Naruto and Sasuke: Switched

Key:

Normal = narrative

"Normal in quotation marks" = normal speech

"Underlined in quotation marks" = simultaneous speech

Italics = thoughts

Underlined Italics = simultaneous thought

"Italics with italicized quotation marks" = reading/writing

"Italics in regular quotation marks" = people talking in a combination transformation/people talking in visions being watched by other people, or over headset communicators. (It makes sense in context)

*Italics inside regular asterisks* = actions such as panting, coughing, or wheezing

*Bold italics in regular asterisks* = Onomatopoeias such as *BOOM* to represent explosions

Bold italics = Used for when a bijū is talking to its jinchūriki through telepathy

'Bold italics in regular apostrophes' = when a bijū thinks to itself

"Bold in regular quotation marks" = Black Zetsu dialogue

"Bold in bold quotation marks" = Bijū talking to their jinchūriki in their mindscapes

To:

ani._ruthan: If you want to know the pairings, you'll have to keep reading.

AkRuiner: Thank you for the comment. In regards to pairings, you'll need to read the story like everyone else.

bioshadow 3666: Right now, Naruto is still technically classified as a genin, but he's obviously a chūnin/jōnin level threat.

WinchesterNimrod: Thanks for the compliment, though it should actually go to Hiyuusha who gave me permission to continue that one-shot.

pr0dz: You know Kakashi, it's impossible to tell when he's actually revealing his feelings and when he's being cool.

Storyman09: Thanks for the compliment, but honestly, I'm kinda disappointed in those omakes now that I look back on them.

(August 19th)

"Welcome to Uzushiogakure, kids." All of the children, even Gaara, had their jaws agape at the sight of the utter destruction. All they could see for miles was collapsed buildings and destroyed roads. "What you see before you is the combined efforts of four villages just to bring down one."

Haruko stepped forward. "For now, this will have to do as a hideout for you three. When we get back to the valley, we'll have Minoru, Daichi, Hosaki, and Kosai come here to serve as protection."

"This... this is where my mom was born?" Naruto asked, unable to think of anything else to say.

"Yeah. Obviously it didn't look anything like this when she was, but yeah," Kohaku answered. The sage proceeded to effortlessly slide down the hill with his hands still in his sleeves.

"Where are we supposed to stay? I don't suppose Iwa left a decent motel in the invasion," Fū rhetorically asked as they followed the sages down the steep hills.

"I like this girl; she should be our next summoner!" Kohaku laughed out.

"Most of the buildings are unfit for prolonged habitation, but there are several emergency bunkers placed underneath the village. It's been a while since we've actually been here, so we can't be sure that they're all in decent condition." When they all reached the base of the hill, they moved out onto the surface of the river. "Follow me," she said. Haruko created a shadow clone that ran out between two damaged bridge pillars, where it slammed its palms onto the water's surface after going through hand signs. Nothing happened at first, but after a minute, a low rumbling permeated the silence. The surface of the water split apart to reveal the ground deep below. "Hurry!" Haruko urged. The others followed after her as they descended several dozen meters towards solid earth. Readjusting herself at the last minute, she landed palms first. A line of white light appeared between her hands before the ground opened up as well. The five fell through as the hole closed behind them. The clone dispelled, causing the chakra holding the walls of water apart to dissipate, and the river itself to come crashing down.

"Okay, that was pretty cool," Fū said in reverence; the roar of the surging waters still audible for several seconds. When the silence once again inserted itself around them, they were able to notice the details of the room they were in. Well, they would, if there was proper illumination. A short pulse of light grabbed their attention as the walls began to glow a faint blue. With the aid of the illumination seals, they found that they were in what looked like a typical hospital hall, though with far less doors than usual.

"Haruko-sama, what was with the fancy entrance?" Naruto asked.

"A lot of the entrances on land have been blocked off by rubble, and at the moment this seemed like the simplest choice," she answered.

"These seals, they light up when a chakra source is nearby, right?" Fū asked. She pressed her hand against the glowing symbols; though she instinctively pulled it back, she was more surprised to find that there was hardly any warmth emanating from the blue glow.

"Are you sure that no one will find us here?" Gaara asked.

"Positive. The village has been abandoned for decades, and even if someone did come, it would be nigh impossible to navigate through the whirlpools surrounding the island."

"They're that bad?" Fū questioned.

"The eddies vary in size and strength, plus the location of each whirlpool is never consistent; they can appear and disappear in a matter of minutes, or last for days; it's essentially one big crapshoot."*(1) Kohaku answered.

"But how did anyone get anything in or out of the village?"

"There were other entrances that were known only to the village's citizens," Haruko said.

Kohaku walked to the front of the group then turned around to face the kids. "Look, there'll be plenty of time to learn what you want about the village, but right now let's just focus on getting you three a place to sleep. Besides, all these questions are starting to give me a headache."

"Y'know, you don't act like a sage very much," Fū snarked.

"Were you expecting some wise old grandpa with a beard that went to the floor?" the fox snarked back.

"Kinda," the green-haired girl stated flatly.

"Yeah, well that's your problem," he dismissed as he turned around. Right before the girl could attempt a come back, the group came to a complete stop at a hall lined with doors. Opening the first one, the illumination seals inside activated. On one side of the room was a set of four beds, while a door on the adjacent wall led to a small bathroom.

"It's not much, but it'll do for now," Naruto stated as he took a seat on a bed.

"Tomorrow, Daichi and the others will arrive," Haruko said with a bow. As she and Kohaku were in the doorway, she looked back to the jinchūriki and said with sincerity, "No matter what, we won't let anyone take you."

"She's really nice," Fū stated when she was sure they were out of earshot.

"There's a reason she's called the Fox Mother."

Night had set over the village of Konoha, but one young genin was still at the hospital. "Ma'am, I'm letting you know that visiting hours are almost over," a nurse notified the girl.

"Okay, thank you," Sakura said to the young man. On the table next to her was a red balloon with "GET WELL SOON," written in white tied around a small jar of cornflowers. According to Ino, when decocted, the blue flowers could be used to treat ocular disorders like irritation or conjunctivitis; the Haruno thought that it was a natural fit. The clock on the wall was only five minutes from 9:00 pm, and Sakura knew she had to get home. "I didn't expect you'd wake up today, Sasuke, but I'm going to be here tomorrow as soon as I can. We'll figure out what happened to Naruto together." Before she left, she placed a small kiss on her teammate's forehead.

"How are you feeling, Neji?" Akemi's son placed his crutches against the wall as he sat down for dinner.

