Disclaimer: I do NOT own Naruto nor Percy Jackson and the Olympians series. I am just a lowly writer with too much time in my hands.

Warning: This is a sequel story. Read the following first before you read this story.

Child of the Moon: The Lightning Thief

Child of the Moon: The Sea of Monsters

Child of the Moon: The Titan's Curse

Child of the Moon: The Battle of the Labyrinth

Chapter 7

Percy knew something was wrong.

They had emerged close to the River Styx, but they were completely ignoring it. He asked Nico why there was a detour in their plans, but here they were on a detour in the Underworld.

He didn't say anything because at the very least, he trusted Nico.

Nevertheless, they were in the Underworld. It had been three years (give or take) since he was back here and he hated every second of it.

But he had a mission.

Lines of the dead stood outside waiting to get in. It must've been a heavy day for funerals. The EZ death lines were backed up like an airport on a major holiday.

Mrs. O'leary bounded past the rows of spirits crushing them, leaving them with an indignant hiss. Cerberus, Hades's massive guard dog in the shape of a three headed rottweiler, barked happily as she saw the mountain of fur bounding towards him.

Despite the worry, a smile managed to tug at his lips. 'At least Cerberus has a playmate for now."

Even Nico was looking with a smile on his face, but he quickly shook it off.

"Come on," Nico urged.

Just then, a shadow hovered overhead.

It was a familiar old shriveled face wearing a horrible blue knit hat and a crumpled velvet dress. Bat wings sprang from her back. Her feet had sharp talons, and in her brass-clawed hands she held a flaming whip and a paisley handbag.

"Mrs. Dodds," Percy regarded his old math teacher.

"You're back early, honey," Mrs. Dodds bared her fangs. "I see your friend from the Elemental Nations is not with you." She had a hint of disappointment in her voice.

Getting tired of explaining, he sighed. "Long story short, he has a different plan right now. So I'm sorry."

Seeing the banter between the two, "You two know each other?"

"Yeah, she was my math teacher," Percy answered with distaste. "So, can we get to the mission now?"

Nico had a look of remorse on his face. Then he looked up, "I've delivered him. Now, as promised, take us to the palace!"

Percy shot him an indignant look, all of the trust he placed on the boy vanished right then and there. "YOU TRICKED ME?"

"I'm sorry, Percy," Nico apologized. "This was my mission all along.

Percy kept a cool head, but he was fuming with anger. He didn't even resist as the furies picked them up and flew them away.

"I expected a struggle, Percy Jackson. You've grown up," Alecto said. "I suggest you tell your hound to do the same."

True to her word, Mrs. O'leary was growling with her stance ready to take on the three on her own.

"Down girl," Percy said through gritted teeth, trying to sound as calm as he could. "It's okay."

Seeing Mrs. O'learywhined and turned in circles at the confusing command, Percy spoke up with as much venom as he could muster, "Okay, traitor. You've finished your mission. Take us to the palace."

Percy had a lot of time to think on the way to the palace. He was thinking of all his life choices thus far, this mission being the latest in a streak of his bad decisions, but his loyalty to his friends gave him no choice. He had to defend his friends.

His thoughts were disrupted as he was dropped like a sac of potatoes in the middle of the palace garden.

It was beautiful in a creepy way. Skeletal white trees grew from marble basins. Flower beds overflowed with golden plants and gemstones. A pair of thrones, one bone and one silver, sat on the balcony with a view of the Fields of Asphodel. It would've been a nice place to spend a Saturday morning except for the sulfurous smell and the cries of the tortured souls in the distance.

Skeletal warriors guarded the only exit. They bore different weapons from different parts of history from primitive warriors wielding bows and arrows made from bone to soldiers in desert fatigue wielding M16s.

After depositing Nico next to Percy, the three torturers settled on top of the bony throne. Percy considered wringing Nico's neck, but he decided against it; he was outnumbered here.

Percy stared at the empty thrones, waiting for something to happen. Then the air shimmered. Three figures appeared—Hades and Persephone on their thrones, and an older woman standing between them. They seemed to be in the middle of an argument.

"—told you he was a bum!" the older woman said.

"Mother!" Persephone replied.

