Disclaimer: Nope, don't own Naruto. I do own clan Shasei and all related info for it I make up.

A/N: My Kushina is different from the Kushina in the manga. It's just that the Kushina in the manga and my description of Shiori were too similar for my liking. If you don't like it then just think of Kushina as she normally looks.

I wont do the translations for jutsu that most people already know (e.g. Hirashin, Kage Bunshin, Henge, etc.) but I will put a translation next to everything else.

Naruto's eyes were wide, his jaw slack as he looked at his ancestral home. Sarutobi was correct when he called this a clan village.

Sprawled out in front of him was a massive circular garden, twice the size of the arena. It had a dozen or so large trees arranged around it and it was littered with flower beds that filled the air with their natural fragrance. He noticed that around the edge was one long Zen garden, the sand finely combed around smooth rocks. Through the middle of the garden was a long stream that snaked its was through the garden from a small waterfall at one end that filled a round moderately sized pond in the exact centre of the garden before continuing on to disappear down a vent in the opposite wall.

Naruto took a few steps forward, his head spinning wildly, trying to take the place in. "Th-this is…amazing…"

"Yes." Sarutobi said with a small smile as he took in his surroundings. "The Shasei were very proud of their gardens. They are a wonder to behold."

Naruto looked around for a moment before he noticed something strange. There were no floodlights or lamps to give off any of the light that flooded the garden. Puzzled, he looked up and his breath was once again taken in awe. Roughly two-hundred and fifty meters up where the top of the mountain should be there was a large hole directly over the garden allowing sunlight to flood the inside of the mountain.

"How…how is…" Naruto couldn't form words.

"One of the Shasei's many natural skills included rather powerful genjutsu, as you saw with the entryway. The entire mountaintop is just one large illusion. You'll find many such illusions around here." Sarutobi explained.

Naruto barely heard him. His eyes were gazing up at the inner walls of the mountain. He realised that the inside of the mountain was a large, hollow, perfectly shaped cylinder, stretching from the edges of the garden all the way up to the tip, taking out the mountaintop. Around the inside of the mountain were ten different levels of floors, each made of expensive dark green veined white marble. The architecture was gorgeous, the pillars and banisters having realistic vines of leaves working around them, blossoming with stone flowers. The white stone seemed to glow in the morning sun.

Naruto was is shock. This place was the home of his family? When Sarutobi had told him that he was going to 'organise things' before he told him about his mother, Naruto thought that he was going to be shown his mother's apartment when she was a Jounin. This was one BIG apartment.

"Let's go somewhere where we can talk before Naruto catches a fly in his mouth." Sarutobi quipped before he placed a hand on Naruto's shoulder and led him to the edge of the garden and through one of the large arches that encircled the it into the first floor of the mountain. The first floor was a large space filled with supportive pillars spaced at regular intervals before they came to a wide staircase that spiralled up half way around the inside of the mountain, another spiralling the other way. They were led all the way up to the top floor and they stepped out into a carpeted hallway lined with beautifully crafted weapons, no two of which were the same but all were magnificently crafted. Under each weapon was a number and a name.

"Those are the names and weapons of each Shasei ninja that held the title of Lord Shasei. The number shows who held the title first, second, third and so on." Sarutobi explained. They walked through the corridor until they finally came to a set of polished oak doors. The right and left door bore a carved sunburst and crescent moon respectively. Naruto looked at Sarutobi who nodded and he grasped one of the golden handles and turned it.

The doors opened into a large office. It was a 'D' shape with tapestries lining the long curved wall that depicted what looked like important moments in the clan's history and the entire straight wall was a large window that looked out over the forest towards Konoha. 'Probably another illusion over the window.' Naruto thought. Where the rest of the village was made of marble, the walls of the office were a dark wood and the luscious woven carpet was a deep red with a golden vine pattern covering it. The vines converged to the middle of the room where there was a golden band encircling the symbol of the tree, sunburst and moon. Directly opposite the door was a large wooden desk surrounded by plush chairs. Behind the desk and slightly to the side was a weapons rack which held one of the most beautiful and deadly looking weapons Naruto had ever seen.

The weapon was double-bladed voulge. It was just over sixty inches long from tip to tip. The long handle had a oiled black leather grip that had a detailed golden vine wrapped around the length. The blades were about a foot long and roughly five inches wide, obviously meant for hacking. The blades had a certain look to them, both elegant and brutal. They had a good mix of smooth curves and wicked spines, not to brutal and not to ornate. The blades were black and the edges glowed silver. On the main part of one blade the metal had been cut out in the shape of a sunburst and on the other the metal was removed in the shape of a crescent moon.

"That was your mother's weapon; Yoruhiru." Shiori said softly. "It was one of the finest weapons I have ever seen. When she wielded it in battle it was as if she were dancing. It was beautiful."

'My mother's weapon…' Naruto couldn't believe it. Right in front of him was a connection to the mother he had never known, proof that he had family. He took a few hesitant steps forward, almost afraid that the sight before him would vanish and he would wake up in the hospital to discover that it had all been a dream. Sarutobi, Anko and Ibiki stepped around him to take the three seats in front of the desk leaving Naruto no choice but to take the one behind the desk. The one where Lord Shasei would sit.

"Well Naruto," Sarutobi said once everyone was seated. "I promised you the truth about your mother and I am about to deliver but first there are just a few things we need to sort out first." He turned to Ibiki and Anko. "Before we begin let me tell you that everything that is said today will be classified as an S-class secret. That means nothing goes beyond this room. If you break this law or are about to break it, it will mean immediate execution. Is that clear?" The two Jounin nodded and Sarutobi sat back in his chair. "Well I think I should tell you a bit about clan Shasei so you aren't left in the dark."

"Long before Konoha was founded there was a time of endless war. Nations fought nations in a constant state of unrest and more often than not the ninja clans were hired for their almost superhuman skills. At this time there were four clans that rose to power among all others. They were the Hyuuga, the Uchiha, the Senju and the Shasei. Each clan had carved out their own territory and established peace within their borders as no enemy would attack them, save for one of the other three clans. The Hyuuga were feared for their all seeing eyes of the Byakugan. The Uchiha were feared because of the abilities granted to them by the Sharingan. The Senju were feared because of their skills at planning attacks and building defences as well as their skills at manipulating elemental chakra. The Shasei were feared because of their unparalleled skills at stealth and assassination as well as the fact that their elemental manipulation skills surpassed those of the Senju."

