Chapter 7:

Three beautiful women sat at an outdoor table, enjoying the sunny day for all it was worth. In truth, they were catching up after not really seeing each other for a very long time while also waiting on a kid they all knew to be done with at least some of the planning for the grand reopening of a local store they used to frequent when they were younger. This store being the Marukane Department Store that got damaged thanks to that idiot American Hero in Captain Celebrity.

"You actually seem worried, Rumi." one of the women pointed out to the Rabbit heroine. This lady was a civilian Midnight, Nemuri. "Is it about Naruto?"

"Feh, worried. The kid can actually take care of himself. I have been putting that brat through the fucking ringer when we can train." Rumi replied in a proud tone. At first, she was not sure she would be much of a teacher of…anything. Now, she was just proud that she had anything to teach and that Naruto was a good student and they developed a couple of new fighting styles together. Sure, they were only similar to the fighting styles he talked about, but they were new around here and that was what mattered. Rumi frowned though. "Kid had been dominating the ring as well. It has somehow cleaned up my secret enterprise a bit…"

"I am sensing a but." Kaina stated as she took a drink of her beverage.

"I fear it won't last, that it will all come rushing back as anything that Villain touches usually does." Rumi growled out. She wasn't any idiot, she knew the power behind All for One. There were many horror stories about the Boogeyman of Heroes, the Quirk Thief.

Nemuri smirked. "You really have grown soft for a kid, that's just cute! Tell me, are you grooming the young man to be your future husband as well as a badass rival?"

At that, Rumi gained an angry blush on her face before schooling her features and shot back a quip that would anger others, but it was just the common banter they had. "Nah, that is more up your alley you slut. Out of all of us, I am surprised you did not get pregnant first."

"Surely not from lack of trying." Kaina quipped as well.

"This coming from a little rabbit that most men drool over, that is rich." Nemuri countered, "How you interpreted the boundless energy of your animal side of pounding into fighting and not the other more pleasurable thing is beyond me. You brute."

Rumi scoffed. "Yes, I am a one-track bunny for pounding the wrong way, I heard it all before. I am just surprised the R- rated Queen of possible date rape is pointing all this out….not." Rumi gained a soft smile though. "The kid is great though if anything happened to him, people will fear me as I kill his killer if that were to ever happen, all-powerful Quirk Thief or not. However, I am not sure I am ready for any type of real relationship….unlike the most unpredictable of our group!"

"You have a point," Nemuri replied with a nod before both women gave Kaina very teasing looks, who looked uncomfortable. "Let's see, the career-oriented demon lady that would shoot a man for flirting with her is the first of us to adopt two kids and gain a secret boyfriend under the public's nose. A boyfriend from her new working place. It is so scandalous that I am jealous!"

"I…I wasn't that bad, was I?" Kaina asked weakly at her friends' very unamused looks, it told her all that she needed to know. "Yeah…things just kept happening. I will not take it back for the world though, I was…not in the greatest of head spaces before this."

"We could tell, but that was why we…or I reached out so much." Nemuri replied seriously.

"I know…thanks for trying all these years," Kaina replied with a sad smile before looking back to Rumi with an unreadable look on her face. "And no, neither of you can get with my son when he is older."

Rumi gave her an unamused look while Nemuri actually looked bummed out. "I would not do that unlike the sex-charged hero that is somehow allowed to be a fucking high school teacher. Who, I might add, is the embodiment of all prepubescent boys...and some girls." Rumi replied, getting Nemuri to glare at her. "I am just looking out for the kid like you asked. Besides….I'll find someone eventually, but all I seem to get are freaks that want me to crush their fucking heads with my thighs….it is disturbing. Not to mention I have a fighting move for the most deranged villains that literally rips off their heads….and oh my god Nemuri…"

Midnight screamed out in uncontrollable laughter when her friend just figured out mid-sentence that her preferred method of killing dangerous villains was a man's ideal way to die…was between her thighs. Kaina chuckled a bit at this with a nostalgic smirk. She really missed her old friends. One was over-sexual but secretly wanted to be a mother so she settled for being a teacher and the other was looking for that constant fighter's high and was a bit dense to how hot she was.

"UGH! Get this image out of my head!" Rumi cried out in panic. "Let's change the damn topic. Are Toshi and Inko doing alright after what Detective Tsukauchi revealed?"

