Unsealed Scrolls IV (Patreon)

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The night air in Konohagakure no Sato was still. The city was lit up, but they were the lights of people closing out their day. Even the shinobi of the village were starting to wind down, provided they weren’t night owls who preferred sleeping during the day. The few patrolling ninja were silent, simply enjoying the peace they had earned over many decades of strength. Even Maito Gai and his mini-me Rock Lee had already hung their weights up for the day, leaving the training grounds empty.

In one such training area sat a calm lake. Its waters were eerily still and calm, having been undisturbed for quite some time.

That calmness came to an abrupt end as a light started shimmering below the surface. Even that vanished after only a few moments before a burble of air burst from the waters below. And then another, and yet more, before a shadow grew beneath the suddenly rippling lake. And in the calm peace of Konohagakure no Sato, a behemoth erupted from that lake. Bigger than any shark and much more deadly, the Mosasaurus barely fit in the lake. It caused a massive wave that dropped the water level in the lake even lower when it splashed back down. It quickly swam to the edge, before opening its massive maw and…

Allowed a man to walk out?

Any who watched it happen would have wondered if they had been drugged, but it had actually happened. The man had a wild, untamed mane of blinding blonde hair, and a massive smile on his face. His teeth were on the sharpish side, while his blue eyes were alight in amusement. He had various designs on his face that looked like green tribal markings. He really kept up the tribal look too, dressed in what looked like leather gauntlets and greaves, with his actual clothing made out of layered feathers or furs. Much of his body was exposed, revealing some tattoos that seemed to glow, as well as the fact that he appeared to have been chiseled directly from marble.

“Ehehehe!” He laughed, staring up at the mountain face his old home was famous for. “I’m back! I’m really back!” His eyes warmed in nostalgia as he realized the mountain still only had four faces carved upon it. “Guess Jiji still is the Hokage. He better have been keeping that hat warm for me.” He took in a deep breath, before frowning, “Ugh…” He whined, “The air is so thin…”

“How do you humans breathe this?” The summoned animal lowered itself into the water as best as it could.

“Wondering that myself. Ugh. This is going to take some getting used to.” Still frowning, the blonde shrugged, “Not like getting used to the thick air back home didn’t nearly kill me back then. Go on home then, Fukaimaru. Thanks for getting me back here!”

“Make sure you summon me for some action, and it’ll be all the thanks I need, brat!” The summon vanished in a giant eruption of smoke.

“Who the hell you calling a brat?” Grumbling, the blonde turned back to the Hokage Mountain, or rather, the building that sat next to it. Grinning, he bent his knees, and then leapt.

…

The only sign that Sarutobi Hiruzen knew that his office was about to be invaded by something incredibly dangerous was the fact that his eyes rose from his paperwork and out the window. The only sign of his slight alarm at how fast the object was moving was the way his eyes slightly widened.

When the huge, muscular, very strangely dressed man flew through his window and skidded to a perfect stop in front of his desk, his only reaction was, “You are, without a doubt, the strangest assassin I’ve ever seen.”

“Ehehehe! Assassin? That hurts, Jiji.” The blonde said, before straightening up and looking at the man with a massive grin. Sarutobi’s pipe would have fallen out of his mouth if he had been smoking. “Damn!” The blonde almost blanched, “You got old as fuck, old man!”

“Naruto? Uzumaki Naruto?” Sarutobi stood without realizing it.

“In the flesh!” Naruto grinned, pulling up his very loose garment and exposing his abdomen, and more importantly, the seal carved onto it. “That do, Jiji?”

“Naruto!” Sarutobi leapt over his desk, looking like he was going to hug the man. It was a trap.

WHACK

Naruto played along and allowed himself to crash to his face, even if it didn’t hurt at all. “OW! What the hell, Jiji?!”

“That’s my line, brat! Where the hell have you been?!” Sarutobi thundered, before actually hugging the blonde when he got to his knees. “Do you have any idea how worried we were?!”

Naruto laughed a little nervously, “Sorry Jiji… It’s… a long story.” He got up, which annoyed Sarutobi as he realized the boy who had barely come up to his hip long ago now towered over him. And he missed all of his growth! “And it all started as all good stories do…” He grinned, “With me being an idiot.”

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“Owowowowowow…” Naruto held his face in pain. It wasn’t the only thing that hurt, but it was the thing that hurt the most other than his pride.

“YEAH, YOU GO, SASUKE-KUN!” The raging of a thousand fangirls wasn’t doing much for his eardrums either.

“Ugh,” Naruto got up, setting his nose with a crunch, “eeeeeee…” He nearly cried, before looking around with tears in his eyes.

“Wahahaha! He talked such a big game, but he just got the crap kicked out of him!” One of the boys was cackling, pointing at him, and laughing with tears in his eyes.

Naruto growled, pride burning even more as he realized that not a single other student or even teacher cared that the Uchiha had gone above and beyond in beating his ass. The scowling, emotionless looking ­duckbutt stared at him like he was gum on his shoes. Like he wasn’t even worth acknowledging. He didn’t even care that he had just brutalized another student. Growling, Naruto turned and walked towards the fence. “Uzumaki!” The teacher whose name he still didn’t remember yelled at his back, “Get back here and show the proper respect! You need to show the Seal of Reconciliation!”

Naruto ignored him, still pissed off. He quickly hopped the fence and made himself scarce, utilizing his well-honed evasion skills to avoid the chasing Chūnin and finding himself in the woods. “Jerks. Assholes!” He kicked a tree, and groaned when that just made his foot hurt. “Man, this sucks!” He hopped up and down for a bit, before leaping and scaling one of the taller trees like a monkey. “Man, how the heck am I going to get stronger?” He closed his eyes as he sat in the branches, “School is just boring books, and they don’t teach anything cool anyway.” He groaned, rubbing his head, “Come on, there’s gotta be some cool technique, right? Jiji’s shown some stuff off for me.”

Finally, an idea came to him. “Wait, that’s it!” He jumped to his feet and allowed himself to fall off the tree, landing nimbly down below. “Summons! I saw Jiji do them just last week! The Monkeys have to have some cool techniques! What were those hand signs again…?” He mumbled, closing his eyes, and trying to remember, “I was definitely first…Saru was fourth… Come on, think!”

After a few minutes, he was sure he remembered the order, “Okay, let’s go! I, Inu, Tori, Saru, Hitsuji! Kuchiyose no Jutsu!” He slammed his hand on the ground, “Ehh?” Nothing happened. “Oh yeah!” He smacked himself in the face, “Forgot.” He bit his thumb and drew blood, “Kuchiyose no Jutsu!”

This time, he knew it worked since the same scrawling script he remembered seeing appeared beneath his hand. And with a puff of smoke…

Nothing happened.

“Eh?” Naruto blinked, “It didn’t work? But I did it right, didn’t I?” He rubbed his chin, “Maybe I didn’t use enough Catra?” Naruto still had not learned the proper pronunciation of ‘Chakra,’ much to his teachers’ eternal irritation. “Okay, let’s try this again! Kuchiyose no Jutsu!” Another puff of smoke.

A vein started to twitch on his forehead, “Alright you stupid technique,” He hissed, before he started to pump everything he hadinto the jutsu. Unknown to the blonde, the beast inside of him grinned and decided some mischief was in order, “Kuchiyose no Jutsu!”

Naruto vanished in a puff of smoke.

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Sarutobi had his face in his hands, holding back a groan with all his might. “You got yourself Reverse-Summoned. Why Naruto? They go over that technique in the Academy. You should have known better.”

“Ehehe…” He chuckled nervously, feeling a bit bad about the migraine he had obviously given the old man. “Yeah I… didn’t really pay attention.” He looked off to the side and whistled innocently.

“Clearly!” The Hokage unleashed his first Tsukkomi in years. “You’re the only one who could have pulled something like this off, brat. You need enough Chakra for a boss summon for a Kuchiyose no Jutsuwith no established contract to reverse summon you.” He finally let that sigh he was holding in, out, “So, where did you end up? The land of foxes?” He eyed the boy archly.

“Nah.” Naruto grinned, “Kurama may look like a fox, but he’s much closer to a Primordial than a summoned animal.”

“Kurama?” Sarutobi mouthed to himself, looking utterly befuddled.

“Oh, right.” Naruto grinned, “Yeah, foxy’s name is Kurama. Did you know that the Rikudō Sennin was his dad?” Sarutobi stared at him, open-mouthed, “Anyway, not really important. What is important is… well, you know how the lands of Summons are like… one degree removed from our reality?”

“Of course.” Sarutobi said, going into professor mode, “Or it’s more accurate to say that it is like their reality is slightly out of phase with ours. They are a parallel world overlaid with ours. Practically side by side with us, but unable to touch.”

“Right.” Naruto nodded, “Where I ended up was basically that, except like… two more times over.” Naruto grinned fiercely, “The creatures of that land had never accepted contracts with any in our world. Only the Sage and his brother had ever been able to summon them, due to their divine nature. When they died, the summons of that land lost access to our world, and they didn’t even have access to the usual summon realm. That’s why it took me so long to get back. We had to make a new doorway and Contract.”

“Naruto…” Sarutobi gave him a worried stare, “Where did you end up.”

Naruto’s grin widened, “That ain’t the right question, Jiji.” He laughed as Sarutobi paled, “The right question is when.”

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“WAAAAAAAHHHHHHH!!!!!” Naruto screamed in terror as he appeared hundreds of meters in the air. Even despite the altitude, he could still breath normally. If he had been the more scholarly sort, he would have realized something was drastically wrong. As high up as he was, he should have been choking to death from the lack of oxygen. Instead, he could breathe as easily as if he had been on ground level.