"We have visitors!" Hades barked. "Please!"

"Percy Jackson," he said with satisfaction. "At last."

Hades' wife studied the Son of Poseidon. Percy had seen her once in winter, but outside of the season, she looked completely different. She had lustrous black hair and warm brown eyes. Her dress shimmered with colors. Flower patterns in the fabric changed and bloomed—roses, tulips, honeysuckle

The woman standing between them was obviously Persephone's mother. She had the same hair and eyes, but looked older and sterner. Her dress was golden, the color of a wheat field. Her hair was woven with dried grasses like a wicker basket.

"Hmmph," the older woman said. "Demigods. Just what we need."

Nico knelt and began to speak, "Father, I have done as you asked."

"Took you long enough," Hades grumbled. "Your sister would've done a better job. He just had to leave to the Elemental Nations with that Son of Artemis."

Nico lowered his head. Percy wanted to feel sorry for the kid, but there was none of that right now since he was really mad about it.

Percy glared up at the god of the dead. "What do you want, Hades?"

"To talk of course," Hades grinned.

Percy rolled his eyes. "What? Did you lose another one of your weapons?"

Nico cautioned against angering his father. And Hades was really pissed off. A vein popped on his forehead, but Persephone calmed his husband.

The god of the dead cleared his throat, calming down. "Well, as I was about to say, Nico was sincere about helping you. I just convinced him to take a detour."

The trio of gods began arguing, a comical act of husband and mother-in-law argument. Demeter went on about the choices of spouses her daughter could have chosen, but this deadbeat of a god. Hades argued back, demanding respect in his own house.

It was Percy's turn to clear his throat. He had been summoned here against his will, but he was being ignored. He let out the usual spunk he had, and there was no one to tell him off.

"Excuse me," Percy cut in. "If you're going to kill me, can we get it over with now?"

Demeter raised her eyebrow. "I remember you. It's always you who have the spunk to talk back to the gods."

Hades nodded and gathered blue fire on his hand and readied himself to smite the impertinent demigod. "Demeter is right we have to teach the boy respect and–"

"Father! You promised!" Nico pleaded for his friend's life.

Persephone stayed her husband's hand. "Husband, you can't go incinerating every hero you meet."

"Especially someone who did you a favor, twice," Percy cut in

Persephone smiled. "I like this one."

Hades groaned in frustration. "That's what you said about that Orpheus fellow."

"Father! Your promise!" Nico insisted. "Plus you promised to explain!"

Hades glowered, smoothing the folds of his robes. "And so I shall. Your mother—what can I tell you? She was a wonderful woman." He glanced uncomfortably at Persephone. "Forgive me, my dear. I mean for a mortal, of course. Her name was Maria di Angelo. She was from Venice, but her father was a diplomat in Washington, D.C. That's where I met her. When you and your sister were young, it was a bad time to be children of Hades. World War II was brewing. A few of my, ah, other children were leading the losing side. I thought it best to put you two out of harm's way."

"That's why you hid us in the Lotus Casino?"

Hades shrugged. "You didn't age. You didn't realize time was passing. I waited for the right time to bring you out."

"But what happened to our mother? Why don't I remember her?"

"Not important," Hades snapped.

"Of course it is!" Nico insisted. "That's why I agreed to take him here in the first place! If you had other children, why were we the only ones sent away. And who was that lawyer?"

"You would do well to listen more and talk less, boy. As for the lawyer…" The God of the Dead snapped his fingers. Alecto flew from his throne on top of his shoulder. As she landed, she was a male lawyer wearing a pinstriped suit. "I do lawyers and teachers very well!"

Nico was trembling. "But why did you free us from the casino?"

"You know why," Hades said. "This idiot son of Poseidon cannot be allowed to be the child of the prophecy!"

"Well excuuuuse me," Percy retaliated. "How about you?! What are you doing? Aren't you supposed to be helping the gods? All of the Olympians are fighting Typhon?! All of them are fighting him as we speak!"

Hades' face darkened. "What did the Olympians ever do for me? When was one of my children ever welcomed as a hero? I will stay here and keep my forces intact."

"And what if Hades comes after you?"

