June 28th 2008:

The smell of death polluted the cold atmosphere in an isolated section inside of the endless Labyrinth. Naruto Uzumaki, Rachel Elizabeth Dare, Annabeth Chase, and Percy Jackson stepped into the maze.

Naruto watched Percy and Annabeth follow behind Rachel: who possessed the ability to navigate through the Labyrinth since she was a clear-sighted mortal. A flood of Senjutsu chakra filled his system.

Orange pigmentations materialized themselves on his whiskered face. Naruto stretched out his senses and felt the magical-barrier in the air. The mana of the barrier held an incredible amount of potency and finesse.

Whoever had cast this barricade onto his senses was an incredible practitioner in the arts of magic. Naruto slipped his calloused hands into his pockets and stayed at the back of the group. He hummed.

"Stop…" Rachel's voice streamed into Naruto's ear-drums. She pointed down into the corridor. "There's a door at the end…"

"Are you sure?" Annabeth had a skeptical expression on her face and squinted her eyes in concentration. "I can't see any door at the end."

Naruto extended his senses down into the unilluminated abyss of the corridor and his eyes widened somewhat in concealed surprise. "I've picked up on the presence of three monsters. They're hostile."

"When are monsters not hostile?" Percy nudged Naruto on the shoulder in amusement. "I'm sure the three of us can handle them."

"I'm sorry." Rachel interrupted him and blinked—perplexed. "Are we going to have to fight monsters?"

"Of course we're going to have to fight a few monsters." Annabeth snorted. "Monsters track demi-gods down from their scents and feast on their bodies."

"Damn…" Rachel mumbled to herself in shock. "How come none of these monsters have eaten me? I've seen plenty of them."

"I can answer that!" Percy grinned and pulled out a pair of fake glasses. "Mortals don't have a divine scent for monsters to sniff out!"

"Wait a minute…" Naruto scanned the fake glasses on Percy's face. "Those are the glasses I bought earlier! Hey, give them back!"

"Enough squabbling." Annabeth rolled her grey eyes and let out an entertained huff. "We still have three monsters to be worried about."

The Uzumaki raised his hand to end their discussion and gesticulated his fingers in the direction of two Empousa. Percy gritted his teeth in unadulterated frustration. "Those are the vampire chicks I fought!"

Kelli—the Empousa who Percy had battled at his middle-school—slithered forward and vanished. Rachel gulped when she felt the hideous entity's talons touch her neck. "Stand down."

Annabeth clicked her tongue and sheathed her dagger while Percy morphed his most trusted blade into the form of a pen. Naruto leaned himself against a rock wall and gazed at the Laistrygonian giant: who let out a growl.

The Laistrygonian giant lowered its head downwards and sniffed Naruto's sternum. Drool bubbled out from the depths of its mouth. "Miss. Kelli! Can I please eat this one? He smells delicious!"

Naruto summoned a chakra-arm out from his abdomen and materialized a Rasenshuriken onto its palm. Kelli hissed before she tapped Rachel's neck. "Now. Now. Now. I will slit this girl's throat."

The Uzumaki shrugged and dispelled his aureate arm of chakra. Percy and Annabeth were given hand-cuffs by the Laistrygonian giant. Kelli glanced at Naruto and nodded. "Give the blonde some cuffs, giant."

Naruto smirked and ducked his head down in feigned fear. If he let these monsters take them to their masters—then there was a chance he would run into Prometheus again. This was a perfect situation.

(-)

The four of them were taken through an endless tunnel inside of the Labyrinth. Naruto flexed his fingers and felt the cuffs on his wrists rattle. They were constructed by some type of divine steel.

Percy grunted as he was shoved into Naruto by an acerbic Dracanae: who stuck its tongue out and licked its reptilian lips. Naruto suppressed a sarcastic snort. Percy mumbled. "They took Riptide."

Naruto squinted his blue eyes forward and noticed how Annabeth had scoped out Rachel's whereabouts. Kelli was behind the daughter of wisdom. One of her talons were pressed into Rachel's neck.

The Uzumaki hummed when another Dracanae pushed herself into him. He faked even more fear—stumbling forward and stuttering. "M-My deepest apologies for bumping into you! Please, forgive me!"

"What a pathetic child." Kelli taunted him and chuckled—this chuckle was a sibilant boom of sound. "How terrified can you be?"

"You have no idea who you're talking to." Annabeth and Percy thought at the same time in amusement. They were both shoved. "Hey!"

Percy was picked up by the Laistrygonian giant and thrown through the opened doors of an ancient arena. Naruto watched his friend stagger into the arena—where Luke sat in one of the top sections.

"Luke Castellan—huh?" Naruto murmured to himself before he felt the tip of a spear graze the back of his neck. "P-Please! Have mercy!"