"It's cumbersome getting around with these things, but I'll manage." After they finished laying everything out and began eating, Akemi asked, "When did the doctors say you'd regain full mobility?"

"They said it should be a matter of days before I no longer need the crutches, and with regular physical therapy, I should be back to taking missions soon," Neji answered coolly as he finished slurping up his noodles.

"That's good. I'm rather impressed that your teammate was able to put you through so much. From what you've said, he shouldn't have been able to pass a single year at the academy." Neji looked away in embarrassment at the reminder of where his arrogance had landed him. "Hopefully you've learned a lesson about underestimating those around you." Neji remained silent, accepting the well placed jab by his mother. "Speaking of, Hinata has mentioned that her teammates will be busy next week. The Aburame is going with his clan to look for more insects to crossbreed with their kikaichū, and the Inuzuka has requested several days off to learn his clan's more advanced techniques."

"That means her team will be temporarily dissolved. Perfect." The mother and son continued their meal in silence.

"These kids, they've been tainted by Orochimaru just like you." Jiraiya stood next to perhaps Orochimaru's one not-evil/crazy student. They were watching four monitors that gave them a view of the snake's top enforcers. Each of them was tied down in the center of the room, with their arms held back and their mouths covered with face masks. Anko tried not to let too much emotion seep through, but if her balled up fists were anything to go by, she no doubt wanted blood to be drawn.

"Don't think they're completely innocent. Curse marks are dependent on how much the user wants to use them. From your report, they readily gave into it."

"Even so, we need to understand their pasts." As if rehearsed, members of the Interrogation division came into each cell.

"Shouldn't they be using the amplification device for this? I doubt Orochimaru would send them out without taking precautions for these kind of events," Anko asked.

"We could, but if we get an understanding of who they are, maybe we can gain a bargaining chip in their compliance." Anko conceded a point to Jiraiya's reasoning.

Inoichi placed both hands on the twins' heads. Even by Yamanaka standards, what he was about to try was incredibly risky, but mitigated by the fact that twins tended to have roughly the same memories. Like countless times before, he could feel himself drift into the his enemy's mind. Opening his eyes, he found himself in a hallway illuminated by torchlight. As he took a step forward, he was overcome by a wave of nausea while hazy double images moved back and forth.

This may be trickier than I thought. He steeled his nerves and continued on. When he opened the first door, he was thrown back by a powerful wind blast. When the gale force subsided, a swarm of snakes made their way over to Inoichi. Getting to his feet as fast as he could, the Yamanaka made a hasty retreat further into the twins' minds. It took some sharp turns and hiding, but the snakes stopped following him. Exhaling in relief he looked down to see a valley coated in treetops.

This place didn't have any safeguards; must be further back. The mind master noticed several campfires next to a river. Despite the numerous hidden lookouts, Inoichi calmly and safely walked into the camps without issue. With a little patience, it wasn't long before the sun appeared over the horizon.

"Come on, Ukon! They're not gonna wait forever!" Inoichi chuckled at the sight of Sakon literally dragging a half-awake Ukon out of their tent. The two were wearing matching grey hoodies, and from their considerable decrease in height, he assumed that this was a memory from at least two or three years earlier. The twins soon made their way to the entrance of a cave.

"Ayaka, Misaki, Rina!" Sakon yelled inside, only to get no response. "Sakon, it's still early. I doubt even Ayaka would be up at - GAACK!" Ukon wasn't able to finish his sentence because he was put in a swift headlock.

"Never underestimate me!" Holding the gasping child was an adolescent girl with black eyes and short, steel-blue hair; she was wearing a dull-red, wave patterned shirt over mesh armor, grey shorts, and a white choker around her neck.

"Ayaka... let me go!" Ukon gasped out.

"It's sensei, Ayaka-sensei," she said in annoyance at her cousin.

"Misaki-sensei... *gasp* help me!" Ukon's face was starting to turn purple from lack of oxygen.

"How come you call her - ow ow ow OW!" A hand grew out of her shoulder and began pulling her head back by her nostrils.

"Let him go, Ayaka," a voice said in frustration. When the girl complied, a second body stepped out of her. Misaki wore a leaf-patterned jacket over a brown shirt; she had the same hair color as Ayaka, but hers was styled into a braided ponytail.

"Where's Rina?" Sakon asked, completely ignoring his brother's deep inhalations.

"Tied her to a tree," Ayaka answered proudly.

"Why?"

"So I couldn't find out how she gets such firm, supple boobs!" Two hands reached under Ayaka's arms and promptly started fondling her breasts. Inoichi tried hard to suppress the nosebleed. Quickly getting over her mortification of being groped, Ayaka grabbed Rina and flipped her onto her back. Rina wore a dark-blue shirt with light blue spiral patterns and grey pants. Like her sisters, she also had steel-blue hair, but hers went down to her chest and covered most of her face, save for her right eye, which had prominent grey bags under it. "You know it's weird when you grab my boobs!" Ayaka scolded, though it was somewhat ineffective due to her blush. With swirls in her eyes, Rina didn't even respond.

"Uh, guys?" Misaki said to get their attention. The other two triplets looked over to find their cousins passed out. "I got it." Ayaka set the two up against the outside of the cave. Raising her right hand up, she was ready to pimp slap them both awake, but was held back by Rina. "I've got a great idea," she said with a disturbing, open-mouthed grin. The creepy third of the team placed Ukon into Sakon's lap, the latter's hands placed on the formers.

"Are you sure this is a good idea, Rina?" Misaki asked. Her sister didn't give her an answer, only snapping pictures with an instant camera.

"Okay, now you can slap them." And Ayaka did.

"You know we're going to have a long talk." Misaki stated as Sakon and Ukon held their bruised cheeks. Rina just grinned and slid the photos into her pocket.

"Come on guys, we do have a mission," Ayaka cheered as she picked the two boys up.

"Rina, it's time to merge." The two girls placed their hands on their sister's back, breaking themselves down on a cellular level to hide in plain sight. The only thing that remained was their heads sticking out of her.

"Let's go, Sakon," Misaki ordered. The twins nodded as Ukon fused with his brother. The five shinobi moved at full speed until reaching the beginning of a small village. Before entering, the heads on their shoulders disappeared as well. "Remember, just follow my lead," Ayaka reminded. At the village gates, there was a map indicating their current location in the uncharted territories between the Land of Earth and the Land of Wind. "You remember our orders, right?" Ayaka asked.

"Bring the target in alive," Sakon smirked.

