A/N: Hello everybody. The following chapter is unbetaed because my editor is currently deeply busy with rl stuff. After some discussions, we agreed that it may be better to look for a new one. So, if some of you want to help out, contact me by pm or discord.
The Biju had assembled in their shared mindscape that Naruto had worked out by collecting their chakra. Kurama looked around looking slightly irritated that he was called into the scape.
He looked at his siblings. Chomei, Matabi, and Gyouki looked as if they needed to focus on something else. He could relate. Naruto was fighting that snake bastard right this moment and Kurama wanted to stay with him so why was he here? "While it is good to see all of you what is so important? Naruto and I are trying to rid us of some snake bastard at this very moment."
Matabi looked at Kurama wide-eyed. "You think Naruto can take on Orochimaru?" The Hellfire cat looked a bit concerned. Without Naruto, their plans would not come true. Their freedom would not last.
Kurama just huffed. "If that vile example of human trash would not have taken over the body of a person he promised to save he would be dead already. One cut with Shinigamis Blade and Orochimaru would be quite dead."
The others did not comment but Son looked at Matatabi. "Well, I can feel that you are in a hurry sister so you may start explaining why we are here," he spoke in his usual collected kind of way.
Matatabi nodded once and looked grateful at Son before she addressed the others. "Kumo is under attack by a very big army. They assembled each criminal ninja Kumo had imprisoned for the last ten years and added the Daimyo forces, who looked like they were an unending force. Our hosts currently try to give the Kumo forces some break but the sheer numbers will exhaust us earlier than later. I don't understand why humans always need to fight." The hellcat put her head down before she said with a depressed voice.
"They will outlast us. I tried to convince my host that in the end we should retreat and call for Naruto to escape. That stupid girl and her misled loyalty to her country. A country that treated her like a weapon till now. Even now. She and Gyoukis's partner are just some big guns for the others to rest and recover. They are not even treated as humans." Anyone present could see how this concept irritated the hellcat as she said those words. Kurama huffed once but before the nine-tailed fox could say something, Chomei spoke out.
"We have the same situation in Konoha. Fuu and her fiance Shino are currently scouting for a safe route for the escaping civilians, children, and elderly."
Shukaku just shook his head as did Saiken to the unspoken question of one Son Goku.
This time Kurama was not interrupted. He had sat on his behind and looked at each of his siblings. His tails flicked and swished independently. "We are the guardian's father left behind. We can all feel that these disposable soldiers used by the other side have traces of Juubi in them. Which could mean that this Unknown Masked One will try to capture us when we are weak. Possibly by wiping out the ninja first and then striking when we reform. We, who are the only ones who have been given the memories of this time, are also the only ones who can recognize the signs and act accordingly." He looked at Matatabi and Gyouki.
"I know that you two have made a kind of pact with your vessels. But this is greater than any pact. If the end of this is in sight, you must use your chakra to activate the jutsu on the kunai. Make sure that your chakra does not linger in the surroundings. We will try to finish our job here as quickly as possible and then leave for Konoha. Son, Isobu and Kokuou, we may need you in the final confrontation." The nine-tailed fox spirit finished with a hint of finality.
For a moment, it seemed as if the other eight were surprised by the way he spoke, and how easily he took over the leadership role. Matatabi bowed her head on her front paws while Gyuuki nodded briefly in agreement. Son and the other two mentioned gave also an acknowledging nod. Kurama then got a bit more peaceful. "I can feel that the time is coming. Just one final push over the edge and this world will know Ninshu again. We will take our rightful places and a second age of peace will start. Let's do our part."
All nine faded out of the mindscape some of them even a bit fired up to make this new age happen. Kurama looked through the eyes of his host.
The air was thick with tension as Orochimaru and Naruto Uzumaki faced each other. As a testament to the ferocity of their attacks, the battlefield was littered with broken trees, craters and charred earth. Both shinobi were covered in cuts and bruises, but their determination never wavered.
