Sitting in the prefabricated building that became the temporary administrative heart of the slowly rising city of Anathel, named after my husband the emperor. The building itself was only two stories and was meant to be used as office building for imperial officers of low rank. But it was one of four prefabs we had.

Two of the others were converted into one by some brilliant engineers which was being used as a medical clinic. Together they were double the size of this building. Not surprising since it was originally the same building prefab. The last building was by far the largest and was the warehouse. It's sole job is to hold the food supply.

Food, whilst many people of the empire were used to rationing you at least had your pick of what you wanted to eat. Here at best have two years worth of food nowhere near enough for that type of pickings people had before. Pushing down the thought that reminded me that we only had that much since the soldiers gave in their emergency ration sticks. Something which broke so many old imperial laws.

The remains of the city we now inhabit were removed or in the process of being removed whilst a sea of tents replaced it. These tents were occupied solely by the military since the civilians were given the military quarters on the now grounded fleet.

The village hidden amongst whirlpool, even with the destruction was beauty incarnate, maybe even beating Alderaan. Its buildings were made of surprisingly resistant stone and had intricate patterns carved into them. What those patterns mean I have no clue. It was also clear at least to the imperial reclamation service that the buildings were once colourful.

The central island was the main island we are currently occupying. The island clearly had an abundance of wildlife and an almost ridiculous amount of plantlife. But that wasn't what made the island unique; it looked like it had been built. The first level was the beach and the bay which is a giant pincer. Then it went to the second level which was on a raised hill that formed a cliff over the bay. This continued inland for several miles then the third and final level which again was a raised hill that created a cliff face over the second level. How this place was destroyed when the only way to go to the next level was through the heavily defended gates.

Only possible way was to scale the cliffs but that would be far too slow to be effective.

Letting out a sigh. Anathel I swear if you left to do the diplomacy because you didn't want to do the administrative work. A part of me knew he did, he always did hate administrative duties.

Dragging a hand down my face I saw in the corner of my eye the report which could make or break the whole city before we even got started. Lifting it, I reread it for the hundredth time today.

Report for Lord Ashara Nox:

Reported by Grand Moff Valion Pyron

My Lord. Current count of unactivated traps that were left after the battle are 478 with 231 being force based traps. Please see the bottom of the report for description. Current number of traps activated is 145. Current number of droids in trap activation battalion 432. This will leave 46 traps left at minimal.

Casualty Risk assessment:

Extremely high

Mass Casualty Risk assessment:

Unknown but estimated rating is high

Acceptable losses:

Civilian:10

Military:100

Sith:0

Traps range from primitive but effective projectiles to extensive explosive traps. The explosive traps are most numerous and will undo much of our progress if set off too close.

Recommendation:

Have imperial reclamation service take over completely with the traps. Since they have the highest chance of success. Risk of doing this is imperial losses.

Force based traps description:

The effects are seemingly random; some have had the explosive capabilities of artillery rounds. Others have electrocuted, drowned and even pulled our droids into the ground. One common factor is that they are made up of symbols which glow when activated.

"Lord Ashara." The monotone cold voice of Xalek, leader of the eradicators, was all the warning I got to his presence. Why did Anathal fill the need to have them mask their existence at all times? I already knew the answer, they were his personal assassins.

"Darth Xalek. How may I help you?" I chirped, plastering a smile across my face. It wasn't fake, at least not entirely but I knew xalek wouldn't approve of it. Sure enough his eyes narrowed for a second before widening them again once he realised what I wanted.

"I wanted to check up on you. You have been seen leaving your position and have been spending more time with the emperor's personal droids. Especially his medical one." He can't know, can he? On the surface I gave no outward appearance and hid myself well in the force. There is no way he knows he just wants a reaction. Even if he did know he would have informed Anathel already, my wishes be damned. Seeing as the emperor has suddenly returned I know he hasn't.

Xalek looked at her intensely knowing full well about her new anxiety and more importantly what she was hiding. "You are not as stealthy as you think lord Ashara, may I recommend some ways to help keep your… blessing a secret until you feel it right to reveal it?" His tone was knowing but surprisingly considerate.