So, he continued to fall. And scream. And fall. And scream some more. Not that even he could hear it, with the way the winds rushed by him and drowned out all other sounds. And then, all of a sudden, he could hear. Or more accurately, he felt. He managed to face down and open his arms and legs wide, remembering his lessons on slowing falls. They weren’t exactly meant for skydiving though. When he did, his eyes bulged. Even through the cloud he was falling through, he could see an immense shadow below him.

And when he burst from the cloud cover, he let out a scream of terror. The Titan below him, and it could only be a Capital T Titan, practically covered the whole of the earth from his point of view. Its massive wings left behind hurricanes with every flap. But not only that, the very air below it seemed filled with fire and smoke, which generated bolts of lightning behind it.

And its eyes were looking right at him.

The beast slowed, and Naruto could only think, ‘Pleasedon’teatmePleasedon’teatmePleasedon’teatmePleasedon’teatme.’ And then sigh in relief when he merely landed on the beast’s head, “WAH!” Naruto yelled, getting his hands off of its head, “HOTHOTHOT!” The wind nearly blew him off, so he had to duck back down.

A rumble rocked through the creature, “What’s this?” He heard a massive sniff, “Now this is something I haven’t smelled in millennia.” The beast veered off, making for land. Naruto could see a tiny bit of land in the distance. It was only when they got closer that he would realize it was just the tip of a gigantic Supercontinent. A Pangea. “You appear much…weaker than the humans I knew.”

“Oi!” Naruto yelled in affront, “Who the hell you calling weak?!”

The creature laughed, “Well, I suppose you are young. Perhaps you’ll grow.” Its voice turned silky, “Or perhaps not. Save your strength, boy.” It said, “You’re in for a hell of a time.”

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Sarutobi had his face buried in both hands, “Ancients.” His voice was muffled, “You ended up in the land of the Ancients.”

“Ayep!” Naruto grinned, “And boy, do I have plenty of stories from it.” He placed his hands behind his head, “Can’t tell you how many times I almost died, and Kurama had to pull my ass out of the fire.” He could still remember the claws from that one Chindesaurus.

He really did not like Chindesauri.

“But seriously, I wanna know what’s been going on since I left! You been keeping that hat nice and warm for me, Jiji?” He grinned at the old man’s exasperation.

“Brat.” Sarutobi shook his head, though in fond amusement this time. “Well, when you vanished, it actually took a while for anyone to notice.” Naruto pouted as the old man smirked at him, “Eventually, one of your classmates asked if you had quit or if you were sick, and the Chūnin in charge of your class brought it to my attention. I would have known already, but I had been buried in meetings that week, and class attendance was rather low on the priority list.” He deadpanned, and Naruto smirked, shaking his head, “When I couldn’t find you with my crystal ball, however…”

“Yeah, that would about do it.” Naruto remembered that thing well. Jiji had let him play with it just a bit when he was younger.

“Yes, at that point, I officially became worried.” Sarutobi said, “And when neither the Hyūga nor the Inuzuka nor the Aburame could find hide nor hair of you, we passed alarm and went straight to full lockdown with every active shinobi in the village recalled.” He eyed the blonde sharply, “For over two full weeks, we did nothing but interview people and search every nook and cranny in the village.” It was, in fact, what had led Jiraiya to find Danzō’s illegal Root division of ANBU had still been running, despite the fact Sarutobi had ordered it disbanded decades ago. He and Jiraiya had led a two-man operation tearing through the shadowy organization, ending with the death of his old rival. They had assumed Naruto had been stolen away by him, as hundreds of other orphans had been. It had been an unpleasant discovery to know this had happened right under his and Minato’s noses, and even more unpleasant when they still could not find Naruto.

“When we still couldn’t find you or even a body, we were forced to assume you had been kidnapped by another village. And that would have been a disaster, not just because we lost you, but because it would have meant someone was capable of completely negating every single defense the village had without setting off a single alarm.” Sarutobi told him, “With that in mind, every infiltration specialist in the village was tasked with finding you. We put operatives in every village and still, we could not find a whisper of your presence.”

“Yeah…” Naruto rubbed the back of his head sheepishly, “Sorry Jiji, I was kinda, you know, three worlds away.”

Sarutobi snorted, “Yes, that was quite a merry chase you led us on.” He smiled, “And yet your disappearance and our attempts to find you bore fruit we never expected.”

“Oh?” Naruto leaned in in interest, “Like what?”

“Like whom.” Sarutobi corrected, grinning in that ‘I know something you don’t’ manner. “Tell me Naruto, what do you know of Uzushiogakure?” Naruto stared at him blankly, and Sarutobi’s smile twitched, “I will hit you with a history book if that is what it takes, brat.” He rubbed the ridge of his nose, “Very well. Uzushio was the ancestral home of the Uzumaki, and for years, they were our closest allies” Naruto’s eyes went wide, and he uncrossed his arms, “The Uzumaki were famed for their Fūinjutsu prowess, and their village was located in an island surrounded and defended by whirlpools.” He sighed, “In the second world war, a few years after your mother emigrated to Konoha, a coalition of three great nations decided that they were too powerful, and endeavored to destroy them. The Uzumaki had unfortunately grown complacent. They were too confident in their Fūinjutsu. The invading army succeeded in bypassing most of the defenses, and were able to annihilate the village before backup could arrive.”

“Wait, back up. My mother?” Naruto glared, “What happened to not knowing who my parents were, old man?” He was a far cry from the brat who had nothing and no one, but that was a wound that was scabbed over and now bleeding.

“I’m sorry, Naruto.” Sarutobi looked remorseful, “But especially with your propensity to blurt things out without thinking about it, it was deemed too dangerous for you to know the truth with the number of enemies your parents had. We would not have been able to protect you if those enemies learned the truth.” Naruto’s glare hardened, “You would have learned of your mother when you were promoted to Chūnin, and your father upon your promotion to Jōnin.”

Naruto kept his glare upon the old man, before sighing, “Fine. Not like it matters now. I could take that hat from your head any time I wanted.”

Sarutobi coughed to hide a snort, “Confident, are we? Good to see you haven’t changed.” He shook his head, “Regardless, once Uzushio was destroyed, the remaining Uzumaki scattered and tried to make their way to Konoha for protection. Unfortunately, they were hunted by the nations who had tried to destroy them, and their signature red hair made them easy to find. Most never made it very far, and others yet were snapped up by the less bloodthirsty of the coalition.” He steepled his fingers, “Our infiltrators discovered a surviving Uzumaki in Kusagakure, and she was anything but loyal.” He smiled at Naruto’s shock, “That’s right, Naruto-kun. You have family in Konoha now. Uzumaki Karin leapt at the opportunity to flee from Kusa for what they did to her mother. She was just as eager to meet you as you no doubt are to meet her.”

“Can I meet her now?!” Naruto asked, fidgeting like he was going to leap out of the window.

“Unfortunately, no.” Sarutobi deflated him, “She just recently graduated from the academy as a Genin. She was placed on a team with Uchiha Sasuke and Yamanaka Ino with Hatake Kakashi as their Jōnin-sensei. They left just over seven days ago on their first C-Rank mission.”

“Ah…” Naruto slumped, “Damn it old man, getting me all excited for nothing.”

“Something for you to anticipate, brat.” Sarutobi smirked, “You still own your apartment complex. I didn’t have the heart to sell it when you disappeared. Karin moved in once she arrived.”

“Sweet!” Naruto grinned, “Anyway, I-”

“Hokage-sama!” The doors slammed open as a Chūnin gate guard stormed in.

“Calm yourself!” Sarutobi stared unnervingly at the Chūnin, “Explain yourself! What possessed you to barge into my office without even having my secretary notify me?”

“M-My apologies, Hokage-sama. Your secretary was in the restroom.” The Chūnin stammered, “We received an emergency request for aid from Hatake Kakashi!”

Sarutobi almost sputtered, “On a C-Rank?” He completely forgot that Naruto was there. Naruto who had just been informed that his only living family was currently on Kakashi’s team.

“Y-yes, Hokage-sama!” The Chūnin began to explain, “Kakashi reported that the client lied about the mission details. Gato of the Gato Shipping Corporation has been performing underground shadow operations, and has practically bought out the Land of Waves. He’s currently crushing the land beneath his heel and enslaving its people, and Tazuna was trying to build the bridge to break his monopoly. Gato hired two Chūnin who attacked Squad Kakashi and were easily handled. Kakashi felt confident in completing the mission. He reports that he got overconfident and was captured momentarily with his Sharingan eye exposed, which drained his Chakra much faster than expected. He was able to defeat his opponent, but was left with Chakra Exhaustion as a result. He also reports that his Genin performed far beyond expectations, and were able to free him when Momochi Zabuza captured him in his Suirō no Jutsu.”

Sarutobi snorted more like a bull than his namesake and just barely kept himself from putting a fist through his desk, “That fool.” This was a disaster. With the Chūnin Exams just a few short months away, their forces were stretched thin. There was just no way he could spare anyone right now that would make a difference against opponents of Momochi Zabuza’s caliber.

His attention was then drawn by Naruto, “Well Jiji, it was fun, but I have a trip to make!”

Sarutobi shook his head, “Naruto, no. I will not allow that! I have no idea how strong you think you are, but at minimum there will be an enemy Jōnin. I have no idea of your skills! You never even graduated from the Academy!”

