AN: Here we are for the final part in this 'arc' I guess. By that extension, this is the send-off for our starter villain, Walker. Man, I've been waiting to get to this moment.

Anyway, I enjoy seeing you guys' comment and theorize—And then watch you be SO off from what I have planned. LOL. Keep doing so, it makes my day. No, seriously, out of all my stories, you guys probably theorize the most. I wish I had you guys on 'In Pursuit of Desires'.


Lynn was drowning.

Everything she heard was muffled, and she could not see at all.

Did she get knocked out somehow?

No.

She could hear screaming.

Surely, they were screaming for her, right?

She could hear her brother's voice in the chorus of voices.

Ah, so he finally came back and replaced that Jazz chick?

No offense, but there was no one she'd rather have ringside than one of her brothers.

She was sure that's why she heard screaming. The crowd knew a pair of winners when they saw one. Her body itself did feel pretty light and powerful.

That's what the voice was telling her. She was strong enough to take on anyone.

Just let go and have her body do its thing.

She'd catch up to Nate in no time…

…No matter what it took.


"With this power, I will re-establish order in both this world and the Ghost Zone!"

The nine chains shot from Lynn's arm and wrapped around Kitsune and Danny Phantom. Eight on Kitsune and one on Phantom.

"I feel like you clearly see one of us as the bigger threat here…" Danny commented as he struggled against his lone chain.

"Obviously," Walker said with a sneer as he tightened the slack. "His powers are still an unknown quantity—Better to not take any chances."

"Is that right?" Kitsune spat back with venom from his own binding.

"Hey! Let them go!"

Walker turned with annoyance to see Sam climbing the fence along with Jazz and Tucker digging in a backpack.

"Bullet, deal with them."

Bullet appeared in the air, blaster in hand ready to fire. Sam kicked off the fence to dodge the electric pink ray. However, Tucker and Jazz had pulled out their own artillery and exchanged fire with Bullet while Sam did her best to draw his attention.


"Now that the undercard is out of the way, let's get back to the main event," Walker grabbed the chains with his left hand and channeled his electric-based ecto-energy through the technique.

*ZAAAAP*

He watched in pure satisfaction as both teens screamed and writhed in agony as 1.3 million volts coursed through them. Way more than enough for regular humans, but these weren't exactly regular humans he was dealing with; they could take it.

After about three seconds he stopped seeing both teens thoroughly fried with black smoke curling off their skin and hair. His only regret is that he couldn't see Kitsune's face because of that mask. "Well, well, it seems this technique actually has real metal properties. How convenient for my shock therapy."

Phantom was still woozy but managed an angry face. "Congratulations, you read about Benjamin Franklin. You've passed third-grade science."

Kitsune moved his head to glare at him as best as he could through his mask.

Walker laughed upon seeing their expressions. "You know boys, prison is actually about rehabilitation. This method is one of my tried and true methods of 'correction'. Perhaps after a couple of personal treatments, you two will finally learn not to cross Walker."

"Go fuck yourself."

Walker clicked Lynn's tongue and put more electricity toward Kitsune specifically. He got a sadistic kick out of seeing the older teen's blonde hair frizz up from behind his mask. "Heckling a peace officer isn't a good look for you, Kitsune. I remind you that now you're just as helpless as Phantom over there."

Assured of his victory, the Warden started to laugh. It was a dual-tone laugh that sounded completely unsettling due to the second voice it was mixing with being a teenage girl.

"Damnit. I hate these stupid chains!" Danny muttered in frustration as he struggled against his bonds. He could feel his powers slipping away from him. Staying transformed was the most he could do in this situation. He'd be exposed at this rate unless some miracle happened. If he got out of this, he hoped to never have to be wrapped up in the stupid things ever again.

"...You really think you've won, haven't you?"

Walker paused in his laughing to look at Kitsune, slightly dumbfounded. "Excuse me? You yourself should know the effectiveness of the 'Chains of Justice'. I suggest you shoot for a lighter sentence and–"

"One of the first lessons my sensei taught me is that if you use a technique carelessly it could come back to bite you, Walker."

"I don't see how that's currently relevant. You can't do any of your fancy techniques now. No clones, no blue ball of energy, no teleportation, and most importantly no Justice Chains of your own."

"Enough with the lame name, you Casper knock-off. That technique is called the 'Kongō Fūsa'," At the confused stare from the two ghosts Kitsune translated. "In English, it means 'Adamantine Sealing Chains'."

