free food?" Kira then laughs, looking to the side to pick up some notes from atop a charred book. Seeing the words D...h ..te on it angers him to a degree, but he calms himself. "Objects from that town must be kept from reality. Delete it."
He grasps the bag tightly in his fingers before walking away. "The day is already over. His restoration is getting closer."
Tomorrow…
It's Thursday, three days left until summer vacation ends. Xutaron exits the hangout spot with his eyes focused squarely on the main goal of today, meeting up with his friends at the train station. He got a message from Hayner saying that they would meet there later today.
"We needed cash last time to get to the beach. So what's changed?" He doesn't honestly want to remember yesterday, how they gathered the munny from odd jobs to get to the beach and it was all stolen by some guy in a black hood.
On his way up to the station, he spots Olette and Pence coming his way. "Xutaron," they say, before walking towards him. And like time is broken at a standstill, they freeze in place.
"W-What?" The confused teen walks over to them, only to come face to face with a red-haired beauty of a woman standing in front of him. She has fair skin with violet-blue eyes, covered completely in a white dress that doesn't hide her slender figure. Her soft looking lips purse into a smile. He's too entranced by her to actually speak.
"Hello, Xutaron." This sets up a flag in his mind as flagrant as her hair color. "I've always wanted to me you." She then walks by him, her waist-length crimson hair swinging to and fray as she passes down the elevation to leave his line of sight.
And everything resumes. "Olette dragged me into shopping with her," says Pence, as if nothing happened. Clearly, neither he nor Olette saw the girl.
"Wait, didn't you guys see..." He pauses, confused as hell. "What's going on?" He looks down to where she went. 'Was she going to that mansion?'
His friends stare at him, as the one with tall hair speaking, "He's stalling."
"Very well." She sighs before dragging Pence away. "We'll see you at the station later then Xutaron." As Pence complains, Xutaron keeps his eyes on where the girl left.
"Well, I got time." The spiky blond rushes off down the road.
Passing through town he enters the forest that separates Twilight Town from the mysterious residence. The darkened road puts him on edge, just as he sees something that catches his eye. The color gray has him in a frightened mood. He steps back avoiding the monster coming his way, realizing they're chasing after him.
"Get away from me!" he shouts, rushing off to escape what may be certain death. He reaches the sandlot, still the cause of pursuit. There he spots to his annoyance Oga and his gang of buddies. Oga himself is a tall bastard with brown hair and dark eyes, wearing some mess consisting of a brown jacket over a white shirt and jeans with boots. On his back hangs a baby with green hair and a pacifier in his mouth.
"Hey, chicken wuss! This sandlot ain't for you!" shouts the demon ogre, until he notices the white things.
There's a blue haired girl wearing wrappings around her upper body under a white jacket but over blue pants. Next to her is an even bigger man with spiky red-orange hair, dressed in a school uniform. "Who's that?" asks the girl.
"Who cares? It's already pissing me off," says Oga before clenching his fist. The white things come after them.
Just as the trio is about to attack, they freeze in another lock. Xutaron sees this and realizes what he saw earlier was real. "Oh no."
One of those white things hits him square in the face, sending him into a tree. He hits the ground with a painful thud, blood dripping down his nose. "Not good..."
"Xutaron, the Keyblade!" That's just when he hears that voice, the familiar voice of the girl he met earlier. He scans the area and looks up to see her on a balcony, just after she says, "Use the Keyblade to fight the Nobodies!"
"Huh?" He then spots one of the Nobodies coming at him and shields himself.
Upon doing so, he ends up in a world of utter blackness. Xutaron stands up, realizing he's not dead thankfully and taps the floor to check its stability. He looks down, and the darkness peels away at his feet, whitewashing to become a stained glass known as a Dive to the Heart. The platform itself consists of a familiar spiky headed blond boy resting while holding the Keyblade. In circles are four friends: a duck, a dog, a boy and a girl. He spots the Nobody Dusks dancing and parading outside of the platform.
Power sleeps within you.
Xutaron opens his mouth to question who spoke, only for no words to leave his lips. The words themselves enter his head.
But to use it, you must give it form. Now, choose.
He looks over and sees three items appearing from nothing, a sword, a shield and a scepter, all with that Mickey symbol on it. He goes to the sword believing it to be the best possible decision, only for him to change his mind. For some reason, his heart is calling out to the shield.
So, you have taken the power of the Defender.
Taking it, the other items disappear. His shield transforms into the Keyblade. He tests its weight, a feat he didn't do before and almost got seriously hurt because of, before smirking. The Dusks roam towards the platform creepily, and he gladly swings to keep it at bay. "It won't be like before," he says, ignoring the fact that he can speak now. He then holds up a stance, wielding the Keyblade like a samurai.
With both hands on the hilt, the Keyblade is lifted facing his left, a clear reflection in the silver teeth showing what's behind him. As he does, he asks himself why he is doing this. It's not from memory, but instinct, as if his heart remembers fighting this way.
One Dusk swirls through the air at his blind spot, though he knew it was coming. He slips underneath the Dusk and swipes upward, slashing through the being and creating white clusters from its death. The other two come down from above, jabbing their arms and legs like blades. Xutaron blocks the first two strikes before jumping back away from them.
He throws the Keyblade via Strike Raid, a technique he only just remembered, and destroyed the second in its path. The Keyblade spins and curves before coming his way like a boomerang, and catches it. The Dusk moves in up close swiping at him. He jumps back dodging the attacks, his cloak receiving tears from near misses. He watches as it comes in close, before flipping to the left while also striking it in the head. The Dusk bounces a bit before it explodes into white dust.
With his victory, he dismisses the Keyblade. He then sighs, just before a door appears on the platform he stands. Xutaron looks to the door and hears the voice again.
Be careful. Beyond that door lies a completely different world. But don't be afraid. Don't stop walking.
Nodding, he steps in passing through the doorway. He comes out on the other side standing on another platform. This one is connected to a bridge that leads to another platform, consisting of stained glass. He rushes up the path, occasionally summoning his Keyblade just as more Dusks attack him out of nowhere. This continues until reaching the third platform, which also has a door. He passes through.
From that door, Xutaron reaches the new platform. Breathing out a sigh of depression he takes a moment to gaze up at the source of light from above. His instincts, however, kick in, and he quickly turns around to face the new threat behind him. "What?" Rising up from the darkness appears a giant version of those Dusks from earlier, with glove-like hands and four tentacles on its shoulder like a collar.
He hoists the Keyblade up over his shoulder prepared to fight when he gets blindsided by a powerful light. His eyes finally adjust, no longer blinded. He sees the Twilight Thorn floating in front of him, though he himself is chained in the air by bonds of light. 'What the?'
