Previous Translations: Yorokobi - Pleasure/Delight/Joy
Yokubo - Desire/Lust
Kajo - Excess
Shifuku no Kurushimi - Blissful Throes/Blissful Suffering
Tatakainouta - Song of Battle
Zeitakuna Kutsu - Luxurious Torment
Hentai-ryu: Erokenho - Pervert Style: Erotic Fist Art
Konton - Chaos
Kanzen - Perfect
Henka - Change
Harakainokeru - Dispel
Aka-en - Red Flame
Aoi-en - Blue Flame
Maho - Magic
Chishiki - Knowledge
Unmei - Fate
Nozomu - Hope
Hoho no Chenja - honestly this one is a mess, but roughly means Changer of Ways
Ryuketsu - Bloodshed
Chikara - Strength
Meiyo - Honor
Budo - Martial Arts
Ikari - Rage
Jumon - Incantation
Himitsu no Sewanin - Secret Caretaker(Keeper of Secrets)
Sento - Combat
Same no On'na - Shark-Woman
Maebure - Harbinger
Shibari no Ashikase - Binding Fetters
Kanpeki - Perfection
Reikan - the closest English word would be Inspiration, but it specifically refers to 'a divine creative impulse'
Sekkyo-sha - Preacher
Aijin - Lover
Kaen Hosha-ki - Flame Radiator (Flamer of Tzeentch)
Himeiwoageru - Which Screams (Screamer of Tzeentch)
Shikkan - Disease
Ai - Love
Zetsubo - Despair
Mi Haito - Undivided/Not Divided
Shibo - Aspiring
Koki - Exalted
Chakra no Bato - Coruscating Chakra/Chakra of Coruscation
Gyokai - Industry
In case someone somehow doesn't know, Hi - Fire
Don'yoku - Greed/Avarice
Yokuatsu - Tyranny/Oppression
Yami no Chichi - Father of Darkness/Dark Father
Raimeiton - Thunder Release, what Naruto has decided to name his mix of wind and lightning chakra
Shuryoju - Hunting Beasts (same word for plural or singular), an alternate name for Fiends of Slaanesh, best word I could find for them
Konton no Omo - Lord of Chaos
Kemonojin - a very jank way of translating Beastmen into Japanese, basically would mean Animal-Human
"Alright," Tsunade began once she had Gai's genin, Naruto, and Maemi in her office, "we have a request from Hoshigakure no Sato in Kuma no Kuni, I could probably just send the three genin, but Naruto-kun needs more experience leading his fellow ninso and you've worked together before." she explained.
Naruto grinned, happy to be in a position of leadership, "So what does another shinobi village need us for?" he asked, not recalling them being present for the chunin exams.
"They believe their Hoshi is being targeted by an outside force, and want some extra security." Tsunade explained, Maemi hid her excitement since she'd read a little bit about the relic of Hoshigakure and was curious about what kind of power it held.
Naruto wondered why another hidden village was asking them for help but figured there was probably some hopes of an alliance from Hoshigakure no Sato if things went well, "Alright, team Kajo is on it!" he assured with a grin and a thumbs up.
"Hold on," Tsunade halted him, "you should know not to enter the valley of death outside the village. A guide will meet you to guide you safely to Hoshigakure no Sato." she added quickly, "Other than that just be careful and please don't cause a diplomatic incident." she requested dryly.
On the way out of the village Naruto informed the members of his household that he was going on a mission to Kuma no Kuni, Haku was tempted to secretly follow but held himself back. He knew he was good, but slipping past Anbu and gate guards was a different matter from following a nukenin around and evading Kiri Oinin Butai.
Hinata pouted, but figured she'd just work on trying to get the second step of learning the Rasengan down while Naruto was gone. Kin was a bit nervous about Tayuya still, she hoped the older girl didn't use Naruto's absence to start acting up. Isaribi just wished him luck and said they'd all miss him, Tayuya wondered why the girl was so sappy.
Karin was starting to wonder if she should request being given an actual rank and field shinobi duties, but was honestly not sure if she should. The Uzumaki decided she'd try training with Tayuya and Kin while Naruto was gone to see how she fared.
The journey to Kuma no Kuni was uneventful, which bothered Naruto. The blonde found himself bored without an outlet, he almost considered summoning Bakkus with his hunting horn for some fun but knew doing so would only freak his teammates out and exhaust himself. The horned genin wished something would happen, he'd even be happy to be ambushed by enemy shinobi since he'd hear their attacks coming anyway.
Tenten wondered what had their cell leader so on edge during the journey, she hoped it wasn't withdrawals from whatever he'd been smoking lately, or alcohol, or sex. The kunoichi wondered if sex withdrawal was even a thing, she didn't really feel like asking a doctor or iryonin.
Neji kept activating his Byakugan periodically, Naruto's fidgeting making him nervous too. Eventually he realized the blonde was just bored, "Have you and Hinata-sama decided on when you'll be having the wedding?" he asked idly, trying to make small talk to alleviate the horned blonde.
Naruto hadn't expected the question and took a moment to think about it, "We haven't really discussed it much, I guess we'll have a ceremony eventually but it'd be kind of weird for our wedding photos if we're so young right?" he asked, "Actually with how these boons work any wedding photos might look weird after a few months." he added.
"I would like to humbly request I be best man!" Lee declared loudly, "Also I think getting married while you're young is fine and youthful!" he added with equal vigor.
