Ben-10: The One True Monster

I'm Ben Tennyson, wielder of the most powerful weapon in the universe. I stopped the Highbreed invasion, I defeated Vilgax in hand-to-hand combat and I've beaten the Forever Knights more times than I can count.

— I'd given a warning before but they stopped caring after some time. That was one way to piss me off.

"Did it truly have to come to this?"

Plumbers scurrying around, like ants trying to fix my mess. Sure, I may have gone a bit overboard, but I ain't got an ounce of regret in me. Alien medics tending to the wounded, yet the stench of death hung heavy in the air.

Magister Prior Gilhil let out a heavy sigh, his eyes fixed on a sight he probably never thought he'd witness during his time as a plumber. "Plumber" is, in short, a space police organization by the way.

Other magisters were discussing in secret with British Government Officials to prevent them from interfering with the matter.

"Maybe I was too kind in their eyes. Sorry, I couldn't control my emotions," I must apologize them for making a big mess already.

Normally, this is not something Plumbers need to interfere with. They only need to evacuate the prisoners and send them back home. It must be Grandpa Max's personal request.

"... You should take a rest or perhaps even a vacation for now."

I could see the alien prisoners staring at me with fearful looks in their eyes. Well, given that I went on a rampage in front of them, they would be scared for their life, too.

I felt bad using the Omnitrix for violence. It was probably the first time in my life that I felt my blood thirst this strong.


— — — —

Chapter 3: The One True Terror

"So now! The training begins!"

Still recovering from accumulated fatigue, Kakashi decided to train his teammates. He still had to rely on crutches but it shouldn't be much of an obstacle.

"Alright!" A hyperactive Naruto responded vigorously as always.

"Before that," Kakashi had his usual bored look on. "Let me explain Chakra power for a ninja, from the basics."

Meanwhile Benji on the other hand had found Tazuna's house. He softly knocked on the door just loud enough for the people inside to hear, to be greeted by Tazuna's daughter, Tsunami.

"Hi," he unveiled his face upon realizing she wouldn't know him. "Is Kakashi-san and his team here?"

"Who are you?" Tsunami was a bit wary without a doubt.

Benji understood right away that she must have been on edge since her father had been targeted a lot.

"I am their ally," he calmly replied. "Ben-Ten of the Omnitrix (Omunitorikkusu no Ben-Ten)."

"Omunitorikkusu? Whatever, oh, I remember Dad talking about Ben-Ten or something like that," she nodded. "You are the kid in question, huh… Wait here. I'll get my dad."

"But—"

"Dad! Here's your Ben-Ten from yesterday," she called out before Benji could say anything.

Old Man Tazuna hurried to the door, astonished to see the "kid" again.

"It's really you! I didn't get to thank you properly yesterday!"

It's better if he's still scared of me. Benji thought as the old man enthusiastically grabbed his hands.

"Yeah, that's fine—"

"Come on in! Breakfast is waiting." Tazuna was an unstoppable force.

"No. I'm here to—"

Before Benji finished with his sentence, he got dragged into the house. I have already had my meal!

Team Kakashi side

"Hold on and listen," said Kakashi to the impatient kids. "As Sakura just explained, combining Chakra means picking up both the physical and spiritual energies and mixing them together within the body."

The boys calmed down as the teacher continued. "And of course, the amount of each energy, the preparation of the energy, changes based on the jutsu you want to activate. Right now, none of you are using Chakra efficiently! Even if you can gather a lot of Chakra, if you can't control it well, your jutsu's power could be halved or not even work. Wasting energy will prevent you from battling for long periods. You need to learn to control the Chakra with your body!"

Kakashi then channeled his Chakra control in his legs and vertically walked up a tree till he became standing upside down as his feet remained stuck to a branch, leaving everyone fascinated.

"Focus the Chakra on the bottoms of your feet and make them stick to the tree trunk," Kakashi explained. "If you use Chakra well, you can do things like this. The goal of this training is to gather enough Chakra in the right spot. Even expert ninjas find this surprisingly tough. Using Chakra for tree climbing is subtle but the bottoms of the feet are the trickiest for Chakra gathering."

The kids were left speechless.

"Anyway! In other words, if you master that control, it will be possible to master any jutsu. In theory, that is!"

After the lecture, Kakashi let the kids try tree climbing. For the starters, they would have to run up a tree to gain momentum and try getting used to it.

"Ready! Here I go!" Naruto cried out, running toward the trees, followed by Sakura and Sasuke.

He attempted to run up a tree but quickly failed and dropped to the ground. Sasuke on the other hand ran several meters up his tree and left a mark where he stopped, before doing a backflip and coolly landed on the ground.

"This is pretty easy!" Sakura said, attracting the attention from everyone else.

Yes, she had already climbed the tree and now was sitting on a branch, overlooking the two kids.

"So it seems Sakura has the best Chakra control, huh," Kakashi noted. "Hmm?"

"Wow! Way to go, Sakura!" Naruto cheered her.

Sensing a presence in the vicinity, the copy ninja cautiously looked around, to find Benji sitting on a nearby tree. The boy was now wearing a simple mask crafted from plastic or wood. The paint on the mask appeared incomplete, particularly on its left side. The eyeholes, however, clearly revealed the wearer's green eyes.

Kakashi initially thought the brunet must have been imitating his training and climbed the tree, but it was merely a coincidence. Benji's Chakra control was actually much worse than Naruto's.

"Hello," Kakashi greeted the boy, with his usual bored look.

Benji sneaked a glance at a child who was walking away — Inari, Tsunami's son and Tazuna's grandson. Benji was right to follow the child around, which let him find where team Kakashi was.

"Yep, konnichiwa," responded Benji in a quiet monotonous voice.

"Do you want to join their training?" Kakashi asked, kinda out of his character. He wasn't really the type to bother outside of his responsibility.

"No," the brunet calmly replied. "I can't do any of that."

It sounded like either arrogant or humble a statement to Hatake Kakashi. "Is that so? Well, I guess you are way past that level."