“Exactly.” Naruto grinned again, showcasing his sharp teeth. “I didn’t graduate from the Academy. That means I’m not one of your ninja yet, and I don’t exactly need your permission, do I?”

Sarutobi clenched his fist under his table, “Naruto…”

“Jiji…” Naruto’s smile dropped, and he stared at the old man with nothing but confidence in his eyes, “I got this.”

Sarutobi stared at him for a few moments. Finally, he opened a drawer on his desk and tossed Naruto a rolled-up map, “Go. Don’t make me regret this.”

Naruto didn’t respond. He merely grinned, and in one movement was already at the window. With the next, he was high in the air above the village, “Kuchiyose no Jutsu!” A large quetzalcoatlus appeared beneath him, “Fly, Kamihane!” He checked the map, “Full speed south!” The summon acknowledged his command, and a sonic boom ripped through Konoha’s skies as they flew, alarming many sleeping residents.

In the office the Chūnin gaped, “Naruto? Uzumaki Naruto? He’s back?!”

“So it would seem…” Sarutobi stared at the vanishing figure in the distance.

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“Jouro Senbon!” Rokushō Aoi yelled the second Team 7 came into sight on the bridge. He threw his umbrella up, which opened and started to spin in midair. Thousands upon thousands of senbon erupted from the unassuming instrument of death, aimed directly towards his targets. “Really Zabuza, this is what you had trouble with? Perhaps the Kiri no Shinobigatana Shichinin Shū are far weaker than I thought.”

“You’re a fool.” Zabuza retorted, growling in humiliation. To think he was being reduced to this, forced to work with a fool he could kill at any moment. Gato was really trying his patience. He might cut the man in half once he had his money. This deal was far too lucrative to renege on. He eyed the Raijin no Ken on the man’s belt. Perhaps the rebels in Kiri would be interested in an eighth blade to add to the collection. Or at least a seventh to replace Samehada, which was still in Hoshigaki Kisame’s hands.

“What was that?” Aoi glared at him from the side.

“Zabuza-sama called you a fool.” Haku, Zabuza’s loyal servant and helper, retorted sharply. “Your overconfidence will be your undoing, provided I do not end you for looking at Zabuza-sama with such eyes.”

Aoi was about to draw his blade when he realized what they were getting at. “Tch.” He clicked his teeth, eyeing the mass of wires that had tangled every single one of his senbon.

On the other side of the bridge, Ino was smirking brightly, “Thanks Karin-chan. These new wires are amazing.” She twitched her fingers, and the mass of wires acted immediately, flinging the senbon back at their enemies. The wires immediately and smoothly disentangled themselves, and retracted into the gloves Karin had made for her. Like hell she was going to be a support damsel who could only use her family Jutsu, leaving herself defenseless.

Aoi caught his umbrella as the senbon approached and swung it, compressing the water in the air into a shockwave that knocked the senbon down or off the bridge.

“Rokushō Aoi.” Kakashi said blandly once the sounds died down, “Chūnin Rank Missing Nin from our own Konohagakure. Apparently Jōnin now, for Ame. Bounty of fifty million Ryō. My, aren’t you overvalued.”

“Seriously?” Karin flipped her beautiful red hair, “This guy is a Jōnin? Are they just handing the rank out?” Aoi grew red in the face.

“Well, it’s more the sword at his hip.” Kakashi explained, “It’s like forty-five million of the fifty.”

“I’ll kill you all.” Aoi whispered, grabbing his blade, and igniting it. Yellow lightning burst from the handle, before solidifying into a solid blade made of Raiton Chakra.

“Hey, Kakashi.” Zabuza called out, “I’m fine if you want to get this guy out of the way. I can wait.”

“BASTARD!” Aoi whirled around towards Zabuza, finding the man grinning behind his bindings. His hand was on his massive blade’s handle.

“What, did you expect me to just play along with Gato’s nonsense? Please, we aren’t friends or even allies. That sword in your hand would be a mighty fine prize to add to my earnings.” Zabuza sneered at him.

“Well, that sounds like an interesting proposal, Zabuza-san.” Kakashi gave the missing nin an eye smile, “But that would just be a waste of Chakra. Karin-chan, why don’t you take care of our friend?”

“What?!” Aoi choked as Karin stepped forward. He looked like he was going to start frothing at the mouth as Zabuza laughed, “You’re going to send one of your Genin to fight ME?!”

“Maa, maa, it’ll be fine.” Kakashi waved him off, “Not like you have anything going for you. You’ve already wasted your senbon. Now all you have is that pretty little sword.”

“There’s a LIMIT to how much I can be underestimated!” Aoi roared, pointing the sword at Karin, and discharging a bolt of lightning directly at her.

Karin calmly reached into her skintight black bodysuit, making a mental note once again that she loved Fūinjutsu. The scroll she wanted immediately popped into her hand, and she unfurled it, “Fūrai Hōin!” She announced, and the bolt of lightning deviated and shot at the direct center of the scroll, being sealed away. “Oho?” Her glasses glinted as the Raijin no Ken was extinguished, sucked into her scroll.

“What?!” Aoi looked at the handle in shock, and he wasn’t the only one. Zabuza had twitched violently, suddenly worried as he made the Fūinjutsu + Red Hair connection. Aoi didn’t. He pumped more Chakra into the Raijin and sighed in relief as it ignited again. He glared at the young girl before him.

At sixteen years of age, Karin had flowered beautifully. The girl who would have been nothing more than a walking healing Jutsu and Chakra detector under Kusa’s control had flourished in Konoha. Given Uzumaki Kushina’s notes and journals with her presumed cousin missing, she had taken a keen interest in Fūinjutsu, and had already created dozens of items with her scientific mind. Everything she wore and everything she kept on her had been created by her for her.

Her glasses had been the hardest, being so small. She had taken it as a challenge, mostly to put that uppity Uchiha in his place after the boy had been so cruel to her best friend. She could see Chakra with it, and though she couldn’t copy Jutsu, she had been able to mimic some of the effects of the Sharingan with it. She could even zoom in and out like the Byakugan.

Her bodysuit, as stated, was skintight and showed off her amazing figure, despite the slim breastplate that protected her vitals. Various other pieces of armor gave her both offense and defense. Despite looking like it should have no pockets at all, she had stuffed so much Fūinjutsu into it that it acted like it possessed a hammerspace.

She had wanted a cape as red as her hair to go along with it, but had been told in no uncertain terms that capes were not allowed. Period. She sulked for days. She had so many protective Fūinjutsu ideas for it!

“Hmmm, Haku, the boy seems to be trembling.” Zabuza said, “Why don’t you go entertain him?”

“Yes, master.” Haku vanished, and Sasuke immediately twitched, throwing himself to the right with a kunai in hand. His blade met Haku’s and stopped it cold, “Oh?” Haku smiled behind her mask, “It seems you’ve improved, shinobi-san. You could hardly stand the last time you were faced with my master.”

“Hnn.” Sasuke stared at her, “Let’s leave the adults to their fun, shall we?”

The two vanished.

“Ino, defend Tazuna.” Kakashi commanded.

“You got it, sensei!” Ina replied, flicking her fingers, and surrounding herself and Tazuna with a maze of razor-sharp wires, “Make sure you don’t touch any of these wires, Tazuna.” She told him, ‘And please, finish fast. I’m not sure how long my Chakra will hold out. These take some getting used to.’

Karin eyed Aoi, wondering what he would be doing next as Kakashi pushed Zabuza farther along the bridge. She acted cocky, but she was well aware this guy had a few years of experience on her. She wanted to make him mad and stupid, not to start smelling her own farts after all.

“Tch.” The man growled, “I’ll kill you quickly.” He smiled as Zabuza’s Kirigakure no Jutsu started to engulf the bridge like a thick soup. “After all… he’s not the only one who can use Silent Killing.” He chuckled ominously as he faded from sight, the light of his Raijin no Ken fading away as it was deactivated, “Throat, spinal column, lungs, liver, the jugular vein, the subclavian artery, kidney, heart…” Aoi’s voice projected from all around her, “Just which will I pick to kill you with?”

“Zabuza did it better!” Karin called out, smirking. “His was actually scary, loooooser!” She looked left and right, subtly moving around.

“Why you little bitch!” Aoi’s voice came from her right.

She lunged for it and swung her kunai, cutting through… nothing? “What?!” She gasped in shock, having been sure of where he was.

“Game over, bitch!” Aoi smirked from behind her, wishing he could see the terror in her face.

“You’re right.” Karin chuckled. SHLICK “It wasgame over.”

“Grah!” Aoi howled as he backed up a few steps, clutching his shoulder, “Wh-what is this?!” A golden chain was piercing his right shoulder. He had barely been able to avoid having his heart pierced. He fell to his knees and dropped his famous sword.

“I told you.” Karin turned around, smirking. Her glasses glinted from the chain’s glow, “Zabuza did it better. I was so scared I could barely move, much less focus on my Kagura Shingan to locate him for sensei.”

“Ka-kagu…” Aoi had paled to the color of milk, “Y-You’re an Uzumaki.”

“Really? What was your first clue, dumbass?” Karin snorted, “Now sit still, will ya?”

“Like hell!” Aoi grabbed the Raijin with his uninjured hand and swung it up into the chain, “What?! I can’t cut it?!”

“Kushina-sama restrained the Kyūbi with these.” Karin laughed, “And you think your puny sword will cut them? I may not be anywhere near her level, but that’s a bit insulting.” She grabbed the chain and yanked it down, drawing another howl of pain from Aoi.

