Naruto: Soul Reaper Chronicles

AN/ Alright, chapter three on tap. First off, I'll address some things brought up in reviews, just to clarify.

First, I Mz90 had a complaint about how the girls reacted to Naruto. Well, the answer to this is a combination of the fact that he is, as stated, very handsome, and the fact he is very charming when he wants to be.

Second, Lightningblade49 said they believed Naruto was already at a high captains level with his shinobi abilities. I will try to clarify, why he isn't there yet. The fact is, he won't have access to these abilities during most fights, because they require the use of physical energy, to complete the other half of chakra, and he'll be in spirit form.

Third, a guest asked about how his inner hollow would act, since his Zanpakutō is already 'hollow-like'. My reply is, his Zanpakutō is not exactly hollow-like, she is simply eager for strong opponents, kind of like a bloodthirsty Rock Lee, or better yet,, Kenpachi Zaraki. She also represents facets of his personality derived from part of his heritage, which has been hinted at already. As for his inner hollow, it will be a 'hero's comeback' of 'Yami', his dark side from the Waterfall of Truth, this time with new grievances against him, and not for being too 'happy go lucky'.

Lastly, was guest NyaNyaKittyFace, who asked a few good questions about certain things:

The first, was, would Naruto have both Quincy and Soul Reaper powers, do to his sage training? My answer is, it could theoretically be possible, as gathering nature energy seems to be similar to how Quincy's gather Reishi, however, I am not sure if Naruto will have this power, as he already is going to have a powerful Zanpakutō, plus hollowfication and hollow techniques.

The Second question, was whether Naruto was able to gain Soul Reaper powers because of Aizen. The answer is, I'm not giving anything away yet on that front.

The final question, was, what else did Naruto gain from the Juubi? In truth, he didn't really gain anything from the Juubi. The immortality was a byproduct of him using a seal, to rapidly absorb the Juubi's chakra, and thus, altering his DNA, as it was super-infused with the massive amounts of the the natural energy that the Juubi's chakra was made of. By doing this, he essentially eliminated the Juubi from existence, as it's chakra was converted to his own, because it is only a mass of chakra/natural energy, as soon as that mass is gone, it ceases to exist. However, by doing so, his chakra gained the quality of super vitality, which affects his body, stopping it from aging, and allowing him to heal from nearly anything

So, now, to the poll about a harem. I am of two minds. This is because, while the poll was overwhelmingly harem, the reviews were mostly pro single pairing, or very small harem if it is a harem.

My immediate inclination would be to split the difference, and go with a double pairing. However, I still have a bit of time before any of the others I would add to the pairing are introduced, so I won't act rashly.

This time, I will be relying solely on reviews to guide my decision, so, when done reading the chapter, please leave a review if you want your opinion heard.

Lastly, I'm a little disappointed that not anyone seemed to get my little quote from a favorite TV show of mine that Naruto used near the end of the last chapter.

I believe that is all for now, so, on with the chapter!

Normal speech: "what"

Extremely loud group/single person shouting: "WHAT!"

Thoughts/Speech taken out of context: 'What?'

Letter/Book/Written text: What?

Hollow speech: "What?"

Hollow thoughts: 'What'

Remembered Speech: "What?"

Zanpakutō Speech: "What?"

Zanpakutō Thoughts: 'What?'

Chapter Three: The Mystery of the Hood

-Underground, With Naruto, Yoruichi, Tessai, and Kisuke-

"Hadō # 31: Shakkahō!" Naruto cried, s he held his palm facing a cliff face.

A large orb of red energy gathered within a second, the size of a basketball. It launched from his hand, traveling at very high speeds, to impact the cliff face. A shower of dust and rock debris reigned down from the impact sight, clearing to reveal a large crater in the side of the cliff.

Naruto hadn't changed much in the two months that he had been training with the former Soul Reapers. The only change to his attire, was he now wore a grey haori, similar to a captains haori, that had the design of the yin-yang symbol with two tomoe on either side, on the back. Above that, was the symbol for Konoha, only styled more curvy so it looked even more like a leaf. Finally, along the bottom edge, were repeating infinity signs. He also had a black hood attached to his shihakushō, that could be raised to cover his face.

Strapped to his side was a katana that looked nearly identical to how his pseudo-Zanpakutō had appeared, only with the sharkskin underneath the hilt cloth being grey.

"Very impressive Naruto-san. That was as strong as many people can get it with the incantation." Tessai praised from behind the blond.

Naruto gave a nod in response to the praise. He knew he had come a long way in the past couple months, with the help of his clones, and the teachers Kisuke provided. From what he could tell, he was probably more skilled than most in the Soul Society with Kidō.

It came from having massive reserves of Reiryoku – that only Kenpachi or Yamamoto, and maybe Aizen, could rival – and his excellent control over said reiryoku reserves. It allowed him to put more power into the Kidō. When this was added to the fact he had spent centuries and millennia with nothing to do but master as many shinobi techniques as he could, it became easy to learn the Kidō spells.

"And his Shunpo is top notch as well." A purring voice said, as a pair of arms draped over his shoulder.

He could only chuckle at Yoruichi's continued attempts to get him to react to her shameless flirting. She had been trying to get a reaction from him for the entire time he had trained here.

"Thank you Yoruichi-chan. That's quite the complement, coming from the 'Goddess of Flash'." He said humbly. He then gained a contemplative look.

"Of course, maybe that title has more to do with your tendency to expose yourself to men." He said in a completely stoic tone. He knew from experience, that was often more annoying than a teasing one.

The purple-haired woman huffed, removing her arms from around him and instead crossing them under her bust. There was a pout on her face.

"You make it sound like I'm some kind of scarlet woman." She complained.

Naruto didn't bother giving this a reply.

"Yes well, teasing aside, I would have to agree with your assessments. When you factor in his abilities with his Zanpakutō, I would say he is on level with several of the captains, although I can't be too sure how you would do against the four senior captains, Unohana, Kyōraku, Ukitake, and Yamamoto ." Kisuke evaluated.

To Naruto, this said allot. He had been told of the sheer power of the Captain-Commander. It seemed, he was above even the level of the Shodai Hokage, Hashirama Senju. Naruto had been working tirelessly to learn these new techniques, because he knew from experience, that shinobi techniques were only so effective against spirit beings, this was because the physical half tended to lessen the damage it could do.

"Well, I think that's enough training for today, let's head back up to the shop, I have something for you there Naruto." Kisuke suggested.

This got a round of nods from the group, with Yoruichi changing back into a cat.