Or just not there. Benji watched Naruto fall to the ground again and again, while the Uchiha kid was doing a decent job. Decent job, he'd say.

Tenzaki Benji used to work hard like these kids, too. But he can never truly grow up anymore. In other words, he's hit a wall.

"No, I can never grow stronger even if I try," he replied to Kakashi.

"... I see," Kakashi didn't really understand but he decided to not pry into it. "That aside, who really are you? Ben-Ten, is that your name?"

"You can say it is my identity."

Ben-Ten. The initials of his current name. Moreover, his past-life self used Ben 10 as a hero name, too. It's not wrong to say it means a lot to him. Probably the only attachment left between him and his past life, besides the Omnitrix.

"Well, I don't need to care about your origin as long as you are not an enemy, do I?"

Benji shrugged. "For the time being."

"I kind of want to know what your goal is though," the copy ninja took a chance.

Initially, it was meant to be a vacation. A chance to step away from the usual and explore the potential of the Omnitrix in this world. But upon arriving here, a realization struck him — the world needed him. No, not exactly him, but someone like him.

"The bridge. It's the hope of this country. That's why I will protect you guys until the old man finished his job."

Or until Gato leaves the Land of Waves.

"Then we have quite the same goal."

Kakashi concluded that the boy must have been around protecting Tazuna since they departed Konohagakure. The puzzle is not yet answered but he shouldn't ask too much of the boy.

"... By the way," Kakashi relayed. "Zabuza might still be alive."

"..."

Zabuza never was that big of a threat to Benji. The only problem is, it is risky to utilize his abilities conveniently with people around. He remembered it took a lot for people of his (previous) world to accept the aliens, whom they formerly regarded as monsters.

"Just letting you know." (Kakashi)

Benji nodded and transformed into Big Chill, disappearing into the tree.

That one must be the transformation Sasuke talked about. Kakashi mentally noted. Till now, he's used three transformations, each with unique jutsu and abiities. Who knows how many more he's got…

But Kakashi of the Sharingan knows over 1000 techniques so a boy having two or three transformations doesn't surprise him much. After all, he himself was a child prodigy.

The only thing that didn't feel right was… His Sharingan couldn't assess the kid's jutsu although they seemed to have only one Chakra nature. Hmm

Forget it. Having a powerful ally is better at a time like this. If Zabuza was really alive, he could have the kid help him. But of course, his team must not stop growing too.

Benji, finding Team Kakashi engaged in training deep within the forest, made a swift flight back to the seaside near Tazuna's house. Benji decided to guard the old man on their behalf.

He reverted to his human form and landed in front of the door.

Knock, knock.

From the information he's got, Gato is one crafty guy. Benji must not let his guard down.

"Who are you?" This time, he's greeted by Inari.

Benji removed the mask and smiled. "Hey there. I am your Grandpa's… uh, friend. Where is he?"

"I don't know," the kid didn't look very happy. "He's not home. I think he's meeting his subordinates."

"Is that so? Thank you."

"Wait, how are you my grandpa's friend? You are still a kid," Inari suddenly pointed out.

"Things happened," Benji replied, smiling. "You can ask your grandpa about it later."

"... Okay. Hm, nii-san?"

But Benji had vanished from the kid's sight. Like a shinobi would.

Second Day

"No, we can't just start the work right away," this was what Tazuna-san said.

"Why?" Benji asked back.

"I still need to rest. And I need to talk to my friends and subordinates."

"Didn't you talk to them yesterday?"

"Yeah but…"

Third Day

"Kid, I said, you don't need to tag around with me all the time."

Benji wouldn't leave the old man's presence, for safety purposes. But clearly, he was taking it to extremes.

"Isn't that fine though?" Kakashi said. "I still need a few days more to recover."

Tazuna looked back at Benji who shrugged in response.

Meanwhile Inari ran off out of the house, followed by Naruto who was chasing after him. Benji secretly thanked Kakashi for backing him up.

"Alright. Just do not overdo it." "Hai!"

Fourth Day

"Are you going out today too?" Masato poured milk for Benji.

"Yeah."

Masato narrowed his eyes, staring at the kid.

"Hmm, you are really working hard, huh…"

"How do you know?" Benji pulled the glass of milk.

"You've been getting up from bed a lot earlier than usual," Masato was suspicious. "Is it a girl?"

"No, no, it's not," the boy felt like choking on the milk.

"Do you have a crush on anyone?"

"No, of course not. Masato-nii!" He almost screamed.

"Sorry for asking," the older Tenzaki laughed it off. "But do tell me when you want to know anything about girls. I am something of an expert in that field."

Benji deadpanned. Yeah, sure, you are an expert.

Masato figured the kid was likely spending time chasing girls instead of training, now that he didn't have to. In a sense, that was fine. Yet, deep down, he felt bad that he had to force shinobi stuff on Benji.

"I'm going then." "Oh, be careful."

And so, let's say a few days passed without a fight scene or any particularly notable events.

With Benji's push, Tazuna the master bridgebuilder started working soon under the former's protection. Since Kakashi hadn't fully recovered from his fatigue, he and the kids continued their training in the forest.

"Tazuna-san, are we really okay with just a kid?" One of his subordinates asked, glancing at Benji.

The brunet was sitting on the edge of the bridge with his legs hanging down, facing his back toward the workers.

"Just trust him," replied Tazuna with confidence. "Despite his age, he's pretty reliable."

This old man, isn't he quite sharp too? Benji thought. Or I'd say, crafty?

"But kiddo…" Tazuna approached Benji. "Wouldn't you join them in their training?"

"No, I don't wanna," the boy responded almost coldly.

"I-I see. They are really working hard, you know. Yesterday, the boys came home really late and exhausted."

"I can see that," replied Benji. "Naruto was… kinda the reason I became who I am now."

"Really?"

"If you wish to know…"

And then Tazuna was told how Naruto protected Iruka and Benji, excluding the fact that the boy had a demon fox sealed inside him.

"So you are a Konohagakure shinobi, too?"