“Discharge!” Aoi yelled, trying to get the lightning to travel along the chain. To his credit, it worked for a second, racing along the chain towards Karin.

“Fūrai Hōin!” She called out, and immediately, the lightning was sealed away, this time into her chains themselves. ‘Kami, I love these things. Thank you so much, Kushina-sama.’ The Uzumaki Chakra chains were a wonder. Her strongest alignment was to Fūinjutsu, just as it had been for her presumed cousin’s mother, and so, she could channel Fūinjutsu through them. She wished she could channel her fire affinity too, but beggars couldn’t be choosers.

Again, the Raijin was extinguished, no matter how much Chakra Aoi pushed into it. “D-damn you. I won’t be- not by a-”

“Oh, shut up already.” Karin unsealed another of her creations from her wrist. It was a… large and unwieldy weapon like Zabuza’s, but unlike his sword, her weapon was weird. Something not really seen before in the Elemental Nations. It had three long barrels attached to a central hub, with a sort of trigger where her hand was holding it. It was heavy, so another chain came from her arm and helped stabilize it. She had no idea, but in her inventing, she had come up with something very similar to the ninja of Snow Country.

And right now? The three barrels were rotating around that central hub, before a burst of compressed fire Chakra erupted from the weapon. Aoi had the breath knocked out of him as the first bullet hit, and he was engulfed by fire. Each bullet buried itself in him and burned his flesh. He had already expired by the time the third bullet penetrated him.

Karin stopped firing, “Phew, this thing is a menace!” She grinned, slinging it over her shoulder. She pulled the chain out of Aoi’s corpse and, not really having the stomach for it, she pulled out a scroll and quickly sealed the full body away, rather than cutting off just the head and burning the rest. “Okay, time to go help the Duckbutt!” She grabbed the Raijin and sealed that into her wrist, before running off towards where she sensed her teammate’s Chakra.

“What the heck is this?!” She gasped, looking at the carnival funhouse of mirrors, realizing they were ice cold. She peered between them, and gasped as she realized her teammate was peppered with senbon made out of ice. She could also see he had finally unlocked his stupid pink eye, and was making an admirable attempt at dodging the senbon that the fake hunter was throwing.

Unfortunately for him, the fake hunter’s speed was so intense that she could throw one from the mirror directly in front of him and be behind him before the needle was even halfway to its target. The Sharingan couldn’t predict something from behind the user. With the mirrors all reflecting the hunter, it was impossible for the Sharingan to tell exactly where the hunter was.

“Damn it!” Karin flung herself into the mirrors, six chains erupting from her body and deflecting dozens of needles.

“Idiot!” Sasuke gasped, falling to a knee as he took a moment to rest, “Why did you come inside?!”

“I couldn’t do anything from outside!” She retorted heatedly, “Anything I tried could have hit you as well. This was the only option!”

“Oh, I see you’ve defeated the braggart.” Haku commented, “So, you’ve come to protect your friend?” Haku tilted her head, “Is he precious to you?”

“No, not really.” Karin deadpanned, “And we’re not really friends. I kinda hate him, actually.” Sasuke rolled his eyes, “But letting a comrade die would leave a bad taste in my mouth, Haku-chan.”

Haku was very confused as Karin spoke. She… supposed she understood sacrifice, but the idea of doing so for someone she neither liked nor respected was off. Her last words confused her, “…Chan?”

“Well yeah.” Karin glared at her, “Though I’m kind of irritated I didn’t realize you were the hunter.” She had never used her Kagura Shingan in the first battle due to how frightened she was. How shameful. “I would have tried capturing you instead of helping you pick those herbs.”

“I see. In another world, we could maybe have been friends.” She said lightly, as she prepared to harden her heart, “Also, I’m a boy, you know.” Haku pointed out.

“Bullshit!” Karin, Sasuke, and even Ino in the distance (her gossip, fashion, and romance radar were finely honed pieces of art) pointed at her, “No boy is that pretty or wears a kimono that well!”

Haku sweatdropped, “I… believe we were fighting?” A hundred senbon from every direction flew at the pair, and Karin struggled to block them all. A few made it through, which Sasuke was able to block with his kunai.

“Ugh, she’s so friggen fast.” Karin complained, before letting out a short scream as a senbon made it through and pierced her left thigh, “We have to break her mirrors!”

“Don’t you think I already tried that?!” Sasuke growled, “My Gōkakyū was useless. It didn’t even melt a little bit.”

“Damn it, watch my ass, duckbutt!” Karin said, before losing four of the chains, keeping only two to defend from the front. She made a Ram seal with her left hand to focus her Kagura Shingan, and immediately located Haku. “Break!” She punched with her right arm, and four chains erupted from it. The sharp-tipped golden chains pierced through the mirror and shattered it, but Haku had somehow managed to hide herself in only a shard of the mirror, and she quickly dove into another. With her attention split, she and Sasuke were both peppered with half a dozen senbon each. “FUCK!” Karin screamed to high heaven, her hand flying behind her and yanking a needle out before she realized what a bad idea that was. “FOR FUCK’S SAKE, DUCKBUTT! YOU HAD ONE JOB! SHE GOT ME IN THE ASS!”

“Urgh…” Sasuke spat a little blood, hand trembling on the needle that had hit him directly in the hip.

“You broke it!” Haku gasped, “Nothing has ever shattered one of my mirrors before!” She continued dodging as the chains snaked after her, piercing mirror after mirror, “Unfortunately for you, they are not yet annihilated.” She made a hand sign, and the mirrors immediately reconstituted themselves. Both Karin and Sasuke sagged in disbelief. ‘I’m almost dry on Chakra.’ Haku thought to herself, ‘I have to finish this before I run out, or I will be of no use to Zabuza-sama!’ She looked at Karin in particular, ‘I’m sorry, but it’s clear I will not win if I do not actually kill you. You both are too skilled to put in a death trance. Forgive me.’ Bowing her head, she made a hand sign. “It is time to-” Karin screamed, falling to her knees. “W-What?”

“Karin?! What the hell are you-?” Sasuke whirled around to face his teammate, finding nothing had hurt her.

“Wh-what is that?!” Karin faced north, completely forgetting the battle. She was unaware she was looking directly towards Konoha. “S-something is coming! Something massive! I’ve never sensed Chakra like this!” She trembled as it came closer and closer.

“Then I need to finish this quickly. Forgive me. Hyōka Mugen Han’ei!” Almost all of the mirrors gleamed, and then massive icicles erupted from each and every mirror except for one, consuming the ice and sharpening it into an attack designed to impale everything inside.

She was too late.

Something landed right next to Karin and Sasuke, sending the boy to his knees just from the shockwave. The icicles all vanished, turned into glittering shards surrounding them in iridescence. Haku gaped at the sight of one of her ultimate techniques being destroyed, “Who… who are you? Why have you interfered?”

Naruto ignored her, turning around and spearing Karin with his gaze.

The poor girl was trembling like a leaf in a windstorm as she took in the massive man before her. One thought erupted in her mind as even utter terror was not enough to prevent it, ‘Oh fuck, he’s hot!’

Naruto’s grin widened as he took in her red hair, remembering Jiji’s comment about it being the Uzumaki signature. He supposed he was just weird like that. “COUSIN!” He bellowed, snapping her up in a hug and twirling her around in a circle. Sasuke had to throw himself down to avoid getting kicked in the face by her feet.

“WAAAAAA!” Karin yelped, wondering what the hell was going on. As she was put down, she almost fell over from the dizziness, “Wha-who-why?!”

“Wait!” Sasuke said as he stumbled to his feet, “What did you call her?”

Karin got her feet under her as her jaw dropped, finally registering the word, “C-Cousin?!”

Sasuke’s jaw dropped, “You!” he said, “I-I remember you! You’re Uzumaki Naruto!”

Naruto laughed, “Sup, bastard?” He gave him a two-fingered wave. “Man, you look like a pincushion. It’s a good look for you!”

“Ugh…” Sasuke groaned, “Save me from Uzumaki stupidity.”

Karin couldn’t believe it. After so many years… was this really him? The cousin she had fled Kusagakure to meet? ‘I was so focused on how much Chakra he had that it was like a punch in the gut. But…’ She stared at him in awe, ‘His Chakra is so light. So pure. So warm. It’s like staring at the sun!’ She teared up a little, “You-” Karin stepped forward, “You’re really…”

“So, you are her cousin.” Haku interrupted them, gasping in exhaustion as she pulled the remains of the icicles back, reforming much smaller and weaker mirrors that barely made a crescent moon shape around them, “I-”

“Should surrender.” Naruto said, looking at her cheerfully, “You’re exhausted. Any more Chakra use from you today, and you might die, you know!”

“If that is as far as I can go, then it is as far as I can go. I will not fail my master!” Haku retorted, flinging senbon at Naruto.

“Move, you idiot!” Sasuke yelled, pulling Karin back.

“Naru-” Karin started to scream, but it was too late. The needles were too fast.

They smashed into Naruto… and plinked off of him, landing on the shattered bridge below. There was silence, before Naruto started to chuckle, “Sorry hunter-chan. You’ll have to do better than those dinky little things.” He tilted his head, “Again, please surrender. I don’t feel like watching a pretty girl kill herself today, you know.”

Karin stared at him with stars in her eyes. ‘Oh Kami, is this what those dumb, vapid thots felt for duckbutt?! He’s so cool!’

With trembling hands, Haku shakingly tried to make a few more hand signs.

Naruto sighed as he raised an arm, “Enough.” He swiped his arm, and a massive shockwave shattered every single mirror in one go, before blasting away part of the mist that engulfed the bridge. But that wasn’t all, it also kicked up a massive wave, sending a deluge of water away from the bridge towards the mainland.