-Upstairs, a few minutes later-

Naruto looked at Kisuke, who was sitting on the raised portion at the back of the shop, that lead to the rest of the building.

The blond shinobi-turned-Soul-Reaper, was back in his physical body, and dressed in similar clothes to when he had rescued Rukia and Uzume, only with a black coat, and white long-sleeved shirt with a hood.

"So what's this thing you had for me Kisuke?" Naruto asked curiously.

"Ah yes, that. You see, I decided you needed a faster way to eject your soul from your body, so I had this made." Kisuke told him, as he pulled a necklace from within his shirt.

It was a bronze medallion, with the skull symbol that Kisuke had on the bottom of his cane, imprinted on the front of it. The medallion hung from a brown leather cord.

"This will eject you soul from your body. Normally, I would also give you an Artificial Soul pill as well, so that your body would be taken care of. But, with your ability to create clones, I figure it is well within your abilities to take care of it yourself." Kisuke explained as he tossed the necklace to the immortal blond, who leaned against the wall to the hallway..

"Thanks." Naruto said as he took the necklace, putting it around his neck.

Before any more could be said, the door to the shopped slammed open.

The two blonds looked to the doorway, to see an irate Rukia Kuchiki standing there.

"Ah, if it isn't my favorite customer, what can I do for you today?" Kisuke asked, before being smacked backwards and onto his back.

"Don't play innocent, I had to come in person because I've been trying to call for days with a major problem!" She growled.

Kisuke dragged himself back to a sitting position, adjusting his hat before speaking.

"Oh, sorry about that, but we've been busy lately. I was going to call you today, but–" He said, the implication obvious.

Rukia huffed, but got to the reason she was there in the first place.

"it's serious. I need information." She began, gaining the attention of all the rooms occupants.

"I need to hear what you know about 'Quincy's'." She said bluntly.

At this, Kisuke seemed to turn serious. And Naruto perked up.

"Quincy's. That's a name I haven't heard in a while." Kisuke said.

"Does have kind of an ancient ring to it. It's been two centuries if memory serves." Commented Tessai, as he brought in tea.

"Who are they?" Rukia asked.

"Who were they you mean. They were a clan who specialized in killing hollows. They started as humans who could sense spirits, like Uzume. Then they, began to gain powers to kill hollows. This lead to conflict with the Soul Reapers." Kisuke began.

"Heh, that's an understatement." Naruto scoffed from his place against the wall.

It seemed that Rukia hadn't seen him before, for she spun her head to look at him in shock.

"You're one of the students from Uzume's school, what are you doing here?" She asked in shock.

"I'm here because I feel like it, now let Kisuke explain the rest of the story. I'm curious to see how much of it he knows." Naruto replied.

Kisuke got the not-so-subtle hint to get on with it, so he cleared his throat, and continued.

"It was a conflict of ideals. Cleansing hollows, or outright killing them. The Quincy didn't believe that the hollows deserved to be cleansed, and that they should all be wiped out. It wasn't that strange when you think about it, they were trying to avenge their comrades, and doing what they believed to be right. But, I suppose you could say, it's what lead to their destruction." Kisuke explained.

Again Naruto scoffed at the way he put it.

"May? There's no question it did. The stubborn fools refused to listen to reason, when it was explained to them that they were upsetting the balance of the world because of their 'pride as a Quincy'. They couldn't except that it was necessary for hollows to exist. Eventually, the Soul Reapers did what seemed logical." Naruto interrupted.

"Logical? What did they do?" Rukia asked quietly.

"It was a painful decision, but in the end. The Soul Reapers had no choice but to destroy the Quincy. Otherwise, their actions would have brought the destruction of this world. So, two hundred years ago, the Quincy became extinct." Kisuke answered.

Rukia looked shocked at the news that the Soul Reapers would do something like this, and was about to bring up Uryū when Naruto spoke up once more.

"Well that's not entirely true." Naruto put in.

Everyone turned a questioning gaze to him. He shifted a little, before elaborating.

"A few families survived the purge, and have been lying low since then. There are only a handful left, but they're still around. In fact, one of them goes to Karakura High, in the same class as Uzume. Uryū Ishida. I'm unsure what other families there are in Japan, but his is one for sure." Naruto explained.

It looked like the discussion might continue, but then, Rukia's phone went off. Just as soon as she flipped it open, it stopped.

"Huh, looks like Uzume's doing good on her own." She commented, just before it rang again, and then the signal cut off again.

"What is wrong with this thing?" She asked.

Finally, it began to go crazy, as the screen lit up, showing hollows appearing everywhere.

Rukia rushed outside, to look up, and see a tear opening in the sky.

"Well, that's not ominous at all." Naruto deadpanned sarcastically.

"I've got to go find Uzume!" Rukia exclaimed, rushing off.

Naruto watched her run off, before turning to Kisuke.

"So, what are we going to do about this? I assume we're going to go thin the herd, as it were. Because there's way too many hollows appearing for those two to handle." Naruto said.

Kisuke hummed in agreement.

"Yes, you're right. Go ahead and begin to take car of the ones far from the Quincy and Uzume, and meet us when they are all destroyed." Kisuke told him,

With a nod, Naruto created a seal less shadow clone, and then used the medallion recently given to him, to eject his soul.

"Take that to the training ground." He commanded the clone, as he raised the hood connected to his robe.

In the shadow it cast, his eyes glowed an ominous red, with the three tomoe marks spinning wildly.

Without another word, he vanished using a Shunpo.

-Outside, with Naruto-

Naruto reappeared in the middle of the shopping district of Karakura. His eyes blazed with the sharingan as he assessed the situation. There were at least three hollows in sight. He briefly noted that one seemed to be being led away by the boy he recognized as Yasatora 'Chad' Sado.

He saw that the energies in the boy were beginning to rise, meaning he was on the cusp of awakening some sort of power. Thus, he decided to focus on the more important thing, namely the two hollows that had begun to tear up the streets. He noticed that one was making to attack a woman who was holding her children in her arms as she ran from the scene.

In an instant, he used Shunpo to reappear in front of the hollow.

Clang

The hollow, which looked like a sort of lizard, hissed upon seeing him. His blade easily held back the claws of its hand, and even began to cut into the white bone-like material

"A Ssssoul Reaper. Thisssss isss a Sssurprise! Your soul will be delicioussss!" It said in a hissing voice.

Naruto said nothing, causing the hollow to mistake his silence for fear.

