A/N: Miss us folks?! We're back again! Hey, all! We're back! First off, I wanted to say thank you to all those who have supported me and encouraged me to stick with what I'm doing, and more importantly, to remain on this site. I've decided to buck and, despite the the undue anger and aggression I've been receiving from both sources anonymous and otherwise...I'm going to stick around. Writing has been my passin for all of six years, and I wouldn't give it up for the world. If I stopped writing on this sight I'd just feel...hollow, ya know? Its simply who I am, I guess.

Now, I've been through the ringer as of late, but it seems things are finally starting to look up for me at long last. My living situation has been rectified, I'll be going back to school soon, and to top it all off, I recently found a new job! Working an evening shift tonight! Now,I know what you're thinking. Will work cut down on the frantic updating I've been doing as of late? Not so! There are many hours in the day, and I'm definitely going to work hard to continue to update all my fics-Prometheus being one of them- So thanks, ya'll for the support. Love you guys! Agurra was a major help in this chapter as well-I don't know what I'd do without him!

As to this story, its just an idea I got, and I don't belive anyone has tried it yet, so...

...here we go! Fair Warning! Violence and gore in this chapter!

"This...does not compute.

~?

Discovery

Light filled a rather dark empty room, in which three individuals stood. Two of them were currently standing in front of a desk where the third sat, clearly indicating the difference in rank between the three. The two stood quietly while their superior officer looked over some documents placed on her desk, her eyes scanning over every word, careful not to miss a single detail.

After a few tense moments of scanning, the women let out a sigh as she brought her eyes up to meet those of the other two. Her gaze was rather blank, but still held a serious air about it.

"You're certain the information here is accurate? I don't wish to question neither yours nor the credibility of our security systems, however, what you are suggesting is rather disturbing to think about."

The two women stiffened slightly at the words, both shown to be women in the late twenties to early thirties. One of them had short black hair, in a light blue top with a navy blue tie, navy blue skirt, leggings and black shoes, and she chose to speak first.

"I'm afraid it's the only plausible explanation we have given the circumstance. The three were found badly beaten and the security footage we were able to recover from the scene seems to all but assure our suspicions."

The women behind the desk, an older woman in her forties in a white nun like outfit, hardened her gaze somewhat as she perched her chin on her now interlocked fingers as she looked on.

"What about the condition of the three students found at the scene. Were there any serious injuries?" Her gaze quickly shifting to the other woman in the room, who was a slightly taller woman, with long green hair done in a ponytail, wearing a white lab coat over a purple top and skirt, with tan leggings and boots.

The apparent medic quickly held up a clipboard looking it over, "The three girls sustained some injuries but nothing too serious. Mostly a few broken ribs and some bruises but nothing their stigmata can't heal in a day or so, thus there is no danger for serious or life threatening injuries."

Her assessment earned a look of relief from the seated woman, her visage softening somewhat, "That's good to hear. Not only for them, but if three second year Pandora were suddenly critically injured, it would run the risk of sending the entire school into a panic."

"I wouldn't be so sure we're out of the woods yet." The green haired medic quickly spoke with an unnerving tone in her voice.

Her compatriot looked at the woman with a hint of uneasiness, "What do you mean by that Elize? Is there something else?"

The now identified Elize nodded, "While their physical condition wasn't anything too serious, I'm somewhat worried about their mental state. I had interviewed all three when they woke up and asked them about what happened, but they apparently had no clear memory of what transpired or who attacked them."

She quickly shifted through the notes in her clipboard before stopping at one page and turning it to show the others present, "I decided to conduct a cat scan on the three to find the source of the problem. To put it simply it seems that whoever or whatever attacked them more than likely erased their short term memory of the experience, though it doesn't seem like it will cause any permanent damage."

Her words returned the uneasiness to her superior, "Yumi, what about the security footage, were they able to pick up anything?"

Yumi however, only shook her head, quickly pulling down a holographic screen in the room, a large picture forming in the center, "Unfortunately Sister Margaret, all we manage to get are a few shadows and shapes, the video seems to be experiencing some kind of interference, possibly from the attack."

With a few hand movements the picture quickly shifted, showing a rather static laced image where the three girls were somewhat visible, seemingly confronting another figure whose entire appearance was covered in darkness and barely noticeable.