Sarutobi paused for a moment and stroked his beard in thought. "It was speculated that the Senju were actually an off-shoot of the Shasei because of their skill with the elements but it was never proved and the clans refused to comment on it but it was well known that the two clans held a close friendship."

"Anyway, over time the wars had begun to take its toll on the land and the leaders of the ninja began to worry that the structure of government would collapse and the world would descend into chaos. The leader of the Senju, Senju Hashirama and the leader of the Shasei, Shasei Sakidasu formed a plan to bring stabilization to the land in the form of the Hidden Villages. The plan was that each country would be ruled by a daimyo who was in charge of administrative business in the country and had in his service samurai to keep order, while the ninja would enforce their leader's will and prevent any enemy intrusions into the land. The leader of the ninja had control of the military and the daimyo had control over everything else so no one could control the other."

"Eventually Hashirama and Sakidasu gathered the Aburame, Inuzuka, Yamanaka, Nara and Akimichi clans and eventually the Uchiha and Hyuuga to form Konohagakure in the Land of Fire. With their influence the Land of Fire was stabilized and began to flourish. Seeing this, the other countries followed their example and the Elemental Nations were formed."

"The Shasei were the most powerful clan but they didn't lord it over the others. They were very humble people. Each clan contributed to Konoha's military structure in some way. The Inuzuka crafted the hunter-nin, the Uchiha created the Military Police, the Nara's created the advisory position for the Hokage. The Shasei probably created one of the most important additions; they were the first Anbu. They filled the role of Konoha's best assassins and infiltrators and it was extremely rare for them to fail a mission. As a result the Hokage bestowed upon them the honorary role of his guardians, warriors with the Hokage's complete trust and recognition as the finest ninja in Konoha. It was their duty to protect the Hokage and they never failed. The only reason that the Shodai and Nidaime Hokage's were killed was because they ordered their Shasei protectors to go help fellow Konoha ninja that were loosing in battle. The trust in the Shasei was so absolute that the Shasei clan village was the only place that the Hokage would go without a guard unit; the Shasei mountain was the home of his guards."

Naruto sat in silence as he listened. He couldn't believe that his clan was responsible for bringing peace to the Elemental Nations, the creation of the Anbu and the bodyguards of the Hokage. It was unimaginable. He wanted desperately to hear more of his clan's history but right now he wanted to hear more about his mother.

"And my mother?" Naruto asked.

Sarutobi smiled and his eyes took on a glazed look, his mind delving into fond memories. "Your mother was one of the greatest leaders that the Shasei ever produced. Her name was Shasei Kushina."

A strangled gasp had them turning towards Anko. The Kunoichi had her hands clasped over her mouth and tears in her eyes as she looked at Naruto. "I-I always thought…you looked so much like her…but how? We thought you died…"

"I think I'd better explain." Sarutobi said, seeing Naruto's confusion. "At one point in time Anko was the student of one of Konoha's most notorious criminals; my former student Orochimaru. We found out he was performing experiments on fellow ninja and he fled the village. We found Anko some time later. We searched her mind and assessed that she didn't have a hand in the experiments so we reinstated her as a Genin. The problem was that the horrors that Orochimaru caused were still fresh in the minds of the people of the village and no one would have her on their teams. Then your mother came along."

"She saw that Anko wasn't like Orochimaru and she came to me with a request to have Anko put on her team. She had just lost one of her Genin on a mission and she needed a replacement so I agreed."

Anko turned to the Hokage, anger evident in her eyes. "Why the hell did you never tell me who he was? I could have looked after him! I owed it to Kushina-sensei!"

Naruto turned to face the Hokage. Here was someone who was willing to care for him when he was growing up and would have looked after him if she knew who he was. He wanted answers.

Sarutobi sighed. "Anko you had just turned fourteen and were a newly promoted Chuunin, there was no way you could have looked after a child all by yourself. I had planned to tell you soon, if not when Naruto was in his third year at the academy then at least when he graduated. I wanted to tell you but I didn't want you to struggle raising a child alone and that would have been more difficult considering who you both are."

Anko grit her teeth. He was right, it would have been rough raising a child alone at fourteen while having her Chuunin duties and those damn villagers would have made life difficult but that didn't mean she had to like it. She glanced at Naruto and berated herself for not seeing it before. Naruto had the exact same facial structure and eye shape of his mother and from what she had heard his personality was not far off either. If she had noticed it before she might have been able to go to the Hokage and try to adopt Naruto sooner and he would have had to be beaten or neglected by those ignorant villagers. He wouldn't have went through that…

Naruto slumped slightly in his chair. He understood Sarutobi's reasoning and he wouldn't want to have caused Anko any more trouble than she already had if what he was saying about Anko's standing in the village was true.

"Can you tell me about her?" He asked quietly as he looked at Anko. If she was his mother's student then she would know a lot about her right?

Anko smiled slightly as she looked at Naruto. This wasn't one of her notorious bloodthirsty grins she used to freak out her enemies, this one was full of nostalgia and fond memories. "Kushina-sensei was one of the greatest people you could ever hope to meet. She was short, only 5'3 with short, slightly spiky dark blue hair and dark eyes with a few flecks of turquoise in them that always had a hint of mischief in them. She was a prankster at heart and it showed in how she fought. She would dance around her opponent, dodging every attack and strike back in the sneakiest ways possible. She was kind, loving, she always enjoyed a good laugh and she never stood on ceremony. Something about all that 'Kushina-sama' thing making her feel old." Anko grinned. "I used to tell her she was old and she'd chase me all around Konoha." She looked at Naruto. "I'll never forget the look on her face when she found out she was pregnant, she was bouncing of the walls she was so happy." Anko laughed loudly. "You should have seen the look on her face when she watched a birthing video for the first time! I never knew someone could go that pale that quickly! She didn't care though, she was so happy."

"It's true." Shiori said, a reminiscent smile on her face. "For the whole nine months she had a smile on her face."

Naruto listened with a smile on his face and tears in his eyes. For years he wondered what his mother looked like, what she was like, how did she act and now he was finally getting his answers. However there was one thing that he still wanted to know.

"What happened to her?"

