Prologue

"Normal talking"

"Demon/Summoning talking"

'Normal thinking'

'Demon/ inner Sakura thinking'

Flashback

Declaimer: I don't own Naruto

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The night was cold, frigid winds blowing northward. Leaves rustled, rubbing together as if trying to summon life into the forest. Light was a scarce thing, dark, eerie clouds covering the most abundance source this evening.

Boom! The clouds suddenly lit up, lightning forcing some light into the sky. A garden of white flowers flowed and swayed, as if trying to warn the world of the upcoming storm. Though only one person would hear, he would not heed such a warning.

The occupant of the garden, a young man of nineteen, stood solitarily. He stood at a height of about 5 foot 8 inches. Long, gold color hair flowed down from his head, the very top littered with spikes. His hair at the base of his neck was tied with a red cord, making a ponytail from his hair. Several bangs of hair came down, covering his forehead and bits of his eyebrows. Three whisker-like marks adored each cheek, giving him a more vulpine appearance. His blue eyes, which used to hold so much life, now stared listlessly into the sky.

His outfit consists of a simple red shirt, sleeves nowhere to be seen. The back held the scene of two draconic-like wings, the right one white, while the left is black. His shirt fit him well enough for an observer to notice his well tone body underneath. On his lower body were cargo pants, black in color. On the left pant leg was words written horizontally, in gold lettering. Bandages were wrapped around his right thigh, a kunai holster held tied over it. A tan pouch, position on the right side of his waist, a single button keeping it closed.

Around his neck is a golden cord, a red diamond shaped crystal hanging down, in-between his collar bone. A silver cord was wrapped around right wrist, a purple crystal hanging down from the cord. On his left arm is a black cord, wrapped around his wrist, a blue crystal hanging from it.

Two scabbards are crossed diagonally on his back, each tied to a leather strap, which fit comfortably across his chest. The first scabbard was red and has a long black wingless dragon, flying up to the top. The design is colored beautifully in gold. Grey clouds painted on the bottom of the scabbard, emphasizing the dragon's ascent. The other scabbard was pure black, a silver dragon wrapping around the sheath, descending towards the bottom. Its large wings spread out, fire blowing from its mouth, burning the clouds that was under it.

In each of his hands was an O-katana. The sword in his right hand was made to reach a length of 50 inches. A circular, blue guard separated the blade from the hilt. The hilt was wrapped with red nylon cord, small black bracers clamped on the middle of the cord. The blade looked spectacular, considering the assumed use, the edge looked completely clean, and the metal completely white. The blade glowed white, as if sustaining its own aura. The edge of it held a slight glow of red.

In his left hand was another O-katana of the same length. For this sword, a white, square guard was in-between the sword and hilt. The hard wooden hilt was wrapped with black nylon cord. The blade was pitch black, from the guard to the tip of the sword was glowing an eerie purplish blue color.

The young man closed his eyes, a low sigh escaping his mouth. He snorted a second later his head dropping a bit. A second later his mouth opened, a dark manic laughter following. The world seemed to react to this, signaling its disapproving response with a loud, thunderous boom.

It took a moment for the young man to calm himself, his loud laughter decreasing in volume. Echoes of his emotional release, reached his ears, and he sighed once again. He glanced at his swords, the two blade pulsating, as if wanting to be acknowledged. He twisted his wrist, staring at his swords with a slight fascination.

A moment later, a single drop of water fell from above, landing on the top of his head.

The blonde barely reacted to it, a cold, uncaring smile making its way onto his face. "All of this…." The blonde paused, clutching his weapons tightly. "How could it end like this?" His question rang out, only to be left unanswered. A light shower began to fall, as if the world was crying over his fate. "To lose my friends, my teachers, my so called 'family'" He whispered, his words filled with distain. After a moment he sighed, relaxing or at least trying to. "The gods must really hate me." A smile appeared on his face a second later, "Or the devil must really love screwing me over."

The light shower increased in velocity, the water now greatly seeping through his clothing. His eyes closed one again, basking in the feeling of the now heavy raindrops. His mind drifted off, to the here and now. If he had to guess, no he didn't need to guess. The streets of the village were empty; it had been for the last hour or so. It was late, very late, only sentries and he was up at that time. There were a few ninja in the trees surrounding the flower field watching him. He could feel them, all fifty of them, his training in the way of the sword and shadow made his senses almost perfect. He knew who they were, he felt all of them so many times before but he didn't care enough about them to acknowledge them.

He was at peace in this area, in his flower field, where few could or would trend. For him, the now heavy down pour, allowed him a brief, serene moment where no memories would enter his mind nor would his power surface uncontrollably. He knew that much because it was always the same on days like this.

His eyes opened for a moment, his head slowly swaying back and forth, avoiding the few raindrops that would dare try to enter his eye. "For some reason I think…"He paused again smiling. "Yea. I think this was for the best." The man chuckled lightly. "Funny, I don't really feel anything. No anger, no sadness, nothing, I'm just empty." The blonde looked at his hands, the two crystals drawing his attention. "I should have expected something like this, or maybe I did." He looked ahead, his irises narrowed for a second before returning to normal.

"The fate of a Jinchuuriki is a hard one…." He paused, thinking it over for a moment. "Or is this just my fate?"

The young man turned, a familiar presence entering his sanctuary. His eyes narrowed slightly, the rain impairing his vision.

"Since when did you start believing in fate, Naruto?" A soft, yet loud voice rang out. The blonde's mouth twitched a little, a feeling a multiple murderous intents flaring up around him. He cared not for them and only paid attention to the woman in front of him. She stopped walking, just in ear shot, where he could hear her without her yelling to loudly.

Naruto took in her appearance. She stood at a height of about 5 foot 6 inches. The girl had a full head of long brown hair, hair which met her ankles. Quite a few bangs of hair fell from her head, covering her forehead and framing her face. The water that fell from above did a good job at keeping her hair against her face, almost hiding her brown eyes from him. He was impressed; he never knew she could stare so coldly at someone. At least she did well in hiding her fear.

Her outfit consisted of a plain white shirt, which looked like it was just thrown on. The young man stared in confusion, wondering how long it has been raining; her shirt, which should be loose, was now pressed against her skin. It was hard for him to keep his eyes from roaming over her ample breast. He was thankful she had bandages around them, though it was fairly visible. Her curves were wonderful, her hips being quite wide/

Form fitting shorts covered her thighs, giving him the insight that she was in a rush to get here. There were bandages wrapped around both her right arm, and her left leg. A cotton patch was tapped to her right cheek, hiding a wound. Blue sandals was on her feet, keep her toes from the now wet grass.

Naruto took special notice of the long nodachi that was held tightly in her left hand. His eyes moved off it before he turned, opting to stare into the distance.

"What are you doing here, Natsume-san?" The blonde asked; his voice as empty as he felt. The woman stared at him, her face stoic, and minor amount of sadness breaking through her façade.

"I…" The woman paused taking a deep breath. "I'm him to simply talk…. And please, call me by my first name." Her voice was stern and decisive, leaving no room for negotiation.

Naruto repressed a smile that would have appeared to his face under any normal circumstance. "Interesting….You came to speak to me now out of all times?" Naruto asked, shifting his grip on his katana into a reverse grip. "You do realize I only have an hour left before I leave, right?" He pointed the tips of the blades towards the ground, their glow intensifying. The woman's eyes went down to the crystal hanging from his left wrist, the same crystal that she returned to him, a few years prior.

"I got this feeling…that this would be my only chance to speak to you." The brunette said.

"Heh!" The blonde almost chuckled. "I understand. Does your cousin know you're here?" Naruto charged chakra into his swords, the blades pulsating at a similar pace to a heart.

