AN: I would like to say one important thing first of all.
Many of you have been complaining about Naruto not being as powerful as in the anime and that's the point.
I don't like people categorizing Naruto as someone as powerful as a god.
Besides, if Naruto was powerful enough to defeat all his opponents with no problem, there would be no story per se nor would what happened to him in the Boruto manga have happened to him.
I just wanted to get that out of my mind, so, if any more distractions, let's move on.
For a few minutes, Naruto was walking through the tunnel that Ashido said would take him back to the surface.
At first, he only saw the path of the tunnel, but then, he saw a light at the end of the tunnel and increased speed to get there quickly.
Once he reached that light, he could see the same scenery he had since he woke up, an endless desert with a night sky.
"We're finally out. I never thought I would be glad to see that environment again." said Naruto with a smile.
"You can rejoice even more. Look over there." said Kurama.
Naruto turned his gaze to the side to see, in the distance, a huge structure with a dome and several towers.
"That must be Las Noches! Cool! I'm closer to getting back, dattebayo!" exclaimed Naruto happily before breaking into a run towards the structure. "I'm sure it won't be long now."
AN HOUR LATER
"Yeah… Just a little longer and I'll be there." said Naruto somewhat nervously as he kept running towards the structure that was still far away.
TWO HOURS LATER
"It's almost there. I can feel it." said Naruto nervously as he kept running.
SERIOUSLY, I'M SO TIRED OF WAITING THAT I'M GETTING BORED NARRATING THIS STORY.
After a LONG time running, Naruto stopped for a moment to catch his breath as he rested his hands on his knees.
"Kurama. *Gasp* Tell me I'm close *Gasp*." said Naruto hoping he had made some progress.
"You haven't even made it halfway." said Kurama with a bead of sweat.
Looking up, Naruto was shocked to see that the building didn't look remotely closer than where he was.
"AAHH! Damn it! How come I'm not getting any closer at all?!" asked Naruto totally pissed off.
"The only answer I can think of is that that place must be so big that it confuses distances." said Kurama.
"Ugh." expressed Naruto patting his face. "At this point it's too late to back out. I'll just have to keep moving until I get there. If I ever run into the one who sent me here without a map or a means of fast travel, I'll kick his ass."
"Say yes, Naruto. Say yes." said Kurama.
Naruto was about to resume his walk when, suddenly…
"AAHH!"
"Huh?" asked Naruto confused when he heard someone yell.
Looking to the side, he saw a small green-haired girl with a mask over her head crying and screaming as she was being chased by a large, tribal masked hollow, another with an insect-like mask and her right eye covered, and a giant worm with a mask over its head.
From their appearance, aside from the worm, Naruto could tell that they were arrancar and could tell that the girl was in danger.
That may not have been his world or he didn't know if they were friends or foes, if there was someone in danger, he wouldn't stand idly by.
"Hey! You!" shouted Naruto running towards them, getting their attention in the process. "Leave her alone!"
With a right hook, he knocked the one in the tribal mask down and with a side kick, he took down the bug-headed one and with an uppercut, he took down the giant worm, knocking them all down in the process.
"Hey, what are you doing?" the girl asked.
"Saving your life, can't you see?" asked Naruto.
"Huh? But I wasn't in danger." said the girl in confusion.
"Huh? What?" asked Naruto very confused.
"That's right!" began the one in the tribal mask. "We were just playing, you know what I mean?"
"We were just enjoying a game of tag when all of a sudden, you come and hit us like we did something wrong when we didn't!" said the one in the bug mask angrily.
Naruto was very confused, for they said they were playing, but they didn't emit that feeling before.
"But if just a moment ago I saw you crying and screaming." said Naruto to the girl.
"It's just that I'm a bit of a masochist and I don't have fun if I don't cry a little." said the girl with a pure and innocent smile.
Naruto was left with a blank face, trying to comprehend what the girl had just said.
"But what kind of things are you teaching this poor girl?!" asked Naruto hitting the one in the tribal mask.
"Hey, she's not just any poor girl, you know what I mean?!" asked the one in the tribal mask.
