Okay then. This is my attempt, if you can call that. Of a Naruto/Kingdom Hearts fanfic crossover.

First, I want to thank for the biggest contributor - Kurogane7. Plus I'll name those who contributed in providing plot to me, and God, did they manage to explain the lore of Kingdom Hearts.

ReaperOfBalance

DRAGONfromheaven

Ravenking64

Mono11

Blackfang14388

Aura (full name not to be displaced upon his request) but I thank him for helping out.)

Kurogane7: Not easy at all; barely got out of the beginning of KH1, so frequent trips to the wiki and Google Images were required. That said, it's done.

Thanks, Kurogane7.

Now, hopefully this opening chapter will be successful and I'll be happy to work on more if the results are given in. Enjoy and please I hope you will review it.

Have a nice read.

Silence, utter silence.

That is what the one thing present in this darkened space reeking of an ominous aura that it showed. No colors, no sounds, not even knowing where this was or what it even happened to be, it just was dark. It was perhaps something out of the dark imagination of a dream, maybe even a nightmare, but it was something absolutely out of the ordinary.

Especially for the person that laid on the floorless ground. The unconscious blond was laying there for perhaps only an hour or so, yet he didn't have a clue until he started to wake up.

Then, there was movement - but not from the blond, but from the air. Flying in the same colors of darkness, were these creatures that circled the body.

With their yellow glowing eyes, they flew around the body like crows ready to devour its eyeing prey. Ready to strike at any moment with the thought of ease.

Yet this wasn't some easy prey these creatures would feast on. As he wore a Shinobi Headband with a spiral-leaf crest etched on the steel plate identifying him as a member of the Hidden Leaf - and his name was Naruto Uzumaki.

The Hero of the Fourth Shinobi War was seen wearing his upgraded attire consisting of black sandals and orange pants, along with a black jacket with an orange zipper line. He had a red band wrapped around his left arm that had the Uzumaki crest on it. His blond hair had been shortened over the years—not too close to the scalp, but just enough to be noticeable.

Like his appearance, his mentality had changed also, as the war had indeed brought an impact on him, he wasn't keen much on showboating, as it was a source of shame he still held inside of him that he kept dragging on for the past few years.

And in those past years - he only had one person to really talk about that impact, only he wasn't a person, instead-

"DAMN IT, NARUTO!"

The orange colors exploded around Naruto's body as it was set off like flames. Managing to force the unknown creatures of darkness away from the young man, as it also got the eyes of Naruto to snap open.

Gasping for air, Naruto woke up and looked around. Seeing where he was and causing him to stand up.

"Where am I?" Naruto asked as he then spotted these creatures. "And what are those?"

"Don't ask me, I'm just as confused as you. But something's off about this place."

"You mean we aren't in the seal?"

"No time for questions like that, focus on taking out these things!" Kurama told him, "Whatever they are, they're no good."

The voice that broke the silence was the closest friend Naruto had - Kurama, the Nine Tailed Fox. The Fox that had been alongside him since the very first hours of his life. The large orange-furred beast had been a curse to live with for almost half his life, yet had turned into the other half that kept him alive - and now they were friends, a journey of which books can be written about.

"Stand up! We have to fight!"

The creatures sped for Naruto, wasting no time after hearing that.

"Crap!" Naruto shouted as he quickly jumped upwards and just in time, as the first two yellow-eyed things flew underneath him. He crosses his fingers together, hoping to make use of his signature Jutsu in order to even the odds.

"Shadow Clone Jutsu!"

Two puffs of smoke exploded next to Naruto as they appeared to be two clones, each identical to the original.

This however didn't seem to deter these creatures as they proceeded to launch their rapid charge against him and the replicas.

"Let's go!"

"Right!" The clones shouted as all three of them disappeared in a flash - right out of the spot.

The group of creatures still charged ahead - but even their minds were still big enough to realize what happened, and before they knew it-

*KICK!*

*WACK!*

*KICK!*

The first three got booked immediately from above by Naruto and his clones, of whom Naruto just chopped his bandaged right arm, right through the black creature as his partners took out the other two with their high kicks.

The first three creatures disappeared after being hit, looking like they were beaten. Causing Naruto to then dispel his clones.

"What was that? Got any clues, Kurama?"

"Like I said, no heck of an idea. This confuses me as much as you are right now. But I can tell you this; I felt no chakra coming from these things."

"No chakra? Like not even inactivated?"

"Literally none, no signs from it. Like they were created without it. There's something about this place that makes no sense to me."

"Hey, look."

Then in front of Naruto, a path started to be seen - almost guided by a slighter color of light in the darkness that almost resembled stairs, with the top of it looking like it had an end.

"Maybe these stairs will lead to our answers."

"Maybe, but keep your guard up. I don't like this. Could be a trap."

Taking those words to mind, Naruto opened his kunai pocket and held his bandaged hand over it as he slowly stepped onto the steps upwards.

Not knowing what he was expecting to find, Naruto knew one thing - what he was doing before all this bizarreness that was taking place, with whom he was and what he was doing.

