Disclaimer - I don't own Naruto or High School DxD. I just own a shitty laptop that stops working sometimes.

Chapter 11

Consumed

Xiao gazed at the two headstones that bore the names of her mother and father. They lay on a beautiful cliff that overlooked the majestic Himalayan mountains. It was her mother's wish to rest here when she died.

The Shaolin master wondered how the blonde man had found this place, but she appreciated his kindness.

"I'm sorry." His voice was full of grief.

"They're gone, aren't they?" Xiao said, her voice empty.

"Yes."

"..."

"..."

"...How?"

He sighed deeply. "A month ago, someone unleashed a swarm of the...mutated humans that we fought in the lab on a city." He clenched his fists. "And I hesitated. If I hadn't, your mother would have lived."

The cliff was silent. The wind caressed Xiao's face and made her long hair flutter. Tears filled her eyes. "All this... All these lives... And now my parents... All lost because of me."

"No, Xiao. This isn't your fault."

Xiao gave a bitter laugh. "That's easy for you to say. I was the one who trusted the Grandmaster and the doctor. They fooled me."

"It's not wrong to trust people, especially those who are close to you. Someone once told me that a teacher who can't earn their student's trust is a failure. This is the Grandmaster's and the doctor's fault, not yours."

"Then we have to find the doctor. We have to make him pay before we deal with the Grandmaster."

He shook his head. "The doctor is already dead. Someone beat us to him. And I have no idea who it was."

"So, we're going after the Grandmaster now?"

He nodded, his eyes glinting with cold fury. "Yes. The Grandmaster has gone too far. He needs to be taken care of."

"Are you sure you will be able to take care of him? The Grandmaster is rumored to be around four hundred years old."

The blonde man laughed loudly. "Don't worry. I will be fine."

Xiao frowned before nodding. "Very well. I will trust you, Naruto Uzumaki."

"So, you already sneaked into Shaolin," Grandmaster Yuu said, his eyes narrowing and widening alternately. "How cunning."

"Ah." Naruto shrugged. "I didn't plan to come here in disguise, but I had a bad feeling about this place." He glared at the old man. "And I was right, wasn't I?"

The Grandmaster of Shaolin shook his head sadly. "You young ones don't understand the direction of the world."

Xiao snorted. "Oh, and you do?"

"I do, and that's why I have to stop you both," the Grandmaster said firmly.

Xiao clenched her fists and was about to attack the Grandmaster, but Naruto held her back by her arm. Xiao looked at the blonde man who gave her a negative sign.

"Go. Wake up the others and make sure they're safe," Naruto said sternly.

Xiao hesitated, but agreed. She nodded and left the room, leaving Naruto to face the Grandmaster alone.

"You're very brave to think you can beat me by yourself," the Grandmaster said as he threw off his upper robes.

"You're very foolish to think I'll take you seriously," Naruto replied with a grin.

The Grandmaster showed off his muscular and fit body, a result of years of hard work and training. He placed his left hand on his right shoulder and rotated it to loosen his muscles. Then he assumed a martial arts stance.

He turned his body sideways. His right leg was in front and his left leg behind. His right arm was extended toward Naruto, his hand pointing at the blonde with all his fingers. His left arm was near his chest.

Naruto tilted his head to the side, observing his stance. He adopted his own stance by relaxing his body and putting his hands in his pockets.

"Naruto, let me ask you again," the Grandmaster said with a wise tone. "Who do you think is the greatest enemy of humanity? Is it the gods? The demons? The devils?"

Naruto touched his chin as if thinking, and then smiled smugly. "Hmm~ How about this? I'll answer your question if you can impress me."

The Grandmaster looked at Naruto with a puzzled expression on his face.

"You're three or four centuries old, right?" Naruto said. "You must have trained your body to the limit and learned everything about martial arts. Why don't you show me what you've got?" Naruto looked at the Grandmaster with excitement.

"So, you want to experience the magic of martial arts?" The Grandmaster asked.

"Something like that. I want to see how different your martial arts are from mine." Naruto shrugged.