Naruto hadn't considered who would be best man, he tried to picture Sasuke doing it but immediately discarded the idea. He liked the Uchiha, in a manner of speaking, but the guy could be such an ass at times, "I think I want Iruka-sensei to be best man actually." he said idly and Lee deflated, "You can be a groomsman though." he added and the green spandex wearing taijutsu specialist immediately perked up, "No spandex though, Hinata-chan would kill me if I let you wear that."
Tenten sighed as Lee deflated again, "I still find it weird you have an actual harem, Hinata-chan doesn't mind?" she asked.
Naruto shrugged, "Nah, they all like each other, well mostly." he said, thinking of how Kin was still scared of Tayuya, "Karin-neechan and Hinata-chan get along the best, Haku-chan gets along with just about everybody, but I guess Tayuya-chan scares Kin-chan, probably scares Isaribi-chan too but Haku-chan wouldn't let any of them hurt her unless she wanted them to." he explained.
Tenten shook her head, "I have no idea how your poor dick handles it all." she muttered.
Naruto scoffed, "Worry about my ass more." he mumbled dryly, startling Tenten.
"Haku-san is a boy." Neji told his kunoichi teammate dryly.
Tenten was startled by this news, "How do you even know that?" she asked.
Neji raised an eyebrow, "Have you really never considered how the Byakugan can see everything?" he asked incredulously and the girl blushed, "You have nothing to hide from me, and I'm basically jaded to nudity at this point. Most Hyuga who activate their Byakugan are. After a few months at least." he explained flatly.
"Wait, don't all Hyuga have the Byakugan?" Naruto asked, confused by that part.
Neji actually chuckled at the question, "No," he answered, "it usually develops during the academy training years, but some don't even awaken it until chunin." he explained, "Byakugan does not always activate, in fact there's no telling if the children of yourself and Hinata-sama will have it." he added, smirking a little at the mental image of the clan elders kicking up a fuss if such children did develop it.
Naruto hummed with interest at the information, he didn't understand all that well but it was interesting. He idly wondered if any of his boons would become Kekkei Genkai, like his Raimeiton.
Eventually the four genin made it to the valley outside of Hoshigakure, a ravine of death filled with toxic gas. Naruto tapped his foot as he waited impatiently for the guide, thankfully it didn't take long for a Hoshi nin in a gas mask, sleeveless shirt with mesh underneath, long gloves, and pants tucked into sandals that went up his shins showed up to escort them safely.
"My name is Sumaru, I take it you lot are the Konoha shinobi?" The boy asked as he removed his mask to reveal long black hair in a braid.
"Not just any Konoha shinobi," Naruto bragged proudly, "we're Kajo no Ninso! The most perfect and excessive of the Konton Gundan!" he introduced, "My magnificent self is Naruto Uzumaki, Koki Ninso and future Hokage y'know!" he added with a laugh as Sumaru's eye twitched.
"I am Rock Lee! Konoha no Utsukushiki Aoi Yaju!" Lee introduced boisterously, "It is a pleasure to meet you, Sumaru-kun!" he added with a polite bow.
Tenten sighed at the antics, not sure if she should apologize since Naruto was technically in charge, "My name is Neji Hyuga." the white eyed boy introduced while Tenten was wondering how best to handle things, "Do not mind that we are genin, we're also ninso," he assured, "and I am a prodigy of the Hyuga-ryu: Jukenho!" he added with a confident smirk.
"I'm Tenten," Tenten began, "I can take the wings off a fly with a senbon I guess." she bragged with a shrug, figuring she might as well get in on it too.
Sumaru looked less than impressed with the lack of humility from supposed ninso, "Why are ninso traveling with an oni?" he asked with a raised eyebrow.
"Maemi-chan is a Tenshi actually." Naruto answered, "Kajo no Tenshi to be precise." he clarified. Sumaru clearly doubted that but didn't argue as he lead the four ninso into his village.
Inside a three story mansion the four genin were led to meet the village leader, a pale and bony man with blue eyes and lilac hair pulled back into a ponytail named Akahoshi, who introduced himself as the interim Hoshikage. Naruto frowned at the sitting arrangements, cushions on the floor, as he couldn't quite kneel in the way intended.
Tenten was confused by the title, "I thought only the leaders of the hidden villages of the Shinobi Godaikoku were allowed to call themselves Kage." she pointed out as Naruto struggled to figure out how to sit, finally deciding to just sit sidesaddle on the cushion while Akahoshi watched the horned genin with a raised eyebrow.
Sumaru took offense to this, "That doesn't make any difference!" he snapped, "We are not inferior to you. Even if we are small now, this village will one day rival the hidden villages of the Shinobi Godaikoku." he declared, "At that time, I'll become the true Hoshikage!" he finished passionately.
Naruto grinned at the passionate declaration, he liked Sumaru more already, "Silence!" Akahoshi ordered, "Go back to the training ground." he demanded of Sumaru and the boy stood to obey. Naruto wanted to follow and talk with the braid haired boy, but knew he had to stick around and discuss the mission with the village leader. Besides he finally got comfortable.
Akahoshi closed his eyes and released a quiet sigh, "Forgive me." he said, "As you say, shinobi in our village are not qualified to hold the title of Kage." he agreed, "However, in our village, there is the Hoshi that Kage of all Shinobi Godaikoku envy. We will use the power of the Hoshi and one day claim the sixth Kage title." he declared firmly, Maemi struggled to contain her interest in the celestial object they spoke of.