"Don't tell them though," Benji put his index finger on his lips.

Coincidentally at the time, Team Kakashi arrived at the construction site.

"Yo."

Kakashi came up, behind whom was the exhausted duo — Naruto and Sasuke – and Sakura. It seemed the two kids were motivated and competed with each other, but that was one way to hone your skills.

"Oh, have you finished the training?" Tazuna welcomed them.

"We have a lot more to go but…" Kakashi glanced at Benji who quickly put on his mask. "I guess we can take it from here for today."

"Thanks, leaving it to you," Benji said, making eye contact with the copy ninja, which the latter responded with a gentle nod.

"Aw."

Benji leaped off the bridge, transforming into Jetray mid-air. He hovered just above the river's surface before accelerating into a red streak, swiftly disappearing from view.

"It's the fourth transformation…" Kakashi muttered.

"He's so fast!" Naruto commented excitedly.

"Sensei, did you figure out who he is? Sasuke asked the teacher who gently shook his head.

"No, but don't worry."

Tazuna-san blinked. Benji had already revealed his identity to this old man. But a promise is a promise.

"I kind of want to see his face," Sakura remarked.

But this remark made Naruto and Sasuke to look back at Kakashi, who had been wearing a mask all the time.

"What?"

The kids, and Benji of course, wanted to know Kakashi's face, too.

"Nothing, sensei," Naruto said and walked away, followed by Sasuke who just silently nodded.

Staring at their backs, Kakashi noticed the mist had slowly accumulated around the bridge.

"It's almost time, huh. I hope his plan will succeed."

Jetray flew above the town and scanned every street and corner possible with his enhanced sight. As suspected, he spotted a few people with weapons here and there — Gato had made his move.

From the looks of it, Gato seemed to have ordered his underlings to threaten the families of Tazuna's subordinates and possibly Tazuna himself, specifically today. Which means… If Zabuza were indeed alive, he would confront Team Kakashi to assassinate Tazuna today. This must be the plan.

But Benji wasn't blindly going into it.

He glided all the way down near the ground and flew past the thugs at a high speed again and again, striking them with his tail and knocking them out. That was the least painful and the most humane treatement he could give these thugs at the time around.

"Look! Those thugs, they are down!"

Benji watched the people who came out into the streets to check on the thugs.

"Now then…"

- (Transition) -

"Inari!" Tsunami called out, busy in the kitchen. "Give me a hand."

"I'll be right there!"

She then went into the dining room for cleaning, but much to her surprise, the wall was suddenly shredded into pieces, revealing two swordsmen who seemed to have torn it down. One of them was a light-skinned man with bluish-white hair, wearing a light-blue jacket. The other was a tall, brown-haired man with tattoos on his body, leaving his upper body exposed. They were Zori and Waraji, Gato's personal bodyguards.

Tsunami stumbled on her feet and fell over out of fear, dropping a plate into pieces.

"Are you Tazuna's daughter?" Zori said. "You are coming with us!"

The silence lasted multiple seconds.

"Why would I?" Tsunami was suddenly acting totally different.

"Wha? We are taking you to our boss as a hostage!"

To their surprise, the woman stood up, unfazed, making them draw their swords to intimidate her. But in response, she smirked and suddenly turned into a humanoid purple mud-like blob, with a green-black hourglass symbol on her chest— in other words, the Omnitrix.

"Sorry but, I am not Tsunami-san," the creature's voice was much different from Tsunami's, masculine and dark. The creature quickly grew larger into a monstrous shape, overlooking the two samurai.

Unironically, they freaked out, staring at what became of Tsunami.

"Oi… what are you!? Where is she?! Where is Tazuna's daughter!?"

"I don't care what you are, but if you get in our way…" the samurai readied their swords. "We will kill you."

"Dream on," the creature mocked.

He didn't have any time to dodge when Zori and Waraji charged at him and landed multiple slashes in a split second. His liquid-like body broke down in such a gross way while the table behind him was also shredded into pieces in the process.

"Hmph. It wasn't anything special."

"Aw, now let's search for the woman—"

"Why the rush, people?" The creature murmured, its voice a menacing undertone. "The show is not over yet."

""What?""

The liquid-like body began to reform into its monstrous shape, again standing taller than Zori and Waraji.

"What the hell!?" "What… W-what the heck are you!?"

"Your worst nightmare," he answered with a grin.

It was Sludgestrike, Benji's Lenopan transformation. Lenopans are aliens evolved for shapeshifting, and while they are not equiped with the best for combat, they have a high durability which, well, troubled even the plumbers in interstellar wars for decades.

— — — —

Alien Profile: Sludgestrike

Species: Lenopan

Body: purple, mud-like; can shapeshift

Abilities: Shapeshifting, Liquefaction, Regeneration, Vocal Manipulation, Sludge Generation, Slime Projectiles

Jutsu Designation: Transformation Technique; 変化の術 (Henge no Jutsu)

(A/N: I will add a profile like this for every non-canon alien form that appears in the story.)

— — — —

Zori and Waraji exchanged uneasy glances before gathering their resolve and lunging at the monstrous Lenopan.

Sludgestrike's body rippled as he deftly sidestepped their strikes, his malleable form allowing him to evade their attacks with unnatural grace. With a swift motion, he extended his arm, forming it into a slimy tendril that shot towards Zori. The tendril wrapped around Zori's sword, immobilizing his weapon. The Lenopan contorted and reshaped himself, his other arm morphing into a hammer-like appendage that slammed into Waraji, sending him crashing into a nearby wall.

Waraji shook off the impact of hitting the wall and rushed back into the fray, his sword glinting as he swung it towards Sludgestrike. The Lenopan absorbed the impact of the blade, causing it to sink into his malleable exterior.

Finally, Zori successfully retrieved his sword and slashed it through the Lenopan's body, freeing Waraji's sword. The two jumped back to make distance between them and the target.