"Let him try. He'll be weakened. And my son here, Nico—" Hades looked at him with distaste. "Well, he's not much now, I'll grant you. It would've been better if it were Bianca, but she was so fixated on helping that blonde boy that she left this world with him. He will have to do. Give him four more years of training. We can hold out that long, surely. Nico will turn sixteen, as the prophecy says, and then he will make the decision that will save the world. And I will be king of the gods."

Percy remembered the stories about the times with the so-called "Golden Ages". He gave Hades a deadpan expression. "I can't believe you're misremembering what you experienced yourselves. I can't believe you're willing to be eaten again.

Hades let out a confident chuckle. "Be flattered, demigod. You will get a chance to witness my victory. And the troublesome blonde isn't here to save you this time."

"No!" Nico said. "Father, that wasn't our agreement. And you haven't told me everything!"

"I've told you all you need to know," Hades said. "As for our agreement, I spoke with Jackson. I did not harm him. You got your information. If you had wanted a better deal, you should've made me swear on the Styx. Now, go to your room!" He waved his hand, and Nico vanished.

Demeter began to go on about cereal being good for Nico's health, but Persephone interrupted her. And in an unexpected turn of events, it was she who pleaded for Naruto's life. "My lord Hades, are you sure we can't let this little hero go? He's awfully brave."

Percy briefly saw an opportunity. The Queen of the Underworld was standing up for him. Maybe he could–

"No, my dear. I've spared his life. That's enough."

Hades disagreed way too quickly.

"Fine."

Hades left no room for discussion. His wife even gave up way too easily.

The God of the Dead looked amused at the look on Percy's face. A small glimmer of hope being dashed immediately.

"Don't feel too bad, Percy Jackson," Hades consoled the demigod. "My ghosts keep me well informed about Kronos's plans. I can assure you that you had no chance to stop him in time. For what it's worth, I kept you alive this way. By tonight, it will be too late for your precious Mount Olympus. The trap will be sprung."

"Trap?" Percy asked. He was in no mood to talk now. "The least you could do was tell the other gods."

Hades smiled. "You still got spunk. I like that. Have fun in my dungeon. We'll check on you again in—oh, fifty or sixty years."

ANNABETH

This was getting ridiculous.

First, they found out that the puppet they were fighting was the Third Kazekage of the Hidden Sand

Now, it was revealed that the puppet was built from the remains of the said legendary person and can use his abilities. She concluded that it's the reason why Bianca was targeted all along. He could imagine the easy assassination attempts he could do if he acquired her abilities.

But that wasn't the least of their worries.

The enemy showed them that he, himself, was a puppet. That was ironic, a puppet controlling puppets.

One Hundred Puppets

She could almost laugh.

If only she wasn't in a life or death match.

Fortunately, she and Bianca had the ability to disappear from sight, and their lack of chakra would prevent anyone, even the best sensory ninja, from detecting them. It was Silena she was worried about.

She was holding her own. They may be a hundred puppets, but they weren't as hard to deal with as the Third Kazekage puppet. It was the numbers that overwhelmed them. She was able to take out multiple puppets with her sword. The training they got from Kakashi was paying off, big time.

Chiyo herself had ten puppets, her famous Chikamatusu ten finger technique. It was evident; they were fighting quality over quantity.

There was even a small army of undead fighting as well. That made Annabeth smile. She has gone a long way from the confused kid back in Westover Hall.

It was then Annabeth noticed.

The reason why Sasori couldn't be killed no matter how much Sakura gunned for the main body. He would somehow always appear to be unscathed.

It was the cylindrical piece of equipment that detaches from the chest area. That must be the key.

With calculating eyes, she watched the flow of battle. With the remaining puppets left and the current flow of battle, she studied for patterns.. Even if it was far reaching, these movements couldn't be at random. Her plan was plausible, as long as it was a puppet that was on the ground.

So, she snuck her way to her projected puppet.

The battle raged on all around her. Sakura took on hordes of puppets as she was flanked by Chiyo's own. Bianca melted in and out of the battlefield using her control over the shadows. Chiyo masterfully controlled her puppets; the untrained eye wouldn't tell given how smooth every puppet's movement was. And Silena was holding her own in the battle.