Naruto aspired to be Hokage himself, so he was curious about the 'star' anyway, "This Hoshi is what we're here to protect right?" he asked.
Akahoshi nodded hesitantly, "I must admit, I didn't expect Konohagakure to have a yokai leading their genin cells." he confessed with some trepidation.
Naruto wondered if he should correct the man or not, "I'm human." he decided after a moment and the man raised a skeptical eyebrow, "Is my appearance that surprising?" the blonde wondered, glancing down to check himself out.
Neji could understand the confusion, but he wasn't sure how to explain it, "As Kajo no Ninso, we are sometimes blessed with boons from Yorokobi-sama, the Kajo no Kami." he began, "Naruto-san is a fair bit more blessed than any of us." he tried.
Akahoshi was still skeptical but he nodded as if he understood, but any further discussion was halted by another Hoshi shinobi, "There's been an emergency broadcast from the training grounds!" the man declared in a panic.
It turned out the Hoshi had been stolen while Naruto and his team were in the meeting, all the genin training with the Hoshi had been knocked unconscious and Sumaru had been unable to stop the culprit escaping. Akahoshi was reprimanding the boy for being unable to stop the thief, "I'm sorry, Akahoshi-sama, but the thief could use Kujaku Myoho as well!" Sumaru defended himself and the village leader paused, stunned by this news.
Maemi noticed the conflicting emotions coming from the interim Hoshikage, "I see." Akahoshi said simply in a neutral tone, the Muse decided they should probably investigate him too.
"Our mission is to protect the star, right?" Naruto spoke up, "Then we'll do our best to help get it back y'know." he assured without waiting for an answer to the rhetorical question.
Sumaru scowled, "This is a matter for Hoshigakure!" he declared angrily.
"Enough!" Akahoshi reprimanded the boy again, "The shinobi of Konohagakure are here to assist, we shall allow them to assist." he ordered the Hoshi genin with a glare. Sumaru didn't look pleased about it but didn't argue as he stormed off.
Naruto felt bad for the other genin, he supposed he'd probably be annoyed if some foreign shinobi came to do a job he was sure he could do too. He heard Maemi telling him of her suspicions regarding Akahoshi mentally, and it seemed she wasn't the only one.
"Naruto-san, I believe Akahoshi-san knows something about the theft he wishes to keep secret." Neji whispered once they were alone, the blonde nodded in understanding, "I suggest Tenten-san and Lee-san investigate the village while we inspect the training grounds."
Naruto nodded again, "Good idea." he agreed, prompting Tenten and Lee to go do as suggested. The horned blonde frowned as he looked around the crater the training ground for the Hoshi was in, the only tree was clearly dead, no grass grew, and there was a lot of silence. The horned ninso realized that the quiet sounds of life he was used to were absent from the grounds, there was nothing even hiding beneath the dirt, birds avoided the area, and there was an odd scent to the dojo that recently housed the Hoshi.
Neji activated his Byakugan and looked around the barren area, "I can see foot prints, but it seems the thief simply flew away." he mused curiously.
"See if you can find anything else," Naruto ordered, "Maemi-chan and I will go see if we can get more information out of Sumaru." he informed as he moved to go after the Hoshi genin.
Naruto and Maemi found Sumaru at a cliff on the edge of the village, "Yo!" the horned blonde greeted cheerfully to get the attention of the other genin, "What's up y'know?" he asked.
Sumaru frowned at the hermaphrodite, "I'm just looking at the stars." he answered hesitantly, glancing suspiciously at Maemi as he did.
Naruto looked at the stars too, "Wow, you can see them way easier out here than back home." he mused, "So pretty!" he gushed happily, "What's that red one?" he asked curiously, having noticed Sumaru was staring at that one in particular.
Sumaru was a bit taken off guard by how quickly the androgynous blonde hermaphrodite spoke, "Natsuhiboshi, a star that watches over me." he answered, muttering the last part mostly to himself, "Enjoy the view, I have business to take care of." he said as he turned to leave.
Naruto frowned at the standoffish boy, sighing once he was alone, "He's kind of cute, reminds me a bit of Sasuke with his attitude though." he muttered, deciding to go visit those who were injured by the thief.
One he got to the infirmary Naruto was accosted by a strange jutsu that attempted to grab him by the neck, "Huh, cool." he murmured at the thick pink chakra ropes, they reminded him of one of his own Kajojutsu, so he used it, "Shibari no Ashikase!" he announced, grabbing the girl trying to catch him and yanking her out of the rafters to catch her in a bridal carry.
The young kunoichi looked flustered by the embarrassing bonds she'd been placed in, she had fair skin traits with freckles along with brown hair in a high ponytail and indigo eyes. She wore a light pink blouse with a turquoise, red patterned dress over it, light pink chaps that reveal her thighs, brown sandals, and the Hoshigakure symbol on the hitai-ate on her forehead.
"Ah, wait, she's just trying to defend me!" An injured boy called out in alarm, he had medium length dull purple hair, dull purple thick bushy eyebrows and has large brown eyes. The boy was resting in one of the beds and wore a tan kimono jacket with navy blue trimmings.