Always one step ahead, Orochimaru had managed to trap Naruto inside a giant serpent summoning. The beasts coiled around him, preventing any escape or retaliation. Naruto, however, was not the type to give up so easily. Roaring furiously, he began channeling his chakra into the snakes, causing them to writhe and twist in agony.
Despite this newfound pain, Orochimaru remained calm. He knew that if he could maintain control long enough, he would have Naruto right where he wanted him - at his mercy. His eyes narrowed as he concentrated on the maintenance of the summoning, wishing that the snakes would ignore their discomfort and continue to press down on Naruto.
Naruto grunted with effort as he pushed against the snakes, determined to break free. Sweat dripped down his face, stinging in the open wounds that covered his body. His left arm was still limp from an earlier injury, but he refused to let it hinder him. His sage chakra would take care of it as soon as it dealt with all the venom in his system.
Suddenly, there was a crackle of energy in the air. Orochimaru looked up just in time to see Naruto gathering chakra for a powerful Rasengan. The spinning sphere of chakra grew larger and more menacing with every passing second.
"No!" Orochimaru shouted, realizing his mistake. He tried to break the summoning, but it was already too late. With a final burst of effort, Naruto broke free from the coils and launched himself at Orochimaru.
The two shinobi collided in a flurry of fists and chakra. The force of their impact sent shockwaves through the surrounding trees, knocking some of them over. They rolled apart, each taking stock of the other's injuries.
Orochimaru had managed to land a few blows on Naruto's already battered body, opening up new wounds that bled profusely. His right arm hung limply at his side, injured in the initial explosion that set off this battle. However, he hadn't sustained any permanent damage—at least not yet.
Naruto's clothes were shredded and tattered, leaving his numerous injuries exposed to the elements. His left arm hung heavily from its sling, but he didn't seem to mind as he prepared for their next exchange of blows.
The two combatants circled each other warily, each waiting for an opening. Orochimaru lunged forward, aiming a powerful punch at Naruto's stomach. However, Naruto was too quick for him. He ducked under the attack and delivered a swift kick to Orochimaru's side, sending him staggering backward.
Orochimaru growled in anger as he regained his balance. His right hand began to glow with a purple chakra, signaling that he was about to unleash one of his deadly jutsu. Naruto braced himself for impact, knowing that this could very well be the end.
Orochimaru launched a wave of venomous energy at Naruto with a deafening roar. The Snake Summoning: Great Ninja Serpent technique was one of his most powerful jutsu, capable of taking down even the strongest opponents with ease. However, Naruto wasn't about to go down without a fight. He formed multiple shadow clones with chains made out of chakra swirling around them with lightning-fast reflexes. As the serpent slammed into them, they exploded in a shower of smoke and dirt. The real Naruto was nowhere to be seen.
Orochimaru cursed under his breath as he tried to locate his target. The rain impacted his skin and messed with his senses. He could sense Naruto's chakra signature nearby, but it was moving too quickly for him to pinpoint his location. Suddenly, there was a flash of yellow light and Naruto appeared behind Orochimaru.
Before the older shinobi could react, Naruto landed a powerful punch to his back, sending him flying through the air. He crashed-landed several meters away, hitting the ground hard.
Orochimaru stood up slowly. His voice mocked Naruto as he watched his skin slowly close some of his wounds. "KuKuKu Naruto-kun. Not bad. I thought I would wipe the floor with you but I can see you trained hard. Such an unfortunate thing it is that I use the body of your friend so you can't go all out right?"
Nartu clenched his teeth he could feel his chakra rushing through his body fixing muscles. Regenerating cells. It burned, but not in a bad way the hot feeling of his phönix sage mode chakra had something that resembled a hug to it. He hated his situation, he had tried to pin the snake down several times, but as the name suggests, Orochimaru was too good at dodging or wriggling out. He was left with the only option that seemed safe. He had to outlast him. But since both of them had mastered the sage mode, this could take countless hours. He was just about to make his next move when Kurama interrupted his thoughts. "Naruto. I'll take care of the poison. Take the chakra and channel it into the seven gates. You have to see if you want to win this!"