It moves in close, staring deep at him. The white demon makes a groaning sound before rearing its left arm claw thing back. It then swings, but at the last second, he breaks free from all but one of his bindings. He then slams the Keyblade, sending it twirling back. 'Whoa! Where'd this strength come from?'
He hangs from the bonding on his left arm and glares at the Twilight Thorn. It, however, won't fall for the same thing, and instead pulls him free. Xutaron is thrown into the air viciously. Instincts overtake him once more, allowing him to dodge an attack that would slam him into the floor. He slashes, knocking off a piece of its face.
Xutaron lands and the giant Dusk hits the floor. It then slithers off stage, giving the Keyblade wielder a moment to breathe. "Where is he gonna attack from next?" He scans his surroundings looking at his openings. 'It's gonna go for a blind spot. But where?'
The platform then shakes, and Xutaron slips down. He stabs his key into the floor to save himself. "That damn…" He looks down at a light from below, a sphere of destruction formed by the Twilight Thorn. It flips him off the platform and throws the sphere at him.
Falling, Xutaron aims his sight at the center of the orb. 'Let's see…' His eyes flash red as power explodes off of him, and he throws a Strike Raid. It cuts through and destroys the sphere, causing an explosion that blows back the monster backward.
They both hit the ground with a mighty thud, the Thorn almost breaking its neck. Xutaron sees his sword stabbed in the platform next to him from the fall, and he picks himself up with a groan to draw it out. "That's it." He then slams the Keyblade in its head, knocking off more of its pieces and piling up lots of damage.
The Thorn recovers and flies up, knocking him back. Xutaron slips off the platform but stabs his sword into the floor to spin himself back around. The Thorn slithers through the air like a flying snake, or those annoying Dusks, and wiggles its claw arms to crush him. Xutaron jumps away to avoid, the power surrounding him earlier bursting out in a red aura. He gains enough strength to slash and deflect its claws, before getting blindsided by black and white thread thorns that strike him. He rolls over in pain, his clothes ripped, and pushes his body back up.
'Ever since I came here, my power's been growing. I feel so much stronger, that attacks like those don't hurt as much as they should.' He recovers quite easily, shaking off the pain from earlier, before turning his eyes to the Thorn.
Light shines from his Keyblade as the thorn threads fire at him. The aura around him propels him upward, gliding along the thorn vines until he reaches his face. His Keyblade charged with power, he slices through its face and kicks off. Though upon landing, his Keyblade disappears. "Uh oh."
The Twilight Thorn groans before stumbling. The damage Xutaron dealt with it has weakened it considerably. It falls over on top of him, who screams upon impact. The darkness around him slowly swallows the teen, who groans unable to break free.
A hand suddenly reaches out and grabs his, pulling him free from his bonding. A bright light sets him free from his confounds, bringing him to a bright white room. Among the many things in the room exist doors with crown tops. Sitting on a chair is the girl from before. She smiles waving to him, saying, "My name is Youko, Xutaron."
After a slight pause, he slowly repeats her name: "Youko…"
She then says to him, "Xutaron, do you remember who you really are?"
"Who… I really am?"
"You are-" A portal of darkness opens up beside her and out steps the guy from before. "Oh. Look, I was just-"
"Say no more, Youko," he tells her. Xutaron looks at him, before registering his voice.
"But if no one tells him, Xutaron will..."
"It'll only be harder on him. It's best he doesn't know the truth."
"Hey, now I know why that voice sounds familiar! You're that pickpocket!" True to his memory, yesterday Xutaron lost the munny for the beach because he stole it. No one saw him so no one believed Xutaron, for all he told him was if he could feel someone from his memories.
The man simply raises a hand, summoning a portal behind him. Xutaron turns around to see it, only for the man in the black coat to push him in.
Timeskip…
Xutaron slowly opens his eyes as he regains his consciousness. Though to his horror, there's a naked baby on top of his face. So, he screams.
"Beel, get off me!" shouts Xutaron as he holds the baby up. "Why are you on my face anyway?"
"It made a great picture," says Oga standing just beside him. Though his sudden appearance shocks Xutaron and makes him drop baby Beel. Landing on his butt, the infant drops his pacifier. The baby looks up before tears form in his eyes. "Oh shi-"
And soon, both of them are covered in 100,000 volts of electricity. Finally, something normal for Xutaron!
After recovery, Xutaron lies on the floor while Oga walks off with Beel. "What happened with those things?"
"They ran off. Guess they got the lesson; no one shows up in my town and causes trouble!" he tells him. "Oh yeah, don't chicken out on the tournament tomorrow!"
Xutaron looks up thinking about what that means, before turning his head up to the steps leading up to the hideout. That's when he spots his friends, including an irritant Hayner running off. "Hey!" He chases after them.
Xutaron follows them back to the hideout, where he spots everyone looking at each other from him. Pence looks up, being the first one to finally speak. "Hey, Xutaron. You were hanging out with Shrek today?"
"No, it's not like that. I ran into trouble, and he just happened to be there," he lies, not knowing if he should tell them the full truth. It's not even a full lie, just him keeping some things quiet. He then checks the time and looks at the others. "So, how was the beach? Wasn't that today?"
"We didn't go," Olette says, answering his question. "It wouldn't be the same without you."
"Oh…Sorry. But hey, we can go tomorrow right?"
"I promised to be somewhere then," Hayner states.
"Oh. Oh!" He realizes what exactly he meant; tomorrow is the Struggle Tournament, where he and the strongest competitors face each other in a tournament for the grand prize of a statue for the four of them to share. As long as one of them wins. "That's right… Almost forgot."
Hayner gets up, before walking off disgruntled. "I'm outta here."
The day comes to an end with that, with everyone heading home to prepare for tomorrow. As they do, Xutaron gripes about what he did. As well as having another dream about a certain someone.
Elsewhere…
In the dark lab, the hooded man and Kira watch over the events that took place. With its conclusion, the faceless asks, "Was that Youko made of data?"
"No. Youko hijacked the data herself. Look what she's done now… She's become out of my control, considering she's just a Nobody." Kira then slams the desk hard after speaking.
"Chill out."
Kira growls under his breath. "It doesn't matter. As long as she does what she was assigned, the end result will still be the same. What befalls Xutaron won't concern us."
The Next Day…
The next day, Xutaron reaches the sandlot bright and early despite the eternal twilight. There's a square white stage set up with everyone gathering for the duel, stands for everyone to sit and watch, and concessions for all types of unhealthy snacks people want. Pence and Olette are in the stands getting themselves situated.