"She's not my mother." The girl let out, anger rising in her voice. "I do not need her acknowledgement to do what I want to." Even with the downpour, the blonde could hear the squeezing of her hand against her sheath. This time a smile did appear on his face. He lowered the blades slowly towards the ground. The tips pierced the earth easily and continued down until almost half of the steel was was completely incased in earth. A small seal appeared around the blades glowing orange before disappearing.

Naruto released the hilts, the sword's glow disappearing instantly. "Good answer, Aya-chan." Naruto said. "But are you prepared to face her angry?" Naruto asked. Aya stared at him, memories coming to the forefront of her mind. Aya shut her eyes shaking her head violently, trying to rid herself of the images.

"I will face her if it comes….. I need answers." She said. Naruto looked at her, his eyes boring into hers. Aya's hand shook, images appearing in her head. She steeled herself, trying hard not to avert her eyes.

"You need answers?" Naruto asked in a disbelieving tone. "I thought you were here for a simple talk?"

Aya stared him down, her eyes narrowed giving the sign that she was in no mood for games. Naruto chuckled, his laugher coming out darker then he intended.

"Funny, I expected it to be your cousin in that position." Naruto said tilting his head. "But yet again I'm wrong." Naruto looked at the ground frowning. "This is starting to become a trend." Aya stared with a little sigh. The Naruto she knew was coming up a lot.

"Naruto…"

"What do you need answered?" The blonde interrupted his voice cold and without emotion. Aya stood slightly stunned, she had come here solely on impulse, so what she wanted to ask was still nowhere nearly completely formulated in her mind. After a few second she opened her mouth, trying to ask what anybody would ask. But nothing came out.

The two stood in silence for a few moments, Naruto seemly impatient, turned away. "If you don't have anything to ask….I'll take my leave, I still need a few things from my house." With that, the blonde began his trek away. The brunette's eyes flew in all directions, her mind working overtime to come up with her question. She clutched her fist tightly as she gritted her teeth and closed her eyes.

"Why?!" Aya's voice came in a whisper. Though her voice was low, it somehow transmitted across the area, the rain doing nothing to hamper the sound. Naruto stopped her voice reaching his ears. He turned his head a bit, acknowledging her question.

"Sorry, Aya-chan, but you will have to speak louder than that." Naruto said loudly, his voice somehow containing amusement. Aya's eyes narrowed again, feeling like she was being mocked.

"You heard me! Tell me, what was the purpose of all that!" Aya shouted loudly. "What reason could you have possibly possess in the blonde head of you for causing that massacre!?" Her voice rose higher and higher. "Do you even understand how many people you killed?! You even killed Sakura!" The grip increased, her sheath beginning to crack under the pressure. "The people you put into the hospital, the civilians, kids, what did they do to possible deserve this?!" At this point tear began to slowly fall down her cheeks. Rain drops mixed in with her tears, becoming nearly indistinguishable. Her loud huffs came out, her body tense as if ready to attack.

"That's….not what I expected." Naruto whispered, looking towards the ground. Yes, truly a trend. "Why do you want to know?" He asked.

"Why!? Why? Why shouldn't I know of your reason huh!? Everything that you claim to have done, there has been a reason for! Then there should be a reason for this too. So why shouldn't I know the reasons huh?" She yelled.

Naruto turned completely to her, his eyes slightly narrowed. "Many of the people that was killed you didn't even know nor had any contact with. Those weak people would most likely abandon you, walking over you're bleeding battered body just to save their own asses. So my question stands, why do you care about the reason?" Naruto asked, his demeanor becoming colder.

"What?!" Aya shouted, her body heating with pure anger. "Is that what you thought of this village, of Sakura?"

Naruto's eyes softened a bit, not meaning to expose such an idea. "Sakura…Sakura was fine. She should…she should not have died." Naruto forced out, trying his hardest not to expression his emotions in his voice. His hands clutched tightly, blood leaking from his palm. After a moment his expression went blank, his hands becoming limp.

Aya caught all of it, but her emotion has risen, to the point of indifference. She growled feeling this was not the right approach. She took a deep breath figuring she would ask her true question. "That night….why did you…." Aya stopped, her words caught in her throat. Flashes of memories came to the forefront of her mind.

Naruto watched her; Aya's breathing quickening, her body being to tremble, her pupils dilating as if remembering a scene. Naruto sighed looking up at the sky, before looking back down. "Aya!" He shouted. With his roar, the girl in front of him jumped, her head rising. Her eyes met his, and she swallowed her emotion not calming at all. "Relax, you've had some training in such an area, all kunoichi have. Call upon your training, and center yourself." His words were calm and warm.

Watching her, he realized his words had the desired effect. She closed her eyes, taking a few deep breaths. He was happy that she was quickly able to do so, but he did not express that feeling. "About that…" The blonde said. "Just forget about it." He turned and began to walk away.

Aya's eyes snapped open, her need for answers outweighing any emotional turmoil she was going through. She found herself moving towards him, crossing the field quickly. She stopped suddenly, his form disappearing completely. She stood still, her body frozen. She felt his presence to her right, and turned her head slowly. Her heart raced, a cold, dreadful feeling rose in her. The moment she saw Naruto's face, she envisioned a dark, menacing smirk on his lips. Her body working purely instinct, she twisted her body, drawing her blade. A yell left her mouth, blood flying into the air.

Naruto landed a few meters away before leaping back again, getting as much space from her as possible. When he stopped, he looked at Aya, who was now on the ground, her harsh breathes coming in groves. The blonde reached up and touched his face, lightly tracing the now bloody wound. It ran from his cheek bone on the left side of his face, to just underneath his right eye. The man frowned deeply; he was actually going to tell her a little information. It seems like he wouldn't get the chance.

He could feel all fifty of the hidden warriors, race in at fast speeds. A small manic grin appeared on his face. He was here for another 30 minutes, let's see who was stupid enough to test him.

Unbeknownst to him, he let out a mass of murderous intent. Almost all fifty of those ninja stopped in their tracks, second guessing themselves. One lone female, continued her path, quickly clearing the tree line, and charging to the blonde.

His eyes turned to her, looking at the cloaked woman. She was about 5 feet 7 inches. He could see the purple hair trailed behind her, showing how fast she moved. Her face was completely covered by a porcelain mask. This mask resembled a cat, three red stripes was painted on the porcelain covering, one vertical stripe on the forehead and two horizontal stripes, one on each cheek. He could see cold chocolate brown eyes, from the eye holes. Her body was completely covered with a tan cloak.

He watched as a sword slid from underneath her cloak, making its way against his neck. He could have stopped it but chose against reacting in such a way. She was one who earned his compliance, but then again he would not go into oblivion alone. He noticed the woman glance down, seeing the fingers that were placed just above her heart. To any viewer it would seem like he was groping her.

Her eyes came back to his and even though no words were shared, the threat was understood, on both sides. But only one of them began to have second thoughts. Her blade dropped from his neck and his hand from her chest. Raising her hand, she made a signal. The blonde looked off at the trees surrounding his garden and felt the retreating warriors. He looked back at the woman who was staring intensely at him. "Do not approach her again." She whispered, coldly.

Naruto stared into her eyes, a frenzied grin coming on his lips. "I won't, I have a great dislike for repeat performances." Naruto said back. They stared at each other for a second more before the woman disappeared.

Naruto looked ahead at Aya, who had finally gotten to her feet. The blonde raised his left hand, wiping the blood from his face. He could feel heat centering on his wound, his injury closing up. With a flick of his wrist, his blood flew, staining some of his flowers crimson. "Return home. What you want, you can't have." Naruto said turning.

"Wait!" She shouted again. Naruto let out a sigh, looking back at the girl.

"You have the same power as me." Naruto said, his pupils narrowing, a red glow breaching the darkness in them. He watched the girl come to a stop, her pupils contracting into sharp slits. After a moment, the blonde turned, beginning to walk away. "You should be able to see….." Naruto paused thinking about it. He put it out of his mind; there was no need to go on with this. Whether she could find the truth or not, relied solely on her.