Sarutobi looked at the ground, an unreadable expression on his face. "There is a fact about the Shasei that only the clan and the Hokage are aware of. It is the source of many of the Shasei's skills and abilities and one of the reasons that the Shasei built this mountain. The Shasei had a close connection with the Kyuubi, they were its protectors and under its protection."

Anko and Ibiki gasped. They had always assumed that the Kyuubi was a rampaging monster. It had certainly seemed that way when it attacked.

"What do you mean?" Anko asked. "The Kyuubi went on a rampage and killed the Shasei before attacking the village."

"That wasn't Shiori-nee-chan's fault!" Naruto interjected quickly. "She was under a genjutsu."

Anko looked at him, confused. "Who is Shiori?"

"Shiori is the true name of the Kyuubi no Kitsune. She was also an advisor and trainer of the leaders of the Shasei." Sarutobi informed her.

"What do you mean?" Ibiki asked.

Sarutobi scratched the side of his head. "I see I didn't do back far enough when I talked about the Shasei's history."

"Well, many years ago the Shasei came to this mountain in the hopes of setting up a new home for themselves but they found out that someone had already moved in; Shiori. They didn't attack as many would do, instead they approached her with a request; let them make the mountain their home and they would worship her. Shiori had heard about the Shasei's gentle and benevolent nature so she allowed them to stay for one year while she observed them to see if they were worthy. The Shasei began to build their home and Shiori was impressed with their close relationship with nature, a relationship normally beyond humans."

"Five months after they moved into the mountain there was a great famine in the Land of Fire and many people in the surrounding villages began to die. The Shasei had amassed a large harvest that year so they rationed their food and spread as much of it as they could to the surrounding villages. The famine went on for some time and the Shasei began to feel the strain of providing for so many but they didn't pull their support."

"Two months later they received word; an army from the Land of Wind planed an invasion of the Land of Fire and their troops would arrive by the end of the month. The Shasei knew that the daimyo of the Land of Fire was an incompetent fool who allowed his people to starve while he sat at great banquettes so they took action. They gathered the villagers from the villages and brought them inside the mountain while they trained to defend their home. The month ended and they received word that Wind's army had entered northern Fire Country. The army swept over the land cut found no inhabitants or valuables. One of their scouts reported seeing people going in and out of a nearby mountain so the army converged on it, surrounding it and cutting off all escape."

"This is interesting Jiji but what has this got to do with what happened to my mother?" Naruto asked.

I'll get to that eventually but it is important to know of the connection between the Shasei and Shiori." Sarutobi placated.

"The siege of the mountain lasted over three months and it was beginning to take its toll. Food was becoming scarce, the numbers of Shasei defending the mountain were being thinned and the defences were becoming eroded. Pretty soon the enemy would break through. Then Shiori acted."

"She admired the Shasei for their willingness to help strangers at the cost of their own life and saw that the Shasei needed help or they and the villagers would all die. She approached the leader of the Shasei with an offer; she would teach them the secrets of chakra, train them in combat and assist them to push back the enemy army if they promised to use the gifts she gave them to defend those who could not defend themselves. The Shasei readily agreed and soon Shiori began to teach them the ways of the ninja. She granted them the ability to cast extremely powerful illusions, taught them how to mould and use chakra, taught them forgotten kenjutsu styles and how to move without being seen. The Shasei also managed to use chakra to help grow crops and fortify their walls while they snuck into the enemy camps and sowed disorder and killed the leaders."

"It was another month before the Shasei and Shiori sprung their trap. The Shasei had spent months digging under the enemy camp and setting up explosives and tunnels for their ambushes before they were used. Shiori, in her Nine-tailed Fox form erupted from the top of the mountain, sending massive boulders and fire down upon the army as she charged. At that same moment the explosives under the camp were detonated, killing thousands of enemy soldiers while the Shasei erupted from their tunnels, using their new skills to the fullest. They cast terrifying illusions that shook the enemy while they used their kenjutsu to cut down anyone foolish enough to get near. Their senses and reflexes, advanced thanks to Shiori, allowed them to avoid being crushed by her during her rampage. Though the Shasei were outnumbered five-to-one they used the element of surprise and their new skills to slaughter thousands and with the help of the Empress of the Demons they drove the few remaining enemy survivors into a hasty retreat. The Shasei were hero's. The villagers were eternally thankful for all the Shasei had done for them and the Shasei vowed to protect the Land of Fire with their lives. Shiori allowed the Shasei to stay in the mountain and swore an eternal friendship with them as long as they remembered their vow. Many years later the Shasei helped build Konoha and all connection between the clan and Shiori was forgotten."

Everyone sat back trying to digest what they had just heard. To Ibiki and Anko they didn't think that the Kyuubi, or rather Shiori was a kind natured person who helped defend Fire Country and gave birth to one of the greatest ninja clans to ever exist.

Naruto was stuck on the thought that his clan would do and risk so much for perfect strangers. He wouldn't just sit by and let people suffer either and now he saw where he got it but one thing worried him. His clan made a vow to protect the people of Fire Country, including the people of Konoha. He was sworn to protect the people that had hurt him and caused him so much pain…and he didn't think he'd be able to honour that vow. The latest attack had tainted his perception of the villagers almost irreparably and to be honest at that moment he was more inclined to let them rot on hell. He'd need to think on this more later.

"And what happened to my mother?" He asked quietly.

Sarutobi stood and went to the window. He gazed out towards Konoha for a long moment before he took a deep breath and began.

"Most of what I know I got from the Shasei's security system. It happened on a night eleven years ago…"

-/-/-/-/Flashback no jutsu/-/-/-/-

"Push!"

The hospital room was empty save for the doctor and three nurses working deliver the baby of the head of the Shasei.

Shasei Kushina sat propped up in the bed, her ankles propped wide apart on stirrups as she moaned loudly through gritted teeth as she pushed with all her might. They had been at this for over twenty hours and she could honestly say it had been one of the most exhausting twenty hours of her life. She had been having dinner with the Sarutobi's when her water broke. The Sandaime called for medics and she was whisked off to the hospital. She couldn't wait to see her little Naru-chan but he wasn't making it easy.

She was so going to embarrass him on his first date for this.

She doubled over as another contraction hit.

"Just one more push Lady Kushina, I can see the head." The doctor told her.