"Then I'll be happy to show you the wonders of this art," the Grandmaster said with a proud smile.

He moved like lightning, aiming his right hand at Naruto's stomach.

But Naruto was ready. He caught the old man's hand with his own. The old man countered with a left hand strike at Naruto's face, but Naruto dodged it with ease.

The Grandmaster tried two more strikes, one after another, but Naruto blocked them with his hands.

They began to trade blows. The Grandmaster attacked with his right and left. Chops, cuts, punches, and two-finger strikes. Naruto blocked or parried them all.

Naruto looked bored. His eyes followed the master's hands without trouble. He was too fast for the Grandmaster to break his defense.

But when Naruto thought he had seen it all, the Grandmaster did something strange.

The Grandmaster faked a punch, but when Naruto blocked it with his forearm, the Grandmaster changed his attack into a five-finger strike, piercing Naruto's forearm.

Naruto blinked as the Grandmaster withdrew his hand. He stared at the hole in his arm, blood dripping from it.

"Don't underestimate me so much, child," the old man said sagely.

Naruto smiled eagerly at the Grandmaster. "Heh~ You're so confident just because you pierced me. I think you're giving yourself too much credit, old man."

Smoke rose from the wound on Naruto's arm and it healed in an instant. He made a gun with his right hand fingers and pointed it at the Grandmaster. The wind in the room picked up speed.

"Survive, old man."

The Grandmaster raised an eyebrow in confusion as he sensed something wrong. He slowly looked at his left side and his eyes widened in shock when he saw that his left hand was gone. Blood spurted from it like a tap. 'Huh...?' He thought.

"Aw~" Naruto teased in fake sorrow. "You got hit. Here, let me give you another chance. Dodge this time, okay, old man."

The Grandmaster's senses went crazy and he dodged to the left... Just in time as countless slashes ripped the spot he was standing a second ago. The floor was shredded. The Buddha statue's head was sliced off and it crashed to the ground.

Naruto's face twisted into a wicked smile. "You dodged this time. Good~ Very good~" He put his hand in his pocket and tilted his head.

The Grandmaster clutched his bleeding stump. He felt his blood draining away.

"You're at a disadvantage with that arm gone," Naruto said with a bored look. "We can't have that~ I want you to do your best."

The Grandmaster braced himself and got ready to fight.

He blinked once and Naruto vanished.

He blinked again and Naruto was back where he was.

"I healed that stump."

The Grandmaster's eyes darted to his left arm and saw his hand restored. 'What?' He was too shocked to speak.

Naruto walked over to the severed head of the Buddha statue and touched it with his left hand. He looked at the Grandmaster from the corner of his eye and smirked wickedly. "Dodge."

The Grandmaster had no time to react as the statue's head flew at him. He raised his hands just as the statue hit him. The statue smashed through the wall and flew toward the training courtyard. The Grandmaster knew he had to get out of the way or be crushed by the head. He grabbed one of the snails (that formed the Buddha's hair) and pulled himself on top of the head before it hit the ground.

The old man let out a deep breath and looked up at his office, which now had a huge hole in it.

The whole temple had heard the noise and gathered around the courtyard to see what was happening.

"H-Hey. Is that the Grandmaster?" One of the students asked, pointing at the old man.

"Y-Yeah... But why does he look so worn out?" Another student asked, worried.

"Are we under attack?" Another asked, scared.

"STAY BACK, EVERYONE!" Xiao shouted. "YOU DON'T WANT TO GET CAUGHT IN THE CROSSFIRE."

"Big sister Xiao! What's going on?"

But before Xiao could answer, a pressure fell on the courtyard like a hammer, knocking everyone down. One by one, everyone lost consciousness, no matter where they were. Only two people remained standing: the Grandmaster, who had somehow stayed awake, and Xiao, who had not felt the full force of the pressure.

The Grandmaster clenched his teeth as he felt the source of the terrible pressure in his office.

Soon, Naruto Uzumaki emerged from the broken wall and stepped on the rubble. His face was shadowed by his hair and his eyes glowed red, making him look like a demon.