Just as she anticipated, the cylindrical heart shot towards the puppet she was stalking. She smirked to herself. It was almost given at this point.

She picked up one of the blades that fell from one of Sasori's puppets and proceeded to drive it straight through the heart.

At that moment, all the puppets went limp giving a breath of relief to the fighters.

Silena collapsed on her butt from exhaustion.

"Gaaah, it's over!" She complained. "Here I thought we were coming here for some sort of vacation, not coming here and joining some sort of mission!"

Chiyo fell down to her knees. She was not in her prime anymore. This battle was draining for her at this age. Nevertheless, she managed to squeeze out some words.

"You have grown complacent Sasori." She lectured disapprovingly to her grandson.

Annabeth took off her invisibility cap. "Lady Chiyo is right. You underestimated us. Now you don't feel like you got the short end of the stick."

Bianca sighed in relief. "I'm just glad it's over."

Sasori laughed. "You and your pointless struggles. You may think you have won here, but the Akatsuki's goal has been achieved. The Ichibi has been captured.

As if on cue, Naruto and Kakashi returned to the cave, gingerly carrying the Kazekage's body.

Sasori's eyes bugged out. He never expected them to get past his pyromaniac friend. And without a scratch no less.

"You–" the puppet master on his deathbed could only say.

Naruto solemnly lay the body on the ground. He slammed his closed fist on the ground next to his friend. The cave shook with the force of his blow. No matter how strong he was, he was always too slow. If only he was in the Elemental Nations, perhaps he could–

He shook those thoughts out of his head. No matter where he was he would always be too late for the other. There was no use beating himself up for it. Fortunately for him, Granny Chiyo had the exact solution, albeit at a price. a very heavy price.

Chiyo struggled to her feet and hobbled to the Kazekage's corpse with the help of the pink haired shinobi.

Sakura deposited her next to Kazekage's body.

"Seeing the youth around me like this, makes me hopeful for the future," Chiyo said as she placed both hands on Gaara's chest; they began to glow a bright blue. "It's time for old crones like me to retire."

Naruto's eyes widened. "What are you–"

Chiyo strained. She was struggling to produce the chakra sufficient enough to complete the process of reincarnation. The bluish hue of visible chakra began to titter in and out of existence; the jutsu was failing.

Naruto understood the situation. With jutsu like this, there were bound to be some risks, nay more of an equivalent exchange. Chiyo was willing to sacrifice herself for Gaara, for the future.

The boy knelt on the other side and placed his hands on top of her wrinkled hands. The visible chakra of the jutsu glowed brightly, even more brightly than before.

Chiyo began to speak. "Up until now, I've made countless mistakes…But at least, at the very end…I am finally able to do something right. I pray that Suna and Konoha have brighter futures than those of our times."

As Chiyo finished speaking, Gaara stirred.

Annabeth's eyes widened. It was nothing short of a miracle, but hearing the small thud on the ground, she understood as well. It was a matter of self sacrifice.

Naruto bowed to the older woman, in respect. He regretted that they couldn't save Gaara without any casualties, but there was no other way.

Gaara began to sit up and Naruto tapped him on the shoulder.

The Kazekage's eyes widened. He knew that his friend was away with his family, but here he was, coming to his aid.

"Everyone's here Gaara," Naruto said. "You had everyone worried. That's why everyone's here."

Kankuro stepped up into Gaara's line of sight. "You sure did, little bro. You caused everyone a ton of grief."

"K-Kankuro…"

"Don't you two act so high and mighty," Temari spoke. She knelt in front of her brother. "Are you feeling alright?"

Gaara tried to stand, but his joints were stiff.

"Woah, easy there," Naruto warned him. "Your body has started going through rigor mortis."

"So Granny Chiyo used that jutsu…" Kankuro said.

"You know of it?" Naruto asked.

Kankuro nodded. "It was a secret technique that the puppet master division developed a few years ago, a jutsu to breathe life into puppets. Granny Chiyo led that project. But before they could progress into human testing, they shut down the project and sealed it up."

"We're blessed that she came with us on this mission, then," Naruto said solemnly.