"I still don't see–"

"The technique has one big-ass weakness—"

Before Danny could even blink, Kitsune had just… materialized…right in front of Walker and delivered a devastating headbutt.

"—It only seals my chakra, not my physical movements!"

Walker stumbled backward as a big bloody bruise formed on Lynn's forehead. Opposite to him Kitsune's mask cracked down the middle and fractured on the right side.

The chains around both Danny and Kitsune disappeared into golden light.

"It's nice to have a battle partner who won't kill me later for once." Danny flexed his arms and reveled in his powers rushing back to him.

Walker gurgled as Lynn's body twitched unnaturally, her torso still bent back far enough to where it was parallel to the ground. "I can't believe you would even…to your own–!"

"Yes, I would," Kitsune said, cutting him off. "I don't take any joy in it, but I gotta do what I gotta do. I'm sure she'll forgive me later for it. But I doubt she'll remember any of it."

Danny opened his mouth to add to the conversation but was stopped by Kitsune thrusting his hand out in front of him.

"Don't get cocky yet," Kitsune warned him while reaching into his back pouch and pulling out a pair of wicked-looking (and admittedly cool) trench knives. "We're just getting started here."

Danny stowed away whatever quip he had, opting to clench his fists, and channeled his ecto-energy through them.

"Your co-conspirator is right, Phantom!"

Demonic-feeling red energy began to pour from Lynn's body, the force was enough to send him sliding back. Walker threw her torso forward showing the changes to her face for the world to see. Her canines were now too long to fit in her mouth properly, and her lips had turned into thin black lines. Her fingers twisted and cracked, the fingernails had elongated into razor-sharp claws that put Bullet to shame, tearing through the fight gloves she was wearing. The bruise on her head was healing before his very eyes.

"Oh, yes…this power feels so good! This is only the tip of the iceberg of what this body can do!" Walker hunched over until Lynn was on all fours. "Let's take it for a test run shall we!"

The girl let out an inhuman snarl and then lunged at them.


Jazz was fuming.

She just had to open her big mouth back on the GAV.

Getting down on one knee she hefted the Fenton Bazooka over her shoulder and fired. Bullet let out a gasp of surprise and turned his midsection intangible to allow the blast to pass through. He wasn't giving time to re-group as Sam, equipped with the Fenton Peeler, leaped off the bleacher and landed a kick to his head that sent him crashing to the floor.

"Ha! Take that jerk!" Tucker shouted as he primed the Fenton Wrist Ray.

"Goons at 12 o'clock!" Sam shouted while pointing up at the ceiling

"We can't have one simple weekend without some weirdo, freak, or wacko trying to kill us!" Jazz fired the bazooka haphazardly taking some constellation in watching the expressions of fear on the goon's faces as they frantically flew out of the way.

"Geez, you're pretty cheesed off today," Tucker said as he took cover under one of the stands from the falling debris. Not even Bullet risked raising his head into full view.

Okay, maybe she was a teensy bit pissed off she had also got rejected earlier. Sure, Nate didn't physically say it out loud, but she liked to think she was apt at guessing what people were thinking. The way he set his hand on her shoulder and then ran off. Coward! Like hell she was going to end up a pathetic spinster like Spectra and forced to settle for Dash! Where even was he? He must have some severe constipation. She hoped he would–

"Eat—!"

Her sentence was paused as a wave of ill intent washed over the room.

Bitterness.

Selfishness.

Spite.

Longing.

Sadness.

Wrath.

Maliciousness.

Malevolence.

All of it combined into a crimson-red wind that blew over them. Both friend and foe alike were affected. Bullet and Walker's goons couldn't find the strength to fly, being forced to kneel on the floor, and Tucker's nachos made a sudden reappearance on the floor. Only Sam remained somewhat unaffected most likely thanks to the Peeler suit.

"Man, I paid 20.95 for that meal…"

"Never mind the food!" Jazz yelled through clenched teeth. 'We have bigger problems!"

She strained her eyes to see that the octagon was in the center of the maelstrom. If she could barely stand this far away, she could only imagine what was going on in the center.

As suddenly as the wind started it ceased and a loud calm settled over them.

"Everyone get down!"

No one questioned the authority in the voice as all six combatants hit the deck.

*BOOOOOOM*


Danny had never been gladder to be wrapped up in Kitsune's stupid chains.

The masked vigilante had dragged him out of the way right when Walker swung his arm. The resulting wind blast burst through the cage, popping it like a tin can then going and smashing through the wall to the lobby and past even that to the street.