He took five steps before turning his head, looking back at the girl. "If…if we meet again….and you still want your answers….I'll tell you." Naruto shouted out. Aya looked at his back her pupils back to normal.

"Aya!" A shout aroused the woman's attention. Aya turned her head to her right, her eyes locking onto a slightly taller woman. The first thing she noticed was the short silver hair running down to her neck. Her hair held an abnormal shine, creating an almost reflective surface whenever the light hit it. Her hair framed her face perfectly, though two, long thin bangs came from the top of her head, falling down slightly pass her chin, making the girl think of antenna. A set of blue eyes stared into hers, concern gleaming in them.

Aya let out a sigh, her eyes going over the woman's clothing. Most of her outfit consisted of a purple, form fitting halter neck blouse, which showed a hint of her curvaceous frame. The shirt would seem almost normal if it wasn't for the, material change around her bust area. From her collar bone, just under the strap going around her neck, to a little more than half way down her large, almost gratuitously bust, was a lightly mesh fabric, that did nothing to hide her skin. It reminded Aya of a certain slutty, purpled haired woman.

A matching purple skirt, with the sides cut up to an inch below her waist. The skirt stopped just at her knees, from the side the fishnet shorts that she wore could be seen. Bandages covered her left leg, stopping just at her ankle. A long sash was tied around her waist, a metal plate stitched to the front. On the plate was the emblem of the leaf. A kunai holster was strapped to her right leg by a leather strap. Two red wristbands were on each of her wrist, light black writing on the left while red on the right.

A silver eyebrow raised in wonder. "Are you alright?" She asked.

"Yeah. I'm fine. Why do you ask?" Aya replied.

"Well, I figured you would be upset with being sent on this mission." The woman answered rubbing her neck. Aya eyes slightly narrowed, she thought they've been over this. "I could have…"

"Maya!" Aya interrupted. Maya looked at her blinking. "I said I was fine with this alright." Aya slightly gritted her teeth. "There is no need to worry. Nothing will affect me."

Maya nodded slowly and looked ahead. The village they were in wasn't fairly large, if she had to guess, it held a good maybe hundred people. A small amount compared to the village of Konoha. Looking around, the buildings caught her notice. There wasn't one that exceeded the height of two stories high. She hadn't been in a village like this in a good year or two.

She drew her attention back to ground level, deciding to look at the hair of each of the villagers, finding it an easier way to find who she was looking for. They have been wondering around this continent for the last week and blonde hair was scarce. For the most part she has seen brown, black, purple, blue, and a few green. Odd, there was no blonde.

A sigh escaped from Maya's lips. 'Seven years… it has been Seven years since it happened.' She thought. Maya looked towards Aya again with a sad look. 'Why did she send us out of all people to retrieve him? Especially with what he has done. But Aya has acted weirdly when he is brought up.' Maya thought before looking ahead again.

"Hideo, are you sure that information about him was correct? I can't even sense a drop of his chakra anywhere." Maya said, looking over to her left. She noticed as the traveled, they were gathering a large amount of attention. A lot of the people they have passed, stopped and continued to stare, as if four ninja walking together was a problem.

The man is a good two inches taller than her, reaching 5 foot 9. He had short, black hair. Hideo's hair was trimmed neatly so only small bangs fell upon his forehead protector. His green eyes are narrowed sharply, looking almost like he's glaring. A few scars marked his face, one being on the left side of his chin, awhile another was just below his cheek bone. His skin was a healthy tan, which could only come from being out in the sunlight.

. Hideo sported a green Konoha issued flak jacket, which was slightly unzipped, probably because of the hot temperature. A black shirt could be seen under it. Loose black pants cover his legs, a tan pouch resting on the back of his waist, and a kunai holster on his right leg. He has on a mesh arm band that covered his right forearm.

"Look, I got this straight for Jiraiya-sama ok. If you got a problem, write a letter and send it to him." Hideo replied, slightly annoyed

"Ah, but then I wouldn't be able to kick somebodies ass, now will I?" She asked. There was no playful undertone in her question.

"Like you could, from what I hear, Naruto was always the powerhouse in your group." He replied with a slight snicker. Maya eyes narrowed dangerously, the only thing keeping a weapon from her hand is her fear of a commotion.

"Heh! You should ask Daicho. After all the ass whooping he presented you, he would know." Maya shot back a pleased grin on her face. A scowl appeared on Hideo's face, Daicho being a clear sore subject to the man.

"Stop your bickering. You are attracting more attention than necessary." A calm, yet bored voice interjected before Hideo could get a word in. The three looked at the final member of their team, slightly surprised at his intervention.

The man stood at a height of 5 foot 9 inches. Long, jet black hair was pulled up in a spiky ponytail, tied by a grey band. His brown eyes are narrowed, a bored look in his eyes. There is a stub earring in both of his ears.

His outfit consists of a green flak jacket, with two pockets near the chest. Under the jacket was a black, long sleeved shirt paired with matching pants and sandals. Green lined mesh armor protected his wrists and ankles from danger. The placement of his headband is on his left arm; only the metal part is visible, seemingly sewn onto the shirt itself. He is also equipped with a tanto, horizontally strapped onto the back of his flak jacket via a brown strap. A single cigarette, rested between his lips, unlit.

"Wow, Shikamaru, sounding like a squad leader now? Naruto must be close." Maya said playfully.

Shikamaru let out a sigh deciding to light his cancer stick. "How, troublesome," left his lips, putting his lighter away.

Hideo shook his head, his eyes traveling toward his brunette teammate. He put on what he would call his sexy smile and stuck out his chest a bit. "Hey, Aya-chan. How about we go out to eat once we find that tra..." Hideo stopped, the roars of loud screams interrupting him. The four of them stopped, watching as villagers stopped looking towards the middle of the town.

"What do you think is, happened." Aya asked.

"I'm not sure, but…" Maya stopped watching as a few male who was working, either at stands or in stores, or walking down the street, turned and started running towards the scream. They looked like they were trained for such situations by their muscular builds.

"Hey…., lets see what the commotion is about." Maya said, nudging her head forward. With a joint nod, the four rushed forward, a blur to any and all or saw them.

Weaving around the people who stood still, looking towards the middle of town, the ninja made their way down the path. Aya narrowed her eyes, looking toward Maya, who was ahead by a few feet. "Maya! Watch out, a…"

Boom!

An explosion ripped out, down the path they were heading, a shockwave, heat, and flames spreading through the village. Maya eyes went wide, the pressure ripping her off her feet. Dust rose up; the sounds of wood hitting the ground rang out, only to unheard. Maya looked up in the air, coughing lowly, her ears ringing just a bit. Aya appeared in her view, her cousin's hand on her shoulder. "Are you alright?" She asked slightly panicked. Maya shook her head, sitting up.

"Yeah…I'm fine….What the fuck just happened?" She asked.

"Not sure… That was a large explosion though." Aya said. Maya nodded, lifting her head, looking into her eyes. She noticed the girl's pupil was narrowed into a sharp slit and understood how she predicted it.

"What…the hell…" Hideo's voice came out behind them. Both women looked back at him, before looking ahead, their heads tilted up into the sky. A large serpent like dragon, made purely of fire was in the air, its body circling down to the ground. "That was not there a second ago." Hideo said.

A slight smile came to Shikamura's face, they have found their target. "Come on, let's go." He said, taking a brief notice of the uninjured occupants of the village around them. He filed the information away for later, finding it strange.

With Maya and Aya now standing, the four race forward, Shikamaru leading the way. He led them, further into the center of the village. The further they got the more people they came across. Maya had to alter her vision of the village, finding it much larger than expected. As the dragon got larger, Shikamura decided to lean them to the top of the buildings, to keep the villagers from getting in their way.