Karin stared in awe, her face completely red as an instant crush developed. Sasuke on the other hand could only gape, twitching, ‘Wh-what the hell?! T-This can’t- This can’t be Uzumaki, can it?! He was the dead last! The last time I saw him, I beat the shit out of him! Without taking a single hit in return! How the hell did he get so strong?!’

Haku wasn’t even sure which way was up. She tried to jump out of the last shards of her mirrors, and instead barreled into the concrete below with a grunt of pain. She trembled on the bridge, unable to comprehend just what had happened. ‘He-he’s too strong! Z-Zabuza-sama! You must flee!’ She struggled to get to her knees, slumping as her mask fell off her face. She stared at the wild-looking man before her. She couldn’t see a single opening. A single opportunity. Not even if she were fresh. She bowed her head, “P-Please, make it quick.” She whispered.

Naruto raised an eyebrow, “Make…what quick?” He shook his head, “Girl, if you expect me to kill you, you haven’t been paying attention to anything I’ve said so far.”

Haku’s expression closed off, “You have it wrong. Showing mercy to an enemy whose life you have in your hands is no kindness. Not when defeat has already cost you your dream.” They stared off, and Haku smiled, “Zabuza-sama has no use for a weak tool. You’ve taken away my reason for living!”

“That’s BULLSHIT!” Karin snarled, stomping forward. She was spitting mad, “Dreams only die if you give up on them!”

Naruto grinned, “I like your style, Karin-chan.” She blushed, bashfully looking away from him. He looked back at Haku, “So, what’s this guy you’re helping worth to you? What’s your story?”

“Yeah!” Karin jumped back in, “You said you had someone precious to you! You told me that people were only as strong as they could be when they were protecting something truly precious to them! Why him?! Why a man that would gleefully cut down a hundred people and butcher every single one of his classmates when he didn’t need to?”

Haku settled down after wiping blood from her mouth, “I had a place to belong once. Family who loved me. They were kind, good people. But blood showed.” Even Sasuke was paying attention, quizzically. “My father killed my mother, and tried to kill me.”

Sasuke flinched, instantly flashing back to the night of the massacre, “Why-”

“The Land of the Mist has had generations of bad blood. Non-stop war between those who possess Kekkei Genkai, and those who do not.” Haku said, and Sasuke’s jaw lowered in shock. What the hell was she saying? “Those without bloodlines view us as abominations. These inherited skills were exploited and twisted to cause slaughter, until we were looked at not as warriors or even weapons, but as harbingers of doom. They hunted us. Killed us. We were powerful, and so we were feared.”

“That’s-” Sasuke grit his teeth, “What utter nonsense.”

Haku looked at him in surprise, “…You…” She tilted her head, “You were not-”

“What? Hated? Feared?” Sasuke spat on the ground, “Your country is full of morons. Bloodlines are celebrated in every corner of the world.”

Karin nodded, “Ayep, half the village practically worshipped the ground this moron walked on. Kami knows why.” She shrugged, “Kumo in particular has actively risked war several times trying to steal bloodlines away, or at least steal someone to breed their own copy.”

Haku’s fist clenched futilely, “Then it appears that I was unlucky.” The intonation on that word had such a vehement disgust that it was no mystery what she felt, “I learned that I could manipulate not only water, but ice as well. I rushed to show my mother, proud of what I could do. She freaked out and tried to tell me never to use those powers again.” She looked up, “She wasn’t quick enough. My father saw it. He killed my mother, and then came to kill me. Before I knew what was happening, our home was impaled by icicles in every direction, and my father was dead.” She stared at the horrified two next to Naruto, “I knew what I was. I was forced to accept it. I was alone. Unwanted. Shunned. I had nothing and no one, doomed to die in a land where no one would even help a child wearing rags… until he came.” She smiled softly, “Zabuza-sama adopted me despite knowing what I was. The very thing everyone hated, he cherished. I was… so… so happy. Cherished. Needed.”

She looked tearfully at Naruto, “And now I’m not. Zabuza-sama’s desires… his dreams… Zabuza-sama has no need for broken tools. So please, end my life.” She begged.

Karin charged past Naruto and landed and absolutely brutal haymaker on the girl knocking her back three feet to the ground, “And what good are you to him dead, HUH?!” She yelled at the stunned girl on the ground. She grabbed Haku by her outfit and hauled her up to a seated position, “And what of him, huh? What happens to the ones you leave behind?!” She tearfully thought of her mother, used, abused, and exploited by Kusagakure for their bloodline, “If he survives this, what will he do without you? He was beaten, just the same as you were! If you weren’t here, he’d already be dead!” She dropped Haku, fuming, “You really think he doesn’t give a fuck about you?! That he’s truly as heartless as he pretends to be?! THEN WHY THE FUCK ARE YOU SO INNOCENT?!” She yelled at Haku’s face, actually spraying her with spit.

“Wh-wha?”

Karin backed up and crossed her arms, “Moron! You had a sure kill technique that Duckbutt couldn’t have gotten past, and then he would have been dead before I even had a chance to interfere!” Sasuke glared at her back, but could not refute the statement. “Then you could have killed me too and then gone straight for Ino-chan and Tazuna.” She glared, “Instead you used an incredibly draining technique and fucked around long enough for me to beat a ‘Jōnin,’ and then continued fucking around with your needles until you had almost no Chakra left!” Haku stared up at her, gobsmacked, “Was that your idea of mercy?!”

“I…” Haku started to tear up again.

“What the fuck do you think happens to captured Kunoichi and bloodline wielders?! You think Zabuza would have just let us go after Kakashi-sensei and Tazuna were dead, and the job was done?!” The fiery redhead growled at the defeated kunoichi.

“I…” Haku said weakly, “Zabuza-sama isn’t like th-”

A sound made almost all of them flinch. One that sounded not unlike a thousand chirping birds. “What is that?!” Sasuke asked.

The mist cleared slightly, making Haku gasp in shock as she saw her master held down by half a dozen huge dogs, while Kakashi held what appeared to be lightning in his hands. “Za-Zabuza-sama!” Haku yelled, trying to get up and save him, but she truly had almost nothing left. She just fell over.

Naruto made his first sound in several minutes with a loud sigh, “Yare, yare.” He vanished, the stone and concrete beneath his feet cracking.

Kakashi gasped as someone caught his arm in an iron grip, preventing his Raikiri from impaling his enemy. He looked at the huge blonde, not really understanding what he was seeing for a second, “Who are you?!”

Naruto sighed again, “Someone who’s a sucker for sob stories from pretty girls.” He said indifferently.

Kakashi’s eyes widened, “W-Wait! You’re-!”

“Ha!” Zabuza got himself free from the dispelling dogs, “You said my future was death, but you missed again, Kakashi!” Zabuza raised his sword, “I don’t know who you are, kid, but thanks for-” Zabuza’s eyes nearly crossedas a fist he didn’t even register was moving impacted his gut. He crashed to his knees before his Hitai-Ate touched the ground and he started to violently cough.

“I’m the backup.” Naruto said, snorting as Zabuza fell beside him. “You should chill.”

“You…” Kakashi breathed, “You’re Uzumaki Naruto.”

Naruto grinned, turning to the white-haired Jōnin, “That’s me! Looks like my reputation precedes me!”

“What reputation?!” Kakashi asked, before glaring, “Why did you stop me?!”

“I decided no one was dying today.” Naruto shrugged, as if that simply ended the matter.

Zabuza let out a shaky snarl before Kakashi could reply, barely able to move after that hit. He just barely managed to glare at Naruto, “W-what game are you playing?”

“No game!” Naruto said, “They might be playing one though!” He pointed at the other end of the bridge, where the clearing fog revealed a giant gathering of vagabonds and hooligans.

In the lead was Gato himself, snickering, “Is this what passes for demons nowadays, Zabuza?”

“G-Gato!” Zabuza forced himself to his feet, “Wh-what are you doing here?! And why with all of them?!”

“Oh, there’s been a change of plans, you see.” Gato said airily, “Well, your plans. This was what I had in mind all along!” He chuckled in such a stereotypically evil manner that Naruto sweatdropped, “You’re going to die here, ‘Demon.’ Here and now.”

“What of our contract, you fucking pig?!” Zabuza growled out, taking a step, and almost falling. He may have fallen if Sasuke, Karin, and Haku hadn’t arrived. Haku had just enough energy to prop her master up. Honestly, it was more like they were propping each other up.

“Contract?” Gato laughed loudly, “You’re still on about that? I never intended to pay you in the first place, moron!”

“You bastard!” Haku’s face was thunderous.

“Oh good, you’re still alive. You look pretty beaten up, though.” Gato looked at her with a grin, “Good. Whores like you should know their place.” Haku flinched, which was joined by Karin when he turned her attention to her, “And aren’t you pretty? You’ll make a great pet, girl.”

“I’ll kill you.” Zabuza said, though his voice didn’t carry. Haku felt something warm inside as she realized what Karin had said was true. Zabuza-sama really did care about her. Zabuza turned to Kakashi, “Kakashi, it appears our battle is over.”

“Hmm, yes, it sure seems that way, doesn’t it?” Kakashi eye-smiled at him.