He was on a mission, one with the corporation of multiple village Shinobi whom he was assigned with as he was tasked to try and check on the intel their intelligence ops had been searching on for a few years now:

The location of an unknown Ōtsutsuki Clan temple that was just discovered by sheer luck, and as it happened to be that many of his team were fellow veterans of the same war, they all had a common interest of keeping anything related to that clan sealed, hidden or even destroyed. All had traveled for days now after they had found out this place was far located in a corner of the world that many had never even visited.

Far away even from the Land of Waves, or even the Kage Summit before the war, or not even the turtle island or even Mount Myōboku. No, this place was a travel worth remembering. It was in the Far West, beyond the borders of the Land of Earth where the Hidden Stone Village was. They traveled and happened to camp out that night.

And it was that night Naruto now was in as he began walking up the stairs and was nearly reaching the end of it.

"Finally."

The words were taken out of Naruto's mouth as he reached the end and set foot over the final steps, as he found himself now with even more questions than answers at what was in front of him:

A large wrapping was seen floating in front of him in a circle of white, and that wrapping looked like it was the size of a human, and it really looked familiar to him what this was, taking him back to-

"Naruto, those are the same wrappings from-"

"Infinite Tsukuyomi," Naruto breathed out, shocked by what he saw. There was nothing else he could say to describe this.

The sound of tearing fabric could be heard as the wrappings started to unravel. The face that peeked out of the hole had filled Naruto with dread; the form within was undoubtedly masculine, the skin a pallid white. The small crop of hair on top was a dirty green bush that gave the impression of a dying plant, fitting as the right side of the face like the gnarled roots of a tree. The figure looked back, revealing a face he dreaded to encounter—

"The hell are you doing here," he uttered, half in disgust.

"You didn't really think it was over, did you?" asked the figure in the Infinite Tsukuyomi cocoon, taunting him.

It was hard to forget that face; after all, there were a lot of them in the last war. But this one, this face, and those eyes - he knew all too well.

"Naruto…"

"Neji…"

The body of the deceased Hyuga then broke out of the cocoon - and the veins around his eyes sharpened as he shouted in anger.

"BYAKUGAN!"

Naruto gasped for air as he woke up, rising from his sleeping bag, with his face covered in sweat and looking pale. He breathed in and out, the palms of his hands wiping over his face.

"Damn it…" Naruto wheezed,rubbing his head. "Ugh…"

"You alright?" asked a masculine voice off to the side.

Hearing that made Naruto turn his head to the source of light that was the camp fire that was still burning, his multinational team surrounding it. With one of those faces close to the fire, being one of his friends from the village.

"Naruto," Shikamaru Nara, friend and current co-commander of the team asked. "Are you alright?"

"I'm fine, just a bad dream." Naruto replied,

Shikamaru sighed. "Troublesome. Look, I get why you'd have bad dreams; you're going to get married soon, and you're worried about it…but you still gotta keep your head in the game."

Naruto sighed as he set his head down. "I know, I know…"

"Why don't you sit with us for a while?" One of the other team members asked with a smirk. "We can toast to your future endeavors."

The one who happened to say that was one of the other teammates, one who Naruto met way back before the war on 'pretty awkward terms' by hindsight.

"Sure, Karui, maybe a drink will help." Naruto smiled as he stood up and walked over to the camp fire to sit next to Shikamaru. "What have you been making?"

"Warm milk. Silly." Karui said with an uncontrollable smirk as she added. "Maybe you can start practicing by now."

A few smirks could be heard from the other members of the team, which was in total a group of eight: two from the Leaf, three from Clouds, one from the Mist, another from the Sand and lastly one from the Stone.

As both Naruto and Shikamaru were already known figures, they happened to be talking about a Cloud Nin named Karui, a dark skinned woman of their age group with dark red hair and yellow piercing eyes with the personality that was to be expected of more than a few hotheads.

Right now, this team of eight of multiple Shinobi villages, mainly those from the Five Great Powers who had fought in the 4th Shinobi War were on a break from the long journey they were having.

The mission they were given was related to that war they all had participated in: to investigate the rumors of remnants of that conflict.

"Honestly, why not. Give me some." Naruto got in on the joke as he accepted the cup. "Maybe I can give you tips once you and Chōji finally get married."

Then the Snickers turned into laughter when Naruto said that, causing the redhead to then flip.

"Why you-MORON!" Karui threw an empty.

This only got Naruto to laugh more than he narrowly dodged the can as even Shikamaru couldn't help but smirk at that remark.

"Hey, I'm just saying." Naruto held his arms out and smiled. "You two have been dating for a few years now. When are you going to make it official?"

Karui fumed at him and was about to throw another empty can but instead tried to respond.

"You know, he's not wrong, Karui," added her friend, the often Stoic Samui, taking a sip of her tea instead, "We've honestly been waiting for that proposal."

"Not you too, Samui…" Karui groaned, trying to hide the embarrassed tint on her cheeks as she explained, "We wanted to take it easy…and I just received my transfer papers last month."

"So you are planning on moving in with him!" confirmed her other friend, Omoi, asked up with a popsicle in his mouth as he put more branches into the fire. "Well, hopefully he'll ask you before you reach your mid-twenties and you'll possibly start thinking of having child-"

"SHUT IT OMOI!" Karui scolded him, causing the white-haired young man to freeze in fear for a moment.

