It had been a couple of days since Naruto mysteriously disappeared.
During that time, Tsunade and the others made sure to hide his disappearance, knowing that it could cause serious consequences for everyone.
When someone asked about him, they would give any excuse such as he was training, on another mission or simply, goofing off.
While the others acted as if everything was normal, Shikamaru had spent those days analyzing the letter that appeared at the point where Naruto disappeared.
Now, the whole group was in the Hokage's office for another meeting.
"How are things going?" asked Tsunade.
"So far, they all accept the excuses we make for them regarding Naruto, but I don't know how long they will last." said Sakura.
"Yeah, sooner or later, they will suspect that something weird is going on." said Kakashi.
"I know. That's why we must find Naruto as soon as possible. What have you found out about the letter, Shikamaru?" asked Tsunade.
"I've been going through it from cover to cover and I've come to a conclusion." said Shikamaru.
"What conclusion?" asked Hinata.
"Naruto isn't in any of the existing nations, but in another world different from ours." said Shikamaru, to the surprise of the others.
"Are you sure about what you say?" asked Tsunade.
"I wouldn't say it if I wasn't." said Shikamaru.
"How did you come to that conclusion?" asked Kakashi.
"For starters, the letter was addressed to a 'master Rimuru', from what it said, it's not only about a master, but also the leader of a nation." said Shikamaru.
"But I've never heard of a nation ruled by someone called that." said Sakura.
"Exactly. Then there's the fact that I detected traces of an energy very different from chakra on that letter. I had to ask Hinata for help to corroborate it." said Shikamaru.
"It's true. I used the Byakugan on the letter and I could see that it didn't have chakra, but another kind of unknown energy." said Hinata.
"But how did a letter from another world end up in ours while Naruto disappears?" asked Tsunade.
"My other conclusion? Maybe they intended to send the letter to him through a transportation technique, but the thing got twisted somehow and the result was that Naruto was dragged into that other world." said Shikamaru.
"Great. Looking for Naruto somewhere in this world was going to be complicated, but looking for him in another world is going to be even more so." said Kakashi, since he would have to use his Kamui to go to that other world.
"It's possible, but after hearing all this information, there's no choice but to act immediately." said Tsunade.
"What do you mean, Lady Tsunade?" asked Sakura.
"We're going to go find Naruto." said Tsunade.
"Hokage, although I would like to do so, my Kamui requires large amounts of chakra. With the amount we have between all of us, it would only give for a one way trip and although it is possible that, with the help of Naruto and Kurama's chakra, we could return to our world, I don't know if we will land in that world where he is at the first time." said Kakashi.
"We could use the energy from the letter to try to locate a trace that will lead us to that other world." suggested Shikamaru.
"And with my Byakugan, it will be easier to find Naruto." said Hinata.
"Right. Go get ready. We'll leave in an hour." said Tsunade receiving nods from the others.
Meanwhile, a magic circle appeared in the middle of a forest clearing and in a second, Naruto and Rimuru appeared on the spot.
"Wow, that was fast." said Naruto looking around.
"Given the situation, there was no time to waste." said Rimuru.
"Do you think the kids will be okay?" asked Naruto.
"I've left them with the other teachers at the royal palace. Safer they can't be." said Rimuru.
"So what do we do now?" asked Naruto.
"That attack has proven that AllHumanity won't mess around and will attack with all their might in order to take revenge on us and wipe out the kids." said Rimuru.
"So, could they attack the city?" asked Naruto.
"I don't think so. Having me, Veldora, as well as the others, together in one place, it would be suicide to attack us unless they had the help of almost all the other Demon Lords." said Rimuru.
"So they will attack the kingdom where the kids are." said Naruto.
"Bingo. The reason we've come back is to gather an army with which we will defend the kingdom from those guys." said Rimuru.
"Wouldn't we leave the city undefended?" asked Naruto.
"Don't worry about that. Almost everyone in the city is strong, not to mention they have Veldora, the storm dragon, protecting them, so there won't be any problems." said Rimuru with a smile.
"Well then, let's not waste any more time." said Naruto.
"You read my mind." said Rimuru.
Later, Rimuru stood on a raised platform overlooking the plaza where the people of the city, including the Shadow Squadron of Souei, were gathered.