Gato turned his attention back to Zabuza and smirked, “It’s such a bother hiring skilled shinobi from one of the top villages. Too pricey for my blood, and they all tend to have friends who object if you betray them. It’s so much easier to hire fools like yourself. Nukenin who can rely on no one. And so easily disposable once the job is done. You’re always so eager to fight each other that once you’re worn down, even common thugs can finish off the rest.” He gestured next to him to said vagabonds, “So efficient and inexpensive in comparison. It’s nothing personal, Zabuza. It’s just good business.” He tapped his cane on the ground. “Well, what are you waiting for, an invitation?” He asked his mercenaries, “Go on, and bring me the girls alive. Whoever captures one of them gets second use!”

“YEAAHHH!!!” The throng roared and charged.

And then Naruto stepped forward and swiped an arm.

Gato stepped backwards in shock as a mass of men flew into the air and crashed all around him, “Wh-what?!”

Naruto continued to walk forward, chuckling, “You blew your wad too early, midget.” Gato’s eyes snapped to his, instantly enraged, “Zabuza, Kakashi, Haku, Sasuke, and Karin are exhausted, sure. But there’s still one fresh Genin amongst them, and I haven’t even had a light warmup yet.” He stopped, grinning viciously, “You didn’t really think that a bunch of old has-beens could kill actual ninja, did you?”

“Who the hell are you?!” Gato growled, sweating slightly as the groaning men around him rolled to their feet, suddenly not so sure.

“I don’t recognize him, boss. He’s not in the books.” One of the thugs gulped.

“Then he can’t be that strong!” Gato spat, “Hurry up and kill him! Use the crossbows!”

“GOT IT!” The crowd roared and formed two firing lines, before unleashing a hailstorm of bolts at the blonde.

Naruto simply stood there, smirking, up until the bolts hit him. The aim from the thugs was surprisingly good, and almost every single one of them were on the mark. None were in any danger of reaching the tired ninja behind him, so he didn’t act. The bolts hit him, and like Haku’s needles earlier, simply bounced off his skin and clattered all around him. The thugs and Gato were dead silent, gaping at the sight. Naruto uncrossed his arms, “You know, I think I changed my mind on the whole ‘nobody dying’ thing,” he said, and made a show of cracking his neck, “So before we get started…” He showed off his fangs in his widest, most ominous grin yet, “Would anyone like to run?”

“Whoever kills him gets paid triple!” Gato blustered, sweating like a scared pig.

“Come on, it was just a fluke! There’s no way heaaaaaaack-” The thug who was speaking got folded like laundry as Naruto appeared in their midst, lifting the man off the ground with his fist. He shot backwards like a cannonball, bashing into a dozen other men and sending them all flying in a mass of blood and limbs.

One of the men swung his scythe at Naruto in a panic, and Naruto laughed gaily as he caught the weapon between his index and middle fingers. “It’s not possible!” The man yelped in shock.

“Sure it is!” Naruto laughed in his face, before flicking his wrist.

“WAAAH!” The man spun from how hard his weapon was twisted and flew into the air.

Naruto redirected a spear coming his way and used his other hand to push the man back, smashing him hard into the man behind him, knocking both out. The man flew off his feet for this to happen, and Naruto caught his leg and threw him like a ball into the air. Then he bent backwards to avoid a sword, rolled onto his back, planted his feet in the enemy’s chest, and kicked up. He launched the enemy into the air in the same motion he used to kick back to his feet.

“AAAAAAAHHHHHH!!!!” The scythe man fell down and Naruto caught him one-handed before spinning and throwing him back into the air. And then the spear man. And then the sword man.

“Wahahaha!” He laughed, his merriment sending waves of terror through Gato and the mercenaries as he caught and threw them again. “One, two, three! One, two, three!”

“I-is he juggling them?!” Sasuke asked incredulously as his eyes followed the arcs of the screaming men.

“K-Karin-san.” Haku cleared her throat, “Your cousin scares me.”

“Same.” Karin said, before biting her lip, “Is it wrong that I’m kinda turned on?” Half of them turned to stare at her incredulously. She glared back, “What? We’re not even really closely related!”

“I…don’t think that was it.” Sasuke muttered.

Back further up the bridge, the mercenaries panicked, “Th-this guy is insane! RUN!” One of them yelled, before turning around and trying to flee.

“Ah, ah, ah!” Naruto tutted, before catching two of his juggled enemies by their faces in iron grips. “You only get one chance to run.” He said darkly, before he chucked one man, spun, and chucked the other so hard that their bodies broke the sound barrier. Each man hit another fleeing vagabond and turned into bloody mist. The blood, bones, and viscera practically exploded all around, showering the other mercenaries in it. The final juggled man met Naruto’s foot, cutting him in half and sending both chunks, one screaming, careening into others, killing them too.

Gato ran. He ran faster than he had ever run in his life. ‘Th-this is insane! I have to escape! I have to get out! This guy ain’t human! Ninja aren’t this strong!’ And then he hit something hard and fell back onto his own back, “Wh-what?” he froze as he looked at Naruto’s sandals.

“Oh, what’s this? You’re leaving so soon Gato-san?” Naruto asked, “But we were having so much fun, weren’t we?” He reached down and grabbed Gato by the knot of his tie, lifting him into the air and straining the back of his neck. Gato’s legs kicked back and forth futilely, “Come on, weren’t you having so much fun today? Why run?”

“P-Please!” Gato started to beg, “I-”

“You what?” Naruto asked. “You’re not enjoying yourself? That can’t be it! What about all that stuff you were saying about how you were going to kill us all and keep my cousin and her friends as your sex slaves, hmm?”

Gato curdled at his words, “No please, I’ll pay you any-”

“Oh, don’t worry, Gato-san! I’ve had enough fun for the day.” Naruto said brightly, and Gato regained some color.

“R-Really?” He squeaked.

“Yeah, of course!” He brought Gato closer, “I think it’s time we wrap this up.” He wound back.

“W-wait, what are you-” Gato gasped, resuming his futile kicking. And then Naruto threw him. “AAAAHHHHHHH!” He screamed, before he hit the bridge again and rolled a dozen times before he stopped short. “Wh-” He gasped as he looked up and saw the shadowed faces of all the shinobi he had tried to fuck over.

Zabuza was smirking nastily as he stomped on Gato’s chest, driving all the air out. “Hello, Gato.”

“Now, now, Zabuza-san.” Kakashi smiled, turning his eye into a ‘U.’ “We’ll need scum-san alive. For now.”

“Oh yes we do.” Zabuza knocked the man out with a stomp, before hauling him over his shoulder, “This bitch owes me money.”

“Hey guys, we’re all cool now?” Ino came running up, with Tazuna following much more sedately and suspiciously. Her eyes widened and she blushed a bit, “Woah, who is that?!”

Naruto was walking back with his hands behind his head, looking as cheery as if he had just been playing at a fair and not mercilessly slaughtering a band of vagabonds. Zabuza’s eyes narrowed, “Yeah, that’s a good question. Just who the hell are you, brat? How have I never heard of you?”

“I’m glad you asked!” Naruto grinned toothily, which he used to slice his finger open, revealing that he was not, in fact, invulnerable. “KUCHIYOSE NO JUTSU!” He yelled, and a blast of smoke engulfed them.

All of a sudden, the strings of a shamisen rang out, followed by the traditional Ki clacking and more instrumental sounds. “From the primordial wastes comes a pillar of a man as handsome as he is mighty!” They all had their eyes pop out of their skulls as Naruto was revealed atop a Tyrannosaurus Rex, flanked on either side by Quetzalcoatlus, and with raptors making the instrumental sounds, “In the land, the sea, and the air, there is no compare! The Mighty Sage of the Forgotten Lands: UZUMAKI NARUTO!”

Everyone stared at him in disbelief. And then Naruto hopped down, sending the summons back home.

Zabuza dropped Gato like a sack of potatoes and landed on his hands and knees, “I was one-shot by a clown…”

Karin was facepalming, “That was so uncool, Naruto-kun… You used some awesome Ancients for that?!”

“I don’t know, I kind of liked it.” Haku chuckled beside her. “It was entertaining…” She kneeled down and patted Zabuza on the shoulder, her face completely amused, “There, there, Zabuza-sama…”

“Hmph!” Naruto crossed his arms, “Maybe I won’t let you sign my contract after all, cousin!”

Karin’s jaw dropped, “W-wait! It was super cool! It was amazing! Please let me sign your contract, onii-sama!”

Zabuza wept.

-]|[-

“Man, I can’t believe it!” Ino, Sasuke, and Karin were with Naruto and Tazuna’s family inside the bridge-builder’s home. Kakashi, Haku, and Zabuza had left for Gato’s holdings, with the assassin knowing he and Haku sure as hell wouldn’t be welcome in the man’s home, even if they no longer intended to hurt him. “It’s really you!” Ino gazed at him, “Gosh, I remember you from back in the academy!” She grinned, “You were so tiny!”

“What, no way!” Karin snapped her gaze to her, “You must be remembering wrong! Look at him! He’s giant!”

“Nope!” Ino laughed, “He was the shrimp of the class! He was shorter than me and Sakura!”

“And weaker too.” Sasuke said, coldly. The boy glared at him from where he was resting his palms atop one of his knees in his little emo corner. “You were the dead last.” He glared at Naruto, “How-”

Naruto yawned, “Well, lookie here! The Princess thinks class rankings matter.” His eyes were lidded as he stared at the scowling boy, “Eight years gone, and you thought I’d be the same as I was?” He smirked, “I suppose I should thank you, Princess. If you hadn’t beaten my ass so bad that I had to listen to your fangirls screech and cheer over your victory-” Ino flinched. Hard. “I might still be that dumb kid.” He tilted his head, “Though I suppose it’s fair that you thought I’d stay the same. You did, after all. Still the same angsty little kid taking your rage out on others.”