"She looks like she's sleeping peacefully, like any time she would wake up and tease me for falling for her playing possum," Ebizo commented.

Gaara finally was able to get on his feet. He remained silent to honor the sacrifice of one of their village elders.

"Everyone, let's pray for Granny Chiyo,"

It was no time for celebration.

The mission was a success. The Kazekage was rescued, but at what cost.

Goodbyes were exchanged. If he didn't have his character growth back in the world of the gods, he probably would have felt awkward doing it.

Annabeth smiled. She couldn't have been prouder of their accomplishment.

But now, it's the hard part.

As they navigated through the forest where they once came through, Sakura has been sending glances their way. After the mission, Naruto walked with his team from the land of the gods. He was gushing at them, praising her for putting up a great fight with Sasori, and most especially, Annabeth's strategic mind that put an end to the performance of the hundred puppets.

Sakura could sense it. It was like the boy's heart was a long way from Konoha now.

"I broke the Sandaime Kazekage puppet," Sakura put forward, trying to join in the conversation.

"Oh yeah, good job Sakura," Naruto said, but he continued to gush on his other friend's accomplishments.

Just then, there was a rustling of leaves around them.

That made them wary. They stopped and got into formation.

Then, a large man with tinted sunglasses came out of the shrubbery. He was rapping out a nonsensical beat that made some of the girls' ears bleed. "Hello there old friend, you've made it back into our land?"

Naruto relaxed and walked to one of the newest additions.

"A kumo nin?" Kakashi raised his eyebrows. His stance got a little more tense when he sensed the massive amount of chakra coming from the man. "This much chakra…A jinchuriki?"

"What are you doing here?" Sakura raised her voice. "What do you plan to do here?"

"Woah there little lady, there's no need to be hasty," The dark skinned man raised his hands at the aggression. "I mean you no harm, there's no need to raise the alarm."

A vein popped on Sakura's head. Hearing the man rhymes made her pissed. The other ladies were irked as well, but they weren't as aggressive as the pink haired kunoichi.

Naruto stepped forward and stood in front of the rapper.

"Woah, woah, woah," Naruto appeased his teammates. "He's the reason I came back."

Sakura was skeptical. "Him? What does he have to offer?"

"He's one of Kumo's perfect Jinchuriki," was Naruto's simple answer.

"Yes, that's me! The Rapping Killer B! Wheeee!" The rapping man introduced himself.

Sakura's eyes widened. "Are you doing what I think you're doing?"

"I need to bring my A game, Sakura," Naruto said, not seeing any reason to hide it anymore. "I'm going to war."

The pinkette's eyes widened. "War? There's no talk of war all over the Elemental Nations."

Naruto shook his head. "Not here. It's back at home, in the land of the gods."

"I don't know about the land of the gods, but I know you mean to even the odds," Killer B interjected hearing about the war Naruto was talking about.

"I'm sorry," Naruto apologized. "I meant to find you as soon as I arrived, but Gaara…"

"These terrorists called the Akatsuki," B's voice was solemn. "They're a problem for us Jinchuriki."

Sakura wasn't surprised to see Naruto build a bond with the shinobi given what Chiyo had explained to them when they were in pursuit of the Akatsuki. It's the same reason Naruto was able to make friends with Gaara.

"Kakashi sensei," Naruto called out. "I can't be wasting anymore time. I have to start training now."

"But Naruto-"

Kakashi nodded. "We'll report to Tsunade-sama. You go on ahead."

"Kakashi-sensei!" Sakura protested.

"Let Naruto do this, Sakura," Kakashi persuaded his friend. "He needs to do this."

The pink-haired shinobi sighed. "You may have matured, but you're just as headstrong as ever. There's no stopping you, huh? There's only one thing I ask…be careful…You better come back…"

"I'll be okay, you know!" Naruto adopted a nice guy pose.

She turned to Annabeth. "You…I don't like you very much but, keep an eye on Naruto, will you?"

The daughter of Athena adopted a smug expression. "That's why I'm here."

She nodded and walked to Naruto to give him a big hug.

Killer B, unable to wait any longer, spoke up. "Let's go! The sooner we start, the sooner your power will be off the charts! Whee!"