Xutaron makes it there just in time to see his friends, waving to them as they to him. He walks over to the stage to meet with the other competitors and the judge. The judge and his stylish mustache say, "Ladies and gentlemen, welcome! It's time for summer's most sizzling clash!"
People begin cheering. "That's right! It's time for the Struggle! And the title match!"
"Who will be the one to break through the ranks, and take on our champion?!" People chant out the four names taking part in the competition: Oga, Xutaron, Hayner, and Kunieda.
The champion stands in the center wielding an umbrella. She's a blond bombshell dressed gothic lolita style, caring for baby Beel. All the guys cheer hard with her appearance. "Only the winner of the Struggle Competition can take on our champion Hildegarde."
"As if I care," she says, turning her eyes over to the audience, including Oga.
"With the crowd fired up, you know what comes next! Let's…" Everyone at once then says, "STRUGGLE!"
An assistant comes up and speaks out introducing the finalists. "Now to bring to you the bad boys who made it through the preliminaries!" The finalists come up onto the stage as Hilda steps down. "Regular finalist and head of the Twilight Disciplinary Committee: Tatsumi Oga!
"Leader of the Red Tails, Kunieda Aoi!
"Underground favorite and local attitude problem, Hayner!
"And finally, newcomer and favorite customer, Xutaron! One will win this sweltering struggle! One will take away the summa cum laude of Struggle – The Four Crystal Trophy! Only ONE will-"
"WE GET IT ALREADY! START THE COMPETITION!" shouts Hayner, Oga, and Hilda.
The assistant backs down from their unison. "O-Okay. After a brief interval, we shall begin. The first contestants will be Hayner and Xutaron."
The two remain on stage as the other two drop down. Both receive their specialized batons, Hayner's been an attack focused one while Xutaron's has a guard. The blond teen looks down at the floor, away from his friend's face.
"Hayner, I'm sorry about yesterday," he says.
"What, you still worried about that?" asks his buddy. "You've got to learn to let stuff go."
"I have got a lot on my mind ever since that burglar…"
"… Sorry," Hayner says before he realizes something. "Wait, what am I sorry for?"
"And now, the first round shall begin! Who will win: Hayner, or Xutaron?" Their friendship reestablished, they prepare themselves for battle. Xutaron forms his samurai stance as Hayner bounces waving his baton.
"Here it comes!" Hayner jumps towards Xutaron attempting to jab him. The blond blocks his strike by pushing his weapon upward, causing the baton to miss and go over his head. He steps back just as Hayner rapidly swings. His precise strikes almost hit home, until Xutaron slides along the baton to reach his arm. He pulls him down and then with the hilt jabs him in the throat, sending him falling backward.
A fury of blue balloons shoot out from the impact, and Hayner lays on the ground in pain. He tries to get up but fails to choke. Xutaron looks in shock at what happened. He's so much stronger than he thought he'd be. "Hayner! I'm so sorry!"
Hayner groans feeling the pain of Xutaron's thrust. "Ah man… I thought I'd last longer than that!"
"And the winner is, Xutaron! Not even friendship will slow these guys down!"
The crowd watches in shock at the sudden change in development. In an instant Xutaron won. They all begin clapping, with even Oga impressed. Hayner is helped up by Xutaron. "You got tougher lately."
"Yeah. Thanks for noticing. Guess you taught me well."
He laughs at that, before patting Xutaron on the shoulder. "Go win the match for us."
Oga walks up on stage passing by Hayner, shouting, "Out of the way!"
Xutaron looks to his left and spots Aoi standing there suddenly. "What the?" She looks back at him with an eerie smile. Aoi turns her eyes to Oga, and instead of that strange look she usually has looking at him, there's this dark glare.
Hayner and Xutaron step back from the stage allowing the fight to begin. As the announcer says, "Let the second match begin! Aoi vs Oga!"
The two square off on each other, both holding an offensive based baton. Aoi moves in first, swiping at Oga's left. He steps back, already on the defensive from her millions of swings in a single stroke.
Seeing this, Hayner comments, "Was she always this fast? I mean, she's fast, but I can't even see her moves!"
"Oga's holding back because she's a girl, like always," says Xutaron knowing just how he is.
Oga blocks attacks on the left and right, before kicking her left leg. This allows him to wipe her face and knock out a balloon. He rushes for it shouting, "You're mine," only for Aoi to quickly recover and spin, knocking him off his feet. Seven yellow balloons fall out as he rolls along the ground.
"Whoa… I'm not sure what just happened..." says the announcer, before he sees the result is clear. "But the winner is Aoi, in a shocking up twist!"
Some time passes as everyone including the fighters take a break. Aoi sits on the sidelines ignoring her friends, while Oga walks from the sandlot with Beel on his back.
As he does, he passes by Xutaron. "That's not Kunieda. Thrash her," he says, before making his exit.
The announcer goes to Hayner, saying, "It looks like Oga is retiring from the tournament."
"Really? Yeah, that means I'm in 3rd place!" As he jumps up and down happily, the final round gets announced.
Xutaron steps up on stage, watching Aoi join him. She draws her baton like a sword, eyes focused on him. He picks up his baton and prepares himself. "And now for the finals! Xutaron vs Aoi!"
Xutaron rushes forward wielding his samurai stance, but that's when the world around them freezes. "Again?" He then looks up at her, being the only one moving, if only slightly. She smiles, before dissolving into white dust, and turning into a Dusk.
Two more Dusks appear behind Xutaron, and he shouts, "Again?!" His baton transforms into the Keyblade. "Again…" Used to it appearing out of nowhere again, he goes along with it and swings to knock back the first. He jumps up high, a feat he didn't realize he could do, and lands outside of the triangle of entrapment the Dusks had him in.
He leaps in slashing through a Dusk coming at him from his 3 o' clock, a stream of light sparking from the trail his blade made. He follows up stabbing the second causing it to slide across the stage. The third comes down from above to kick him.
Xutaron's instincts kick in, allowing him to dip to the side avoiding that strike. With the same momentum in diving, he slashes the Dusk destroying it. The last comes in to headbutt him, which is met with a simple dodge. Using his free hand he grabs its leg and slams him into the ground, before stabbing the Dusk.
With it gone, he turns his eyes to the surroundings. Nothing's changed; it's all still frozen. It's way too quiet too, only excluding that clapping sound. "Who's clapping?"
"Way to go Xutaron! Fight, fight, fight, fight, fight!" A cocky, cheery voice speaks. He turns around to see who's talking despite time frozen. At the farthest end of the ring away from him is a black coat wearing adult, sounds like one, his face masked by the hood. "What, no bells ringing? It's me, Axel!"