Naruto had stopped asking his partner when he would go all mysterious advisor on him and just did like he asked and prepared for the next round. "Hey Snakeface. Ready to get slapped around again? Why you won't surrender?" Unsealing two Kunai and using them in a reverse grip he stormed at the still recovering Orochimaru.
CW: Mention of Abuse, potential rape
Shisui Uchiha and Itachi Uchiha were on a mission to clean up an underground base belonging to Orochimaru. They had fought their way through countless henchmen and suffered minor injuries along the way. As they made their way through the complex labyrinth of corridors, Shisui came upon a prison wing. The cells were made of wood and metal, each secured with bars and locks. However, one cell stood out - it had no door but was covered with seals that held its occupant captive.
Curious, Shisui approached the pillory to find an unfamiliar face looking back at him. The woman was naked, her body showing clear signs of abuse and torture. The pale skin had bruises all over the place. The light blue hair hung lifeless and sweaty on her face. Her eyes were filled with fear and hopelessness as she looked at her rescuers. "Who are you?" she whispered, her voice barely audible over the sound of their footsteps.
Itachi gave Shisui a small nod. Shisui took his mask off and looked at the woman. "Hey, we are here to help. May I take you out of your predicament?" he asked with a soft voice and smile. If they analyzed the situation right this woman has been through hell more than once.
Weakly she nodded. "It doesn't matter they took him from me. They killed Gozu." She did not even notice as the pillory was opened and she was lifted out of it. She could not stand on her legs and had to rely on Shisui to support her. As they neared the exit she weakly halted Shisui with her voice. "Don't… The seals."
Shisui stopped before he looked at the room and nodded at Itachi. The other still-masked man unsealed a scroll. Channeling just a bit of Chakra a Naruto clone appeared. The clone took the situation in with an analytical screening of the room. Shisui nodded at the clone. "I can't see any seals on her but the seals keep her in I think. I can't really make heads or tails out of them." Another short nod followed as the clone looked around again. He took out a pencil as Shisui looked at Itachi. "You can move on, I will make sure she can be safely extracted with the others." the masked ninja gave a curt nod before he disappeared.
Shisui observed the clone doing his work as he noticed the woman brabbling. "I need to find little Yukimaru-kun. I promised. I…" She stopped as the blonde clone moved through a serious chain of hand seals. Both she and Shisui observed as he bit into his finger and wiped a bit of blood on the ground.
"Yo Shisui. That bastard wanted to use her as breeding stock. Those seals." He spit out at the ground. "Would make her more fertile. I took the liberty to sense but no additional passengers at the moment. The boss will want to punish that bastard even more when I de-summon myself. But." He pushed chakra into the blood on the ground and a seal matrix with a prominent swirl enveloped the whole ground and the clone smirked. "If you know how to beat one of his seals… you know how to beat them all. Fuin Kai!" The sound of cracking glass could be heard as the formula glowed red and the other seals in the room began to steam. Shortly after they disappeared. "Shisui?" The clone looked at him. "Be right back." He disappeared in a yellow flash.
Shisui had to chuckle at Naruto's antics. Before he looked at the woman again. "So. it looks like you could leave this place, Miss…?" he halted as he noticed that he never asked for a name.
"Just Guren." her voice was still weak but with growing hope she felt as the seal stopped working. Only her fine control over the Shoton had kept her from getting pregnant and now she started to believe that she would be able to look for Yukimaru and see him again.
"Well, Guren…" again Shisui was interrupted by a yellow flash that appeared in the cell.
As the clone saw Guren flinch at his sudden intrusion he nearly dropped the small scroll he had with him.
"Oh... Sorry 'bout that. I got Hatsumi-chan to give me an emergency clothing set for her. It is in the scroll. And I am off. Take care!" he laid the scroll on the ground and gave a two-finger salute as he popped out of existence.
Shisui looked at the scroll and Guren. "Okay. smart thinking of him right? I will wait outside okay?" Guren gave him a small nod. He stood and took his weapons and sheathed them before he waited just outside. It took Guren around ten minutes before she slowly stepped out.