The Dracanae poked the back of his neck for a second time. Kelli scratched her talon across Rachel's neck and let out a laugh of absolute sadism. "You truly are a pitiful creature, are you not?"

Naruto disregarded her entire existence and registered everything that happened around him. Antaeus was the one who ran this battle arena. He was the child of Poseidon and the child of Gaia—a primordial.

Deeper into the arena—Percy grunted as he slashed Riptide at Ethan Nakamura: who raised his shield and blocked his blade. The son of the seas clicked his teeth before he threw Riptide onto the ground.

"What the hell?" Ethan murmured to himself in confusion. "Have you gone mad? How are you going to fight me without your blade?"

"What is Percy doing?" Annabeth asked in alarm once Percy had discarded the use of his most trusted weapon. "He dropped Riptide."

"Perhaps he has lost hope." Kelli mused to herself and smirked. "I cannot blame him. Luke Castellan is backed by our incredible lord."

Naruto assessed his situation. From what he had heard in the conversation between Ethan and Percy—Ethan had to beat Percy to prove himself worthy of becoming a member of Kronos' monster army.

Percy adopted a somewhat meagre stance of combat. Ethan twirled his blade in concentration before he lunged forward. Slamming his palm into Ethan's solar-plexus—Percy bashed a punch into his face.

Blood erupted out from the pits of Ethan's nose. Ethan hissed in concealed agony and stumbled backwards. Percy stretched his arm forward and embedded a powerful strike from the elbow into his chest.

Ethan gasped in unadulterated pain and let out a harsh cough of exertion. Percy picked Riptide up from the concrete, tripped Ethan down onto the ground, and held his blade against Ethan's neck.

Antaeus bellowed out in enormous amounts of pleasure at the sight of the defeated Ethan and clapped. He opened his mouth until he was interrupted by an irritated soprano. "This is where you were…"

Percy retracted Riptide from Ethan's neck and felt the entire arena around them crumble. Luke materialized his mana in the form of suction cups and stuck onto a wall as the Labyrinth restructured itself.

Kelli stumbled from the tremors beneath her feet and gasped when Annabeth stabbed a discarded spear into her stomach. She hissed. "How did you escape those cuffs? They were created from—!"

"That type of metal isn't enough to hold a demi-god." Annabeth pointed at the destroyed cuffs on the concrete. "Good try, though."

Kelli erupted into a hurricane of golden particles and screeched in aggression. Annabeth extended a hand to Rachel: who accepted. "Thanks. Do you think I should schedule a therapy session?"

"Maybe later." Annabeth steeled her gaze in concentration. "What was powerful enough for its mere presence to destroy the entire arena?"

Antaeus growled in the direction of the armoured individual. A pulse of divine-energy from the armoured man rendered Antaeus unconscious on the floor before his body dissolved into golden particles of dust.

Annabeth's and Percy's eyes widened in absolute shock and surprise. How had he defeated Antaeus without any difficulty at all? Percy raised Riptide and stretched his legs into a stance. "Who are you?"

The armoured individual lifted an impressed eye-brow at Percy and clapped his calloused hands. A gargantuan boom echoed throughout the destroyed arena and obliterated the monsters within the sector.

"My name is Menoetius—the titan of violent anger and rash action." Menoetius nodded. "It is a pleasure to meet the prophesied one."

Percy ignored the anomalous title Menoetius had bestowed upon him and reinforced his stance. Emerald eyes glinted in suspicion. "Are you one of Luke's allies? I don't remember ever seeing you once…"

"Indeed I am." Menoetius watched Luke land next to him and twirl his blade. "Luke Castellan. The capture of the Kyuubi is my responsibility."

"Prometheus, Hecate, and I have constructed a plan." Luke glanced at Menoetius and snorted. "I doubt you bothered to create a plan."

"Enough of your insolence." Menoetius' luminous eyes glistened a powerful blue. "You will leave this to me—return to the castle."

"I still have orders from our lord." Luke clicked his teeth. "I hope you won't fail in the capture of the Kyuubi."

Luke turned his back to Menoetius and summoned a crimson portal. Percy hurtled Riptide at him—but Luke disappeared into the magical tear in space and in the atmosphere. Menoetius cracked his neck.

Menoetius pressed a calloused hand down onto the concrete. Motes of divine-energy rippled beneath Percy and manifested themselves in the form of an enormous spike. Percy rolled forward and grunted.

"Impressive reflexes." Menoetius smiled. "You truly do possess the potential to be a threat to our plans—the one who was prophesied."

The titan of rash action gazed deeper into the reconstructed room and noticed Rachel and Annabeth: who slaughtered monsters left and right. Menoetius clapped his coarse hands for a second time.

Another shock-wave of incredible power was produced from his clap and hurtled everyone inside of the room backwards. Annabeth stumbled downwards alongside Rachel while Percy collapsed.