The area looked as if a hurricane had checked in for a personal three-night vacation.

Walker snarled in glee as he admired his work, returning his hand to the floor.

"Someone's been eating their Wheaties." Danny quipped.

"Much more than that, Phantom," Walker said, cocking his head toward him. "This body has some sort of seal on it, but it doesn't exactly mix well with a ghost's ecto-energy."

"In other words…"

"The longer we fight, the stronger I get," Walker confirmed. "And you have your teammate to thank for that. Isn't that right, Kitsune~?"

Kitsune remained silent as he uncoiled his chain from around Danny's wrist.

"Tch. I'll just extract the answers from you later," Walker said turning his attention back to the mess, ignoring the fighting that resumed and starting to spill out to the lobby. "Lawless destruction isn't my style, but it's the most conducive way to test the limits of this girl's power. Ah well, I'll just send them the bill later."

Walker lunged at them again and Kitsune sent his own blade of wind at him who leaped over it and used the momentum to flip and deliver a double axe kick that Kitsune blocked with his forearms.

Danny shot an ecto-ray hoping to take advantage of his mid-air helplessness but summoned the sealing chains from his arm and grappled atop the remains of the fence where he perched like a cat.

"Offense, defense, and mobility. Is there anything this body can't do~?" Walker said smugly as he lowered Lynn's upper body and raised her lower making her look like a cat getting ready to pounce. Danny would never admit (out loud) that Lynn was indeed very attractive, and in this pose looked downright seductive to a fifteen-year-old in the middle of puberty. "It might be against the rules, but I think I'll keep this body after I put you two into the slammer. But then again, I am the warden, so I make the rules after all."

"Now would be a good time to use those clones of yours," Danny whispered to Kitsune.

"They're busy making sure the citizens get far away from here. Besides, I don't want him figuring out somehow how to make them," he said, refusing to take his eyes off Walker who stalked around the top of the fence.

Danny noted Lynn's body alternating between Walker's ecto-energy and that red chakra-whatever Kitsune mentioned. "So then what's the plan? I'm guessing a normal exorcism is off the table."

Kitsune nodded. "Wulf taught me a couple of tricks. If I can get close, I can perform a Yin-Chakra release. But you'll need to touch her at the same time to perform and Ecto-Exorcism."

Underneath his mask, Nate was sweating. "What I didn't tell him is that I suck at Genjutsu."

"Needless information will only make him panic. Just use Magnet-Style you got from that idiot Tanuki. It worked on Madara's Limbo so it should work here. I'll mold the Yin-chakra for you."

"Thanks, Kurama!"

"So, we have to work together," Danny said while cracking his knuckles

"Just follow my lead here."

"Why you? Why not my lead?"

"Cause I'm the adult here. I'm responsible for you."

Why did that feel familiar? Danny didn't get to question it when Walker made his move and shot a volley of chains at them.

Kitsune shoved him out of the way and countered with his own golden chains.

Nine gold strands met nine silver strands as the two binding abilities tried to cancel each other out.

"Phantom!"

Danny took his cue from Kitsune and slapped his palms on the ground. A trail of ice crept its way across the destroyed arena and up the fence toward Walker who was forced to jump. A pink Ecto-Ray fired from Lynn's mouth. Danny grunted and manipulated his ice into a giant mirror shield that sent the shot back at him.

"That's a new trick," Walker called as he used the ceiling to grapple out of the way.

"Pretty cool, eh?" Danny chuckled at his pun as he split the ice into pieces and controlled them to float around the room. "Frostbite would be proud of this."

He smirked as Kitsune flipped over him, hands pressed together.

"Fire-Style: Fireball Jutsu!"

Kitsune rapidly went three and signs, lifted the bottom part of his mask, and spat a giant ball of fire. Walker used his chains yet again to dodge and sent the pair a cocky smirk.

"You missed!"

"Wasn't aiming for you."

Walker's eyes widened as he put two and two together, but it was too late. The fireball slammed off the mirror directly behind him and connected with his back.

"Gah!"

Kitsune saw his chance, bounced off one of Danny's mirrors, and delivered a mid-air kick to his younger sister's face. Her head at once snapped back to him with a feral smile.

"It'll take more than that to stop me!"

"We know."

Kitsune grabbed Walker by the throat and his sister's expression melted from confident to mortified upon feeling his hands around her.

The shinobi showed no mercy as he shot his chain to the ground piercing it and giving him a grapple point. He yanked it and used the momentum to deliver a brutal chokeslam that completely collapsed the arena.