"You were smart enough to understand our plan, weren't you?" The Grandmaster screamed like a madman, spitting as he spoke.

"Shut up, old man." Naruto's voice was scornful. "You won't find any mercy here. Maybe you should look for it in hell."

"You... You... YOU BASTARD!" The Grandmaster brought his hands together and pointed his palms at Naruto. An orange magic circle formed in front of his palms. But before he could do anything, he saw a vision.

A vision of his head being torn from his shoulders.

He blinked and the vision was gone, replaced by Naruto Uzumaki's smug face looking down at him. The Grandmaster roared as the magic circle blazed. He shot multiple fireballs from the circle, aiming at his office. The fireballs hit the office walls, exploding and setting them on fire.

The Grandmaster puffed, seeing the damage he had done. He was sure he had hit the blonde pest. Then he heard the sound of thunder from the sky. He looked up and his eyes widened when he saw clouds in the sky. 'But the sky was clear...'

Suddenly, it started pouring. The rain put out the fire that had started from the fireballs.

"Hey, old man."

The Grandmaster snapped his head back and saw Naruto standing on the ground, unscathed. And what was even more surprising was that the raindrops didn't touch the blonde at all.

"Don't kill your students, will you?" Naruto said with an annoyed voice. He raised a hand to fix his hair and then put it back in his pocket. "And what's this? I thought you were going to show me the wonders of martial arts~ Did you give up already~ That's not very impressive, old man~"

The Grandmaster gritted his teeth in anger and shame. His four hundred years of training and meditation were wasted. He ran at Naruto faster than a normal human eye could see. He reached the blonde. He opened his four fingers (except the thumb) of his right hand and aimed a knife hand strike at him.

But he was too slow to notice the sinister smirk on the blonde's face.

Just as his hand was inches from Naruto's face, the hand was sliced cleanly from the middle, from the tip of his middle finger to his shoulder. The flesh of his hand flew into the air.

"AAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHHHHH"

The Grandmaster's scream of agony rang through the Himalayan mountains. He collapsed on his knees and clutched his right hand with his left, unable to accept what he saw.

"It hurts, doesn't it?" Naruto said smugly. "I wondered what would happen if I added the heat of lava to the technique. In theory, it should seal the wound, but if it's too fast, it can be quite...painful."

The Grandmaster blinked and suddenly, he was kneeling on the ground, holding his right arm that was intact. The severed flesh was reattached to his hand and it looked like his hand had never been cut in half.

"Hey, hey. Weren't you going to fight me?"

The Grandmaster's head whipped back to Naruto who looked annoyed. He stared at his right hand. 'W-What?' He didn't understand. 'I'm sure my hand was cut off from the middle. There's blood on the ground. But it's still whole. And I still feel the pain.'

"You giving up?"

The Grandmaster got up, ignoring the taunt, and got ready to fight. He dashed at Naruto again, faster than a normal human could see. He reached the blonde and swung his right leg at Naruto's head.

But suddenly, he saw a vision of his leg being shredded into pieces. Horrified, he pulled his leg back and leaped away.

"What happened, old man~ Got cold feet?" Naruto smirked. The rain had stopped by now.

The Grandmaster gasped, but then he felt something wrong. He looked down at his right leg and saw that it was gone. Blood gushed from his thigh like a hose. The Grandmaster's eyes snapped back to Naruto who smiled innocently. He looked at his missing leg and lost his balance.

The Grandmaster blinked again, and suddenly, he regained his balance. He looked down and to his shock and terror, the leg that was gone was back on his thigh.

"Will you keep fighting?" Naruto smirked.

The Grandmaster was panting and sweating heavily. Even though he had no visible wounds, he still felt the pain of his arm and leg being cut. Blood stained the ground. He looked at Naruto and prepared to fight. He decided to keep his distance and he needed a weapon. His eyes scanned the weapon rack on the far right of the training ground. He turned and ran toward it at full speed.

But he barely moved a meter when his head was sliced through his forehead. He only felt a brief flash of horror as his forehead was cut off.