"As you can see, we are able to atleast see part of the confrontation at first. Seems the three ran came across the attacker and who they prepared to subdue," as Yumi spoke the video, what was visible, showed the three readying their weapons and preparing to charge, "However, just before any of the actual combat begins…." The entire picture quickly turned into nothing but static, lasting for several seconds before clearing up completely, now revealing a clear field, with the unconscious bodies of the three girls the only things present in the field.

"It would appear that whatever it was, wanted to make sure it wasn't seen and somehow managed to remove any memories and video of it's existence. In other words, we're pretty much chasing a ghost or shadow at this point."

Sister Margaret frowned at the footage, both for the lack of clear evidence there were able to pull from it and the knowledge that there was an extremely dangerous figure lurking around the school, "Just going by it's behavior, it's clear this intruder knows the school's layout and is more than capable of handling Pandora. More to the point, if we take any kind of precautions, there's no telling what course of action it might take. That doesn't leave many options."

Quietly musing to herself the school's headmistress stood up from her seat and made her was to the window looking upon the school, unnerved by the fact there was someone concealing himself within the school.

"Yumi, Elize, for now this information doesn't leave this room. We can't run the risk of starting a panic when we have so little information to go off of. Also, if this individual is smart enough to erase all memories of it's existence from witnesses, then any measures we take will just make it act more cautiously and possibly impossible to locate."

The two teachers frowned at the notion, not the least bit thrilled about concealing such dangerous information from the students or faculty.

"What should we do then, we can't just wait around for whatever this thing is to strike. It might end up killing someone if we don't act now." Yumi spoke with passion in her voice, her worry for the students clearly obvious.

The headmistress however, shook her head, "I sincerely doubt that will happen. If this intruder wanted to simply kill the students, then it would have disposed of the three from earlier. It's more likely gathering information, and doesn't want to be discovered, meaning it will do everything possible to stay concealed. We simply have to wait for it to either make a move or a misstep, then we can take action."

Turning to face the two she noted the uncomfortable looks present on both of them, "I know this isn't the best solution, but we must remember in battle sometimes we must sit and wait for the enemy to act before we attack. Patience is just as important in combat as strength." She quickly shifted to a small smile to lighten the mood, "Now then, you two should report back to class, we can't have the students thinking something is amiss with the teachers disappearing now can we."

The two women wordlessly nodded, bowing to the headmistress before exiting through the door. Once gone, the Headmistress's smile dropped as she once again turned to the window, looking about the school that was currently bathed in the warm glow of the Afternoon sun, the sounds of laughing and chattering students filling the air.

Yet despite the serene setting, Sister Margaret could practically feel an icy chill run throughout her body, eyes continuously looking all over the school, looking for the slightest twitch of a shadow, unable to fully relax knowing there was something out there, ready to strike.

However, for now all she could do was return to her work, waiting to see what would happen, yet still unable to shake the cold feeling of dread that lingered over her head.

"What exactly is going on here...?"

Miles away from the campus, nestled safely within the mountains, a young man began the arduous process of cleaning his body from the stains that marred it. Not his of course.

Theirs.

Those he'd beaten.

Strong hands-one wrapped in black bandages, the other a healthy human tan-dipped into the basin smoothly and emerged with cupping a handful of water. He paused, staring down at his reflection. Bright blond, molten gold hair framed his whiskered visage, chin length bangs drifting softly in the wind. He contemplated his reflection in the liquid for a moment.

Mismatching eyes stared back at him from within his whiskered face; one a serene blue calm, the other an eerie, soulless gold, shaped more like a warped star than an actual iris. Its sclera darkened to blackness-one could see that this eye clearly differentiated from the other in more than just base appearance alone. It was part of the tissue they'd grafted onto him so long ago. It was a biological camera of sorts-everything it saw was relayed back to its brethren within their dimension and served as a pseudo-link between him and its masters. Occasionally, it would even return their sentiments.

Oddly enough, they were...actually pleased by the actions he had taken today. They liked the idea of him proving her superiority to the weaker creatures; and they approved of the actions he had taken to maintain his anonymity. Observation could continue. But the actions taken toward the Queen, of intervening on her behalf were deemed as...

Problematic.

Such a simple little word; and yet it perfectly described the state of his mental being in that moment. He still had to remind himself that he existed sometimes. That this changed -upgraded- body wasn't just a shell of some sort, that it maintained a physical consciousness beyond the orders branded into the back of his brain. He wondered if he'd done the right thing, by sparing those three. Perhaps it would have been better to simply slay them and be done with it.