"Aren't you a formidable one… whatever you are." (Zori)

"Don't underestimate us, you monster!" (Waraji)

"If you think I am a monster, you are right!" Sludgestrike taunted. With a swift motion, he sent a surge of sludge surging towards Waraji, which the latter tried to deflect with his sword. Instead he got launched backward upon impact.

Zori charged at the lenopan, assuming he might be occupied dealing with his comrade. But the waves of mud turned their direction and lifted Zori off the ground and threw him at Waraji, crashing both of them into the wall.

Sludgestrike shifted into his human form, Benji, without transforming back, as he stared down the two. Waraji had been knocked out and Zori was barely conscious.

"Relay this to your boss, Gato. Get out of this country before late. If he continues to threaten the lives of people…"

Zori grabbed Waraji's shoulders and shook him again and again to wake him up.

"I will be the one of threaten his life."

"H-hai!" Zori dropped his comrade and ran away without looking back.

"Oi! Stop right there!" Benji yelled.

"H-hai…"

"Come back and take him with you."

The samurai rushed back and carried Waraji on his back, using all his remaining strength to run away. The lenopan transformed back to his human form in a green light.

"Sorry about your house."

Tsunami and Inari came out from hiding.

"... It's quite a mess," Benji apologized, staring at the destroyed walls.

"Don't worry about it," Tsunami said. "You protected us."

"Are you really a good person?" You were really scary," Inari said honestly.

Benji thought fast and made it up.

"That was an illusion jutsu. It's a tactic that involves scaring them."

I am only half-lying there.

"I see…"

"You seem incredibly mature for a kid, though," Tsunami remarked, half-jokingly. "Almost like you're not a kid."

There was a moment of silence until Benji put on the mask and looked back at the mother and the son.

"I will try… To be a kid."

He then disappeared in a red blur… As he always did.

"What a weird person," Inari remarked.

"He's not that weird," Tsunami said, giggling. "He reminds me of your dad."

"Huh?"

- (Transition) -

As Kakashi thought, Zabuza Momochi was really alive.

He and one of his underlings showed up on the bridge, amidst all the mist that pretty much let them hide from Kakashi and kids.

Zabuza was the first to make a move. But Sasuke handled it in time— he took care of all his water clones in a split second.

"You can't fool me," Sasuke said.

"Hmm, he saw through the water clones," Zabuza remarked. "That brat has grown. It looks like a rival has appeared, eh, Haku?"

His teammate was actually the masked boy— the Kirigakure Hunter-nin who took his body…

"It does indeed," the masked boy replied.

"That transforming kiddo isn't here either…"

It seems as Kakashi reckoned, the Hunter-Nin kid really turned out to be Zabuza's comrade. This explains a lot.

"Guess it was right to let your friends go back," Kakashi said to Tazuna, who nodded in response.

It would be best if they could evacuate Tazuna too, but he was the target. So keeping him around them was the best way to protect him. For now.

"He should stop hiding under that mask and face us!" Sakura exploded, still mad about Haku deceiving them.

"Yes! He should!" Naruto agreed. The two were already fired up.

But Sasuke stepped forward, silencing them. "I'll fight him. I hate brats who think they're so cool!"

The blond kid trembled for a moment but then he stood next to him confidently.

"No, we will."

"Huh? Are you mocking Sasuke-kun?!" Sakura said.

"No, Sakura," Kakashi stopped her. "It's better that way…"

In the first encounter with Zabuza, Team Kakashi struggled against him alone, until Ben-Ten came to assist them. If it were Zabuza alone, they would have an advantage here, because the nearest water source was quite farther. And Kakashi of the Sharingan had already faced his jutsu once… So it should not raise a problem.

But the issue was… Haku.

"Go!" Zabuza commanded Haku who then turned into a blur.

The masked boy spun himself on his feet, creating a small tornado with his sheer speed.

"Sasuke!" The blond boy said.

"Aw," the black-haired boy grinned, readying his kunai. "Let me go first."

He charged forward and stopped Haku's needle attack with his kunai. Naruto just stood by without rushing in.

"Sakura, stay close to Tazuna, and don't move away from me," ordered Kakashi.

Sasuke imitated Haku's movement and the two spun himself, ending up in the same position.

"I don't want to kill you," Haku threatened. "I'd like you two to back down."

"Nonsense," Sasuke said confidently. Their strengths almost matched with each other.

"But you won't be able to keep up with my speed. Also, I've already made two preemptive moves."

"Two preemptive moves!?" (Naruto)

"The first one is the scattered water," Haku calmly answered. "And the second one was blocking one of your hands. Therefore, you'll just be able to defend my attack."

Haku started doing one-handed seals, shocking Sasuke and Team Kakashi.

"Wha– how is he able to do that!?" Naruto asked.

Even Kakashi was surprised.

"Hijutsu: Sensatsu Suishou." (秘術・千殺水翔)

Secret Technique: Thousand Flying Water Needles of Death.

Haku chanted and stomped on the floor, somehow causing water scattered around to float up, which then somehow turned into needles.

"Kage Bushin no Jutsu."

(Shadow Clone Technique)

At that moment, Naruto swiftly performed a hand-seal, creating duplicates of himself by crossing his fingers, to surround Sasuke and Haku. "You won't escape."

As the needles rained down toward Sasuke and Haku, the latter leaped aside to avoid the attack, but was unexpectedly ensnared by Naruto's remaining clones.

"What!?"

Most clones got destroyed by the needle jutsu but some remained, forcing Haku to take the damage while Sasuke escaped using his chakra control.

"Haku! Retreat!" Zabuza ordered.

Despite being injured, Haku twirled to shake off the clones and began to withdraw. However, Sasuke swiftly intervened, delivering a forceful kick to Haku's face and sending him tumbling away like a rag doll.

"Good job, Sasuke, Naruto," Kakashi said.

"Haku, do you know what this means?" Zabuza said. "At this rate, you'll be defeated by your intended victim…"

"Yes…" the masked boy channeled his chakra, summoning the cold air. "It's unfortunate."

"Oi, Sasuke, what is he doing?" Naruto asked.