"Holy crap!" Danny exclaimed phasing through the fence as it fell. Maybe he really was holding back. If that's the case… I'm lucky he hasn't sent me to my after-afterlife yet.

Kitsune growled at the Walker-possessed Lynn, his fangs and thin black lips on full display as the bottom of his mask fell off due to damage.

"You've crossed the line this time!" he snarled to Walker who was struggling underneath him, futility trying to push him away.

"How could you?" Walker said, letting Lynn's voice take over completely. "You would really use such violence against your only sister!"

Kitsune felt a vein in his head twitch at the statement. He slammed his hand against Lynn's mouth. "Shut up! You know nothing about my sister! If you did, you'd know she wouldn't hesitate in giving me the green light to kick your sorry ass!"

He lifted his sister in the air by her face. Kitsune ignored her kicking as he gathered the chakra Kurama had molded in his claws.

"Phantom!"

Danny fired a single Ghost Ray at the girl's back right when Kitsune dug his hand into the girl's gut.

Lynn, Walker, Danny and Kitsune all screamed as Walker was yanked out of the girl's body and flung across the area a look of shock etched across his face.

Kitsune laid Lynn down gently on the rubble, meanwhile Danny with thermos in hand, quickly rounded on Walker who was trying to slip away unnoticed.

Walker froze when he felt Danny's foot on his back. He glanced back to see the teen glaring at him while pointing the thermos at him.

Danny used his foot to harshly shove the warden to the ground. "You think I'm going to let you get away after all this?!"

Walker's eyebrows raised in curiosity at something he saw over Danny's shoulder, then his face relapsed back into a confident grin. "I don't think you have a choice in the matter, boy."

Danny didn't get a chance to reply when an overwhelming sense of dread took hold of him. It felt like ice had just dropped into his stomach. He turned his head to see the source when a large body smacked into him and sent him crashing into a wall.

Judging by the orange pants on the pair of legs on top of him, Danny made the educated guess that Kitsune was the one who collided with him. He pushed the older teen off him and his eyes widened when his glove came back red and stained with blood. Danny looked at him and saw to his amazement that the man's flak jacket had been pierced through in multiple spots.

"The hell happened?" Danny said with a measure of awe. He had never even seen Kitsune get scratched before, but here he was seriously hurt.

"I messed up," Kitsune said as he struggled to his feet, holding his stomach. The lower part of the mask he normally wore had been completely slashed off, exposing the whisker-like birthmarks on his face and the twisted frown his mouth had become.

Whiskers…? Where have I seen that?

"Don't beat yourself up Kitsune," Walker taunted from above them. "I said that I sensed the seal on the girl's body. Most likely your doing."

Kitsune snarled, showing his fangs. "So, you flooded it with your ecto-energy to weaken it? You're a dumbass, Walker. The seal was there for a reason!"

Walker mockingly put a finger to his chin. "Hm. Not exactly my problem anymore."

His smile melted away when Kitsune wrapped him up in a chain. "Phantom, put him in the thermos; I don't feel like dealing with his nonsense for what's about to happen."

Danny flinched and fumbled with the metal tube at the harsh, authoritative tone used on him. He quickly pointed the Thermos and pressed the button.

Strangely, Walker offered no resistance as he was sucked into the device, but he did give a parting shot. "It's too late to reverse what I've begun. For order to reign, first there must be chaos. Perhaps I'll be lucky enough to where the three of you will take each other out."

"What was he talking about?" Danny said as he put the cap back on the device. He was clearly out of the loop over what was going on and it unnerved him.

Kitsune wordlessly pointed across the area to where Lynn was. The girl wasn't dazed and confused like most victims of possession were. Instead, she was down on all fours once more. What gave Danny pause was the strange red coat of liquid around her. It bubbled and frothed around her until it finally congealed into a long pair of ears on her head and a lone tail on her rear. Her eyes were no longer brown but a crimson red. Her lips were now thin black lines.

Danny couldn't help himself as his body involuntarily inched back, the pressure was just that intense. "I guess you have an explanation for this?"

"Follow my lead and try not to die."

"Great…"

"I'm going to win!"

Lynn suddenly threw her hand forward and to Danny's amazement, the red substance extended past the length of her arm. A giant red-clawed hand zoomed at the duo almost faster than he could blink. Kitsune vanished from sight and Danny flew upward and out of the way. However, the appendage curved and followed him through the air like a heat-seeking missile.

"Why me?!" he complained, dodging through the haphazard grab attempts.

