Disclaimer: See initial chapters

SulliMike23 - (chuckling evilly) And that's just the start...

Fusion Blaster - Now that would be something to see.

-0-

"You don't really expect us to believe that!"

The snarl of the young jinchuuriki echoed throughout the darkened chamber as the now-narrow slits of his eyes glared as the rogue ninja before him. Beside him, Sakura kept herself ready for anything, but was worried all the while. Aside from facing two deadly missing-nin, the killing intent and red chakra radiating from Naruto was beginning to scare her.

"Whether you believe it or not is of you own affair." Itachi's quiet voice broke in. "But the fact remains, we can't risk losing the Nine-Tails in this tournament."

Sakura's eyes widened. 'The Nine-Tails?'

"And as one of the chosen, you are protected until then." Kisame added. "That is the only reason we do not take you in now."

"Protected?" Sakura questioned, carefully finding her voice. "What do you mean?"

"They mean by me."

Both Naruto and Sakura blinked at the sound of the new voice and turned around to its source. Surprise flashed in Naruto's eyes, causing the red chakra surrounding him to diminish and his eyes and nails to return to normal. It also seemed that the newcomers' appearance had also returned Naruto to his usual self

"Hey! You're...that old man we met at the ramen shop!"

Indeed, it was the same white robed man that they had met prior to their boarding of the ship. The straw hat remained on his head, but this time, his face could clearly be seem. Although their were no wrinkles to be seen, his face appeared ageless. But most striking were his eyes; a deep blue that seemed to flash ever so often with...electricity?

"Raiden-dono." ("Lord Raiden.")

Both young ninja blinked in surprise as Itachi closed his eyes and bowed his head deeply toward him. That surprise grew when Kisame did the same, his large frame bending forward to the newcomer.

"A true honor to be graced with the presence of the thunder god."

"W-what?" Naruto stammered. "Thunder...god?"

Raiden spoke to the two members of the Akatsuki, his voice seeming to come from everywhere in the chamber. "You are well versed in the rules and restrictions of the tournament. I will assume you are aware of what is at stake as well."

Lifting his head, Itachi answered. "Quite. But that matters little to us. Our only concern is that the Nine-Tail's jinchuuriki is not lost in this."

'Jinchuuriki?' Sakura filed away in her mind.

"Besides, it's been a while since I've had a good fight." Kisame added, rising up as well with a grin. "It will be killing two birds with one stone."

The eyes of the thunder god narrowed. "Regardless of your dark ambitions, it is something I can not interfere in. And since you have had no dealings with Shang Tsung, I will at least concede that you do not fight for the emperor."

"No. Doing so would ruin all that we have planned." The Sharingan eyes lowered back to Naruto. "And we can not risk losing Naruto-kun's soul to him either."

Sakura eyes widened. 'Naruto's...soul...?'

"In any case, we will take our leave of you now." Slowly Itachi turned around toward the door on the other end, but a crimson gaze lingered on Naruto a little longer. "Survive, Naruto-kun. Survive to serve the Akatsuki's plans."

Kisame followed his partner, adding his own farewell. "Be seeing you around."

The two rouge ninja soon departed, leaving the three behind. As the youths turned to their 'savior', he simply turned around and beckoned them.

"Come. I believe your sensei is waiting."

"That was quick."

Still standing by the side of the ship, Kakashi casually glanced at the three coming toward him. Sakura seemed to be in thought about something, as was Naruto. That alone told Kakashi that something was wrong; that and the fact that he had sensed the chakra surge of the Nine-Tails a few minutes ago.

"I take it you two ran into some trouble."

Nodding, Sakura went on to explain their encounter with the Akatsuki. Kakashi's eye narrowed at the news, but he remained silent until Sakura finished her explanation.

"Itachi, eh? Well, that complicates matters."

Sakura was ready to say some more when Naruto cut her off. "Hey, Kakashi-sensei? Did our client show up yet?"

"Our...?" The jonin blinked and then lifted his eye, mentally shaking his head at Naruto's cluelessness. "Oh. Well yes, he did in fact. But he went to get you guys and it looks like he found you."

"Huh?" Blinking, Naruto looked about. "Where is he?"

"BAKA!" ("IDIOT!")

The answer he received was a blow to the back of the head that sent it into the deck, courtesy of Sakura. Unlike Kakashi, she didn't have time for games, neither did she have the patience to deal with Naruto right now (or ever it seems).