"I don't know… cold air?" Sasuke could faintly see the boy doing a hand-seal.

That manifested large mirror-like chunks of ice around Sasuke and Naruto.

"What is going on?!" Naruto groaned cluelessly.

"Hijutsu: Makyō Hyōshō." (秘術・魔鏡氷晶)

Secret Technique: Demonic Mirroring Ice Crystals.

"What is it?" Kakashi muttered. "What is that jutsu?"

Haku walked into a chunk of ice, his image starting to appear in all the ice chunks.

"Are these…" Sasuke wondered.

"Mirrors?" Naruto muttered in astonishment.

Meanwhile…

With a determined expression, Benji, transformed into Jetray, soared back to the town. As he glided through the sky, he released a flurry of paper sheets, scattering them across the streets below. Curious townspeople who had come out to investigate the commotion picked up the papers to see the contents.

"Hey, take a look at these!" The ruckus began.

The time is now, people. Jetray's grin widened as he watched his plan unfold. He swiftly accelerated to supersonic speeds, streaking back towards the bridge.

"Damn it…" Kakashi thought Naruto and Sasuke wouldn't be enough to handle Haku now. The two had injured Haku a bit but…

For his students, Kakashi didn't think twice to rush toward them, only to get stopped by Zabuza.

"I'm your opponent, aren't I?" The swordsman said. "Since that jutsu has appeared, they're done for."

"Is that jutsu… a Kekkei Genkai?"

Zabuza laughed.

"Kekkei Genkai?" Sakura wondered.

"It's the same type as my Sharingan," answered the teacher. "It's impossible even for me to copy that jutsu. And there's no way to destroy that jutsu either!"

"No way…" Sakura said.

"By the way where is your transforming kiddo?" Zabuza said. "You're not going to beat us this way."

Kakashi had to agree with it. Kakashi quickly thought of possible ways to either fight Zabuza or go to rescue the kids. But… he had something else on his side of the equation.

"Well, for now, it's just you and me," Kakashi grabbed his headband. "I'm going to have to finish this in an instant."

"The Sharingan again?" Zabuza mocked. "Such an unimaginative guy."

He then dashed at the copy ninja with his kunai to stop him from opening the Sharingan. The latter let the kunai stab his hand.

"You might call me "an unimaginative guy," Kakashi said. "But you are still afraid of the Sharingan after all, Zabuza!"

"A shinobi's secret technique isn't something you show your opponent multiple times."

"Be appreciative," replied Kakashi. "You're the only one who has had the chance to see it twice. And there will be no third time."

"Even if you defeat me, you can't beat Haku," Zabuza powerscaled.

Sasuke and Naruto were also struggling in that mirror prison, against Haku who were a lot faster than the duo.

"In other words, I've acquired a sophisticated tool, unlike the scrap you're carrying around," Zabuza jumped back. "Let me brag about another thing."

"Hmm?" Kakashi lifted the headband, revealing the Sharingan.

"In the battle before, I didn't just let you defeat me like a fool. I had Haku hide in the corner and analyze the jutsu. With his skills, it was easy enough to figure out a counterattack. "The same jutsu won't work twice on me," was that it?"

Zabuza made a hand-seal.

"Ninpou: Kirigakure no Jutsu." (忍法・霧隠れの術)

Ninja Art: Hiding in Mist Technique.

As a result, the fog around then became even more thickened, and everything around became harder to see.

"What… is this thick fog…" Tazuna muttered.

"Sorry! I was a bit late!" A new voice appeared, surprising Zabuza.

"Who is it?!" The swordsman could only see a red blur among the think fog. The flash of green light was distinct enough for him to notice when Jetray transformed again into another alien form.

Within moments, the mist that enveloped the area started to dissipate, growing increasingly thin until only traces remained. Emerging in the center, positioned between Kakashi and Zabuza, was Water Hazard with his portholes open absorbing the surrounding moisture from the air.

"That showoff…" Kakashi looked annoyed for a moment.

Zabuza was confused, witnessing his jutsu being undone with little effort.

"Transforming kiddo…"

"Get it right, Zabuza Momochi," replied Water Hazard. "My name is Ben-Ten of the Omnitrix."

"... Ha, do you think the same trick can work twice, kiddo? You know what, I also had Haku analyze your abilities too," Zabuza pointed his sword at Water Hazard. "You are weak. You exhausted yourself after that little funny attack."

He's not wrong. Benji commended. But no. That is that, and this is this.

"What is the deal with that mirrors?" Water Hazard asked Kakashi.

The teacher was still annoyed by the fact that he couldn't assess Water Hazard's jutsu.

"In short, Sasuke and Naruto are in there, fighting a kid named Haku," he answered. "That kid is on Zabuza's side, he also saved him that day."

"Oh… That masked nin."

"Be careful," the copy ninja warned. "I don't know if we can break his jutsu—"

Zabuza launched himself at Water Hazard and swiped his sword, which the latter reacted by dodging.

"Oi, stop with all that chitchats," Zabuza said impatiently. "I am your opponent! Don't get distracted!"

"You know what, Zabuza Momochi," Water Hazard shot streams of water through the hand portholes at the swordsman. The latter reacted by sidestepping and deflecting the water with his sword.

"... I was actually holding back. I only fought you to protect them."

"Huh?"

Water Hazard moved his hand over the Omnitrix symbol on the chest.

"Now I don't need to hold back anymore."

Zabuza jumped and spun himself to slash Diamondhead with his sword, but it was suddenly stopped by something hard.

Henge no Jutsu: Fue Hōseki."

Transformation Technique: Indestructible Gemstone.

Engulfed in a flash of green light, Water Hazard had been replaced by the Petrosapien transformation - Diamondhead. Being nigh-indestructible in this world, his body is composed entirely of pale green-blue crystals, which are of a very hard and durable silicon-based diamond-like substance. He sports four crystal shards on his back and has a sharp head. The Omnitrix symbol lay on the center of the chest.

The fifth transformation… Kakashi narrowed his eyes. What abilities will you display?