Kushina sucked in a huge breath and grit her teeth to stop the screaming as she pushed with all her energy. She wished Minato were there with her. He had to go to Suna to sign some new treaty and he wouldn't be back for a few hours.

She suddenly felt huge relief and she slumped back onto the bed in exhaustion. A second later she froze when she heard the high pitched crying of an infant and a smile slowly made its way onto her face as she realised it was over. She had a son.

She glowed as the doctor presented her child to her. He was tiny with a cloud of blond hair atop his head and his skin was slightly pink. He was the most beautiful thing she had ever seen. The doctors cleared out of the room and in stepped the former Hokage, Sarutobi. The old man smiled down at baby Naruto.

"How do you feel?" He asked.

Kushina cradled Naruto in her arms. "I think I know how Jiraiya feels every time he gets caught peeping."

They both laughed knowing the Super Pervert was constantly going in and out of hospital for 'research related injuries' as he liked to call them.

"Kushina you've had a rough night you should-"

She never got to hear what she should do when there was a commotion in the corridor outside. The door flew open to reveal one of her kinsmen. It was her cousin, Shasei Genji. His body was concealed beneath one of the Shasei's special cloaks and he seemed out of breath. The hooded, sleeveless garment was made of chakra enhanced fibres special to the Shasei that made the cloak more resilient and made the colour of the cloak shift constantly to match the surroundings of the wearer so that they were harder to spot. She also noticed blood on his face and hands.

"Genji! What's wrong?" She asked, startled. The man ignored her as he closed the door and quickly bit his thumb before he drew a symbol on the wall. She recognised it as a silencing seal and her worry grew. Finally he turned to her, a look of urgency on his face.

"Kushina we have a problem!"

"What?"

"It's Shiori-sama. She suddenly went on a rampage in the mountain, she's attacking our clan members and trying to escape."

Kushina felt the blood drain from her face. Shiori was the most gentle soul you could meet, especially towards the Shasei. The fox demon had been her teacher and friend for her entire life and there was defiantly foul play involved if Shiori was attacking the clan.

"What caused her to go on the rampage?" She asked, going into leader mode.

Genji shook his head. "We don't know. One minute all is fine, the next Shiori-sama comes crashing out of her den in her Nine-tailed form, trying to make for the top of the mountain to escape."

Kushina forced herself to remain calm although it was hard. If Shiori was on a rampage in her Nine-tailed form then things were not looking good. Shiori hadn't needed to use that form in hundreds of years; her human form was dangerous enough and the Nine-tailed form was astronomically worse.

She looked down at her son with a great sense of emptiness. This was the first and maybe the last time she would get to hold him. She knew she needed to go to the clan village and try to stop Shiori but she didn't want to leave Naruto without a mother. If she couldn't calm Shiori down then who knew how many would be killed. It was her duty as a leader to go but it was her duty as a mother to stay. She sighed as a tear made its way down her face. She had to go. If Shiori broke out of the mountain and went for the village then Naruto and countless others would be in grave danger.

With a heavy heart she kissed Naruto's head and inhaled his scent before the stood and passed her son to Sarutobi. She ignored them as she went over to her clothes and pulled them on. They were fancy but combat ready as all formal Shasei clothes were. A long, black inner kimono with sleeves that came down to her mid arm and was held together by a red obi went under a larger, long sleeved black kimono with a red bonsai tree and sun design on the back. She slipped on the comfortable sandals she had taken to wearing early in her pregnancy and picked up her voulge; Yoruhiru. A Shasei never went anywhere without their weapon be it a dinner with friends or childbirth. She slipped herself a soldier pill to recover some of her energy as she turned back to Sarutobi. She walked over to gaze down at her beautiful baby boy and she had to fight to control herself.

"I'm sorry Naruto but mommy has to go. I may not be able to some back but know that I love you and that I will always be with you. I know you'll grow up to be a strong leader and marry a nice girl one day. I love you my little Naru-chan." She whispered to him before she placed one last kiss on his head and tore herself away.

She turned to Genji. "What is our status?"

"Dozens are dead and there is moderate to maximum damage to the clan village. We are holding Shiori-sama back but just barely."

Kushina nodded before she turned to Sarutobi. "I suggest you have the village prepare for a massive assault in case we can't control Shiori. Have the civilians moved to the shelters in the Hokage Monument and have all available ninja take up stations. I also suggest you recall all ninja out on missions and try to get word to Minato as soon as possible."

Sarutobi looked pleadingly at Kushina. "Kushina you can't go, you're still weak an-"

She cut him off. "My teacher is on the rampage and my kinsmen are dying trying to buy you time to fortify the village. I am going to assist my people Hokage-sama." She used his title to get her point across.

Sarutobi sighed and reluctantly nodded. Kushina took one last look at her son, burning his picture into her memory before she turned and left the room, Genji on her heels.

They quickly left the hospital and took to the roofs, aiming to get back to the mountain as quickly as possible. If Kushina was tired from childbirth she didn't show it, her mind focused on getting to her family in time to help them. They ignored the cold wind as they ran. In the distance she could hear the emergency alarms going off, signalling civilians to make for the shelters and for the ninja to make for the walls. They made it from the hospital to the gates in five minutes and dived into the forest.

They cut through the trees and within moments Kushina could see the stairway that lead to the entrance to the village. They ran up the stairs and pulled out their medallions to see through the illusion before Kushina slapped a hand to the Key Pillar and pushed her chakra into it, praying she wasn't too late.

Tears sprung to her eyes before the wall was even fully raised.

The place was a disaster area. In the centre of the massive garden there was a large hole, evidently the place where Shiori began her attack. Bodies littered the ground and fallen rubble crushed the flowers and trees. She looked up and could see fire pouring from the upper levels of the village as the few remaining survivors tried to regroup.

And there, standing tall in the middle of the garden, was Shiori. She was in her fully unleashed Nine-tailed form, a beautiful and terrible sight. She took up nearly half of the garden, her tails smashing down walls and rubble onto the ninja below her. There was blood on her fangs and a mad gleam in her eye. Even just looking at her Kushina could tell that Shiori was too far gone to listen to reason.

So caught up in her analysis, Kushina didn't notice the huge chunk of masonry falling towards her from above until Genji shoved her out of the way. He wasn't so lucky. He was crushed completely and Kushina had to bite back a cry of anguish. Genji had been one of her favourite cousins and playmate all of her life.

