Chapter 11 1/2

'Normal Speech'

'Thoughts'

'Bijuu/Summons/Gamer'

'Bijuu/Summons/Thoughts'

Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto, The Gamer, or any series for that matter. If I did the last thing I would do is write fanfiction for your amusement. I am also way too lazy to come up with new creative and funny disclaimers to post on every chapter, so I'll be copying this one and pasting it on every chapter. I've got better things to do with my time, like reading fanfiction, write fanfiction, eat, do work, work out, read fanfiction...you get the idea.

(P.S. Did you guys know I like fanfiction?)

Author's Note: I want to really quickly let you all know that I will have to be posting later on Sundays. I'm back in college and am a Junior so my Sunday mornings will be a little busier with volunteer work and early morning studying and all that good stuff. I just don't want you all to expect my chapters to be released in the morning or early afternoon like they used to be.

Chapter 11

"Where…is this?"

I thought…or possibly said as I looked around at my surroundings. I was floating in an endless sea of darkness with no exit in sight, so I turned to look around and see if there was anything here.

"This place feels familiar…have I been here before?" I said to myself, my astral body floating up and down as I put on a thoughtful expression.

Suddenly, I paused and squinted my eyes as I saw a glitter or a sparkle some distance away, like a star in the night sky. Immediately after, more "stars" appeared in my view until the darkness was filled with them.

"What…" before I could even complete my thoughts, I felt a pull and my visual perspective began to change as if I was traveling at warp speed.

I didn't get to contemplate any further as I suddenly stopped and around me was-

My eyes magnified…how could it not?

"What…is this?" Surrounding my body, floating in the void, were numerous green crystals hanging off of a thick luminescent branch? that connected them all. Each crystal depicted fantastical scenes that even had me gazing in some wonder.

'A man in a high tech suit of red armor was flying a missile towards a portal in the air. It detonated, sending his body crashing towards the ground but also closing the spatial anomaly.'

Suddenly, my perspective changed as I was shifted to another area that had green crystals.

A normal looking brown haired boy and a blue-haired beautiful woman drinking beer at a bar with many people joining in the festivities…and the girl throwing up rainbows after.

Once more, my body shifted to another area.

A brown haired boy getting stabbed in the chest with a lance of light, a girl with black feathered wings looking down at him condescendingly.

And again my perspective changed

A gigantic red beast with glowing red markings over its body fighting a giant blue whale with glowing markings all over its body. The red beast changed the landscapes with his attacks while the blue whale altered the seas and even though I wasn't there, I could almost feel continental…no planetary levels of energy being released from their attacks. I knew that if they so much as breathed in my general direction, I would die.

And again…

Another scene depicted a group of individuals huddled around in a circle, their hands interlocked and above them was a black dragon who seemed to be radiating an immense amount of energy, not nearly as much as the red beast and the blue whale, but it was impressive nonetheless and would still easily kill me. The black dragon sucked in a breath and released a powerful blast of energy towards the group of individuals before the scene reset, not allowing me to know the outcome.

Again and again, my perspective shifted as my body traveled to numerous different crystals, each one depicting different scenes. The settings were either intense or mellow, some would be considered heart rendering if I wasn't so emotionally stunted…

As I sifted through the numerous floating crystals, I immediately froze. Cold sweat began to seep from my astral form as a large crystal became prominent in my vision.

Death…

Destruction…

Individuals fighting for their home…

Women mourning their deceased husbands…

Terror…

Panic…

A giant beast was in my view, it's nine tails waving around, each swing causing small hurricanes to form, buildings to be destroyed, and people to lose their lives.

"The Ninetails…?"

I reached forward to touch the screen as I saw the beast wreaking havoc on what was no doubt Konoha, the Hokage monuments clearly visible in the background.

Immediately, I was pulled away and the glittering crystals became further and further away from my view before darkness took ahold me once more.

Congratulations! 'Meditation' has leveled up by 1!

Meditation (Active) Lvl 86 [48.67%].

Meditation is a skill created through continuous inner focus. Meditation helps to sharpen focus and order thoughts, and it increases clarity of mind and awareness of the body.

Passively increase INT by 172%.

Passively increase WIS by 172%.

Passively increase ENGY by 172%

HP and CP regeneration increase by 860% when active.

(NOTE: Cannot be activated during combat. At higher levels, you are able to better sit still and the rate of HP and CP regeneration increases.)