Lynn growled and Danny's eye widened as a second claw was added into the mix. They chased him across the room in a double helix pattern.

"You can't run from me!"

"Wha—!"

He was so focused on being chased he was blindsided when a large tail burst from the ground.

"Didn't I tell you to try not to die?"

Danny felt himself be yanked out of the air by Kitsune who seemingly defied gravity as he landed on the ceiling. The teen yanked his arm free from Kitsune's grip and righted himself upward in the air.

"What if I run into her?" He tried to play off. "Probably wouldn't be different than running in a pillar or something."

Kitsune shook his head in disappointment. "That stuff coming off her own is made of pure chakra. Flying into that is like being doused in boiling water."

"How would you know?"

"Figure that one out for yourself!" A confident smile crossed his face as Kitsune let himself fall from the ceiling. He twisted his body on the way down to dodge the various streams of chakra headed his way.

Danny watched in awe as he somehow flipped and even rail ground off the streams on his way down to the floor. To Kitsune, he knew it was potentially a life or death situation but he couldn't help but show off for his younger sister even if she wasn't fully aware of what was going on.

"Alright, Lynn. I'm watching, show me what you've got!"

Kitsune charged in waved his arms in a feint and delivered a claw strike to her back that she dodged by jumping away and retracting her tail in the process. She spun in the air and landed on all fours.

Kitsune coated his hands in the same Version 1 Kyuubi chakra and deflected the two disjointed claws that came at him. Seeing her semi-defenseless, he pressed in again and delivered a swift but light kick in the jaw before flipping over her. Mid-flip Kitsune attached his claws to his younger sister's shoulders and with a violent spin, he threw her into the wall where she crashed into the lobby.

Kitsune had to give her credit, her body was already pretty tough, and the Kyuubi chakra pushed it to another level. Even now he could see the scratches and gashes from the debris being healed as she burst out of the wreckage to come at him for another round of combat.

Lynn threw a punch and Kitsune parried it, he then used his dominant hand to flip her over his shoulder. She instantly caught her balance and retaliated with a roundhouse kick that he ducked under. Not learning from her mistake, she threw another wild swing that Kitsune met with a cross counter that sent her staggering. He slid to her side and swept his leg under her feet while pushing her chest back with his forearm forcing her to fall on her back. The moment she hit the ground he capitalized with a punch to her gut that rocked the foundation.

Just because they were related didn't mean he would pull his punches.

Lynn's legs snaked around his arm, and she twisted her weight to keep him in an arm bar. Kitsune proved too strong for her and lifted her off the ground. He saw a momentary flash of instinctive, animal fear in her eyes right before he slammed her into the ground.

"Holy crap!" Danny exclaimed as the shockwave blew him back.

Kitsune clicked his tongue as he studied the empty crater. Nearby, Lynn had used her tail to disengage and swing to safety.

He cracked his shoulder and slammed his palm in his fist. "Is that the best you can do? I thought you wanted to win!"

The girl fell back to all fours and growled at him, on her rear a second tail started to emerge next to the first. The whisker marks on her face became more frayed and her lips thicker.

"That's tail number two, her body isn't as durable as yours just yet. If she makes it to tail three, the girl will pass out. Then you'll be facing a Version 2 pseudo-Jinchuuriki. At that point, you can say goodbye to the town."

"If you want to win, you can't let that thing control you!" Kitsune yelled as he braced himself for another savage rush.

He knew his sister well and sure enough, she stuttered for half a step before speeding like a bullet right at him.

Overhead, Danny's finger was extended, charged with an ecto-ray, and primed to fire. He only had one problem: He couldn't see his targets. The moment the second tail appeared, the air started to sting, and then both Lynn and Kitsune vanished from view. They occasionally resurfaced in various areas around the room locked in mortal combat, but it was way too fast for him to keep up with. He tried to aim his finger, hoping to shoot to at least claim he did something to contribute to the battle. Overall, he found it an exercise in futility.

How far did the ladder above him go?

He strained his eyes to try and follow even a fraction of what they were doing.

A tail strike in the crater.

A Combat Fighter Bicycle kick to his right (he didn't even know that was possible).

Claws were tearing into each other to his left.

Red blasts flew out of their mouths, made of what he assumed was chakra causing miniature explosions in the whole area.

Danny was prepared for the possibility of the whole building coming down on them at this rate.

Even so, it was clear to him that Kitsune was winning the match. Armed with his own pair of red claws and nine large violently beautiful tails, he delivered blow after blow. The younger girl didn't stand a chance from the onslaught. Eventually, his tail wrapped around Lynn's waist yanked her in the air, and slammed her to the ground.