"He's right!" began the one in the insect mask before the three of them got behind the girl. "She is none other than Nelliel Tu Odelschwanck, the 3rd espada!" declared the one in the insect mask as the three plucked posed as if introducing a celebrity.
"But you can call me Nel if you want." said Nel with a smile.
"Ah, okay, so that's it then… Wait, WHAT? She's the 3rd espada?!" asked Naruto in shock.
"Well of course you do, you know what I mean?" asked the one in the tribal mask before turning Nel around to then lift up her clothes, revealing the number 3 engraved on her back. "Here's the proof that proves it."
"And we are proud to be members of your fracción." began the one in the insect mask. "My name is Pesche Guatiche."
"Dondochakka Birstanne, you know what I mean?" said the one in the tribal mask introducing himself.
"And he is Bawabawa." said Nel pointing to the giant worm.
"What's that about a fracción?" asked Naruto with an arched eyebrow.
"It's the arrancar who have the privilege of serving under the orders of an espada." explained Pesche.
"But I was told that the 3rd was the ruler of Hueco Mundo and her name was Harribel Tier." said Naruto.
"And so it is. The thing is that Nel was the previous 3rd espada until due to certain circumstances, she lost the rank and Harribel has held it since then." said Pesche.
"But you look like a girl." said Naruto.
"This isn't my true appearance. My mask suffered a serious injury due to a fight I had and since my reiatsu leaked through there, I ended up in this form." said Nel pointing to the crack in her mask, not to mention the fact that the one who did it to her was a former espada and he did it in a deceitful and cruel way.
Naruto felt sorry for the girl.
Surely she had a normal life being 3rd espada, but something, something terrible, must have happened to her so that, not only did she end up in that form, but she lost her position.
It was like when Hiruzen, the third Hokage, had to leave his position only to return when Minato, his father and fourth Hokage, died; or when Tsunade ended up in a coma after her effort in the Pain invasion and Danzo took advantage of that to become Hokage.
Normally, you'd think she'd be having a life of misfortune due to her situation, but it seemed like everything was going well for her if playing around like that was any indication.
"So, if you're an espada, what are you doing here? Shouldn't you be in Las Noches?" asked Naruto.
"Yes, but Harribel is so nice that she lets us play around the desert." said Nel.
"By the way, what's a human doing in this place? You don't seem to be a shinigami judging by your weird outfit." said Pesche.
"Or that weird energy you have, you know what I mean?" said Dondochakka.
"Well, no. I'm not a shinigami. It's a long story, but to make a long story short, I came here suddenly and I don't know how to get back. I intended to go to Las Noches to ask your queen for help, but it's too far away." said Naruto.
"Oh, then it's no problem. I like you, so we can get you there quickly." said Nel.
"Really?" asked Naruto with a smile.
"Yes, Bawabawa will get us there in no time." said Nel pointing to the giant worm.
"Great. Thank you so much, Nel." said Naruto patting the girl's head pluck, making her giggle lightly.
"By the way, what's your name?" asked Nel.
"My name is Naruto Uzumaki." said Naruto with his characteristic smile.
Within the walls of Las Noches, all was quiet.
It had been since the time it was built, when Baraggan ruled Hueco Mundo and also when Aizen ruled it, but now it was calmer, because some time ago, there were several arrancar there, among them, the espada and their fracción.
However, due to the great battles against the shinigami, many espada, as well as their fracción, perished.
In the end, only a total of three espada remained, one of them being the current ruler of Hueco Mundo.
Harribel Tier, 3rd espada.
She was currently on her throne, not because it was her place as queen, but simply because she was there.
Truth be told, one thing hadn't left her mind and that was that strange energy she felt some time ago somewhere in the vast desert surrounding the palace.
She could have sent someone from her fracción or even some arrancar to investigate it, but she couldn't for two reasons.
The first was that she didn't know exactly where in the desert that energy had come from and she didn't know how long it might take to find it and/or bring it back.
The second was that she didn't really have any arrancar who wanted to follow her orders.