Kaina's mirth dropped to zero after being reminded of the news. It seemed that something horrible had happened to Nana Shimura's first kid. Sure he got live into adulthood, get married and have kids, it all came to an end. Nana must off really pissed off All for One. Because the entire family had been turned to dust...even the house. Despite knowing her brother for all but a day, Inko was still an emotional wreck and was scared that it would happen to Izuku. However, Toshinori promised her that nothing would ever happen to the boy on his watch. Plus, he was friends with Naruto and he would never let something that bad ever happen to his friends.

They just didn't know that a plan had already been set in motion for Izuku and it already failed. All for One was going to expend any more effort on the boy unless the kid got in his way, which he doubted would happen. Plus, Inko had gained some of All for One's favor. It was sick in a way, but when Izuku was deemed 'quirkless' and didn't support her son's dream of being a hero, All for One was happy with her. He would not do anything to her.

Toshinori on the other hand had been hit a little harder. He felt like a failure. He thought he had distracted All for One with his presence, to not go after Nana's family...but that failed. For a bit, he was not seen and when he came back to the public, he was not smiling for a day or so before putting on a brave face. He would defeat All for One for all the atrocities he committed to not only the users of One for All, but the world as well. And if he couldn't, he would prepare Naruto, his successor. Now, he was no teacher, but he would have help from Sir Nighteye, Gran Torino, and his awesome girlfriend in Lady Nagant. The boy would be prepared...even if he was a ninja from another world as Nighteye predicted. He just didn't realize that his depression had been twofold. He was feeling it from both him and Nana inside the quirk.

Kaina frowned. "They were hurt by the news, but they are getting through it. Let's talk about something else."

XXX

Makoto was quick to inform the small band of vigilantes that a few things had changed. It was not going to be an ensemble of sorts. They all met in the Marukane Department Store and in a small section where they could get to know each other better. They had already gotten the small jingle they would all be singing for the grand reopening, now it was finally time to meet who they would be working with.

And it was a bit of a range between all their ages since they were pulling from the local talent.

"Introduction time!" Makoto sang, introducing Naruto, Kazuho, and Koichi to a pair of blue-haired identical twin girls who also wore idol costumes for the meet and greet. This did make Kazuho think she was underdressed as she just came in casual clothes. "Meet the Feathers, an underground idol duo!"

"I am Miu. "The girl with her ponytail to the right of her head said with a bow.

"And I am Yu." The girl with her ponytail to the left of her head replied cheerfully.

"Hello! I am Pop Step!" Kazuho replied cheerfully but a bit nervously.

"Oh! I am Koichi, their manager." Koichi replied a bit absentmindedly, not really sure what to really be doing here.

"Call me Naruto." Naruto replied with a big smile, making the girls feel a bit more at ease but they did wonder how a kid as young as him go into this. Not that they could say much on the issue considering they were only a few years older than him.

Soon the room filled up with more people and it was getting loud with introductions. The East Naruhata High Dance Squad came with a few people and even a local rock band called The Mad Hatters. There was a problem at first, but once the leaders of their respective groups saw each other, there was an instant attraction and the problem the rock band had with playing a 'lame' store jingle was suddenly not a problem anymore.

It made Makoto crack a smirk at how easily that was resolved.

"Ok, here is the breakdown of the Naruhata Fest's special ensemble. I just have one question. Naruto, you wanted to be part of this, what were you going to do?" Makoto asked while showing a breakdown of everything on a whiteboard. It showed their name, which was called the Marukanes, and the others. There were four members of the Mad Hatters, four members of the high school dance squad, two members of the Feathers Idiols, Pop Step, and then Naruto. The idols were all singing but Makoto still was not sure what to do with Naruto.

"Oh! I told this to Pop and Koichi but I can sing as well. It is just a talent I do not usually do."

"Hmmm." Makoto replied, "I have seen videos of what the others can do, but can you sing for us here? I want to know what I am working with. If singing does not work, I know you are coordinative enough to be another dancer."

Naruto was not offended that she wanted to do a demonstration considering he never showed off this skill yet and the others were actually paying more attention now that he needed to prove himself. Shrugging, he took some sheet music from his pocket before walking over to the band member. "My therapist did think it was a good idea to add music to my lyrics. It was hard, but I eventually got it down. Will you guys play for me?"