He splashed some water onto his face, cleaning it of blood. It washed away easily enough, but the tiny seed of guilt planted in his chest lingered. Persisted. Was it wrong then that he had enjoyed beating those Pandora down as he had? That he, Naruto, had actually enjoyed himself? Combat was a rare treat for him, one that allowed him feel like a true individual when there was none. There was a beauty to battle that made you forget everything and everything

Bzzaaaap!

He spasmed slightly. Thinking of the name-his identity-always sent a tiny jolt of pain through his mind as his masters cracked the whip.

Part of him revelled in it.

They couldn't control him-not completely-and they disapproved of the idea of him thinking of himself as an individual. He was they. They were him. There was no individual. They, were one. He had but to look at his left arm to remember that. They'd improved him. He still lived because of them. His mortal body should have crumbled away a long time ago-but they kept him alive. He wasn't human. Yet at the same time he wasn't Nova either. He was something in between. A hybrid, maybe.

He was an outcast.

Queen fascinated him. Her skills marked her as a target, on he should eliminate. And yet, he couldn't bring himself to do it. He was certain his masters would approve.

But in the end, it changed nothing. Human or Nova, he knew he couldn't afford to feel anything beyond curiosity. To do so was to stray into disaster-and anything was better than that. He dimly recalled the last time he had dared to experience emotions; and the terrible pain that came with them. No. He would feel nothing. He would watch, yes, but not interfere. Never.

Never again.

Despite his recent reservations however, his observation continued well into the evening.

And it paid off in spades; having managed to locate Queen again, he was treated to an even rarer sight towards the end of the day.

The red haired Pandora he'd helped Queen defeat prior, Ganessa Roland, hadn't taken her "loss" well. So not well in fact, that she had seen fit to challenge the Untouchable Queen to a rematch. She looked absolutely livid, her face red as her hair. A part of him thought it was a look that suited her; a reminder of a strange attraction he'd felt for those with red hair. The thought-the innocent humanity of it-surprised the watcher. He should not be thinking such things. His task was to observe. Nothing more. Any other odd thought was to be deemed traitorous and discarded. So he looked on, observing quietly as the scene played out beneath his feet.

"I finally found you, little Miss Queen! We're not done yet, not by a long shot." Her aura flared along with her weapons appearing in a flash of blue behind her, while Queen looked on unimpressed by her little show of power.

"The Carnival's over, accept your loss and you can still leave here with what little dignity you have."

The blonde's cold tone, only served to inflame her enemies ire, as she let out an enraged scream, "SHUT UP. I don't know what exactly you did, but I know you cheated somehow during that battle. That's the only reason you beat me."

The observer quietly processed all that he was witnessing, "Observation, prior interference between Queen and now identified Ganessa Roland, has resulted in further conflict between the two. Further observation reveals loyalty between Pandora is easily severed based on inconsequential factors such as pride. Possible weakness to exploit in the future."

He continued to watch as others attempted to deactivate the situation, trying to get Gannessa to calm down, but it proved fruitless as the girl was all but foaming at the mouth at this point, unable to accept what happened.

"I was finally going to be Number 1, but you just couldn't let go of the title, could you Ms Queen. Well even if I can't be Number 1...I CAN STILL RIP YOU APART!"

Without waiting for any confirmation from her fellow sophomore, the redhead activated her volt weapon and lunged. Her chain attacks were sloppy, driven by rage and fury. Almost unworthy of recording. By comparison Queen, who'd quickly shifted on guard, was the picture of grace, swatting away the sharpened points with contemptuous ease. Her red haired opponent's moves only grew more crude with each moment and Queen was able to pick up on this with ease.

Gannessa quickly grew rabid at her repeated failed strikes and promptly brought all four chain points together, "JUST STAY FUCKING STILL AND LET ME SHRED YOU!" The quadrant of metal shot forward towards their target, yet both Queen and the observer could easily read into the attack.

Without missing a beat, Queen quickly sped off to the right side of the oncoming blades, waiting until the very last second as they glided harmlessly by her, before lifting her massive blade and slamming it down like a guillotine on the exposed chains. The sharpened weapon cut clean through the chain, sended the bladed edges flying off into the plaza, with many students jumping out of the way.