She wore a simple long kimono with the Uzumaki crest on the right side of her chest. A belt held it together and the pair of ninja sandals rounded off the visible part of the outfit. Shisui nodded briefly and smiled again in a friendly manner. "I think it's best if I take you to the others we got out of here, okay? We can discuss everything else then."
Too weak to object, she listened up when he mentioned the others. "Others? You freed others? Was there a boy among them? Not bigger than this?" The glimmer of hope in her eyes almost brought tears to the ninja's eyes.
He raised his hands in a placating gesture. "Please. Slowly. Well, there were a few that were about this size. I can take you there, but first, we have to get out of here, okay?"
She nodded quickly. Maybe there was hope after all? Maybe she hadn't failed after all and still had a chance to keep her promise.
She put a hand on Shisui's shoulder and nodded to him. Shortly afterward, they disappeared, leaving only black feathers behind.
Naruto was still battling with Orochimaru. They just had separated again as the memories of his clone impacted his mind. He stopped and flooded the clearing they created with their Jutsu with killing intent that made Kurama proud. Even Orochimaru stopped for a moment as Naruto looked at him with a face that was void of emotions. "You are an evil bastard. I told you that already right? Your own people?"
Orochimaru stood still, even he was now feeling the exhaustion of the battle. Not only was he shocked that his opponent still stood tall and with closing wounds. This killing intent and the emotionless state made him take a step back. Also, he made another mistake his mental defenses weakened for a moment. A moment that was enough for him to lose control.
"NARUTO!" Sasuke's voice came out of his mouth. Not the twisted voice of Orochimaru but Sasuke's. "I have not much time he is fighting back. You need to hit the life gate. Disrupt his s…" The voice was replaced by Orochimaru. "Cheeky bugger I may have to kill your soul." He said looking at himself before he smirked at Naruto. Veins bulged from Naruto's eyes.
"No…you won't" Naruto disappeared and with two fingers he hit the snake right in his spinal column. It was not a physical hit though. It was a pure chakra spike sent straight into the system. Orochimaru quickly escaped with a Shunshin. Puking up some blood as his sage mode was disrupted. He quickly let it disperse before it could harm him.
CW: Mention of Suicide
"You may want to stop that Naruto-kun. I can kill myself and be reborn your friend won't be able to pull that off." He took out a Kunai and pointed it at his jugular. He subtly tried to fix his chakra flow, which was so rudely disrupted by his opponent. He needed to buy time and what better way than to threaten with suicide? "You step back and let me go maybe I will let him free for some hours, so you could talk?" Orochimaru smirked. That smirk was cut short as Naruto took some steps towards him. He cut into his skin with the Kunai. "STEP BACK!"
"No," Naruto said, still void of emotions and with eyes closed as chains erupted from his back. The golden chakra chains of the Uzumaki arranged themselves into nine strands that imitated swirling and flicking of tails.
Orochimaru knew that if he didn't do something drastic he was done with. Anytime he tried to escape Naruto just appeared behind him and hit him back towards this place. He lashed out with the kunai, pointing the tip at his own neck, and shouted towards him. "See what you get out of this, you'll have your own friend on your conscience!" Orochimaru only saw his opponent stretch out his empty hand and spread his fingers, his eyes about to open.
Itachi looked into Kabuto's empty eyes; he was the last one in the base. He had killed the other experiments or guards. Seals had been placed in the appropriate places that would eliminate the complex. The boy with the glasses, who had so proudly accused him of being on Kakashi's level. Itachi only had a raised eyebrow in response. He was never on Senpai's level. Above all, he would never reach it, his pulse was non-existent and he was missing an arm. Orochimaru's right hand lacked that and more. Shisui had already signaled to him that everything was clean and that they could switch to the next phase.
With one last look at Kabuto, he applied another seal and disappeared from the base. All he left behind was the sound of a burning seal, the timer for the big bang. He never noticed that just before the sweet bang A snake swallowed Kabuto's body.