Steeling herself she slowly rose to her feet, Yoruhiru grasped firmly in her hand. She focused her eyes on Shiori and brought her thumb to her mouth. She bit her thumb, never once taking her eyes off Shiori and began to perform a series of one-handed seals. She slammed her hand to the ground while screaming at the top of her voice.

"KUCHIYOSE NO JUTSU!"

There was a large burst of smoke that blanketed the area, obscuring Kushina. Shiori narrowed her eyes at this new foe and bared her fangs, a loud threatening growl rumbling in her throat.

The smoke cleared and there stood Kushina, her arms crossed, standing on a massive lizard. The summon was tall, almost fifty meters when on all fours and one-hundred metres long with midnight-blue, almost black scales covering its body. Its underbelly was scale less but packed with rippling muscles just like the rest of its body. The creature's broad back had a row of thick spines protruding from it, leading the way down in a straight line to stop near the end of its ling tail. Clad around the creature's shoulders was a large sleeveless jacket with holes cut in it to allow the spines through that was black with golden pattern on the back depicting a circle of lizards around a pyramid shaped temple. The design was reminiscent of those used by the ancient Aztecs of the west. The lizard's long head was thin but tall like that of a T-rex and a mane of long spines protruded from the back of its skull. The summons slit yellow eyes rolled up to look at Kushina, perched on the ridge of its long snout as it spoke.

"LONG TIME NO SEE KUSHI-" The summons eyes landed on the demon fox in front of them and the destruction around them. "WHAT THE HELL HAPPENED HERE?"

"It has been a long time Tokagedaima." Kushina greeted, keeping her voice devoid of emotion. "I'm afraid I need your help one last time."

"ONE LAST TIME?" Tokagedaima echoed in confusion. "KUSHINA WHAT THE HELL IS GOING ON?"

Kushina closed her eyes. "There is something wrong with Shiori. For some reason she attacked the clan and is trying to escape the mountain. I don't know what is causing her to act this way but I do know that we need to hold her here to buy time for Konoha to prepare themselves."

Tokagedaima looked up at Kushina. "YOU DON'T EXPECT TO LIVE." It wasn't a question.

Kushina smiled sadly. "I'm good but I can't defeat Shiori, only stall her."

Tokagedaima closed his eyes and heaved a great sigh. "THEN LET'S MAKE THIS ONE TO REMEMBER."

Kushina nodded as she focused chakra into her feet to keep her attached to her summon just as Shiori charged.

Tokagedaima leaped out of the way with a speed the belied his size just as one long tail came crashing down, blocking off the entrance to the village.

Tokagedaima dug his sharp claws into the wall as he climbed the inside of the mountain until he was level with Shiori's head.

The fox demon turned to face the lizard when Tokagedaima launched himself off the wall. He held put a claw as he streaked past her, digging long gashes into her face. Shiori roared in pain and shook her head to get the blood out of her eyes just as Tokagedaima sunk his sharp teeth into her leg and twisted, breaking it and causing the mammoth fox to come crashing down.

The lizard summon leaped back out of the range of her tails and focused his chakra. "KUSHINA, I NEED SOME WIND!"

The Lady Shasei nodded and flew through more one-handed seals. Tokagedaima took in a great breath of air before he opened his jaws wide and spewed forth a large torrent of fire. Kushina crossed her arms in front of her before throwing them wide open and shouting, "Fuuton: Daitoppa! (Wind release: Great Breakthrough)"

The wind amplified the flames into a raging inferno and sent them rushing towards Shiori's downed form, burning everything in there path. Shiori roared in anger and pain as she was consumed by fire, the smell of burning fur filling the air.

The summon and its summoner watched for signs of movement in the flames. Suddenly a burning tail whipped out and struck Tokagedaima harshly in the side, sending him flying into the air and nearly dislodging Kushina. The lizard boss managed to turn in mid-air and used his claws to catch himself on the wall high above Shiori. He grunted as he felt his ribs.

"THAT BROKE A FEW BONES. I CAN'T TAKE TO MANY HITS LIKE THAT KUSHINA.

"I know." She replied. "Just make sure to stay out of the way of those tails."

"GEE, I WONDER WHY I NEVER THOUGHT OF THAT?" The summon grumbled as Shiori rose, having extinguished the flames. Her burned fur was already being replaced as she snarled up at the head of clan Shasei. Another of her long tails lashed up through the floors of the clan village and towards the lizard, sending massive pieces of stonework raining down upon the ground.

Tokagedaima dropped to the ground to avoid being hit but Kushina leaped high into the air. She landed on the tail as it passed underneath and focused chakra into her feet as she moved. She ran down the tail and jumped to another to avoid being thrown as she channelled her chakra element into her blades. Lightning arced from the ends of Yoruhiru as she ran along Shiori's back, making for her head. Kushina twirled her blade as she leaped towards the Shiori's skull. She landed and drove one of Yoruhiru's blades deep into the muscle of Shiori's head, sending electricity coursing through her brain. Shiori roared in anguish as she shook her head, trying to dislodge Kushina but to no avail. Kushina used the momentum given by Shiori's head shaking to jump far through the air and land safely on Tokagedaima's head.

"GOOD ONE." He commented.

Kushina nodded. "That will only stun her for a minute."

"THEN LET'S MAKE THE BEST OF IT." He sucked in another lungful of air. He aimed his head high above Shiori and opened his mouth. "FUUTON: RENKUUDAN! (Wind release: Drilling Air Bullet)" The large ball of compressed air slammed into the wall above Shiori and cut loose large pieces of the marble, sending it crashing down on Shiori's skull. The Demon Queen growled in fury as the sections of the wall stuck and she groggily pulled herself out from under them and focused her eyes on Tokagedaima, intent on crushing him.

"I THINK WE PISSED HER OFF." He said casually, as if they weren't facing the strongest of all demons.

"We?" Kushina asked. "You're the one that hit her with the heavy marble."

Before he could remind her that she had just stuck an electrified voulge into the demon's brain, Shiori lunged for them. Using his smaller size and superior agility Tokagedaima managed to slip under her outstretched front claw and ran behind her while using his sharp claws to tear out the tendons in her legs, sending her crashing down onto the ground again.