He pulls the hood open, revealing himself as a red, spiky-haired - almost flaming - guy with exotic green eyes and teal marks under them. Xutaron looks at him, nothing even remotely familiar about him. "Axel?"
"Oh man, you really did lose your memory. No wonder the Dusks couldn't bring you back." Flames explode from the palms of his hands, spinning, and twirling until they solidify. They turn into a circular main wheel with a black, cross-shaped handle. The edge of the main wheel sports four spikes shaped like the spikes on the sigil on the Dusks' heads and a small ring that is bisected by the main wheel. Another spike identical to the other four is attached to each of these rings, making a total of eight spikes. The interior of the wheels is red, as are the inner edges of the other halves of the rings. The rest of the chakram is silver.
"Wait, what's going on here?"
"This town is all his creation, right? Then we ain't got time for a Q and A," Axel tells Xutaron. "You're coming with me, conscious or not. Then you'll hear the whole story."
"No!" Xutaron firmly puts his foot down, throwing the Keyblade to the ground. "I'm not going anywhere or doing anything until you give me some answers!"
Axel's answer is to laugh, before pointing at the key. It returns back to Xutaron's hand. "You can't run away from your destiny that easily," he says as he twirls his chakrams. "You are, after all, the serendipitous key of hope."
His majestic blue eyes peer down for the briefest moment at his Keyblade, before turning his eyes ahead. He forms his samurai stance with a boast: "Alright, fine! You asked for it!"
A blazing grin singes itself onto his face before he fires back, shouting, "That's more like it," and throwing the chakram resting in his right hand. Xutaron sees it spinning towards him and deflects it just like with Hayner.
But in the timeframe it took for him to block the spiked ring, Axel bursts outward grasping the chakram to swing at his throat. Xutaron crosses his blade to block again, and then with all his strength sends him hurtling back. Midair, the flaming assassin throws his chakram, both weapons spinning and igniting a conflagration.
The serendipitous wielder launches himself high up on leg strength alone, the soles of his shoes escaping prominence. He kicks out slamming his feet into Axel's face, sending him stumbling backward. As he lands he holds himself up by a single half and swings at Axel.
"Not bad Xutaron! Guess you managed to keep some of your skills when you left!" Xutaron ignores him before charging in.
Axel shoots a fireball from his right chakram but cuts through it using his key sword. Flames hit him as he pushes through, his sword charging with light energy. He slashes down at Axel, but he blocks again with the flat side of his left chakram while adjusting his fingers masterfully. The sword slides down beside Axel's right leg, is drawn in beside Xutaron, and then thrust forward like inserting a key. Axel is struck in the stomach and stumbles backward.
The fight would continue, except a doorway opens up through digital pixilation, and out from it steps a calm Kira. Xutaron looks at him in surprise, while Axel says, "So it WAS you..."
"Xutaron, do not listen to the lies this man speaks!" speaks the man in red bandages.
"Xutaron, he's the real liar!" Axel ignites a snap back.
The two continue speaking, trying to convince the blond swordsman to believe in their individual cause. He grasps his head in pain, trying to block out their individual voices. Nothing is important, nor helping him. Defying everything, Xutaron shouts, "HAYNER! PENCE! OLETTE!"
Time resumes, with everyone and everything now moving. He looks ahead of himself at the field to see Aoi falling over as if she was never a fake. The announcer says, "Oh. Uh, I don't know exactly what happened, but it seems Kunieda has fallen over."
She looks up feeling faint. "What happened? What am I doing here?"
Xutaron comes out from his shock to approach her. "Aoi, are you okay?" He offers a hand to help her up, which she accepts.
"Xutaron, what's going on? I don't remember coming here at all..." Though confused, the crowd cheer taking that to mean Aoi forfeits.
After a quick breather, with his friends congratulating him on keeping the promise, he is brought back to the stadium where he stands before Hildegarde. "And now for the title match!"
Xutaron takes up his baton, as does Hilda. "Listen, Xutaronomy, are you insistent in continuing this fight? Because you look mildly distracted."
"I am…"
"Do you even want to win the title?"
"…" Xutaron thinks about it and realizes she has a point. He has absolutely no reason at all to face her since he already got the statue. He has more important things to worry about after all.
He drops the Struggle Baton and walks away, heading over towards the exit. "Eh? Xutaron's dropping out?"
"Xutaron, what's up?" asks Pence, while Hayner controls his temper at their friend's sudden reluctance to participate.
"I can't. Something happened during my match with Aoi, and I couldn't really focus on the fight… I'd just disappoint." Hilda watches him from afar with a frown. Of course, she's always so negative.
After the ending ceremony, Xutaron ends with the Struggle Trophy in hand. He and the others rest on top of the clock tower, their usual hangout spot that isn't the hideout. After sitting down, he pulls out the four crystals on it. He tosses the yellow to Olette who barely catches it, the green to Pence who almost misses, the red to Hayner who easily nabs it, and the blue is for him.
"As promised guys." They each hold their crystal up to the twilight sun, having it shine in the blazing orange.
"Thanks a lot, Xutaron," says Pence with a smile.
"Just one more treasure for us to share," adds Hayner as he flips his crystal and catches it.
Everyone then pockets their treasure, before Olette says, "Xutaron, can you pass the cooler? Time for the celebration."
"Sweet!" Xutaron stands up to grab the box. But his foot slips, and he falls off the tower.
That's when everything stops.
...
In the village hidden in the leaves, two women stand firmly outside of an apartment complex. The first is a beautiful blunette with white eyes of serene hope. She is dressed in the Konoha military flak jacket with assorted clothing, which shows slight tear as it has been recently used. Beside her is her friend, a slightly taller girl with short pink hair, wearing a similar flak jack and assorted clothing as well as a red-clothed forehead protector. These are Hinata and Sakura.
"Hinata, what's wrong?" asks Sakura, her light green eyes glancing over at the Princess of Light. "You stop by here and stare at that room every day. What's wrong?"
"I look at that place, and something tells me I'm forgetting something. About a boy who lives there…" She takes out a sealed, green envelope. "I forgot him, and I've been trying so hard to remember. Not even Ino's family technique works. Who is he, and why does it hurt forgetting him?"
"Hinata…" Sakura places a hand on her shoulder. But at that moment, the Hyuga princess widens her eyes in hyde shock.
Youko, what's happening? Am I gonna be okay?
'Who… Who's talking? That's not my name.' Hinata holds her head feeling a strain in her heart.
Are you not?
'I'm Hinata. And… Why do you sound familiar?'
Oh, Hinata. You're that girl he likes.
'He? Who? I need a name!' Hinata realizes there's a connection and becomes desperate.
I'm Xutaron.