It didn't take long for them to reach the scene of the disturbance, the heat, one would expect to be radiating from a large fire dragon, completely absent. A large crater, existed in the middle, the dozen or so shops surrounding them, only somewhat damaged. A large crowd of people gave a large margin for the five people who stood in the crater. The group of five was separated into two sets. Two towards the edge of the crater, and the other three in the center, the fire dragon's tail starting in front of the man in the middle, wrapping around the three.

Both groups seemed to be staring each other down, waiting for the other to move. The ninja team looked at both sides, Maya's eyes narrowing at the sight of familiar clothing. "Akatsuki." Maya growled out.

The silver haired woman glared at the two taking in their appearance. The first was a fairly tall man. The man's hair was long and black, being tied into a low ponytail. Black bangs arched from above a metal plate, reaching to his eyes and framing his face. Crimson eyes, with three tomoe circling his pupil, stared out intently, seemingly piercing the leader of the group of three in front of him.

His outfit consists of a cloak with red clouds decorating it, a red interior with a chin-high collar. The cloak was partial unbuttoned to the middle of his chest, revealing a body mesh shirt under a blue v-neck T-shirt. The metal plate on his forehead, head the konoha symbol with a slash mark through the middle. On his left hand, which rested on his cloak, is a ring with the kanji for Sazaku. From her memory, he was Uchiha Itachi.

The man next to him was almost a good foot taller than his partner. He has a distinctive shark-like appearance, complete with pale blue skin, small white eyes, gill-like facial structures, and sharp triangular teeth. He was fairly muscular for a shinobi. His dull blue hair is fashion in spikes which can be closely linked to a shark fin.

His clothing was almost the exact same as the younger man beside him. The only real difference was that the symbol on the plate that was on his head was that of mist, the huge bandaged sword that was strapped on his back, and the ring on his left ring finger, which had writing that stood for south. This man was, Hoshigaki Kisame.

"Is that….Naruto?!" Aya asked, surprise rising in her voice.

The other members of her team took their eyes off of the deadly s-ranked missing ninja, and turned their head to the group they were facing. The first person, on the far left of the three was female. She stood at a height of about 5 foot 4 inches. Long, dark purple hair was tied in a high ponytail by a red ribbon. Her hair framed her face, covering most of her forehead. Golden eyes stared forward, narrowed in anger. Her chocolate colored skin, unusual from what they saw so far, made them believe she had some origin in the land of lightning.

The woman sported a standard black hakama, the sides of near her wide hips missing. A form fitting, sleeveless, halter top styled haori covered her torso, doing absolutely nothing to hide her curves. White bandages, was wrapped around her body, underneath the shirt, which served to accentuate her perfectly proportionate bust. Around her waist was a white obi that held a kodachi to her side. White socks covered her feet, brown sandals keeping them clean from any and all types of dirty materials on the ground. A black chocker was tied around her neck, red lining at the top and bottom of it, three clear, white diamonds was on the side.

On her right, slightly behind her was who they recognized as Naruto in a cloak. He looked almost the same as the last time he was seen except taller. He now stood at a height of about 5 feet 9 inches. His nowshort, neck length, golden color hair flowed down from his head, the very top littered with spikes. The edge of his hair is tied with a blue cord, making a small ponytail. Several bangs of hair came down, covering his forehead and bits of his eyebrows. Three whisker-like marks adored each cheek, giving him a more vulpine appearance. Bright blue eyes stared forward, seemly uncaring about their current predicament.

His outfit was almost completely covered by a black hooded cloak, silver cloud designs covering the bottom. A small bit of his black pants was seen along with black sandals. Tied to his back is a 58 inch katana, sheathed in a black scabbard. Blue nylon cording was tied around the hilt leading up to a diamond shaped green guard.

Slightly in front of him, to his right is a man, who stood at 5 foot 9 inches. His body was almost completely concealed by a red cloak, black lining running up the edges. His face is completely obscured by the hood, shadows hiding every feature of his head. The only visible part of his clothes was blue pants and blue shoes. A sheathed nodachi spanning over a length of 70 inches, was stabbed into the ground in front of him. The scabbard is red in color having no types of decorations on it. A leather strap is attached to it, at just about half its length.

"Damn…we finally find him, but members of Akatsuki got here first." Hideo said, growling in slight anger.

"That's how the cookie crumbles at times." Maya said, calmly, her mind beginning to run over several strategies that they could use to get the blonde out of dodge and take care of the two.

"Let's get closer….We have to make sure Naruto makes it out of this." Shikamura ordered. Aya stared down at them, her eyes falling solely on the blonde. Maybe now she would actually have her answer.

Kisame shifted, his hand rose to the hilt of his sword. "That was quite the show; wouldn't you say Itachi-san?" The shark man asked gripping his sword.

His partner remained silent, staring deeply into the eyes of the blonde. The boy had changed a lot from what he remembered. He was a true danger now, but how much of one? He red eyes shifted to the dragon above the group, the color of chakra, visible to his eyes. After a second his eyes came back to Naruto. "Strange." He whispered.

"Your mother's strange!" The man on Naruto's right shouted with an amused tone. There was no reaction in Itachi's face

"So…these guy?" The female asked slightly confused.

"Oh don't worry about them." the man replied, looking back at the woman, a smile on his face. The woman looked at him, humming.

"Considering they are still in front of us, I would say I should worry." She replied, calmly.

"Just give me a minute; I'll take care of them." He said a grin, appearing on his face.

"Wow Homura, a minute man, I would never have guessed." She joked, with a smile. Homura mouth dropped, his head turning to her.

A smile appeared on his face, deciding to play her little game. "Oh, a minute is all I would require to take care of all your needs Yoruichi."

"Of course. After all, it would only take a minute for you to disappear." Yoruichi shot back with a smile. At that, Naruto smiled brightly. Homura looked at him glaring.

"Don't encourage her." Horuma let out.

"They seem to not think of us as a threat." Kisame said grinning, though anger clearly showed in his eyes.

Itachi eyes met Naruto again, a stare which offered a challenge. Naruto on the other hand, tilted his head before frowning.

"I guess I will have to give them a good cut to attach their attention." Kisame said drawing his blade. Yoruichi's eyes moved to the man, a question coming to her mind.

"So, what are you? A fish?" The female asked curiously.

"What!?" He asked angrily.

"Are you a fish?" She repeated with a raised eyebrow. "You know, the blue skin, gills, sharp teeth, you look like fish on drugs." She said.

"Ohhhh! That's a good one." Homura let out as Kisame growled angrily before grinning.

"I'm going to enjoy shaving you." He said giving his sword a test swing. Homura lifted his hand before touching his face.

"Um….Yeah I don't need a shave thank you." He replied. He looked at Yoruichi with a grin. "Yoru-chan, I do think you can use one though."

Yoruichi eyes snapped to his, slightly narrowed. Before she could make a comeback, Itachi's hands went up in a blur, over twenty shuriken flying from seemly nowhere, sped toward the blonde. All of their eyes flashed towards the shuriken as they came at Naruto.

Clang!

All twenty of the shuriken found a nice home in a circle around the crater. Itachi eyes moved to the culprit, who was now present in forefront of the group. A low glow could be seen under the crimson cloak, a deep frown on his face. "You have quite the nerve going after the king….I'll kill you, for your lack of etiquette." Homura said, menacingly

"Humph, then come." Kisame said, his eyes locking on the hooded warrior.

"With pleasure." Homura relied, lowering his stance a bit. After a few seconds his eyes shot back to Naruto, who's right hand rose in the air. His hand tensed, his fingers curling as if some weight was trying to hold them straight. The fire dragon could visibly be seen growing in both length and size.