The leader of the band, an older teen boy with a fancy top hat took the papers, looked at them then showed them to his band. He did look a little uncomfortable though when he read the lyrics and asked, "Are you ok kid?"

"No, but I will be."

Being more in tune with the lyrics and music, the members of the band understood and nodded that they would do it. Plus, it let the leader of the band show off to his new crush in the leader of the dance crew. "Alright kid, let's see what you got."

(Please play the Naruto theme song Silhouette. I am actually using the Amalee English cover from Youtube since there are many translations)

"Ready Set Go! We were racing to the goal line. So long ago even though there was so much we didn't know yet." Naruto sang out as his body took on his fox hybrid form. In doing so, the room seemed to shift into something completely different. It scared a few of the occupants until they realized that this must be the work of an Illusion quirk. However, Kazuho and Koichi were just amazed that Naruto could do this as well. The image the room shifted into was a sprawling village with heads carved into a mountainside. It was Konoha. "Crossing that line. We saw that there would be no going back in time even though, there was so much we didn't know yet. We're burning and fighting under the sun. Yeah, my skin is glistening from sweat dripping down my face."

"And as time will pass, I believe there are many things that we may forget. Everyone will become a silhouette." Naruto sang and the members of the band were amazed at the village coming to life all around them, but they also noticed that everyone was fuzzy, as if they were not really there. Then they saw another Naruto running down the street with three other boys and their features were more pronounced. The other Naruto wore blue shorts and a plain white T-shirt. One boy had his hair style into that of a pineapple and slouched even while running, another was a rotund boy that easily kept pace with them while eating a bag of potato chips, and the final boy had a furry hoodie and a small puppy with him. The illusion showed scenes of them playing together and even in a school setting with other kids. "But why do we pretend we don't care all about the things that we hold so dear? It's so when it's hurting we can laugh through the tears!"

"So here we go! The little things that I remember from our youth. Above all - I recall we thought the world ours. But now I understand, I see that destiny is far out of our hands and the clock can't be stopped! These days keep rolling on!" Naruto's next verse changed the scenes a bit as a ramen shop became the focus. Inside were four people with Naruto being slightly older and in an orange jumpsuit. Next to him was another silhouetted man but with a prominent scar across his nose. Behind the counter was an older man and a teenage girl happily chatting with them. Time flowed again, showing more scenes between the four of them, even the scarred man giving his headband to the other Naruto, who wore it proudly.

"We fight it and fight it. And fight it but time will always keep moving on. Farther out of our reach!" The scene changed to that of a verdant training field with three wooden posts. This time, the other Naruto was shown with three new people. An older male with silver hair and one red eye, a dark-haired boy styled into a duck's butt and two red eyes, and a girl with bright pink hair. One scene showed Naruto being tied to a pole before it showed them all sparring over time before transitioning to a fight on a misty bridge but only showed bits and pieces of that dangerous-looking fight. "Yeah, as time will pass I believe, there are many things that we may forget. Everyone will become a silhouette. But why do we pretend we don't care all about the things that we really fear? It's so when, it's hurting we can laugh through the tears."

"So gracefully we're fluttering like dancing leaves, I will live my life. I wanna be free from all the grief here in my memory." As he sang more, the scene shifted to just outside a giant forest where three groups of kids met amongst more silhouettes. This time it was Naruto with his team, meeting with the rotund boy, the pineapple-haired boy, and a blond girl as one team. The dog boy, a girl with dark blue hair and lavender eyes, and another boy with a high collar and bugs swarming around him as another team. They were met with other teams that looked to be challenging them as the scene shifted to multiple points within the forest before settling in an arena where various fights looked to be happening. It even showed off a few rivalries. "And as time will pass I believe there are many things that we may forget. But it seems that some things they'll never change. And when I close my eyes, it is you that I see cause you taught me this truth. Never fade - Never fade. This silhouette, yeah."

"Cherish everything that you love. Hold them closer still in the years to come. Don't let go, even though. Time keeps going on." Out of the rivalries, Naruto and his red-eyed teammate seemed to be the strongest. However, it showed the red-eyed boy being consumed in darkness and breaking up the team before leaving and the scene shifted to that of a giant valley with a waterfall and Naruto chasing after the boy. Time flowed again, showing Naruto was still chasing his friend as they got older before the red-eyed teen turned around and pushed Naruto away further and into the singing blond kid. "One day soon, I hope we can mend what we left on that day! Start again! So with you, one day soon we'll laugh through the tears! So gracefully we're fluttering like dancing leaves always dreaming - We'll be flying free!"