Suddenly, he felt a hand on his head. He looked back and saw the blonde menace behind him, his hand on his head.

"Don't worry, I fixed it," Naruto said coldly. "Oh well, I guess the fun is over," Naruto said, letting go of the old man's head and rolling his shoulders. "I thought you would be interesting. But this fight was nothing but boring."

The Grandmaster looked up to find Naruto gone. He turned his head frantically, searching for the threat, but he saw nothing. Suddenly, he sensed someone behind him.

He spun around, but he only faced a single purple eye with rings around a dot. Three commas adorned each ring in a triangular shape. And one word echoed in his ears before he lost his sight.

"Tsukuyomi."

The Grandmaster opened his eyes and saw a different world. He knelt on the ground and looked around, trying to make sense of the place.

The sky was a blend of purple and black. A purple circle that looked like the moon had three rings around a dot and three commas on each ring. The ground was pitch black. Naruto Uzumaki's black and white figure appeared in front of the Grandmaster.

"Welcome to the world of Tsukuyomi, old man," Naruto said coldly. "In this world... I am your God, I am your Devil, I am your...worst Nightmare."

"What is this!? Let me go!" The Grandmaster shouted.

"Oh~ For that, old man - "

Suddenly, the old Grandmaster was bound to a cross.

"All you have to do," Naruto said in a sinister tone, "Is survive the next 72 hours."

The Grandmaster was sent through a hell of torture that felt like forever. His screams of pain and agony resonated through the world.

"M... M... Me... Mercy..." The Grandmaster gasped through his panting.

Naruto tilted his head and grinned at the old man. "But old man~ You still have to survive 71 hours 58 minutes 23 seconds. No mercy until then."

The Grandmaster's eyes widened in terror.

The screams of utter despair, anguish and pain filled the world again.

Naruto looked at the Grandmaster's unconscious body with disgust. Saliva dripped from the man's mouth. The old man had barely lasted two hours in the Tsukuyomi world. And he had dared to talk about a revolution.

The blonde ninja lifted the unconscious master by his neck. Golden chakra surrounded Naruto's hand as he dove into the Grandmaster's mind.

And what he saw made him frown in confusion. Something was wrong. Why would a deity do these things? And the memories seemed weird.

It raised a bigger question. Who could do this? He knew about the Memory Erasing spell that the Angels used.

But no one would suspect anything if they read the Grandmaster's mind. The tampered memories looked flawless. The only thing that made Naruto doubtful was why a god would do all this.

But then again, why wouldn't they?

Naruto didn't know any of them personally and the fact that none of the gods had interfered in the previous horrors in the human world left him with too much doubt.

Suddenly, Naruto's eyes widened and he jumped back to the center of the training ground. The pressure in the training ground had increased tenfold.

Naruto lifted his head and narrowed his eyes.

On the terrace of the long corridor around the training ground, ten different people stood. They all wore traditional Chinese clothes. They formed a formation that trapped Naruto from escaping.

'These guys...' Naruto thought as he stared at the gods with a blank look. 'These must be the Buddhist Gods. No human has such an aura in this world.' Naruto glanced at where Xiao had been and saw her unconscious.

Then Naruto felt the strongest aura enter his range. Naruto looked at the entrance to the training ground and narrowed his eyes at the figure coming closer.

The figure looked like an old monkey the size of a child. He was about a meter tall and covered in golden fur. He wore a monk's robe and had prayer beads around his neck. His face was wrinkled and he wore a golden headband with a cloud-like pattern on his forehead.

"My, my. You have made quite a mess in our land, young man," the monkey said cheerfully.

"Who are you?" Naruto asked, standing up straight. This was the same guy from the Grandmaster's memories and according to them, he was plotting something evil.

"Oh, my mistake. It must be my old age." The monkey said apologetically. "My name is Sun Wukong. But you may know me as the Monkey King."

"Never heard of you." Naruto said, shrugging casually.

The monkey youkai didn't seem surprised. He smiled and said, "That's a pity, young Uzumaki. But I need you to come with me to Tian."

Naruto raised an eyebrow curiously. "Oh? Are you inviting me to a party?"