"Surprise?" Diamondhead clutched the sword using his hand and pushed, making Zabuza lose his balance. However, Zabuza quickly spun around to regain stability and created some distance between them.

I won't be able to keep up with him in terms of speed, but it is what it is. Diamondhead thought and turned around.

"Secret Move: Diamond Wall."

Diamondhead placed his palms on the bridge, thrusting his crystals into the floor of the bridge, resulting in cracks that extended to where Sakura and Tazuna. Finally, a curved wall made of crystals emerged before Sakura and Tazuna, separating them from the battlefield.

"Oi, don't destroy the bridge!" Old man Tazuna yelled.

"Sorry, I will fix it later," Diamondhead replied. "For now, take cover."

A Crystal-style Technique!? Kakashi widened his eyes in surprise. This is… He can use Wind and Water styles already. A Jonin-level shinobi can use two elements at least. What's going on?

"I see, you must be using a rare jutsu," Zabuza glared. "It's not ice or earth. I thought crystal release was just a myth…"

That was when Benji knew he fked up.

"Wind, water,... and now the Crystal-Release (Shōton) Kekkei Genkai. You will make a good rival to Haku."

Shoton Kekkei Genkai!? Just what are you, Ben-Ten? Kakashi wondered.

"Well, I guess I will defeat you and fight Haku to see if I make a good rival, right?"

Having regained his composure, Diamondhead transformed his arms into blade-like structures. At this point, he didn't need to hold back anymore. A good chunk of his secrets had been spilled…

"Let's see!" Zabuza rushed towards Diamondhead and jumped into the air, bringing down his blade. The latter managed to barely block the attack with his crystal arm and attempted to stab the shinobi with the other. But Zabuza was fast to dodge it and jump back, while trying to perform another strike. But the blade didn't even scratch on the petrosapien skin.

Zabuza Momochi created some distance again and took a look at his sword in a disturbed manner. Diamondhead didn't have a single scratch on his body, but the blade had begun to have some cracks due to the impacts.

"Tsk," he was frustrated. "Well, the sword will regenerate itself… If I get some blood on it."

"Oh, good luck with that," Diamondhead mockingly said, smirking.

"Don't get cocky just because…" Zabuza once again charged at his target. "You are a little durable!"

For someone as skilled as himself, he's getting careless… Benji mentally commented and turned his hands back to normal, reaching out toward the swordsman.

His fists then started shooting out small crystal shards, in the manner resembling a machine gun firing its bullets. Zabuza deflected and dodged most shards, while some of them flew really far, until they met with Haku's ice mirrors. Upon contact, some shards would penetrate the mirrors and end up on the other side, but a few others just dropped to the ground.

"You'll die today!" Zabuza jumped.

"Aren't you forgetting something?" Diamondhead said.

"Hmm?"

Kakashi suddenly appeared mid-air just next to Zabuza and stabbed the latter's left arm with a kunai, blood gushing out of the wound.

"Wha?!"

Zabuza dropped to the ground, supporting himself with his sword.

"I can't keep up with your speed," the petrosapien grinned. "But Kakashi of the Sharingan is faster than me."

Kakashi pulled out another pair of kunai from his ninja tool bag.

"I will take it from here," he said. "They need you more than me."

"I understand," replied Diamondhead, running past Zabuza toward the mirror prison.

"No!" Zabuza tried to stop the petrosapien but Kakashi landed a few punches on his face before he could do anything.

Zabuza was forced to leap aside, to create space and reposition his sword. One of his arms had been injured, and the open wound was going to slowly exhaust him.

"Huh, what is… is this Chakra?"

Diamondhead stopped in his path as he witnessed a reddish orange tangible smoke-like thingy emerging among the mirrors and destroying them. It rose to the sky quickly shattering all the mirrors, thus forcing Haku to exit his jutsu.

Kakashi realized right away that it must be Naruto's other chakra… The chakra of the nine-tails sealed inside him.

This is bad.

"This is…" Zabuza as clueless as he was, took a glance at the powerful, tangible chakra as he continued fighting Kakashi.

"Demon Fox!" Diamondhead didn't waste a second, thinking Naruto's seal might have been broken.

If it were, the nine-tailed demon fox would escape and destroy everything in sight. — something he can't allow to happen!

Naruto spun Haku and punched him in the face, sending him flying. The latter somehow regained his balance and landed on the ground on his limbs.

"Naruto…" Diamondhead briefly saw Naruto whose whiskers had become more dark and distinct, and eyes bright red, nails having shifted into animalistic claws. The blond boy jumped at the masked boy like a beast.

"Haku is getting overpowered!?" Zabuza uttered in surprise.

"I guess I have something else to take care of now," Kakashi said, punching the distracted swordsman. "Let's finish this fast, Zabuza!"

Just as Diamondhead was about to intervene, Naruto's fist halted just before making contact with Haku's face. He caught sight of the boy's visage as the mask shattered and fell off.

"You are… from that time…" Naruto uttered.

The blond boy's dangerous aura died down, along with his body transforming back to normal.

"Why do you stop? Even though I killed your dear friend…"

Sasuke? Diamondhead looked back at where the ice mirrors used to be. There was the black-haired boy lying out cold on the floor.

So I was late…

"Damn it!" At that time, Naruto punched Haku, sending him flying again, though he held back. Haku fell on the ground but tried to get back up with the last bit of his strength.

"You can't defeat me with that kind of strength," said Haku. "Wasn't he someone special to you? Many people misunderstand. They pity and don't finish off the enemy they ought to finish. They let them survive…"

Diamondhead decided to not intervene with their conversation. It looked so important to both of them after all. But… that kid, he looks like 14 or maybe a bit older. His words already sound heavy for a kid.

"To live day to day without a dream. The pain of it all," said Haku.

"What are you saying?!" Naruto said.

"Zabuza has no use for a weak shinobi," said Haku. "You took away my reason for existence. Please kill me"

Diamondhead reverted to human form and walked toward the boys.

