A/N: Alright ladies and gentlmen, good news and bad news. Good news first. My surgeries are over. Bad news: Now I have to WORK to pay for everything. Still, I'm feeling a bit better now. Really. Kinda. Sorta. I'm hanging tough though, having just come out of the woods...only to work my ass off as a bloody dishwasher! Not fun! Not fun at alll! UUUUUGH! I'm woking almost daily and I feel like crap, as to that effect. But nevertheless, despite this pesky little hiccup-I wanted to get word out any way I could, and since for some strange reason the site is being buggy, I wasnt able to work on this anywhere near as much as I would've liked. Still...

I love you guys so much! *Cries*

Now, this chapter might be a bit confusing consider I haven't updated in awhile. With good reason! My job has been beating the living hell out of my as of late! This was REALLY had to write with being tired from work; exhausting, actually. But I'm proud of it, and I hope you enjoy it as I finally get some rest...

Well...here ya go! =D

"I have inflicted Horrors unkown, ended Lives untold...

~?

Counting Stars

The full moon shone solemnly down upon a lone stranger. Its heavenly radiance illuminated the park in which he found himself, slinging silver streams over his slim shoulders. The stranger was, for the most part, quite content to count all the stars in the sky, for they numbered his troubles on this evening.

And what an evening it would prove to be.

Physically, he was not much to look at, just a plain fellow in an even plainer suit, briefcase in one hand, phone in another, pressed to his right ear. On his way home from the office, no doubt. Nothing to see, nothing to take interest in. His progress was all but unimpeded by any and all passerby; no one took notice of another civilian on his way. Just the way he liked it. Simple though he might appear-were one to make the mistake of accosting this man on this night, they would find themselves little more than bloody chunks on the ground.

Because this man was not a man.

Indeed, were one to look closely at him, were their eyes to peel away the carefully coated layers of genjutsu, they would bear witness to a most curious sight. This was no mere mortal with dull eyes and brown hair, his eyes dark and clouded with the stress brought on by a long week's work. Were one to look at him, truly look at him, they would see bright blue eyes, whiskered cheeks and blond hair. A grin as bedeviling as it was foxy in every sense of the word, his gait containing an almost sinister skip to it.

"No, no," He was speaking into the cell phone, his dulcet voice ringing merrily. "I'll be home late, Miya-chan. Ah? We've got new tenants? Interesting..." A pause. "Nah, I'll make myself something when I get back, don't worry about it." Another pause, this one longer than the last as he listened to the woman's voice. "C'mon, what're you worried about?! Its not like I'm gonna kill anybody...unless they do something stupid. But what are the chances of that, eh?"

"That's funny; I seem to recall you saying something about being reformed...

"Guh!"

If it was possible to experience dread through a phone, this man certainly felt it. "A-Alright, alright! Just don't bring out the damn hanya! Sheesh! Ja ne!" That smile, seemingly so bright and cheerful, abruptly collapsed in on itself the moment he snapped the phone shut. His gaze turned contemplative, realizing where his feet had carried him this evening. Here again. The park. Had it really been a year already? He could see the crater where he'd landed, glossed over now with moss and grass, a phenoment dismissed by the citzens of this cruel city.

With an almost imperceptible sigh, he dropped the henge. To the untrained eye his body seemed to shoot up like a sprout, blue eyes repacing brown, whiskers appearing where there had been none before, healthy tan complexion overwhelming the pasty white skin he'd worn only moments before. That loose blue suit fit him like a glove now; snug, yet comfortable. He was himself once more, no longer wrapped in layer upon layer of deceit and deception. It felt...good...to be back in his old body again.

"Well, guess I'd better be going...

The slightest prickling of dread plucked at his senses; something warning him to turn back. Did the air feel colder on a sudden? He didn't know. He hadn't tried to utilize his sixth sense for ages now. Whatever was lying it wait, it didn't seem to have bad intentions...but as he knew, appearances could be deceiving.

"Maybe I should head back...nah!"

Naruto scoffed at the idea of going home just yet; the night was still young! This city was still bustling with life, even, if this park wasn't. Besides, he felt restless.

Ordinarily he wasn't the sort to take leisurely evening strolls, but this was a special occasion. Today marked the anniversary of an ill-fated experiment, a jutsu that violated both the boundaries of space and time, a technique so powerful it had essentially ripped him from one time and flung him into another. It had not been without cosequences however, though he existed in this realm, he had utterly erased any trace of his existence in the other. He couldn't very well exist in the past and the present now, could he?