Without missing a beat, Queen quickly went into a crouch before rocketing forward at Ganessa like a cannon shell, promptly slamming her now outstretched arm into the girl's exposed abdomen and sending the now shocked girl hurtling into the wall several yards away.

The Observer again marveled at the girl's impressive skill and strategy, "Analysis, Queen exploited opponent's mental state, waiting for her to make a reckless move that enabled Queen to completely neutralize her weapon, before following with a powerful physical strike that offered no means of retaliation. Ranking Queen as high threat level seems more appropriate at this time."

However, his golden eye quickly registered an increase in energy levels from the large hole in the wall Ganessa was sent. The redhead in question had managed to pull herself out, though she looked even worse than before, her entire outfit having numerous tears that showed off a great amount of skin, along with her pigtails coming undone and blood that caked her face. Added with the completely deranged look on her face, she appeared as though she just exited a particularly deadly battlefield.

"ENOUGH! I don't care if it's forbidden! If it means I can take you down, then I DON'T CARE WHAT THE RULES SAY! PANDORA MODE ACTIVATE!"

Before his very eyes her body was eclipsed by blue light, rocking through the yard to its very bones. That in and of itself wasn't impressive, but what followed next certainly girl's body was quickly covered in a dark red armor of sorts, obscuring ever piece of skin that was once visible, topped off with a large helmet, complete with a visor. The only part of her body that was still visible were her hands, otherwise concealed by gauntlets and her chain weapons has regenerated, once again hovering behind her back.

"System input, new information critical. New critical ability of Pandora learned. It appears that Pandora have a secondary form that they refer to as Pandora mode, which grants them a more heavily armored form as well as an increase in energy levels. Subject Ganessa's strength has risen to a level closer to that of Queen."

Narrowing his eyes as he turned to Queen who seemed a tad surprised by the revelation, he contemplated what would happen next, "Quandary, if this technique is common among Pandora then it could prove a serious threat to future operations. Further observation required to learn about possible flaws in its design."

Turning his attention back to the fight, he watched as there was a moment of terrible silence as Ganessa glared bloody red daggers behind her visor at the Untouchable Queen. Surprisingly, Satellizer broke it herself.

...annoying."

"Huh? What was that?!"

It happened in an instant - one might have missed it if they'd blinked. But He didn't blink, both eyes trained unerringly upon the sight unfolding below him.

Like Ganessa, an identical display of red armor adorned Queen's form, though unlike her opponent her weapon had seemingly fused to her arm, whilst her long flowing blonde locks remained visible. However, what was truly impressive to the watcher was the power level increase. Where once the pair were somewhat evenly match now….It was a kitten trying to fight a Tiger. Before Ganessa could even attempt a reply, a counter, or anything at all, it was over. Queen, shot forward, her body little more than a blur of white light. Even in Pandora Mode, Ganessa proved unable to react in time. In a single flash of blue, Queen appeared behind Ganessa, whose body erupted into several long deep cuts, causing her armor and weapons to fall broken on the ground before her. The defeated girl's now visible eyes fell to the back of her head, as she fell backwards in a heep.

"New Observation. Queen's power in Pandora mode even exceeds those of other Pandora under similar conditions. Threat assessment of high level now deemed appropriate. Queen's skills and abilities continue to expand with each new assessment. Her potential seems to stand heavily amongst other Pandora."

His golden eye continued to record each detail, sending it back to the Nova, yet his blue eye narrowed when he caught sight of Queen, now being held at knife point by two older individuals. The sight caused his black arm to glow slightly red as if ready to strike. Yet a single jolt in the back of his mind quickly quelled that action, as he did as was told and continued to observe.

"Further observations reveal new data. Pandora mode is a forbidden tactic only to be used when necessary and the current mode is outdated, indicating more advanced models may exist. Additionally, despite not being the instigator of the attack, Queen is being subject to a penalty for her actions."

The stranger in the shadows paused momentarily as his voice changed, "That doesn't make any sense, it was obviously self defense, so why's she being punished. What'd they just expect her to stand there and get ripped apart."

The brief outburst however, quickly subsided as his tone became more robotic, as his golden eye glowed, "Regardless of this change, Queen has still shown the highest capability level of Pandora seen. Continued observation approved, though addition data on Pandora mode and the school is requested as soon as possible.

