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 8

"So you've finally decided to face tame your biju, huh kid," was Yugito's greeting as soon as they made it onto the waterfall of truth, covertly of course.

"Who're you calling kid!" Naruto protested.

This was the scene that unfolded as the Jinchuriki once again reunited. Naruto had embarked on a training trip in order to gain mastery over his tailed beast.

Now, a Konoha ninja entering the Kaminari no Kuni would be seen as an act of war, but with a daughter of Hades and Hiraishin User on your team, infiltration was easy-peasy.

"Come on now there's no need to fight, let us just listen to our fellow acolyte," B tried to appease the pair.

Yugito let out an exasperated sigh. "What did I tell you about rapping?"

"Geez, this routine feels like Apollo and Artemis," Annabeth commented offhandedly.

"Who's Apollo?"

"Who's Artemis?"

Were B's and Yugito's comments.

"Just a couple of people from our homeland," Annabeth tried to explain. "Can we get to the point now, please?"

"Okay, but what's the rush?" B inquired.

"Oh, you know, Naruto was so excited to learn from you too that he couldn't shut up about it when we were travelling here. RIght, Naruto?" Annabeth elbowed Naruto as she tried to think of an explanation without revealing the war with the Titans. She couldn't have anybody panic about a war that's not even in their world to begin with.

"Oh yeah!" Naruto picked up her cue immediately. "You two made such an impression on me that I want to learn from the both of you."

Accepting his answer, B raised his fist. "Bump fist with me, little man."

Naruto compiled without much thought.

"As I thought, you're just like him," Killer B muttered.

"Who?" Naruto asked.

"You're very similar to the Yellow Flash," B said. "Though we met each other on the battlefield in the Third Great Ninja War, I respect him. He's brave and selfless. He puts his comrades first without leaving anyone behind."

He brought out the ritualistic tri-pronged kunai that Naruto left with him. "It's not just the looks, but you and he are very similar."

"I guess tou-chan has made quite the impression on you, huh?" Naruto mused.

B was taken aback. "You're his flesh and blood? You're making my thoughts flood."

"Yeah, I was surprised as well," Naruto felt a melancholic smile tug on his lips. "Imagine, I looked up to him all my life as a kid, only to find out he was my dad all along…I guess my dad did leave quite an impression on all of us, huh?"

"I'm getting all fired up now, Wheee!" B pumped his fist in the air. "It would be an honor to teach the son of the Fourth Hokage."

Yugito stepped forward to take over for her senior who was getting way too excited. "Okay, actually, you've completed the first step in your training."

"Huh? Which one?" Naruto asked, confused. "Getting your approval?"

Yugito shook her head. "The last time you were here, you here, you meditated on the waterfall of truth, correct?"

Naruto nodded. "I faced my dark counterpart and…I wouldn't say defeat, more like overcame and accepted him (me) for you he (I) was."

"Bingo," Yugito affirmed. "Now, the second part is a lot harder."

Naruto gulped.

"You will have to defeat your tailed beast and steal his chakra."

Everyone's eyes bugged out of their sockets. Annabeth and Silena remembered the story Naruto told them during the campfire back when Tantalus was Activities Director. If the Nine-tailed demon fox was able to kill a battalion of shinobi, how could one man defeat a beast with that power?

"So, first things first, do you have the key to your seal?"

Naruto smirked. He channeled chakra to his arm and an intricate seal array appeared decorating his arm.

"Then, you're ready,"

TAILED BEAST TEMPLE

Naruto was bummed.

He didn't want to leave his friends outside the temple, but the rules were strict. He was just worried about his friends, so he didn't want them out of his sights, but the confident-blonde perfect Jinchuriki offered to protect them.

So, Naruto and Killer B entered the temple. The first dark and gray chamber contained headless Buddha statues.

"These were the previous Jinchuriki that failed to pass through due to their impure hearts," Killer B warned.

At the end of the hallway, there was a mural depicting a bull and a cat.

B pointed a finger to the cat head statue. "Place your head through that headspace. Beware, if the statue deems you unworthy, it will chomp down on your head and you will end up like these statues."