Homura moved quickly, grabbing the man's hand and pulling it downward. Naruto stared in his eyes as he smiled. "I got this…No need for you to interfere." He said. Naruto continued to stare without a word. "Ok, no prob… everything will go well." A sigh came from the blonde's lips. He nodded letting his hand drop.

A smile appeared on Homura's face, his body turning back to the two ninja. He walked forward, "Alright, let's get started."

"I'm guessing you got them." The woman said putting her hands behind her head.

"Yep." Homura replied.

"Alright then." She said moving her hands down to her sides. She looked at the villagers who surrounded them before looking back. "Be careful. Try not to get anyone else involved."

"I got it handled." Homura glanced back at Naruto, smiling. "Naruto, if you would."

Naruto closed his eyes, raising his hands to about chest level. The fire dragon burst, fire flying in all directions. The individual flames seemed to curve, surrounding Homura and the two ninja. Their eyes went to the flames, looking at the embers suspiciously.

"Oi, don't die!" Yoruichi called. Homura's eyes came to her a smile on his face.

"Yoru-chan, I didn't know you cared." Homura said, playfully.

"Of course I do…I lent you 800 dollars last week, I want that back" She replied, seriously.

"Ah! That is so mean." He said, with mock sadness.

"Well," Yoruichi said shrugging. "You should have never bought those books."

"Whoa, you read them too." Homura said, pointing.

Yoruichi blinked, crossing her arms. "So? They are still yours." She said. Homura shook his head looking back at the ninja. He noticed they were slightly on edge.

"Don't worry…we're going to a better fighting place." Homura said, a loud clap following. The flames all rushed in. The two ninja began to react, but the embers succeeded in surrounding them in a closer diameter, before whisking them away.

Yoruichi stared, her eyes sparkling with excitement. "Whoa….cool."

Naruto smiled at her, his hands dropping. He turned to the people, before waving his hand. The air around the area began to waver, as if a mirage had taken hold. After a second it settled, all back to how it was before the explosion. The crater was no longer a hole, the building broken down and burn by fire, now as if it was the very first day it was built.

A loud roar of cheering broke out from the group, causing the purple haired woman to jump in surprise. "I'm still not used to that." She whispered. Naruto nodded as well, before waving once again. It was time for them to take their leave. With a turn, both Naruto and Yoruichi began to walk away.

As they walked Naruto scanned the crowd of cheering villagers, his eyes almost instantly locked on to a blob silver hair. He turned his head, not really needing to confirm what he knew already. After a second, the two disappeared in thin air, leaving no trace of them behind. The crowd quickly dispersed as if this was something that was expected.

"Ok…what the fuck just happened?" Maya asked, looking at her teammates.

"A large scale genjutsu? A space time ninjutsu…" Shikamaru whispered.

"That's…amazing." Aya whispered stunned.

"You know…he's getting away." Hideo said. The three of them looked at him and nodded, taking their minds off of what was scene.

Homura smiled looking at the two in front of him. Kisame seemed surprise to now be in the forest, why Itachi looked to be unfazed by the change of scenery. "Now, let's go." Homura said. The two stared him down before the smaller ninja looked at his partner.

"Take care of him. I'm going after Naruto-kun." Itachi said. Kisame gave him a look, before nodding. A toothy grin appeared on his face, his eyes locking with the man in front of him.

"I'll have his body at my feet in no time." He gloated.

"Do not underestimate him." Itachi said. Kisame gave a small indication of acknowledgement and Itachi dashed forward locking eyes with Homura. As he passed him a few things registered in his mind. One, this man, despite being with Naruto and possibly being informed about him, held no fear about staring in his eyes. Secondly, his eyes could not perceive the flow of chakra inside the man's body.

Itachi contemplated what that could possible mean as he ran into the woodland behind them. Kisame stared at Homura, thinking the man would attack Itachi upon passing. He must know he does not have the ability to handle both of them.

"Stop with the weird grin, it's creeping me out" Homura said.

"You will have more to worry about than that." He said, bursting from his spot. Quickly closing the distance between them, the mist nin swung his sword, with massive force. Homura reacted quickly, leaping over the blade. Using the slight opening in front of him, the cloaked swordsmen's foot lashed out, kicking the man dead in his face.

Kisame's head would have would have snapped back, but Homura noticed the wet feeling incase his right foot. 'Water clone?' the man thought, the form broke apart into water before it rose with a life of its own, engulfing the man. Homura held his breath as the water encased his face. He glanced around, looking the fish man who used this jutsu.

He didn't have to wait long, as the blue haired man walked out from behind a tree, hand up in a hand sign that he once saw from Naruto. "That was easier than expected." He gloated, walking towards his victim. Homura looked at the water, finding it to be just that, water. "Don't even try…You won't be able to…" His sentence stopped, his captive swinging his sword through the water, unhindered.

Water burst off the man and he dropped to the ground, crouching a bit to absorb the impact. "Heh! So this is a ninja….." Homura commented with a light nod. "I guess I will be having a little fun after all." Steam rose off his body, his clothing and skin losing all moisture.

Kisame had to grin, now feeling thrilled about this fight. From what he heard there was no ninja on this continent, all that existed was driven out way before he was born. Well now he had to change his view on this place and possibly kill his informant.

The four konoha ninja moved quickly throughout the forest, tracking the wayward blonde's trail, though it wasn't really hard, he moved in a complete straight line. "So…how are we going to approach him? For him, it would seem like we are here to kill him right?" Hideo asked, flipping to plant his feet on the truck of a tree.

"I'm not sure; I wasn't expecting to find him in such a situation." Shikamaru landed glancing around before jumping ahead. "If we got him in a calm situation, approaching him would be easy." Shikamaru said.

"Do you think Akatsuki showing up would affect anything?" Maya asked, looking at Shikamaru.

"I doubt it…. It's not like Naruto got his mind wiped and can't tell the difference." He replied.

"So what do we do if he attacks first?" Hideo asked. Maya and Shikamaru looked at him, the latter of the two frowning.

"He won't." Aya said looking at the man slightly behind her.

"Huh?" Hideo looked at her, slightly surprised. "Why do you think so?" He asked. Swinging on a branch, Aya flung herself to the next one, thinking of how she would phase her statement.

"If he was…there would have been some amount of killing intent when he noticed Maya." Aya said. Maya blinked, surprised at her comment.

"I was noticed?" Maya asked, slightly skeptical.

"Noticed isn't even the word for it….He completely zoned in on you." Aya said.

Shikamaru nodded, happy with her input. "This makes the situation…a little bit easier." He racked his mind for a good course of action, which he found fairly quickly. "Do not show any hostilities towards him." As he ordered this he looked at Maya, "Understood?"

"Yeah…I understand." Maya replied through gritted teeth. Hideo stared at her, a question forming in his mind.

"What di.."

"Don't ask." Maya said quickly, dismissing his question. Hideo looked over at Aya, who looked at him. This was the only thing she didn't know.

While they were thinking about this, Shikamura mind was on a bigger problem. It took them just about two years to even get a hint that he was nowhere in the elemental countries, yet alone finding a specific area. Yet Akatsuki got here first and located him before they did. Who tipped them off? Who else was tipped off? This mission has just begun to reach the level of troublesome. "Maya, can you sense his location?" He asked.

Maya looked at him before humming, concentrating a bit. After a few seconds she gave a shake of her head. "No good. I can't feel his chakra."

"Why did you come then if you can't sense him?" Hideo asked. Maya glared at him, really wanting to shove a sword up his ass.

"I see him." Aya said, quickly stopping Maya imminent comeback. She pointed toward the ground, and they all looked in the direction her finger led to. About 30 yards ahead, was a small clearing, shrubs surrounding it. It was easy to spot the blond hair of their target. He was sitting, leaning up against a tree, his eyes closed, his head tilted back as if he was looking up at the sky. His friend was lying down next to him, her head on his thigh. His right hand lay upon her head, stroking her hair. She seemed to be quite comfortable with her spot.