Today was that anniversary of that death.

Don't play with that kuani Naruto-kun, Iruka had once told him when he was a young boy. You'll poke your eye out. Naruto hadn't listened and of course, he nearly poked his eye out. Be careful with that jutsu, Kakashi-sensei had said him when he was a little older. You'll end up injuring yourself. Only after he'd nearly scorched all of the chakra out of his arm with the Rasenshuriken that he'd taken heed of those words. Make sure you wear protection from now on, Jiraiya once admonished him shortly after he'd starting dating a certain Hyuuga. Don't want anymore kids running around after what happened in Demon Country, now, do we? Nearly four week after that discussion, Hinata discovered that she was pregnant.

His early life had been full of such warnings and wisdom, most of which he hadn't heeded. Did Uzumaki Naruto regret any of them? Not one bit. By nearly gouging his eye out he'd learned to appreciate just how deadly a kunai could be. In ignoring Kakashi's advice, he'd learned to improve the Rasenshuriken until it was truly a work of art. And when he'd refused to accept Jiraiya's possibility of protection, he'd found himself the father of a bouncing, pale-eyed baby girl who would swiftly become the light of his life.

Well there had been that one jockstrap incident, but putting that aside...

Looking back, he'd done a lot of things his teachers -and probably his parents- would have disproved of. He'd learned to live life through trial and error, for him there had been no other way. It was simply how he'd had his fate handed to him; he was the sort to take action first and damn the consequences later. Some might call him stupid for that. Didn't matter. Things such as tact were wasted on him, yet left to his own devices he'd managed to learn a forbidden jutsu, create his own techinique, master the power of the Kyuubi...and get flung foward several centuries in time.

Now in his ardent defense, none had ever told Naruto not to play with seals. Or had they? He didn't remember. The incident had occurred nearly a year ago, so his memory still wasn't at its best. But, it had been that or death at the time so he supposed he'd chosen wisely rather than losing his life. Some life.

Ha!

By the time he'd even thought to experiment with ways to seal away the supposedly immortal Madara nearly everyone else was already dead. Tsunade, Sakura, Kakashi-sensei, his beloved daughter -Hoshi- and Hinata all long since consigned to their graves. Sasuke was still around of course but even then there was only so much one Uzumaki and Uchiha-even with their newfound powers-could hope to do against against the shinobi-turned god. Needless to say, they'd been decimated.

He'd flung himself into researching seals only after the fact. There had to be a way, he had thought. Maybe if he mixd One thing led to another and well...

He'd swifty come to the conclusion. This was not his home. Not his time. But what did that matter? Most of his friends-and his family-were long dead and gone, and in experimenting with that seal he'd denied the inane Uchiha the final piece he'd needed for his Moon's Eye Plan. Really, he should've been proud of himself.

There was just one problem.

The last thing he'd expected was to be flung forward several centuries in time. And if this was the future that meant Uchiha Madara's plan had failed. Someone had stopped him. Was it Sasuke? However unlikely though it might be, he hoped that was the case and oftened wondered about that. Perhaps his best friend had somehow managed to actually kill the madman sometime after he'd flung himself forward in time. But did it matter in the end who had ended him? He supposed not. If the world had been saved, did it really matter who was the saviour?

No, it didn't matter. Not to him, at least.

Shinto Teito, the capital of Japan, was his home now for better or worse. The city hadn't always been called by that name, although. Once, it had been known as the Land of Fire, and in this day and age Tokyo, but ever since MBI had come onto the scene as a major power in the corporate world nearly a year prior, its name had been changed. In this day and age, anything-even names-are easily interexchanged for the right price. And when a company as massive as MBI bought out just over eighty percent of the city, well that was apparently more than enough to facilitate a name change. But though its name had changed hands countless times, the wayward shinobi took comfort in the knowledge that his current place of his residence would not be swayed so easily.

Maison Izumo was his true home. Miya, one of the few people he could call both friend/enemy. Kami that landlady could be downright scaaaary sometimes! She made Orochimaru look like green genin! It was no lie that he himself had become a great deal deadlier-and unstable-since gaining this power, but the moment he'd become one of her tenants he'd learned the hard way that his powers had limitations. Miya, was strong. Perhaps even stronger than him. Whatever the reason, she didn't approve of violence under her roof, and she was not above scaring the crap out of her tenants to enforce order.

Yeah, scary indeed.