Ayaka ruffled the boy's hair with a grin. Before long, the two made it to a small inn and made themselves comfortable on the bench in the front lobby. It was only a matter of moments before a man in official Suna shinobi attire sat down next to them. Though Sakon didn't need to look at the man, Ukon was able to discreetly slip one of his eyes out on his brother's shoulder. Their informant was an imposing man with most of his face wrapped in a turban; the only distinguishing thing about him was the two red marks on his right cheek. Soon the jōnin left, but a small black book remained where he sat. Pocketing the Bingo Book, Ayaka wasted no time in getting them a room.

When they were in the privacy of their room, she opened the book to a specifically marked page. The shinobi identified on it was a chūnin who'd been caught trading village secrets to several of the smaller Hidden Villages, but managed to escape across the border. The only reason that their clan was given the mission was because the current Kazekage thought that the task wouldn't be worth using his own forces. "Even if we do succeed, those Sand rats are just going to short-change us," Rina grumbled as she looked over the details.

"We're an independent clan; naturally things are going to be a lot tougher on us," Misaki sighed.

"I just hope we get enough to actually afford food," Ayaka mumbled as her stomach gave a small gurgle.

"All the more reason to finish as soon as we can," Ukon said. Misaki smiled at the responsible twin. After taking headsets, the group seperated. Rina and Misaki went off on their own, while Ayaka stayed with the twins.

"Okay, let's eat!" Ayaka proudly stated.

"Now? But shouldn't we be working?" Sakon asked.

"You can't work on an empty stomach," the bluenette answered.

"We can stop for a bite, but don't blow all our money," Ukon hissed out.

"Ugh, why couldn't you've gone with Misaki?" Ayaka grumbled to herself. It wasn't long before the two came to a small teriyaki stand. Ayaka easily ate twice what was shared between the twins. After paying for their snack, the trio continued to wander the village. It was evident to the mind walker that Ayaka was Sakon's favorite, but that just increased the dread in his stomach of what would happen next.

As the two made their way over half the village, Ayaka abruptly pulled Sakon behind the door to a restaurant.

"Ayaka-sensei, you can wait 'til after the mission to eat."

"Look carefully," she said as she turned his head to the bar. Sitting on a stool with a bottle of saké was their target. Though she completely abandoned her shinobi attire, she was still the one.

"Misaki, Rina, we've found the target."

"What's your location?" Misaki asked.

"At the bar three blocks south of the red light district."

"Ooh, can we go there when this is over?" Rina asked.

"No!" Her sisters exclaimed.

"Just hurry; I don't know how long she'll stay." Sakon urged. The world around Inoichi shifted until they were back in the forest. The missing-nin stood opposite of the triplets with a tantō in her right hand.

"We can do this without bloodshed. Just surrender yourself!" Misaki urged. Her head was sticking out of her Ayaka's shoulder.

"Forget it, freaks. The Kazekage will just hand me over to his demon spawn! Just walk away, and none of you will get hurt."

"I should warn you, underestimating us is a very bad idea." Misaki warned. Two kunai dropped down behind the target. A spark of fire was all the warning she got before explosions went off behind her. That signal caused Ayaka to charge in with a burst of speed. Quickly ducking under her guard, Misaki stopped a strike from his sword while Ayaka landed several quick jabs at her ribs. "Now, Rina!" The addressed triplet's hands latched around her head. When she managed to get free, she stumbled around before losing her lunch. Misaki finished the battle by using a small scale Great Breakthrough to blow her into the waiting fists of Sakon and Ukon.

"Perfectly executed! Great work, guys!" Ayaka congratulated as she slung the unconscious shinobi over her shoulder.

"Our instructions were to deliver the body to the outpost station on the border." The cousins made it to the hidden collections office and got their pay without much trouble. Just as all seemed to be ending well, the group came to a halt when they came across the path of a man in a black cloak with red clouds. Most of his face was concealed, with the exception of his green eyes. Slung over his shoulder was the body of another man with the exact same cloak, only he was missing a whole right arm. Something about this man just screamed all kinds of wrong.

"Hmm. What do we have here?" He noticed the heads sticking out of the adolescents' bodies. "This is my lucky day. Triplets of the Sakuya clan of the west."*(2)

"Guys, get behind us!" Ayaka protectively stood between the twins and the threatening man.

"Your corpses are worth a lot to the right buyer, and it's said that your clan has high rates for multiple births."

"So you're going to give us over to some crazy, fuckin' scientist to use as breeding stock?" Rina demanded. Ayaka curled into her leopard stance.

"I don't necessarily need you alive. Anyone with enough knowledge could simply give your kekkai genkai to another using only your blood." His calm and relaxed demeanor hadn't changed in a bit. He seemed to lack any sense of fear or even caution.

"You shouldn't take us lightly. We're the Asura trio of the Sakuya," Ayaka boasted.

The man simply let out a derisive chuckle. "If you three think so highly of yourselves that you deserve an epithet, then I should warn you of who I am. My name is Kakuzu, and I personally survived a fight with the God of Shinobi, Hashirama Senju!"

Someone from Shodaime-sama's era is still alive? How? Inoichi was caught up in his thoughts that he almost lost track of what he was here for in the first place.

Kakuzu dropped the corpse to the ground. "I've already got enough hearts, and I doubt that you have any other abilities that could interest me."

"Hearts?" Ukon inquired.

"I don't think we should stay to find out what he means," Misaki warned. Going through a seal sequence, she blew out a cloud a smoke. "Run!" The group quickly ran in the opposite direction as fast as they could.

*CRACK* The tree next to them was pierced by a strange black thread. Out of the smoke, Kakuzu came flying towards them, the thread hidden in his sleeve pulling him forward.

Misaki formed the Confrontation Seal and made an earth golem rush at their pursuer. The back of Kakuzu's cloak squirmed before a white mask poked itself out. In an instant the porcelain mask emitted a blast of lightning that decimated the earthen construct.

Dust Storm Jutsu! Misaki shot out a stream of wind infused with dust particles. Another mask revealed itself; blowing out a torrent of flames to push the wind back. Punching his fists into the ground, his hand traveled below the surface and grabbed Sakon's shin. The kids desperately clung to a tree branch with their combined might, but in the end, it inevitably broke apart, sending them on a collision course with the mercenary.

"Hmm. You're still young, but in the end, a Sakuya is a Sakuya."

"Don't think we're useless!" Sakon aimed a kick at the man's left temple. His foot made contact, but the second it did, he felt like he'd kicked a steel mountain. He let out a cry of pain as he clutched his foot; no doubt he'd shattered a bone or two.

"Let go of him!" Ayaka raged. With her sisters' combined effort, they were quickly closing the gap.

"Ayaka, he can harden his body! Taijutsu won't work!" Sakon warned. He was promptly thrown away.