And again.

And again.

And again.

He kept going until Lynn was completely dazed and unable to fight back. She strained herself to get back up, but Kitsune put his sandal on her back forcing her back down.

"I… I… just…" Lynn said weakly, still trying to stand up, but Kitsune's foot was like lead.

"Save it." Kitsune shook his head, mouth in a frown. "I ain't the smartest around, especially when it comes to girls, but I know what you're thinkn'. It's my job after all. If you can hear me know this: You're already pretty damn strong but let me keep doing the hard stuff for now."

Danny watched Kitsune raise Lynn to eye level. He then reached behind him in a pouch on his infantry belt and produced a slip of paper emblazoned with a kanji. He slapped it on the girl's head and the wind immediately died down taking the red chakra with it.

Paranormal energy now completely gone, Lynn slumped forward and passed out. Kitsune slung the girl over his shoulder and then he too dispersed his energy. "Let's get you home."

As if nothing had happened, Kitsune started going to the front door.

Danny zoomed ahead in front of Kitsune and hovered in front of the doorway blocking his path. "Whoa, wait a second! I said this once already, but do you really think I'm going to let you get away?"

"I'm not in the mood, Phantom," Kitsune said walking around Phantom and through the gaping hole in the wall. "Besides, I don't think you could stop me even if you wanted to."

The teen blinked, having forgotten that it existed. He then charged an ecto-ray and took aim. "It's not a matter of if I can do it or not. It's a matter of stopping you from kidnapping a girl!"

Kitsune scoffed but didn't stop walking. "Kidnapping…Right."

Danny fired the ray, but Kitsune blocked it using his index finger. He charged in, tried to deliver a punch, and found that blocked as well. Kitsune's finger then flicked him in the forehead and sent him flying. He crashed into a luggage cart sending clothes flying everywhere.

"Suit yourself, Kitsune. Today's the day I whoop your ass!" Danny said after picking himself up, a bra sitting comically on his head.

Kitsune ignored the pun and puffed out his chest. "Listen, I only need one finger to beat you! You need an army to beat me."

"He has an army!"

The masked teen groaned as the rest of Team Phantom showed up in front of him, their own thermos safely in Tucker's belt loop. Kitsune had to resist with all his being to not flood the area with killing intent.

Tucker lifted his glasses and rubbed his eyes. "Wow, the bottom of his face is exposed, and he looks a bit roughed up. Did we finally deal some solid damage?"

"Unfortunately, it wasn't me." Danny corrected.

"I really don't feel like fighting anymore, please just let me go home and we can all forget about this?" Kitsune said, waving them off.

"While you've got a girl slung over your shoulder?" Sam pointed out. "Yeah, fat chance. Her brother isn't going to appreciate it if we let a criminal abduct her."

Kitsune reached his hand up to his mask.

"You could just warp away. There's not much they can do to prevent it."

And have them file a missing person's report? Hell no! It'll get even worse if they see me with Lynn later on. I'm screwed either way thanks to Walker.

He removed the mask and tossed the half-destroyed piece of wood on the ground. Four pairs of eyes widened in revelation as they gazed upon his unmasked face. His blue eyes, blonde hair, and whisker marks were unmistakable.

Jazz floundered to find the appropriate words. "Wait—you're—"

Nate sighed tiredly and finished the sentence for her. "-Her older brother."

Sam was the first to recover. "Dude, I have so many questions. How about we start with what are you two exactly?"

"Me?" he said putting a thumb to his chest. "I'm a shinobi. Her? She's a civilian."

"She doesn't know you kill people for a living?"

"Correction: I don't kill people if I can help it," Nate said, refusing to rise to the bait. "But no. No, she doesn't. She doesn't even know about her own powers—And it's gonna stay that way."

"But–"

Nate cut off the younger teen. "But nothing. You folks can play superhero all ya want; I'm not personally responsible for you, but I am for her. The way I see it, every time you go out and fight crime or whatever… You're stepping onto a battlefield. Things happen, and one day you might not make it home."

"I won't let that happen as long I'm around!" Danny shouted in defiance.

"Oh really?"

Nate suddenly vanished from view and reappeared behind Jazz, free arm slung around her and kunai at her throat.

"Jazz!"

"Now Danny, kill Tucker or I kill Jazz!" Nate barked. His killing intent washed over them in waves, making Tucker cower behind Sam. Jazz went limp, completely powerless in Nate's grasp.