The Monkey God shook his head and said politely, "No. You are a suspect in the murder of the Jade Emperor. So, we need you to come with us to Tian."

"So, you're arresting me?"

"Yes. I was just being polite."

Naruto looked at the Monkey King with a blank face. 'So, the Jade Emperor is dead. Wasn't he connected to Yuushi? Why didn't Yuushi tell me anything?'

"When did the Jade Emperor die?" Naruto asked.

"Two months ago, according to our investigation," the Monkey King answered.

'So, before I met Yuushi, huh? Maybe Yuushi killed the Jade Emperor and tried to frame me. I haven't been able to sense his energy since the last time I saw him.' Naruto thought. He said to the monkey youkai, "Does it matter if I say I didn't kill that guy?"

"Unfortunately, no."

"What do you know about Yuushi?"

"I have no idea who you are talking about."

"And I guess you won't let me see the body either."

The Monkey King shook his head and Naruto chuckled and raised his hands in surrender.

"Fine, I'll go with you guys."

"We appreciate your cooperation." The Sage Monkey said.

A woman flashed behind Naruto. She grabbed his raised hands, pulled them behind his back, and locked them with a device around his wrist. The device had various Sanskrit and Mandarin symbols on it.

The woman held Naruto by his upper arm and a magic circle appeared under them. It shone so brightly that Naruto's vision went white. When the light faded, Naruto found himself in a dark hallway.

"Right to the dungeons. That's not nice~" Naruto said flirtatiously.

The woman snorted in disgust and pushed Naruto forward, making him walk.

"Come on, honey," Naruto said sweetly. "Don't be so rough, ya'know~" He looked around eagerly. "So~ Where do they keep the corpses, around here?"

"You're really bad at this, aren't you?" The female said flatly. She had a sweet voice, though.

"Huh?" Naruto smiled sheepishly at his female guard.

"You're trying to charm a woman into giving you answers. You sound like a novice at that."

Naruto laughed nervously. "W-Whatever you say..."

They soon reached a dusty cell. The woman approached the gate and unlocked it with a key. She opened the cell door and gestured for Naruto to enter.

Naruto obeyed and stepped in. The cell was small and had a table, a bed and a bucket. "You guys don't bother to clean this place, do you?" Naruto asked, noticing the thick layer of dust on the floor, ceiling, bed and table.

"We never use these cells," the woman said. "Lord Siddhartha made them as a prank with Lord Indra."

"Ah~ That explains the dust."

"Anyway, stay here. You will be summoned for your trial in three days. I hope that Lord Siddhartha finds evidence that clears you of this crime. Otherwise, the outcome may be very...grim."

"You mention Siddhartha. Who is he?"

"Do not utter his name in vain!" The woman shouted angrily. She took a deep breath to calm down. "You may know him as Lord Buddha."

"Uh, Buddha. Good to know."

"I TOLD YOU NOT TO SAY HIS NAME SO LIGHTLY, YOU RUDE BRAT!"

"And who is Indra?"

The woman's eyebrows twitched in irritation at the constant disrespect towards the gods. "He is the King of Hindu Heaven, Mount Meru, the highest heaven in the hierarchy."

"Hierarchy? There's a hierarchy for heavens too?"

"There is." The goddess said shortly before turning around and leaving.

"Hey, wait. Come on! Tell me more about this hierarchy," Naruto yelled.

But the goddess ignored him and left him alone in the dungeon.

Naruto sighed and looked around the small cell he was in. The dust didn't bother him. He had grown up as an orphan and trained as a ninja, so he was used to dirty places.

What shocked him was the fact that these guys had no clue how to imprison someone. Who left their prisoner alone like this and without a guard?

Naruto wondered if they ever had to lock up anyone in a dungeon.

Oh well, it didn't matter to him. He had done his job. He was sure the real him would find his way to Tian.

The Naruto in the cell began to change. His face melted away. His hands lost their form. And soon, there was only a piece of wood on the cell floor.