The world around Inoichi once again became hazy. Sounds were muffled, but he could still make out grunts of effort and exertion. When things became clear, he was greeted to the sight of the triplets in Kakuzu's grip. Ayaka was in his left arm, Misaki in the right, and Rina being gripped by the black threads. Through her squinted, pain-filled eyes, Ayaka gave one last command to the twins.

Run!

With his brother supporting him, the two ran. And they never looked back.

Inoichi soon found himself standing in the darkened section of a dirty alley. On their backs were the twins, with kunai pressed against their neck. The face of the one on top of them was shrouded in darkness, making it difficult to work out their identity.

"You both were fools for trying to mug me." Even its voice was being distorted, but there was smugness dripping off his words.

"So? What are you waiting for? Kill us already?!" Sakon barked out.

"Hmph. Did you attack me because you're suicidal, or something?" the figure asked.

Ukon spit in their face. "We don't know where our parents are, and three of the people closest to us were killed by some shithead named Kakuzu!" The individual's grip on the kunai seemed to loosen. Moments passed before they spoke. "I believe I know someone who can help you get even."

Before the memory could shift again, Inoichi was once again assaulted by snakes. Obviously he was getting closer to things the Sannin didn't want most people to know. Keeping his calm, he recalled years of breaking down mental barriers. It took a while, but soon, he was able to force his way through the implanted genjutsu.

The twins were now alone with Orochimaru, the person from before nowhere in sight. The room they stood in was large and lacked windows; the only illumination being from the what few fluorescent lights stood in the corners.

"So, you had a run in with Kakuzu?" he asked.

"So what if we did? That bastard's probably sold our cousins by now." Self-loathing was dripping with the child's every breath.

"Then this may be your lucky day. You see, I used to work for the same organization as Kakuzu." The two heads picked up quickly. "If you agree to work for me, I can provide you with the power and resources necessary to take revenge on the old man."

Sakon and Ukon looked between each other, silently debating whether or not this was a good idea. After a while, they both nodded. "We'll do whatever it takes."

The smirk on the snake only grew. "Splendid."

Mozuku recoiled inwardly. The forest he'd just come out of was crawling with practically every breed of arachnid abomination. "I just had to draw the short straw and get this one," he said to himself. Thankfully, he was in an open field. In the distance, he could make out a fairly large building surrounded by smaller ones. The distinctive structure was in fact a temple with black walls, and topped with several golden domes. Inside, the main area was clearly their hall of worship. In the center was a statue of a beautiful woman clad in a regal kimono, holding a sphere in her hands. The statue's lower half was that of a spider, standing atop a mountain surrounded by asuras. At the base of the statue, there was a plaque that read, "*(3)TENGOKU NO KUMO NO JOŌ: THE DIVINE MAIDEN WHO WEAVES EXISTENCE."

Soon, the congregation's silent meditation was over, and they filed out of the temple. The ones that stayed behind were dressed identically, wearing brown cloaks with silver web patterns on the back. They similarly had single black dots tattooed on their foreheads, and small black triangles beneath their lips, not unlike those of the Inuzuka. They were obviously priests and priestesses for the spider deity.

Outside, a bunch of kids were gathering around a table strewn with playing cards.

"I wonder if Kidōmaru is actually going to lose," some of the surrounding kids muttered.

"I doubt it. The guy's a monster," others rebuked. At one end of the table was a much younger Kidōmaru. The child in front of Mozuku could hardly pass for the prisoner he was mentally invading; he was dressed in casual garb and lacked any monstrous traits. He sat confidently with his hand on his pile of cards. Against him was an older girl gripping the card on the top of her deck with visible intensity. Both of them flipped the card in their hands; they were both a daimyō. They placed three more cards and showed the fourth in their hands. Kidōmaru had Kage, while his opponent only had a jōnin.

Among the crowd was an equal exchange of cheering, groans, and money changing hands from wagers.

"Hmhm, I see your working to retain your place as second best, Kidōmaru." Walking up to the group was, from his obvious clothing and facial tattoos, one of the monks. He looked to be an older man with a thinning hairline and a black and grey-streaked beard that reached down to his chest. He was followed by a somewhat younger woman with brown hair and hazel eyes. "You want to see if you can finally get out of silver tier?" he challenged.

"Careful, Noboru-sama. Kidōmaru's been practicing a lot since you last beat him," the priestess warned good-naturedly.

"It'll take a lot much more experience before I fall so easily, Sachi-san." Noboru took a seat and set up a Shogi board. The young Kidōmaru's face quickly steeled into fierce determination. Several minutes passed after the first move was made, but in the end, the elder won.

"You're improving Kidōmaru. This time it took me eighteen moves to beat you," Noboru chuckled.

While the child pulled at his hair in frustration, Sachi pat him on the back. "Don't be so upset Kidōmaru. At least when you lose, you gain a new appreciation for humility."

Noboru came up to Kidōmaru and ruffled the boy's hair. "Come and challenge me when you're my age," he smirked.

"I will beat you, gramps; so don't die until I do," the child stated.

"If Tengoku's will allows it," he said softly.

The people and buildings around Mozuku began dissolving and resettling into a new order. Now, several children sat in the temple in front of a group of the monks, with Noboru at the front. "I've been given a message by the asura. Their mother wants a child to travel to the sacred tombs. For what purpose, they did not explain."

The hesitation amongst the kids was palpable. Please don't tell me I'll have to go through that forest again, Mozu though with a shiver. Just when it seemed that no one would volunteer, a hand shot into the air. "I'll go!"

"Are you crazy, Kidō? People have gone mad in those catacombs," one of the other kids harshly whispered.

"Are you sure of your decision, Kidōmaru?" Noboru asked. Worry and concern were etched on his face. Kidōmaru simply smirked and gave a thumbs up.

Now the Interrogation Corpsman found himself moving uncomfortably through the spider-infested forests behind Noboru, Sachi, and Kidōmaru. "Kidōmaru, you're about undergo a very dangerous pilgrimage. For this journey to be successful, you must stay here for two months. Only when that time has passed, then can you return to the village." Sachi handed the boy a small calendar and a pencil. "I must warn you, this forest is very special; it will drain you both physically and mentally, to the point where you may even beg for death." The young Kidōmaru gulped at how difficult this would be. Soon, the group came upon a small concrete arch built into a sloping hill. The door was solid cast iron and opened with a whine that echoed through the trees. "Inside is a small shrine; every night, you must make an offering to Jorōgumo-sama." Sachi gave the child a hug before he descended into the torch lit halls.