"Okay, but what's his name?" She says this out loud.
"His name?" asks Sakura confused.
Don't you remember my name? After all, we've been through?
Hinata gasps, realizing this is a different person. Though when he hears him, her heart warms up. The perfect puzzle begins to form in her mind.
"Hinata? What's wrong?" Ignoring Sakura, Hinata removes her forehead protector from her shoulder to pull out a wallet. This shows a picture of a boy she couldn't remember before. Sakura sees him, and her eyes widen with realization. "That boy… I remember him!"
"Yes. It's all starting to clear up…" A few tears forms in her eyes. "I'm sorry I forgot about you, Naruto."
…
Deep within the laboratory, the hooded man flips the blue crystal Xutaron had. Kira watches the screen, seeing the progress. "How is his progress, Kira?"
"85 percent. It's rather astounding…" He smiles with astonishment.
"So, what was that about?"
"Apparently, when Youko met Xutaron, she put his heart in connection with Hinata. And that affected Naruto," he tells him.
"How did that happen?"
"It's because of who Youko is." Kira looks up at the screen showing Youko making drawings. "Unlike Xutaron she wasn't born the same way as Nobodies. Yet like him, it's because of their birth that made the connection work. That's why she can interfere with the hearts and memories of Naruto and those connected to him."
He glares at Kira. "With that logic, it sounds like you've already figured out her origin. Whose Nobody is she?"
Kira turns slowly in his chair, almost dramatically, showing the left side of his face. "Instead of me just telling you, how about you introduce yourself? You haven't taken that hood off since. Who exactly are you?"
"Hmph." He removes the hood, to reveal himself: "Ansem."
He stares through his bandages, before making a brief chuckle. Like the smallest noise escapes his lips. "It is an honor, Ansem!"
…
The next day for Xutaron goes by with a different flare. What differs for him and his friends today, despite thinking he fell off the tower and none of them believing it happened, is that there will be actual school work. With summer vacation ending in two days for them, they have to work on their report for school.
Xutaron stares dead up at the mansion. His eyes look through the gate doors being the only way he can, wondering what's the big mystery here. "You know something-"
"WHOA, JESUS!" Xutaron jumps up in shock and turns around, spotting Pence. "Oh, Pence."
"Sorry about that," he says with a chuckle. "The thing is, we were going to check this place out tomorrow. The four of us and Oga's gang."
"Really?"
"It IS the most suspicious place," Pence tells him as he also scans the haunted mansion. He points to a window on the left side of the building, which shows curtains drawn. "You see, people say there's a girl in there. A really pretty girl too."
"Olette pretty or Hilda pretty?"
"You think Olette's pretty?" Xutaron turns red realizing what he said.
"… Moving on…" The blond teen then turns back to the mansion, looking up at the same window. There he spots a girl. The girl from before. "Youko?"
His world transforms once more; before where he saw only the outside, he was now inside of a pure white room. Sitting at a table, he sees Youko at the other end staring at him with a content smile. "Xutaron… Welcome."
"Youko." The redhead gestures to her gallery along the wall, consisting of pictures she's made. "What do you think?"
Xutaron looks at every picture. "What's all this? What's going on?"
"I've been hard at work repairing the damage I've done." She points over to a picture of two people in black coats. The child-like coloring gives Xutaron the impression that's him and Axel from yesterday.
"Is that me?"
"Yes."
"Why am I next to Axel?"
"Well, you are best friends."
"You sure about that?" She chuckles. "What?"
Youko then picks up another picture, of three characters: the first is an orange fox, the second a blue duck, and the third a green dog. "Do you know who they are?"
Xutaron looks at them, diving deep into the depths of his memories from when he dreamed them. "… Yes. That's Naruto, Donald, and Goofy."
She puts the picture down, saying, "A little less than a year ago, I did something terrible to Naruto's memories. It's taken this long, but I've managed to almost put his memories back together the way they were. He'll soon be back to who he used to be. The process has also affected you, because of your connection to him."
"Connection?" He wants to ask her what she means, but a part of him wants to know more about her instead. "Who exactly are you?"
She sighs, taking up one more picture with Xutaron and Naruto. "I am a Nobody, more specifically. Unlike you and the others, I'm just a witch who has power over Naruto's memories and those connected to his heart. I don't know why I have this power, but it may be because of his mother. And whose heart I was born from."
"…" Xutaron sighs, before asking, "Why is this affecting me?"
"Do you know the truth about yourself?"
He scuffs. "What does that mean? Who else knows me better than me?"
"Your memories were altered too, and you were placed in a world that doesn't exist, to hide you from bad people who wanted to use you."
"… What?" He doesn't exactly believe her. But a part of him is curious. "What exactly do you know about me?"
"You… You were never supposed to exist."
The words hit him hard. "What?" He can't really believe her now. And yet… "How can you say something like that? Even if it is true?"
Tears fall freely from her eyes as she looks at him. Despite the truth coming out, she knows how hurtful this is. "I'm sorry. I guess, some things are better left unsaid, Minato…"
That last name awakens another memory within Xutaron, one he doesn't recognize. It regresses into the recesses of his mind, and he finds himself back outside.
Pence pats his shoulder, before saying, "Let's head back. We'll get to work on this tomorrow. After the fair."
Xutaron, deep in thought, goes along with him. "Sure…" No matter what happens tomorrow, he can't forget what he learned today. The two return to their friends back at the usual hideout spot. The rest of the day continues uneventfully. Unfortunately, it would be his last day as a normal teenager.
Tomorrow Morning…
In one of the rooms of the abandoned mansion, Kira and Ansem are together. Kira sits in a comfortable chair, his eye looking out the window as the golden light of morning begins to light up the room.
"Why did you show him the train?" asks Ansem. He adjusts his gloves as he speaks.
"Because he missed the beach."
"That was almost kind of you," says Ansem with a short laugh.
Kira turns his head to face Ansem. "So, how are your memories? Are the holes starting to fill up?"
"Yes. That thick haze is finally gone," he replies. "Youko did well."
"Naruto's memories are finally together, except for Castle Oblivion. The people who are connected to him as well are remembering him. Soon he'll be like a friend who's come back after being gone a long time." His eyes close with a smile.
"So, we're at the endgame, I've waited, and I've done what you've asked…" Ansem sits down in the only other unbroken piece of furniture in the room. "What do you get out of this? What is next for you?"
Kira inhales and then exhales a great amount. "There is only one thing next… Revenge!"
The sound of leather clenching together can be heard from the tightened right fist of Ansem. "Really?"