I immediately snapped my eyes open and took deep breaths before placing a palm over my face while in thought. "That was not a dream."

It was a statement of fact because ever since I had been in this world, I had never once dreamt. I wasn't sure if it was because of Gamer's Mind or because of that guy who seemed to inhabit my soul, but not once had I ever dreamt.

Therefore.

"Those scenes…that environment…were real." I was familiar with some of the scenes depicted in those screens but I still couldn't remember the entire background or the worlds they came from.

More importantly.

"The Ninetails…was that real? Is that something that could happen or will happen?." So many thoughts went through my mind at the scene, but I shook my head. "I don't even know if or when it will happen, furthermore the Ninetails is in Kushina as of this moment…if she becomes pregnant again, I will have to let her know to be extra careful."

With that, I stopped my musings and thought of the positives, like how I had finally leveled up my Meditation skill. It was as if I had broken through some sort of mental barrier or something.

"It's about time…it only took me a month and a half…" I thought while cracking my neck before looking out the window and gazing at the slowly rising sun.

"It's about time they wake up…" I said aloud and snapped my finger, creating a clone besides me. It went to wake up my teammates allowing me time to get up and stretch my limbs before the area became crowded.

A few moments later, I could feel the churning of emotions coming from my teammates, signaling that they were waking. I sat back down on the couch, but no sooner did I feel a chakra signature nearby.

"Fun night?" The voice of Kotoe asked as she plopped down next to me.

"…It was fine."

She opened her mouth to comment, but the voice of Viper replied before she could, effectively cutting her off. "Oh, no doubt for you it was fine. Lady snatcher." The man had slightly red eyes from what appeared to be lack of sleep and looked at me with a slight grimace.

Kotoe raised a brow at that statement, "Lady snatcher?"

Viper widened his eyes for a moment before stuttering, "w-well, y-you see, last n-night-"

I sighed. "…He took me to a brothel."

Instantly the air coagulated.

"What?" Kotoe asked, eyes narrowing as she looked at Viper.

Before the man could reply, the voice of Wolf sounded out, "What exactly are you teaching children Viper?"

I turned to the sound, having already noted her presence along with that of Turtle, Boar, and the rest. "…you guys have been there a while."

"Don't mind me, I'm just enjoying the show. It'll probably be the only interesting thing to happen today anyway." Was Turtle's uncaring reply.

Boar merely sighed and his two teammates watched on tentatively.

And with that, all the attention centralized upon Viper's slightly sweating and nervous form. "W-Wait, there was actually a really good reason I went there!"

"Oh?" Kotoe questioned

"Do tell." Wolf asked

"Remember the mission detail!" He said quickly, "We were told to rendezvous with Jiraiya of the Sannin in order to obtain some information he collected! And since everyone is aware of the type of man he is, I thought that the brothel would be a good place to start!"

At that, both women halted their glares, but I blinked, "…Wait, we were supposed to meet with him? I was not aware of this." I honestly believed that Jiraiya had been moving separately and had been on his own mission. I didn't know our groups were meant to meet.

"You didn't tell him?" Turtle asked Kotoe in speculation

The woman thought for a moment before shrugging "Well it's his own fault that I forgot to mention it, don't put the blame on me."

I slightly tilted my head and pointed at my face, "me?"

"Ohh stop with the innocent act." Kotoe replied with a roll of her eyes. "I remember now that I was going to explain that part of the mission to you after telling you how Minato wasn't available, but you got too excited and cut me off before I could explain." After that, she shrugged and finished, "I simply forgot about it afterward until now."

I paused as the memory resurfaced in my mind

"…I recall Lord Danzo mentioning that it was a type of Fuuinjutsu seal. As a matter of fact, Minato was his first option to take the mission but since his team was on a-"

I slammed the book shut, effectively cutting her off before I stood up. "What's the mission?"

Huh.

Kotoe rolled her eyes at me before she turned back to Viper who had been slowly inching away, "Don't think I forgot about you." Viper froze, allowing my teacher to continue, "Since you say you went there to meet up with Jiraiya, then surely you must have gotten some important piece of information to share with us."

I stared at the man with full eyes as sweat seeped from his pores, "W-well he apparently wasn't in yesterday so-"

"…Here it is." I said, handing the scroll that Jiraiya had given me to Kotoe.