"Hear me, everyone." began Rimuru. "As you know, I had to be absent for a few days to go visit my students. However, during my stay there, I discovered the existence of a group whose goal is to kill all summoned people, including my students. With their help and Naruto's, we managed to enter their lair and destroy most of their troops, but unfortunately, their leader is still at large and has launched an attack against the academy as a declaration of war. They are preparing for a major attack that will bring the death of many, including my students and that is something I won't allow, so I ask you all to come with me to defend the kingdom and put an end to this threat."
There was an awkward silence for a few seconds before the monsters erupted in war cries and affirmation.
"Looks like he's convinced them." thought Naruto.
"That's what happens when you're a highly respected leader." said Kurama.
"Yes. I hope to become like him when I become Hokage." said Naruto.
Soon after, Rimuru gathered a large number of hobgoblins and star wolves, as well as gathering Benimaru, Shion, Souei, Hakuro, Geld, Gabiru and Gobta as well.
"Will that be enough?" asked Naruto.
"I don't want to sound arrogant, but they are the strongest army you've ever seen in your life. Maybe even more than that ninja alliance you told me about." said Rimuru.
"Unbelievable." began Naruto before realizing that there was someone among the troops that would be accompanying them. "Wait a minute." said Naruto before running towards that person. "Shuna, what are you doing here?"
"Lord Rimuru asked me to accompany him to provide extra security for his students in case of a surprise attack." said Shuna.
"But will you be okay?" asked Naruto.
"Don't worry. I'm actually stronger than I look." said Shuna with a grin.
"Well, if you say so, fine with me." said Naruto with a smile.
"Ok, is everyone ready?" asked Rimuru.
"Whenever you say, Lord Rimuru." said Shion.
"We'll make those guys regret messing with us." said Benimaru.
"Sure we will, dattebayo." said Naruto with his crutch, which made Shuna chuckle.
"Alright. Let's go there." said Rimuru before making a huge magic circle form underneath them all and in a couple of seconds they all disappeared before the magic circle vanished.
Before long, the entire army found themselves next to Freedom Academy which had been partially destroyed due to that attack.
"Ok." began Rimuru before turning to look at the others. "Souei, go with your squad to keep an eye on the surrounding area. Report any suspicious activity."
"Understood." Souei said before he and his squad quickly disappeared.
"Shuna, you will go to where the kids are and stay with them until this is all over." said Rimuru.
"I will." said Shuna.
"As for the others, set up camp. We don't know when they will attack, so everyone better be ready." said Rimuru.
"Yes!" said they all before getting down to business.
"You know? This brings back memories." said Naruto.
"From the war you participated in?" asked Rimuru.
"Yeah, only I'm not facing a group of revived ninja or beings that can mimic anyone. I'm facing a group of stooges who think their method is the right one." said Naruto.
"That's what happens with some cults. They often believe that their way is the right way or even believe that the god they worship is the one and only true one." said Rimuru.
"Now it's just a matter of waiting, right?" asked Naruto.
"Yes, but we can't let our guard down either. There's a chance they'll send followers to attack us by surprise." said Rimuru.
"He's right. Better to be cautious in these cases." said Kurama.
"Understood. You can count on me for anything." said Naruto with a toothy grin and pointing a finger at himself.
"Of course I do, Naruto." said Rimuru with a smile.
Meanwhile, back in Naruto's home world; Tsunade, Kakashi, Sakura, Hinata and Shikamaru gathered on the rooftop of the Hokage's building, where they would proceed to go through the process to travel to the other world.
"Are you all ready? We're not sure what might be on the other side." said Tsunade.
"We have gathered enough supplies, weapons, tools and medicine to last us for a while." said Sakura.
"Good. Shikamaru, how can we use the energy from the letter to find the trail to the other world?" asked Tsunade.
"Simple. Once he activates his Sharingan, Kakashi-sensei can focus his gaze on the letter or, specifically, the remnants of energy it possesses. With that, he should be able to find a path to our destination through the Kamui." said Shikamaru showing the letter.
"Hmm. It might work." said Kakashi.
"B-But what if when we get there, Naruto is far from where we ended up?" asked Hinata.
"In that case, we just have to search and find." began Tsunade receiving a nod from the white-eyed girl. "Proceed, Kakashi."