Reluctantly, Naruto crawled through the headspace.

And then…

Naruto screamed.

Killer B was surprised. He immediately rushed forward to pull Naruto out of the cat statue.

He was panicking. Was he too hasty to let Naruto into the temple? Should he have let Naruto try the waterfall one more time?

These questions plagued his mind as he struggled to pull Naruto free.

Just then, Naruto was pulled free from the statue's grasp.

And out came a headless Naruto.

After letting B panic for a little bit. Naruto popped his head out of his collars revealing that he was unscathed.

Naruto and B stared at each other for a moment before bursting out laughing at the prank.

"I can't believe I fell for that little prank, fool ya fool!" B said as he roared in laughter.

"There was a switch in there to open the doors," Naruto gasped as he ran out of breath from all the laughing.

"The funny thing is, I played the exact same prank on my seniors,"

"HAHAHAH"

"I can hear you two fooling around in there," Yugito's voice called out from the entrance of the chamber.

Naruto and B froze. If there was one thing these two brave shinobi were scared off, it was an irate woman.

They were, in Shikamaru's words, troublesome.

After letting out a few more laughs, Naruto pressed the button and the heavy doors rumbled open.

Killer B led the way inside with Naruto following closely behind.

It was a brightly colored room. Every nook and cranny of the room was painted light purple and pink.

"You will meditate here," Killer B instructed.

Naruto nodded. He entered the room, wondering how the training would go or how it would even begin.

"Once you meditate, you will have to face the Nine Tails," B answered the

Naruto gulped. He remembered how the Kyubi decimated the village shinobi even when battalions were sent against him. How could he, just one person, be able to stand a chance against him on his own.

"If I fail?" He asked.

"Well, the Nine Tails would take over your body, and we would have to seal you into this room," was B's ominous answer.

He appreciated B exercising his creativity by rapping even in his normal speech, but he was thankful that he was serious this time. He could understand him better. What he basically said was some heavy stuff. It was high risk, high reward.

He remembered his friends who were preparing for war.

He deepened his resolve.

If he was doing this for everyone's sake, there was no way he was going to lose.

Taking a meditative stance, similar to the way he gathered nature energy, he took a deep breath and concentrated. Not long after he was in the middle of the dark and dank sewer that was his mindscape.

In front of him stood the massive golden gates that kept the Kyubi at bay.

"Yo," He greeted.

One massive eye trained on the shinobi. "You seem different…"

"What are you talking about? Nothing about me changed," He said as he floated up to the piece of paper that seemingly was keeping the gates shut. He ripped it off and revealed a spiral mechanism. How fitting since the Uzumaki Clan crest was a spiral waterfall.

"Where did the real you go?" The Kyubi demanded.

"I'm standing right here," The blonde answered, as he rolled up his sleeves.

"What are you plotting?" The massive fox asked dubiously. He watched Naruto roll up his sleeve.

"Can't talk right now," He was now lifting his shirt, exposing the seal.

He wasn't dignified with an answer as chakra flared to life on his exposed arm revealing a complicated seal array decorating his forearm like a ritualistic tattoo ending in a sun pattern on his palm with a spiral design on the center.

He placed five fingers on five points around his Eight Trigrams Seal and twisted.

The spiral mechanism rotated as his hand twisted.

Before long, the Nine Tails slapped open the gates. Naruto jumped back to avoid the full force of the blow.

Suddenly, tentacles wrapped around the Kyubi restraining him.

"Hit your chakra with the Kyubi's and pull," B's disembodied voice echoed throughout the chamber.

"Got it," Naruto nodded.

"I see. You've come to steal my power!" The kyubi roared, breaking free from the choke hold. "And you've teamed up with the Eight Tails! What a disgrace as my Jinchuriki!"

The kyubi pointed all nine tails around his mouth and started building up purple and red energy. Naruto's eyes widened as a purple sphere condensed and converged to form a dark purple orb.

The Kyubi ate it.

Naruto took that as a cue to move as far away from the battlefield as he can, before that attack was fired against him.

The sphere blew up the fox's proportions..He trained his eyes on Naruto.