He didn't get away easily though as he was clipped by a flailing tail and sent spinning through the air. Kushina didn't manage to hold on this time and was tossed from his back. She landed in a tree and fell through the branches to land hard on the ground just as Shiori turned to face her. Now that she was off of Tokagedaima's back the difference in height was more pronounced than ever.

She stepped back warily as Shiori moved slowly towards her. Their eyes locked and Kushina was saddened to see none of the compassion of warmth that was normally in Shiori's eyes, replaced by feral ferocity and unbridled anger. Suddenly Shiori's head snapped forward and Kushina barely managed to jump backwards before the fox's head crashed into the space Kushina previously occupied, sending dust and debris into the air. Kushina flipped backwards to get some space between them as Shiori raised her head out of the crater she had made.

Kushina reversed her grip on Yoruhiru and poured even more chakra into the lightning coating the blades and waited. She didn't have to wait long before Shiori lunged for her again. Quickly Kushina drew back her arm and tossed Yoruhiru like a javelin before throwing herself out of the way. She heard Shiori's head impact the ground behind her before the huge fox bellowed in pain. Kushina looked over her shoulder to see her voulge had been driven deep into Shiori's slit eye, driving even more electricity into Shiori's head. The demon clawed at her face, trying to get the weapon loose but failed due to its small size. Eventually the weapon used up all of the chakra Kushina had stored in it and Shiori rose to her feet, one eyelid clenched shut around the weapon still embedded in it.

A loud growl rumbled from Shiori's throat and she bared her teeth as she advanced upon Kushina. The fox was just about to take another lunge at the woman when she felt something land on her back and a powerful pair of jaws clamp down around her neck.

Kushina watched as Tokagedaima tore at Shiori's throat, sending large droplets of blood raining down upon the grass to dye them red. The demon flailed its arms as it tried in vain to dislodge the lizard from her back. Tokagedaima tore away a hunk of Shiori's throat before he jumped off of her back, narrowly avoiding her thrashing claw.

He landed on the ground next to Kushina and she leaped up onto his shoulder and onto his head as she bit her thumb. She swiped the bloody digit across her palm and there was a burst of smoke before Yoruhiru appeared in her hand, still covered in blood from Shiori's eye. She took a moment to catch her breath, The stress from childbirth was beginning to catch up and she couldn't last forever. She popped another soldier pill into her mouth and looked up at the sky above though the hole in the top of the mountain. They had been fighting for little over an hour now. She sighed and readied herself.

She didn't have to wait long before Shiori pounced. Tokagedaima dodged and ran up the wall. He tore across its marble surface and put some distance between himself and the demon and it wasn't long before he was on the opposite end of the garden behind the fox.

The lizard boss channelled wind chakra into his tail before he swung it at Shiori. "FUUTON: KAZEKIRI! (Wind element: Wind Cutter)" The large blade of air tore across the garden and Tokagedaima watched with satisfaction as three of Shiori's tails were severed and another two had very deep wounds.

The fox demon howled in agony even as her tails regenerated. She turned to face the reptile and lunged. Tokagedaima jumped over her attack and landed on the ground over her shoulder.

"ANY IDEAS?" He panted. He was still young but this was exhausting!

"Just one but I'll need a minute to prepare!" She shouted back over the din of Shiori's rampage.

"TRY TO MAKE IT A QUICK MINUTE, HUH?" He asked as he dodged another tail.

Kushina didn't respond as she closed her eyes and focused on her task. She held Yoruhiru at her side as she began a long chain of one-handed seals. She felt her chakra build up quickly but it would still take a while.

Tokagedaima ducked under another swipe and scurried back, out of Shiori's range. "I WON'T LAST LONG LIKE THIS." He thought. An idea popped into his head and he smirked. He lifted up his front right claw and pushed his chakra into it. Flames covered the claw like a glove and Tokagedaima slammed it into the ground while shouting, "KATON: HISHINKIROU! (Fire element: Fire Mirage)". Thick flames rushed out from under the claw to blanket the entire garden. When the garden was completely covered, the flames rose to dizzying heights, taller than Shiori. The fire wasn't that hot but it was thick enough to prevent anyone from seeing through it, more of a realistic genjutsu than a Katon technique. The flames reversed Tokagedaima's heat vision. Instead of looking for an enemy's heat signature in a cooler environment he looked for the relatively cool body temperature in a hot environment. The flames didn't raise the body temperature so he didn't need to worry about loosing his enemy in the flames or about Kushina being burned.

He saw the large silhouette of Shiori looking around frantically, trying to find a way out of the flames. He moved back from the demon as he watched her crash into the wall after trying to back peddle out of the flames and he chuckled. He could sense the large build up of chakra in Kushina and he knew that whatever she was planning was going to be big. "SHE HAD BETTER DO IT SOON THOUGH, THIS TECHNIQUE TAKES UP A LOT OF CHAKRA."

Kushina was unmindful of the fire roaring around her and singeing her robes, she had seen the technique performed enough times to know that she wasn't in any danger. Electricity crackled around her as lightning danced along Yoruhiru's blades and around her hands. She brought her left hand in front of her face in a half ram seal and focused the last part of her chakra. There was a light blue halo of chakra around her now, the power contained in the jutsu barely being contained. Suddenly she snapped her eyes open. They pulsed with their own energy, the turquoise glowing bright in the night darkness and giving her eyes an eerie piercing look. She brought up Yoruhiru to hold it between both of her hands, the lightning around the blades doubling in intensity. She set her sights on Shiori as the flames finally began to die out and spoke to Tokagedaima.

"I'm ready." Her voice had a low rumble to it.

The boss of the lizards nodded. He flexed his powerful legs and tore across the ground towards Shiori. Kushina's face stayed impassive as the demon fox turned to face the charging summon. Shiori roared her challenge and ripped up the ground as she ran to meet the lizard.

Electricity arced around Kushina as she braced herself, her voulge grasped firmly in her hands. There was less than one-hundred metres separating them now. She could see Shiori's maw open wide in preparation for her attack.

"NOW!"