As the song ended, the scenery fade as Naruto's fox features disappeared. Naruto looked to the shocked group before he was engulfed in a hug by Kazuho and it was then that Naruto noticed he had been crying a bit thanks to the memories he had been reliving. "We are here for you, little bro." She whispered softly.

"Thank you." Naruto replied.

"Kid, any band would love to have you." The leader of the Mad Hatters said excitedly. "Your voice is a bit rough around the edges, but we can help with that. I gotta say, having a visual aspect to yours makes me a little jealous."

"Four singers give us a lot to work with," Makoto replied a moment thinking while wiping a few tears away. She agreed with the Mad Hatters that they and the Idols could help improve Naruto's vocal potential. "The question is…how to place all of you. We could place Naruto in the middle with the Feathers on either side of him. Then there is Pop Step, she has a great stage presence with her bouncing around all the time. That could work, but let's put that issue on hold for now. We could iron that out in later sessions."

"Wait, that kind of sounds like you want me to be the center of attention for some reason." Naruto replied in a bit of a panic. He was used to having all eyes on him back in Konoha, whether it be negative because of the Kyuubi or positive after he saved everyone multiple times. This…felt very different.

"I hate to admit this kid, but you have a pretty good singing voice," Miu replied, a bit annoyed but had a smirk on her face. "You are also the youngest person here, so putting you off to the side does not work. The crowd usually loves singing kids."

"Agreed on that. I also think it would be a great idea for the singers to do a bit of their own work during the day of the festival to make people want to see them even more. Show them a taste of what is to come." Makoto replied, referring to the part of the show that took on local talent.

"Hold up, during the day? It sounds like you have something else for us planned for later." The leader of the Mad Hatters replied with a bit of confusion.

"Ah! I knew I forgot to mention something." Makoto replied excitedly. "The 12 of you are headlining this event!"

"WHAT!?" They all yelled in panic.

"Yep, that is why I mentioned the formation of our singers. We can surely make this work as a mentioned event." Makoto replied before flipping her whiteboard over to show a sequence of events. "I want the Feathers and Naruto to learn some basic steps and stage maneuvers from the dance squad while helping Naruto and Pop Step with their vocal skills."

"Heh heh, our drills are no laughing matter!" the leader of the dance squad replied with a smirk, showing off how much of a taskmaster she was.

"I can handle a lot, but try not to push to the point of injury, please," Naruto suggested. He knew he was regaining his fighting powers, but fighting and dancing were taxing on the body. This could hurt all of them.

"I will take that into consideration since not all of us have danced all that much." The Dance Squad Leader replied seriously, much to the relief of the Feathers.

"Glad to hear it," Makoto replied, happy they were getting along and into this almost as much as she was. "As time goes on, we will work on the song, costumes, and any individual practice to make this work. At the one-week mark, we keep fine-tuning and deciding on everyone's positions before meeting up and bringing the whole thing together, okay?"

The group gave her an excited grin as she was called away by the manager of the department store. Naruto smiled at how this was playing out, but this would take more of his day from training. Oh well, this was a type of training on the body, so it work out well in the end. Now he just needed to invite some friends to watch!

XXX

"NO WAY!" Izuku shouted in glee as their group peacefully ate lunch on the roof. It was their spot by this point and no one really argued about it. "You get to sing in a local event sponsored by Captain Celebrity!? What is he like?"

"Of course, that is what you focus on." Hitoshi chuckled to himself.

"He seems…full of himself." Himiko replied offhandedly.

"You have no idea." Naruto deadpanned, getting a chuckle out of all of them, even Mei as she ate and worked on something small.

"I will certainly go to support you….and to ask him many questions if I get the chance." Izuku replied excitedly, missing the group rolling their eyes and smirking as they figured that would be the thing he would do. However, as Izuku flipped back to Naruto's page to add in a few more details he learned about his friend, he looked at one of his ideas and smirked. "Mei, will you come along too? I want to see if we can work on this new idea I have?"

Mei leaned over and looked at Izuku's notebook and smiled excitedly. "Oooh! That could work! I will also be sure to record the performance for Melissa too! She would want to be in on this."