"He's talking about him." Turning to Raiden, she deeply bowed her head. "Gomen-nesai, Raiden-dono." ("I deeply apologize, Lord Raiden.")

"Oooww... You didn't have to hit me so hard." Naruto moaned as he lifted himself up from the deck, leaving an impression of his head in the wood. Rubbing his head, Naruto then turned to Raiden as well. "So what's this Raiden-dono stuff about? Who are you?"

Kakashi stepped away from the edge to explain. "Raiden is the god of lightning and thunder, Naruto. And he serves as the protector of the Mother Realm."

"Mother Realm?"

Raiden took over the explanation. "Your world is but one of many realms. In fact, your world is what is known as a Birth Realm."

"A Birth Realm?"

"Your world is closely linked with the Mother Realm. It's a bit complicated to explain, but to sum it down, whatever happens to the Mother Realm will greatly affect your own. And it is you three who are chosen to defend your realm in this tournament, called Mortal Kombat."

"Who do we have to defend it from?" Sakura asked this time.

The gaze of the thunder god gently turned to her. "There is another realm; a forsaken place called Outworld, under the rule of a powerful emperor, Shao Kahn. To obtain more power, he conquers other worlds and takes the souls of those he enslaves." He began to pace somewhat in front of them. "His ultimate goal is to take the Mother Realm. Once he has done so, he will have access to all realms at will. Entire worlds will fall under his dominion. The only thing that can stop him now is your victory."

The medic-nin frowned. "I don't get it. How does a tournament stop him?"

"Mortal Kombat is not just a simple tournament. These are sacred battles that show whether a generation is equipped to defend their own realm. It is part of the essence of Mortal Kombat." His gaze lowered, almost sadly. "However, in the previous tournaments, the emperor's warriors have dominated over the warriors of the Mother Realm. With each victory, they unbalance the Furies, tilting the scales of order into chaos. Simply put, if they win this tournament, the Mother Realm is theirs to conquer."

"Wait a minute." Naruto shot out. "You mean it's up to us to save, not just our world, but others too?"

Raiden smiled lightly, seeing that the boy was more perceptive than he previously showed. "Exactly."

"Raiden-dono, I don't understand." Sakura replied. "Why us? I mean, surely there were better people you could have chosen, right? Stronger people?"

Raiden tiled his head toward her. "It's more than just brute strength that will win the tournament, Sakura. It's what's inside a person, inside their soul." His gaze went past them and out into the open sea for a moment.. "I've looked into many of the souls of your world and I know that of all of them, you three..." His gaze centered in on them.

"One of you three will decide the outcome of the tournament."

A moment of silence came after his declaration, with each into their own thoughts for a moment. The piercing gaze of the thunder god didn't waver from them as he felt their conflicting emotions. So it wasn't quite a surprise to him when Naruto suddenly burst out

"Well that's okay. We're going to bust through this tournament and win!"

Raiden chuckled at this. "It's good that you have enthusiasm, but it will not be that easy. The tournament itself is corrupted." A thin scowl came over his face. "The emperor's demon sorcerer, Shang Tsung, has taken over the tournament by means of its champion and his student, Prince Goro of the Shokan. And since becoming champion, Goro has never been defeated."

The enthusiasm seemed to drain out of Naruto and his eyes widened. "Never?"

"Never. And Shang Tsung has also recruited warriors from your realm, in effect, his chosen ones."

"You mean this Shang guy got people from our world to help him?" Naruto then frowned in thought. "I bet it was Itachi."

"It is not them." Raiden replied. "They serve their own purposes, none of which pertain to Shang Tsung."

"Not them. But who else? I don't know anyone as bad as those guys."

Raiden was silent at this statement. Although this wasn't his primary realm, he was well acquainted with the activities and the conflicts here. The Great Shinobi Wars, the founding's of the Shinobi villages, the tailed-beasts and their hosts, the jinchuuriki, among other things. So knowledge of the activities of Konoha -The Village Hidden in the Leaves- was part of that. And there were at least one or two individuals that could fit that criterion.

"What's that?"

Glancing up at Sakura's statement, everyone stared up into the sky. The mist seemed to be clearing away, only to show lightning flashing about violently and in various colors. It was something none of the (except Raiden) had never seen before and the awe was seen in the eyes of both Naruto and Sakura. Despite this, Raiden knew the significance of this display and what it pertained to.

"It has begun..."