"Good. Better get ready, it might be a bumpy ride." said Kakashi revealing his Sharingan in his left eye.
He focused his gaze on the letter for a few seconds before the tomoes in his red eye rotated and took the form of the Mangekyo Sharingan.
"Kamui!" shouted Kakashi as a swirling spiral appeared in his eye.
The swirl ended up sucking in not only himself, but everyone next to him and in no time, there was no one left in the area.
In the middle of a forest somewhere, a spiral formed in mid-air and in a couple of seconds, from that spiral emerged Kakashi and the others.
Once the process was already complete, Kakashi turned off his Mangekyo Sharingan and covered his left eye while breathing heavily.
"Kakashi-sensei, are you okay?" asked Sakura.
"Ugh. Yeah, just a little tired. I had to use a lot of chakra to get us here." said Kakashi.
"That leads me to ask. Where is here? Is this the world Naruto is in?" asked Tsunade.
"I'll check. Byakugan!" shouted Hinata making the veins around her eyes too marked. "I didn't notice any chakra, but I can see the same energy the letter gave off."
"That means we're in the right world." said Shikamaru.
"Good, now all that's left is to find Naruto and return to our world." said Tsunade.
"Although I would wait a little while for me to recover and be able to use the Kamui again." said Kakashi.
"In that case, we should stay alert. We don't know what kind of things are in this world." said Tsunade.
Suddenly, Hinata's eyes widened in horror as she saw something else.
"Something is coming towards us!" exclaimed Hinata urgently alarming the others.
"Which way?" asked Tsunade.
"That way!" exclaimed Hinata pointing to the sky.
They all turned their gaze upwards in time to see something falling towards them.
Before they could react, that something landed heavily in front of them, causing the ground to shake for a moment as a curtain of smoke formed.
By the time the smokescreen dissipated, they saw that the cause was a brown-skinned man with blond hair and a cloak.
As the man scowled at them, the ninjas kept their eyes peeled in case he was an enemy.
"Okay. Who are you and what do you want?" the man asked.
"Why would we have to tell you?" asked Tsunade.
"So that's the way things are, huh? Well. If you don't tell me the easy way… " began the man before a dark aura surrounded him, also increasing the pressure in the atmosphere. "You'll tell me the hard way."
Needless to say, all the ninjas were in shock as they noticed the mysterious man's power.
"T-This power…" began Tsunade in shock.
"He's as strong as Madara or Kaguya or even both of them together!" thought Sakura in shock.
"Who the hell is that guy?" thought Kakashi in shock.
"S-So are the inhabitants of this world?" asked Hinata in panic.
While they were immersed in their thoughts, there was one who decided to take the first step.
"Wait, we don't have any hostile intentions, we're just looking for someone." said Shikamaru thinking that might calm the situation.
"Who?" asked the man without changing his attitude.
Shikamaru had a feeling that he might jeopardize the mission if he revealed too much, especially to someone they had just met, but he also had a feeling that he couldn't lie to this man, because even if they all faced him, they wouldn't stand a chance of survival and he couldn't let that happen, so he had no choice but to say it.
"To our friend, Naruto Uzumaki." said Shikamaru.
"Huh? Are you looking for Naruto?" asked the man immediately turning off his aura.
That surprised and confused the ninja a bit.
"Wait, do you know Naruto?" asked Sakura.
"Do I know him? Hahaha. But if he's a guest of my friend, Rimuru." said the man.
"Rimuru? Is he talking about the same Rimuru that the letter was addressed to?" asked Kakashi mentally.
"Th-this…" began Hinata nervously. "If you know Naruto, then can you tell us where he is?"
"Well, they used to be in the city of Rimuru, not far from where we are. However, recently, he, Rimuru and some others, went to another kingdom." said the man.
"What? Why did he go to another kingdom?" asked Tsunade.
"It seems that a group of madmen intend to attack Rimuru's students and have gone to confront their army." said the man.
"Unbelievable. We just got here and it turns out that Naruto has gotten himself into a big mess." said Sakura patting his face.
"That's Naruto for you." said Kakashi shrugging his shoulders.
"Which way is he going to that kingdom?" asked Tsunade.
"It's that way, but even if you were to run there, it would take at most, a week or two to get there." said the man pointing in a direction.
"I don't think we have much time if Naruto is going to engage in battle." said Shikamaru.