What followed was a series of memories of the young man's temporary exile. Each day he'd kill several dozen spiders, and thanks to the teachings of the monks, he had a fair knowledge of how dangerous one was over others. Half of the spiders he killed were offered as sacrifices, while others served as his dinner. The memories became more hazy and erratic as time went on. On the final day, true to the monks words, he was exhausted beyond any measurable scope. The sight of the child struggling to stand as he made his final offering was pitiable. Just before he closed his eyes, he caught the sight of a pale hand taking the offering. When he looked up, he was treated to the sight of a woman with dark hair turning the spider corpses into an ethereal substance that was absorbed through her hands. "You've done well, child." She pulled out a small, silver cup filled with a clear fluid. "You will serve a great purpose in life, and this will help you."

Kidōmaru greedily drank the cup's content. It had no taste and felt just like water, but there was something undeniably strange about it. The silver chalice hit the floor with a *clang* as Kidōmaru doubled over in pain. The world became engulfed in black as he lost the will to stay awake.

Light and color soon returned in hazy splotches before settling into definitive shapes. The young boy stumbled around in the dark trying to regain a sense of balance. An inexplicable sensation of pins & needles shot through his sides. To his shock and horror, extra sets of arms dangled and jerked erratically from his body. Pushing the door to the tomb open, Kidōmaru kneeled in front of a puddle where he found the third eye placed on his forehead. When he opened the third ocular, his nerves were bombarded by an influx of light and color. Tearing off a piece of his shirt, he tied it around his forehead to protect the new sense.

The scared child trudged his way back to the village before collapsing in front of the startled inhabitants.

0000000000

"I think he's waking up."

"Give him some air, damn it!"

"What happened to him?"

The voices pounded against Kidōmaru's ears as he tried to pull himself up. He could feel the prods against his new arms as the other kids examined him like they would a dead squirrel. Tentatively, he opened only his right eye to see himself laying below the statue of the Jorōgumo and its divine progeny.

"Easy, Kidō; careful." Sachi shooed the others away as she carefully pulled him up. After looking him over, she enveloped him in a loving hug. "Glory be to Kumo," she cried out.

"Sachi, if I may." The priestess moved aside to allow Noboru to examine Kidōmaru for himself. "Kidō, do you mind?" He gestured to the makeshift headband.

"It hurts when I open it." Nervously, the boy revealed his third eye. Noboru looked back and forth between him and the statues of the asura. With the other monks following his lead, Noboru bowed to the statue. "Kidōmaru, you have been given a great honor. Our goddess has granted you power to fulfill your duties as her messiah." While the monks chanted in reserved respect, the citizens bellowed their hearts out in joy.

After a few hours and at least one buffet that Kidōmaru cleared out on his own, the monks began to light incense and ring ceremonial bells.

"Noboru-sama, what exactly am I supposed to do as a messiah?" Kidōmaru asked. He was alone with Noboru and Sachi, and somewhat embarrassed at how his extra arms still hung uselessly at his sides.

"I must admit: something like this is unprecedented among our people, but I'm sure that you well be responsible for great things in the future." Noboru affectionately ruffled Kidōmaru's hair.

The moment was ruined when a younger monk burst through the door. "Noboru-sama, Sachi-sama! Please come quick!" He led the three out to the village's entrance. Facing the citizens was a crowd of about three dozen men and women. Most of their garb was black clothing and weapon holsters. Many had jewellery or tattoos of an upside down triangle held inside a circle. At the front of the group was a young woman with light-blue hair that went down to her shins. She was dressed in a black robe that revealed the group's symbol tattooed on her chest. Slung over her back was a massive, triple-bladed scythe. "Oh lowly sheep, we have come to the Land of Hot Water to enlighten you with the truths of Jashin!" Raucous cheers were heard from the other Jashinists.

"Keep Kidōmaru out of sight," Noboru whispered to Sachi before moving to the front. "Ma'am -?"

"It's Esudesu, gramps,"*(4) she rudely interrupted.

"Esudesu-san, we are content with our patron deity. I humbly ask you and your group to leave," Noboru dictated calmly.

Esudesu only gave a cruel grin. "Foolish swines. Repent for your idle sins or face the wrath of Jashin-sama!" The rest of the Jashinists grew increasingly antsy with every word.

Noboru's glare intensified. "Listen here, brat. I will not stand by while you make threats against my people and our culture. I'm giving you one more chance to leave us in peace."

Esudesu, followed similarly by the others, placed her hands over her tattoo. "Oh Jashin-sama, please give us the strength to provide you with a bountiful slaughter. May the halls of your palace gush with the blood of the pitiful fawns that lie dying at our feet." With the last word of her twisted prayer, Esudesu leapt for Noboru with her scythe reared back.

*CLANG* The scythe's blades were halted a few mere centimeters from Noboru's face by a pair of sickles. "I can see you're beyond redemption. I shall mercifully end this wretched life of yours." He twisted his right sickle to lock the scythe place. Swiftly moving behind her, he made a quick slash across her jugular. Letting the body slump, he turned to the woman's followers and leveled his sickles at them, but was caught off guard by chuckling coming from the corpse.

"Ignorant pigs! With the strength of Jashin-sama... EVEN DEATH OBEYS OUR TERMS!" The rest of the Jashinists let out a war cry and rushed the Jorōgumists. The spider monks threw themselves in front of the civilians. "Sachi, take the neutrals and run!" Noboru shouted before Esudesu swung at him again.

The priestess led the children into the temple. Grabbing a bow and three dozen arrows, she gathered as many non-combatant men, women, and children. While the fighting continued, they tried sneaking around to the forest; they were stopped by three Jashinists. "Quite a treat we have here; Jashin-sama especially loves the blood of the young." Two of them pulled out serrated knives while the other whipped open a retractable spear blade.

Without missing a beat, Sachi managed to land an arrow right through their foreheads and out the back of their heads. This distraction allowed another priestess to stab each of them with a poison imbued blade.

"Hurry!" she urged the others. What would usually be fatal attacks didn't keep the Jashinists down for long. The escaping group was temporarily thrown to the ground when an explosion tore up a patch of earth and brought down part of the temple. Momentarily taking a look around, they saw as people of both factions were cut down and blown apart. The Jashinists that did survive cackled to the sky, any prior pretense of sanity easily slipping away.

Seeing the carnage unfold caused the children to freeze up, forcing the adults to haul them through the trees in a mad dash for safety.

"Don't look back! DON'T LOOK BACK!" Sachi cried out. The light from the burning temple could still be seen through the trees; and the smell of charred corpses permeated the air.