"Do I want to know what this idea is about?" Naruto asked, a bit concerned.

Izuku just smiled at his friend. "Oh, just a possible gadget idea for a future suit I have for you. Hmm, if it works, it could also help Hitoshi out as well for his costume."

At this, Naruto and Hitoshi gave each other a look before shrugging. There was no stopping the brain train, which consisted of Izuku, Mei, Melissa, and now Momo. "Hmm, I think I will invite a few new friends I met at the gala."

"Oooh? Are you going to invite that Momo girl? You got along very well with her!" Himiko replied in a teasing voice that Naruto missed.

"That is the plan, along with Shoto and Tenya. Izuku, you should invite Denki since you have his number." Naruto replied, also missing the slight pout his sister gave him.

XXX

"Alright pause," Naruto stated as the girl in front of him sighed and fell to her knees while holding on to the bo staff she had created. Momo looked very tired, but she was the one who asked for this type of training. Naruto watched as she trudged over to a small bunch in her family's large garden, where her butler had set up a water station. Not only did she look tired, she looked down on herself. "Penny for your thoughts?" he asked as he sat down next to her while looking around at the garden, both dressed in gym clothes. It was weird, having spent so much time with Kaina and Toshinori, he had grown used to seeing what wealth was all about. If he was back in the Elemental Nations, he was sure to be shocked to his core. Now…he was bored with it. Sure, he liked the creature comforts, but he felt out of place and didn't give his or Momo's wealth any mind. He wasn't sure that was healthy.

"I am….really not good at this, am I?" Momo asked, a bit disheartened.

"Why? Because you keep failing at landing a hit on me?" Naruto asked, getting her to nod and sniff a bit, holding back tears. "Momo…did you really expect to be as good as the Pros, right off the bat?"

"I should be. My parents are proud that I have such a useful quirk for someone of my age and intelligence. They even encouraged my dream to be a hero. I should be able to handle this as well!" Momo replied, starting to down on herself.

"I do not expect you to be able to beat me, not yet. You are starting out in learning how to fight after all." Naruto replied with a soft smile, memories flooding into him. "But I get it, the frustration. I was that way too when I started out and I had no one to help me."

"Not even your mom?" Momo asked in shock. Lady Nagant was a powerful person; it was strange to think she wouldn't help her son. But…he did say he was adopted, so he might be referencing his original parents.

Naruto smiled at her and she could see some sadness creep in, making her panic just a bit. "There is a part of my life that I will tell you about later. But I grew up alone before I met my mom. I had to fight for everything I had, and for that, I know I am not the smartest guy around. It does give others a different perspective though. Momo, yes, you are incredibly intelligent, but even smart people can be dumb sometimes. What you need to do is take these small losses and learn from them. That is really the only way to get better and cleverer."

Momo looked down for a moment and frowned. "But I seem to freeze too. All my thoughts on how to counter make it hard as well. How do you overcome that?"

Naruto nodded at that. "All that knowledge coming back to you all at once. I am sure others have dealt with that too. The panic. That is difficult to overcome and even I dealt with it a bit…not fun times. But I also looked back at old friends and saw how they dealt with it. Sakura was all brains…and not much else. It took her being strung up by her hair to do anything about it. Ugh, she'd kick my butt if she were around to hear that, but Granny Tsunade really broke that by overwhelming her to a certain point. Not sure how she fixed it and refused to tell me. Then there was Shikamaru, his entire family were full of geniuses…but they were all incredibly lazy. He told me that he took a breath and slowed the world down in his mind. He took in all his surroundings and looked at his options before coming up with a plan….or two hundred."

"You are kidding." Momo deadpanned.

"I wish." Naruto laughed. "I once watched him hide in some trees to think up a plan as he was being attacked by razor-sharp winds from his opponent."

"Do you think I should do that?" Momo asked curiously.

"I think you need to do what comes naturally to you. Look up a few calming techniques and see what works and what does not. For this session, try to breathe and slow the world down if you can." Naruto replied before another thought crossed his mind. "Also, while you study all the chemical equations of the world around you, take small breaks and look to fantasy stories, science fiction, and comics. You will get a lot of useful ideas from there that you could use down the line."

"Huh, I never thought of that. I will! I love reading fun stories anyway!" Momo cheered excitedly. He did not need to know her favorite stories were sappy romance novels though.