"Oh, don't worry about that, since you're Naruto's friends, I'll give you a hand." said the man before whistling with his fingers.
Before long, a pair of star wolves stepped out of their own shadow, startling all the ninjas.
"These little friends will get you to your destination in less time." said the man.
"I see. In that case, we gladly accept your help." said Tsunade.
"Thank you very much, sir." said Hinata bowing in thanks.
"Oh, no need and please just call me Veldora." said the man introducing himself.
Wasting no time, the five of them climbed into the star wolves, with Tsunade and Kakashi in one while the three young ninja climbed into the other.
Once they had their passengers on board, the wolves quickly took off running.
"Wow. They're going faster than we would have gone." said Kakashi.
"Yes. I figure, if we go at this pace and take short breaks. We should be with Naruto soon." said Shikamaru.
"Good, because I want to tell him a couple of things." said Sakura.
And so, the ninjas rode off on their mounts with the intention of meeting their friend before it was too late.
It had been a few days since Rimuru, Naruto and their army arrived at their location and set up a makeshift camp.
In that time, everyone was on alert for any enemy attack, whether direct, ranged or sneak attacks, but so far, nothing happened.
At that time, Rimuru and Naruto were in a hut that served as the main hut, both around a table with a map of the kingdom, the location of the camp and the surrounding area.
"Where do you think they would attack from?" asked Naruto.
"Considering that they were staying away from the crowd, they will probably advance their troops from the outer areas of the kingdom, so they could attack anywhere." said Rimuru.
"Then shouldn't we move the camp to an advantageous position?" asked Naruto.
"No, I have a feeling they will attack from this area, since the academy was their initial target." said Rimuru.
"Right. And besides, we screwed up their plans by stopping some of their people, so they've got it in for us." said Naruto.
"All the more reason why they will attack us as soon as they learn of our location, since they see us as the main obstacle to their purposes." said Rimuru.
"Well they're in for a surprise when they show up. With our current strength, we'll finish them off in no time." said Naruto with a toothy grin.
"I wouldn't underestimate them if I were you. Those we fought were only the garrison, so to speak. Those we will fight will possibly be stronger, not to mention the leader will surely be among them." said Rimuru.
"Bah. You worry too much. I may not have known all of you for a long time, but I can tell you're the kind of person who doesn't give up easily and not the kind of person who doesn't give up either." said Naruto.
"Hehe. That I can't deny you." began Rimuru with a smile. "I'm glad you're here supporting us, Naruto."
"Well, you've helped me when I ended up in this world with no way to return to my own. Besides, we're friends, aren't we?" asked Naruto with a wink.
Rimuru was a bit surprised to hear that the jinchuriki considered him a friend despite his rank, titles and power, and couldn't help but smile at that.
"Yes, we are." said Rimuru.
Meanwhile, the group of ninjas followed on the backs of the wolves until, at last, they reached a hill where they overlooked a huge city with a castle.
"Wow. It's very beautiful." said Hinata.
"Yeah, it makes our cities look like last century." said Kakashi.
"As much as I would love to go sightseeing, we came here in search of Naruto." said Tsunade reminding the others of the main issue.
"Hinata, can you locate him from here?" asked Sakura, receiving a nod from the white-eyed girl.
"Byakugan!" shouted Hinata causing the veins around her eyes to become too marked. "I can see Naruto's chakra." said Hinata surprising the others.
"Where is it?" asked Shikamaru.
"He's in that direction, but I see that he's accompanied by people with large amounts of this world's energy." said Hinata pointing in a direction.
"That doesn't matter too much. Let's go to where he is." said Tsunade before they got off the wolves.
"We'll go on from here alone. You can go back to your home." said Kakashi receiving a nod from the star wolves who turned around to leave quickly.
Once the wolves were lost in the distance, the group of ninja continued their journey on foot in the direction of where their friend was.
Rimuru and Naruto were outside the hut examining that everything was in order when suddenly, Souei appeared kneeling in front of them.
"Sir, there's news." said Souei.
"What is it?" asked Rimuru.
"We have spotted a group of humans heading towards our location." said Souei.
"Are they from AllHumanity?" asked Naruto.
"Their appearance doesn't match the ones you mentioned, but what caught my attention the most was that they were carrying that chakra that Naruto possesses." said Souei.