Even though she was considered the strongest in Hueco Mundo, even though she now held the position of queen, no one besides her faction and others really respected her.
She could only hope that the origin of that energy wasn't something caused by some ancient plan of Aizen, some dirty trick of the shinigami to annihilate them by taking advantage of their state or worse, a new threat that could affect, not only Hueco Mundo, but also the other realities.
"Lady Harribel!"
Her train of thought was interrupted when she heard someone calling out to her and she turned her gaze to the entrance to see three girls enter the throne room.
One was a short, blue-haired girl with heterochromatic eyes and a horn on a bony plate that furrowed her head in a line.
Another was a girl with brown skin, long curly hair with a bony necklace and a tiara divided into three sections across her head.
The third was a long-haired girl with long sleeves and a curved three-section hairpin worn on the left side of her bangs.
Those girls were Apacci, Mila Rose and Sung-Sun, three arrancar who belonged to Harribel's fracción, whom they served faithfully even before she became an espada in Aizen's service.
"We have detected an intruder in the grounds near Las Noches." said Apacci.
Hearing that, Harribel pressed a button on her throne that caused a holographic screen to activate in mid-air for all to see.
That screen showed a recording of Naruto along with Nel and her fracción going on the back of the giant worm as they rode towards Las Noches at full speed.
Despite the fact that Nel was present, everyone's attention was focused solely on a certain blond boy with fox whiskers on his face.
"A human?" asked Sung-Sun covering her mouth with a sleeve.
"Mila Rose, go to the entrance and intercept that human." said Apacci.
"Huh? Why do I have to do it? You go, you have nothing to do, you lazy bum." said Mila Rose.
"I am not lazy! I simply think that such a task is worthy of someone like you." said Apacci.
"Then, since you say that, why don't you go? You seem better suited for it than me." said Mila Rose with an amused smile.
"Gorilla!" said Apacci.
"Table!" said Mila Rose.
"How about you two go and end this silly discussion?" asked Sung-Sun.
"Shut up, Sung-Sun!" exclaimed the two in unison.
"Calm down, girls." began Harribel, causing them to cease their argument. "Take a good look. If that human was a danger of any kind, Nel wouldn't be leading him here."
"She may have been the 3rd espada, but she's a girl." said Apacci.
"She may have the appearance and some of the personality of a child, but she's as mature as I am. If she is bringing him here, she will have her reasons. Besides, that human is different from those we met in the past." said Harribel.
"You are right. I can sense a very strange yet powerful energy in him." said Sung-Sun.
"It doesn't look like reiryoku. Could it be a new species of shinigami?" asked Mila Rose.
"What difference does it make what it is? If it comes to cause trouble, we'll beat it up." said Apacci pounding her fist with her palm.
"Mmm. I guess we can find out something as soon as he gets here." said Harribel.
"Wait, you mean he's…?" asked Apacci.
"Yes and knowing him, he'll want to deal with this alone." said Harribel knowing full well who he was referring to.
As Bawabawa rushed his passengers towards Las Noches, Naruto took advantage of the trip to tell them a little about his world.
"Wow, your world sounds amazing, Naruto!" said Nel with stars in her eyes.
"I never thought I'd hear anything like that, you know what I mean?!" said Dondochakka.
"Those ninjas are really awesome!" said Pesche.
"Hehe. I know." said Naruto scratching the back of his head, as it was like telling a hero story to a bunch of kids.
"Could you show us some of those jutsu, please?" asked Nel with puppy dog eyes.
"Sorry. Maybe later." said Naruto, causing Nel to let out a cute pout.
"Your arrival here is the second most exciting thing that's happened in a long time!" said Pesche.
"The second? What was the first?" asked Naruto curiously.
"It was when Ichigo and his friends came here." said Nel.
"Ichigo? Who's that?" asked Naruto.
"He's a substitute shinigami, you know what I mean?" said Dondochakka.
"And why did he come here precisely?" asked Naruto.
"It turns out that Aizen had taken a friend of his and Ichigo and his friends came here and entered Las Noches." said Nel.