He

He knows. But then why is Anathel not back yet? Wait, he already answered that. Does he want me to reveal it? Letting out a sigh I accepted his help.

We would talk tactics and needs as well as delegation of duties for the next couple of hours. We even discussed the report and it was agreed that whilst the reclamation service would likely take heavy casualties it was necessary.

In a cave somewhere in the land of rain.

A masked man with a blazing crimson eye felt self doubt for the first time in a long time. Had something just got in the way of his plans.

It didn't matter he would still put this world in the ultimate genjutsu. He guarantees that much.

In the land of fire. Three days prior.

"My lord emperor, are you satisfied with burning down half the forest?" Reaching the outstretched hand of one of my eradicators. It took everything I had to have to hide how surprised I was. Since when did they have a sense of humour? Out of the ten or so years the eradicator program has existed never once have they made a joke.

"Well I have to leave some trees if they still wish to be called the village hidden in the leaves." Now it was the other siths turn to be surprised. Clearly he didn't expect me to respond with my own mirth. I never did like treating them as mear tools reminded far too much of slaves but they always rejected any attempt at humanising themselves. Wonder why they are changing that up now?

Flashback

"Dark Xalek, do we have any new orders?" The eradicators all stood to attention for their leader. Even if they only answered to Nox. The Khaleesh looked at each eradicator closely looking for even an atom wrong in their stance. He found none.

"I have come across shameful news." Xalek wasn't one to use shameful if he didn't mean it and there were few things that qualified, none of them good. Having the full attention of the eradicators reaffirmed Xalek continued. "It has come to my attention that we have failed our god."

Those words hit like a starship crashed into them all. They failed their god. They failed nox. There was only one way to atone and whilst they all would do so in a heartbeat curiosity is still a strong force. "How my lord did we fail?" The plea for that was exactly what it was.

Xalek didn't reprimand his subordinate for showing such weakness like he normally would have. Instead he understood it better than most before he came to deliver the news he himself weeped. "His majesty never wanted us to be tools but instead equals, our devotion to duty blinded us to the will of our ultimate master."

Everyone could have easily blamed Xalek for this since it was his job to communicate their masters will and he failed. Miserably.

"Darth Xalek. How shall we atone?" The double meaning was obvious to everyone.

"We must prove our power…"

Flashback end

I will have to keep a closer eye on my eradicators. I doubt they are planning betrayal; they wouldn't be this obvious. Would they? I always taught them to get close to their target on a personal level. So that they lower…their guard. They can't be. I didn't train them to be this stupid.

Sith politics are always so troublesome.

Deciding to hide my suspicions I turned around to see the hokage being lifted up in the same manner. All those around him were joking and smiling. Walking over to him fully aware we were being watched like prey even whilst they were laughing and smiling. Good, disciplined and know subterfuge they will make excellent allies.

Now what do I propose to them…

Too early to be considering anything when I don't even know what they need or want.

"Ah emperor nox." How does he know my title? I don't recall ever telling him. Eying the scarred man whose head resembled a fruit. Noticing my questioning gaze, the hokage decided to elaborate. "Your followers told him what you are and what you represent."

So my eradicators told them important details without consulting me nor informing me of their actions. Maybe they actually are… No, I won't finish that train of thought.

"I should probably inform you that since you're not looking for just a military alliance with the promise of hiring the hidden leaf you will have to convince the fire daimyo. Especially since he's your equivalent in the land of fire politically speaking." Minato adopted a respectful but authoritative tone with a side of joviality. Just from this I know he is a great leader. Few can maintain those traits yet be so natural sounding with all those qualities. Although that sounded too natural, is that his actual personality? If so he is a natural born leader. The leaf truly is lucky.

Trying to match his tone in my response but hopelessly failing with the joviality part thanks to my helmet. "Thank you for informing me, lord hokage. Would it be possible to set up a meeting with the fire daimyo then?" My question had multiple purposes. One actually find out if it was possible. That is an important one. Second, discover what I can about the fire nation's internal politics. Minato seems to have realised both given his small wave of annoyance in the force.