"J-Just saying. You two look like you might be planning for it."

"Don't antagonize her, Omoi." Samui politely warned her friend.

"Yes, it's best not to do that. I can speak from experience." The Iwa Nin of the group said, being the largest of the group, he was also the humblest. "Working close with the Third Tuschikage's family, I'm sure that gives you life lessons."

"I don't doubt that, Akatsuchi." Shikamaru commented, scratching his head slightly as he had a few encounters with them. "Given the granddaughter is most likely about to take his place in the future, she's just itching, isn't she?"

"Kurotsuchi? Oh, indeed she is, but the old man does not want to back down yet." Akatsuchi chuckled as he added. "He won't retire until his back finally gives out."

"Really? But he's old!" The sand girl added, being more reserved, she was somewhat a bit concerned as she sat next to Akatsuchi. "He'd lived a long life, shouldn't he at least consider retirement?"

With the turban and the purple marks on her face, the seal Jutsu user of the group from the Hidden Sand was a girl named Maki, possibly the youngest from the group compared to the heavy-hitters she was assigned to. A young veteran herself, she did some excellent work on the front lines, which was why her Kazekage had sent her on this particular mission.

Akatsuchi smiled and responded. "Sure, but this is the Third Tsuchikage we're talking about. He doesn't prioritize his health."

"But isn't he a veteran of the First Shinobi War?" Maki asked, bringing up the question of his age. "I mean, he's in his eighties and has experienced more than anyone else."

"And that's perhaps why he's still the Tsuchikage." The Mist member said.

One of the Seven Ninja Swordsmen of the Mist, he was the wielder of Hiramekarei, he was undoubtedly a strong young man, but was one of often doubt and shyness that he showed. His name was Chōjūrō.

"Mind elaborating?"

"W-Well, he's someone who's seen a lot." Chōjūrō argued, bringing those up. "He's seen the First generations of Kages and served in countless conflicts. Having met even the likes of Madara Uchiha, and went through the Second and Third Shinobi Wars, he outlasted many of the past leaders to be fair. Even the Third Hokage who got…."

"Lord Third…" Shikamaru sighs as that memory sank in. "Man, the time I heard that name lastly…"

Chōjūrō panicked. "Eh! I'm sorry, I didn't mean to-"

"No need to apologize, we're over it." Naruto interrupted him, seen staring at the fire as he drank from his can. "Just the mention of the old man just brings back old memories…"

Omoi was curious. "You were close to the Third?"

"He looked after me, sort of." Naruto said, remembering as he looked down the fireplace. "Used to bring me every month the money to pay my rent and food for the place I lived in…ever since I was able to walk and talk."

"Wait, you lived on your own as a kid?" Karui asked, a bit stunned by hearing this. "I heard you were never adopted. But, no surrogate or something like that?"

"Nope, I was on my own." Naruto simply mentioned. "Was given checks till I graduated from the academy."

Everyone except for Shikamaru, was pretty much astonished by this revelation that came from the Hero of the Fourth Shinobi War. They did not know much of his background but knew from standard info that he was an orphan, which was nothing new in the life of being a Shinobi.

"What was he like? The Third Hokage, I mean…" Samui asked, her being to ask that. "Was he really that beloved?"

"He was like the grandfather we all had." Shikamaru said, adding in as he looked at Naruto. "Maybe more so for Naruto, since as far I remember, they both did spend a lot of time whenever they could…"

"Yeah, eating ramen or watching the sunset. Good times." Naruto smiled at those memories. "I even remember when I was fishing my own food outside at a river, we shared what I caught and he would tell me about the stars and other things."

Akatsuchi smiled and asked. "He was like that, huh?"

"He was, indeed." Naruto continued with a sad smile. "Just now… I wonder why he kept some secrets from me… Like how he never told me who my parents were…"

"Your parents? You mean Minato Namikaze and Kushina Uzumaki?" Karui asked. "Both the Yellow Flash and the Red-Hot Habanero?"

"Yeah, that's them." Naruto confirmed. "Why do you ask?"

"Because I-"

"Karui actually listed her as an idol." Omoi suddenly blurted out while looking down the fire. "She used to read the names of the Bingo List and she was a fan of reading her record-"

*BOINK!*

Her face clearly seen red, Karui had punched Omoi over the head in a state of embarrassment.

"SHUT UP, OMOI!"

"What? I'm just saying what's the truth." Omoi said holding the spot he got hit. "Just like Samui, you both admired her-"

"SHUT IT!"

"Wait, you two too?" Maki was the one to ask the two other girls of the group. "You two are fans of Kushina Uzumaki?"

Samui waited for Karui to finish berating Omoi before sighing in resignation.

"Yes, I am."

"She's got a good record, so yes." Samui admitted with much respect. "I was young when she was reported to have passed away, but I always admired her track record of accomplished missions and furious strength against her opponents."

"Really? I am a fan too." Maki said with delight. "My sensei, Pakura, was also a fan. She wanted to meet her as a kid, even going so far as to say she thought she would've beaten up Tsunade of the Sannin."

The girls were giggling and smiling as they were continuing to talk, with the other boys evening joining in, except for the two Leaf nin who briefly talked to one another.