"Glad to hear it. You ready to pick up where we left off?" Naruto asked.

"Yes, I think I can get a hit in by the end of the day!"

"That's the spirit!" Naruto laughed as he took a stance before he remembered something. "Oh hey, Momo, in a few weeks I am participating in an event. I was wondering if you would come and watch."

At this Momo did look excited. He had made the Gala to be bearable for once, so much so she had a good laugh. She wanted to see what he would do at this event to make it better! "I would love to! Oh and Naruto."

"Yeah?"

"You are not dumb, you are very smart in your own way." Momo replied with a soft smile, something Naruto mirrored before they ran at each other again.

XXX

Naruto said that his friends were all in the crowd for this live event in the Marakane Department store, but to be honest, Momo had gotten sidetracked. The store had reopened after all and she may have bought a few things. Now she was on the roof of the building in the crowd of people watching the local talent. Some were admittedly very bad while others were great!

While looking for an 'electrified shock of green hair' as he had put it, she ran into a girl and her parents. Said girl looked very shy, but her eyes sparked in glee at watching the many performers. "I am sorry for running into you." Momo apologized eloquently with a bow.

"No one got hurt, right Kyoka?" A voice next to her said, who also looked like an adult version of her. Obviously her mom.

"Uh, right!" the little girl replied as her quirk waved at her in excitement. Said quirk being like her mother's in earphone jacks. Momo suspected that they were highly useful. "I am Kyoka Jiro, but the way. What is yours?"

Momo, still a bit unused to hanging around new people other than Naruto, Shoto, and Tenya, was at a bit of a loss. Was it really that easy to introduce yourself and be someone's friend? Naruto made it look easy and she often wondered about the adults her parents worked with. "Oh! I am Momo Yaoyorozu. Nice to meet you. I was actually looking for a group of…acquaintances that a mutual friend is in."

Kyoka thought about it and smiled, there were other kids here, sure, but there was only one large group of them that she knew. Normally, she would not offer or be this excitable because she was usually a shy kid. However, even her parents were pleasantly surprised when she opened up at music-related festivals like this one. "I know of one group of kids, I could take you to them."

"That would be much appreciated," Momo replied gratefully.

"Come on!" Kyoka replied excitedly as she took Momo's hand and let her to the group. All the while, her parents looked on happily that their daughter was making friends. They spotted a few couples before walking over to them. No doubt a few of them had to be the parents of the group of kids that their daughter mentioned. Imagine their surprise when one of the parents was Lady Nagant in civilian clothes alongside a very tall blond man who looked like a bit of a hipster with his hair in a ponytail. There was a story there!

XXX

A few minutes later, Momo was greeted by a very energetic Izuku Midoriya and his group of friends. However, she noticed that Kyoko was starting to back away with a shy smile. "Aren't you going to stay with us? We are friends now." Kyoka never looked happier!

"You will have to forgive Izuku. He can be very exhausting." A purple-haired boy with eye bags groaned as he pushed Izuku away from the new girls. "He is very excitable and had a quirk obsession. I am Hitoshi, by the way."

"I see that." Momo giggled while Kyoka snickered. "I also see that Shoto and Tenya are here as well. I am a bit surprised to see them."

"If you mean the kid robot and the Zuko lookalike, then yeah." Hitoshi deadpanned and Kyoka actually laughed out loud at the descriptions of the two boys. The purple hair boy smirked as he had a feeling that they would get along. "Shoto mentioned his sister brought him because his father saw the get-together as a waste of time and didn't want to go.

"That sounds like Endeavor." Momo sighed tiredly, having dealt with the man before…or at least her parents did, and said he was difficult to deal with. "I am curious about what made Tenya want to come, this usually isn't his thing."

"The robot mentioned that his brother encouraged him to attend." Hitoshi replied. Ah. That checked out. Tenya did anything his brother asked. "Anyway, let me introduce you to the others. The blond girl is Naruto's sister, Himiko. You might get along. The pink-haired girl is Mei and the other blond on the screen around her neck is Melissa. They are incredibly smart and Naruto mentioned you would like them, Momo. The blond guy is Denki and he gives Izuku a run for his money in terms of energy….and it just exhausts me further."