A portal opened next to the wood and the real Naruto stepped out of it. He looked at the wood with pride. "I guess I can use wood clones with natural energy to hide my presence," he said to himself.

He walked to the gate of the cell and touched one of the bars. His hand smoked as he used the Four-tail's lava chakra in his hands. He melted the door in less than ten seconds.

"They don't have much security here, huh?" Naruto said to himself. "Oh well, who cares?"

He had only one goal. To find the Jade Emperor's body and read his memories. To see if he could find anything about Yuushi.

As Naruto left the dungeon, he felt something new. Something that surprised him. Something he had never felt before.

Naruto didn't know what was happening. He had never felt this way before. All his worries vanished in a moment.

He felt light.

His heart felt free, without any burden.

His mind felt calm.

He had never felt anything like this.

He felt like he ruled the world.

Like he could beat anyone and win.

At that moment, something darker took over Naruto Uzumaki's instincts. It wasn't hatred like Dark Naruto's, or bloodlust.

No. It was something much worse.

This instinct told Naruto only one thing.

CONSUME.

The Monkey King gazed at the beautiful place he called home. He stood on the balcony of the tallest building in Tian, also known as Nanda. This was the palace where Siddhartha lived. It had a traditional Chinese design.

There were many other smaller buildings with the same design for the other gods who oversaw things in Tian.

Tian was very different from the heavens of the other pantheons. In other heavens, there were special spaces for the pure souls to rest.

But in Tian, the pure souls who arrived lived and shared the same space with the Gods. This was Siddhartha's wish. He wanted the pure souls to interact with the gods. Tian was like a city with the pure souls as the residents and the Gods as the leaders.

The Sage watched the busy streets of Tian, but his mind was full of questions he couldn't answer.

How could someone kill the Jade Emperor? How could someone catch him off guard? He knew that the Jade Emperor often took a vacation on Earth once every decade, where he lived in a peaceful village and hid his powers.

But it didn't make sense.

The Jade Emperor was the third most powerful god in the Buddhist Heaven, after Siddhartha and himself. Yet someone had killed him.

The Monkey King was certain that no human was involved in this. It was rare for humans to kill gods. But then again, Yahweh had given the human race Sacred Gears that had incredible powers. But even then, only five Sacred Gears could kill Gods. And none of the five wielders were near the borders of the Buddhist Pantheon.

That only left one person who could do this.

Naruto Uzumaki.

But the biggest question in the Monkey King's mind was: could Naruto kill a god? He was a human, right?

The more he thought about it, the more confused he became.

He heard someone approaching him. He looked from the corner of his eye and saw one of the seven gods of fortune, Ebisu, walking towards him.

"Did you find the Jade Emperor's body?" he asked.

Ebisu shook his head. "No, we didn't. But we're still looking. Are we sure he's dead? He might have been living somewhere else. He might come back later."

"The Jade Emperor's name vanished from the records in the Record Room. His name is fading from the Buddhist scriptures in the human world. Humans have already forgotten his name. This is not a coincidence. We might have missed it if Amitabha hadn't gone to the Record Room to check something."

"And what about Buddha? Where is he when we're working hard to find the Jade Emperor's body?"

The Monkey King raised an eyebrow at Ebisu. "Uh. Still holding a grudge, Ebisu? Maybe you should let go of your bitterness and you will ascend to a higher realm." He heard Ebisu click his tongue in annoyance and shook his head. "Anyway, go and see if you can - "

"LORD WUKONG! LORD WUKONG!"

The Monkey King looked behind him while Ebisu just glanced over the Sage. They saw a beautiful woman running towards them.

"Piposhi..." The Monkey King said slowly. "What's wrong? You look worried."

Piposhi Tian, the Goddess of learning and music, stopped in front of the Monkey King. She breathed heavily as she stammered out, "Y-You... Y-You have to s-see it, Lord Wukong. It's a disaster."

The Monkey King looked at Ebisu through the corner of his eyes, while the latter shrugged. The Sage turned to the Goddess and said, "Is it about the Jade Emperor?"

The Goddess shook her head, looking more anxious. "No. But something worse. Please come with me, Lord Wukong."