"Where are you—vessel of the Kyuubi?!" Menoetius yelled and unleashed his powerful presence. "Come out wherever you are."

"Kyuubi…?" Annabeth clicked her fingers. "Naruto told us on one of his visits that the Kyuubi had been sealed into his stomach."

"Kronos must want to utilize its endless strength to enhance himself…"

Menoetius blinked in mild confusion when a Laistrygonian giant was propelled in front of him. It coughed out globs of blood before it crumbled into aureate particles. An indiscernible outline unveiled itself.

Naruto stepped through the silent room and faced Menoetius. The usual mischief, amicability, and nonchalance on his whiskered features had been replaced by a serious countenance. "Bring it on!"

Sapphire eyes twisted themselves into vermillion pits of animalistic aggression. Uncut nails sharpened themselves into claws. Thin whiskers thickened themselves. Naruto blurred forward.

Rachel was in absolute awe as she watched Naruto travel across the enormous room in a crimson blur and cross the distance between him and Menoetius in an interval of a second. "What is he?"

Percy had somehow reached Rachel and Annabeth. Upon hearing her question—a somewhat proud grin graced his face. "That—Rachel—is someone who has an unhealthy appetite when it comes to Ramen."

Naruto had pushed Menoetius back in their brawl and slammed a Rasengan into his sternum. Menoetius smirked. A rune materialized on his chest and consumed the Rasengan before it dispelled itself.

"Is that all?" Naruto crouched down into the stance of a wild boxer. "I've beaten opponents who can absorb chakra. You ain't special."

"Oh…But I am." Menoetius chuckled and manifested a rune onto his calloused palm. "My rune absorbs every single type of energy."

"They also turn that absorbed energy into a new type of energy…"

"That includes stamina." Menoetius chuckled. "Haven't you noticed how laborious your breaths have become? You're becoming tired."

Naruto arched a confused eye-brow at Menoetius until he fell down to one knee and began to let out deep pants of exhaustion. Menoetius had a pleased smile on his pale visage. "Hand over the Kyuubi."

"Nah!" The Uzumaki stuck his tongue out and performed one hand-sign. "Shadow-Clone Jutsu…Come on, Menoetius!"

Three Shadow-Clones materialized themselves into the enormous sector—a Massive-Rasengan on each of their palms. Percy rushed to help Naruto—but was stopped by Annabeth: who shook her head.

"Haven't you realized?"

"Realized what?" Percy glanced at one of Naruto's duplicates. "He took on Atlas last winter, sure! But these are different circumstances."

"Naruto is distracting Menoetius for us to escape." Annabeth answered. "We don't stand much of a chance against him right now."

Percy opened his mouth before he closed it as the three Shadow-Clones drilled their Massive-Rasengan downwards. Rachel, Percy, and Annabeth fell through the destroyed ground. "Naruto!"

The Uzumaki felt the memories of his duplicates fill his head. He blocked a powerful punch from Menoetius and flicked a roundhouse kick into his jaw—propelling him into one of the maze's walls.

Naruto gathered an abundant amount of Senjutsu chakra into his system. Orange pigmentations appeared on his whiskered face. Menoetius emerged from the wall and let out a long-drawn hum.

Another rune manifested itself onto Naruto and sapped the nature-energy within his chakra-system. Naruto coughed out a stream of blood at the touch of Menoetius' knuckles on his exposed abdomen.

Menoetius thrust his palm forward and slapped Naruto across the face. Since most of his stamina had been drained by those runes—Naruto was unable to parry any of Menoetius' punches.

Naruto channelled an endless mass of chakra into his knees. Menoetius wagged a finger in his direction and manifested an Absorption-Rune onto his legs. "You cannot win this battle, child."

"Pretty sure I can." Naruto head-butted Menoetius in the nose and watched him stumble backwards. "Kurama. How do I beat him?"

"You can't use my chakra." Kurama growled in Naruto's head. "Since those damn runes activate automatically when they feel energy."

"And whatever energy they store is expelled into the atmosphere." The Kyuubi groused. "I can sense traces of our chakra inside of the air."

Naruto blocked a ruthless punch from Menoetius and flipped back to establish an enormous amount of distance between them. The Uzumaki flexed whatever chakra he had left in his system. "Damn…"

Menoetius rushed at Naruto and buried his fist into his solar-plexus. The titan's beautiful eyes shimmered an ominous blue. Amusement blemished his soprano. "I am your counter! Child of the Shinto!"

"However…" Menoetius' skull rattled when his jaw was roundhouse kicked for a second time. "This child truly is a monstrous creature."

"Most mortals cannot counter the blows of a divine entity." Menoetius mused. "Naruto Uzumaki is able to match me in physical strength."

Naruto panted even more in unconcealed exhaustion and staggered forward. A chakra-arm materialized out from his shoulder-blade—summoning a Rasenshuriken onto its aureate palm.