The environment around them dissolved like ink in water and reset itself. Mozuku was an unseen bystander in a crowd overlooking a small booth. On one end of the table was a man in his mid thirties with a handful of cards, sitting in front of a stack of ryō. It was a decent hand, a five-diamond flush. The player smirked in victory. "Sorry kid, but it looks like your luck's ran out." His opponent was none other than Kidōmaru. His makeshift headband was now replaced with a proper strip of cloth, and he now wore robe that managed to conceal his extra arms. Though the bystanders in the memory couldn't see it, Mozuku saw the boy slip a card into his visible hand.

"I hope you didn't need this money for anything important." The crowd let out a gasp when he laid out his cards. Four of a kind. Kidōmaru took the money and placed it in a suitcase.

"Hang on brat, I smell something shitty!" The beaten man roughly grabbed Kidōmaru by the shoulder.

"Is there something wrong?" The man gripping the child was in turn keeping his neck away from the kunai being held by the monk standing behind him. He didn't even dare to gulp lest the small movement force his Adam's apple into the blade. Deciding that the money wasn't worth it, he let the boy go.

0000000000

"It's getting more and more tense the longer we stay here. It's time we pack up and go." The adults that managed to escape the massacre whispered to avoid waking the children.

"This is humiliating! How can we meet Tengoku-sama in the afterlife and try to justify our actions?!"

"Not only that, but we besmirch her messiah by involving him in these disgusting acts."

Unknown to the adults, the kids were discreetly listening in their room. One in particular looked at himself in the mirror; the purpose for his future still eluding him.

For months he would train his body. Each week, he got a little faster. Each week, he was able to keep his third eye open for a little bit longer. He could see chakra around individual creatures, even when standing a dozen meters away from them.

The nomad group would continue the same pattern: move to a new town, make enough money from Kidōmaru's rigged games, then get out before things got too messy. In some cases though, things got messy before they even took anyone's money. News of a wandering group that cons people out of money can spread pretty quickly between villages.

Is life like one big game? he would ask himself. He saw how his people still clung onto their hope. It was heartbreaking. But if life is like a game, then that means you can still stack the odds in your favor.

One day, Kidōmaru was in another card game that would end in more money for his group. His opponent was kind of an oddball, but a sucker with money was still a sucker with money.

"You show your hand first?" Kidō was asked. He simply shrugged and placed his winning hand. "Full house," he said with pride.

The challenger only let out an unsettling chuckle. "Straight flush."

Impossible! I've never lost! While his superior tried to take the money, Kidōmaru placed his hand over it. "Double-or-nothing," he challenged. Again they played, but the results didn't change. Kidōmaru, though, refused to accept defeat. If it weren't for the arrival of Sachi, he would've lost most of the money they already had.

"You have admirable tenacity and skill. May we speak in private?" he asked the two. The stranger was brought to the other adults to discuss his concerns.

"I'm setting up my own hidden village in the Land of Rice Fields. It's still new, and as a result, somewhat short on man power, but I believe your ward has great potential. In return for his services, I can also provide you with a stable home."

Looks of unease were shifted between them. "Can you give us some time to think about it?" Sachi asked.

"Of course." The black-haired man stepped out of the room.

"Are you sure we can trust him? He is Orochimaru, after all."

"We've already brought enough shame to the memory of our friends and loved ones. If we actually accept his offer, we might as well have let the Jashinists slaughter us."

"But what about the kids? Are you comfortable dragging them across all of creation for the rest of their lives? If we accept his offer, Kidōmaru can learn how to defend himself, and we don't have to be on the move anymore."

"What about Kidōmaru? Let's here what he has to say." Sachi turned everyone's attention to their hope.

If I can become stronger, then maybe I'll be able to wipe out the Jashinists. Is that my purpose? The boy looked down to his six arms. I won't stand by ever again. I'm going to take the odds into my own hands! "I'll do it!" he said with no hesitation.

Right now, Shimon Hijiri wished he had a map. Despite being a member of the Interrogation Corps, finding yourself stuck in a random village was never a pleasant experience. Especially when you were smack dab in a memory and only able to go where the person it came from was at the time.

"Hey, Hibiki, where does all the water in waterfalls come from?" A young girl with pinkish-red hair asked an older boy with short hair that was a more of a blackish pink.

"Why do you ask, sis?" he questioned back.

"We live in the Land of Waterfalls, but it's weird that I don't know where it comes from."

Hibiki struck a thinking pose with his hand on his chin. "Now that you mention it, I'm not entirely sure myself. But I do remember hearing that ice melting from glaciers is important to waterfalls."

"I thought brothers were supposed to know everything," Tayuya said, anticlimactic disappointment evident in her tone.

"Well, I do know how to make you scream." A mischievous smirk crept on his face before he swept the girl onto his shoulders for a surprise piggy back ride. The young Oto girl squealed in a mixture of fear and delight. The eighteen year-old boy carried the ten year-old girl all the way through their village to a small house nestled in the beginnings of a forest. After making it to the front door, Hibiki dropped his sister to the floor in order to catch his breath. "You know, Tayuya, you're a lot heavier than you look," he breathed out. This earned him a kick to the shin.

"You know mom told you it's rude to comment on a girl's weight. If you keep talking like that, Kokoro will never like you back?" With startling speed, Hibiki placed his palm over his little sister's mouth. He frantically looked around, as if the person mentioned was stalking outside his house. "How many times have I told you to shut up about that?!" he whispered harshly. Tayuya only snickered at the panicky look in his eyes.

In a few hours, an older man and woman entered the house. The man had the same hair color as Tayuya, while the woman had black hair.

"Hey guys! Dinners gonna be out in a few minutes!" Hibiki called from the kitchen. Carrying plates of food was Hibiki, followed by Tayuya with drinks. Their parents graciously accepted the rice and steamed fish. No sooner did the kids sit down to eat than their father asked, "So, Hibiki, when are you going to ask out that nice Kokoro girl?" The question threw Hibiki off so much that he ended up stabbing his own hand with his fork. Tayuya only giggled as her brother bit his lip while nursing his hand.

"Dad, I already get enough of that from Tayuya!"

"Maybe Haruto-kun is where she gets it from," their mother said with an impish smile.

"Don't act so innocent, Kotone-chan; I've seen your sketches of what you want your grandkids to look like."

"*sigh*, look, I don't have time for this; I have to get to work." Hibiki took his plates to the sink and put on an apron.

"I don't care if the Kimura's are nice to you. You should quit working at the bar and come with us in the fields," Kotone said, disapproval evident.

"They're old and they need me to run the night shifts. Plus they pay well."