"Alright, lead the way," the Monkey King said before he turned to Ebisu and told him. "And Ebisu, go and tell the search parties to widen their search area. We need to find the Jade Emperor's body fast."

Ebisu nodded and walked away.

The Monkey King followed Piposhi who turned around and ran down the hallway with the Sage close behind.

Soon, they entered the Surveillance room that the Jade Emperor used to oversee. Since his death, the room had been empty. All the workers here had vanished as their energy was linked to the Jade Emperor's.

At the center of the room was a large well filled with water. The Goddess walked up to the well and pointed at it. "Here. Please watch this," she said nervously.

The Monkey King approached the well and looked down at the water. It showed a television broadcast from the human world, a news report.

And what the news anchor said made him sweat nervously.

"Dear viewers, we have received updates from China. Apparently, a catastrophe struck a city in China named Golmud a month ago." The news anchor said. "A horde of unknown creatures resembling demons, for reasons unknown to us, appeared near Golmud and attacked the city. As of now, the death toll has been confirmed to be around a hundred thousand and it may rise even more.

The Chinese Government tried to suppress any news about this incident from reaching other countries, but someone leaked several clips of this incident.

The Chinese Government released a statement denying any involvement in this incident. Governments around the world expressed their concern over the situation and asked the Chinese Government to investigate it thoroughly. Countries bordering China strengthened their defense, fearing this was some form of aggression by China to take over their land. Countries like USA, UK, France and Russia offered help in investigating this incident, but the Chinese Government has not responded yet."

"This is the BBC. News outlets around the human world have been reporting on this incident since yesterday."

The old Sage's lips twitched nervously as he said, "That explains why Gautama had to leave so quickly. We are in big trouble for our incompetence."

Piposhi's eyes looked down sadly. "This situation will only get worse, won't it?"

The Monkey King pressed his lips together. "Jade Emperor and his helpers were in charge of the human world. Even when he took a vacation every decade, his helpers kept an eye on the human world. We never expected his death. But what's worse is that since he was killed, no one notified the Memory Erasers about this incident. So, no one erased the memories of the humans."

"What will happen now?" Piposhi asked. "This could cause more chaos in the human world. Maybe even another World War."

The Sage Monkey gripped his cane tightly and closed his eyes. "We can't do anything until our investigation reveals that someone mythical was involved in this incident."

"You can't be serious, Lord Wukong."

"This incident has no Mythical connection. At the end of the day, a human could have caused this. So, we can't do anything."

"Because of the pact the Gods of each pantheon made."

"Yes."

The two were silent. They felt the weight of seeing the human world heading towards another disaster.

Suddenly, something shook the whole palace and startled the two gods.

"What was that!?" Piposhi shouted in shock.

"Let's find out," Sun Wukong said as he ran out of the room. He appeared on a verandah and jumped out of the window. His tail caught the railing of the window and swung him up to the roof. The Monkey King flew up and landed on the roof just below Siddhartha's floor.

The Monkey King looked around for the source of the shaking but saw no one.

A moment later, Piposhi and Ebisu joined Sun Wukong. "What just happened?"

"I don't know," Sun Wukong said in a serious tone.

Suddenly, they all felt a horrible and evil aura from above them. They looked up and their eyes widened when they saw Naruto Uzumaki standing on the roof of Buddha's floor. He had his back to them and he had changed his clothes.

But something was very wrong with him.

He had lost his bright energy. Instead, something vile replaced his energy signature. His skin tone had turned from tan to pale and white. His bright yellow hair had white strands in it that fluttered in the wind.

He wore an orange jacket with black borders that flowed in the wind. He also wore black pants, a brown belt and black boots.

"What a nice place you have here," Naruto said, looking at the vast space of Tian. "So peaceful, isn't it?" His voice had no warmth in it.

"How did you escape, Uzumaki?" The Monkey King asked sternly.

But Naruto ignored his question and asked his own. "Where is the Jade Emperor's body, monkey?"

"I asked you a question, boy," the Monkey King said, stressing the last word.