Shikamaru whispered to Naruto. "Didn't expect your mother to have a fan base, do you?"

"Honestly, I would not be." Naruto responded with a smirk. "Given I read my mom's record."

"Figures…."

The team continued to have some talk throughout the night, with some laughter being heard as they shared stories throughout the night.

Later

As a few hours had gone by, the fire had been put out as of now all the members of the team were in their sleeping bags and taking the few hours left to rest.

All, except for Naruto who was seen staring at the sky with only his legs and lower half of his body seen inside of it, while wearing his white shirt without sleeves, the pendant necklace around his neck also was present - the one he was given by Grandma Tsunade.

Looking at the stars, the numerous amount of those seen sparking bright in the dark blue sky, he was deep in his thoughts as he was in fact talking with his friend:

'Beautiful, isn't it? The stars I mean.'

'Yeah, can't argue that. It is a good view to spend your time on. But perhaps a different view wouldn't be bad.'

'What do you mean?'

'Take a look behind you, slowly…"

Slowly moving his head, Naruto turned around to see something unexpected, and in all honesty was not something he was turning away from.

The figure of Samui herself being in the nearby bushes, seen with her back exposed and without a bra, seen tending to her own shoulders with massaging oil to try to ease the pain that was partly being caused by the bust she had.

There was a subtle hourglass figure to her form, a little thicker than normal due to a combination of training and life as a shinobi, but it was still there…though a little more attention was drawn by her waistline. After a good rub, he could see her rinsing herself down at the small waterfall near the camp, her shoulder-length bob cut flowing with the light rapids.

The figure of Samui alone, was an scene that was taking him back to some old memories-

'Yeah, you see that. Those are some good-looking curves on that woman. Maybe ask her for a quic-'

'Damn it, Kurama! How dare you?' Naruto demanded from his companion as he tried to hide the blush as he silently turned his head back. 'I'm with Hinata now. And who knows if she got a boyfriend back home…'

'Actually, she had a girlfriend.'

'Huh?'

'Remember Yugito Nii? The holder of Matatabi the Two-Tailed Cat? Well, the cat told me they used to be close friends who were lovers, and it was no small-time relationship…'

Naruto shook his head, feeling bad for Samui if this was true, but he then listened to Kurama who was suggesting something despicable to what sounded like cheating with a widowed woman.

'Where are you going with this?'

'Matatabi told me her holder, before she went off in peace, wanted to have someone look after that girl. Telling me she was sincere, I figured you might be able to help her since that's what you are most known for.'

'By what?'

'You know, remember what the Elders suggested-'

'Absolutely not.' Naruto protested before that sentence was even finished. 'I stand by my wife alone, and nothing else. Sasuke isn't doing it, so why should I?'

What was being referred to, was the initial refusal of Naruto being a part of the Clan Restoration Act, otherwise known simply as the CRA. A law that legally enabled him to be in a polygamous relationship that allowed for multiple wives/or concubines in order to produce multiple children.

'You're not the first one to have gone through that, Naruto. Clans often were nearly extinct due to pointless wars. I'm just telling you.' Kurama told him in an unusually calm way. 'You shouldn't be surprised when your identity was fully revealed that pressure was going to be put on you.'

'Yet I refused, and they acknowledged it. I even got the support of Grandma Tsunade and some of the families of my friends.' Naruto reminded him, the distress clear in his tone, 'Even Hinata's father didn't support it.'

'Was it mainly because he supports you? Or because he feared for Hinata's wellbeing?' Kurama responded, 'Let alone, nobody else knows about what went on behind those closed doors - not even your fiancé.'

Naruto closed his eyes in a painful reminder of how true that statement was. Till this day, nobody outside the Konoha Clan heads, Lady Tsunade and the Elders, knew about the CRA talks. Those discussions amounted to nothing, as it was kept in ultimate secrecy, and the main reason for that was due to the possibility of politicking. Even when the warring nations were on better terms than ever before, the restoration of the Uzumaki Clan could've caused some unwanted tensions if not proposals being sent to win over favors.

It was a notion that Naruto absolutely hated. He'd been used as a tool before, and he refused to let any of his children suffer that fate as well.

'I'm done talking about this, Kurama. Talk about anything else besides that." Naruto clearly stated to him. 'I refuse to do it, that's final.'

'Okay, I accept that.'

'But, it doesn't mean I can perhaps help Samui.' Naruto said, showing a bit of sadness for her. 'If she was willing to be close to a Jinchuuriki, I might be able to help her if she needs a friend to talk to.'

Kurama chuckled, laying his head back down on the ground as he went to sleep.

'Of course you will. Always the helper you are, Naruto Uzumaki. That's what makes everyone like you.'

'Goodnight.'

'Night, kid.'

As both closed their eyes, it was Naruto who closed his real ones to finally get some shuteye to try to be prepared for tomorrow, as they were not far off from the location.

Tomorrow, their mission might finally start.

Next morning

Having woken up early in the morning, the team had finally reached the exact location in the Far Western parts of the Shinobi World. And where they arrived at only seem to have gotten them a catch:

The location was a temple on top of a mountain that was a job and a half to travel up to. The temperature alone was dropping below zero the higher they climbed, the lack of oxygen could be felt as the higher altitudes required them to drink more water and get their cloaks on to cover their bodies. It also didn't help that it was snowing, luckily no wind to make it worse as the group of eight continued to walk up the small, but luckily available foot trail that led to this temple, with Chōjūrō leading the group.