"Now, time for the finishing touches. Tomorrow, Naruto's memories will finally awaken him and Xutaron will return to him. But, then we must be rid of Youko." His eye opens with a burning hatred inside of him. "She wasn't wrong when she said neither of them was supposed to exist. Take care of it, Ansem."
Elsewhere…
The day begins with the twilight dawn shining down upon Xutaron. Like before, he had a dream about Naruto. This time it leads all the way to when he fought at the End of the World against Ansem, defeated him with the help of Luffy, Allen, and the others, and Kingdom Hearts evaporated him. And then, he says his byes to Hinata and Sakura.
Afterward, he dreams of another event that he doesn't recognize, and everything he knows about Naruto stops there. Now comes other memories.
Chain of Memories…
"Rasengan!" A powerful strike knocks aside the man in the black coat, causing him to fly away from the woman he was standing over. An attacker is a man with blond, spiky hair, wearing a white cloak with a flaming pattern on it. He raises his arm and grabs something that fell, a baby. "I got you, Naruto."
The man in the coat stands back up, before saying in an elderly voice, "It's too late. I've already done the deed." He then steps back, entering a portal of darkness.
"Minato!" Minato looks down at the red-haired woman, his eyes glancing back at her pale expression. "It's coming..." From behind, the demon fox Kyuubi crawls towards the grassy plain they stand at.
"Kushina, stay back."
"No, I got this." She forces herself to stand, holding her hands to her stomach. "I'm already dying, so I'll take the Kyuubi with me." The woman cups her mouth, blood dripping from her mouth. Chakra rises from her body and manifests as chains. "I… It was wonderful living with you. I'm sorry, but this will buy us time until the Kyuubi returns. Please raise Naruto right in my place."
Minato places a hand on her shoulder, still holding the baby. "Don't bother. Even if we stop the Kyuubi, what about Naruto?"
Kushina turns to her newly born baby and sees a veil of darkness forming around his body. "What…"
"Whatever he was after, he succeeded. There's only one way to stop it, and it requires the three of us. Otherwise, he'll just come after him again." Minato turns to the rampaging fox. "Well?"
The newly made mother looks at her son, then husband, and finally the fox that used to be inside of her. With her mouth curling into an unsuccessful frown, she gives up. "I hate it when you're right."
The two, together with their son, face down the fox, its nine tails rapidly beating the ground wildly yet in sync to not hit one another. A bright light clouds away the rest of the memory.
Another piece of Xutaron's memories appears, replacing the cloud over what preceded.
Xutaron stands in the middle of a dark alley, rain beating down on him and the black coat he wears. Many buildings are around him, including a towering skyscraper. He becomes surrounded by Neo Shadow Heartless, each of which aims for him. Blocked off, he summons his weapons. In the right hand appears the Oblivion Keyblade, and the left hand the Oathkeeper Keyblade. Spinning them in the air with a clash, sparks fly.
He fights off the horde, before realizing he's getting pushed in. Glancing up, his eyes spot what looks to be Sasuke standing at the peak of the skyscraper. Xutaron rushes up the side of the building escaping the Neo Shadows, with Sasuke diving down. Xutaron hands over the Oblivion Keyblade as they do, and in unison, they jump off to land centered by the throng of Heartless.
Wordlessly, they wipe out the horde before turning against one another. Eventually, Sasuke falls, asking, "Why do you have the Keyblade?!"
"Shut up," are the only words he receives as any form of answer. Another flash cuts away the memory.
End of Memories…
Xutaron awakens finally, the last day of summer vacation. His blue eyes look outside after throwing on his trademark outfit. "What was that about?"
He walks towards the usual hangout place, yawning still. He sees his friends talking with each other. Though that's just at first glance. He says, "Man I didn't sleep a wink last night," and it's here he notices something is wrong. No one responded to him. "Guys?"
While reaching out to touch Pence he phases through his body. Xutaron gives a soft gasp and realizes that nothing they say is coming out of their mouths. It's just silence. They then run by him, going out the entrance to do whatever they're doing.
At this point, Xutaron is in deep thought. All the things Youko told him are starting to get to his head as if to make sense of what's happening to him. "Was I really never supposed to exist?"
He even looks over to a photo of him and the gang, only to find to his shock just them. It's supposed to be him and the gang hanging in front of the mansion gates smiling for the camera, but he's invisible now. 'What am I?'
He walks out of the hangout spot, taking in his apparent reality. Xutaron sighs while staring at the pavement. After three steps into nothing, that's what appears before him. From out of nothingness, those Dusks appear blocking off his path. 'I don't have time for this...'
"You know, this irks me." Xutaron catches the familiar voice behind him. He turns around to see the usual flaming jokester Axel standing there. "I've been given these icky orders to destroy you, should you fail to come back with me."
Taken back, Xutaron looks at Axel up and down. "Even though we're best friends?"
"Well if you're not coming back, I'm not turning into a Du-" He flinches, registering what the young Nobody said. "Wait, you remember now?!"
"Sort of..."
"Great! But…" Axel pauses for a moment. "What's our boss's name then?" His response is silence, pure nothing. The Flurry of Dancing Flames sighs. "I can't believe it."
Xutaron looks down and picks up a twig left on the ground, and it transforms into the Keyblade. He swipes back knocking away the Dusks, who turn aggressive on him. He swipes his right foot along the ground to flip a Dusk over and then slashes downward to destroy it. The second kicks but he ducks his head, and wielding his sword with both hands swipes three times in rapid succession to slay the Nobody.
A brand new Nobody flunky pops out from the ground, slithering through the air like a humanoid serpent. This being with blades shaped like their symbol on its arms and mosquito-like face turn to face Xutaron. It stretches its segmented arms out to rip through the Keyblade wielder, who jumps back raising the Keyblade to block. Sparks fly from the chainsaw slashes, one segment flipping and scratching his face.
Blood stains his collar and jacket, but Xutaron remains standing. It then merges into the ground and swims through the earth, rapidly stabbing/slashing at him. He jumps backward once again dodging, a part of his pant leggings on the left getting torn. He throws the Keyblade, performing a Strike Raid to slice off its arms. Forced to stand up, the Assassin Nobody rises up to charge him.
'Suicide?' He thrusts his hand back, reaching into the depths of his memory. A sphere of white and black energy forms into the Rasengan before Xutaron slams it into its face. It explodes from the forceful strike.
He turns over to Axel, retrieving his Keyblade, and the fire user summons his chakrams. Axel draws the left arm up, but as Xutaron anticipates his move it becomes clear he's frozen. "What the?"
"Xutaron, get to the mansion. The time has come!" He looks up hearing Kira's voice.
"What is going on!?" he screams, before biting down on his teeth. He then runs off, ignoring the frozen Axel.