"You're not going to answer me, are you?" Naruto's voice was smooth, but emotionless.

The Monkey King snorted. "Youngsters these days. No respect for their elders."

"I'm in a bad mood already," Naruto said. "I guess I'll have to find out in other ways."

The Monkey King's eyes widened when a palm appeared out of nowhere in front of his face.

The palm grabbed the Sage by the face and threw him at least a mile away.

"I'll ask both of you this time," Naruto said, standing between Piposhi and Ebisu. "Where is the Jade Emperor's body?"

"Like we'll tell you!" Ebisu shouted and was about to attack when his head suddenly flew off his body.

Piposhi watched in horror as Ebisu's head dropped on the floor and rolled down to the ground. She raised her hands and covered her mouth in shock. She looked up and saw the blonde man staring at her with the coldest eyes she had ever seen.

"Do you want to die? Or do you want to tell me where the Jade Emperor's body is?"

"H-He... I... H..."

Naruto moved toward Piposhi who backed away instinctively. He lifted his arm and was about to grab her by her neck when he quickly leaned back.

Time slowed down for Naruto as he saw a wooden club flying past his face. Curious, he caught the club by its handle but as they say, curiosity killed the cat.

The club kept going. It dragged Naruto along with it. Naruto hung in the air, holding the club with one hand. He saw where the club came from and noticed a muscular man staring at him from a tower on the far west of Tian.

Naruto saw the club falling to the ground. He smirked and planted his heels on the ground as soon as he could. He used the club's momentum to spin around and hurl it back at the muscular man who threw it first.

The club flew faster than before, making the man's eyes widen. A huge explosion shook Tian as the club hit the tower.

Naruto looked at the crumbling tower with no emotion. He turned to where he had thrown the Monkey King.

The Monkey King had crashed into a steep mountain, breaking it and burying him. But Sun Wukong was not easy to defeat. He tossed the rocks off him and burst out of the rubble, landing a hundred meters away from Naruto.

"Lord Wukong!" Piposhi cried as she landed next to the Sage. "Are you okay?"

"Piposhi! What are you doing here? This is not a place for you."

"B-But Lord Wukong!"

"No buts! Go now. This place will become a battlefield."

"Will you be alright?"

The Sage smiled at her reassuringly. "Who do you think I am?"

Piposhi hesitated but finally left.

The Monkey King glared at Naruto. 'How did he escape the dungeon? Did we misjudge him? I don't understand what happened to him. I guess he was exposed to Heaven's natural energy. But that should have either made him hyper or knocked him out. Why is he acting like this? It's like Heaven's natural energy and his own energy fused to create something terrible.'

"Are you going to tell me where the Jade Emperor's body is?" Naruto asked.

Then, a dozen gods appeared in front of Naruto, forming two rows on his sides. They made a path between him and the Monkey King.

"You have to face us before you fight Lord Wukong." One of them said confidently.

"Is that so?" Naruto asked, his voice showing no emotion. He knelt down and put his right palm on the ground. "Let's see how you handle this."

Suddenly, hundreds of trees grew from under the gods, surprising and trapping them. Flowers blossomed near each god's face and released spores. The more the gods breathed in the spores, the more tired they became until they fell asleep one by one.

Naruto brushed his hand off. "That takes care of the extras," he said and glared at Sun Wukong. "You're next."

"I don't know what's wrong with you," the Sage said. "But I guess I have to teach you a lesson." The Sage began to transform.

He grew from four feet to seven feet. His face smoothed out and he looked younger. His fur turned more golden. His body became muscular. His clothes ripped, showing a chainmail armor underneath. His cane changed into a staff with golden balls on both ends and a red body.

"Let's see if you can handle this challenge, Uzumaki," the Sage said as he walked toward Naruto.

"The challenge is not for me. It's for you, old man," Naruto said with a smirk as he walked toward the Monkey King.

The clash between a god and a ninja begins.

Author's Comment - Naruto, who overcame his hatred, faces an even bigger threat from within him. But what caused it and what is it? Stay tuned to find out what happens next.

- CHAPTER END-