"Oh! Are you afraid little Ssssoul Reaper? Don't worry, it will be painless!" The hollow chuckled maliciously.

Naruto remained silent for a moment, before looking up at the hollow.

"Afraid? Of what? There is nothing to be afraid of here. You don't honestly believe yourself superior do you? I have not even released my Zanpakutō, and yet, I effortlessly stop your attack. No, I simply don't see the point in talking to you, when you will be dead in a second." He scoffed.

With that, he suddenly put more force on his blade, slicing through the hollows hand. Blood splattered across the pavement as the severed limb disintegrated. Before the hollow could even howl in agony, he rushed forward and bisected it completely.

As the hollow slowly disintegrated, Naruto swung his left arm behind his back and pointed with his middle and index finger extended, and the others curled into the palm.

"Hadō # 4: Byakurai!" He said softly, not even turning to look at what he was firing at. A large bolt of bluish lightning extended from his fingers.

A shriek was heard, as the humanoid bird-like hollow that had been attempting to attack him from behind, was pierced through the mask, leaving it to disintegrate.

Wordlessly, Naruto took off in the direction he sensed the nearest hollows were.

-Near the park, with Uzume, and Uryū-

Uryū was about to prepare another arrow to fire when he sensed something that caused him to freeze. He could sense all the hollows in the area, and across town. So when all of a sudden, hollow signatures in far off places like the shopping district began disappearing rapidly, he had trouble comprehending what was happening.

Then he felt it. Appearing in the center of a group of hollows as large as the one he was in the middle of, fighting back to back with Uzume. The unmistakable signature of a Soul Reaper. Within moments, the signatures of all the hollows disappeared.

"I-impossible!" He exclaimed, gaining the attention of Uzume.

"What is it Uryū?" Asked Uzume.

Uryū was slightly shaking in shock. Still, he managed to answer.

"There's someone else out there eliminating the hollows. Another Soul Reaper." He told her.

Uzume, looked confused, as she would expect this to be a good thing. And she voiced this opinion.

"So, isn't that a good thing?"

In the wake of this question, Uryū began fighting again, while also explaining what he meant.

"You don't get it. This person is eliminating whole groups as large as the one we are facing, in mere minutes. It's not good or bad, but it is most certainly not normal!"

Upon hearing this, Uzume couldn't help but be reminded of the man who had saved her on the night she became a Substitute Soul Reaper.

Before she could ponder this any longer, she noticed a disturbance in the sky, as if it was being pulled back, like a curtain, in four different places surrounding the park. Out of the openings, four massive hollows began to appear, with plain masks and long noses, and what appeared to be cloaks made out of inky-black shadows.

"What the hell is that? Uzume questioned in fear.

-A few streets away, with Rukia-

Rukia could only stare in shock at the sight before her. The sky seemed to tear itself open, and out peaked the face of the four massive hollows. It was a sight that filled her with dread, as she recognized what it was.

"Menos. . . ." She whispered in horror.

Near her, Konpa – the mod-soul that inhabited Uzume's body while she fought – heard her reaction.

"Menos, what's that?" She asked.

Rukia swallowed hard before answering

"Menos Grande is a special class of hollows, made of hundreds of compressed hollows who began devouring each other. I've only read about them in books before. Only a captain of the Gotei 13 could hope to defeat one. One I might see us handling, but four. . . ." She explained, trailing off in a helpless tone.

At this, Konpa gulped. She knew she should stay out of the way. Uzume would be pissed if she messed up her body. The mod-soul let out an involuntary shudder as she remembered what Uzume had done to make sure she didn't get it in her head to take any liberties with her body when she was in it. This happened after the lesbian mod-soul had almost ruined her reputation by hitting on all the other girls in class.

"Come on." Rukia called, as she began to run towards where she knew Uzume to be.

–Near the Karakura Hospital, with Naruto–

Naruto watched apathetically as the last hollow that wasn't near Uzume and Uryū disintegrated. He had been killing hollows non-stop for near half an hour now.

It didn't take much effort of skill, but it was still annoying. Although his Zanpakutō seemed happy with how much blood she was getting to spill.

'Mmmm, I sure am Naruto-kun! It's been awhile since we've spilled so much blood!' His Zanpakutō commented joyously.

Before their conversation could continue, Naruto felt another four hollow signatures appear, these ones was much bigger than any of the others.

"Such a large signatures. It must be Menos. I think you may just get released." Naruto spoke, first to himself, and then to his Zanpakutō.

He could practically feel his Zanpakutō shiver in delight at the idea of being released.

With this, he vanished, headed to the area he felt the Menos emerging.

Naruto emerged from the Shunpo, to stand on a branch in a tree in the park. From here, he could see all that was going on. Uzume and Uryū were facing down the hollow, with Urahara off to the side with his cohort, and restraining Rukia.

It took him a second to realize, he intended for Uzume to take on the Menos. Before his eyes, he watched her charge the Menos, in an attempt to cut it down like she did all hollows. He could only shake his head at such tactics.

"That won't work on a Menos." He muttered to himself.

Sure enough, she got booted rather hard, and tumbled backwards, to land where she started from. For the next few minutes, Naruto watched as Uryū discovered how much of a boost he got from touching Uzume's Zanpakutō.

That was when the Menos she was facing began charging a cero. As he looked at this, he saw with his sharingan that one of the other Menos was going to do the same.

"Looks like that's my cue." He said to himself.

Disappearing in a blur, he reappeared in mid air about twenty yards in front of the hollow. He appeared to simply be regarding it silently for a moment, while the hollow opened it's mouth to begin charging the cero.

"You really are a mindless beast. Even worse than the lower-class hollows." He stated to the oblivious hollow.

All he got in response was a roar as the hollow opened its mouth to fire the now charged cero. The area was bathed in red light, as it seemed to become dark anywhere the light didn't touch.

"Very well. . . ." The immortal muttered.

The blond held his Zanpakutō horizontally in front of him in his left hand as the cero was loosed.

"Now. . .Witness Hell, Karasuba!" The blond declared, as an aura of grey reiatsu exploded around him.

The now named Karasuba, was engulfed in a black light. When it faded, it revealed that the Zanpakutō had changed. It had grown to become a nodachi, with the bronze guard being lobed now, and having the design of two crows wing on either side, with the tips of the wings pointing the same direction as the sharp part of the blade.. The back half of the blade shining darkly, being almost black in color, while the front remained a gleaming silver.

Idly, Naruto heard a few screams from the direction that Urahara and the rest were in. He ignored them as he swung his arm outwards, slicing through the cero just as it was about to hit.