“You-” Sasuke clenched his fists and almost rose, but Karin held a hand out and tried to mediate.

“Woah, woah, let’s just chill! Tazuna wouldn’t appreciate us wrecking his place.” She spoke.

Naruto shrugged, “Enough about the Princess.” He grinned at Karin, “I’m more interested in you, cousin! How did you come to Konoha?” He had already got the basics from Sarutobi, but he wanted to hear it from her too.

Karin sat again, smiling at him, “Well, my mother and I lived in Kusa.” Her smile turned bitter, “It wasn’t somewhere we ever wanted to stop. Or at least my mother didn’t. She always had us wearing bandanas to hide our hair.” She shook her head, “But eventually, we couldn’t take it anymore. We were so tired even our Uzumaki health was failing. We weren’t going to make it to Konoha, and were forced to reveal ourselves and take Kusa’s deal.” She clenched her fists, “They sheltered us, and we regained our strength. But that was what Kusa wanted. They immediately put my mother to work, using our bloodline to heal their wounded. They started slowly at first. A wound here and there. Gradually, especially after big battles, they escalated. They would force her to heal wave after wave of their ninja, draining her dry of her vitality in exchange for our ‘safety and security.’ What a joke.” She spat. “Eventually, they pushed her too far, and my mother died healing them. So, they came to me, and told me it was time I pull my weight.”

Ino wrapped her best friend in a hug, knowing how much it hurt her to talk about what her former prison did to her mother.

Karin nuzzled the platinum blonde, wrapping her fingers around Ino’s fist and lacing their fingers. She smiled. “And then I was approached by a fisherman.” She chuckled, “Only he wasn’t a fisherman at all, was he? Konoha had been going spare trying to find you, and they happened upon me in Kusa. The guy could barely believe his eyes, and knew I wasn’t loyal. He found me cursing Kusa by the lake, after all.” She snorted, “All he had to say was that I had family that they were searching for, and I accepted the first express route out of Kusa. Going off with a strange man probably wasn’t the safest idea, in hindsight.”

“Even if it worked out. I’m glad you came. Growing up, one of the things I wanted most was a family.” Naruto snickered as she grinned back happily, before turning to Ino, “So what’s different with you, Ino-chan? I figured you’d be over the moon to be on the same team as the Princess.”

He raised his eyebrow as the young woman sneered. “Things change, and I can do way better than him.” A smile crossed Naruto’s face as he realized he wasn’t the only one that had truly grown, “So, what happened exactly?” She asked, “You were there one day, and then you weren’t.” She twirled her hair with a finger, “I have to admit, most of us probably didn’t notice for a while. We were all brats back then.” She said, looking apologetic.

“Probably thought I quit, eh?” Naruto snickered, not at all upset. A normal child would have quit after being brutalized the way he was by Sasuke.

Ino winced, “Yeah, probably.” She shrugged helplessly, “I was the one who eventually asked Hiten-sensei where you were. I think the man didn’t really care, but when I asked, he was obligated to follow up. That was when the manhunt started.”

“What?” Karin looked at her, “Why would he not care that one of his students was missing?”

“Because everyone who was a minimum of three or four years older than me were dumb cunts.” Naruto said as Ino balked at his language, shrugging. “Most of them either hated me outright or were terrified of me.”

“That’s ridiculous!” Sasuke chimed in, “Why would they be scared of a child?”

“You’ll know when you’re older.” Naruto leered, smirking at him. Sasuke reddened in anger, so Naruto tapped his stomach, where the Hakke no Fūin Shiki sat proudly. “You didn’t think this was a tattoo, did you?”

Karin gasped as she actually started paying attention to the seal for once. She had been so busy being awed over his strength and warm Chakra that she had almost forgotten about it. She now examined it closely… and almost felt her eyes cross, “Oh Kami, that thing is complicated! I think that’s like… two or three levels above where I am in Fūinjutsu. I can barely even get started reading it! It’s… It’s meant to contain something?”

“But what?” Ino asked, not even bothering to try to understand it. Fūinjutsu just wasn’t her thing. “And what could be so bad that people would fear and hate you?”

“Any of you know what my birthday is?” Naruto asked, making them all twitch at the non sequitur.

“Uh, no.” Karin looked apologetic, “I have no idea. Sorry Naruto-kun.”

“It’s October Tenth.” Ino said, having rummaged through her memory. An easy task for a Yamanaka, “But what’s that got to…” She slowed, her mouth hanging open, “do…” She paled to a near-white, “with anything?!” She squeaked, staring at the seal in shock.

Sasuke’s eyes were bulging, “You…”

Karin looked at her, then him, then Naruto, then back to her, “What?! Ino-chan, what is it?! I don’t get it!”

The tiniest tremor ran through Ino’s hand, “You’re not a native of Konoha, so I guess you didn’t really grow up with it.”

“October tenth of the year we were born…” Sasuke stared at the seal as if it held the answers of the universe, “Is the day Konoha was nearly razed to the ground by the Kyūbi no Yōko.”

Karin immediately got it, staring at Naruto with new eyes, “Jinchūriki…” She breathed in awe.

Naruto smirked, “You didn’t really think the Yondaime had done what no man had been able to do in thousands of years, did you? You can’t kill a piece of divinity.”

“Is that why you’re so strong?!” Sasuke demanded of him.

“Ha!” Naruto laughed, “Indirectly, I suppose.” He looked to Ino, “I never answered your question, Ino-chan. After the Princess destroyed my face and you all laughed about it,” Ino flinched again, “I stomped off and went to be alone.” He chuckled, “And proving that I was a total idiot who never paid attention in class, I remembered about a technique I had seen Sandaime-Jiji use in front of me. I wanted to get stronger, and thought I could use that technique to do it! So, I bit my finger, did the hand seals, and slapped my hand on the ground, calling ‘Kuchiyose no Jutsu!’”

Ino groaned, finally understanding what had happened, “You-you moron!” She said after clapping both hands to her face, muffling her voice in exasperation.

Naruto cackled, “Yeah, dumb of me, I know. But nothing happened! So I figured, let’s try again with more Chakra! Course, I still got nothing.” His grin widened again, “Other than waking Kurama up, of course.” He patted his stomach, and Ino and Sasuke balked,

“Course, that ornery old fox figured it could use some entertainment, so when I tried it again while blasting the technique with Chakra, Kurama threw some of his own in for some laughs. And poof!”

“Kurama?!” Ino asked, incredulous.

“Who cares about that?” Sasuke asked, “Why were you gone for eight years if that’s what it was? The summon clans all have ways back to our world!”

“Aye, they do!” Naruto agreed, “But I didn’t end up in the summon realm, did I?”

Karin paled, “Your introduction! ‘The Primordial Wastes!’ You were being serious! You went past the summon realm!”

“Nailed it!” Naruto snapped his finger and pointed at her, chuckling, “There was no way home. There wasn’t even a contract. One had never been made. So, I was stuck, far, far from home, with one goal. Survive.”

“Well, clearly you’re an overachiever…” Karin giggled in a slightly perverted manner, her glasses hiding her eyes.

“You know it.” He bit his finger, “Now, what’s say we add another name to this little thing?” He summoned a giant scroll in a puff of smoke. Karin squealed, diving forward to get her name on the contract.

-]|[-

Just over a week had passed, and it was time to leave. Team Konoha met up with Team Zabuza one last time, following the opening and official naming of the Great Uzumaki Bridge, in honor of both Karin and Naruto. They had spent the week getting to know each other, with Naruto making an effort to even spend time with Zabuza and Haku when he wasn’t with Karin. He and Zabuza had practically become sparring partners when Naruto unveiled his own blade: a large…paddle carved from a chakra tree so tough it may as well have been stone, with large obsidian blades laced all along the edge. The volcanic glass really had no business being as tough as it was.

They had drained Gato dry, and the insensate man had been sealed away in a stasis Fūinjutsu scroll for processing in Konoha’s prison system. Zabuza and Haku were going back to Kiri with far more money than they had ever expected.

But perhaps equally important, they were leaving with some information that Kakashi had provided… namely that a Rebellion had already started growing in Kiri. Said silver haired Jōnin stared at Zabuza, “Well, this certainly isn’t how meeting between ninja of our caliber usually end.”

“Tell me about it.” Zabuza scoffed, “Back in my day, nothing followed me but corpses. Now I’m surrounded by bleeding hearts.”

“As if you’re not one yourself.” Naruto teased, jerking his head at Haku.

Said girl was being hugged by both Ino and Karin. The blonde didn’t really know her well, but she did know that she hadn’t really tried to kill her best friend when she should have. That earned her a hug at least, in her book.

Zabuza growled, “Damned brat.” He mumbled under his breath.

“I suppose this is goodbye, then.” Kakashi mused and Karin and Ino got back into position behind him. Kakashi held out a hand, “Good luck.” He said softly as Zabuza grabbed it for a firm handshake.

“Hmph. As if I’ll need it.” Zabuza did so love his empty bravado.

“Well team, I suppose this is it. Mission accomplished, and an A-Rank to boot.” Kakashi chuckled, “I’m sure you’ll have plenty to brag about during the customary dick-measuring contest with the other teams from your class.”

“Sensei…” Ino groaned, palming her face again.

Kakashi chuckled, “Let’s go home.” They all started to walk off.

After a few seconds, Karin turned to Naruto, “Hey, Naruto-…kun?” She whirled around, “Naruto-kun? Aren’t you coming?”