The Uzumaki drove the Rasenshuriken downwards and fell through the hole created underneath him. He had lost too much stamina and chakra to the point where his body had started to suffer the effects.

Menoetius reached a hand down to grab Naruto—but growled in annoyance as the Labyrinth trembled and reconstructed itself. Menoetius was in shock. "How did he survive my runes…?"

"Naruto Uzumaki possesses a ridiculous amount of energy. A normal person would have been rendered deceased if they lost that much stamina and vitality. The rumours of his power were true…"

Beneath the ground where Menoetius stood upon—Naruto fell through a cavity inside of the endless maze. Exhaustion had inundated his senses. Naruto closed his eyes—becoming unconscious.

(-)

An incredible deluge of clarity filled Naruto's mind when he was awoken by the fragrance of a somewhat warm fire. Blue eyes of unadulterated prudence scanned the area around his prone body.

Within the distance of the ginormous room—there were multiple candles embedded into the concrete. A single individual was seated down in front of them. In their hand was a bag of marshmallows.

Naruto let out a gentle groan and alerted the individual of his presence. The illuminated outline turned around—Jason Grace had an amused smile on his face. "I keep meeting you in weird places."

"Jason?" Naruto grunted in absolute shock. He flexed his replenished chakra-reserves. "What the hell happened? My head is killing me."

"I can't say for sure." Jason shrugged and chewed a marshmallow. "I found you unconscious in one of the many rooms of the Labyrinth."

"Unconscious?" Naruto murmured to himself—confused. "All I remember is fighting Menoetius and falling through some kinda hole."

"Wait a minute!" Naruto yelled and shook his head. "Jason. Why are you in the Labyrinth? Are you exploring this place or something?"

"I was given this quest by an anonymous deity." Jason chuckled. "My mission is to find out the whereabouts of Saturn's gigantic army."

"Jason…" A rather strict and stern voice streamed into Naruto's ears. "I would advise you not to give information of our task to him."

Jason tilted his head and chewed his second marshmallow. "Come on—Reyna. I haven't even introduced you to him yet—have I?"

Naruto glanced towards the source of such a strict voice and yawned in fatigue. Reyna Ramirez-Arellano stared down at him—unimpressed. "I am not interested in meeting this stranger."

"He is pretty strong—in my opinion." Jason grinned at Reyna and laughed. "Last time I met him—he was annihilating a few monsters."

"Truly?" Reyna asked Jason and raised an eye-brow in disbelief. "He doesn't give off the presence of someone versed in the art of battle."

"Hey." Naruto mumbled in a tired tone. "I'm plenty versed in the art of battle! Give me a Kunai and I'll shred through an army of monsters!"

"What happened to you—Naruto?" Jason roasted his marshmallow over the flames. "You were covered in wounds when I found you."

"You have an impressive regeneration ability." Reyna remarked. "All of the bruises and cuts on your skin healed at an incredible rate."

"If my chakra hadn't been absorbed—then I'd have healed much faster." Naruto clenched a fist for a second. "It was Menoetius."

"Menoetius?" Reyna steeled her eyes in concealed surprise. "He is the titan of violent anger and rash action—one of Saturn's elite warriors."

"He called himself that." Naruto nodded and cracked his neck until he heard an audible pop. "He absorbed my chakra through his runes."

"Chakra…" Reyna tapped her chin. "You must be from the Shinto pantheon—correct? Only they possess that type of energy."

"You're from the Shinto pantheon—Naruto?" Jason bit into his marshmallow. "I never would have guessed. Are you a Shinobi?"

"Huh?" Naruto jolted in his position. "Who told you two about chakra? You two are definitely not from the Shinto pantheon. So how?"

"We are of the Roman pantheon." Reyna responded. "Our camp is kept up to date about every single pantheon out there."

"We're only told the basics about each pantheon by our deities." Jason smiled. "The Shinto pantheon uses chakra and its warriors are Ninja."

"That's all you were told about my pantheon?" Naruto crossed his arms. "Yeah—you two are right. I'm from the Shinto pantheon."

The Uzumaki climbed to his feet and stretched his body. Most of his chakra had replenished itself within his chakra-system. He gave Jason and Reyna a grateful bow. "Thanks for taking care of me…"

Naruto closed his eyes and gathered Senjutsu chakra into his inner-system. Orange pigmentations grew above his eyes. He grunted as he sank down to his knees. His stamina had yet to recover.

"Your body is still tired." Reyna grabbed onto her spear and compressed it into a ring. "It'd be smarter if you joined us."

"You sure?" Naruto let out a weak chuckle. The orange patches on his face disappeared. "This is your first time meeting me."

"I shall take Jason's word about you." Reyna gandered at Jason: who nodded. "Come along now. We have no time to waste."