"We're not that far away, people." The Mist nin said, holding onto his winter cloak. "Just a few hundred meters and then we must see the temple."

"Right, so prepare yourself." Akatsuchi reminded everyone, semi-serious. "We might come across those Zetsus by chance."

The two were being accompanied by Maki, who was not at all used to this climate. Understandable, as it did snow in Kaze no Kuni, but the temperatures were never as unbearable as it was in this mountain, as she crossed her arms over herself as she proceeded to follow the big guy, putting on a strong front before the others.

"Hey! Maki?"

The Sand girl turned around and suddenly felt another cloak being pulled over her shoulders, by surprisingly Karui herself as she came to aid.

"Saw you were getting cold out there," Karui said with a smile, "You're not used to the weather, right?"

"N-N-No…"

"No problem, just stay behind me and follow." Karui said, holding her colleague by the shoulder. "Omoi! Help out, will you!?"

"I'm right behind you!" Omoi shouted, indeed being behind the two girls as he was following their tracks.

Leaving then only three others behind. Both leaders of the mission and Naruto, seen with his hair slightly covered in snow as Shikamaru warned him.

"Told you we needed a cloak with a hood."

"Forgot about it, I'm still human, you know." Naruto argued back as he walked up the trail slowly behind his friend. "We're close to the end, you go up first."

"Right, I'll see you upstairs." Shikamaru stated, as he took up a notch and ran up the trail to bypass both Karui, Omoi and Maki. Trying to catch up with the two other Jonin.

This left Naruto and Samui in the back. Given the fact that they both needed to catch up to the others as they normally weren't the slow-types, there was no need to rush.

"Enjoy the show?" Samui asked, her voice just low enough for the two of them to hear. "I knew you were watching me, so don't start to deny it."

Naruto looked at her, eyes aghast as he wondered what she was going to do to him. Already in his mind, he could recall moments in time when he'd seen Jiraiya coming out of hiding with a red handprint on his cheek. He'd even had his fair share of handprints from whenever he'd happened across Sakura accidentally on a mission.

"I didn't mean to-"

"You're not in trouble, so calm your nerves, okay?" Samui spoke calmly, stoic as ever. "I've had my fair share of perverts watching my breasts, so I'm used to it. But I have a question for you."

"Uhm, sure." Naruto responded, slightly hesitant. "What is it?"

"Why were you in such a hurry to get back to sleep after only watching my back?" Samui asked up forwards as she turned her head towards him. "If you watched longer, you could've seen my front, but you didn't. Why is that?"

That question was totally unexpected for Naruto as he was internally really baffled, as this was not something out of the ordinary; normally, a girl would confront her peeping tom simply for the act itself.

"You reminded me of Hinata-Chan…"

The answer was something that just blathered out of Naruto's mouth, confounding the both of them.

"I remind you of your fiancé?" Samui asked curiously, "How?"

Naruto was hesitant again, but then proceeded to speak of his experience, able to tell the full story of that moment.

"Back when I was a kid, the Hokage assigned me with Team 8, which is the same team Hinata-Chan' part of. We were on a mission to retrieve a rare type of insect that Shino happened to look for - when we all camped out, I uh…."

Samui grew interested and asked. "Go on."

"I happened to go out and take a leak, then I noticed this waterfall and took a closer look. I saw someone training there in the moonlight; it was too bright for me to see, so all I could see was this shadow, moving fast and in circles, almost like a dance."

"A dance…" Samui spoke.

"Anyway, we eventually ran into trouble during the mission, and Hinata-chan was the only one of us that managed to fight back…and then I saw her using moves I'd seen that shadow using at the waterfall in their training session."

The explanation somehow didn't end as Naruto happened to then add something up that really, even for his often dullness, caused him to accidentally say:

"And she was a beauty in that water in all her pureness, honestly - I think that is why you remind me of her…"

….

Samui released a small snort reacting to that, making the impression that Naruto caught he might've just messed up.

"Sorry, I-"

"You know…your fiancé is lucky to have you."

"Huh?"

She proceeded to walk forwards as he noticed a small on the corners of her face, and he then saw a small tint on her face, as if she were blushing.

"You're really something else, Naruto Uzumaki." She said as she kept on following the trail. "Now let's go, the temple awaits."

As Samui happened to leave Naruto behind as the last of the team, she intentionally seemed to have swayed her hips left to right, giving the clear signal of what she really thought of Naruto's way of complimenting her.

And all of that in the cold, a fire was certainly burning somewhere.

'Keep that in your pants, Naruto.'

'... Damn you, Kurama.'

Kurama chuckled as he added. 'Your words, not mine.'

"Naruto, come on!" Shikamaru's voice was heard yelling for him. "We're here!"

Hearing that caused Naruto to hurry up and pick up his pace, sprinting over the snow as he finally reached the top of the trail as he then was faced with what they finally found.

"Wow…"

What the team found was beyond what they expected, especially on top of a snowy mountain. It was a wooden entrance that resembled that of an old monastery that was preserved in good enough condition, except for the broken windows and the missing entrance board that normally should show who this temple belongs to.