Naruto detected no further malicious intent from the girl and set her down, she'd barely had enough for him to notice her sneak attack as it was, "I-I'm very sorry!" the girl stammered with pink cheeks, "I didn't realize you were a Konoha shinobi and acted hastily, I though you were here to eat Mizura-san." she revealed with some embarrassment.
Naruto glanced at the purple haired young boy who was apparently Mizura, "No, I prefer ramen." he said, not even slightly denying that he ate people, "Anyway, I'm Naruto Uzumaki, Kajo no Ninso, who are you? And where are the other injured?" he asked with a raised eyebrow.
The girl frowned, "Oh, my name is Hokuto." she introduced, a bit embarrassed to not have a clan name like the horned blonde, but she hadn't ever heard of a clan of oxen yokai, "The rest of us were just put to sleep by the thief, they didn't even need to hurt anyone." she answered sadly, clearly upset that she and the others had been unable to stop the thief.
Naruto cocked his head to the side, "So why is he injured then?" he asked, glancing towards Mizura curiously again. He liked the boys hair, and Maemi's hair suddenly shifted to resemble it, startling the two Hoshi genin.
Hokuto looked at the Muse in confusion, "Um, Mizura-kun fell ill while training." she answered without thinking about it.
"Hokuto-san!" Mizura cried out indignantly, "Don't speak so easily of our Hoshi training with outsiders!" he warned. Naruto wondered if all minor hidden villages were this overprotective of their secrets, but realized that between this Hoshi and the Eiyu no Mizu the two secrets he knew of apparently granted power that the other villages would want so their caution was understandable.
Maemi frowned, wondering how dangerous the Hoshi training was. She was growing confident that there was something special about whatever the celestial object truly was, and she was sure her blonde young master had the vitality to handle it. But first they'd need to find the thief who stole it.
Naruto scratched the skin around his right horn, "I heard the thief used Kujaku Myoho, what's that?" he asked, figuring he should try to gather information.
Both the Hoshi genin seemed surprised to hear that and exchanged a worried glance, "That's not something I think we can share with an outsider." Hokuto answered hesitantly.
Naruto narrowed his eyes, "Well that confirms it's one of your villages hijutsu at least." he mused, "I'm supposed to help find the Hoshi, so I'm sure Akahoshi won't mind if you guys give me a little warning about who I'm trying to find." he added with a friendly grin.
Mizura frowned, "It's really not for outsiders to know, all you need to know is it's the same pink chakra you saw from Hokuto-san." he explained, clearly not even wanting to share that much.
Naruto sighed and adjusted his hitai-ate, "Alright, I guess I'll just meet up with my team and see if they learned anything." he decided, turning to leave. Maemi made a mental note that the hakama he wore should be replaced with something a little more form fitting.
Tenten and Lee reported that the jonin of the village were suspicious of them, and they didn't find anything of note. Neji noted that the local shinobi had rather strange chakra, confirming it was pink. Naruto wondered about that, he'd never thought about it but his own chakra was purple, completely different from the usual blue everyone else seemed to have when they used enough for it to be visible.
Now that he thought about it, Sasuke's had been a similar purple when he activated his Juin, "Hey, Neji," the blonde began curiously, "this pink chakra, is it similar to mine?" he asked.
Neji shook his head, "No, not quite. Yours is throughout your entire keirakukei while this pink chakra seems more like," he struggled to think of a way to phrase it, "it's almost like an infection." he finally decided with a frown.
Naruto scratched the skin around his right horn, "Huh, why is my chakra purple anyway, Maemi-chan?" he asked, he could vaguely recall it being blue back when he was in the academy.
Maemi glanced at the other three genin, mentally warning Naruto that it had to do with the Kyubi no Yoko within him, upon sensing his lack of concern about that and not sensing any other listeners nearby she began to answer, "Well, it's because you have a Chakra no Bakemono within you." she answered, startling the genin of Gai's cell who noticed the horned blonde wasn't surprised, "Slaanesh-sama altered the Fuin holding it within you to better blend your chakra together while keeping it's will chained down, but if it was just that your chakra would be red honestly." she explained, "So as well as mixing the physical energy of the Chakra no Bakemono within you more with your own chakra, the Fuin also draws spiritual energy from Slaanesh-sama's realm." she simplified, the last part was actually required for keeping the will of the Kyubi suppressed, powerful as it was the will of the Yoko was no match for the will of one of the major ruinous powers.
Maemi decided to leave out the part that this made Naruto a borderline Pseudo-Daemon, although he could still receive such a boon it would do slightly less for him than someone like Sasuke, and a lot less for either of them than someone like Sakura or Shino.
"So that's why his chakra is so damn potent and nearly limitless." Neji realized thoughtfully, as far as he was concerned that explained a lot, such as why Naruto's stamina recovered so fast.
"Ugh, no wonder even these two can't keep up with you." Tenten groaned, wishing she'd known that sooner. Knowing that made the kunoichi feel much less self conscious about her own comparatively average abilities.
"I shall train ten, no, one hundred times harder to keep up with Naruto-san!" Lee insisted boisterously.
"You might actually die if you do that." Tenten muttered, but couldn't help a smirk at the bowl cut genin for being so excessively motivated.
As they were drifting off to sleep Naruto belatedly realized he should probably inform his household about the Kyubi when he gets home from the current mission. Maemi couldn't exactly pretend to be asleep but she did quietly keep watch for the genin.