"Plan?" Maya whispered quickly.

Shikamaru looked at her, making up his mind on their course of action. "We'll observe for now. It would be best not to rush."

All three of them nodded, slowing down to decrease the chances of being found. It took a few minutes for they to sneak into range to listen to them.

Naruto head dropped suddenly looking off to the forest. The young woman resting her head on his thigh picked up on it quickly, lifting her head up to watch him. "Are you worried about him?" Yoruichi asked. Naruto looked at her blinking, a reassuring smile appearing on his face. "Are you sure you shouldn't? He's a fuck up, you know."

Naruto looked at her shocked, his hand moving from her head. He tapped her nose, causing her to blink in confusion. He moved his right hand in front of her and waved his index finger back and forth. Yoruichi rolled her eyes, with a smile. "Yeah, yeah. No cursing." She sighed.

After a second, her smile turned into a mischievous grin. She leaned up placing her right hand on her just between his legs, placing her palm on the ground, her left hand on his leg. Her knees were on the ground, her back arched, and butt rose into the air, waving in a circular motion. For all intent and purposes, she resembled a cat. Naruto stared down at her, almost confused at what she was doing. "I know a better way you can punish. This. Kitty." She purred; her golden eyes narrowed a bit, her tongue sliding across her upper lip, alluringly.

With a tilt of his head, Naruto couldn't help but smile at the woman in front of him. She was good, very good, that was an unexpected response. Yoruichi moved up, pawing at his shirt, as if testing if it could hold her. She pulled him downward as she rose up to meet him. Her nose pressed against his, as she stared into his eyes.

The whole atmosphere seemed to shift, a dark feeling coming over the area. Yoruichi looked away from him, scanning the area. Naruto's eyes stared off to the right, in one direction, already having an idea on who was the cause. Letting out a breath of air, the blonde stood up, Yoruichi standing up with him. "Somebody is here." She whispered looking around. Naruto nodded, staring southwest of their current position.

After a few minute, Yoruichi came in front of him tapping her foot against the ground. "Haaa….and I would have gotten you to. Give me a minute. I'll find them." She said. Naruto shook his head, stopping her. "Then how do we…" She stopped feeling the air shift around her. Her eyes widen a bit, a feeling of dread and malevolence coming down on her, filling her with fright. It only stayed with her for a second, before a warm sensation rose from the center of her chest, engulfing her body slowly. With a point of the blonde's hand a burst of wind came fast, stirring all the leaves roughly. Birds flew from the trees a second later, fearful squeaks filling the air

"Whoa….." Yoruichi let out, confused at what just happened. It was a first, for something like that to occur. Naruto did look a little peeved though. Maybe not being able to continue this got him angry. So he did want her. Another minute passed and Naruto's eyes narrowed quite a bit. "It didn't work…..I'll find them." Yoruichi said, hoping not to feel that again. Naruto's eyes shifted a bit, a lone man walking through some bushes, a cancer stick in his mouth.

Yoruichi blinked staring at the man. "Who are you?" She said quickly, noticing the green flak jacket, the metal plate on his arm. 'Konoha.'

A puff of smoke left his mouth, before he took the cigarette from his lips. "Nara, Shikamaru." His eyes traveled to Naruto, deciding to greet him first. "It's been a while….Naruto." He said. Naruto nodded, Yoruichi looking at him.

"I see…So you're like that other guy with the red eyes. You want Naruto to come with you huh?" She asked walking in front of him. "I'll tell you what we told him. No." At that Shikamaru sighed, rubbing the back of his head.

"Troublesome." He whispered. "We are not with that guy. Though he was a ninja of our village…..he left some time ago, as Naruto knows." Shikamaru spoke calmly. He needed to get her to relax. Looking at Naruto, he was already relaxed; it was the woman who was worked up. That's why he came alone….after that damn outburst.

"Look, I didn't come to cause any trouble. I just wish to talk with Naruto for a bit." Shikamaru said eyeing him. He noticed his eyes were looking back off towards the forest, about ten feet to the right of where he came out.

"Sorry, but that's not.."

Thump!

Both Shikamaru and Yoruichi's eyes moved to the new incoming, seeing Itachi, who looked the same as he did before. Shikamaru quickly turned to him, drawing two special made trench knives. These two blades are made to be worn like brass knuckles, each one has a sharpened zigzag "tooth" over each knuckle, and a blade coming out of one end. He put them on getting into a defensive stance.

"Damn it." Yoruichi whispered. "Just one problem after another." She shook her head. "So….from the look of you, you managed to get around Homura without fighting." Yoruichi crackled her knuckles glaring harshly at the man. "Leave, I won't tell you again."

The Uchiha's eyes moved over her, stopping at Shikamaru before finally landing on Naruto. "Naruto-san, there is no reason for anybody else to be harmed. Please come with me." He held his right hand out, offering him what he believed to be the easy way out. The wind blew and Naruto gave the man a small grin, to say that, not even realizing it's his partner that was in a bad state.

Kisame dodged barely dodged a swing, that would have decapitated him if he was even a nanosecond off. He swung his blade in retaliation, aiming to do some damage. His attack only served to create some distance from the swordsmen. The mist-ninja, panted lightly, the sound of feet splashing in water reaching his ear. "Ah man! My feet are all wet. Now I'm going to have to wipe them off, and clean my footwear." Homura complained loudly. "I mean seriously, I know water is good for you, but you need to know when enough is enough." Seriously…this guy complained like a woman.

As soon as that thought went through Kisame's mind, Homura disappeared, a trail of steam being left in his wake. Jumping back and making a hand seal, the water ninja, prepared his defense. The puddles of water that was littered over the battle field rose quickly, forming clones of the Kisame. All ten of them put their hands together, before spitting out water, or trying to. Before any of them could complete their attack, they burst into said liquid, falling down into the pool they were seconds ago.

But for the real Kisame, it was enough time to mold his chakra for his own jutsu. He exhaled, spewing out a large amount of water. It came like a tidal wave, easily rising to half the height of the trees around him. Homura stopped looking at the wave surprised. "Damn….And I don't have my trunks…or girls in bikinis." He stated, a second before getting hit by the mass of flooding water.

The area flooded, water covering a large circumference of woodland. Trees leaned, as if to being pushed by the sheer force of the wave. Homura flew along with the rapids, managing to grab onto a tree, and holding on for dear life. He looked forward, trying his hardest to keep his eyes open. Even in this situation, the young man had to praise the ninja. That was cool, and completely unexpected. Who would have thought somebody can generate water from their body like this? He always envisioned ninja as just being assassins with parlor tricks, but now he has some real basics to go on. Naruto never once showed him a technique like this.

The raging water calmed, settling to make a large pond on top of the land. There was no treetop that was above the covered by water. Water covered as far as the swordsman could see or maybe it just looked at way. He noticed the lack of one giant fish man and wondered if he was at the top.

Finding the water condition in his favor, Homura released the tree, swimming up to the surface. Thank god he was a good swimmer or he would be dead right now. His head burst from the water, a gasp for air escaping him. The man panted getting all the air he had missed under the pond. He steadied himself, focusing on floating as he looked around. "So…you can't stand on water." Kisame said a toothy grin on his face. Homura turned his head to the right and blinked, seeing the man standing on the surface.

After blinking a few more times, Homura opened his mouth in recollection. "Naruto taught me how to do that." He said. Kisame stared at the man placing his hands on the water before pulling himself up.

"Is there more people like you around?" Kisame asked, curiously. Homura stood up steading himself.

"Like me?" He asked, pulling his hood over his head. "No, I'm one of a kind." He pointed at himself smiling. "But if you meet some other people that I know….You'll probably be dead before you can draw your sword. They are no joke." He said.