"What? That's impossible. Unless…" began Naruto starting to think what it was about. "Which way did you see them?"
"They're coming towards us from that direction." said Souei pointing in one direction.
Wasting no time, Naruto immediately ran in the direction the kijin ninja pointed.
"W-Wait, Naruto." said Rimuru chasing after the jinchuriki. "Humans possessing chakra, is it possible that…?"
Naruto kept running until he caught a glimpse of something or someone on the horizon and, squinting, he could clearly see who they were.
"It can't be. HEY!" shouted Naruto waving his hand.
The group of ninja were walking along until…
"HEY!"
"Did you hear that?" asked Tsunade.
"Yes and it looks familiar." said Kakashi.
"I think I know why." said Shikamaru pointing to the front, where they could all see a certain blond ninja dressed in black and orange running towards them.
"Th-That's…" began Hinata with a smile.
"Guys! You don't know how glad I am to…!" began Naruto happy to see his friends again when…
"You idiot!" shouted Sakura punching him directly in the face, sending him to the ground. "How come you always get into such trouble? Do you even know the trouble you cause others?"
"Hehehe. It's good to see you too, Sakura." said Naruto with a smile.
"Oh, Naruto. What am I going to do with you?" asked Sakura reaching out her hand to help the jinchuriki up.
"Naruto." began Hinata approaching. "Are you okay?"
"Take it easy, Hinata. This is nothing. But what are you all doing here?" asked Naruto.
"What do you think? We've come to find you and bring you back." said Tsunade.
"Oh yeah? Well I'm sorry to tell you, but you didn't need to, he was going to help me get back." said Naruto rubbing the back of his head.
"He?" asked Shikamaru.
"I think he's talking about me." began Rimuru arriving on the scene. "I guess you are acquaintances of Naruto, right?"
"That's right. Who are you?" asked Kakashi.
"Allow me to introduce myself. I am Rimuru Tempest, leader of the Jura Tempest Federation." said Rimuru.
That rather surprised the other ninjas.
"That's Rimuru? He's different from what I imagined." thought Tsunade, as she imagined the leader of an otherworldly nation would have an appearance like the Raikage or the third Hokage, but she didn't expect it to be someone like Gaara. "*Crackle* Greetings, Lord Rimuru. I am Tsunade, the current Hokage of the Hidden Leaf Village."
"Wait a minute, isn't she the one who…?" began Rimuru before a mischievous grin formed on her face. "Hoho. Time to get revenge for the suit, Naruto." thought Rimuru. "Ah, yes. Naruto told me about you."
"He did?" asked Tsunade.
"Yes, he said that you were a wrinkled old woman who couldn't stand looking older and that's why you use a technique similar to makeup." said Rimuru.
In the next instant, Tsunade gave Naruto a death stare as a black and utterly sinister aura surrounded her.
That made Naruto tremble with fear at that.
"Damn you, Rimuru!" thought Naruto.
"Hahaha. He's probably getting revenge for that suit." said Kurama.
"We'll talk about it, after the fact." began Tsunade before focusing on the human slime. "Is it true that you were going to help Naruto return to our world?"
"Yes. I have many abilities and one of them allows me to teleport anything anywhere. It was supposed to take a few days to create the right spell to bring him back, so I let him stay in the city until he could return." said Rimuru.
"That's very kind of you for someone who comes from another world." said Shikamaru.
"What do you want me to say? I'm nice like that." said Rimuru.
"One more thing, what's this about you going up against an army?" asked Sakura crossing her arms.
"Huh? How do you know that?" asked Naruto.
"When we first came to this world, we met someone who told us where you were and what you were doing. That's how we found you in the end." said Kakashi.
"If you allow me, I can give all the details. Please come with me." said Rimuru leading the group of ninja to his hut, where he stood for a few minutes explaining everything that had happened so far.
"So, just so I'm clear, AllHumanity is a group that aims to wipe out those who are summoned to this world and they had a group of kids in their sights. You found their lair and took most of them down, but now their leader has declared war on you and will likely attack at some point." said Shikamaru.
"Yes, that's exactly it." said Rimuru.
"The purpose those guys have with the summoned ones doesn't seem so different from what Akatsuki intended to do with the jinchurikis." said Kakashi.