As they chatted just a bit longer, their attention was once again brought to the stage. Present Mic introduced the next pair and the crowd grew even more excited when they saw the sponsor for the event in Captain Celebrity next to Naruto, who gave a shit-eating grin to the big man, who looked slightly annoyed.

"Oh neat, that Naruto kid is back on stage," Kyoka replied with a big grin. "He sang an awesome rock song earlier. We are in for another awesome visual." Momo really wanted to question her, but restrained herself to just wait and find out. Singing and visuals? That was unexpected.

(Please play the Naruto Shippuden Blue Bird opening performed by AmaLee)

"You said if you could fly, you would fly far - far into the sky." As Naruto sang softly, it showed this was a far softer song and showed his range from rock to this song. The Mad Hatters even provided background music. While singing, his fox features appeared again and he took to Captain Celebrity's shoulders, making the man a bit uncomfortable that he was helping a boy with his song. The man would rather help the women of this event, but Makoto truly scared the shit out of him, so he could not refuse. He was surprised though when the area around them turned into the blue sky and he had dark blue wings as Naruto 'rode' his shoulder. This was new. "So all you'd ever know is that blue – that blue - Sky up above!"

"You've yet to learn what the pain from true sadness is like." As Naruto sang, even the crowds began to disappear into the blue sky, but those words did affect the man and he knew this was affecting others as he saw a lot of other adults look on in concern. But as the words came out, Captain Celebrity was forced to face in his mind what he did to his wife. He had played with her heart. This trip to Japan was not just to recover from his many lawsuits in America, but to be separate from his wife and let her cool down. After all, he had cheated on her a lot. He was not a good person, even if he was a hero. "You've only had but a taste, but you're a moth to the flame."

"When all my feelings reach you, they'll no longer be mute. For on that day, they'll live in spoken words!" Naruto's voice sent a pang in the Captain's heart. He really did mess up with his wife….damn. He was a cocky and arrogant hero. There was no doubt in his mind about that as even he disappeared into the blue sky as well, leaving only Naruto for all to see. Amongst the blue sky and clouds.

"From in a dream, when you awake into the world you no longer know. If you could only spread your wings and fly away!" If they looked closely, they all could see the lands below the blue sky were very different and it confused them as to where this could be. Only a few knew like Kaina, who had seen it before in Naruto's memories. Others just speculated as Naruto seemed to crash through a heavy cloud barrier that appeared suddenly. On the other side, they saw the lands below had changed to their own and it was still spectacular to see. But he seemed to be falling, even if he was able to jump onto clouds for but a moment. Soon two figures appeared on a large cloud formation, they were made of shadows to show they were just a silhouette. If one looked closely, one was an older man in strange faded red and white robes that said 'Hokage' on the back and a hat, smoking a pipe while the other was a very tall man with visual white hair that was long and two small toads on his shoulders. They reached out for him and he took their hands before they launched him higher into the sky. "You said if you could fly, You would fly far - far to the sky. And you would set your aim, on the clouds – All around. That endless sky!"

"The moment you break free, you'll finally find – find all you seek! And it's all waiting there … in that blue – in that blue sky up above!" More clouds formed and even more silhouettes appeared, even those that the main band began to recognize. Kaina recognized most of them and saw the only people back in that village that really gave a damn about her son. First was a pink-haired silhouette with bright green eyes and a man with white hair that looked like it belonged on a scarecrow. They too lifted him higher into the blue sky, in fact, each pair of silhouettes did the same as he flew higher and higher into a coming storm cloud. A blond-haired woman with green and grey clothes next to a shorter woman with a pig on her shoulders. A feral-looking boy and his large dog alongside another boy with a swarm of bugs around him. A pineapple-haired boy and a rotund boy in red armor. Another blond-haired girl in purple with a girl in Chinese-styled clothes. A pair of strange men in green leotards. A red-eyed woman with another man that was smoking. Another pair of kids, a boy and a girl, with white eyes. Finally, a boy on a bird made of ink flung him farther away.

"With a sound like the storm, turning bitter and dark, that window shut in your heart. It shatters, falling apart!" The coming storm blew apart to reveal another person, with bright red eyes wielding a long blade that seemed to draw the storm's lightning to it. As Naruto got closer to the storm and passed the people who supported him, they all turned into dark blue light, similar to what happened to Captain Celebrity and shot into Naruto, creating large blue wings for himself and he looked like a teenager now! For a moment, Winged Naruto and the dark figure just stared at each other before clashing with bouts of wind and lightning. "And so at last you escape, from your cold, broken cage. So break away, without ever looking back! There is a chase, inside my chest. Where my heart beats, quick as my breath and so I kick the window in and fly away!"