Once again, the air froze. "I hope you thoroughly enjoyed your time there Bai-kun~." Wolf said with a smile that didn't quite seem right, causing the man to back away.

As she moved closer to him one step at a time, he looked towards me before mouthing the word 'traitor' to which I gave him a blank look and give him the sign language for 'You are pathetic'

However, before anything could happen, Kotoe and I suddenly turned to the door, our movements attracting the attention of the rest of the occupants.

"What's wrong?" Boar asked, noting our reactions.

Kotoe tilted her head towards the door and I supplied,"…It's a non-hostile and slightly familiar chakra signature." I supplemented.

Before anyone could contemplate further, there was a knock on the door.

"Consider yourself lucky." Wolf stated before walking towards the door. "We'll continue this conversation later."

Viper shivered slightly at her tone, but seeing his pathetic state made me wonder, "… do all men grow up to have some irrational fear of women that makes them so…unsightly? Or does Wolf simply have both her teammates whipped? I wonder if Boar and Turtle have some irrational fears…Hmm, food for thought."

As my odd thoughts concluded, Wolf opened the door, revealing the figure of the man who had carried off that little girl Hotaru from Boar. "Tonbee if I'm not mistaken…what am I saying, I have Eidetic Memory."

"What is it?" Wolf asked succinctly

The man replied in a calm manner, "Lord Gyoja would like to formally invite you to breakfast. He figured that as elite shinobi, you would be up around this time, so he sent me here to let you know."

Here, Boar stepped up, "We gladly accept your invitation."

Tonbee nodded and took a scroll out from his shirt, "Just follow the directions on that scroll. We will be eating in about 45 minutes." And with that, the man gave a slight bow before walking away.

Boar examined the scroll for a moment before looking at Kotoe, "Anything?"

"There's no residual chakra coming from it." Kotoe said as she closed her eyes in focus.

Boar nodded before looking at me, so I shook my head in the negative, "…I felt no malice from the man and I don't sense anything from the scroll. It should be all clear."

Boar seemed satisfied with that as he tucked the scroll away, "We can never be too careful in a foreign land, especially with the unfriendly atmosphere here."

"Did their nonexistent standing ovation at our arrival give that away?" Monkey said somewhat sarcastically.

"True, they certainly didn't seem that happy to see us." Turtle said with a thoughtful expression.

"At the end of the day, we should simply keep our guard up." Saying this, Boar turned back to my teacher, "More importantly, what is the information that Lord Jiraiya gave us?"

"…The names and addresses of all the influential individuals who might have access to what we are looking for." I replied, centralizing the attention on me. "I had my clones scout yesterday and comparing their knowledge with the information Lord Jiraiya gave, all these individuals seemed to live in the high-class residential district in the center of town. That should also be where the village leader, En no Gyoja lives."

While I had been explaining this, Kotoe had already spread out the scroll on a table, allowing everyone to see and memorize the names on the list. "This is pretty good timing." My teacher said. "Since we are heading there in a few anyways, we can take some time to memorize the landscape."

As everyone nodded in agreement, I took a step back and sat on the ground before taking out a large piece of blank paper, my Fuuinjutsu paint brush, and a storage seal filled with ink.

"Yoru?" Kotoe asked speculatively.

"…I had my clones survey the area beforehand with all their collected information being stored in here." I said, pointing to my head. I dipped my brush on the ink storage seal before carefully drawing on the blank sheet of paper.

With the incredible calligraphy skills I had developed for Fuuinjutsu coupled with my rapid improvement, I was able to accurately draw out the mental image of the Tsuchigumo village onto the paper. With my Eidetic Memory, I cross-referenced the names and addresses of the individuals on Jiraiya's list with the information my clones had gathered. I circled those areas on my makeshift map and put a star on top of my group's current position.

"…This here is our current position." I said, pointing at the star. "And this here should be the high-class residential district where we should be headed towards." I concluded, dragging my finger towards the multiple circles in the center of town.

At that, Boar pulled out the map given to him by Tonbee and cross-referenced it to the one I had drawn, "The one I have has certain key points omitted from it and only leads me straight to the village leader's home, but other than that, it's a perfect match." Boar said, before patting my head a couple of times, "Good work kid."

I nodded my head, "I'm just doing my job."

Boar smirked before looking at the rest of us, "Alright then, get ready and look presentable for our audience with the village leader. We'll leave in 20."