Kisame chuckled at the man's lighthearted tone, he had to say, this guy was interesting. "Hoshigaki, Kisame." He said.

"Hmmm, it fits." Homura replied grinning. "Kazama, Homura." His grin left his face, and his eyes glowed. "Sorry, but I was taught, once names were given, the battle was now a serious one. I will stop holding back now." Kisame raised an eyebrow before laughing.

"That's fine. I shall do the same." Came his reply. He dashed forward quickly, his hands behind him.

A smile creep upon Homura's face, the man crouching down a bit. His right arm was geared crossed his neck, his large blade touching the back of his hood. His left arm was bent, his hand pointing towards his enemy at about abdomen height.

Confidence glowed in his eyes as Kisame reached him. The larger man swung his blade around, expecting to bash his right side. Homura twisted his body in response, tilting his sword down, diagonally cross his back. The cloaked man jolted just a bit, his opponent's sword smashing against his. Within a second, fire flickered to life around him, a fireball blasting from his left hand, into the center of the ninja's chest.

There was no scream, no grunt of pain, only the popping sound of smoke, as a log burned to ciders in front of him. No emotion played on Homura's face; he would wait for the man to attack again, both only for a moment, his patience was fairly limited.

As the battle of water and fire took place, Naruto stood next to Yoruichi his hand on her shoulder. She was looking back at him, slightly shook up. "What….just happened?" She asked

"It seems you were stuck in an illusion. Naruto freed you." Shikamaru said. Naruto nodded, at his explanation.

"I see. How do I avoid it?" She asked.

"Well for one don't…" Shikamaru stopped short, glancing to his right. He saw Naruto kiss her forehead, before giving her a 'thumbs up'. "Huh?"

Yoruichi wasn't though. She felt a sensation she couldn't really describe run through her body. "Thanks." She said. She looked back at Itachi who narrowed his eyes a bit. He moved his left hand back into his sleeve. It was easy to see that he was getting something as his hand, almost too easy. Yoruichi disappeared, just as his hand flew from his sleeves, three shuriken sped toward her original spot.

The Uchiha's eyes widen a bit, completely loosing track of her. His eyeballs quickly shot back and front in its socket, trying to spot the woman. And by the luck of the gods he did, but it was only in one spot for a second before she was gone again.

Thump! Thump! Thump!

Foot impressions appeared on the ground in over five spots, all in different directions. He found his eyes moving to them, before he noticed a flash of sparks. His projectiles were repelled, being sent in a spinning arc into a few trees. He jumped up a second later, catching a small amount of purple head his way. The wind pushed him higher than he expected, his clothes ruffling roughly, something passing by him.

He landed with his back pressed against the tree, trying his hardest find the girl. He could only catch a few flashes of purple in different locations. This was a first for him, someone who's movement out matched his doujutsu perception abilities. Knowing what to do under such a situation was not known to him, but it would be soon enough. He felt it again; a strong and direct breeze pushed him off his feet, sending him to his right. He looked at the tree he was just at, watching as the bark exploded suddenly. A second later the woman appeared, her movement halted, her hand and most of her forearm pierced through the tree.

Her head turned in his direction as he landed on a tree branch. A curious look was on her face mixed with a little shock. "That's the third time I missed…." She said pulling her arm from the tree. He could see there was blood covering most of her forearm, chips of wood stuck in her skin. So she had no special properties that worked with her speed. She is as much of a danger to herself as anybody else.

Itachi wondered how he could use that information to his advantage, when he could barely dodge her. Again she disappeared, and he was pulled off his perch. The raven haired Uchiha, prepared himself to land, looking around once again. He felt himself get pulled to the left, and a breeze blowing passed him. This was a little too dangerous.

Shikamaru watched, his cigarette dropping from his mouth. He knew the woman wasn't normal; her being around Naruto was proof enough. Nobody around him was normal in the least. But speed like this…It was like looking at Lee opening the gates again, just without the yelling and the overload of chakra. Watching Itachi flail around trying to dodge was something he never thought could happen. Though he wondered how the man was avoiding nearly invisible strikes like he was.

Shikamaru looked over at Naruto, wondering who was she and where did she come from. At first he thought she may have resided in cloud, but that is completely thrown out since for multiple reasons. Like her lack of knowledge of Akatsuki, especially considering the thing with Killer bee. "She's an interesting one huh? Where did you meet her?" At that Naruto looked at him, raising an eyebrow. He lifted his right hand and spun his index finger around. If the lazy genius had to guess, it meant around. "Who is she?" He asked next.

As if the world was against his question, a fireball flew at them. "Shit." He let out before jumping away, out of the path of the fire. He looked back at Naruto, who didn't move at all. 'Naruto?' He thought his eyes wide. He saw the woman appeared in front of Naruto, her right arm moving in a spiral thrust.

He landed watching as the fire ball broke apart, almost instantly being extinguished. Yoruichi, who surprised him with such an action, seemed out of breath, sweat drenching her face. Steam rose from her arm, burns marking her skin. She turned to Naruto, looking over his body. "Are you alright? No burns, right?" She asked quickly, her voice filled with concern.

A sigh left Nauto's mouth, the blond reaching over and grabbing her right hand. He looked at her damaged and bruised skin before looking at her. "What?" She asked, grinning nervously. He lightly touched her hand, and she jerked a little, hissing in pain. Naruto moved his hand and gave him a blank stare. Chuckling nervously, she looked away from his stare. Another sigh left his mouth releasing her arm.

Itachi watched the two of them, his mind trying to work out the technique she was using. He knew it wasn't the body flicker technique, that skill he was able to follow. She moved too fast, with not enough movement. It was like she just took steps the whole time. His eyes scanned the area, looking at the foot sized impression in the ground and trees. It was by chance that he sent that fireball at Naruto, but it gave him a slight breather.

"Sorry, I'm taking so long." She apologized staring at Itachi. "I've just about figured out his technique." Naruto sighed at the obvious lie but his mind went to something else. That something else made himself know a second later, landing right next to Itachi. With a slight jerk, Shikamaru was back in battle stance.

"Kisame." Itachi acknowledged, looking over Kisame's batted and slightly burnt form. He was completely shirtless, his cloak completely gone. He was panting heavily, his sword in his hand. Kisame and Itachi shared a look and seemed to speak volumes.

"And Homura failed." She said, shaking her head. Her view of them was cut off, Naruto being the object of obstruction. "Naruto?" She said curiously. Naruto looked ahead at the two ninja, any type of emotion missing from his face.

'Naruto's about to fight….I need a plan, now.' Shikamaru thought, his mind working a mile a minute. His eyes shifted to Naruto, his final companion appearing in a crouch, just to his right, now with a silver cloak on. Naruto looked at him, as he stood, his sword in hand.

"Sorry, he got away while I was under water." He said. Naruto raised an eyebrow but didn't say anything. "Bad luck." He answered as if he was spoken to. "He's actually a skilled one. He managed to damage me enough for me to switch cloaks." Homura grinned brightly turning and giving a 'thumbs up' to Kisame. The shark man gritted his teeth, his eyes twitching.

Naruto let out another sigh and Homura turned back to him. "Hm? You'll take care of this? Alright." Homura said, moving behind him, to Yoruichi's side.

"So, only a minute, huh?" Yoruichi said. Homura looked at her glaring slightly.

"Shut it. At least I damaged the guy." Homura turned to her crossing his arms. "I don't even need to be told to know what happened here. All these damned foot prints, your burned arm. Damn it, didn't I tell you not to put some much weight in your legs?"

"Oh, did you say that? Sorry I only able to hear ringing from your over dramatic claps!" She shot back.