Jason walked towards Naruto and patted him on the shoulder. "Your body still has to recover from its exhaustion. Come on…"

"Sure…" Naruto slipped his calloused hands into his pockets and grunted. "How the hell am I going to defeat Menoetius next time…"

"It's not an issue of power." Kurama's hum of intelligence filled Naruto's mind. "You possess more power than he shall ever have."

"It's those damn runes." Naruto clicked his teeth. "He reduces my physical abilities first and then targets my chakra-system."

"He multiplies the runes to double their effects." Kurama groused. "Since you're an Uzumaki—you have incredible amounts of stamina."

Naruto was interrupted from his conversation when Reyna touched the symbol traced into the wall of the perpetual maze. The room around them crumbled into a new area. Jason scanned the sector.

The Uzumaki materialized a chakra-arm from his sternum and slammed a Rasengan into a Hell-Hound: who disintegrated into aureate particles. Reyna nodded. "Rather impressive abilities."

"Told you." Jason grinned and conducted electricity through a Cyclops' skull. "We haven't been able to track down any of Saturn's soldiers."

"Indeed." Reyna pressed her spear into the chest of a Dracanae and watched it disappear in a hurricane of ashes. "This is troublesome…"

Naruto extended his sensory-abilities forward and focused on the emotions of every organism within the Labyrinth. He laughed in triumph when he felt an area that was overridden by pure malice.

A Shadow-Clone materialized itself next to Naruto before it summoned a Rasenshuriken. Jason tapped Naruto on the shoulder in confusion. "Naruto. Why did you create a duplicate and this large Shuriken?"

"I've sensed an area covered in hatred." Naruto's answer was a nonchalant one. "That's definitely where your targets are."

The Shadow-Clone drilled the Rasenshuriken into the wall in front of itself and threw the wind-constructed shuriken forward. Reyna disappeared in a blur while Jason vanished in a flash of thunder.

Naruto morphed himself into an indiscernible outline and followed behind the two of them until they reached the sector where he had sensed the amalgamation of negative emotions. Jason cheered.

"Took us a long time…" Jason transmuted his coin into a gladius and pointed it at the monsters in the room. "But we've found you all!"

Reyna twirled her spear and thumped it down on the concrete. "Relinquish yourselves in the name of Camp-Jupiter or else!"

"My. My. My." An entertained soprano cut them off. A well-dressed individual emerged from another door. "Who may you three be?"

"Jason Grace—future Praetor of Camp-Jupiter." The son of thunder asseverated. "You must be one of Saturn's warriors, correct?"

"I am Reyna Ramirez-Arellano—child of Bellona." Reyna grunted. "We have been given the assignment of hunting Saturn's soldiers down."

Naruto remained silent and watched the well-dressed man adjust his tie and the cuffs of his expensive shirt. He chuckled. "How cruel of you—young demi-gods. I am Epimetheus—it is my pleasure."

The Uzumaki gritted his teeth and accessed Kurama's chakra when he heard the name of someone who was Prometheus' and Menoetius' brother. Blue eyes twirled into crimson abysses of endless malice.

Epimetheus turned to Naruto and opened his mouth to speak—but was interrupted when a clawed hand slammed itself into his face. Naruto sank his claws deep into Epimetheus' red eyes of vigilance.

Reyna and Jason endured the shock-wave produced from Naruto's incredible speed. Naruto retracted his claws from Epimetheus' face and let out a guttural growl. Epimetheus healed his lacerated vision.

"Such ferocity for one so blessed by strength." Epimetheus chuckled and watched Naruto grit his teeth even more. "You must be him…"

Naruto pressed his claws into the ground and tore a chunk out from the concrete underneath him. Epimetheus summoned a shield—blocking the chunk of concrete thrown in his direction.

Epimetheus could feel the unadulterated aggression within Naruto's heart and raised a hand. Bubbles of divine energy surrounded Naruto before his body was consumed by a hurricane of flames. "Oh…?"

The Uzumaki punched through the flames. Epimetheus staggered backwards as Naruto grabbed onto his neck and dragged him downwards. Naruto closed his eyes.

Reyna and Jason slaughtered the monsters around them. Jason called for an inundation of thunder and electrocuted the creatures. Reyna dug her spear into the skulls of all of the hideous entities.

Naruto opened his eyes and gathered all of the nature-energy in the atmosphere into his chakra-system. Epimetheus chuckled—pressing a calloused hand into Naruto's abdomen. "Mana-Burst—activate."

The Uzumaki ignored the blast of mana from Epimetheus' hand and healed the hole in his stomach. Crimson motes of chakra covered his wounds. Naruto punched Epimetheus right in the face and the nose.

Epimetheus was hurtled backwards and slumped down into the ground—unconscious—before he crumbled into golden particles. Naruto let out a deep breath and calmed his enraged nerves.

"That was rather incredible of you." Reyna walked over to Naruto and nodded once. "Even if Epimetheus was weakened in your fight."