A blast of energy was shot directly at Naruto; and at its core was the dark purple sphere.

Naruto raised his hands in futile defense, but the Eight Tails' arm rose from the concrete floor catching the condensed sphere and wrapping it around the visage of the Octopus-Bull, containing the supposed explosion.

"We can tag team this fight Naruto, or you can take the beast on your own," B said. "It's your choice."

Naruto shook his head. "Thanks for the offer, B-sensei, but this is a bridge I have to cross on my own, like you and Yugito-san."

B respected his resolve. "Alright. Give em hell!"

"Right!" Naruto yelled as he leapt above the fox's head, a massive spiralling sphere in hand. "Senpo: Odama Rasengan!"

A tail met the attack, effectively blocking it. Several more tails swatted at Naruto trying to slap him to the ground, but as the tails converged around him, Naruto disappeared.

He wasn't safe though, because the Kyubi's paw was already looming overhead slamming down on him and pinning him to the ground. "Just because you mastered the Fourth's Jutsu, doesn't mean you can outsmart me."

"Wasn't counting on it," Naruto's form smirked before bursting into a puff of smoke.

Suddenly, the Kyubi was lifted off its feet by the tail and slammed onto its back. The fox was surprised, the blonde was one step ahead of him. His eyes widened even more as he saw Naruto descending down on him and firing a Rasenchuriken to its chest.

"Now!" Naruto saw this as his opportunity. Just as B said, he connected his chakra to the Kyubi's and pulled with all his might.

He was only tugging for a few seconds though when the Kyubi recovered, steadily getting up. As he did, Naruto's efforts were proved futile as Dark red energy wrapped around Naruto.

Once again, it was like his dark self had returned.

"Kyubi brat."

"The village will never accept you!"

"You will never amount to anything!"

"If it weren't for you, my family would still be alive."

Dark thoughts swirled throughout Naruto's mind. Little by little, Naruto was fighting a losing battle.

"Urk," Naruto clutched his head as he slowly dropped down to his knees."

"Oh no…" Back in the real world, B said with worry as he watched Naruto's form get enveloped by dark red chakra.

The Kyubi chuckled, "Do you see now? You are but a fraction of my hatred."

That was until two voices calmed his heart.

"Be strong, my son."

"Naruto-kun…"

PERCY

"Pathetic,"

Percy let out a self-deprecating laugh, though no one could hear him.

He didn't know what he did wrong this time? He just trusted a friend who held the key to leveling the playing field. Was the journey around the world to know the prerequisites AND getting his mother's blessing just a sham? All for what? Information that didn't even satisfy him?

Hmp.

The kid must have been very desperate for that information if he would plan an elaborate plan just to retrieve it. He's probably very frustrated right now. Serves him right.

Oh and his sword reappeared in his pocket.

Very useful. He could probably stab the walls to death.

He sighed. He dropped to the floor, feeling extremely miserable.

As he counted the agonizingly slow seconds (did I mention he had ADHD?) He fell asleep. In his dream, he saw Rachel. They were at a beach house (more like a mansion) in St. Thomas. They sat on a porch overlooking the Caribbean. Both her parents were buried reading their own thing. Rachel was standing on the porch railing overlooking the sea. She didn't seem to be enjoying her vacation.

The scene changed.

He was now in St. Louis. The mortals were experiencing a massive hurricane. Emergency vehicles swarmed a block of a city surrounding a fallen skyscraper. Reporters were on the outskirts of the disaster site reporting, something about structural failure.

But non-mortals could see what was really going on.

Typhon was stomping through the Mississippi River, disguised as a wall of black clouds to the mortals.

Lightning streaked across the sky blasting the wall of darkness, Zeus' master bolt.

A sleigh pulled by reindeer zipped through the sky and fired arrows at the same target. Percy remembered it from two winters ago, it was Naruto's mother, Artemis.

A fiery comet zipped past, it might have been Apollo.

Percy was sure of one thing though. The gods were barely slowing him down.

"Percy!" A voice broke him out of his dream.