In any case, he'd had nearly a year now to mourn what he'd lost, to re-adjust to this strange, wonderous world in which he found himself flung. It hadn't been easy mind you-when you knew a thousand ways to kill had possessed chakra of several biju trapped inside them, living a normal life was, well...difficult, to say the least. He could count the number of times he'd lost control on his fingers and toes before he'd become a tenant of Maison Izumo...aha, she'd been a lifesaver when it came to reigning his impulsive urges in-

...don't be like that, nee-chan. We just wanna have a little fun."

Until now.

Naruto slowed his stride and raised his gaze, cerulean eyes coldly regarding the one who had just spoken. Or rather, several someones. His eyes took them in at a glance, his brain swiftly switching from calm civilian to a cold shinobi. In that instant, his emotions as he knew them simply ceased to be. He turned them off. It was just like flicking a switch, something he'd been able to do ever since finding himself in Shinto Teito. And one he used now, contemplating the sordid scene unfolding before him with a ruthless dispassion.

Five people. Four male and one female. Three yards out. Unaware of his prescence. Standing semicircle around the girl, the latter sitting quietly upon a bench. Crowding her. Touching her. Intentions less than pleasant, crass, even. Hostile. Scruffy. Ruffians. Robbers? No, the woman was barely clothed. Personal wealth unlikely. Only one answer, then. And that answer was...

...unpleasant.

Naruto's visage creased in a slight frown.

"Is there a problem here, gentlemen?"

"Wha?" One of them, japanese, whirled at the sound of his voice. "What the hell do you want?!"

In the time it took for the rest to notice him...he'd already contemplated their deaths. Jugular. Lungs. Heart. Skull. Spine. Stomach. So many ways to kill thes imbeciles -human bodies were oh soo very fragile- it was almost enough to make his blood boil in its vein. In meandering around his old stomping grounds he'd sensed some form of ill intent but had been too lost in his own thoughts to realized it hadn't been directed at him. Their target was the girl. Now, just how to deal with whatever aggressors were lurking abouts...

"I think the lady would prefer it if you left her alone."

"..." whomever the woman was, she didn't exactly strike him as the talkative type. She offered no voice or opinion; nay, she didn't even turn to glance at him. But the men surrounding her did, their lecherous stares turning to glares of open apprehnsion when they saw the well built stranger staring them down.

"What's in the briefcase, pops?" one of them asked.

Pops?! A muscle jumped in Naruto's jaw. I'm only twenty-five, thank-you-very-much!

"Papers, pens." he replied amicably, refusing to let his anger show. There would be time for that later. "Office supplies. That sort of thing."

"Then you won't mind if we just take that off your hands, then." Clearly they didn't believe him, because a knife flicked open in the man's hand. "C'mon now, hand it over." For a moment, Naruto actually considered the option; but only for a moment. Was it really worth getting riled up just for the sake of a single girl? A year ago, he would've said no. But now...At length he sighed and shook his head, the imperceptible motion sending his chin-length bangs sweeping from side to side.

"That's not a knife, kid." he muttered, reaching up to loosen his tie with a hand. "This is a knife."

"What're you-urk!"

Those words ended in a strangled grunt as a kunai flew forth from the blonde's sleeve and slammed into his skull, embedding itself to the hilt. He was dead before he'd even hit the ground, lifeblood pooling fruitlessly at his feet, wasted so much like his life. The former shinobi said nothing, offered no words as the fool's corpse struck the ground. The muffled thud, being the only sound to indicate his passing. One of his comrades-if they could even be called such, roared in rage and drew a bead on him with his pistol, hands trembling with barely controlled rage.

"Bastard...!"

For the jinchuuriki, it was like watching one of those an old movie reel, events unfolding panel by panel. He heard the thug squeeze the trigger, saw the bullet leave the chamber, stood by stoically as it crawling through the air towards him, moving as though it were mired in quicksand. There were any number of ways he could've dodged it, wreaked havoc upon the buffoon's body, and moved back into place before the shot so much as neared him. But that wouldn't have been any fun. Call it saddistic, but he liked it when his foes realized they were outmatched. It was one of the few pleasures he enjoyed in life. That and these goons had been about to rape a helpless woman for the sheer pleasure of it.

For that they would suffer.

Naruto's head snapped back from the sheer velocity behind the handgun, teeth locking down firmly against the shot that would've-should've pierced clean through his jaw. A thin line of smoke snaked between his teeth, making those glowing red eyes all the more disconcerting, that shit-eating grin thrice as intimidating.