The next day Naruto and Team Gai learned that Sumaru had joined up with the other genin that night to search for the Hoshi, but had been knocked unconscious by the thief and Sumaru had even been kidnapped. The horned young ninso scowled as he leaned against a tree near the infirmary, it was apparently the closest thing Hoshigakure no Sato had to a proper hospital and they barely had any iryonin.
"Tenten-chan, you and bushy brows keep investigating Akahoshi." Naruto ordered as he considered what he already knew, and he wondered why the thief would return. His instincts told him something was off, they had the Hoshi so there shouldn't be much reason to stick around. There was also the fact that the genin of Hoshigakure had somehow managed to track the thief despite even Neji failing to do so, but the blonde supposed the Hyuga was on a combat specialized cell while Hinata was the one in a tracking cell.
Naruto himself couldn't track the thief unfortunately, he didn't know which scent to follow and he hadn't interacted with Sumaru enough yet to track him by scent either. Neji was looking around where the kidnapping had taken place, and the horned blonde was about to ask the other Hoshi genin if they had anything that might have Sumaru's scent on it.
Then a pair of Hoshi jonin appeared, a bald man and a black haired man, "Konoha shinobi, Akahoshi-sama is holding off the thief now, please assist us in this matter!" the bald man requested quickly. Naruto nodded and quickly crouched to let Maemi up onto his back before leaping to follow the two Hoshi ninja.
When they arrived near the poisonous gas ravine they saw Akahoshi was losing against a gas mask wearing shinobi, both were using a strange jutsu that manifested brilliant pink chakra behind them in a pattern almost resembling the tail feathers of a peacock. Maemi hopped off Naruto's back as the landed nearby and the horned genin took out his Raito before leaping, tapping the Kiba blades together to launch a Raikyu at the masked shinobi.
At Maemi and Naruto already suspected, the thief wore the flak jacket of Hoshigakure shinobi, curiously she seemed to be a kunoichi and wore shorts. The blonde took a moment to admire her legs as her brilliant pink chakra blocked his Raikyu, Maemi was further impressed by the power of the odd chakra but she couldn't sense the source of the power nearby.
Naruto leaped aside to nimbly dodge as the pink chakra feathers of the masked kunoichi took the vague shape of a beast and lunged at him, he poured his chakra into his Raito and unleashed a bigger Raikyu before letting them go. His intention was for them to float under the power of his chakra, but apparently such a jutsu was still beyond him. The blonde wondered if there were hand signs required for that as the Kiba blades sunk into the ground blade first on either side of him, as he didn't know he decided not to worry and weaved hand signs for a jutsu he did know.
To call the pulsing Raiton chakra that flared to life around Naruto's left hand Chidori was an understatement, it sounded more like a cacophony of birds screaming than chirping, and it sounded like a lot more than a thousand. Naruto winced as his affinity increased the danger of the jutsu to himself, maybe he should have practiced his Raiton chakra more before attempting this as his skin bruised and peeled under the strain of his own pulsating chakra.
The horned blonde wasn't done yet though, "Raiton: Shibari no Ashikase!" he announced as he thrust his left hand at the kunoichi, who shielded herself from being bound with her pink chakra feathers. However she cried out in pain as the Raiton chakra flowed from Naruto's chakra bonds into hers and electrified her, the blonde cut off the Raiton chakra with a wince as his hand twitched slightly.
Naruto was pretty sure he hurt himself more than his opponent with that combo, he made a mental note that he really needed to work on his affinities more. Probably his chakra control too now that he thought about it, but regardless the masked kunoichi stumbled back away from the blonde and barely managed to fend off Akahoshi's follow up attack.
As the kunoichi recovered and pushed back Akahoshi's attacks Naruto grabbed the Kiba blade on his left with his right hand and pulled it from the ground to connect it to the other blade on his right by the pommels, lifting the connected Raito one handed while his left hand recovered he charged in with leaping strides. The horned blonde had some difficulty using the double-bladed form of the Raito one handed but managed to swing it at the thief, clashing his electrical weapon against the surprisingly sturdy pink chakra of the Hoshigakure hijutsu.
Naruto grinned at the sound of the Tatakainouta as he danced with the taller kunoichi, evading her counter attacks as they were launched and attempting to get through her pink chakra defenses with his blade. Only to frown at Akahoshi's interference, "Butt out damn it y'know!" he snapped, stabbing the back end of his currently double-ended blade into the side of one of the interim Hoshikage's attacks and startling the man as he knocked the attack aside, "Don't interfere with the battles of Ninso!" the blonde insisted with a huff.
Akahoshi grit his teeth as his eye twitched at the blonde genin reprimanding him, the fact the young ninso had enough power to knock aside his Kujaku Myoho was a cause for concern but he was the client. More than that, he was a jonin, the interim Hoshikage, practically the Yondaime Hoshikage as far as he was concerned. Still he bide his time, unaware of Maemi sensing his growing hatred for her master.
The Muse moved to hide, waiting in the blind spots of the three present Hoshi jonin. She carefully and quietly took Naruto's wakizashi from one of the scrolls she carried around for him, Maemi would not let some random jonin ruin all of Slaanesh's plans even if he was a client of her current mortal master.
The kunoichi thief seemed visibly confused by Naruto's insistence on fighting her solo even without her face being visible, but she continued to use her pink chakra to attempt to defeat the horned blonde. Without further interference the Koki Ninso was having the time of his life, but he finally noticed something that gave him enough pause that he was almost hit.