As everyone went their separate ways to get changed, I looked at Kotoe, "…What exactly should I wear?"

"Just don't look like a bum." Was her reply. "Don't think too much about it and wear whatever makes you feel comfortable. Just make sure it's not inappropriate." And with that, she stood up and disappeared to her room,

And so I nodded my head, and put on a thoughtful expression, "…I suppose I'll go casual."

"Fresh produce from Tsuchigumo soil! I guarantee it tastes delicious!"

"Freshly butchered meat! Get your freshly butchered meat here!"

"Imported herbs and spices from the Land of Spices!"

"Whole grain rice from the Land of Rice!"

I turned my head towards the different merchants who were advertising and listened to the hustle and bustle of the early morning Tsuchigumo atmosphere. I was currently in a pair of black sweatpants, a long-sleeved black shirt with extra cloth near the neck area to function as a face mask and a pair of simple lightweight dark shoes.

"This place is quite lively in the morning isn't it?" Kotoe asked no one in particular as she walked beside me.

"That's quite true." Kazemona, also known as Wolf, stated, waving the small fan she had in her hand. "This atmosphere isn't too bad."

"Regardless," Tsuchiyo, aka Boar, began. "Remember to be on high alert and observe your surroundings."

We all nodded at that and continued towards our destination. Since this was a somewhat formal thing, we didn't have our Anbu masks or clothing with us, but I had no doubt that everyone was still carrying weapons somewhere on their person.

Kazemona's fan, for example, was a miniature version of the battle fan Suna wind style users used. If she channeled a little bit of wind nature chakra through it while waving, it could still easily cut up a normal person and cause substantial body damage to the surroundings. As shinobi, it was expected of us to always be ready for battle, so as long as we weren't waving around kunai like fools, even if the village leader knew we were stashing weapons, he would turn a blind eye.

It wasn't like he was defenseless anyway.

Plus we were allies.

"We're here." Boar said, causing us all to stop in our tracks. In front of us was a large, traditional style, single story Japanese house. In front of the door were two Tsuchigumo shinobi who noticed us and motioned for us to halt.

"State your purpose."

Boar reached into the sleeve of his shirt and pulled out the scroll Tonbee had giving him while replying, "We were invited."

The second guard took the scroll and read through it for a moment before seeing something he supposedly liked and nodding his head towards the first guard.

"Master Gyoja awaits your presence. The dining area will be visible as soon as you enter." He said before opening the door and stepping away, his companion following suit.

After we came in, we took off our shoes and made our way towards the dining room that was in view of the entrance.

As soon as we arrived at the dining area, I took a quick sweep of the surroundings, noting they there were only familiar faces around the table along with 8 open seats. There was Tonbee, the little blond girl Hotaru, Hato, and his son Shiranami.

"Welcome." The village leader stated before gesturing towards the empty spots, "Please, do sit."

With a short bow, we made our way towards the empty spots and sat around the table, food having already been prepared for the occasion.

"You all shouldn't be so uptight." The man said, grabbing a handful of fresh fruit. "This isn't anything too formal after all."

With that said, our reservations lowered a little and everyone began to grab food and eat, though it was done in relative silence. I took this moment to observe everyone around us and noted that their emotions were quite reserved and even Shiranami previous hostility was replaced with more cold indifference.

"At least he's calmed down a little…" I thought before blinking as I felt a gaze on my face. I turned to the source and noticed that the little blond haired girl was looking at me with a peculiar gaze causing me to ask, "…is there something on my face?"

Hotaru knitted her brows cutely before asking, "How can you eat with that mask on?"

"Ohh that little trick…still though…" I thought before refocusing on the bowl of rice I had been eating, "…It's a secret."

"Hmph, fine be that way." The girl said, crossing her arms, but then she looked at me more closely and with narrowed eyes, "Why do you wear a mask? Did something happen to your face?"

After swallowing the food in my mouth, I replied, "…because it looks cool."

"Pfft." Kotoe suddenly laughed before coughing lightly into her hand, "Sorry that was disrespectful of me."

However, it seemed as if Hotaru's interaction with me had softened up the mood slightly as the leader waved his hand dismissively with a smile, "Don't mind it one bit, the young are always amusing to watch."

With that, the tension completely dissipated, causing Tsuchiyo to state, "I have to say, your village is very lively and high spirited, not at all like a village that has been under attack. It makes me wonder if we were even needed here."