The energy seemed to dissipate after it was cut by the blade.

Without a word, Naruto swung his blade once more, unleashing a crescent of glowing grey reiatsu, that traveled at high speeds, passing straight through the hollow.

For a few seconds, all was silent. Then the hollow gave one last roar, as its head slid from its body, with both beginning to disintegrate. From behind Naruto, the other two Menos let loose roars as they saw the attack on their fellow.

Acting as the mindless beasts they were, they immediately began to charge ceros' of their own.

This was stopped as Naruto blurred out of existence, appearing before them.

"Kushizashi. . ."(1) He said softly, as he channeled a massive amount of reiryoku into the technique.

The hollows began to howl in agony, writhing to and fro. To them, it felt like they were being stabbed by hundreds of white-hot knives, the size of Uzume's blade.

Not wasting any time, Naruto rushed forward, slicing through the top of one of the Menos' head vertically. As the blood spurted from the Menos' head, and it began to tip forward while disintegrating, Naruto turned to the third and final Menos, which had charged a cero.

In a flash, he slashed his Zanpakutō through the air, releasing a grey crescent of reiryoku just like with the first Menos. It effortlessly cut through and diffused the cero, and continued to slice through the Menos' head right in the middle of the mouth.

For a moment, all was silent as the hollows disintegrated. Karasuba was enveloped in a flash of black light once more, as it reverted to its sealed form.

In the silence, the solid – shink – of Karasuba being sheathed could be heard all around.

-A few minutes earlier, with the group-

Rukia watched with wide eyes, as the Menos was forced back to Hueco Mundo by Uzume. She had never dreamed of the possibility of Uzume being capable of this.

However, her shock did not dull her fear, which only grew as she saw Uzume collapse, and Uryū struggling to save her by releasing her bottled up reiryoku. The fear stemmed from the other three Menos still looming over them.

That was when she saw a blur seem flash by, which solidified in front of one of the Menos, who had begun charging a cero. For a moment, she mistook the person for a captain, due to the grey haori. However, she realized that it was the same man from the night she met Uzume.

'Is he that boy from Urahara's?' She wondered. It was a distinct possibility, as it wasn't likely to be a coincidence that he had been visiting the store, and seemed to know the mysterious Kisuke Urahara.

"Hey, is that the guy that saved us that first night we met?"

Rukia turned to the side, to see Uzume had recovered, although still looking slightly out of it.

"I think it is." She answered.

Upon hearing this, Uzume started paying closer attention to the hooded man. She had often wondered about him during her time as a Substitute Soul Reaper, namely, why had he not appeared since that first night?

As she looked at him, she began to worry, as she saw the Menos he stood in front of, had charged up the same technique she had just barely deflected. She was shocked that he didn't move at all.

This shock grew to worry, as he still hadn't moved when the Menos made to fire the technique.

"LOOK OUT!" She cried, at the same time she heard Rukia scream out a warning as well.

"MOVE YOU FOOL!"

Their warnings went ignored, as his Zanpakutō was drawn in a flash of silver. Just before the cero would hit, an aura of grey reiatsu exploded around the man, and his Zanpakutō changed form.

The reiatsu was unbelievable. It was as large and oppressing as when Uzume had deflected the cero, although she didn't know that, it simply felt very heavy to her. At the same time, it felt comforting, and filled her with hope.

One thing that confused her, was the way his Zanpakutō changed form.

Unlike, Uzume, Rukia recognized what happened with the Zanpakutō.

'A shikai. And such a powerful release of reiatsu. It's on the level of a captain!' She thought, some hope entering her.

This hope was vindicated when the hooded Soul Reaper effortlessly sliced through the cero, and released a wave of reiryoku that cut the Menos' head off. From there, she watched in shock as he proceeded to easily dispatch the other two Menos. The only thing she didn't understand, was when the hollows seemed to scream in pain.

Was it some sort of nerve attack by the Zanpakutō?

She was broken from her thoughts, when she heard Konpa speak up, shock evident in her tone.

"Hn, so that's the power of a Gillian. It's not nearly as impressive as I expected." Naruto said dismissively, the comment to himself being heard throughout the area in which the group was amassed.

His comment seemed to shake the members of the group, who didn't work at the Urahara Shop, out of their shocked state.

"Wh-who the hell are you?" Konpa asked in shock. It was the first time she witnessed such a display of strength from anyone.

Her comment got Uzume's attention, as she recognized the man as the one that saved her, but she still had no idea who he was.

She had recovered from the surge in her spiritual power in time to see the hooded man kill the first Menos, and watched in shock as he dealt with the others. His seemingly effortless slaying of them both inspired and scared her.

Uzume had nearly killed herself merely forcing a single Menos back to Hueco Mundo, the home of the hollows. Yet this hooded stranger had outright killed not one but three Menos, in a seemingly effortless way.

Was this the power of a captain-level Soul Reaper Rukia had told her of? If so, she could understand the obvious respect in her voice when she spoke of them. The power was overwhelming.

It had increased when his sword changed form, and the reiatsu exploded from him at the same level as when she had forced back the Menos.

Her shock had been furthered by his casual dismissal of the Menos. One thing was certain about this stranger; he was overwhelmingly more powerful and skilled than herself.

Naruto, for his part, simply looked over to the group before speaking.

"I have many names. For now, I will tell you I am one who has lived in the shadows far too long." Naruto responded, before turning to Uryū.

"As for you Quincy, I hope you learned your lesson. Were it not for me, you could have gotten several people killed to satisfy your pride and thirst for revenge." Naruto said bluntly, causing the Quincy to flinch at the truth of his words.

Turning to look down at Uzume once more, he spoke one final time.

"We will meet again Uzume Kurosaki. Until then, I bid you farewell." Naruto said, before vanishing into a Shunpo.

As Rukia, Uzume, Konpa, and Uryū stared at the spot where he had stood, Kisuke spoke up.

"Well, that's enough excitement for one day I think. If you'll excuse me, I have some inventory to take. And by me, I mean Jinta." Kisuke said jovially, ignoring the indignant shout of 'Hey!' from Jinta.

- Seireitei, six hours later-

CLACK CLACK CLACK

"All captains of the 13 Court Guard Squads report to the Squad One barracks for a captains meeting." A female voice called clearly throughout the Seireitei.

BANG

"I call this captains meeting of the 13 Court Guard Squads into session." An aged, yet strong, male voice called out loudly.