"Y–you wouldn't really do it, bro?" Tucker asked timidly to Danny.

Nate removed his arm and gave Jazz a kick in the butt, sending her back alongside the others. He stashed his weapon and sent them a stern glare. "See how easy that was? Lynn's just a kid. I don't want her making decisions like that."

"It might not be my place to say this since I'm an only child, but that's a two-way street," Sam pointed out. She nervously shuffled her feet still trying to recover from the surge of dread Nate had subjected her to. "If you hide stuff like this from her, what'll she or your other siblings say if you turn up dead one day?"

"If everything goes good, I'll tell them when they're older."

Sam plucked up the nerve and met his stare head-on. "That still doesn't change the fact that we're all in the same boat here. You told us you were 18 You're barely an adult; we've been fighting you for over a year. That means you were a kid on the battlefield too! What makes her different from you?"

"The difference is that I was raised to fight. I want her not to have to worry about what monster of the week or bounty hunter wannabe coming after her next. I want her to be normal!"

"I think I get it…"

All eyes turned to Danny who blinked in surprise at the sudden attention. He crossed his arms and tapped his foot in thought. "Go. We'll end it here for today. We won't attempt to involve her in this world either; This stays professional between us."

Jazz sent a slightly mournful look at her brother. "Are you sure about this Danny? This is probably a golden opportunity we won't get again."

"Yes," Danny reaffirmed. "At this point, we're dragging a civilian into our fight. Like it or not, Nate Loud is her older brother. Their family issues aren't our business."

Nate took his cue and jumped to the top of a streetlight nodding in thanks at Phantom. "My clones already took care of the other civilians, the guest registry, and the cameras. I suggest you all get out of here too before the cops show up."

They watched as he hopped from streetlight to the rooftop eventually vanishing into the late afternoon with his younger sister in tow. Once they disappeared, Danny turned his head away and went to pick up the discarded fox mask.

"Guess I have another one for the trophy case…" Danny said. He lightly chuckled to himself as he held the broken mask before his face.

What's the real reason you let them go, Danny?" Sam asked, seeing right through him.

"I still remember my life when you accidentally wished away my powers, Sam. Also, the time I split myself in two using the Ghost Catcher." Danny saw his reflection in a puddle, his snow-white hair and green eyes stood out as a symbol of his half-ghost abilities. "It felt… nice to be normal for once. The moment you get these powers you become the responsible one. I can transform back into a human, sure. But I can't look away anymore when I see trouble. That's a trade-off most people don't think about when they read superhero comics or watch movies."

Jazz touched his shoulder comfortingly. "Oh, Danny…"

"If Kitsune's little sister can live comfortably without knowing this world, then I say go for it and I wish her the best."

Off in the distance, the wailing of sirens was starting to make themselves known. Danny smiled at his two best friends and sister and pointed to the parking garage where the Fenton RV was parked.

"While we go home maybe we can talk about how Jazz's taste in men consists of Johnny 13 and Kitsune?"

Danny flew off as Jazz's red went red in a mixture of embarrassment and anger. She cried his name in frustration as she chased after him.

Sam and Tucker looked at each other and shrugged then followed after the siblings.

"Something tells me things are going to get a bit more complicated when it comes to Kitsune from now on," Sam lamented.

"Just add him to the list along with Valerie and Vlad," Tucker said, already updating his PDA. "Man, why couldn't his name be Victor or Vance or something? Then we would have had the triple crown."

"Of part-time psychos whose intentions are occasionally unclear?"

"You make it sound so bad."

"Because it is!"

—X—

When Lynn came to, she was lying in the bed. Her body felt tired, and every muscle was on fire. She pushed herself up to see her older brother sitting on the foot of the bed watching TV. On the screen, a bunch of kids in costumes were fighting in a war.

"Our Superhero Education…?"

Nate turned his head just enough to see her out of the corner of his eye a smirk on his face. "Welcome back to the world of the living, Lynn. The manga run ended the other day, so I thought I'd watch the anime on Toonwave and see where it was at, you know?"

Lynn crawled out from under the blankets and sat next to her brother. She saw he had a pair of creamsicles in his hand. Without even looking at her he broke it in half and handed one of the sticks over. Smiling and taking it gratefully, she gave it a tentative lick and rested her head against Nate's side.

"I want to save that little boy!"

Her attention left the screen. She liked the MC, don't get her wrong, he reminded her of Lincoln. To hate him would be to hate her brother. She could never do that. However, she resonated more with his rival who could make explosions at will. Wanting to always win–Now that was an idea she could get behind.