"Old Tsunade, I know you've all come for me, but I can't leave until I'm done with them. I wouldn't feel right leaving those kids behind." said Naruto.
"I… I don't want to either. I want to fight to protect the kids too." said Hinata with determination.
"What do we do, Lady Tsunade?" asked Sakura.
"Mmm." expressed Tsunade folding her arms. "Since Naruto is already deep into the matter, there's no choice but to let things be. In fact, I've decided that we'll help in the fight as much as we can."
"I appreciate that, Hokage." said Rimuru.
"Agh. What a drag, but if the Hokage says so, it's okay. What do we have for now?" asked Shikamaru.
"At the moment, calculating where we would be attacked roughly, we set up a temporary camp, as well as I deployed a research group to keep an eye on the surrounding area." said Rimuru.
"Hmm. Good thinking." said Shikamaru admitting it was a good strategy.
"Well, Naruto, now that everything is settled, I think the time has come." said Tsunade.
"Of getting ready to fight?" asked Naruto confused.
"No" began Tsunade placing her hand on the jinchuriki's shoulder. "From 'after the fact'."
Naruto was horrified to hear that, especially when he saw a black and sinister aura surrounding the Hokage who had a sweet smile that was the complete opposite of the aura.
"W-Wait." began Naruto before Tsunade dragged him towards the exit. "No. No. No. No. NO!" shouted Naruto trying to stop himself from being dragged further, but he failed and Tsunade pulled him out of the hut.
"Is that common?" asked Rimuru.
"More than you'd imagine." began Kakashi before shrugging his shoulders. "Anyway, I guess we're going to be staying here for a while."
For the rest of the day, the ninja integrated with Rimuru's troops.
Naruto had taken such a beating from Tsunade that it took a couple of healing potions to heal him completely, much to Rimuru's surprise.
Tsunade and Shikamaru spent the whole time with Rimuru talking strategy and how to fight the enemy.
Kakashi got to meet Souei and after a brief chat, the masked ninja joined his squad to help in guarding the place.
Sakura met Shion and despite the envy she felt for her… attributes, the two began to get along.
They even had a brief arm wrestling match where it was almost a draw until Shion won.
Hinata decided to visit the kids that Naruto wanted to protect and before long, she hit it off with them, especially Shuna.
Near dusk, with the sun setting on the horizon, high in the mountains, stood the leader, watching the sunset and in front of him, stood a huge army of followers.
"Life is like the cycle of the sun. The sun sets when one life ends and rises when a new one begins. On this day, the sun sets to signal the end of the summoned as well as those who stand in our way and when it rises, it will usher in an era of salvation for mankind. All be for the salvation of mankind!" exclaimed the leader.
"All be for the salvation of mankind!" exclaimed the followers.
"Now, let us advance towards our goal!" said the leader.
Come evening, the group of ninja were having a bite to eat to recharge when…
"Listen up everyone." said Rimuru arriving on the scene, drawing the attention of the others.
"What's up?" asked Naruto.
"Souei just informed me. AllHumanity is moving." said Rimuru to the surprise of the others.
Soon after, they all met at Rimuru's hut to talk about it.
"How long do we have until they arrive?" asked Shikamaru.
"According to Souei, judging by speed and distance, I'd say they'd be here by morning." said Rimuru.
"So, that leaves us two choices. Either we wait here for them to come, or we go after them directly." said Kakashi.
"I say we go get them." said Naruto.
"Naruto, we shouldn't rush." said Sakura.
"No, he's right. If we wait here, they'll have more time to prepare, but if we're the ones going towards them, we'll catch them off guard." said Rimuru.
"And that way, it will be easier to deal with them." said Shikamaru.
"Okay, here's the plan. We'll split into three squads. One will take care of the right flank, one will take care of the left flank, and one will take care of the troops in the center." said Rimuru.
"Good. As for us, we will also split up to give support to your troops, Lord Rimuru." said Tsunade.
"Thank you, Hokage." said Rimuru.
"Wait, what about the leader? Is he with them?" asked Hinata.
"Unfortunately, Souei wasn't able to get that information. We'll have to wait for him to be present." said Rimuru.
"And if he is, I'll deal with him personally." said Naruto.
"Very well. Let's prepare for battle." said Rimuru.