It belonged to an old man, with a long white beard, held together by a black ribbon. His eyebrows were very long as well, and his eyes themselves squinted nearly shut. He was hunched, and wore a standard Soul Reaper uniform, with an overly-large white haori with a royal purple in inside on top.

The man was sitting in a straight-backed chair, with a wooden cane with a large knot on top, held in his hands.

The room around was a meeting hall of sorts, with a traditional Japanese design,, obvious from the rice-paper doors.

Standing in front of him, were two rows of people, each on either side of the room, facing each other. There were six people in each line.

Though their appearances varied greatly, they all shared the white haori with a pattern of black dots and slits, and the symbol of the 13 Court Guard Squads on the back, with different kanji numbers inside.

"One hour ago, the captain of Squad Two, Soifon, informed me of an unusual occurrence in the world of the living. Captain Soifon, report to the other captains what you told me!" The old man commanded.

A petite black-haired women stepped forward at this. Her hair was cut hime style in the front , with two long braids in the back, bound with cloth and with a ring at the ends. Her eyes were a piercing grey, and she wore the standard captain uniform, with a sleeveless white haori that had an orange inside, and black shihakushō. Around her waist was a yellow obi, and her Zanpakutō – which had a yellow hilt-cloth – hung from her lower back by a rope.

She had a very strong look to her, almost angry.

"Earlier today a team from the Patrol Corps that was sent to the World of the Living to discover the source of a sudden flood of hollows into Karakura Town. They came across something unexpected." She began, her voice clear and serious.

"They reported an unknown Soul Reaper, with a Zanpakutō as long as her body, forcing a Gillian class Menos Grande back to Hueco Mundo on her own. She is described as being young, with bright orange hair. Rukia Kuchiki, a member of Squad Thirteen, who has been on mission to the world of the living, longer than her mission state, was standing to the side, apparently in a gigai. It is the teams belief that she has given her powers to a human, as there was a human body looking just like the girl, that appeared to be using a Soul Candy." Soifon told them.

At this, there were many raised eyebrows, and a shocked look in the case of one captain, with long white hair.

"Gave her powers to a human? Are you sure?" The man questioned.

All he got was a fierce glare from the squad two captain.

"Of course, but that isn't the most important part. The next part, is the reason Head-Captain Yamamoto called this captains meeting." Soifon replied.

This gained the undivided attention of all the captains.

"What could be more important than such a serious law being broken?" Questioned one captain, who had a laid back appearance, with long brown hair, and stubble, wearing a pink kimono over his captains haori, and a straw hat on his head.

Soifon looked in his direction briefly before answering.

"Because while the apparent human was overcoming the cero, and forcing back that Menos, there were three others. A second unknown Soul Reaper – who wore a hood to keep his features hidden – appeared just as the first was forced back, and faced another that had begun charging a cero. he released his Zanpakutō, and proceeded to kill all three Menos with little effort. On top of this, they reported the same Soul Reaper killing multiple hollows all over town, all with ease, and without releasing his Zanpakutō until he faced the Menos." She finished.

If the reactions were surprised at hearing that Rukia had given her powers to a human, they were shocked at hearing about the mysterious hooded Soul Reaper.

"As you can see, with this information, it is imperative that this mystery be solved as soon as possible, so that we may determine if this man is a threat to the Soul Society." Head-Captain Yamamoto stated, as Soifon stepped back into line.

"Therefore, Central 46 has issued orders to resolve both situations. Captain of Squad Six, Byakuya Kuchiki!" Yamamoto called.

A black haired captain stepped forward at this. His long hair was arranged in two kenseikan, making three stands of hair travel across his face to the left, and the other making two point backwards. His eyes were narrow and grey, and he had an angular face. He wore a sleeveless captains haori, and a white scarf around his neck. On his wrists, he wore fingerless white tekkō that only covered the back of his hands.

"You and your lieutenant, Renji Abarai, are to go to the world of the living immediately, and capture Rukia Kuchiki, to be brought back for sentencing for her crimes." Yamamoto commanded.

The captain of squad six merely gave a nod, his face not showing an expression for a moment.

"Head-Captain, surely such actions aren't necessary? I know she committed a crime, but-" The white-haired captain began protested

BANG

The head-captains cane hitting the ground silenced his protest.

"This is the will of the Central 46, and is final. Now, also by order of Central 46, Squad Nine Lieutenant, Shūhei Hisagi, and Squad Three Lieutenant Izuru Kira, will be dispatched to track down and confront this mystery Soul Reaper, so that they may ascertain the scope of his abilities, how he came by them, and if he poses a threat to the Soul Society. That will be all!" Yamamoto said, with a final bang of his cane on the floor.

-Urahara Shop, just after the Captains Meeting-

Naruto sat across from Kisuke in his shop, having been called there a half hour ago. He had been asleep when the Hell Butterfly arrived.

Next to Kisuke, Yoruichi sat in cat form.

"Thanks for coming at such short notice. I'm afraid that we have a problem." Kisuke stated.

Upon hearing this, Naruto started to pay a lot more attention, because Kisuke was completely serious.

"This last battle was sure to have caught the attention of the 13Court Guard Squads. They will most likely be coming to retrieve Rukia, and probably send someone to investigate you as well." Kisuke informed him.

This statement caused Naruto to fall into deep thought, contemplating the events soon to unfold. After his performance against the Menos, they were sure to send a lieutenant at the least.

He was brought from his musing by Yoruichi speaking in the male voice of her cat form.

"That's not all." She said, gaining his attention.

"Tch, what else could there be?" He asked.

"We believe that this is somehow being orchestrated by Sosuke Aizen. He wants Rukia back in the Soul Society so he can obtain something from her." Yoruichi answered.

Naruto wrinkled his brow at this. It sounded like Aizen was going to show his colors soon.

"We have no hope of preventing her from being retrieved eventually, so the safest thing to do, is let her be captured, and then go into the Soul Society to rescue her, and expose Aizen. Most importantly, we need to prevent him from gaining the thing he wants from within her." Yoruichi told him.

At this, Naruto scowled. It sounded too much like Akatsuki being after him for his tastes.

"And just what is this 'thing' he wants?" Naruto asked.

Kisuke took out his fan at this, holding it in front of his face, as he replied.

"It's called the Hōgyoku. It's an item I invented accidently, while trying to increase a Soul Reapers powers. The Hōgyoku breaks down the border between Soul Reaper and Hollow, and allows a Soul Reaper to gain the powers of a hollow. or–" Kisuke was interrupted by Naruto.