"Why?! Why do you have to—"

Amidst Naruto's yells, Benji's fist landed on Haku's face, causing him to fall over.

"Huh?"

"Enough," said Benji cracking his knuckles. "You know what? Expecting someone to do what you want, after killing their loved one… you are really dumb."

Haku gazed silently at the ground.

"If you lost the reason to live just because you lost a fight,... then you live with it. That's going to be your penalty, for the rest of your life. You're not even…"

Benji sighed. Shinobi are always a pain to handle.

A few meters away from the kids, Kakashi caught Zabuza somewhat off-guard in a water prison made by his water clone. This was the exact jutsu he copied from Zabuza.

He activated another jutsu and gathered a high concentration of lightning chakra in his hand, causing electric webs to surround him.

"You are too dangerous," said Kakashi. "Tazuna, the man you're trying to assassinate is the symbol of courage in this land! The bridge he is building is the hope of this land! And your ambitions will sacrifice countless lives. That isn't how a Shinobi is supposed to behave!"

It is amazing a human can do that. Benji mentally noted, gazing at the sphere made of lightning in the copy ninja's hand.

Haku widened his eyes in fear as he saw the same scene, but Benji surely noticed that.

"Sorry… I have to," Haku made an one-handed seal.

Simultaneously, Benji activated the Omnitrix through a mental command and vanished in the flash of bright green light. Make it possible, Omnitrix!

Haku himself seemingly turned into a blast of wind and disappeared.

"Wha!" Naruto exclaimed.

"Chidori!" (千鳥)

Lightning Blade.

Utilizing his physical strength in his movement, Kakashi became a blur, like a stereotypical ninja. He lunged towards Zabuza, unleashing his chidori with lethal intent. In the last second, an ice mirror manifested beside them, and out emerged Haku who attempted to interfere with the attack.

Yet, in a fraction of a moment, an enigmatic presence emerged behind Haku, their hand closing around his wrist. Simultaneously, their other hand extended, reaching for the crackling chidori, absorbing its power in a blink of an eye.

"Huh!?" when Kakashi noticed it, his blank fist just punched the Zabuza, knocking the air out of his lungs.

He looked at the two beside him. "What did you do?"

Haku was just as surprised, finding it difficult to process what happened.

"Enough, people," the enigmatic figure said, releasing Haku. "Give it up, Zabuza. You are outmatched, and your comrade has been defeated."

Haku rushed toward Zabuza who was knocked out of the water prison.

"Why should I…"

"Zabuza-san…" Haku tried to help him up.

"Cut it out!" He shouted. "Ha…"

Kakashi was more troubled by the fact that this Ben-Ten had shown yet another transformation, which somehow absorbed his chidori! Honestly, it was quite humiliating for him but that's not the issue here.

Is he really a kid? With all these jutsu he's got, I wouldn't be surprised if he were an old guy pretending to be a teenager…

Standing at 7 feet, Benji's transformation this time was an extremely durable rock-based alien with indigo skin, his hands and face being magenta. He also sported magenta-colored shards on his body. His other distinct feature was his large, green, cycloptic eye. This form was named Chromastone in Ben's past life. The Omnitrix symbol sat on his chest.

"Because you can't go past me," he said, placing his hands on his waist. "Here's what's going to happen: both of you leave this country with your shinobi thugs. Never come back here until you have redeemed yourself."

"..."

"Oh, also if you think you are the big bad guy, you can try me," Chromastone put on a cocky smirk to stir things up. "I will give you a good beating as a lesson."

Kakashi shook his head and sighed but turned around and walked away without objecting to what Ben-Ten was doing. His mission was only to protect the old man, after all.

"Do what you like," he muttered and walked toward where Naruto and Sasuke were, unaware of the fact that Sasuke died, apparently.

Zabuza wanted to punch the heck out of Chromastone but he was in position to do so. His body was giving in to exhaustion and his wounds were starting to torment him physically and mentally.

"Zabuza-san, let's listen to him and leave," Haku tried to convince his master. "We can still try to realize your dreams in other ways…"

"My dreams?" Zabuza blinked. "Why are you—"

By the time Chromastone decided to turn back and get away from their drama… Another trouble arrived.

"Ah shit, here we go again…" Chromastone thought out loud.

"So you must be the monster that threatened me…"

A short man with shaggy brown hair, wearing a black suit and sunglasses, arrived on the bridge, alongside the mercenaries and bodyguards he hired, who were climbing up a ladder onto the unfinished side of the bridge.

"... Maybe you should never mess with someone like me."

So he must be Gato.

Benji was just grateful that he absorbed Kakashi's lightning chakra. It replenished his strength, otherwise, he would already run out of energy.

"Gato, why are you here?" Zabuza questioned, getting up on his own feet, supported by Haku. "And what's with all those men?"

"Hehehe, the plan changed," Gato said with an evil grin. "Well, actually, I planned to do this from the beginning. I'm going to have you killed here as I never planned on paying you any money."

"In other words," Chromastone glared at Gato. "You tricked him. I see, you are evil through and through."

"That's just how you get rich," Gato mockingly replied. "I am not sorry. Zabuza is so naive. He's not a demon swordsman, but a cute little baby devil…"

Zabuza attempted to act on his rage, but Chromastone stopped him.

"Let me handle it," he grinned and then walked up to Gato.

The evil businessman stepped back cautiously but Chromastone stopped a few meters in front of him and pressed the Omnitrix symbol. The flash of green light he unleashed caused the bodyguards to run up to Gato in order to protect him.

Replacing Chromastone was a greenish yellow-skinned, ogre-like alien wearing a dark green metal cage-like helmet with two horns protruding from it sides, and also a crest that resembles a toenail in shape on its forehead. The cage's door had five bars, three of which are in the center of the door. The Omnitrix symbol was on the helmet's extension covering his chest.

"Toepick!" The creature cried out his name. "Alright, let's do this quick."

"An ogre? A demon?" Gato mocked. "How does it make a difference? Transforming from a monster into a demon…"

"You'll see," The cage door of Toepick's helmet opened in two halves, revealing his face. "Grr!"