Moments before Orochimarus's hand stilled. He looked at it in disbelief. Something was holding him back. It was like it was pulled to the ground before the Kunai flew out of it and into Naruto's waiting hands. "What?" In the next moment, a big explosion rocked the surroundings. Splinters of wood and stone flew at them but impacted an invisible barrier. As Orochimaru looked for the source he looked into the opened eyes of Naruto Uzumaki. Purple had replaced crimson. White symbols laid under seven circles that had appeared in it. Veins still bulged on the sides.
With a simple flick of his wrist, the rubble fell to the ground. Naruto's voice was calm and collected. His sage mode flames disappeared but the markings stayed. His chains also stayed. "I understand now," he said. It was like he was looking straight through Orochimaru as Itachi and Shisui appeared in the clearing, ready to fight. He gave them a short look and as both of them saw his new eyes they took a step back in shock. "I will finish this just, give me a moment alright?" Getting a confused nod he looked at Orochimaru who was about to flee before an unseen force grabbed the exhausted Sannin.
"Are you ready to pay your rent Orochimaru?"
He could free himself and threw some snakes at Naruto. Who just put his hand on the ground intoning a summoning as a flock of falcons ripped through the snakes without any trouble.
Getting desperate Orochimaru used Ninjutsu and threw flames bolstered by wind at him. Only followed by arcs of Lightning only to blink as all of them got absorbed. Again Naruto put his hand forward and again an unseen force picked the snake up and threw him around.
The snake blinked as he was held in suspension while midair before the chains of Naruto rushed forward and threw him into one of the last trees standing. They wrapped around the wrists and ankles completely immobilizing him. He struggled and wanted to use Jutsu but each time he built up chakra for an escape the chains sucked it right out of him. He was helpless as Naruto walked towards him. "As I said are you ready to pay your rent?" The young man asked. Orochimaru could only blink as he witnessed a statue appearing behind Naruto. His skin got even more pale as he saw the faces of the Shinigami and the King of Hell smiling back at him with their grotesque faces.
Naruto put his hand on the chest of the struggling Orochimaru. "I know you can hear me Sasuke. I advise you to prepare that may hurt a bit." Naruto looked straight into Orochimaru's eyes. "I can only say that you disgust me." He pulled. Orochimaru's voice mixed with Sasuke's as they screamed out loud. It was like Naruto was pulling a grotesque human form out of the chest. It looked completely disfigured As Naruto pulled it was like a second form was about to come out. Naruto looked at the Shinigami who pulled his Tanto from his mouth and separated them from one another. Still holding the grotesque thing in his hands Naruto looked at the Shinigami. "As promised. I hope you have fun with that Shinigami-sama"
He threw it at him and witnessed it as the soul of Orochimaru was consumed by the deity. Shortly after he put his hand on Sasukes body. Glowing in a bright green he began to heal.
It did not take long for the boy to open his eyes.
His voice was raspy, weak, and breaking. His whole body felt on fire. Only smoothed thanks to Naruto's chakra healing it at the moment. "Naruto?"
"Yeah, right here. Good to have you back Sasuke." Naruto said before he was pulled into his mindscape. There standing was a person he could not make out why he felt familiar. "Well, you must be the other presence I had felt out inside of my friend?" He asked.
The person who was hooded and gave him a respectful bow. "That I am. He kind of reminded me of myself. We even share some resemblance in how we are looking."
Naruto blinked twice before he shook himself out of his state. "Be that as it may how did you get into Sasuke? I mean I freed him of one invader already. I am sure he would be happy to not share his body."
"You are an Uzumaki alright" the person chuckled and as Naruto wanted to start asking what he meant he held up his arms in mock surrender. "That is not meant as an offense. The Uzuamki were always protective of their own. Even their friends that is. So. You won't need to extract me. I will fade on my own. I needed to help this young Uchiha protect himself. I thank you for your help. Without you, it would have taken months or years to get strong enough to slowly weaken the seal."
Naruto nodded once before he stopped again. "So, who are you?"