"–or give a hollow the powers of a Soul Reaper, right?" Naruto asked, a picture beginning to form, and pieces of the puzzle falling into place.

"Correct. Anyways, I couldn't destroy the Hōgyoku, so I hid it, inside Rukia Kuchiki. Now Aizen has discovered this, and wants the Hōgyoku for himself, to complete the partial one he made himself." Kisuke informed him.

Seeing he still had the other blonds attention, he continued.

"I believe he is somehow influencing the Central 46, and will force an execution via Sōkyoku, a massive spear,, that pierces the soul of the victims, and contains the destructive force of a thousand Zanpakutō. This will burn away her soul, and allow him access to the Hōgyoku. We simply need to rescue her before or during the execution." Kisuke finished explaining.

Naruto sat in contemplation after this. He held his chin in his hand, as he thought over the problem. In the end, he had to agree that Kisuke's plan made the most sense.

"Very well. I'll be ready to take on the person, or persons, they send after me, and then I'll begin to master bankai, if you can provide me with a place to train in it. I'll be a part of the team to invade Soul Society." Naruto told them, getting relieved looks from them.

"Good. I'm going to train Yasatora Sado, and Orihime Inoue, to be able to help in the mission to the Soul Society." Yoruichi informed him.

Naruto gave a nod to this.

"And I intend to help Uzume unlock her own Soul Reaper powers." Kisuke informed him.

Once more, Naruto simply gave a nod, having already suspected Uzume had powers of her own.

"Good, now, about that place to train?"

-Karakura High, next night, as school gets out-

Naruto looked out the window, as class ended that day. All around, students were packing up to go home. It came as almost a sort of rumbling sensation, as if the air around him was vibrating.

"They're here." He said to himself.

"Huh, you say something Naruto-san?" A feminine voice asked from behind him.

Naruto turned to see Uzume looking at him with a curious gaze. He offered an 'eye-smile' in return, before answering.

"Oh nothing, I just remembered I need to go meet someone today. I should be going, or I might be late." Naruto told her.

Uzume gave him a slight smile in return. Naruto couldn't help a chuckle at this. Over the past month, he – or rather, his clone – had gotten to know Uzume allot better.

She was pretty smart, even if she lacked some common sense, and a case of rashness that lead to rushing into situations. Not that that was a bad thing, he himself was guilty of it in his youth. Still, she was very pleasant to be around.

"Well, see ya later." Naruto said with a wave.

'So you've arrived have you? Very well, you ready for the biggest fight yet, Karasuba-chan?' Naruto thought to himself.

'Oooo, yes Naruto-kun. This should be so much better than plain hollows, I can't wait to test ourselves against Soul Reapers, they're blood is sure to be more tasty than those low-level hollows!' Karasuba responded giddily.

'We're not going to kill anyone from the Soul Society save the three captains we were informed of.' Naruto told her, his tone admonishing.

'I know, but I can still enjoy the taste of their blood !' Karasuba answered in her usual bloodthirsty tone.

-Near the river, just after school got out-

The sun was low in the sky, as an set of traditional rice-paper doors appeared in thin air, they slowly opened with a 'clacking' sound, revealing a set of round doors of the same style, which opened as well. A light poured from the opening, with four figures silhouetted against the light were four figures.

They stepped forward, and the doors closed, then disappeared, showing the four clearly for the first time.

On the right, and closest to the center, stood the stoic form of Byakuya Kuchiki, without his captains haori.

Next to him, and the furthest to the right, was a tall tan Soul Reaper, with his red hair pulled into a spiky pineapple-style ponytail. He had a number of tattoo's visible, and a white bandana tied sideways on his forehead, with a pair of goggle-like sunglasses resting on top of his head.. At his waist was strapped a katana, with a jagged design on the rectangular guard.

On the other side of Byakuya, stood a third man, with blue eyes and shoulder-length blond hair that was combed into three points, two in the back, and one in front to cover his left eye. Strapped to his waist was a katana with a rectangular guard with the design on an omega on the top and bottom half.

Finally, on the far left, stood a man with grey eyes, and short black hair, with three scars going down over his right eye and down to his chin, with a blue-striped tattoo running from his left cheek to across his nose, and the number '69' tattooed on his left cheek as well. He had a choker around his neck, and matching arm bands on his upper arms. His Soul Reaper top had the sleeves removed, and strapped to his side was a katana with an octangular guard.

"You have your orders." Byakuya stated.

Without a word, the four disappeared using Shunpo.

-Hill overlooking Karakura, near midnight, with Naruto-

Naruto waited silently on top of a hill staring down over Karakura Town. It was near a cemetery. He was waiting for those looking for him to appear, he had been fluctuating his spiritual pressure for the past half hour. He was eager to get this over with, and go to back up Uzume, who would undoubtedly go to help Rukia.

He heard a whisper, as if of a light wind behind him.

"So, you've finally arrived. I've been waiting for you to show. Let's get this over with." Naruto spoke in a bored voice, as he turned to face behind him.

Standing there, were two of the men he sensed before, one with blond hair, the other with black hair.

"I see, so the group with the captain is going after Rukia Kuchiki. That was a mistake, if your mission is to fight me." Naruto said, making the two tense.

It wasn't exactly a taunt, but it felt like he was saying he was stronger than both put together. What was really unnerving, was he knew why the other two were there, and that they were there in the first place.

"My Name is Naruto Uzumaki, what are yours?" He asked, as if he hadn't just said he was stronger than him.

His calm demeanor was unnerving the two lieutenants. He was obviously not worried in the slightest about losing.

"My name is Izuru Kira, Lieutenant of Squad Three of the 13 Court Guard Squads." The blond stated.

"And I am Sh hei Hisagi, Lieutenant of Squad Nine." Shūhei told him.

Naruto smiled at their introductions. He got the lieutenants to two of the men planning to betray the Soul Society, and who were responsible for framing Kisuke and Tessai.

"Squads Three and Nine you say? That would make your captains Gin Ichimaru, and Kaname Tōsen correct?" Naruto asked

Hearing that he knew their captains names, the two tensed further. It wasn't exactly a hidden topic, but since he had never been to Soul Society to their knowledge, it was strange for him to know it.

"We have orders to ascertain your power level, and how you came to possess Soul Reaper powers, and whether they pose a threat to the Soul Society. Of course, if you come with us quietly, there's no need for the first part." Izuru stated.

Naruto gained thoughtful expression.