The Son of Poseidon shot to his feet. He lunged forward, sword already drawn. He collided with a human shaped-mass that his sleep-laden eyes didn't even recognize yet.

When he cleared the sleep off his eyes, he saw that it was Nico, pinned to the ground at sword point. He had his arms above his head in surrender, showing that he was unarmed.

"Came…to….rescue…." He choked.

Percy's eyes narrowed with distrust, "Oh really? And why should I trust you?"

"No…choice…" The son of Hades gagged.

Reluctantly, Percy let him go.

He watched as Nico curled into a ball, coughing and gagging while his throat recovered. Still, Percy didn't put away Riptide. Nico eyed the sword warily, but his own still remained unsheathed.

"We have to get out of here," Nico said.

"Oh, does Hades want to talk, again?" Percy answered sarcastically.

Nico winced. "Percy, I swear on the River Styx, I didn't know what he was planning."

"Like you didn't expect this to happen?!"

"I was tricked. He promised me…information…but look," He pointed to a section of the wall, causing it to collapse. "We need to get out of here. I put the guards to sleep, but it won't last."

Percy scoffed. He didn't want to trust him again, but he already created an escape route for the two of them as a show of trust.

Percy wished he had Annabeth's invisibility hat right now, as they made their escape. But it turns out, they didn't need it as every guard they came across fell asleep with a point of Nico's finger. The drawback? Nico got drowsier the more he used the move.

By the time they were out of the courtyard, Percy was practically carrying the boy. Well, at least they got out.

GONG!

"Dammit!" Percy cursed. He spoke too soon.

Bronze gongs sounded from up high in the castle.

"Alarms," Nico confirmed. "We should go…"

Percy ran for his life. But he could only go as far when he carried a life-sized rag doll. Fortunately, the spirits of the dead made way from the Celestial Bronze Sword like it was a raging fire.

He was far away from the castle, but the gongs still sounded like they were up close. Percy was about to collapse from exhaustion, when he heard the familiar bark.

Mrs. O'leary bounded towards them out of nowhere and ran circles around them.

"Good girl," Percy smiled. "Could you take us to the River Styx?"

The word Styx must have triggered something in the hellhound. She must have gotten excited over the word sticks; Percy couldn't tell. At least they were bounding away from the Asphodel Fields. They passed the gates where a happy bark from the underworld's resident guard dog.

Mrs. O'leary kept running. She didn't stop until they were far upriver. Nico and Percy slid off like a sack of potatoes.

Percy huffed. He brought out his secret stash of Emergency God-food and took a bite. He felt himself recover. He took out another square and fed it to Nico.

"How do you feel?" Percy asked..

"Better," Nico nodded sleepily.

"Your powers drain you too much," Percy noted.

"With great power, comes…great need to take a nap," Nico quoted. "Let me sleep first."

"Woah there, Nico," Percy caught him as he began to collapse. "No time to rest. We're at the river. Tell me what to do?"

There was no response. Percy fed Nico the rest of his ambrosia. He was well aware of the risks, but he really needed Nico's instructions. That did the trick though. Nico staggered to his feet and shook himself awake.

"We should hurry. My father will be here soon." He said.

The River Styx's current swirled with strange objects—broken toys, ripped-up college diplomas, wilted homecoming corsages. Percy remembered Charon's words long ago–People threw in everything, their hopes, their dreams, their aspirations, those that never came true. Looking at the black water, he was getting second thoughts. There were other polluted waters he would rather swim in than this one.

"So…should I jump in?" Percy asked

"You have to prepare yourself first," Nico said, "or the river will destroy you. It will burn away your body and soul."

"Sounds fun," I muttered. It was sounding more and more depressing. Yeah, he'd take any polluted water over this one any day.

"This is no joke," Nico warned. "There is only one way to stay anchored to your mortal life.

You have to . . ."

He glanced behind them and his eyes widened. Percy turned and found himself face-to-face with a Greek warrior. At first he thought it was Ares; he'd recognize that ugly mug anywhere. There was the same tall and buff physique, the same cruel and scarred face, and the same closely shaved black hair. The only distinction was the eyes; they were pale green like a shallow sea. What Percy noticed the most though was the bloody arrow that stuck up his bloody calf, just above the ankle.