The first reactions from the team came from the mouth of Karui, effectively summing up everyone's thoughts on the matter..

"I've got a bad feeling about this," she said, drawing a kunai, "This place gives me the creeps."

"It looks like a shrine of some sorts." Omoi noted, taking a closer look. "Must've been abandoned a long time ago."

Then it was Naruto who took a step forward, standing at the front alongside Shikamaru as they both looked at this building with suspicion.

'Naruto, I sense no life in that building. So no Zetsus here, but-'

'But what?'

'I sense something off, something powerful…I can't say what it is from here, but you need to check it.'

Naruto nodded and he then turned to Shikamaru and informed him.

"I sense nothing in there. No Zetsus, no nothing."

"Are you sure?" Shikamaru asked. "You sensed it, didn't you?"

"Kurama did, and he sensed nothing alive in there." Naruto told him as he implored. "Let me go in with two guys and check for any traps. Five minutes and then you follow with the rest."

"Hmm, alright." Shikamaru agreed before turning to the others and picked out two. "Maki, Chōjūrō, you're on point with Naruto."

"Right." Maki walked up.

"Okay." Chōjūrō nodded as he joined up.

"Rest of us will wait here for five minutes and then join inside." Shikamaru told the plan. "Make sure to keep your eyes open, we might've missed them."

"Let's go." Naruto said as he walked up towards the entrance with both the Sand and Mist nin, all three were seen drawing their kunai, just in case. They happened to then walk over a broken board, and the footprints that were left had moved the snow away slightly, allowing the board to be more visible.

That board had a very similar looking symbol on it, with black lines and dark crimson red….

Once inside, the trio only were met with the darkness of the building itself, with only the cold being the noticeable presence.

"A fire might help."

"Allow me."

In a flash, both Chōjūrō and Maki had to cover their eyes for a moment as they were surprised by the sudden blaze, and once it cleared and they were able to see what it was - they were impressed.

In Naruto's left hand was a clear, burning torch that he was holding as he began to brighten up the room as he allowed it to grow bigger.

"Got any more torches?" Naruto asked as he looked around. "There's got to be something here."

Maki remembered and said. "Oh! Allow me."

*POOF!*

A small cloud of smoke popped out and in her hands were a couple of wooden torches she brought along from the campfire.

"Let me light them up."

One by one, Naruto ignited the torches with three of them given to each member while the other five, except for one, were left unlit for emergencies.

"We'll leave one here for the others, let them know where we are." Naruto said as he looked around and noticed something. "Hey, look around you…"

The two did and saw like Naruto what they were surrounded by, the interior of this building.

It was as though they were in a Dojo, with multiple sparring areas with ripped tatami mats and destroyed barriers, the oaken floorboards either missing planks or rotting away. The only thing decorating the walls were old hooks that looked like they had something on them before they were stripped off by whatever happened here.

"A dojo hall?" Maki sounded confused at what they were coming across. "What is this?"

Naruto happened to walk a bit more until he noticed something on those practice carpets that he saw, and he kneeled down to inspect it.

'Hey Kurama, you see this?"

'Yeah, I'm seeing it.'

Dried black markings, that was what was on those carpets, and all of those even had a few practicing letters written on them in small, and these were the same type of writings that were mainly used for one thing;

'Sealing Jutsu. This was a dojo made specifically for this.'

'Yeah, but these markings look fresh.'

'Meaning someone was here before you.'

"Naruto! Look!"

Hearing his name, Naruto stood up and saw that both Maki and Chōjūrō were staring at something, and by the looks on their faces, they must've discovered something horrifying.

He walked up towards them with the torch and asked. "What is it?"

Maki pointed out. "Look…"

Moving up the torch a little bit, she allowed Naruto to see what she wanted to show him, and what he saw was surprising even to him.

It was a mural of a red Whirlpool with black lines- the symbol of the Uzumaki Clan.

"Uhm, Naruto, if I may ask." Chōjūrō started nervously. "Why is there a dojo of your clan on the other side of the world?"

Naruto could only shake his head in response. "I honestly have no clue."

Maki could only swallow the nerves away as she somehow felt like something bad was about to happen.

*Click!*

The sound was all it took to force the three to then quickly turn around and were then faced with Shikamaru's team.

"Wow-wow!" Akatsuchi began. "Calm down, no need for it."

Standing down, Naruto then began. "Sorry, but we've just discovered something very unsettling."

"What is it?" Shikamaru asked before he got pointed out to the mural. And soon the others also saw it.

"What a drag…"

"Uhm, has anyone seen what's next to the Uzumaki symbol?" Omoi mentioned as he pointed out. "Move the torch a bit."

"Hmm, what do you mean?" Karui asked.

"Just…look."

As asked - someone did start to move the torch a bit to the left, and what was discovered caused even more confusion.

Next to the Uzumaki Whirlpool - was a large painting of Kaguya Ōtsutsuki and both her sons Hamura and Hagoromo Ōtsutsuki, with what looks like them being surrounded by dark creatures that were being shunned away by the power of light - as if they were revered as gods.