"Fwha?" he lisped around the bullet, his mouth still curling into the mad rictus of a smile. "'S dat ith?" Twisting his head aside, he spat the casing out onto the ground and chuckled; it was a deep, throaty sound. "See, I just don't understand what's wrong with this generation. No skill, no talent whatsoever. Yet, when you put a pistol in their hands, they suddenly think they're the big man on campus. Stick them in a large enough group and they'll think they can do whatever they want and get away with it." Suddenly, his scarlet sight narrowed.

"They cannot."

"Wha-

The blonde's briefcase, forgotten until this very moment, descended mercilessly. One strike. That was all it took and the gunman's head...simply ceased to exist. One moment it had been there; the next it vanished in a spray of red as the titanium case crushed his skull into a bloody mist. His partner didn't even have tiime to blink before the demonized blond was upons him, twisting him around to drag a hand across his throat. Naruto flicked his hand and willed a touch of demonic chakra into his fingers, sharpening them into deadly claws as they passed by mankind's second most vulnerable area in a brutal swipe. The fool went down with a gurgle of surprise and blood, nothing more, nothing less.

"Next."

"Oh, s-shit!" the last of them tried to scramble away, but to no avail. Naruto reached down, fingers closring around his face in a brutal vice, hauling the larger man off his feet, then hoisting him into the air. Despite the inescapable hold the shinobi had on him, he still had the gall to speak, to struggle at the "C'mon, man! You can have the bitch! I'll give you whatever you want! J-Just let me live! Please! PLEASE!" Already he could feel those fingers beginning to sear into his face, his skin beginning to bristle and crack as the moisture evaporated beneath. Had he the strength to move his eyes, he would've realized his body literally mummifying while he still drew breath. The burning only drove him into further panic, his legs thrashing feebly at the chest of his killer.

"Please!" He was screaming now, wailing as those fingers burned into his flesh. "STOP!"

Naruto wasn't listening. 'Let's burn him a little, Son-kun.'

There was something to be said about the scent of burning flesh; it wasn't a smell you could forget. Yet Naruto did not relent, he charred the man until nothing but bones remained. Once finished, he did the same with the man's comrades, incinerating them until not even the bones lingered, reducing their bodies to bloody ash on the winds. It wasn't a fitting end for them, but it was one that removed any and all chance of him being linked to this "crime" if it could even be called such. Obliterating scum such as these should be called a service to the public!

...Ah."

The eternal shinobi turned, drawn from his dark musings by the voice of the woman on the bench. She was staring at him.

"Ara?"

Now, Uzumaki Naruto was no virgin. He wasn't afraid of a pair of tits-nor did he splutter at the sight of a half-naked woman. If anything, the sight of such a creature made him curious. Roused his attention. Surely, she wasn't out here of her own volition. No one wearing a bloody labcoat would be...wait a second. Blood? Naruto frowned peering at her matted brown tresses, at the strange crest covering her forehead. She met his gaze back a bit before lowering her own gaze, either unwilling, or unable to meet the fiery heat of his gaze.

"Arararara," he blinked slowly, willing his eyes to return to their true blue-and failing when he realized how angry he truly was at the men who'd tried to have their way with her. He could still feel it coursing through his veins, the chakra of nine different biju refusing to be quelled so easily. Grimacing, he pursed his lips into a thin line and fought to compose himself.

"What're you doing out here so late, miss?" he asked kindly, regaining her attention. You're going to catch cold. This is not a place for someone like you to be at night." Her glazed eyes passed over the slaughter before her-absorbing the grisly carnage without so much as a word. Finally, a single pair of syllables pushed between her lips.

...broken."

Naruto cocked his head aside, baffled. How?

"Broken?"

"I'm broken." she repeated, her words little more than a frosty whisper. "I don't have anywhere to go home to." she tucked her head into her legs, burying it there in the silence. Something about those words stirred a side of him he hadn't known in a very long time-unbidden he was reminded of another "broken tool" during his early days as a shinobi. Haku. Why did this woman remind him of her? He couldn't quite put his finger on it, just as he couldn't explain what had made him react like that against the thugs and all but eviscerate them. He usually wasn't that violent unless provoked...

...and this woman was definitely provoking somehting other than white-hot rage in him.

"Well, that won't do now, will it?" He wasn't quite sure what made him do what he did next; only that he reached down, placed two fingers beneath her chin, and pushed her gaze up to meet his. She stared at him for a long moment, her dark eyes reflecting his own crimson. Unbidden, Naruto felt his heart skip a beat. What the hell am I doing? his face felt unsually hot, his mind suddenly awash with thoughts of the "broken" girl sitting here before him, looking up at him with such pain and loneliness that he felt his soul wrench. Who was she, to evoke such a reaction in him?