Naruto shook his head beginning to walk forward. Kisame prepared himself for battle once again, Itachi on the other hand jumped to the right. Kisame looked at him before a breeze passed him, the tree behind him being completely ripped from the ground. Naruto's eyes found Itachi, noticing a look of realization on his face. Naruto heard footsteps and turned his head to his right. The shark nin was right on him, sword raised high.

The blade came down upon him fast, the blue scales moving in anticipation. Naruto stared as it came down figuring it would be best to stop it, the blonde threw his right hand up smacking the scales of the blade. "Ugh!" Kisame let out, the sword being forced out his hand and into the air spinning. Naruto hand moved fast, a palm thrust smashing into the shark man's chest. Naruto watched as the man flew back, his feet completely off the ground. Making a split second decision, Naruto clutched his fist tightly.

What happened next, was something Shikamaru would never forget.

Before Kisame could land or recover the wind stirred around him, before launching at him. Invisible blows rained down upon the man, the only indication he was receiving hits was the sudden jerks and spasms of his body as he flew. The mist ninja hit the ground, sliding near a bush, his sword hitting the ground right next to him a few seconds later.

Shikamaru blinked, wondering if he was dreaming. This couldn't be Naruto, no way in hell. Sure the man was skill and strong when he was younger but this Naruto was….unbelievable. He wasn't even sure what the hell just happened. One second Kisame was attacking and the next he was in the air, and something was hitting him. He didn't even blink and he could barely see what happened.

He was a lot stronger than expected, a lot. Plans and formations went through Shikamaru's head, all centering around the blonde. If he could convince him to return, if he could get him to help, they could end this war. But that's only if he could persuade the man to return. He had to do this, Konoha needed him.

Naruto's eyes went to Itachi and the Uchiha stared him down. They both remained unmoving, neither willing to make the first move. Itachi's eyes went to Kisame, who lay unmoving. He could tell the man was still alive; the glow of his chakra was enough of that. It seems this was the wrong course of action; he needed to retreat and reassess this situation.

"Homura…Is he angry?" Yoruichi asked, looking at man. Shikamaru heard her question and listened in, hoping for a little insight on him.

"Yea, a little." Homura relied nonchalantly. "You getting burned got to him a bit." The cloaked turned to her, grabbing her right arm. Yoruichi looked at him raising an eyebrow. "He was probably going to do this anyway. You know how he is….does things oddly." Yoruichi nodded. She looked at his hand, seeing a light blue glow from his palm. A warm sensation covered her arm, his hand sliding up her forearm. "I'll do this just this one time…So don't get used to it."

"Alright….I find Naruto's touch better anyway." She replied with a shrug. Homura didn't have a comeback to that.

"Anyway." Homura said, releasing her arm. He was done his job. He left her side walking forward. He eyed Shikamaru for a second frowning before looking ahead. "Hey, Uchiha-san." He called stopping at Naruto's side. He could see the scaled blade creeping towards the downed man. Their battle was still fresh on his mind, so he knew what it meant. His eyes went to Itachi and pointed to his downed partner. "This will be the only chance you get. Take your comrade and retreat."

Itachi stared him down, unable to believe in him. His eyes turned to Naruto who nodded before turning around, walking back over to Yoruichi. "You don't have long. You should get a move on." Homura said. Itachi continued to stare but decided to take his word. With a kunai hidden in his left hand, the Uchiha slowly moved over to Kisame. As he moved Homura watched him, with his arms crossed. It seems he was being cautious.

Reaching Kisame, the Uchiha picked him up, putting his right arm over his shoulder. He notice two things, the first was the sword was wrapping around his left wrist and the next was there something irregular on his chest. His eyes narrowed on it before his eyes widen briefly. He composed himself before casting a look at Naruto. Itachi made a seal before a puff of smoke over took their forms.

They were gone by the time is disperse.

Homura looked off for a moment before turning, walking over to Naruto who was inspecting his handy work. He stopped at his side before looking at Shikamaru, who seemed to be contemplating why they were let go. He saw the weapons on his hands before humming. He elbowed Naruto, getting the man to look back at him. With a point to Shikamaru, Naruto nodded. Shikamaru turned his head to them at this moment, putting his weapons away.

"That was….quite the interesting battle." He said. Naruto shrugged, Homura on the other hand, crossed his arms across his chest. Shikamaru could quickly sense this guy was going to be a little of a problem for him.

"Look," Yoruichi tried to step forward only to be halted by Homura's hand. Yoruichi raised an eyebrow at him, just as his hand dropped.

"….First things first. No matter how you look at things, you are being fairly rude." Homura said.

'Rude?' Shikamaru thought, narrowing his eyes in thought.

"Bring your teammates out." Homura ordered. Shikamaru hummed in realization. The young man's arm rose, his hand making three signs. In moments, three blurs burst from the trees, landing beside the ninja.

Homura looked at the three now unhidden ninja. He knew about two of them, the two females, the male he knew name but nothing else about him. He noticed quickly why Shikamaru wanted to keep these three hidden. Both Aya and Maya seemed to be holding some emotion for Naruto back but it was easy to see in their eyes. The guy Hideo, also held it, but he could just describe it as normal hatred. "Anybody else?" He asked.

"No, just these three." Shikamaru replied. Homura nodded before smiling.

"Now! What do you want? You want to fight or something?" Homura asked, cheerfully. Naruto was the only one to smile at that.

"No!" Hideo said quickly. "We are here…."

"We are here to request Naruto's return to Konoha." Shikamaru interrupted. He did not need the man saying the wrong thing.

"It doesn't look like this is a 'we' thing. They look like they don't want to be near him." Homura said pointing at his teammates. Shikamaru looked at them letting out a sigh.

"It's more of our leader who requests his return." Maya returned. Homura nodded in understanding, while Shikamaru sighed again.

"And why exactly does Tsuande want him back in Konoha after seven years of banishment?" Homura asked.

"What…Banishment?" Yoruichi asked, shocked at the revelation. Naruto looked at her and tilted his head. He thought she knew.

"No Naruto, I didn't tell her." Homura said. Aya raised an eyebrow, Naruto didn't say anything.

"We are in quite the bind, and we need Naruto's help to get out of it." Hideo said. Homura turned his head to the man, humming as he thought.

"So…basically you want Naruto, to enter your war?" Homura asked. Shikamaru stared at the man, he didn't think news of the war would spread this far out.

"So you know of the war?" Maya asked. Homura nodded, crossing his arms.

"Well, at least you guys came to the right person for it." He said as Yoruichi looked at him. She shook her head before stepping to Homura's side.

"I'm not sure why you are entertaining them." The purple hair woman said. She turned her head to the ninja also crossing her arms. "But the answer is no." She said.

"That's funny" Maya said her eyes going from her to Naruto. "I didn't think you were the type to have people make your decisions." Maya taunted, earning a glare from Yoruichi.

'Oh no.' Shikamaru thought, glancing at the girl.

Yoruichi looked at Homura before looking at Naruto. "Can we go? This whole situation is really annoying."

Homura and Naruto looked at her. Naruto showed a nervous grin, scratching his cheek. "Just relax a bit. There's no reason to rush things….I'm pretty sure they won't attack." Homura said. His eyes shifted back over to Maya before looking at Shikamaru. "Sorry about her impatience, but she is right. The answer is no."

Shikamaru sighed at this, so he was right, this was going to be harder then he thought it would be. "Excuse me, but we would like to hear Naruto answer." Maya said.

"Well, that's going to be a problem." Homura said.

"Why is that?" Hideo asked.

"Because Naruto," He said pointing to said person. "Has become a mute."

A.N

Yo DragonTamerX here. Sorry for restarting the story, I couldn't figure out what to do next. So here is the new version. Tell me how you like it. And even though I don't write for the reviews, getting reviews tells me how people feel about it and it gets me more motivated. Oh Sorry I haven't updated on my other ones, I still have a writer's block. I can't seem to figure out a nice first mission for them. So suggestions would be nice.