"Hey!" Naruto called out, suddenly sounding indignant, "You don't have any intent to kill me, what gives?" he asked, offended. His ability to differentiate intent to harm from intent to kill surprised both his opponent and the three watching Hoshi jonin.
"What are you doing!?" Akahoshi demanded hotly, "That is the thief! Apprehend her!" he ordered, annoyed with the slender young hermaphrodite.
"I said butt out y'know!" Naruto retorted in an equally annoyed tone, "They don't even have the Hoshi on them so why aren't you idiots searching the surrounding area? Morons!" he scolded the three Hoshi jonin him rather rudely.
Akahoshi's eye twitched in irritation, "Look for it." he ordered the other two jonin in a growl and they wisely decided not to argue with the interim Hoshikage, disappearing with shunshin to do as suggested.
"And you!" Naruto continued, pointing his weapon at the masked kunoichi, "Tell me why you're not taking this seriously, Ashi-chan!" he demanded to know, his chosen nickname prompting Akahoshi to rub his temples in exasperation.
The kunoichi cocked her head to the side in confusion, then she glanced down as she realized the horned blonde was referring to her by her legs and her body language became oddly self conscious, "If I tell you my name will you not call me that?" she asked, her voice muffled but clearly embarrassed.
"No promises." Naruto answered with a shrug, flexing his left hand as it slowly recovered while they spoke.
The kunoichi noticed his healing factor and flared her Kujaku Myoho, "No deal then." she decided blandly, figuring she could put up with the nickname for a bit anyway. She attacked, but found when he focused on defense that Naruto was borderline untouchable, even able to react to surprise tactics he should have no way of predicting with normal human senses.
"Come on, at least take off your mask, I don't want to kill you if you're pretty." Naruto reasoned as he dodged and blocked, but the kunoichi didn't respond. The horned blonde pouted and tried to get closer to his opponent, but she was actually really good with that pink chakra of hers.
The blonde ninso supposed that starting to admire his opponent was a bad thing, but he didn't care. He liked Haku, Kin, and Tayuya just fine and they all technically started out as enemies. The blonde was aware that Akahoshi was going to get in his way if he tried to take this thief as a spoil of war though, she was not technically at war with his village and was a criminal of Hoshigakure no Sato.
"You don't seem concerned about those other two finding the Hoshi," Naruto noticed as he ducked under an attack and hopped aside to avoid another, "so I guess you hid it really well." he mused curiously. The woman didn't answer and the horned genin sighed, wondering how to get a reaction out of her.
Finally he decided to simply take her mask off himself, pouring his chakra into the Raito and throwing it like a javelin, weaving hand signs as he leaped after it. The legendary blades were knocked aside by the Kujaku Myoho, the pink chakra slamming next into the log Naruto used for Kawarimi no Jutsu.
"Hakai Toppa!" Naruto announced, although he need not bothered as the jutsu announced itself with a scream as it tore into the ground beneath the kunoichi, kicking up a cloud of debris with the sonic vibrations. Then the horned genin was in the personal space of the Hoshi thief with a feral grin, flipping to deliver a twin bicycle kick with his hooved feet that sent the woman rolling towards the cliff with her mask coming off.
Naruto noticed the long red hair come spilling out first and pouted, it was just his luck she had beautiful hair. The victorious genin strut towards his downed opponent when he heard a new sound in the lulling Tatakainouta and leaped aside, narrowly avoiding Akahoshi's own Kujaku Myoho as it destroyed the cliff the woman was on.
The young ninso scowled and thrust his left hand out, "Shibari no Ashikase!" he announced, wincing slightly as his hand protested against being used for the Kajojutsu. Naruto managed despite the pain, enjoying the way his hand throbbed as pins and needles shot up his arm, and rescued the Hoshi thief.
The blonde noticed the woman had been about to save herself anyway, but set that thought aside as he returned the killing intent he'd felt from Akahoshi as he caught the taller woman in a bridal carry without dropping the purple chakra bonds, "What are you doing!?" the interim Hoshikage snapped, "Are you out of your-!" he tried to scold despite the killing intent only to gasp as a wakizashi plunged into his lower back, courtesy of a leaping Maemi.
"Out of my mind?" Naruto finished dryly, "I'd ask you the same thing, clients turning on their employed shinobi kind of pisses me off y'know." he said coldly, remembering Gato.
Akahoshi snarled and flared his chakra as Maemi leaped back to avoid being dispelled, "How did you even dodge that?" he asked, trying to buy time until back up could arrive and he could accuse the genin of betraying his mission. The man was confident that his word against the blonde would be more than enough, he was a trusted jonin and the horned blonde was a foreign shinobi who looked like a hengeyokai.
"My senses are beyond yours thanks to Slaanesh-kaasama." Naruto responded as he hopped back to stand by where his Raito had landed, "Don't run, I'm curious about what's really going on now." he added as he set the red haired kunoichi down, who simply decided to take the moment to catch her breath.
Akahoshi grit his teeth as Naruto picked up the connected Kiba blades and disconnected them into two swords, he recognized the kunoichi well enough but he was confident things would still go his way. To his annoyance it wasn't a group of chunin or any jonin who arrived as back up, it was the village genin, along with the other Konoha genin and Sumaru.