The clan leader chuckled lightly while stroking his beard, "It's true that if you simply take a look around the village, there seems to be no fear in the hearts of my villagers, however…" Gyoja said, sighing, "underneath their assured smiles and carefree actions, I know that their hearts are uneasy."

There was a moment of awkward silence following his statement, the sounds of chopsticks to plates audible to the ears.

"There goes the mood…" I thought while eating silently, however, no sooner did the man give a short, loud laugh before stating, "Well, I believe in your Kage's insight. If he chose your team for the job, then I trust that you'll be more than capable of helping my clan."

That seemed to ease the awkwardness a little as Tsuchiyo replied with a slight smile, "I thank you for your confidence in our abilities. We'll do our utmost to help your village against these attacks."

The jovial atmosphere, however, was short-lived.

"…Whose fault do you think this is?" A voice quietly said, but loud enough for everyone at the table to hear.

Gyoja sighed lightly while Hato looked at his son reproachfully, but with a sorrowful gaze, "Shiranami, I understand your pain more than anytime else, however-"

"However what?" The boy said heatedly, his knuckles turning white from his clenched fists. "Understanding my pain won't bring her back!" He exclaimed.

"Then what?" Hato replied, his voice increasing in volume, "What do you want us to do? What do you want me to do?"

Shiranami took a calming breath before looking at my group sternly, the emotion vanishing from his face. "For starters, we could begin by not aligning ourselves with the people involved with her death."

"They are not the enemy." The clan leader said calmly, but with a slight pressure in his tone. "The Leaf is doing what they can to help us against our true foes. They are where your anger should be directed towards, not our allies."

At this point, Tsuchiyo decided to chime in, in order to placate Shiranami, "The Hokage takes the promise he made to your clan with the utmost sincerity. As long as my team is within the walls of this village, we will do whatever we can to protect it."

The dark haired adolescent looked down at his plate before stating, "…If your so called 'Great Villages' hadn't started this war, we wouldn't be having this conversation." With that, he placed his chopsticks down on his plate and stood up with it in hand. "…Master, I would like to be excused."

Gyoja looked at him before sighing lightly and nodding his head, signaling the boy to leave. With a light bow in respect, he headed towards the door and left the area.

"Well, there goes the mood…again."

"I must apologize for my son's behavior." Hato said with a forlorn sigh, "It's just that these past few couple years haven't been kind."

"Please, there's no need for you to apologize." My teacher said calmly, looking at the man. "In our profession, we don't expect to be well liked by people outside our village anyway." Here she paused and took a sip of tea before continuing, "Though if you don't mind me asking, what exactly happened?"

I could sense the pain in his heart grow deeper before he sighed, "This war hasn't been kind to anyone…it cost us the life of his mother…my wife."

Kotoe paused the teacup that was to reach her mouth before lightly sighing in sympathy, "I suppose I can easily understand where his hatred of war stems from, but I'm curious where his hatred of us stems from?"

"My wife was also a shinobi of the village and my closest partner." Hato began explaining. "She and I were sent out on a mission that brought us close to the Kirigakure borders." He paused and looked somewhat distant before sighing. "About halfway through completing the mission, we had the misfortune of getting caught in a skirmish between some Kiri and Kumo nin."

He paused once more and looked down before closing his eyes. "It was only due to luck and her self sacrifice that I was able to make it out alive, but in the process, she was gravely injured and we had no medical shinobi skilled enough to heal her." He looked back up at us before lightly sighing, "In the end, she succumbed to her wounds with our son watching over her weakened form."

There was a moment of silence after that before Tsuchiyo asked, "If that is the case, that still doesn't explain why he seems to hold us in contempt."

There was a light smile on Hato's face but hidden within was a sense of sadness, "Shiranami has always been a bright kid and as a matter of fact I have no doubt he'll easily surpass me soon, that being said…" he paused and sighed, "his mind came to the conclusion that the war between the hidden villages was all to blame for her early passing and I have never seen him smile ever since."

"I suppose I am partly to blame." The village leader chimed in, gathering all our gazes. "It was my decision to send you both there because I was confident in your capabilities, but I had been too rash." Gyoja closed his eyes for a moment before finishing. "There are certain things I would change about that day if I could, but I had let my anger get the best of me at that time-"