She kicked off of Tokagedaima's back hard as he dodged Shiori's attack. She flew high into the air above the two massive creatures, a trail of lightning behind her. She drew back her arm, Yoruhiru held tightly in her hand as Shiori's head swung up to look at her. She met the eye of the demon she called friend as she brought her arm swiftly forward. Yoruhiru cut through the air like a bright bolt of lightning cast by an angry god to smite his enemies. Once again Kushina's weapon was driven home into Shiori's eye but this time the power contained in it was mammoth. Kushina arced gracefully over the thrashing fox and landed softly on Tokagedaima's head, her hands still crackling with energy. She slowly turned to the demon, temporarily paralysed due to the electrical energy flooding through her mind. Kushina drew her hands back before thrusting them towards Shiori while intoning the name of her most powerful jutsu, her voice rocking the very foundation of the mountain.

"Raiton: Nihyakuhatsuka! (Lightning element: End of the Storm Period)"

Millions upon millions of volts flew from Kushina's hands in massive arcs of energy bright enough to leave scarring afterimages on the retina of anyone paying witness to the technique. The deafening sound of monstrous thunder rang loudly in the night sky. They shredded the air leaving a strong taste of burning ozone as they converged on their target.

Yoruhiru.

The two columns of combined to form one as they hit the weapon lodged in Shiori's eye. The Empress of demons roared in untold agony as the attack forced colossal amounts of lightning through her brain and into her nerves. She jerked violently as the electricity tore along her nerves and skin to every inch of her body from her muzzle to the tips of her tails. Every nerve cluster and pain receptor was burned out as the powerful attack coursed through her body forcing the most powerful demon to actually loose consciousness for the first time in its existence.

Kushina fell to her knees. Sweat was pouring down her face as she panted hard. That jutsu was her greatest creation but it took up most of her chakra. She barely had enough to stay on Tokagedaima.

"WOAH…" The summon whispered in awe. He'd never before seen a Raiton technique of that magnitude before and by the look of his summoner he wouldn't see it again in this fight. It took a lot to knock out a Bijuu, especially the strongest of them. He looked up at Kushina. "YOU OKAY?"

"I'm…fine. That technique…just…uses a lot…of…chakra…" She gasped. She wiped her brow with the sleeve of her outer kimono and shakily rose to her feet.

"WHAT WAS THAT?" Her summon asked, intrigued.

Kushina took a deep breath to steady her breathing. "That was the most powerful Raiton technique I have ever created. I've only ever had to use it once before and that was to decimate an army of Iwa ninja during the Third Great Shinobi War."

"…SO A HANDY LITTLE JUTSU THEN?"

Kushina laughed at her friend's description. 'I spend five years creating and fine tuning the most powerful Raiton technique in existence…and he calls it a 'handy little jutsu'.'

Suddenly Shiori surged out of the smoke that covered the area, her long powerful tail hurtling towards them as she roared to the heavens. Tokagedaima cursed loudly and tried to get out of the way.

He was too slow.

Shiori's tail slammed into Tokagedaima's side, breaking numerous bones and sending them hurtling into the air and crashing through up the floors of the Shasei village. Kushina was tossed from her summon's back violently and crashed through a thick pillar. She bounced off the floor before she was rammed into the wall at a high velocity, cracking it. She heard and felt too many of her bones breaking and she knew that she was going to die. Pain wracked her body as blood dripped from her mouth. She looked up painfully to meet the crimson eyes of Shiori staring at her from the edge of the floor. She faintly heard Tokagedaima un-summon himself and she silently prayed that her old friend would live.

Red to turquoise they looked at each other. Kushina's breath was ragged as she met the eyes of her teacher, her friend for her entire life. Shiori regarded the human in front of her with a primal sense of grudging respect and a of…grief? Slowly and painfully Kushina managed to form words.

"I don't…blame you. I know…there…is something…wrong…with you. You were my…greatest friend…and the closest…thing I…had to a…sister."

Shiori's eyes narrowed slightly as if understanding her words somewhat before she turned away and began to scale the walls as she headed for the hole on the mountain and eventually Konoha.

Kushina watched her go. The fight had lasted two and a half hours, far longer than she expected to last. She sighed wearily and rested her head against the wall behind her as her eyes became heavy. She had done what she could and now the fate of the village and that of her son was in the hands of Minato. Darkness encroached upon her vision and she succumbed to it but not before whispering a few final words.

"I love you…my sweet little Naruto…"

And with that Kushina, Lady of the Shasei, wife of Namikaze Minato and mother of Naruto passed on to her final rest, lying among her family and the spirits of her ancestors with a small smile on her face.

-/-/-/-/Flashback end no jutsu/-/-/-/-

"After that Shiori erupted from the mountain and headed for Konoha. If it wasn't for Kushina we would have been woefully unprepared for the attack. She saved the village with her actions just as you do Naruto. I can honestly say that your mother would have been proud of you."

Tears ran down Naruto's face as he listened. The truth about his mother was greater than any fabrication he made up whenever he thought about her. She had been weak from giving birth to him and she still managed to stand toe-to-toe with the greatest of the Bijuu to give the village time to prepare itself for the attack. She had selflessly lain down her own life so that others could live. But most importantly he knew that his mother loved him and had died so that he could live. In the back of his mind he could hear Shiori weeping and he closed his eyes. He could see her sitting on the floor of her cell, her arms wrapped around her knees and her head bowed as she cried.

'Don't cry Nee-chan.' He told her. 'Kaa-san knew you couldn't control yourself and she forgave you. It wasn't your fault.'

"I know Naruto-kun but," She wiped at her tears but more came. "It's just that I remember the fight and remember trying so hard to stop. When I looked at her against that wall and heard her words I could feel my heart breaking. Kushina was the closest thing I ever had to true family and the guilt is still there."

'That's not true.' He countered. 'I consider you family and if you need me to I'll forgive you for what happened because I know it wasn't your fault and I also know that Kaa-san wouldn't want you blaming yourself.'

"…Really?"

'Yes.'

Shiori took a deep shuddering breath to try and calm herself as she wiped her eyes. "Okay." She said. "I'll try not to."

Naruto nodded his thanks and opened his eyes. He was that Anko was also crying softly and Ibiki had a unfamiliarly soft look on his face.

Anko wiped at her eyes with the sleeve of her coat. "I always wondered how it happened but I could never find out, all the records were sealed."

Sarutobi turned to them. He looked more his age now than ever. "Yes it was decided that anything that connected Shiori with the Shasei would be classified at Hokage-level security status. Only me or my successor would ever find out about it."