I'm not sorry if he thinks that I am. These are important things for me to know about. If the hokage can't make this simple request then he is not worth the time of day although he could be manipulated. Only the strongest may rule after all. If he does but is rejected or thinks he will be rejected then the military and the politicians are having a power struggle, even if only minor. And lastly if it gets arranged then the hokage has enough political sway and is worth manipulating. If he gets it arranged fast all the better.

Minato knows these and is obviously considering his answer. Deciding to do a mini test I put pressure on him. "It would be helpful to know now so I can walk to the fire capital rather than the hidden leaf if you can't." The slight was clear even if I worded it like I was being considerate. Another wave of annoyance rolled through him. Ah Minato you can be as annoyed as you wish but I will do anything for my people. Anything.

Minato didn't crack but still answered. "The fire Daimyo has been busy recently with the rebuilding following the third shinobi world war. However I will put in a good word for you but it is likely you will have to wait." Interesting word, interesting indeed.

He gave the excuse he needed to give which is likely truthful in the event he was rejected. However he also covered his back by stating he does have power. Enough that it would normally put me at the top of the to do list whilst stressing the excuse. Masterfully done Minato Namikaze. Masterfully done.

"Then I shall head to the hidden leaf with you. If that is where you are heading and wait until it is my turn." Minato acknowledged my statement before going over travel details. To my surprise even whilst running at full speed it took me three full days to get there.

During which we talked about what the sith could offer. I lied a lot but was truthful on the quantity we would be able to produce once the industrial zone was built to my specifications. His response was insightful.

Flashback

"We would be able to produce say 10,000 high quality kunai a day in a single facility as long as we had the resources." The emperor who I was quickly learning could be just as much a threat as a benefit stated as if it was the most obvious thing ever. Ignoring how much that was. It would put the sith dominion on par in production with the manufactorium.

The manufactorium! The one nation never to be conquered since it produced everyone's weapons including every ninja and samurai at an unheard of rate and cheaply at that. As such no one wanted it to be taken by an enemy or future enemy so most nations would attack the aggressor nation. And he said he could match them without at all sounding or looking arrogant or lying.

Briefly glancing over to one of the uchiha who has his sharingan activated to detect lies. He gave a hand sign to indicate negative. The emperor was telling the truth.

This is an alliance I must make work even no matter what.

"A nation already produces that amount of high quality kunais what else will you be able to offer other than pure production value?" I just about kept my excitement out of my voice. Might as well fish for more information or get a better deal.

The emperor seemed to have realised my intent as he stopped looking down the path we were following instead turning slightly to face me.

"And what would this nation be, lord hokage?" His response was…blunt to put it simply. He answered my question with a question: does he seriously think it will be this easy?

"It's called the manufactorium it produces the weapons and pretty much anything metal related that the world uses. Doing so at a cheap price. No one dares attack them since every other nation would protect the manufactorium." I answered swiftly not giving away my annoyance with his instance of word play.

"Why hasn't the land of fire given it a shot? This is probably the best shot you will ever get." The emperor said almost as if he was scolding a child. Almost.

"Because the land of fire cannot afford to. And I'm interested in peace not creating another war." To that nox simply snorted before replying.

"Peace is a lie lord hokage I would have thought you would know that. Besides this is the only way to cause a lasting peace with the siths help you will be able to win in a matter of months."

Flashback end.

Seeing the gates of the hidden leaf and the four massive heads that were the hokage monument made me question how rich the leaf actually were. I thought they would be somewhat poor compared to what the sith dominion will be. But will the land of fire be the dominant economic power of this alliance? If so I have a few plans to change.

"Lord hokage it would serve us well if we were seen entering the village together."Minato nodded at that and we began walking side by side.

When we entered there was an overwhelming cheer as people lined the roads for their heroes. The shinobi quietly left, leaving me and my sith, the hokage, his jonin commander and two very out of place cooks. But the people were not my focus nor anything else I quickly scanned.