"We almost didn't tell on multiple occasions when we fought the espada, but thanks to our help, they managed to survive." said Pesche with slight arrogance, though in reality, they weren't the ones who helped in the end.
To Naruto, that situation sounded like when Sasuke left and Naruto and his friends went to avoid him, going so far as to face powerful subordinates of Orochimaru, even going so far as to have him have a fight against him.
The only difference is, from what he had understood, both from Ashido, and from them, is that they succeeded in their mission, while Naruto failed and had to wait years for him to return home, though he wasn't exactly there now.
A part of him longed to meet this substitute shinigami and now that he thought about it, what exactly did that 'substitute' mean?
"Look, Naruto, we're already here!" said Nel pointing ahead.
Looking up, Naruto couldn't help but gape, for in front of them stood Las Noches, the royal palace of Hueco Mundo.
He knew it was big since it didn't seem to get any closer no matter how much he moved forward, but now that he was very close, he could see that it was so big it looked like it was going to reach the very sky.
"That's amazing. I didn't expect it to be so huge." thought Naruto in surprise.
"I'd say it would fit all the people from all the hidden villas inside. No, there would fit all those people and the bijuu included." said Kurama impressed by the size of the palace that was even bigger than his own.
Bawabawa kept moving forward until he got halfway to the wall.
"Well, thanks for the ride. I owe you one." said Naruto before jumping off the worm onto the ground.
"Good luck, Naruto and show us some of your jutsus next time we meet." said Nel waving goodbye to her new friend.
"That's a promise." said Naruto with a smile.
"Watch out, Naruto. I sense someone powerful nearby." said Kurama.
"Friend or foe?" asked Naruto.
"I don't know, but he's… coming this way!" exclaimed Kurama urgently.
Reacting quickly, Naruto jumped to the side to avoid something that impacted forcefully in the area where he was before, generating a smokescreen.
"Wow. You dodged it."
By the time the smoke cleared, Naruto discovered that the cause was a tall, muscular man with an open shirt, thus exposing his chest, blue crest-like hair, a feline gaze and a toothy grin.
The highlight of him was the fragment of an animal jaw lodged in his right cheek.
"You have good reflexes, human." said the man.
"AH! IT'S HIM!" shouted Nel and her fracción in horror before hiding behind Bawabawa.
"Huh? Do you know him?" asked Naruto in confusion.
"Yes, he is Grimmjow Jaegerjaquez, 6th espada!" said Pesche pointing at the man.
"6th espada?" asked Naruto in surprise.
"For now. Someday, I plan to defeat her and claim the title of the strongest, but I'll have to settle with you for now." said Grimmjow.
"Wait, Grimmjow. Don't fight him, he just wants to talk to Harribel." said Nel trying to avoid a fight.
"Shut up, brat! You may be the former 3rd espada, but you're nothing but a wimpy little girl now, so don't get in the way!" said Grimmjow.
"Hey, don't talk to her like that!" said Naruto defending the arrancar girl.
"Tsk. You say you want to talk to the big shot, right? Fine, I'll let you in… if you beat me in a duel." said Grimmjow with a feral grin.
"Be careful, Naruto. He may be the 6th espada, but I can sense enormous power in him." said Kurama.
"Maybe, but I don't plan to retreat after how far I've come." thought Naruto before looking at the 6th espada seriously. "If a duel is what you want, you'll get it." said Naruto positioning himself.
"Very well. You better not bore me too much." said Grimmjow.
Unbeknownst to them, all of this was being watched by Harribel and her faction.
"HA. Are you seriously going to fight Grimmjow?" asked Apacci with a smile.
"That human must be having suicidal thoughts." said Mila Rose.
"Do you want us to stop them, Lady Harribel?" asked Sung-Sun.
"No. This will be a test to check what that human can do with that strange energy." said Harribel without taking her eyes off the screen, specifically, the jinchuriki that had caught her attention from the moment she felt him.
AN: Okay, I have to clarify here.
If you think that the main enemy of this story is, or rather, they are who you think they are, you are totally wrong.