"Okaachan?" Sumaru asked with obvious distress, alarmed at the sight of the red haired woman.
Naruto gawked at that and switched his gaze between the two rapidly, only now noticing the resemblance, "Damn, I sure am glad I noticed you were nice y'know." he mused with a laugh.
Akahoshi continued to scowl, "That horned blonde has betrayed the mission-!" he began to accuse.
"Liar! You attacked Naruto-sama first!" Maemi accused right back, confusing the Hoshi genin further.
For Neji, Tenten, and Rock Lee it was an easy thing to decipher, they swiftly moved to Naruto's side to back him up, "What happened?" the kunoichi of the cell asked quickly.
"I fought Ashi-chan there for a bit, Akahoshi interfered and tried to kill both of us." Naruto answered, earning raised eyebrows for referring to someone as 'Leg' of all things.
"Naruto-san, I agree she has nice legs but please focus." Neji requested dryly.
"I'm as focused as I can get without combat drugs!" Naruto retorted, he just didn't have a better name for the pretty red haired woman.
Seeing as the cat was out of the bag the kunoichi sighed and stood up, "My name is Natsuhi," she introduced and Maemi wondered if everyone was named after stars in this village, "and I'm sorry for the deception, but Sandaime Hoshikage-sama tasked me and my late husband with ensuring the Hoshi training never continued!" she insisted.
Maemi screamed internally, since it seemed like even without Akahoshi there was an obstacle to the object of celestial power, "So, the chakra boost gained by this Hoshi really is dangerous." Neji mused out loud, having seen the signs of infection with his Byakugan.
Naruto frowned, "Wait, like the Natsuhiboshi that Sumaru said watches over him?" he asked, surprising the kunoichi further.
Akahoshi could see his carefully laid plans crumbling, "This is absurd!" he snapped, flaring his Kujaku Myoho, "As you can all see I am quite alive and well! The Hoshi training is merely draining, those who truly love Hoshigakure should be able to endure so we may rival the Shinobi Godaikoku!" he insisted, swaying the genin to his side.
"Hotarubi-kun, my husband, is dead due to the side effects of the Hoshi training, and I have no idea how much longer I or you will live for." Natsuhi responded coldly, "That's why the late Hoshikage-sama halted the training! You should have been warned of this if you were going to act as interim Hoshikage!" she pointed out, her concern for the children of her home and her own child fuelling her passions.
More Hoshi shinobi arrived, jonin and chunin, including the two who had left to search under Akahoshi's orders earlier and whispered to the man, "Your nonsense is absurd! A true shinobi of Hoshigakure no Sato would willingly die for the glory of their village!" he insisted and his pink chakra suddenly wrapped around Sumaru, "Show her!" he ordered and the genin was alarmed to find his body moving a kunai to his own neck.
Naruto leaped to try saving the dark haired boy but the Kiba blades could not cut the Kujaku Myoho, he tried as the blade in his right hand hummed louder the more chakra he attempted to pump into it but was forced to block another beast of pink chakra from the bald jonin and back off, "Wait! Don't hurt him!" Natsuhi requested, "I'll bring you the Hoshi!" she tried desperately and Sumaru was relieved when his arms stopped, but the young genin was more confused than ever.
Akahoshi grinned, "Very well, make it quick." he ordered, "As for you four Konoha genin, you're under arrest. We'll try you for your crimes once this is sorted." he intoned, calmer now that he felt he had the situation under control.
Naruto took a deep breath and attempted to set aside his wrath, but the only thoughts that calmed his rage were thoughts of tearing Akahoshi to shreds. So the blonde focused on those thoughts and unleashed the depths of his killing intent on the man, "Who the fuck do you think my magnicent self is!" he snapped suddenly.
Akahoshi was alarmed to find himself frozen in fear, and the other Hoshi shinobi all took a step back at minimum with equally alarmed expressions, "You are a bakemono playing at being a shinobi!" the interim Hoshikage managed to retort hatefully.
"Wrong!" Naruto retorted, "My magnificent self is Naruto-sama! Head of clan Uzumaki! Kajo no Koki Ninso! Konton no Omo! Future Hokage of Konohagakure no Sato! Maebure of Yorokobi-sama! Sekkyo-sha of Yokubo-hime! Aijin of Slaanesh-kaasama!" he listed off titles arrogantly as he poured his chakra into his Raito, "Who the fuck are you to accuse my magnificent self!? You don't have the divine right required to even be considered the equal to my slaves!" he shouted passionately.
Neji activated his Byakugan, ready to fight besides Naruto despite the odds. Tenten's hands twitched towards scrolls strapped to her belt, nervous but emboldened by Naruto's arrogance and the fear clear in the eyes of those who stood against him. Lee simply took his taijutsu stance, trusting the horned ninso to lead them implicitly.
Akahoshi trembled with rage as he glared at the blonde, feeling his hatred swell his pink chakra as it turned a deeper shade, "I am the interim Hoshikage you foreign genin brats!" he snarled, but before he could give the order to attack Natsuhi returned in between them.
The woman looked alarmed at the situation that had very swiftly unfolded without her, "Wait!" she demanded, "This is what you want, now let Sumaru-kun go!" she said, holding out the small meteorite. As soon as Maemi saw it she understood, it wasn't quite like the energies of the warp, but it was a relic touched by such energies. The radiation it gave off was different though, without any of the will of the ruinous powers within it.