Percy was thankful for Naruto's lessons. Because right then and there, he recognized him. (Mostly due to Ares' face.)

"Achilles," Percy said.

"I have once possessed this blessing…no this curse…" The now named Achilles spoke. "I serve as a guide to those who seek the same. Alas, the last one did not heed my warnings."

"I don't suppose you have any advice?" Percy tried.

"You should know. It extracts a terrible price," Achilles said.

"I am prepared."

"We all think that at first. We are all wrong."

"Tell me what to do."

"Once you dive, concentrate on your mortal point, one spot on your body that will remain vulnerable. This is the point that will anchor your soul to the mortal world. It will be your greatest weakness, but also your only hope. No man may be completely invulnerable. Lose sight of what keeps you mortal, and the River Styx will burn you to ashes. You will cease to exist."

With that piece of advice, Percy hardened his look, one that Achilles did not fail to notice. "Thank you."

Seeing that there was no changing his mind, Achilles gave up, "Let the gods be the witness that I tried. Hero, whether you survive this quest or not, you have sealed your doom."

Percy smiled. "We're demigods. We're always facing certain doom."

With that, he vanished.

Nico walked to Percy and tugged at his sleeve. "Maybe he's right…"

"What?" Percy gave him an incredulous look. "This was your idea."

"I know! But now that we're here…" Nico was hesitating.

Percy placed a hand on his shoulder and gave him a reassuring smile.. "Hey, don't worry. If anything goes wrong, at least Hades will get his wish. Just wait at shore, okay?"

He turned back to the water. He would be lying if he said that the mastermind of this quest was having second thoughts. Before he could change his mind, he concentrated on the small of his back, a perfect location if you would ask him. It was well defended when he wore armor. It would be hard to hit by accident and few enemies would aim for it on purpose. No spot was perfect, but it felt right for him.

He imagined a string, like a bungee cord, connecting him to the world on the small of his back. With that, he stepped into the river.

As a Son of Poseidon, he never feared drowning.

Until now…

The moment he stepped into the water, his knees buckled. He could hear Nico calling out to him in worry. He raised his hands in a thumbs up just to appease him. Gathering his strength once more, he powered through.

In no time at all, he was submerged completely.

He felt like he was immersed in a pot of boiling acid, multiplied by a thousand. He couldn't breathe. Every nerve in his body tingled. He felt like he was dissolving. The voices of his friends and family appeared and faded away almost immediately. All he felt was pain. He felt his soul literally being ripped from his body. It was immense. What's more, he couldn't even remember who he was.

For a moment, he almost gave in.

"Did you just try to kill me with a sword?"

His eyes shot open. It was Rachel's voice! He tried to look around to see where the voice was coming from, but there just murky darkness in front of him.

Then a multitude of memories flooded his mind.

"Seaweed brain, you do have a brain in there!"

"Percy, Percy! They have enchiladas!"

"I never go back on my word, y'know!"

"Percy, I give you my blessing."

What was he doing letting this river destroy him? That was pathetic of him. He didn't want to see his friends and family sad.

Memories rushed in more vividly now. It was like he was experiencing them again first-hand.

He finally stopped dissolving. He felt the string tied to his back become more taut. It wasn't just keeping him attached to shore now. It was carrying him.

Then, the final straw came."So, hypothetically…how could a girl get a guy to kiss her…"

The hypothetical string tugged and he shot up above the water, startling Nico who was watching the river worriedly. Landing on the shore, he collapsed on to the ground. Nico was immediately by his side.

Nico looked him over. His whole body looked like he was broiled over a slow flame. "Oh gods, You're hurt! Are you okay?"

"I–I'm fine, I think…" Percy managed.

Slowly, the color of his skin turned back to normal. The pain subsided. Nico's worry soon relaxed even if by a little.

Mrs. O'leary came forward. Apparently the bath in the Styx gave him an interesting smell.

"So…how does it feel?

Percy looked over himself. He didn't feel anything in particular.

But before he could answer, a voice boomed.

"There!"