"What's your name?" his voice sounded strangely out of breath to his ears.

"Akitsu..." her face was likewise flushed, her breaths coming in short, ragged gasps. "A...Ashi...

Ashi...? Naruto blinked, baffled.

"Ashikabi...

Before he could think to ask what she meant by that, the woman scooted closer and gently caged his lips with hers. They were like ice to the touch, though not neccessarily unpleasant. Cool and cold yes, but so terribly fragile, as though any action on his part would shatter her forever. A torrent of emotions not his own tore through him, loneliness, despair, and a longing so intense it made him tremble. Unbidden, his hand rose to cup her cheek and deepen the kiss, a trickle of his chakra worming from those fingers, flowing up into the mark upon her forehead.

Well, a lot of things happened at once after that. First, the crest on her forehead pulsed blindingly bright, threatening to outright blind him all of a instant before it shattered. Ice blue wings spread wide across her back, a tiny mewl of surprise leaping from her lips as they spread to encompass the length of her body, sending flakes of snow skittering about them both. Just as swiftly as it had begun the light show ended, the icy feathers disolving into her back with a silent sigh. Her thoughts bombarded him like a Rasenshuriken:

Winged. Shouldn't be possible. Happened. Happiness. Joy. Ashikabi-sama. Found you. Finally found you...

Naruto nearly recoiled, shaking his head for clarity. He could feel his chakra within her now, a veritable malestrom of energy that hadn't been there before. What the hell was going on here?! Part of him wanted nothing more than to sweep this girl back into his arms and kiss her breathless; he stubbornly fought off this new feeling until he could be certain it was his own.

...found you." she said, the faintest of pink hues burnished those pales cheeks, lingering for only an instant as she nuzzled her head into the crook of his neck. "Ashikabi-sama." Despite himself, Naruto colored. Truly he had no idea what was going on here, what had even prompted him to kiss this woman. And yet now that he had...there were questions. So many questions, but first and foremost:

"Just what are you?"

...Sekirei." she answered; it seemed to be her way to speak like that.

"And just what is a-hey!"

Abruptly Akitsu's eyes rolled back and she slumped, going limp in his arms, hence the reason for his exclamation.

"Oi!

Naruto tsked softly as he caught her, the very beginnings of a frown marring his face. Oddly enough that strange crest on her forehead was gone. Had he been of a mind to look, he might've realized that it had taken up residence upon her back. But he wasn't of that mind-rather, he was wondering where in the hell those wings had come, and what the devil was going on here. Insteads, he was left to gawp at the-former-scrapped number in his arms, and wonder to himself...

...the fuck is a Sekirei?"

A/N: Aaand there you have it! This Naruto is slightly different the norm that I write; primarily in the fact that this Naruto is a great deal darker than most. The focus was on almost entirely on him this chapter, although Akitsu stole the spotlight towards the ened. She's such a tragic character; I can't help but enjoy writing her out sometimes. I just really get into it. That aside, Naruto can be a saddistic bastard when he wants to be, but at least we see a serious side of him in this chapter, alongside his motivations, as well as his resolve to protect those dear to him. He'll be quite active in this story...almost makes you feel sorry for his enemies, don't it?

Next chapter we get right down to the nitty gritty! It'll be out soon, providing my health holds, so look forward to it ya know!

Anywho, I worked extremely hard on this one, so I hope to hear what you think! Pairing is up in the air! YOU DECIDE! I have no idea who will be a part of Naruto's flock in this, so its entirely up to ya'll! And on a final note, thank you to everyone offering emotional support in regard to my health woes. Its greatly appreciated! An awful lot is going to change in this story soon! Look forward to an epic prank next chapter...provided my health holds out.

So...in the immortal words of Atlas...

...Review, Would You Kindly? And of course, enjoy the preview! Hopefully it will tide you over until Die Another Day comes out later this week!

(Preivew)

"Ara," Miya concealed her smile behind a sleeve as she saw Akitsu bundled in his arms, "Don't tell me you took advantage of this poor girl, Naruto-kun?" An aura of subtle malice seemed to creep around the edges of her body, a masked creature wriggling its way out behind the woman's slight frame. Hanya!

Naruto shuddered.

"E-Easy, Miya! Don't bring that thing out! I can explain!

Hope you enjoyed! R&R! =D