Though once he's out of eyesight, Axel moves. He grips a tightening fist. "The Xutaron I know is long gone huh? Fine, I see how it is." He sighs between sentences as realization and sadness hit him.
Later…
Xutaron runs through the streets of the frozen city. Time no longer taking effect on him, he slashes through any and every Nobody stepping in his way. It doesn't take long for him to reach the forest. From there he makes it out to the mansion.
Xutaron would soon find himself surrounded by more Dusks. The lock on the gates the only thing in his way, he draws his Keyblade and unlocks it. The beam that opens the lock turns it into specks of light.
"Naruto…" He rushes through the gates aiming his sights for the mansion front doors.
As he passes through, the Dusks prepare to go in after him. But that's when Ansem rises from a portal of darkness, wielding his Soul Eater. But it has a strange shape; it actually looks like a Keyblade, with a gray wing as the teeth. The Nobodies come forth, and he goes to work.
Inside, Xutaron sees the mansion's innards for the first time. It's pretty rundown and abandoned, as many would expect, as there are a fallen chandelier, torn furniture, and muddy footprints. Otherwise, it's pretty regal in detail.
Ignoring the pointless description, the Keyblade wielder turns his eyes up the stairs, knowing that's where he'll find Youko. He climbs the red-carpeted steps and turns left twice, now racing towards the door at the far end. After opening it, he comes inside of the white room with all its many pictures designed by Youko herself.
He places a hand on one that looks like him, among twelve other black coats. "This is..." Pain fills his head when a memory resurfaces.
Chain of Memories...
Xutaron, dressed in the black coat, walks down the recently moistened streets of a familiar dark city. As he does, Axel lands from atop a building. He asks the serious Nobody, "Has your mind finally been made?"
"Why can I wield the Keyblade? Who is she to me? What are these memories that are suddenly emerging?" Xutaron turns around. "I need to know, and I'm never going to find out hanging around this place."
Axel punches the wall. "You can't turn on the Organization! If you get on their bad side they'll destroy you!"
"No one would miss me," is the sad reply Axel would receive, before Xutaron disappears into the eternal night.
End of Memories…
Xutaron comes out of his memories, before looking back to see Youko. "Xutaron…"
"Organization XIII, are a bad group right?"
"That's a matter of perspective," she replies. "Really, they're a group of Nobodies like us who wish to become whole. To reach that end they need the power of Kingdom Hearts."
"I see…" Xutaron looks down, before sighing with a small laugh. "Well, that leaves just one thing to ask…" He goes closer, just five feet away from the scarlet beauty. "I join together with Naruto, and he becomes whole again, but what happens to me afterward? That's all I want to know before I do anything."
"You are…" Youko pauses but then digitizes. This reveals herself as nothing more than data, like everything else he's come across.
From another digital pixilation appears Kira. "There's no knowledge which has the power to change your fate."
"Even so, I deserve to know! It's my right!" he barks back.
"A Nobody has no right to know! Nor does it have a right to be!" Kira snaps in anger at his response.
"Well, what is that anyway?! What am I to you?!"
Before he could get another answer, Ansem appears from a portal of darkness. "Kira, we've been caught! Too many Nobodies are out there!" He then holds his hand out and opens a portal of darkness. There, Youko stands.
"Youko!"
"Xutaron, Nobodies like us are only half a person! If you join with him, you won't disappear. You'll be whole!"
"Wait, how does that work?"
"No further outbursts!" Kira goes towards Youko and grasps her to keep her mouth shut.
"Xutaron, this isn't goodbye! We'll meet again!" Kira begins pulling her into the darkness. "I may not know it's you, and you may not know it's me. I just know that we'll meet again. We'll be together again, I promise!"
Xutaron watches as she disappears into the darkness, slowly reaching his hand out. His words caught in the web of fear that is his throat, he could only mutter. "No… No! KUSHINA!"
When it finally comes out, he clasps his mouth shut. Why did he say that name? Her name is Youko, not Kushina. And, why does he care about someone from his memory?
He would ponder that later because he needs to focus on the now. And that now involves a piece of paper left behind by Youko. He could tell because as he picks it up he recognizes it has a strange symbol. 'There's got to be something else in this mansion…' He rushes out the door.
Xutaron continues to the other side of the hall, where another room rests in a similar way as the white room. He opens the door and steps into a large library, also carpeted in red velvety goodness. He spots a table placed in the middle of it, holding a notebook that has two symbols on it. One is clearly one he hasn't seen, in person; his memories have seen it plenty of times; but the second he remembers belonging to those white things he's been fighting, the Nobodies.
Xutaron looks at the piece of paper left for him and comes up with an idea. 'Since she draws, this must be a clue.' He draws the circle, rather well actually. The circle symbol shines with the other two, and the floor as well as the table in white light. He jumps away to what isn't light and sees the floor is gone, revealing a dark purple basement with steps leading down. Among the area, he spots wires leading into a pathway just below him. "Hello."
He glides down the steps with ease before heading into the secret basement. He ends up going down more steps where he spots a computer room, the very same with the multi-monitors that Kira and Ansem were working in. He walks up to the computers, and another migraine hits him. He grasps his head in pain while groaning in pain.
He remembers a white room, with thirteen thrones rising from the circle. On each throne sits a person in a black coat. It ranges from those who keep themselves hidden to several with distinguishing hairstyles and even a sexy blond girl. It then lands on him, number XIII, at the lowest among them.
He then remembers meeting Sasuke, and that fight as well as the conclusion. And how he ended up here, in this fake world with digital friends. Nothing… Nothing was real.
"And it was all his fault! KIRA!" He summons the Kingdom Key and goes wild on the monitors, shattering them to pieces. Sparks go off as he watches his mess.
A door opens up behind him, leading to another room. He walks through, a silent anger present in his eyes. In this clearing, with a floor lit by green line lights, he finds more Nobody Assassins. They dive at him, though he simply steps away to dodge before grabbing its 'tail' and throwing it into a wall. He then throws the Keyblade, having it impale the Assassin before it merges into the wall and destroy it.
For some reason, ever since he remembered who he was, his movements and skills have improved. Xutaron can easily dodge their wild arms. One stabs at him, but he twirls the Keyblade to entangle it. Once it's in a tight enough knot he sends the Keyblade away before summoning a Rasengan and bashing it painfully, until it shatters.
With them gone, he breathes in to quell the fire in his heart. Speaking of which, "Simply amazing Xutaron!" The Flurry of Dancing Flames steps in from a green portal of darkness.
"Axel..."
"Oh, you really do remember me this time? I'M SO FLATTERED." A circling inferno entraps them. The air becomes more voracious and breathing becomes harder as Xutaron stands centered in the fire. "BUT YOU'RE TOO LATE!"