With the opening of his helmet, a symphony of unnerving roars and hisses echoed outwards. Upon witnessing his face however, every single person in front of him, including Gato, had a singular emotion on their face. Fear. Not just any fear. It was as if they had glimpsed the abyss itself, the most terrifying enigma in the cosmos. The scariest thing in the universe.

"No! NO! MOM! Help!" The once-boastful thugs, who had strutted around with bravado, now shrieked in pure terror and chaotically ran away, ultimately abandoning Gato without a second thought. Gato himself was the closest to Toepick, experiencing the horror more than any other.

"Don't! Don't come near me! AGHHH!"

Kakashi and the duo could only reckon how scary it was. But it was obvious that Toepick was even more terrifying than they could ever imagine.

"Grr!" Toepick approached the businessman, causing the latter to crawl on his back. Finally, the mercy of oblivion claimed him, and he passed out.

Toepick pressed the Omnitrix symbol to revert himself to human form shortly after the job was done.

"No need to thank me," Benji said.

His seventh transformation… Kakashi raised his brow and pulled down his headband to cover the Sharingan eye. I can't even imagine the terror.

"He's really the one wall we can't get past," Zabuza said to Haku, smiling. "We have to admit defeat for now…"

"Yes…" Haku nodded in agreement and the duo prompted to leave.

Hold on a moment," Benji interjected, halting their departure. "You've not been paid right?"

Zabuza and Haku exchanged puzzled glances. "Well, no," Zabuza replied cautiously.

A sly grin spread across the brunet's face as he glanced back at the unconscious Gato.

Letting the enemy live isn't necessarily an act of kindness. Why kill someone when you know the punishment fitting of them…

"In that case…" Benji explained the plan to duo. They agreed and then whisked Gato away with them, disappearing in the manner of shinobi.

That was one heck of a day… Kakashi thought.

"Sasuke-kun!" Sakura cried.

"Ah, about Sasuke, he should be fine," Benji assured Kakashi. "That Haku didn't have an intention to kill them since the beginning."

"Hmm, why are you so sure?" Kakashi replied.

Casually slipping his hands into his pants pockets, Benji met Kakashi's gaze. "I know when someone actually wants to kill."

Benji then transformed back into Diamondhead to fix the damage on the bridge.

"I still have a few questions if you may…" Kakashi said.

"Uh…"

At that moment, a large group of armed people led by Tsunami and Inari made their way onto the bridge.

"Huh? There is nothing…" Tsunami uttered in confusion.

"They drove out Gato and his goons," Tazuna explained. "The town is liberated now."

"Really?! Oh god!" The townspeople started celebrating their victory.

"They were really late…" Kakashi turned back toward Benji. But he wasn't there anymore. "Ah, this kid…"

- (Transition) -

A few weeks later, in the Hokage office…

"Thus, this concludes the report," Kakashi briefed the Third Hokage about their recent mission in the Land of Waves.

"I understand. Well done, Kakashi. You may go now."

"Thank you, Hokage-sama."

Hizuren Sarutobi, the Third Hokage, had the duty to oversee the village. On the pile of his work, he had another responsibility to take care of a boy behind the scenes. And now, yet another teenager was giving him a headache. Being the village head is tough…

Hizuren watched Kakashi leave the room and pulled out his smoking pipe.

"Ben-Ten of the Omnitrix… huh. Just what is with that kid? Masato, you really landed a jackpot of trouble."

Kakashi didn't know that the Omnitrix referred to a device in possession of Benji Tenzaki, a kid from his village. Hizuren concluded there was no need to tell him. But… if Benji truly has those powers, it just adds to his problems.

A boy who wasn't capable of controlling his chakra in the slightest bit… a boy who was deemed impossible to become a ninja… That same boy is now using several elemental jutsu on top of transforming into inhuman creatures.

That certainly sounded like a fairy tale to Hizuren.

"Summon Umino Iruka, the Head Master of the Academy, and Tenzaki Masato to my presence," Hizuren commanded.

"Understood, Hokage-sama."

This concludes the Third Chapter.

Author's notes section is going to be a little too long since I've got a lot to say in this chapter.

1. First of all, dang! We've got the very first non-canon alien debut already this early. Sludgestrike isn't the name I gave. I don't know who did it first but I could find a few fanarts on Google.

Anyway, this debut was quite random. I was writing that scene and thought what if Tsunami weren't actually Tsunami there. It would be funny… And so I dropped Benji there.

2. Shoton (Crystal Style) jutsu is only canon to anime and has only few appearances so far, unlike Ice Release. That's why it's safe to assume Zabuza has never seen it in person, since it is a very rare jutsu. Diamondhead's crystals are actually much tougher than actual Shoton jutsu, the latter being brittle with little counter to it.

3. Chromastone can absorb almost any type of energy (including, of course, electrical energy) while still possible to be electrocuted. The reason is he needs to consciously activate his abilities to make them work. As far as I'm concerned, he can't absorb kinetic energy and heat energy for now. BUT it's still possible he can manipulate the mentioned two.

4. Regarding the comment, I understand your concern. But it's not an issue. Ben fights street-level characters on a regular basis, and 90% of the aliens he's got aren't that broken. Despite his versatile and overpowered abilities, there still are things he can't do but shinobi can. So worry not, my friends.

5. As for the romantic routes, now that Ben has regained his memories, he is mentally much older than a character his physical age. This is a Mushoku Tensei situation again, lol. Anyway, that's not going to be discussed until the Shippuden phase, probably. We've got bigger agendas to deal with.

6. In addition to the alien forms that have been in the canon, some non-canon aliens and reboot aliens will also appear in this story, like Sludgestrike did. Some of these aliens have similar abilities to shinobi. For example, Shadowman and Lurk's abilities are similar to the Nara Clan's. Kringl can use servant-like summons.

Alright, thanks for reading, and let me know your thoughts on the chapter and my plans regarding the story!

Chris Chronos.