As Hibiki headed for the door, Haruto called out to him. "Wait. Before you leave, let me play you a song for good luck." Haruto left the room and came back with the family flute. The song he played was short, but it brought a sense of comfort and joy to everyone's hearts. "Come back safe, son," Haruto said.

"I have so far," Hibiki smirked.

"Why is it that nice kids always seem to end up as bad people?" Shimon asked himself. He moved through the memories to a point several week further. Tayuya's dad and several other men were gathered at the entrance to the village with three wagons filled with crates. Haruto was kneeled at eye-level with his daughter. "Don't worry Tayu-chan, this delivery won't take long, and I'll be back soon enough."

"Don't worry, hon; your father's gonna be alright," Kotone reassured.

"This isn't going to end well is it?" Shimon asked himself again. Needless to say, it didn't. Days passed since Haruto and the others departed. At one point, one of the other villagers went to the town they were supposed to ship their food to, but came back saying that no one else from their village had arrived there. It wasn't until weeks went by that everyone learned the truth. Shinobi from Takigakure had stopped in the village, stating that several male corpses had been found near a river. When looking over photos of the partially decayed bodies, nobody could deny their identities. In the end, the deaths were ruled as a hijacking by bandits.

Though she tried to stay strong for her children, Kotone still vented her emotions when she felt they weren't looking.

Several more weeks passed since Haruto's death, allowing things to return to a state of semi-normalcy. "Hey, sis, the Kimura's wanted me to make a small delivery for them; want to come?" Hibiki asked one day.

"It's fine, dear. Be good and help your brother," Kotone softly said. As Shimon was about to learn, that decision would end up saving the young girl's life. Hibiki's employers had given him the errand of delivering a few bottles of liquor to a small party on the other side of the village. By the time he returned his sister home, their house lay in utter ruin. With their neighbors clearing the rubble, they uncovered their mother, crushed to death with their father's flute in hand.

"I saw what happened!" an old man with a half-empty bottle of saké slurred. His name was Yori Ueda; Hibiki recognized him because he always came to the bar in the morning to buy several packs of rice wine so he could avoid the nighttime crowds. "Giants! Three of them! Came outta nowhere and crushed the house in seconds!" he yelled out, but Hibiki just punched him unconscious. He didn't feel like dealing with the ramblings of an old drunk. The only possessions the two could claim as their own were a few pairs of clothes, their father's flute, and a box filled with sheet music. With nowhere to go, the Kimura's were kind enough to offer him and his sister one of their rooms above their tavern. In the day, Tayuya took up her parents' spot in the fields, and though she insisted helping her brother on his shifts, he firmly told her to stay safe upstairs.

Some nights were okay, but occasionally, Hibiki had to deal with clients that got a little too worked up. He usually managed to throw them out, but he always came back with his fair share of bruises. And be it a good or rough night, Tayuya could always hear the patrons' profanity through the floor boards. One night though, several customers got into an all out fist-fight. When Hibiki tried to break things up, they turned their aggression towards him. Though he tried his best to hold them off, they physically overwhelmed him.

Through a whole in the floor, Tayuya cried angrily as she watched her brother get mercilessly beaten. When the sights and sounds became to much, she scrambled for Haruto's flute. She held it like a security blanket, hoping her parents' spirits could make all of this stop. She could still hear their shouts below; hear her brother's pain-filled hacks. The girl put her lips to the flute. She tried her best to recall her dad's playing, where his fingers landed. The sounds she made were awkward and clumsy. Soon, however, a low rumble shook the area. Faster than her mind could process, she fell through the ceiling to the ground, coughing out dust as the world around her was silent. Squinting, she saw before her were three monstrous beings, destroying everything in front of them.

"STOP!" she screamed at them. The creatures headed her command before disappearing. When the debris settled, the girl saw crushed bodies all around her, even her brothers.

"Hibiki!" she called out. Her big brother made no attempt to get up, the light had left his eyes. Any sense of rational thought leaving her mind, Tayuya took the flute and the box, and ran. Just ran. In no time, she'd left the village, and was now moving aimlessly through the forest.

"Called it," Shimon noted bitterly. In the next memory, Tayuya's clothes had prominent rips and smudges, indicating prolonged time away from civilization. She was seated next to a boulder while looking through sheet music, but one paper was a letter addressed to her and her brother by their father.

"Tayuya, Hibiki

I'm worried that if you find this note, then I'll already be dead. Hopefully, I'll live long enough so that I can at least tell you about our family myself. Before even I was born, my ancestors were a small ninja clan that used sound to perform genjutsu. My flute is actually an old family artifact passed down through generations. With it, people with our blood can create genjutsu to trap enemies, and even summon the Doki to act on our behalf, but all of it comes at a terrible cost. The flute only allows members of my family to wield it. Any other person who tries to use it will bring the wrath of the Doki upon them. The music in this box helped me learn how to control the flute enough that I could play it without summoning them. The flute itself is not only a weapon, it's bonded to our family unlike any other weapon before it. Should one of us die, their spirit will be stored in the flute to give it more power. My kids, I'm sorry. We were condemned from the very beginning. The only thing any of us can do is make the most out of the time we're given."

Tayuya tried to keep her tears from smudging the script. Her gaze fell to the cursed instrument. She took it in her hands and raised it above her head, intent on smashing it against the nearby stone. But she hesitated. With her hands shaking, she slumped to her knees and held the flute to her chest. If this weapon really held the souls of her father and brother, then she couldn't find it in her heart to destroy it. Months of learning the flute played out. Soon enough, she was able to play the woodwind without summoning the demons. At the tender age of eleven, she began the life of a wandering vagrant; traveling from one town to the next and playing her flute on the street for money.

"Excuse me, young lady?" Tayuya looked up to a very pale man with dark hair. "You're very good with that flute," he commented.

"What of it?" she harshly dismissed.

"May I have a look at it?" he asked.

"I'm not a chump. You just wanna steal it, don't ya'?"

"I'd have no intention of it. I know I could never use it as well as you do. Must be a blood talent." he slyly commented.

The girl was now more suspicious. "I'm sure you could charm even demons with a flute like that," he said with a chuckle.

"What the hell do you want?" she questioned, her fingers positioned threateningly over the note holes.

"It's partly what I want, and what I could give you. Come with me, and I can give you greater control of your power."

Tayuya gave the issue little thought. With nowhere to return to and everything to gain, she readily went with the snake-like man.

"Okay, that's enough," Shimon said, feeling himself return to his body. He couldn't stand watching any more at the moment.

"I know I only knew them a short time, but their memory will live on in the hearts of those who loved them. There really is nothing like a good funeral!" The hysterical man pointed his odd blades down to a boy with a small crop of orange hair. "Don't you think so? In a funeral, you put any petty grudges aside in order to revel in the lives of the deceased!" The young Jirōbō shivered in fear.