"I can't believe Satilizer acted so recklessly like that. She easily could have killed Ganessa. I have half a mind to suspend her right now."

"Not like she started the fight after all. Besides I already told you, the girl's wounds weren't as serious as they looked and she'll be out of bed in another day or two. Be thankful it was just a minor scuffle between students."

Meanwhile Yumi and Elize were assessing the damage of what had just transpired in Elize's office. The nurse had just gone over Ganessa's medical chart, taking note of how obviously tense her comrade in arms was.

"I take it you were worried that this attack was perpetrated by our little hide away, right? Not too often you see a teacher use a Double Accel to leave the faculty lounge."

Yumi bit the underside of her lip as her mind flashed back to how she practically rocketed out the door the second she heard the explosion not to far off, "Well how would you react, knowing there is someone or something hiding out in this school, attacking students. Every second we don't do something, another student could be hurt."

Elize merely put down her cup and leaned back in her chair, "And getting paranoid about it won't be helping us. We need to be patient, otherwise we'll end up causing a panic like Sister Margaret said. Besides, I have a feeling our little friend will appear soon enough."

"What do you mean?"

Picking up a nearby clipboard Elize flipped through a few pages before arriving at a specific one, "I heard some students mention Ganessa screaming at Satilizer, saying she cheated somehow in the Carnival, which normally you'd right off as just a bruised ego. However, while I was doing an examination of her after the Carnival I noticed a rather large bruise near her lower back. Almost like she'd been hit by a high speed projectile."

Yumi's eyes widened as she ran forward and snatched the chart out of Elize's hands and even got a look at the photo she'd taken of the bruise in question, "You think maybe."

"I believe our intruder friend, might not be as stealthy as he thinks. Either that or he's making mistakes in hiding himself and sooner or later, he'll slip up enough to where we'll be able to catch him.

...hmph."

Having determined there was no more data worth collecting the previous day, the watcher had opted to shut himself down for a time, hiding out atop on of the buildings. Thankfully he wasn't spotted, due in part to his eye acting as an alarm system that would trigger should it detect anything hostile approaching.

After the new day started, he returned to his data gathering, scanning over some of the other Pandora, only to find the bulk of them unimpressive based on their rather mediocre energy levels. None had come even close to matching the one known as Queen, and a lingering desire to see her further prompted him to seek her out. It turned out to be easy, finding her now sitting on the roof of nearby building, eating silently by herself.

"Curious. Despite her own power being something to be admired, Queen seems to intentionally isolate herself from others. Additional scanning has revealed she goes by the codename Untouchable, perhaps hinting at some reasoning behind this behavior."

As he watched however, he caught sight of a familiar pile of blue hair appearing behind the girl, causing his normally blank face to grow a deep frown and his arm to again glow a light red.

Yet he restrained himself and listened into the conversation, well one sided conversation with the boy, now named Kazuya apparently asking Queen, now properly identified as Satilizer, if she would allow him to be her Limiter. A request she seemed adamant about refusing.

"Intriguing new development. Despite it being a requirement for all Pandora to be partnered with another human, Satellizer refuses to do so. Further study indicates some deeper reason behind this restraint. Although…..If you ask me that kid's should just take no for an answer and leave. His skill level is abysmal anyway."

Again he found his mind relapsing and adopting a more individualized perspective...a more human like one. And despite all the information he'd amassed he just couldn't identify why that was, more specifically why it was Satilizer that caused this reaction in him.

Her animosity with Aoi Kazuya intrigued him. But there was more than idle curiosity here, part of him longed to speak with her. What made those ice blue eyes so hollow-so very much like his own? What foul trials and tribulations had conspired to make her this way; to shun all touch? He didn't understand it at all. It had only been two days, so why, why was he so fascinated with her?

Of course couldn't bring himself to approach the Pandora however, despite the aching desire growing stronger in his mind, fighting against the increasing jolts surging through. Would it be so wrong to speak with her and then erase her memory afterwards? Just once; he was sure that would be enough to purge himself of this foul temptation that seemed to plague him at every turn.