"All of Saturn's soldiers won't be able to tap into their full power until Saturn is restored." Jason explained. "They are still powerful, though."

"Epimetheus shall reform in Tartarus." Reyna murmured. "When he has been restored to a suitable form—Saturn shall retrieve him."

"Wouldn't Tartarus intervene if Saturn accessed his realm?" Jason asked. "The realm itself is Tartarus and it is his domain…"

"Tartarus is likely unbothered by Saturn's presence in his realm." Reyna responded. "Come on—you two. There is still work for us."

"Alright!" Naruto grinned and stretched his senses across the entirety of the perpetual maze. "I've picked up on a settlement of hatred!"

Naruto called for his chakra and created a Shadow-Clone: who summoned a Rasenshuriken to open a path for the three of them. Naruto clicked his teeth. He still had to defeat Menoetius somehow.

(-)

In the deepest depths of Hecate's grandiose castle—Menoetius stepped into an isolated room. All of his focus was directed towards the golden coffin within the middle of the gargantuan sector.

Menoetius gazed at the coffin and sank down to his knees in absolute reverence. The smooth and sinister voice of his lord sailed into his tympanums. "Menoetius…Have you retrieved the Kyuubi for me?"

"No—my lord." Menoetius pressed his head against the concrete. "But the boy is rather weakened. I am confident I can capture him."

"Those runes of yours truly are useful." Kronos' guttural voice chuckled. "I must have its power for when I am restored…"

"Do you still intend to have Luke Castellan be your vessel?"

"Not anymore…" Kronos responded and the coffin glinted an ominous yellow. "Hecate and Prometheus have started creating me a body."

"One of mortal flesh and blood?"

"It is a body of mortal flesh and blood." Kronos rasped. "This shall let me use Luke Castellan for another one of my plans…"

"If that is your desire." Menoetius nodded and vanished in a hurricane of sapphire-tinted particles. "I shall capture the Kyuubi soon, my lord."

(-)

Naruto tilted his head and felt the swipe of a Hell-Hound tickle his ear. A roundhouse kick to the head propelled the creature into a wall. The Hell-Hound let out a guttural growl before it dissolved into ashes.

The Uzumaki twirled through the air and axe-kicked a Cyclops in the eye to impair its vision for the briefest of seconds. Naruto summoned a Rasengan and drove it into its skull—obliterating the monster.

Jason stabbed his gladius into an Empousa. A small hurricane of wind settled onto his palm as he drilled it into the Empousa's neck. The son of thunder glanced at Reyna: who flicked the dust off of her spear.

Naruto extended his sensory-abilities throughout the maze and detected no more areas that were infested by an enormous amount of hatred. He grinned. "That's the last of these monsters' settlements!"

Reyna produced a pocket-watch out of nowhere and checked the time. Four hours had passed since they had started their task of eliminating the settlements that belonged to Saturn's monstrous army.

"We must return to Camp-Jupiter…" Reyna pressed her hand against the symbol embedded into the maze. "Shall you accompany us?"

"You could stay at Camp-Jupiter for a while." Jason suggested to Naruto: who scratched his head. "I doubt the others would mind."

"I'm not against the idea." Reyna cracked a small smirk. "You have been a tremendous help to us. For that, you have our gratitude."

"Sorry—I can't join you two." Naruto shook his head and smiled. "I have some business to take care of. See you two later, alright?"

Reyna and Jason gave Naruto nods of amicability and confirmation before they vanished through one of the corridors of the Labyrinth. The area around Naruto restructured itself into another room.

The nonchalance within the iridescent blue of Naruto's eyes turned into unadulterated vigilance. Naruto clicked his teeth when he felt the familiar presence of Menoetius fill the atmosphere of the sector.

"Kurama. Time for round two…" Naruto performed a hand-sign and summoned his clone. "Menoetius…I guess you tracked me down."

Naruto watched his clone disappear into the corridor behind him. Menoetius emerged from a destroyed gate and clapped his calloused hands in amusement. "You thought you could escape from me?"

"I did escape from you…" Naruto let out a nonchalant chuckle and widened his eyes in annoyance. "Leave me the hell alone, would ya?"

"Not until your corpse is in my hands." Menoetius clenched a resolved fist and chuckled. "You were pathetic when we fought earlier…"

"I have to apologize for my lacklustre performance." Naruto smirked. "Those runes of yours are pretty useful against me, aren't they?"

"Of course they are." Menoetius responded—unimpressed. "They absorb your stamina and absorb the chakra in your system."

A multitude of sigils and runes manifested themselves beneath Naruto. The Uzumaki closed his eyes and pressed his hand down into them. Orange pigmentations appeared onto his whiskered face.

He disappeared in a distortion of an iridescent vermillion and appeared behind Menoetius: who groaned in unadulterated pain when he was slammed through one of the walls of the perpetual maze.