Naruto turned to the old man, a grateful look on his tear streaked face. "Thanks Jiji."

Sarutobi smiled slightly and nodded. They sat in silence for a while as they processed the story they had just heard. It was Anko that broke the quiet.

"What now?"

Sarutobi stood up straighter and cleared his throat. "Well there is still the question of Naruto's staying in the village. After what has happened and what he has seen and heard I highly doubt he would want to remain in his apartment."

"Your damn right." Naruto said as he crossed his arms stubbornly as if to say 'Just try to move me from this spot'.

Sarutobi continued on as if Naruto hadn't spoke. "And after all that she has heard I doubt that Anko would continue to let Naruto live on his own without a guardian or at least someone to look after him?"

She scoffed. "Well of course not!" She smiled at Naruto when he looked at her wide-eyed. He shook off his surprise and smiled at her, tears of joy in his eyes. He was going to have family now after all these years.

"And Ibiki." Sarutobi turned to the large interrogation expert, his mood becoming slightly guilt ridden. "I know that Naruto won't have come away from this latest attack without some major mental trauma. I also know that you were friends with Kushina."

Anko laughed. "She just wasn't afraid of him. She kept calling him a big teddy bear that liked to act scary."

Ibiki glared at Anko as the others laughed. It was true; no matter what he did he could never scare Kushina. In fact she was the one that scared him more often than not, especially when she was pregnant.

"Yes well," Sarutobi controlled his amusement. "I'd like for you to become Naruto's psychiatrist. You know the human mind better than anyone else in Konoha and you'd be the best person for the job."

Ibiki nodded his consent. He usually used his insight into the human mind to break the mind's of enemy Shinobi and traitors but he was also called upon to hep those that have gone through traumatic experiences that dealt too much damage for normal psychiatrists to handle.

"There is also one thing I'd like to ask of both of you." Sarutobi said to the two Jounin. "If you'd be willing I'd like to legally make you both Naruto's legal guardians."

Naruto's head snapped round to face the Hokage. Legal guardians was basically someone adopting you, something Naruto had wanted for a long time. If they agreed then he would have a real family. He looked at the Jounin and tried to keep the hopefulness off his face.

It only took Anko a second to decide. "Definitely!" She had already planned to talk to the Hokage about it anyway. Kushina-sensei was the closest thing she had to a mother and had even mentioned plans about adopting her into the Shasei clan and if that happened then she really would have been Naruto's sister. She saw the look of pure joy on Naruto's face and she smiled back at him. She turned to Ibiki to see that he had one hand on his chin and a calculating look on his face.

Ibiki turned the idea over in his head. He wasn't much of a dater and he didn't expect to ever have kids. Being the head of the interrogation division gave you a rather grizzly public image and that made finding someone a lot harder. He did like the idea of having someone he could pass along his knowledge to even if it wasn't how to shatter someone's mind. Through the years he'd been the one that tortured those that had been caught breaking the Sandaime's law about Shiori and Naruto and he'd seen the medical reports on what had been done to the boy and it had made him sick. How anyone could do things like that to a child was beyond him but he made sure that those responsible got a taste of their own medicine. That guy Hito could attest to that; he didn't like being wrapped in barbed wire either. Nor did he like the dogs Ibiki had left in the room with him. He looked up at Naruto and could see the barley contained hope in the young boy's eyes and it settled it. Even he couldn't say no to a face like that.

"Alright." He agreed.

Naruto's heart soared. He finally found people that wanted to look after him. He finally had what he had wanted since his earliest memories. Family.

He couldn't stop the tears that sprung to his eyes or the huge grin that made its way to his face as he took it all in.

"Excellent!" Clapped his hands, grabbing everyone's attention and giving Naruto a chance to collect himself. "If all is settled I suggest we go to the village to pick up your things. Anko, Ibiki I will brief you on the Shasei village and the protocols you must follow within it later. If you wish I will keep your apartments I under your names so that you can continue to use them at your discretion. Also while we are in the village we should sign the legal documents so that they are out of the way."

They nodded and rose from their chairs. Naruto walked around the desk to join them and was pleasantly surprised when Anko put an arm around his shoulder. He smiled up at her and leaned into her hold as Ibiki ruffled the boys hair with a smile on his scarred face.

Sarutobi watched to soon-to-be family with a smile. Things were finally changing for the better and he would make damn well sure they stayed that way. He lead them out of the office and down the stairs, down through the floors of the Shasei village and out onto the garden as they headed for the entrance.

Naruto looked around the place and suddenly a thought came to him and he looked at Sarutobi. "Hey Jiji?"

"Yes Naruto?"

Naruto gestured at the beauty around him. "Well it's just that by the sound of it Kaa-san and Shiori-nee-chan's fight was pretty intense but this place looks brand new. How did that happen?"

Sarutobi chuckled as they made their way towards the entrance. "The Shasei have in their service a small army of chakra powered drones called Boku. They are used for labour and training purposes. It is likely they repaired the damage of the battle and tended the gardens, waiting for their masters to return. You'll find many such surprises around your new home."

Naruto smiled. His new home. He liked the sound of that.

Together the Hokage and the small family headed out into the morning sunlight and headed for Konoha and ultimately towards a better future.

A/N: AND THERE YOU GO!!! My very first summon size battle. Oh, this is a dear diary moment! I realised that there was too much talking in this chapter and not enough action so I replayed the event in flashback. Once I started it was surprising easy to keep going and I think that it came out well.

Just one thing though. Before anyone starts commenting on Shiori being too underpowered please keep in mind she was in a blind rage and therefore not of her right mind. If she was thinking clearly she would have wiped the floor with Kushina (For that matter she wouldn't have attacked her at all).

Also I'd love to hear what everyone thought about the attacks I created, the history of the Shasei, the summon battle and…well just about everything. Please leave a review as it is a author's life blood. Wouldn't want an author to die would you? Of course not, you'd never find out what happens at the end of the story!

The following attacks are of my own creation. If you want to use them then ask me first:

Katon: Hishinkirou - Fire element: Fire Mirage

Raiton: Nihyakuhatsuka - Lightning element: End of the Storm Period

P.S: The next chapter won't be out until I post for my other story as I have been neglecting it something awful.

Remember to give me some of that sweet feedback.

Ja ne!