As he contemplated his next course of action, his eyes quickly caught sight of several other individuals appearance on the roof, most of which were three Limiters, all unimpressive specimens. However, the last was another Pandora, however, she appeared to be older than Satellizer and just looking at her, the Watcher could already tell by looking at her she was trouble. Her expression alone screamed arrogance on an even higher plateau that Ganessa, along with what appeared to be an almost depraved form of desire coming from her. However, despite her disdainful appearance he could tell she was skilled, with an energy level that was actually higher than his blonde target, not a massive gap but enough to where a fight would likely go in her favor.

Things only became more complicated when the little punk Kazuya got involved, apparently this new Pandora, Miyabi wanted to make him her Limiter, but he was only interested in Satlizer, depite her own refusal.

"What exactly is that little punk's problem, can't he take no for an answer and leave. Is he really that much of a dumbass?"

By this point the emotions he was feeling were quickly becoming strong enough to override his normal programming as he watched with greater anger as Miyabi and Satilizer began to fight, after the older girl claimed Satilizer owed her respect as an upperclassman.

"Since when does rank or what year you are in school give you justification to attack somebody. You're supposed to be fighting for mankind, not to stroking your over-inflated egos."

Eventually thing quickly reached a fever pitch as Miyabi had her three Limiters activate a Freezing field that effectively pinned Satellizer down, leaving her completely helpless, while Kazuya had been knocked aside during the fight.

Normally he'd record the information he was watching, but his growing rage over the sordid series of events blinded him, watching as the powerless pair was held captive in the trio's freezing field.

His temper-odd how he hadn't felt it until this very moment-flared as the third year fondled her breasts, hiked up her dress, and reached for her panties. By then his blood-or what constituted as blood in this body, was boiling at a feverish pitch.

"Error, this unit's duty is only to observe, not to interfere with matters. Doing so would compromise the very nature of this mission." His mind demanded coldly, uncaring of the situation.

However, "I can't just sit here and watch this happen. Nothing about this is right." His actual voice spoke for his heart, as the debate seemed to rage. However, the sight of Satilizer's panties being pulled down as a camera was brought out settled the argument in his emotions favor by a landslide.

One last electric bolt attempted to shut his mind down, but he fought passed it, and with a dark red glow, he disappeared from the rooftop before his feet effortlessly found their place only a few yards away from the conflict, alighting in plain sight for perhaps the first time since he'd begun his mission.

"Step. Away."

Needless to say, his presence caused quite a stir.

Satellizer didn't know what she was looking at. He looked like a boy, though his face was completely concealed by a hood, save maybe for his one visible blue eye. What was really surprising was the fact he was currently standing in a Freezing Field and not show any indication it was affecting him. Her heart hammered like the drums of a great hunt, out for her blood, and she could barely find it within herself to speak. But she was the first to react to his sudden presence.

And speak she did.

"Eh? Who're you...?"

His gaze turned slightly, registering her. No words were said, though for the briefest of moments his eye softened it's gaze, causing her heart to almost skip a beat for some reason, though she ignored that though.

Kazuya was slightly less coherent at the sight of the stranger.

"Huh?"

Naruto ignored him, instead making his way over to the still downed Satellizer, ignoring the the tethers of green-blue energy twining around his boots and gazes of the others present. He reached down and roughly hauled Satellizer upright, dragging her to her feet. She flushed, almost cringed at the contact, but in spite of the swift, jerky movements, he didn't do anything else to her. Up close the blonde girl got a closer look at his eyes or eye rather, as she could only barely see what appeared to be a yellow eye hidden in shadow, regardless his gaze had her rooted to the ground. Almost without a thought, he then raised his heel before stomping down imperiously, shattering the Freezing field as effortlessly as one would breathe. Just like that, she could move again.

"Stay." a rough voice issued forth from his throat. Numbed, she managed a nod.

"Who the heck is that?" Kaho whispered to Arthur from their hiding place-to which the first year instead posed another question, "Forget about that, how was that guy able to not only walk through but break a Freezing Field? I mean he shouldn't be able to do that right?" However, neither first year would get an answer, as they both quickly ducked down when the intruder's chilling gaze swept over them. Thankfully for them, they weren't the intended targets, as he locked onto Miyabi.

The watcher himself took in their fearful gaze, along with Satellizer's. Despite his turbulent mindset, their fear was easy to understand. After all, a stranger with a body wrapped in black, a right arm completely sheathed in ebony bandages, only a single visible eye, currently leering furiously at the bluenette responsible for his forced intervention. To her credit, the Pandora didn't squeal and soil herself like he'd thought she would. No. She had the audacity to smirk, regarding him as little more than a mote in the eye. She'd no idea of what was about to befall her.