"What the-"

"Wait-"

"Naruto…" Shikamaru sounded distrusted. "You also seeing this?"

For some reason, Naruto was silent as the dead, as he himself was trying to comprehend what was just discovered. Something that laid even more unanswered questions to him.

"Y-Yeah…"

'Naruto, do NOT touch the mural.'

'Huh?'

'Do NOT touch the mural, especially with Chakra. This is no normal painting, it's a seal, and if the Uzumaki are going through so much trouble over that painting, it's keeping something locked up.'

Naruto indeed began being careful and touched the mural with his bandaged hand, and checked on it.

"Its a seal…"

"Huh?" Karui sounded. "What do you mean?"

"This mural isn't just artwork, but a seal." Naruto explained as he warned. "There's no time to explain, we need to call for help. This is way too serious."

Samui agreed. "We'll send a message-"

"I don't think so…"

The sudden sound got everyone surprised as suddenly they saw multiple dark cloaked creatures jumping for them!

"Disperse!"

The Shinobi did and quickly jumped away from the mural, even dropping the torches to the ground, causing the flames to then spread as the wooden floors happened to get caught on fire and forcing everyone apart.

Naruto was the closest as he was then faced off by several of the dark cloaked individuals that were squaring off. And there, he saw one of them with distinct pale white skin.

"Ah, the United Shinobi Alliance. Old memories. Remember me?"

"Zetsu…"

The paled creature raised his head up and the green haired yellow-eyed thing smiled with no holding back of a chuckle.

"I see that your villages are still getting along with one another, that's adorable to see. But how does it feel to see me again after all these years?"

"You really want to know?" Naruto responded with a clear glare as his fists tightened, especially his bandaged one. "There are a lot of people who personally would want to put you and your brothers down."

"Oh, I'm honored." White Zetsu grinned at that. "But as much as I wish to put you all into the same graves as your friends. I'm in a hurry - and I do not intend to stick around any longer."

"Then let me repay it LIKE THIS!" Naruto sprinted forwards with his kunai knife.

*CLANG!*

The kunai was blocked, by another White Zetsu appeared from the ground as it blocked Naruto off from the main one with both its arms that were hard like bones.

"You're going to play - WITH ME!" Zetsu shouted, as he tried to slash at Naruto who swiftly jumped backwards.

"Damn it!" Naruto then made a hand-seal. "Shadow Clone-"

'Behind you!'

Naruto took the warning and quickly turned around and kicked another white Zetsu that tried to attack him, right in the chest to make some room between them so he could move.

Soon, everybody was preoccupied with multiple White Zetsu coming out of their hiding spots and attacking the experienced Nin on their own.

Karui and Samui quickly got each other's back as they pulled out their blades and slain any of the White Zetsu that dared to get to them, one by one they fell down with deep cuts being dealt by the deadly female duo of Kenjutsu fighters from the hidden Cloud.

Samui held her tantō close to her chest as she scanned the area and quickly noticed another Zetsu coming up from high above the fires.

"Karui!"

"Right!"

Listening to her friend, Karui bent down and allowed Samui to then jump from her back to level up to the Zetsu-

SLASH!

"Ugh!"

Landing back on the floor, the Zetsu landed flat into the fire and into the flames, while Samui got back up without any problem.

"Uncool…."

SLASH!

A gasp could be heard before-

*Drop!*

Turning around, Samui found a dead Zetsu having landed near her feet and with an open sword wound across his back, with right behind Karui with her blade pointed at it.

As Samui got back to fighting another Zetsu, another one of those white creatures got defeated by Omoi who happened to be fighting them off alongside Shikamaru to back him up.

He cornered three of them into a corner as he was still holding his own sword, and before he knew it.

"Got them!" Omoi shouted. "Now!"

"Huh?"

"Shadow Paralysis Jutsu!"

The three turned their eyes downwards and saw what they were unprepared for - they could not move, but then it hit them right in the head - their shadows!

"Ah it's one of them!" One of the Zetsus reacted. "That shadow trick!"

This nearly popped a vein for Shikamaru, if he was even bothered by it as he had these three creatures in his grasp, unable to even move their face as they were forced to see the lazy look on the pineapple haired look-

"Shadow Strangulation Jutsu!"

"AHHHH!"

In a matter of moments, the three white bodies dropped lifelessly to the ground, with only thuds being heard coming from them.

Unfazed, Shikamaru turned to the closest person nearby and called out.

"Maki! Prepare yourself, we might need to seal them!"

"Right!" The Sand Kunoichi said as she grabbed for her sealing scroll. "Give me a moment!"

*SLASH!*

A series of screams could be heard as half-chopped bodies of several white Zetsus could be seen landing in the fire, as Chōjūrō wielded Hiramekarei with the skill expected of a member of the Seven Shinobi of the Mist, assisting Akatsuchi in dealing with the large number of Zetsus in the area.

"FIST ROCK!"

One of the Zetsus was sent through the wall by a rock-covered hand that belonged to the Iwa nin, who held nothing back on dealing against these bastards.

"Not bad."

"You too."