Naruto had stood still, rather than turning. Finally, he smiled, staring sardonically at his feet, “Nah.” He waved them off, “You guys go on. I’ll catch up in time for the Chūnin Exams!”

“What?!” Kakashi whirled around, “What are you saying, Naruto?!” Shitfuck, Sarutobi would tan his hide if he didn’t bring Naruto back, and he was not entirely sure he could drag him by force.

“What the hell are you saying, Naruto?!” Karin ran back, “Why aren’t you coming?”

“I’m saying I’m going with them.” He jerked his head to Zabuza and Haku, both of whom gaped, with Haku outright gasping.

“You have no orders to head to foreign countries about to be engulfed in war, Uzumaki Naruto!” Kakashi tried to pull that card on him.

“I’m not a ninja, Kakashi-san.” Naruto smirked at him, “So I really don’t need to follow any orders, do I? It’s not desertion either, since I’m a civilian right now.”

Karin freaked out, “But we just met! I just got my family back!” She blurted, “And you want to head to a warzone?! Are you nuts?!” She grabbed his wrist, “Come help me with this idiot!” She yelled at Ino and Sasuke, “Clearly he got brain damage in the Primordial Wastes!”

Naruto laughed as he jerked his wrist out of her hands, patting her on the head, “Hey now, where’s the faith? I promised to be back in time for your promotions, didn’t I?” She looked at him tearfully. “I don’t go back on my word. This is just something that I have to do.”

“But why?!” She hissed at him.

“I’m with her.” Zabuza crossed his arms, “What business do you have in Kiri? Why risk your life? Why do you think you must go?”

“Haku-chan’s story, of course.” No longer looking jovial, he glared out over the horizon. “Terror, attempted genocide, and numerous other crimes, all sanctioned by the Mizukage. No doubt Konoha would like to aid the rebels, even if only for the concessions they could get out of the new Mizukage in exchange. But that isn’t how things work. That would be war. I’m an unknown. Konoha can wash their hands of me if we fail.” He was back to smirking, “Not that we will with me there, of course.”

“I’m fucking pissed about her story too, Naruto-kun!” Karin growled, “But-”

“You-” He poked her on the forehead, making Sasuke scowled as he remembered his own brother pulling the same bullshit, “Are a Genin. An actual Genin, unlike me. A strong one, to be sure, but a Genin nonetheless. I’ve been on my own doing nothing but surviving for eight years. I punch far above my supposed ‘weight-class,’ as I’m sure Zabuza can attest.” The Demon of the Mist growled.

Haku stepped forward, “Not that I’m not thankful for the extra aid, Naruto-kun, but they’re right. You risk much coming with us for little concrete payoff. Leaders do not look favorably upon those who try to escape consequences off of technicalities. You could be imprisoned or even exiled upon your return, provided we are successful. Why would you wish to risk it?”

“It’s simple.” Naruto said, staring in the direction of Kiri, “It’s high time my stupid little brother gets spanked.”

“Your little-” Zabuza choked, his eyes growing as wide as they could get.

“What the hell are you talking about?!” Sasuke snarled, the statement hitting way too close to home, “You don’t have any siblings!”

“Moron.” Karin said, shocked, “He just told us a week ago, didn’t he?” Kakashi’s eyes widened.

Ino gasped, “The Mizukage is a Jinchūriki too?!”

“Bingo…” Naruto grinned, “So let’s go do this, shall we?” He clapped the stunned Zabuza on the shoulder.

Kakashi groaned, “There’s no dissuading you, is there?” He had a feeling they had barely seen the tip of the iceberg when it came to Uzumaki Naruto. He was one of the strongest Jōnin in Konoha, true, but he truly just did not know if he could successfully subdue Naruto to bring him back. Especially not with the implications of his easy acceptance of his Jinchūriki status.

“Nope!” He grabbed Karin and hugged her close, “Have a safe trip.”

Karin clutched him a little desperately, “Don’t you dare leave me alone, Naruto-kun.” She hissed.

“Wouldn’t dream of it!” Naruto stepped back and bit his thumb, “Kuchiyose no Jutsu!” Two Quetzalcoatlus appeared, shrieking their greetings. He hopped on one and helped Haku up. Zabuza mechanically got atop it as well. “She’ll take you back to Konoha guys! Just hop on and you’ll be home in no time!” He gave them a thumbs-up, “And Kakashi!” The Jōnin looked at him, “Tell Jiji to keep that hat warm for me! I’ll be back for it!” His ride shrieked as it took flight, blasting them with wind as it ascended faster than they thought possible.

Kakashi stared at the shrinking avian in despair. Ino grinned as she elbowed him in the side, grinning, “You’re so dead, sensei.”

“Your faith is astounding, Ino-chan.” He deadpanned in despair.

“Let’s just go.” Sasuke growled, itching to train like he had never trained before.

-]|[-

“This thing is fast!” Zabuza said in awe. “It hasn’t even been a day and we’re already in the land of water.”

“Hehehe, I told you, didn’t I?” Naruto grinned, “Land, sea, or air.” He looked over at Haku, who was sitting primly, “You good, Haku-chan?”

“It is a…strange… feeling, being back here.” She said softly.

“I can imagine.” Naruto said, before he twitched, “Hummm, what’s this?” He sensed something. Betrayal, rage, and despair practically wafted to his senses. Their ride veered off to the left.

“What are you doing?” Zabuza asked with some alarm, “That’s the direction of Kiri! We can’t just bust right in!”

“Relax.” Naruto said, “Just checking something out. Faster, Kamihane!” He lightly slapped his summon’s flank.

They raced forward, until Zabuza recognized something. “Kirigakure no Jutsu.” He said grimly, “Is it a battle?”

“Let’s see, shall we?” Naruto grinned, “Kamihane, [Storm Wings!]”

Kamihane screeched, before rapidly starting to flap his wings, blowing the mist away as easily as dead leaves.

“What the-” A Kirigakure Jōnin yelped as their cover was blown away, revealing that they surrounded a lone woman.

“DIE!” She howled, a red, floating ball beside her racing forward and striking the Jōnin. Instantly, he practically mummified as every drop of moisture in his body evaporated. His steamed corpse hit the ground, joining half a dozen Kiri ANBU and Chūnin.

The woman in question had forest-green hair that hung limply, knocked out of its customary bun. She had two long bangs that were matted with sweat, tipped in orange. She wore a sleeveless, backless top and skintight, dull purple pants that went to her knees. Her waist was adorned with an obi, and her arms were covered in matching purple arm-warmers which extended almost up to her shoulders. She had bandages around her thighs and ankles.

The woman was clearly exhausted. She gasped for breath, covered in wounds. Half of her body was impaled by kunai, with only her armored vest protecting her vitals from being struck. She tried to take a step forward but stumbled, She had been fighting desperately for over twenty minutes already, and was just gassed. This was a battle of attrition she was just going to lose.

At least that was the case until Naruto crashed down in front of her. The ground cratered under his feet, and she finally lost the battle to stay standing. She fell over, utterly spent, her red balls vanishing. Naruto caught the thrown kunai that would have pierced her eye and flicked it back so hard it went through another Kiri ANBU.

“Well now!” Naruto grinned, opening his right palm as a flash of light appeared from his hand. He swung his macuahuitl onto his shoulder, “I figured we’d be meeting with the rebels before getting started, but this seems as good a place as any, eh, Suna-chan?”

“You are interfering with official Kiri Business!” The sole remaining Jōnin yelled, “Surrender now and-” And Zabuza landed, cutting him in half from head to groin. He never even knew he was dead. Zabuza matched Naruto, swinging his blade onto his shoulder as it repaired itself from all the damage sparring with the crazy blonde had caused it.

“THE DEMON OF THE MIST?!” An ANBU yelped, “We must inform the Mizukage! Go! Now!” he yelled at the three remaining Chūnin.

They obediently turned and bolted, only to be surrounded by Haku’s mirrors, “My apologies.” Haku said softly, though unlike when she fought Sasuke and Karin, she didn’t actually look very apologetic. Screams rang from the mirrors as Haku peppered them with senbon, aiming for lethal spots this time as her opponents were not relatively innocent teens.

Naruto vanished, appearing in front of the ANBU, and throwing his macuahuitl at the one on the right. The sword pierced through the air more like a spear, and showcasing its extreme weight, cut right through the man and then practically detonated the earth, showering them in dirt.

Naruto’s fist thundered into the middle ANBU’s chest, shattering his ribs, and bursting his heart from the impact alone. The final ANBU turned to flee, but Naruto vanished, appearing in front of her, spinning. A green whirlwind engulfed her, and when it vanished, blood rained down from the thousands of tiny micro cuts that the sharp wind had carved into her. She fell down, dead.

On the ground, the woman they had saved almost couldn’t choke back a sob of relief, feeling nothing but gratitude for those who had saved her life. The blonde especially, since he blocked at least one kill shot.

Zabuza stared at her, “Well I’ll be.” He said, “Shakuton no Pakura. What’s a Suna Elite doing here?”

“Hey Haku! Get over here! She needs some heali-” Were the last words Pakura heard as she finally allowed herself to rest.

-]|[-

Done!

So, this one was a blast to write, and I finally got to do that idea I really wanted. Three guesses who Naruto is based off of. :evilmiko:

As for Karin: Some HEAVY influences from Maō Nobunaga. Her bodysuit and armor are basically exactly what Mama Nobu wears. She’s Katon based in this fic, just like Kushina in the other one, and Karin likes her some guns. LOL

I’m currently working on MHA/DxD, so look forward to that one next.