"Ara, what do we have here?" Miyabi purred. "It looks like an intruder...

"Miyabi Kannazuki," he rumbled quietly, the flat voice of his monotone ringing across the open rooftop. "Assessment Third-Year. Identifies as Limiter Glutton. Threat assesment...Insignificant." In the same instant that he spoke he twisted aside, a dagger flying harmlessly past his visage. Mismatching eyes regarded her with cold curiosity. "Addendum. Ill-temperment, Boastful and Arrogant. A complete lack of decorum and a an utterly wretched personality that renders any outward beauty worthless." He wasn't sure what caused him to say those words, yet he was prompted him to rile her so. "Overall Individual Assessment… A Bitch!" Regardless, the words produced the desired effect.

"What did you call me?!"

Her knife carved through empty air- touching only the breeze as he drifted around it effortlessly, gliding backwards in retreat. His boot shot out like greased lightning and aimed for her jaw, only to find a forearm thrust between him and his mark.

"Analysis, highly flawed personality and behavior, still possess some degree of skill. Too much for Counter Measure Zero to be effective."

However, this little revelation didn't deter him. On the contrary somewhere in the dark corridors of his soul, he felt a touch of excitement.

"Appropriate Course of Action Determined: Deploying Counter Measure One."

His right arm shifted, bristling with crimson stigmata. Red light bloomed from it, forming a monstrous zanbato, the handle of which fell into his hand. Black and doubled bladed, as large as he was tall, it sank into the rooftop as swiftly as it had been summoned, nearly burying itself to the shaft. Causing some to jump in shock at just how much the thing weighed.

Of course the real thing entering all their minds was, "How can he summon a Volt Weapon? He's not a Pandora." However, Miyabi's own personal ego pushed this rather pressing question down and instead opted to save face.

"Oh?" Miyabi scoffed at this. "And what are you going to do with that sword? There's no way you can fight with a weapon like...that?"

Her words ended in a tiny squeak of fear as the blond moved. Then -to her infinite dismay- he reached down with his bandaged arm and yanked the ungodly weapon free, hoisting it high as though it weighed no more than a feather. To the horror of all present, he started forward. Click. No word was offered as his boots dragged across the ground. He simply began walking, uncaring as her Limiters created a new freezing field which reached out in a desperate attempts to restrict his movements.

All they could do was peer into the stranger's virtually unseen face and feel their blood freeze as his ice blue eye locked onto them.

"Target acquired. Will terminate with extreme prejudice."

One of the Limiters only managed to squeak out a response.

"What are you?!"

...no data available."

There was another, quiet click as his booted feet flew free from the pavement, punctuated by a sudden rush of wind. And he was gone. Miyabi started, instinctively raising an arm in defense of the unexpected technique and the sheer speed behind it. "It can't be, that was an Accel?! But that's impossible! He's not a Pandora!" In an instant, he was both upon and past her. He reappeared less than a foot away from the nearest limiter, his body coiled and ready to spring forward at the shocked student.

Too late she turned, realizing she wasn't his target.

Poor boy, he didn't even have a chance to scream before his left and right arms dropped from his body in a puddle of his own blood, twitching to the ground, while he feel to the ground in shock. His second fared little better, succumbing to a lunging stab that nearly bifurcated him, but thankfully only the tip of the sword dug into him. Yet that was enough for the black blade to stain the ground once more in a great gout of gore. The third tried to turn and run, only for a fist to place itself in the face of the unprepared Limiter, sending him sprawling into his companions, thankfully the least injured of the group.

Looking down he caught sight of the camera used to take the defacing photos of Satellizer not moments ago. The sight of the horrid image on the screen, made his blood boil hotter as his bandaged arm erupted with red light, before he swiftly drove the massive blade into the phone, driving it almost completely into the roof. He then silently released his hold on the blade, turning his attention to his real target, Miyabi.

'No!'

Reacting quickly to this Miyabi blasted backwards in a brief and blinding flash of Accel, desperately trying to put up some distance between the stranger and herself until she could figure out what to do next. "This wasn't happening. It couldn't be happening! He was a boy! He shouldn't be able to use a Volt weapon! He shouldn't be able to use Accel! He shouldn't-"

ZIP!