With the large number of targets they had to deal with, nobody could afford to spend too much time on one Zetsu. Naruto's Shadow Clones worked on overdrive, evening the odds by sheer numbers to match the quality of each Zetsu. Nobody used a single high-powered Jutsu if they could help it, as stamina was key to survival here, trying to take down Zetsus quickly and efficiently…if they did, care had to be taken to ensure that they didn't hit their own. As such, everyone focused on Taijutsu and aiming for kill-zones for the sake of expediency.

By the time the area had calmed down, the floors of the dojo were littered with the pallid bodies of the Zetsus. Everyone was tired out from the ambush, as they kept their eyes open for any new targets.

"Sound off!" Naruto called out.

The air was soon filled with a chorus of every confirmation one could imagine, earning a relieved sigh from Naruto.

Everyone relaxed as they turned to look at the painting. "We need to send out a pigeon," Shikamaru suggested, "Dangerous or not, we still need to let our Kage know what's going on."

"And I say we should destroy it before we send that pigeon," Naruto replied, "If Zetsu's gone through this much trouble to try and touch it, then it can't be good if we let anyone else touch it."

"Damn it, Naruto!" Shikamaru protested. "We can't argue about this now!"

Then the lone White Zetsu, standing behind the fires that kept most of the Shinobi apart, alone he was faced off close by Naruto who jumped to his proximity.

"Naruto, wait!"

"No time!" Naruto said as he was holding a pair of kunai with explosive tags attached to the rings, "Not taking any chances!"

A White Zetsu smirked. "Let's end this!"

One of the White Zetsu emerged from under the bodies of his fellows, sprinting for the mural at such speed that the gathered Shinobi were too tired to stop him. Only Naruto was able to make the effort to try and stop him with his demolition tools, throwing both kunai at Zetsu aiming for his legs to at least prevent him from getting any closer. One hit the ground in front of Zetsu, slowing him just enough for the followup kunai to hit him in the hip, the explosion shearing him in half.

However, the momentum behind the run was more than enough to propel the rest of his body forward, sending his torso flying towards the mural, arm outstretched.

Thinking he was defeated, Naruto made the wrong decision to have dropped his guard, when he saw a triumphant Zetsu with his hand on the wall.

"... Join me! RELEASE!"

*CRACK!*

The mural cracked in numerous pieces like glass, the fissures spider-webbing across the whole wall as smoke billowed from those cracks.

'What, is this feeling?...'

'Naruto, use my chakra!'

'Huh?'

'NOW!'

Naruto took no moment to think as he engulfed himself into Bijū Mode, just as then the wall cracked up and-

BOOOM!

The mural exploded, sending bits of debris flying outward, forcing everyone into cover to avoid getting hit by the shrapnel. It didn't stay quiet for long however, as amorphous shadows with glowing yellow eyes poured out of the opening made in the wall, running out of the apparent portal like a stampede of rats.

"DAM!"

"What are those things!" Omoi shouted as he saw them. "SAMUI! KARUI!"

The gathered Shinobi fought back as hard as they could, trying to stem the tide of darkness, but they may as well have been trying to fight a tsunami.

"There are too many of them!"

"Get out!" Shikamaru shouted as the team was seen leaving the room, as the last thing he witnessed was his friend getting caught in the explosion that unleashed these things.

And then the darkness that was released soon consumed the whole room with Shikamaru heard shouting.

"NARUTO!"

Wherever they can, wherever they went - these dark creatures had started to roam out - in speed across the mountain, and in no time the whole area.

Everything turned black.

Traverse Town

Walking down the streets of Traverse Town was a lightly-dressed woman with waist-length hair tamed in a ribbon near the tip. Her attire consisted of two tank tops, a black one under a white one that helped to tame her generous assets, but left her well-toned midriff exposed until one got to the short skirt that protected what modesty she had. The only bit of color to her attire was the pair of red fighting gloves and leather steel-toe boots she wore, adding to her athletic appearance. Overall, she had the looks that many prospective lovers would have sold their souls for.

She carried a big box of bottles over her shoulder, the contents jingling lightly with every step she took down the cobbled streets.

She received a few waves from the residents of Traverse Town, which she gratefully returned, as they were all like her; the ones fortunate enough to have come here. With Traverse Town being the home of those who survived the darkness that consumed their worlds.

And they would be joined by another one:

"Look! Up in the air!"

Hearing that, Tifa happened to look upwards and saw a portal, meaning something was about to come out-

And falling out of that portal was a young man that seemed to be unconscious, causing some gasps from the onlookers as some were yelling.

"Someone do something!"

Not hesitating, Tifa began picking up her pace as she ran towards the end of the street where the figure was about to fall.

Into the-

PLOSH!

Like a rock dropped from above, the body fell into the large fountain with no response from the young man. His clothes were mostly shredded by the explosion, and bleeding cuts clouded the water with red. Naruto Uzumaki had just survived the unfortunate explosion in the Uzumaki temple.

And now, he didn't know where he was, what just happened and if he was even able to keep his heavy growing weight on his eyes open, as he slowly was slipping into unconsciousness.

And the last thing he saw was a girl jumping into the water and swimming towards him in a hurry. As he blacked out, he could see her reaching out for him with her gloved hands.

And there, when he would wake up, an unwanted reality would be met with him.

So, that's for this story to be now out.

I've got plans for this - hopefully you all liked it.

Good night and enjoy!