To a normal human it would simply be harmful, not immediately lethal but definitely toxic. To a Daemon though, it sang out like a siren song of power. So Maemi leaped, intercepting the exchange. Akahoshi and Natsuhi were both surprised by this, "This is even better than I expected!" the Muse giggled.
Akahoshi moved his chakra to use Sumaru as a hostage again, but Maemi's chakra flared up much like the Kujaku Myoho and halted him, "What!?" the bony man exclaimed in alarm, wondering how the Imp had already figured out what should take months of meditation, years even.
"This power is definitely harmful," Maemi giggled again, "to a human!" she added with a feral grin. With the added power of the Hoshi she could telepathically tell Naruto to use his hunting horn despite the distance, so the blonde clicked the Kiba blades together to hold in his right hand as he lifted the horn with his left hand and blew into it.
The sound was louder than expected, of deeper pitch than should be possible for the size and shape of the instrument, the inscribed runes glowed pink and purple as Naruto's chakra flared into it, and the sound reverberated in the bones of all who heard it. For a moment it seemed like nothing happened, then the Hoshi shinobi were surrounded and outnumbered as Beastmen came from the trees despite not having been there before in a bizarre form of Kuchiyose no Jutsu.
Naruto took a breath and pointed the Raito at the interim Hoshikage, "Akahoshi! My magnificent self challenges you to one on one combat! Accept or be seen as a coward in the eyes of the Kami!" he challenged, Maemi moved to stand by him as he issued the challenge.
Akahoshi shivered, he was injured, but he saw a chance. The village leader was supposed to be strong, and if he could just defeat the horned blonde he could get back the Hoshi and name himself Yondaime Hoshikage, "Very well," he accepted as he flared his dark pink chakra wings, "prepare to die then." he intoned.
Naruto holstered his hunting horn in his purple sash as Maemi handed him the Hoshi and mentally explained how to use it before quickly explaining to Bakkus that the herd was there to stop interference and deal with anyone who didn't surrender after Naruto won. The Shaman nodded in understanding as the horned blonde held the Hoshi in his left hand.
"Wait! That's dangerous!" Natsuhi tried to warn, alarmed by the rapidly changing turn of events.
"Naruto-sama is built different." Maemi assured with a grin as Naruto's purple chakra flared, tinged with bright pink highlights as he and his challenged opponent approached each other. Akahoshi attacked first, and pink electricity flared along the Raito as Naruto blocked.
The horned young ninso focused his chakra to his left hand and a brilliant pink Rasengan started to form around the radioactive meteorite, his hand shifted suddenly as his fingernails became clawed talons. Naruto charged and the Rasengan grew, Akahoshi had not expected this and attempted to halt the charge with his Kujaku Myoho.
The chakra of the two clashed, creating a vivid lightshow for the audience. Neji watched in amazement as he saw the Hoshi forming a feedback loop with Naruto's near limitless chakra and the energy within the meteorite drained into Naruto's keirakukei. The chakra aura around the blonde became akin to a roaring beast, like the head of a great purple fox with glowing pink eyes as the pink Rasengan grew in size and power.
Finally Akahoshi was engulfed, his Kujaku Myoho unable to withstand Naruto's use of the Hoshi chakra empowered Rasengan. The meteorite fell to the ground, Neji noticed there was no energy left within it, it was all contained within Naruto and pulling into his core. Unlike the infection those of Hoshigakure had it was contained until the Hyuga realized it was being locked within the Fuin that contained the Chakra no Bakemono they spoke of last night, then he couldn't see it anymore.
The evidence of what Naruto had done was obvious in his eyes though, the slit pupils glowed the same pink as the Hoshi chakra had, "Huh, I think I broke it." he mused idly, tapping the spent meteorite with his foot, "Uh, this is good for you, right Natsuhi-chan?" he asked as he idly scratched his left horn.
Natsuhi sighed, "I wish you'd been a bit more careful, but yes, thank you." she said gratefully, "Everyone please listen, that Hoshi was incredibly dangerous!" she tried to reason, but the other Hoshi ninja seemed skeptical.
"It's true!" Mizura spoke up, "I don't know why that yokai is fine, but does he seem human to any of you anyway?" he asked as he opened his kimono top, revealing glowing pink rashes, "Training with that Hoshi, it was killing me." he added somberly.
Sumaru wasn't sure what to make of the situation, still recovering from the shocking news that his mother was alive and had been protecting the village from the shadows. Slowly the older Hoshi shinobi hesitantly agreed with Mizura, remembering their own friends who had died training with it.
The threat of the Beastmen surrounding them had all those who disagreed hold their tongue as they were outnumbered not only from the outside, but from within too.
Natsuhi turned to Naruto, "I don't know what you are really, but thank you." she reiterated, "You four should probably leave though." she insisted.
Naruto frowned, "No way! You're all sick because of this thing right! Tsuna-baachan is a great iryonin, and the iryo ninjutsu in Konoha is amazing, you guys should come and get treated." he offered, surprising the Hoshi ninja that the blonde who had been like an arrogant warlord moments ago would offer such kindness.
Maemi quietly told Bakkus he'd done a good job, and that she'd remind Naruto to come and reward him later. The Shaman snorted, and took his herd back through the wild paths that the hunting horn had opened up. They had no desire to lead a group of humans through such paths, even if their new lord liked said humans.