Xutaron closes his eyes and breathes, before leaning down forward and crossing his arms to their opposing waist sides. He then draws them back, the left hand summoning light which forms the Oathkeeper and the right hand summoning darkness which is the Oblivion. The Key of Hope twirls his swords and clashes them together, white and black sparks released with a clang.
"TWO?!" Axel summons his twin chakrams, prepared to face off against Xutaron using Eternal Flame. He grins as he does mental preparation. "Time to make it stop, Xutaron." Fire brims around his spiked wheel, and below his feet the floor turns to charcoal. He twirls his chakram and then throws them. They spin wildly as they reach Xutaron.
The Keyblade wielder draws his blades samurai style, using Oathkeeper to deflect them aside with a skillful swing and turn. The chakram spins in the air and reverts back to Axel, who grabs them with ease.
Xutaron then looks down at his feet, feeling his body draining of energy. 'The fire is taking away my strength. I'll make this quick then.' He raises Oblivion and slides it aside Oathkeeper. The white sword turns into a sheath that covers Oblivion before he draws it battoujutsu style to unleash several slashes of darkness and light to attack Axel.
"Whoa!" He combats using firewalls to block them. "Guess you picked up some new tricks!"
"Two Keyblades are stronger than one after all. I spent a lot longer practicing Keyblade Transformations, and it's all comeback thanks to Youko. And with the Kyuubi's chakra, I have Naruto's power that I..." He pauses. A part of him doesn't understand, but he knows something's different. He accepts it because it's true. "That I gave him."
"You gave him?" Instead of clarification, Xutaron unleashes the chakra inside of him. Confused at first, the fire bender starts to understand. "That's right… When he became a Heartless you took over what he couldn't take from Naruto."
"Which means, I can use that very same power the Kyuubi provided him." Xutaron's body transforms, taking the color red. He stands tall as the Valor Drive form, but this time there's a certain air to him. His jacket has turned dark red, as well as his pants which now sports the Valor symbol. A cloth wraps around his left arm also red, with the same symbol, that also hangs from his head as a headband. His pants have also become shorts, and his cloak gone. "Samurai Drive Form."
"Is that what you're calling it now?" Axel sends a pillar of fire towards Xutaron.
He easily dodges and makes his way towards Axel. He slashes rapidly but proficiently, driving him up the wall of fire. Xutaron follows, their weapons clashing and defending against one another with the greatest of ease. Seeing an opening, the Keyblade wielder slashes using Oathkeeper, but he jumps away dodging the attack. Floating in midair, Axel gloats. But that's when Xutaron jumps up at him knowing this would happen.
Xutaron sheathes his blades along his right waist instead of sending them away, knowing that they would hold in place, and jumps at Axel. He nails him to the ground using the Rasengan. Pillars of light rise up surrounding Axel afterward, purifying the landscape.
Landing on regular floor tile now, Xutaron stands far aside from Axel. The fire user stands, tired from that last attack, and disappears into the circle of fire. Xutaron watches as he leaves, before seeing Axel leap out to attack him. He jumps at the last second being unprepared and being unable to track him, leaving his left arm sleeve burnt off. "Damn it!"
"Burn, baby, burn!" Axel jumps back into the flames, and within seconds slides through on a slide of fire. Xutaron jumps away, better prepared this time. He places a hand on Oblivion, causing a mark to appear on it.
Landing, he watches Axel dive back into the fire. He grips Oblivion and concentrates awaiting his next move. Xutaron jumps away just as Axel slides in on fire once more. In that same instance, he draws Oblivion and throws it, sending the blade towards him. It cuts his side, causing Axel to fall and land on his back. That new symbol appears on him.
Axel quickly picks himself back up, as if unfazed. "Nice try. But I'm not going to die that easily." He raises his chakram prepared to strike back. "You won't forget this!"
It all happened in a yellow flash as fast as light. Xutaron appears behind Axel before he could utilize his special attack, having drawn both Oblivion which returned to him and Oathkeeper. His swords contain slight stains of blood on them.
Axel drops his weapons, the fire spin ends. Xutaron sees him and remembers all the fun he had with him. While Axel is wounded, nothing is fatal. That's why he held back. Real or fake, he could never kill his friends in cold blood. "Axel…"
"So, you've made your decision… Then, I'll accept it. Can't take you back anyway," says Axel regretfully.
"It doesn't matter who we are. We'll always be friends. So let's meet again, in the next life," says Xutaron truthfully, before he returns his twin Keyblades into light and darkness.
A wall of darkness forms behind Axel. "Too bad. Just because you have one…" He fades inside. With Axel gone, Xutaron walks towards another exit. Though he wouldn't notice, that portal of darkness Axel came from earlier remains. But that's for another time.
Xutaron in his Samurai Drive form walks along a hallway until he sees several pods. Among the two of them rests two familiar characters. "Donald, and Goofy… Then I'm getting close."
Without another word, he walks forward toward the next door. As it opens, he steps out into a bright room. There Kira stands in front of a pod larger than the others, right in front of a monitor as white as the rest of the room.
"Well well, if it isn't Xutaron," says Kira, his only visible eye glaring at him. "You've actually made it."
"Save it. I remember everything now; that you and Sasuke kidnapped me, just to revive Naruto after restoring his memories." Xutaron summons his Keyblade, the Kingdom Key, and walks towards the big pod. As he does, he asks, "But why? Who are you and what do you get out of this?"
"I am a servant of the world," he simply says. "And if I am, then you should consider yourself a-" Xutaron slashes, passing through to his shock. "-tool. Apologies, but this is just a data-based projection."
"Axel was more real to me than you, so I can't trust you. But, Naruto needs my power to awaken." Xutaron grabs his head groaning in anger. "This pisses me off!"
"Anger huh? Do yourself a favor and share that anger with Naruto. That hatred should help him become stronger."
"Says you!" He slashes again, and the projection disappears. The pod opens up, like a blooming flower, and reveals Naruto floating. Xutaron sees him and notices the changes in his appearance from a year ago. "Naruto… Looks like I'm doing the right thing. I'll save you, just like he… Just like I did before."
He places a hand on his chest and draws out the red on his clothes into a sphere of chakra. He then jumps up and implants the chakra into Naruto's chest. His arm passes through inside him, causing his arm to fade slightly. "But I can't join you just yet."
He draws back, landing just outside the pod. He then walks away towards a portal of darkness he summoned. "With what I've left the seal should rework itself. Pretty soon, my summer vacation will end."
Kei: Some background information; Samurai Drive form is based on Naruto's Valor Drive Form.