"Hmm, a threat. I suppose to certain members of the Soul Society, I pose a threat. For instance, your Central 46. The 13 Court Guard Squads may obey them, but I bow my head to no king, and certainly not to a bunch of narrow-minded fools, who are quick to judge others, and forget that they are merely heralds, not royal themselves." Naruto told them.

At this, their eyes widened in shock. They had never heard someone speaking about Central 46 like that. It would be considered tantamount to questioning the Soul King.

"Very well, and where did you come by your powers?" Izuru asked, remembering they're orders.

"I got them from within myself, and with the help of a humble shopkeeper." Naruto answered with a grin.

Internally, he was going over his battle plan. He didn't want to reveal too many of his skills. It would be better if the Soul Society didn't know the full scope of his abilities. He knew he could take a normal captain easy, but if they knew he could dispose of these two easily, they would send two captains after him when they entered Soul Society.

'So that means we're limited to using only the techniques they might have seen when I fought the Menos, as well as my speed and strength.' Naruto analyzed.

'What's more, I need to conserve energy for facing the captain, who I will have to do the same thing against. Very well, it's decided. I'll limit my strength to that of a captain under a Gentei Reiin.' Naruto concluded.

While Naruto was plotting a strategy, the lieutenants couldn't help but sweat drop at the answer. The first part was obvious, and the second was plain unhelpful.

"Now, let's get to the part where you assess my power level. Bur prepared, for my Zanpakutō thirsts for your blood." Naruto said.

In a flash of steel, all three men had drawn their Zanpakutō. In a blur of speed, Naruto rushed the two lieutenants.

'He's so fast! I haven't seen anyone this fast except a captain!' Izuru thought.

Naruto appeared in front of Shūhei, going for a slash. The Lieutenant of Squad Nine managed to bring his blade up in time, but he nearly buckled at the strength behind it.

He noted that the hooded mans eyes were now blood red, with three tomoe marks spinning around his pupils.

Out of the corner of his eyes, Naruto noticed a flash of steel.

He immediately flash stepped away, stopping a few yards away. A sound of ripping cloth was heard, and a grunt released.

There was now a cut in the upper arm of Izuru.

Even when he was dodging, he managed to make an attack.' He thought.

As soon as he appeared, Naruto started forward once more. He came in with an downward slash towards Izuru. The slash was blocked. Undeterred, he brought his leg up into Izuru's guard, kicking him away as he turned to block the attack directed at his back.

The next few minutes, were a flurry of slashing, parrying, and dodging. Shūhei and Izuru gained a number of small cuts, but Naruto remained untouched.

However, he was starting to get annoyed. Despite the difference in physical strength, and his speed, the two managed to work together well enough that he couldn't take advantage of openings. If he were going all out, they wouldn't be doing nearly so well.

"That's it. I wanted to beat you without revealing too much, but that isn't possible now." Naruto growled.

This fight couldn't last long, he needed to conserve energy in case he had to clash with the captain.

"Hadō # 58: Tenran!" Naruto called, holding out his palm towards them.

A huge tornado of wind blasted forth, surprising the two men, and knocking the wind from their lungs, carrying them at least a dozen yards backwards.

Naruto stood straight, holding his Zanpakutō out in front of him horizontally in his left hand. He gave them a stare that made them feel he was looking right through him, combined with the red eyes, it was very intimidating, as an aura of grey reiatsu surrounded him.

". . . .Witness Hell, Karasuba!" Naruto called out.

His Zanpakutō was enveloped in a flash of black light. The aura of reiatsu around him exploded, making it seem he was enveloped in a translucent grey inferno. It brought with it a crushing feeling of dread.

The Zanpakutō that was revealed once the light dissipated, was much longer, becoming a nodachi, with a slightly wider blade, and the back edge being darker than the front, almost black. It's guard had changed to a plain lobed style, with a design of two spread crows wings on either side of the guard, with the tips of the wings pointing the same way as the sharp half.

"Th-this reiatsu , it's as strong as a captains. And it's so crushing, it fills me with dread." Izuru stuttered.

Naruto stood there with the same look, staring right through them.

"You had better release your Zanpakutō, because if you don't, you will hold no chance of victory." Naruto told them coldly.

To prove his point, he decided to unleash his destructive shikai technique.

"Seishin Senkō!"(2) He yelled, as he slashed his Zanpakutō through the air, releasing a familiar crescent of reiryoku, that was twice as long as his body.

It flew towards the two lieutenants at astonishing speeds, forcing them to block the attack with their blades.

As the attack made contact with his blade, Shūhei's eyes widened in shock. In the millisecond this happened, he immediately flash stepped out of the way, with Izuru following at almost the exact same time, confused at the reaction of his friend.

"Why did we dodge Shūhei? We block Kidō attacks in a pinch, why not that?" Izuru asked in confusion.

His question went unanswered for a moment, as Shūhei stared intensely at Naruto, who looked back with a slight smirk.

"Look closely at your Zanpakutō's blade." Shūhei told him, not taking his eyes off Naruto for a second.

Still confused, Izuru did as suggested, and looked at his blade. It only took him a moment to notice what had caused his friends reaction.

"I-impossible! just from that brief contact?" He gasped.

Shūhei nodded grimly to his friends question.

"That's right, even from that brief millisecond of contact, his attack began cutting through our blades. If we had stood still, our Zanpakutō's, and possibly us, would have been cut in half." Shūhei concluded, for on each of their blades, there was a small nick on the sharp edge, barely a couple millimeters at most.

But still, to cut a Zanpakutō like that, took an untold amount of cutting power. Only an attack with an overwhelming reiatsu could do that, like the captain of Squad Eleven.

"So now you realize, what you face. Seishin Senkō, it's an attack that can cut through almost anything. It can be used simply as an extra cutting power to the blade, or, as you just experienced, a projectile." Naruto explained.

His tone was deadly serious, imparting on them a feeling of dread, just like his reiatsu upon the swords release.

"As I said, release your shikai, because if you don't, you will find yourselves overwhelmed by a Zanpakutō of unimaginable ability and power." Naruto stated once more.

It didn't really take any thought. The comment was unnecessary, as they could already tell that to not release them, would likely result in their deaths. Although, the comment about unimaginable ability and power was confusing.

From what they could tell, his Zanpakutō was a melee, like Shūhei's Zanpakutō. But from the comment, it made it seem that there was more to it than that.

"Raise Your Head, Wabisuke!" Izuru called.

His Zanpakutō straightened, and became black at the back edge. It then kinked twice, making two ninety-degree angles, giving it a hooked appearance.