She surveyed the room and realized it was different from the one they were in earlier. Notably, there was only one bed.

"Hey, where are we?"

"Hm?"

"This place is different from our hotel."

Nate cocked his head and looked at her curiously. "What do you remember?"

"Why would you ask me that? But the last thing I remember was fighting Manson then…. Then I had this crazy dream about ghosts and foxes…"

"Yep, you took a big hit when some debris fell from the ceiling," Nate informed her. "Doctor checked you over and said you were fine, but they had to cancel the event because Manson got hit too. We had to find a new place to sleep last minute and well… This is the best I could do on the way back."

"Seems like a good way to get sued…" Lynn mumbled against him. In response, she felt her brother shrug.

"A couple of guys were beating the crap out of each other upstairs a little too hard apparently."

"Wonder what they were fighting about?"

"Who cares? I'm just glad you're safe."

"I'm not!" Lynn bit her creamsicle, uncaring of the brain freeze. For some reason, doing so felt easier. "I didn't get to win. I wanted to prove that I'm going to catch up to you."

Her older brother grunted deeply and paused for a moment. Lynn knew her brother was a reactionary guy; he never really put thought into what he wanted to say unless it was some pretty heavy shit.

"You're thirteen. I think you're pretty damn strong–way stronger than I was at your age. Honestly, I have to keep training so I can keep calling myself your big brother. That goes for everyone; I'm strong because I have people I want to protect and provide for. Catching up to me is okay, but I think being 'strong' is more than that. One day I'm not gonna be your goal anymore. Once you find something greater than you or me to carry, Then I know you'll be the strongest around!"

Lynn felt warm, her brothers were always her biggest supporters. But she also felt lost at the abstract image he painted. "I don't understand."

"Just let me keep being your big brother for a while before you go beating me up."

Now that she could understand!

"That'll never change. You'll be my older brother, and Lincoln will be my younger one. I need you both." Nate rotated and stared at her with their dad's same proud expression when he watched Nate's high school graduation.

"You have no idea how happy that makes me!"


Being cramped in the Fenton Thermos was a conflicting experience for Walker. The humiliation stung fiercely on being captured like a lowlife criminal. On the other hand, the tech was impressive in a suppression sense. Only Kitsune's chains surpassed its capturing power.

Like every other ghost Fenton and his crew had arrested, they flushed him back into the Ghost Zone. In what he assumed to be an extra dose of punishment, the flush mechanic had a randomizer to it. He and his men were jettisoned out near Skulker's island.

The irony was not lost on him.

Forced to take the loss to the chin, Walker and his men flew back to the prison, when they got there a figure in a black hood was waiting patiently behind the receptionist's desk, her thick armored combat boots on top of the fine wood.

Walker strutted up and brusquely brushed the pair of legs to the floor. "What's your game? I have half a mind to throw in a cell for trespassing so speak unless you want me to lose the other half."

"My game?"

Walker's attention went to the walkie-talkie on the figure's hip. Insane high-pitched laughter filtered from the speakers that unsettled his men.

"I'm all about games my dear warden." The voice then took a harder darker edge to it. "…I am the ringmaster of the circus after all."

Figured it was him behind the ruse. The ghost in front of him barely had sentient thoughts. Dumb muscle in its truest sense. Also, the perfect proxy; it would be utterly meaningless to jail her and both of them knew it.

"Meaningless bullshit and theatrics. Skip to the point, clown."

"You're no fun at all, but I suppose we can get down to business…Word has already reached my ears that you had an encounter of the… foxy kind~?"

Walker's gloves smoked with ecto-energy as he slammed them on the table, burning the imprint of his knuckles on his desk. The ghoul in front of him did not even flinch in the face of his fury.

"Forget it. You asked me this last time about Phantom, so I'll repeat myself so we're clear. I'm a lot of things, but I will not violate the Privacy Act."

"Now, let's calm down. I'm well aware that personal information is off-limits. I'm here to discuss a proposition if you'll hear out little 'ole me."

"You've got five minutes."

"…That's plenty."


AN:

Yeah, I intentionally made this chapter feel like the Land of Waves arc.

Jazz's internal rant was inspired by Shizune in an Omake. The only difference is that Shizune said Tsunade by name and the woman happened to be standing behind her.

I know the Walker intrusion was a bit short, but in the end, he was never the main focus. Naruto's relationship with Lynn and Team Phantom was.