"Go! Live your life, so that when it's time for your funeral, others can rejoice in the way you lived it." Jirōbō made haste for a way out of his hometown. Out of nowhere, Kiri Anbu units had laid waste to an entire town just to find some criminals. They were indiscriminate of who they cut down if they got in their way; including the boy's aunt and uncle. It was clear to Mawashi that they deeply cared for their nephew, and their deaths dealt a major blow to his spirit. The child ran until he unknowingly tripped over a large stone, causing his leg to begin bleeding. As it turned out, the stone was a Buddha statue. Up the road was a sign that read, "Arhat Temple: Land of Rivers Chapter."

The more experienced mind-walker searched through the memories for something notable. His answer came from a memory of a bright, sunny day. In the courtyard was a group of monks and acolytes practicing kata. Their movements and attacks were basic thrusts and body blows, but they delivered them with precision in form and timing. Among them, wearing the robes of the acolytes and a shaven head, was Jirōbō.

Soon, they all bowed as their group training ended. Jirōbō walked over to an older, dark-skinned monk and asked him for a private conversation. "Ayumu-sama, lately, I've been feeling confused," the child admitted.

"About what?" the elder asked.

"The point of our training and meditation is to become Arhats; free of suffering and want, right?"

"Yes. By freeing desire from your heart, you attain Nirvana."

"But when we try to attain Nirvana, isn't that also desiring something? Me just wanting to talk to you about this could count as a desire too, right?"

"Hmm, that is a good question," Ayumu mused. "To be honest Jirōbō, I've pondered that same question for much of my time here. Sometimes, ignorance truly is bliss, as the old adage goes."

For the acolyte, this answer wasn't enough. Whole nights were spent awake, obsessing over his order's ultimate goal. It wasn't long before the student took to the world to try and find the truth for himself. Inevitably, on the journey, he had run-ins with highwaymen. Most of the time he managed to fend them off without too much trouble, but he'd come out with his own share of injuries on more than a few occasions. Knowing he'd need to be stronger to survive, he continued his training in secret. Though he'd only spent a few months at the temple, he'd gotten a feel of the chakra flowing through him. With meticulous timing, he'd learned to blast chakra from his palms upon impact. But only being a novice meant that overtaxation of this move would leave him exhausted and filled with a sense of emptiness.

As he kept trying to make the chakra visible on his palms, a thought came to him. What if I reversed the flow of chakra. His first test subjects were wild deer he'd hunt. The first several attempts were met with pain and little results. In time though, he managed to siphon off portions of the wild animals' strength. Next, he moved onto the random rogues who'd attempt to take what little valuables he had on him.

Now, when he used chakra, the emptiness that plagued him grew smaller and smaller. A stray thought drifted to the statue he'd tripped over on that dark night; the Buddha, with his full stomach and happy smile symbolized peace and contenment. What if this is the path to Nirvana? When one has everything, there's nothing more they could want. He fell asleep, calmed with his revelation.

"Okay. Kinda twisted ideology aside, where does Orochimaru come into play?" Mawashi asked himself. A new memory formed. Jirōbō was surrounded by the bodies of dead shinobi bearing the Tanigakure symbol. The only other living person was shrouded in darkness, with the only light emanating from him being two small white dots on their face. It's voice was warped to have a reverb effect to further conceal the identity of the snake Sannin's agent. "You show a lot of promise, but your talent is wasted staying in this country. Come with me, and I'll take you to someone who can grant you power beyond anything you've dreamed of."

Jirōbō punched his right hand into his left and bowed. "I graciously accept your offer."

(August 20th)

Why does it always seem like I'm waking up in hospitals? Sasuke pondered this question as he ate his second pudding cup.

"Nice to see that your sweet tooth hasn't been affected." Standing in the door was Kakashi, Shizune, Tonton, and Sakura.

"I'm so glad to see that you're okay, Sasuke," Sakura smiled.

"You'll also be happy to know that as soon as the village has more disposable income, you'll be paid for completing an A-rank mission."

"Maybe you could take your girlfriend on a nice date." Jiraiya sat on the windowsill. "But kid, there are things we need to talk about. Serious things."

"You want to talk about Naruto, huh?" Sasuke accurately guessed.

"We have reason to believe that Naruto organized the attack on the village with the help of his fox summons. In all the confusion, they managed to not only take him, but they infiltrated the ANBU prison and freed Gaara as well.

"Are you sure of this, Kakashi-sensei?" Sakura asked.

"Yeah. We found small amounts of blood at the attack points, and it came back as vulpine."

"I've sent some of my associates from Mount Myōboku to investigate the foxes' territory, but it'll be tricky. The two communities have an uneasy alliance that pretty much boils down to mutual avoidance."

"Don't foxes usually hunt toads in the wild?" Shizune asked innocently.

"They do, but don't bring that up around any toads, especially Gamariki," Jiraiya said as he pinched the bridge of his nose. At that moment, a small, red toad with green goggles appeared in front of everyone. "Back so soon, Kōsuke?"

"I worked as fast as I could. Sometimes I don't know what's worse, that place, or the snake caves." The toad gave a small shudder. "The kids weren't there, and those furballs denied any knowledge of the jinchūrikis' location, but I knew right away they were lying."

Author's Note:

*(1) I have no idea how real life whirlpools work. ;'D

*(2) Sakuya is the name of Sakon and Ukon's Japanese voice actor, so I decided to appropriate it into their clan name.

*(3) Tengoku no Kumo no Joō - Heavenly Spider Queen

*(4) There's no doubt in my mind that Esdeath from "Akame ga Kill!" would fit in well with the Jashinist crowd.

Hey. Really sorry about the gap between updates. Been dealing with tuitions, grants, and... banking accounts *Shudders*. As you can see, I've really packed this chapter with some of my favorite minor characters.

For some reason, I've never really seen anyone try to flesh out a background for Jirōbō, Kidōmaru, or Sakon & Ukon. Hope they were good enough for everyone. And no, Tayuya has no connection to the Uzumaki clan in this fic. Sorry if their backstories overtook the chapter.

If I had to assign voice actors for the OCs, I'd have to go with:
- Allison Keith (Ayaka)
- Jessica Boone (Misaki)
- Monica Rial (Rina)
- Mark Stoddard (Noboru)
- Caitlin Glass (Sachi)
- Vic Mignogna (Haruto)
- Shelley Calene-Black (Kotone)
- Corey Hartzog (Hibiki)
- Sab Shimono (Ayumu)