Menoetius dragged himself out of the rubble and the gigantic pile of rocks around him. Amusement coloured his blue eyes. He stretched his hand forward before summoning more Absorption-Runes. "Take this."

Naruto glanced downwards at the incredible number of runes below his feet and directed a blood-thirsty grin of mockery at Menoetius. His eyes started to twist, dance, and twirl into a void of golden colour.

An explosion triggered itself within the secluded room of the Labyrinth. Menoetius shoved his hands onto his face to protect himself and blanched at the potent chakra that twinkled in the atmosphere.

"What is this power?!" Menoetius' scream was one of absolute befuddlement and unconcealed terror. "This energy is frightening…"

Silence inundated the air between a prudent Menoetius and a mute Naruto: whose eyes were illuminated by a golden light. Naruto had activated Sage-Of-Six-Paths-Mode without Kurama's chakra.

"Your runes won't be able to absorb this type of chakra…" Naruto murmured to himself in amusement. "Kurama…Let the battle begin."

"My runes are designed to drain all types of energy." Menoetius suppressed the urge to scowl. "Your confidence truly is unimpressive!"

"Confidence?" Naruto tilted his head and grinned. "Nah. I'm pretty sure my confidence is my most charming trait, wouldn't you say?"

"Enough of these childish games." Menoetius' bright irises pulsed a malevolent and sinister blue. "I am your demise, Naruto Uzumaki…"

Naruto closed his eyes and unleashed the chakra of Sage-Of-Six-Paths-Mode upon Menoetius: who gritted his teeth. Menoetius clasped his hands and summoned a flood of runes.

"First of all…" Menoetius thought to himself and squinted his eyes. "I must absorb the energy he uses in this strange form of his…"

The Uzumaki gave all of the runes underneath himself an unimpressed glance. Menoetius stumbled backwards in endless rivers of shock. "Impossible! My runes cannot absorb this energy."

An aureate distortion appeared in front of him and morphed itself into Naruto. Naruto buried his knuckles into Menoetius' stomach and felt his entire body tremble at the unparalleled power in a single blow.

Another punch enhanced by Sage-Of-Six-Paths-Mode hurtled Menoetius through several walls inside of the Labyrinth's multifarious rooms. Naruto smirked and stepped forward. "This is impossible!"

Menoetius flipped out of the remains of the destroyed walls and sank down to his knees before he coughed. "How did you resist my runes?"

"Simple." Naruto shrugged. "This was more of a lucky guess on my part—but I realized that there was a potential weakness your runes had."

"A weakness?" Menoetius climbed to his feet and shook his head. "That is not possible. I developed these runes to perfection!"

"In our earlier battle—I sensed how your runes changed my absorbed chakra into a new type of energy. But I was confused by one detail."

"My fur-ball of a partner told me how he sensed my chakra in the air." Naruto tapped his head. "I realized something then and there."

Menoetius' mind was overwhelmed by a concentrated mass of blood-lust. "Your runes couldn't fully convert my chakra…"

"That means." Naruto slipped his calloused hands into his pockets. "My chakra was too potent to be converted into a new type of energy."

"How foolish of me." Menoetius mumbled, gazed down at his hand, and flexed his fingers. "I overlooked the potency of your chakra."

"Nevertheless." Menoetius contorted his body into the stance of an ancient warrior. "You shall suffer defeat by my hands, Uzumaki."

"Bring it on!" Naruto crouched down into the stance of an unhinged boxer before he felt the area around him rattle. "What the hell?!"

"It can't be!" Unadulterated glee beautified Menoetius' pale features. "Lord Kronos has been restored to a physical form! At last!"

"Kronos has been restored?" Naruto tilted his head. His senses were flooded by a powerful presence. "Kurama…Can you feel that?"

"I can feel a presence that bends time itself." Inside of the sequestered depths of Naruto's head—Kurama growled. "The time lord is back."

"We have Menoetius to worry about." The Uzumaki responded and turned around. "I have to focus more on beating him up."

Menoetius' glee disappeared and was replaced by a perpetual amount of confidence. A low hum of psychotic pleasure escaped his windpipe. "Naruto Uzumaki—the Kyuubi shall be taken from you soon enough."

Naruto materialized himself in front of Menoetius and slammed his knee into his abdomen. A stream of Ichor dribbled out from Menoetius' mouth—but the wide grin of elation on his smooth visage remained.

A Rasenshuriken—enhanced by Sage-Of-Six-Paths-Mode—constructed itself onto Naruto's calloused palm. Menoetius groaned as his body was shredded into chunks.

"Wait a minute…" Naruto blinked in realization. "Didn't Reyna and Jason tell me that Saturn's warriors would regain their full power—?"

"Upon his restoration?" Kurama interrupted and snorted. "Saturn is Kronos' Roman equivalent. Menoetius has regained his full power."