The stranger's form, as if omnipresent, appeared directly in her path. Miyabi's jaw dropped, aghast at the man's new speed. She quickly took off in the opposite direction as fast as she could in anothe blue flash of an Accel. Yet effortlessly, the blond intercepted her with his own red Accel. Those eerie eyes held her. Riveted her. The Pandora shrieked.

"WHAT THE HELL ARE YOU?!"

"Subject is increasingly hostile." he mused aloud, turning aside. "Lethal force required."

"Shut up!"

Sparks erupted around her hands as she summoned a pair of daggers and charged, smashing into him with a barrage of powerful slashes and kicks, yet her opponent was able to easily block and evade each blow. The captive audience could just hear a tiny rumble; only Satellizer could even make out the individual blows.

Truthfully however, in the intruder's mismatched eyes, the blows were coming in slow motion. Every move Miyabi made was analyzed, assessed, and picked apart with ease. He knew where to guide his arms and elbows to block or deflect each strike. After another moment of blocking, he decided to retaliate and launched a bone shattering punch to the girl's chest. Causing her bravado to leave her and finally dropping her daggers to the ground, while falling to her knees, gasping as she clutched her now severely fractured chest.

"How...did...you—"

WHAP.

The blond's hand flicked outward, catching Miyabi in his side in a knifing motion. The impact flung her down in a perfectly straight line into the fence of the rooftop, well past where a fearful Arthur and Kaho all but cowered. The former yelped at the impact. The whole building shook. And still she hung there, her mouth hanging open, lips parted to form a small, round O of surprise whilst blood flowed out. Yet her brief moment was rip away along with her body, as her opponent appeared before her before grabbing her violently by the neck and hoisting her up.

"Sto..."

Concrete broke before her back as he slammed her down, shattering her spine. Pure agony raced up her back. Despite the pain, despite the anguish, she still managed to find her voice.

"Stop," she begged anew, tears welling in her eyes. "Please...

"Disgusting." the word tore from his lips with a feral growl as he promptly ripped his weapon out of the roof and approached Miyabi, raising it like an executioner. "Filthy. Unclean!" He struck at her with frightening dispassion, his weapon plunging through her stomach and her chest, all but carving a bloody trench through her stigmata and flesh side in a shower of gore. So large was the weapon that the hapless Pandora found herself completely frozen, unable to even make the tiniest of moves. Numb, she quietly flopped to the floor, dimly registering the slight turning of the blade.

"Terminating!"

Blood spattered as his weapon sank through flesh and then the concrete beneath it-drilling her into the very building itself. Miyabi vomited blood. He was minutely aware of shouts of panic ringing in his ears, but it all sounded so far away-everything was muffled in his mind. There was only the rage as the thoughts of all the girl had cause erupted through his mind. It consumed him and flowed through him, empowering him. Miyabi tried in vain to beg, but he roared at her and she fell silent with a tiny whimper of fear. Twisting the blade in the wound, he prepared to finish the pitiful Pandora-

And the rooftop door flung itself open.

"What's going on here?!"

His golden eye quickly turned to identify the approaching enemy and the sight immediately shatter his rage, replacing it with dread. That was when he saw her. Chiffon Fairchild.

Danger! Danger! Danger! Every fiber of his being tensed in preparation, her energy level was beyond anything that he had seen. The Nova had warned him of this individual, A being equal or greater to the level of power he could command - a monster hidden behind a meek facade. He wasn't prepared. Wasn't ready. Her presence snapped him back to the present like a slap to the face. Fight or flight warred within him and this time it was the latter who succeeded.

"Threat level: Extreme! Immediate Courrse of Action, Retreat!"

A/N: There we go! We've covered two episodes in the span of this chapter, gotten a look at Naruto's humanity underneath it all, and FINALLY, we see that he is not a force to be trifled with. Anger him and you may as well sign your death warrant, ya know? I took great pleasure in omitting Kazuya in this chapter-I bloody despite that little shit because lets face it; he's less than useless even at his best. Alright, rant over! The two of us worked uber hard on this!

So...in the Immortal Words of Atlas from Bioshock...

...Review...Would You Kindly? And of course, enjoy the preview!

(Preview)

"Well, well, well, what do we have here?"

Naruto turned slowly at the girl's, eyes narrowing. He'd been discovered. Again.

"Exterminate!"

R&R!