"Reap, Kazeshini!" Shūhei muttered in the same serious, almost depressing tone of voice.

His Zanpakutō split, becoming two double sided sickles, connected by a chain. the blades were set so that one side had the sharp part facing up, and the other down. It was all black, save the sharp parts, which were silver.

Naruto smirked at the sight of the blades.

"Those are only the second and third shikai I've seen, that isn't Karasuba. I must admit, they look interesting, especially yours." Naruto said, looking to Shūhei at the end.

"Really, because I'm not too fond of it. Look at it, like it's made for reaping lives. I follow my captains path you see, the one of least bloodshed." Shūhei stated, before launching one of the blades forward, spinning through the air like a buzz saw.

Naruto's smirk disappeared at this comment, as he casually knocked the blade aside with his own. He looked at Shūhei with a critical gaze.

"Not found of your Zanpakutō? Simply because of its nature? What a childish notion." Naruto replied, gaining a glare from Shūhei.

"Don't look at me like that boy. Your Zanpakutō is born from a part of your soul, it is a part of you, a representation of part of your personality. By denying that part of you, you make yourself weak." Naruto stated.

Shūhei's eyes widened, as Naruto casually reached behind himself, and caught his Zanpakutō by the staff part of it, not even tuning to look to catch it.

"So long as you deny your Zanpakutō's nature, and are in conflict with yourself, you can never defeat me." The hooded man told him coldly.

Naruto launched the blade back at its owner, forcing him to dodge to the side, and catch it by its handle.

Izuru, watched the conversation unfold with mixed feelings. On one hand, Shūhei was his friend. On the other, he couldn't help but agree with the mystery man. Part of being a Soul Reaper, was forming a synergistic unit with the Zanpakutō. It was impossible if he was constantly at odds with his Zanpakutō's nature.

He saw Shūhei's eyes widen in shock at the declaration, and couldn't help but believe it was possibly for the best.

Still, he decided that it was time he got involved in the battle.

"Shūhei!" He said sharply, gaining the attention of his comrade.

Izuru gave him a nod. Understanding, Shūhei launched his blade once more.

As the blade came towards him, Naruto's vision was blocked of anything behind it. Thus, he wasn't expecting it when he deflected it once more, only to have Izuru appear right behind it.

Their blades met with the ringing of clashing steel. Izuru tried for a downward slash, which Naruto blocked.

Nevertheless, Izuru was relentless. In a flash, they exchanged strikes, with Izuru being kept back by Karasuba's superior length. Naruto used this to his advantage, adding numerous more small cuts to Izuru. Still, any serious attacks were caught in the hook of Wabisuke's blade.

Izuru was so relentless, he was surprised when the other blond disengaged, falling back a few meters.

Naruto looked at his Zanpakutō strangely. During the engagement, it seemed to get increasingly hard to maneuver Karasuba.

'What the hell? I know I'm not getting tired, so why is i becoming harder to wield her?' He wondered.

"I imagine that you're wondering why your Zanpakutō is getting harder to swing. Than answer is, that's Wabisuke's power. It doubles the weight of anything it strikes." Izuru explained.

Naruto didn't have long to ponder this statement, as he saw Shūhei's hand twitch. That was the only warning he got.

In an instant, he flash stepped to the side, barely missing being struck with Kazeshini.

Just as he emerged from the speed technique, Naruto's eyes widened, as Izuru was in front of him again.

He began dodging and weaving frenziedly, trying to avoid being hit. Naruto didn't want to gain any more weight.

Left, right, duck, slash, parry. The pattern continued, with him trying to get a shot in when he could, only to stop when Izuru made to block.

That's when he saw Kazeshini's blade come spinning at him. He was forced to duck. It was the opening Izuru needed, or so he thought. Izuru flash stepped behind him, sword posed to cut

"This is it." Izuru said, his sword descending to cut Naruto.

Time seemed to slow for Naruto, as he entered a familiar state of hypersensitivity. Everything was clear, every smell, touch taste, sound. Most prevalent was his heartbeat.

BUM-BUMP

The sword inched closer, as he smelled the rusty smell of the blood from the two Soul Reapers wounds.

"You're right, it is over. . ." Naruto muttered, confusing Izuru. It was too late to pull back now.

BUM-BUMP

'Dammit, I didn't want to reveal more, but. . . I can't get injured.' Naruto thought, as the blade got ever closer.

BUM-BUMP

". . . . Kushizashi . . ." Naruto said softly.

The blade was just an inch from him, as Izuru suddenly seized up in pain. It felt like he was being stabbed by hundreds of knives, the white-hot pain burning across his body, as he felt the sensation of his flesh being pierced. The worst part, was that they happened all at once.

"GYAAAAAHH!" He shouted in agony, back arching in pain.

Naruto stood up, spinning as he did, his blade swinging through the air with him. He finally stopped, standing stationary behind the blond lieutenant. The immortal still stood, hunched slightly, arm extended with blade in hand.

Izuru felt the pain of the knives fade, only to be replaced by a blinding white-hot stinging pain across his torso. He looked down in shock as a large, very deep wound, opened up, spraying blood across the ground. The lieutenant collapsed forward, as his Zanpakutō reverted to its sealed form.

'What just happened?' Izuru wondered, as he struggled to stay conscious.

Naruto stood straight, feeling the weight lifted, and flicked the blood from Karasuba, as it reverted to its sealed form. With a resounding click he sheathed it.

He then turned to Shūhei.

"I suggest you get him back to the Soul Society. I purposefully avoided killing him, or cutting anything vital, it would take him several hours to bleed out." Naruto said.

Shūhei gritted his teeth, but nodded none the less.

Naruto nodded in return, before disappearing with a Shunpo. He had succeeded, they didn't get any more than three techniques from him. The immortal left without a single scratch on him.

Chapter End

AN/ Ok, chapter three down. I hope you liked the fight scene, please review with your opinion, I'd really like any tips if you think it could be improved.

Now, onto news. First, as stated at the beginning, please review with opinions on the pairing situation.

Next, is the reason I decided to do the fight scene to the end. I originally wanted to end it at the part where Naruto released Karasuba, but decided against it. This is because I am going to take a step back from focusing on this story.

I've had some ideas floating in my head for a while now, and they won't leave me alone, so I don't want to force this story, when I really want to work on something else. It might be a month, or maybe longer, before I get back to this story, it depends.

As stated, please review,

Until next time(or the next story),

That's all for now folks!

1: Kushizashi - Piercing

2: Seishin Senkō - Spirit Piercer