A strong burst of magical-power shunted itself into Naruto. Naruto withstood the explosion of mana and gazed in Menoetius' direction. Blue motes of divine-energy covered his entire form. "Fire!"

Menoetius extended his hand forward and summoned a cloud of flames at Naruto: who performed a number of hand-signs. A wall created from pure rock blocked and dispelled the mass of heat.

"His runes are useless against us now." Kurama grunted. "Since his full power has been restored, he no longer has to rely on them."

"I can tell." Naruto grinned and channelled chakra into his fists. "So—Menoetius! How does it feel to have your powers back?"

"Refreshing." Menoetius stepped out of a cloud of dust and his body glinted a luminous blue. "I have access to all of my abilities again."

Menoetius swung a hand forward and produced an endless shockwave. Naruto summoned another Earth-Style: Mud-Wall before he appeared behind Menoetius and flicked a kick into his head.

A loud crack reverberated throughout the atmosphere as Menoetius healed the damage to his skull. Tendrils of mana materialized out from his legs and gripped onto Naruto's shoulders. Naruto grinned a little.

Naruto closed his eyes and peered into the depths of the seal illustrated across his abdomen. Kokuo's chakra responded to Naruto. The Uzumaki grunted. "Boil-Release: Unrivalled-Strength!"

The titan of violent anger and rash action was propelled forward until he was grabbed by the hand of a golden outline. Naruto threw him downwards—creating a gargantuan crater within the concrete.

Naruto walked towards Menoetius and constructed a Wind-Style: Rasenshuriken onto his palm to end the battle—but paused when he felt a foreign gaze unleash itself upon the sector he was in.

Menoetius' prone body trembled in fervent determination. "Lord Kronos! Please, spare me in my failure to capture the Kyuubi!"

The Uzumaki jolted in surprise at the guttural sound of a somewhat smooth baritone in the air around him and Menoetius. Kronos' voice echoed into their ears. "All is forgiven—Menoetius. Calm yourself."

Naruto gritted his teeth and yelled out at the air. "Hold on a minute! Are you the one who's been telling all of them to capture Kurama?!"

"Ah—we meet at last." The invisible owner of the voice chuckled. "Naruto Uzumaki. The Kyuubi shall be mine in little time, I warn you."

"Kurama is not going to be used by you!" Naruto shouted in unconcealed annoyance. "Can you not leave us alone?!"

"The Kyuubi is said to have the power to destroy all." Kronos hummed. "I have no intention of arguing. Farewell for now, Naruto Uzumaki."

The presence of the voice inside of the atmosphere disappeared. Naruto stared down at Menoetius' prone body and hurtled the Wind-Style: Rasenshuriken into him. He crumbled into ashes.

Naruto deactivated Sage-Of-Six-Paths-Mode and felt the memories of his Shadow-Clone fill his head. He had summoned his clone to be his backup if Menoetius wanted to escape down the corridor.

The Uzumaki created a Rasengan on his hand, drilled it downwards, and fell through the hole he had constructed in the concrete. Naruto landed down onto the ground and the Labyrinth restructured itself.

A familiar fragrance polluted Naruto's senses. Naruto slid his hands into his pockets and glanced in the direction of candles—these candles illuminated some type of path to an aureate entrance.

Naruto followed the path until he was in front of it and opened the golden door. His beautiful eyes of an intense sapphire were met by the sight of a run-down room. All that was inside was a single chair.

The chair was occupied by a silhouette. Prometheus turned to Naruto and gave him a somewhat pleased smile. He intertwined his coarse hands. "How were the runes my dearest brother used against you?"

Prometheus flicked a hand forward and summoned a wooden-chair for Naruto: who seated himself down on it. Naruto grunted. "Those runes were annoying. Though, I am kind of curious about something…"

"Why aren't you testing out that rune of yours on me?" Naruto leaned back on his chair. "Now would be the perfect time to fight me, huh?"

"Oh—please." Prometheus huffed to himself in unconcealed amusement. "I have no intention of merely fighting you, Uzumaki."

"What the hell does that mean?" Naruto crossed his arms—confused. "I thought you wanted to battle me to take Kurama out from his seal."

"You misunderstand me—vessel of the Kyuubi." Prometheus left his chair and folded his hands behind his back. "I shall obliterate you."

"Is that a challenge?" Naruto raised a nonchalant eye-brow and canted his head. "Or are you being serious about obliterating me?"

"This is a declaration." Prometheus turned to Naruto before he smiled. "The Kyuubi shall become mine once I obliterate you, of course."

Naruto let out an insouciant chuckle and watched Prometheus vanish in a hurricane of brown-coloured particles. Sighing to himself—Naruto climbed out of his chair and walked into another room.

Naruto sighed. "I'm exhausted."

A third sigh escaped his mouth.


A/N: Thanks for reading this chapter.