My eyes focussed in on the woman leading the welcoming party. A woman with crimson hair with violet eyes. Even with everyones happiness slightly overwhelming my senses I could still feel the relief she felt when she saw Minato. His wife I presume.

Behind the women in a v shape was an assortment of people. On the furthest left an armoured fat man with swirls on his cheeks, the next place was a platinum blonde man who looked like he'd seen some shit. Next was a rather bland looking woman with brown hair and a pink dress. After Minatos wife was a stoic man that had a table tennis paddle plastered over him. Next was a stoic noble blind man if his pale eyes were to go by. Then a feral woman and a hooded man.

So overall not that interesting compared to what Im used to with sith fashion.

Just as we moved into range she pounced launching herself at Minato into a strong embrace.

"Minato hope you beat down those cultists." After finishing her embrace she turned to me. "Is this one of them?" Minato suddenly looked very uncomfortable but answered calmly.

"He was the leader of the cultists but we assumed wrong. He is the emperor of his own nation. He's hoping to form an alliance with the land of fire." That caused murmurs to run through the crowd and a surprised look on the womens face.

This was not what me and the other sith saw or felt. Not because we couldn't but because the hatred this woman held inside her enveloped the world in hatred. She…she is just like Vitiate. How there shouldn't be any masters of the darkside on this world?!

Clinks of metal was all the noise I needed to hear to know the eradicators had fallen to their knees whilst struggling to shield themselves. Not that I was far behind already having had Vitiate inside my mind for years. I'm more used to it. But now this is becoming a double edged sword. One proving to be rather deadly.

I continued to struggle in this losing battle hoping she would fully contain the darkside energy. She does not, she doesn't even seem to realise what she is doing. My mind was focussed on them that I failed to notice the medics or the hokage rushing to our sides.

That's when I saw a light at the epicentre of this cyclone. If I want to survive this with my mind intact then I must reach.

Just as I did my world went black then replaced with a world of yellow. Opening my eye only to realise I was looking down but more importantly floating. Well this isn't my mindscape so where in the name of the force am I.

I'm no longer having to contend with the darkside presence for some reason.

"So my jailor finally decides to pay me a visit?" A growl, an actual growl was the first thing I heard. Looking around it didn't take much for me to discover the source of the noise or wince at what I saw.

A giant beast with nine tails was pinned to a moon by these comically large spikes that pierced into every limb. The beast couldn't move at all with chains that seemed to burn into him. I'm kind of surprised he is even able to speak give the chain around his mouth.

"Not sure what you mean by jailor since I don't even know what you are." I replied whilst getting a good look around me.

"I can answer that." Turning I saw Minato's wife standing there. What is she doing here? Wait did I enter her mindscape then what about the furball. Furrowing my brow under my helm I began preparing for a mental battle. Having 5 force ghosts in your skull then the sith emperor being added to that annoyance, and you get pretty good at fighting mental battles.

"Proceed."

"Ha this little human is preparing to fight a mental war." The beast growled. How did it? Is it a manifestation of the force? Minato's wife however didn't look pleased by that and fell into a fighting stance.

"Look..sorry I don't know your name."

"Kushina Uzumaki"

"If I don't know what is happening and the last time I have been forced into a mindscape I had to fight for control of my body. I'm not taking chances this time around." I stated resolutely. Still carrying on with my preparations including now summoning all of the force ghosts under my control. "Trust me if you decide to fight me here you will lose."

She seemed to baulk at the presence of the force ghosts even if they didn't look ghostly like they normally would due to us being in a mindscape.

"So you summoned us into another mindscape little rat." One of the two hooded sith lords said.

"Are you so scared of this single woman and an overgrown ferret that you need us?" I know of the power both of these threats provide so why do they feel the need to make fun of me.

Kushina seemed to realise her position and clearly didn't particularly want a fight. Relaxing her posture I disspelled my force ghosts sending them back to their cages. "So may I have that explanation now."

"Yes. This is the nine tailed fox demon. It is the strongest of the tailed beasts and is a being of pure chakra. It is a being of hatred and evil incarnate so we seal into Uzumaki children to stop it from taking people." She said passionately but with a notable disgust.

Nine tailed fox demon. That sounds more like a title than a name for a clearly sentient creature. Walking over to the 'fox' making it as clear as I could to show that I wanted to talk. " So now I know what you are. I would like to know who you are?"

The fox seemed surprised and confused whilst Kushina looked astonished and horrified that I even think it has a name.

"I am the nine tailed fox little human. Nothing more nothing less." It said in a dismissive tone.

"So you don't have a name then. How sad for a clearly sentient creature." I said and started to turn to Kushina.

"Why do you want to know my name?" The fox asked incredulously.

"I wanted to ask a favour but it's hard to do that without a name." I answered mostly truthfully there were other reasons. Something the fox clearly picked up on.

"I won't tell you my name atleast not yet. But I will hear your favour." Kushina was still stunned into silence. Thank the force since she would likely be objecting to what I'm doing.

"Can you contain your darkside energy please since it's affecting me and my men negatively." I ask with as much respect as I could draw up, which considering the amount of power I can sense is a gargunate amount.

"Fine little human but how do you know about the force?" The fox asked to my surprise.

"My people are all force users, not chakra users."

"So you're a jedi." So we are not the first force users on this world. It took a moment for me to register what he said. How dare he say I am one of those hypocritical scum.

Gathering as much venom and hatred as I could for my response was easy after all I have plenty. " I am not one of those hypocritical peace loving scum. I am sith, do not compare us again."

The foxs eyes widened before narrowing.

"And what do the would-be conquerors of the galaxy want on this world?" The fox snarled out.

"Well it is simple really since we only have two choices. Flee here or face the genocidal jedi as they make the entire outer rim and seat of the empire nothing more than a graveyard!" My fury was palpable and a dark maisma burned around me.

"The jedi don't commit genocide only the sith do that! They only want peace!" The fox screamed back for some reason, a great supporter of our ancient enemy.

"It's pretty easy for there to be peace when all your enemies are dead. Also this is literally the second sith genocide. How dare you claim my people can't suffer from this tragedy?!" My breathing was becoming sporadic as my anger started taking control.

"What the hell are you two screaming about?!" Kushina shouted, interrupting both of us who in response turned to face her. Only to see a truly horrifying sight. Her hair was flowing in random directions and her eyes now contained a warning. You better listen or you will die. "You" pointing at me. "Get out of my mind. Now!" I did, not even hesitating for a moment to get out of that dangerous situation.

My eyes opened again to see an all white roof. Looking around I saw I was in a hospital with all my eradicators. On all entrance points were anbu and what I've learned to be jonin. So we blacked out how lovely.

Still I don't feel the dark side from the jedi loving fox anymore. I guess he honoured his word after all.

Sitting up I sensed one of the anbu leaving. Looks like I have some time to kill. Getting up out of bed was something that surprised all within the room. Like I would stay cooped like some sort of weakling. Going to the center of the room I went to a mediating position and began to float.

Since Minato will likely be dealing with political and security issues plus me having to wait for my sith to awaken I have atleast a few hours.

A new presence suddenly arriving in the room proved me wrong. "Emperor Nox how are you feeling?" Minato said with surprising levels of calm considering he is seeing me float.

"I am feeling well, lord hokage. I trust we didn't cause too much of a stir." Minato seemed relieved and annoyed about something.

"My wife collapsed alongside you and your men. Do you know anything about it?" Explaining briefly what happened since I'm sure he will get a detailed report later.

"I see. I must ask you to keep the nine tails a secret lord Emperor."

"Of course I never intended to share it in the first place." Adding as an afterthought. "Afterall it would ruin any chances of having an alliance with you."

"I see then I shall leave you be, if you need me ask one of the shinobi to summon me." In other words you will be keeping watch of me. Interesting. With another flash I returned to my mediation.

A delayed chapter 4 sorry about that. But in any case here it is. Hope you enjoy. Feel free to leave a review or dm me any mistakes you spot and I will go through and resolve those.