"You said if you could fly, you'd fly, and nothing would stop you. You're tempted by that voice that's so far – so far from where you are." Naruto stopped as a giant snake made of the storm clouds appeared to take the dark red-eyed figure away but before zapping Naruto away. Soon, more dark clouds appeared. A large man with an even large sword attempted to strike him down, but two people stopped him. One was the white-haired scarecrow man, appearing out of one of the feathers and the other was depicted as a beautiful 'woman.' That image shifted to a blue-garbed ninja with a white mask. The man looked shocked for a moment before Naruto held out his hand and he took it. But the man and the 'woman' disappeared in a snow flurry as the scarecrow man disappeared back into the wings. "I'll take your eager hand, and take you far – far away with me! So, you can see my world! It's that blue – that blue sky up above!"

"Hey, it's okay to fail. Yeah, it's okay to fall… What really counts, what only counts is if you pull yourself back up!" Naruto was caught off guard by two lightning strikes as the red-eyed figure appeared with a sneak attack, forcing Naruto to fall again. However, he was picked up by two people, the blond-haired woman in green and a red-haired teen with a huge gourd on his back. They threw him onto the back of a giant red fox they carried him back to fight. They passed through the red-eyed teen, another red-eyed man with a large battle fan, a man with a spiral mask that was similar to his ringed eyes, and a floating woman with three eyes and long white flowing hair. The moment he passed through the woman, he was alone and a kid again, but he had his blue wings as he soared towards more silhouettes.

"You said if you could fly, you would fly far - far to the sky! And you would set your aim on the clouds – All around. That endless sky!" As Naruto soared to the silhouettes, they formed into actual people! They were the members of the band that would perform tonight, all of them. Including Makoto, Captain Celebrity, Koichi, and Kazuho. Then there was his usual friend group and they jumped a bit with they appeared like that. No one was really expecting to be part of the song! Finally, the adults in Naruto's new life appeared as he was flown over to them. Kaina just embraced him. It showed he was accepting his new life. However, she wasn't surprised and even happy to see Minato and Kushina as silhouettes watching on fondly. The past seeing the future in a way. "The moment you break free! You'll finally find – find all you seek and it's all waiting there … in that blue – in that blue sky up above!"

As soon as the song was over, the sky motif disappeared and the crowd reappeared with them all going wild at what they saw. Some grumbled they could not top that, but it did not matter, they were all in a good mood.

XXX

"Sorrrrry to have to break the news when you are all pumped up, but," Present Mic shouted to the crowd, as jovial and loud as ever. "The Afternoon portion of the Naruhata Festival aka Narufest, cosponsored by Marukane and Captain Celebrity is OVERRR! The evening portion of the entertainment featuring guest hero appearances will resume after a 30-minute break! Headling the program is the ultra-fresh song and dance ensemble straight outta Naruhata….THE FEATHERHATS!

Nemuri, also known as Midnight, chuckled to herself as she watched her old classmate and friend, Present Mic, announced that the afternoon portion of the Marukane event was over and they had one last act for the evening. My how time flew, it was already dark out. Many were surprised it was that late already. Heroes were in their hero costumes since they wanted local heroes to represent the area as well. A show that said the area was recovering from all the pop-up villains.

Nemuri stood near Himiko and Naruto's friend group. And was not that a trip! Naruto had singing skills and she was sure that he would be a lady killer in the future. Women loved to be serenaded. On the other hand, Himiko was learning from her a bit and not the sexual stuff. Himiko was learning stage presence and how to attract attention to her. It was cute, but Midnight understood what the girl was going for. She had future plans to raise awareness to her type of quirk…and with Naruto's Blood Pills, it would help with her image.

But seeing the two of them together with their friends made her heart warm up and she hoped to be able to teach them in high school, mainly U.A, someday. They were an interesting group and were not afraid of picking up new members. She spotted the one in the Earjack girl, who had really opened up to the group with her, Hitoshi, and Naruto being snarky to each other and laughing right after.

Walking her way over to Kaina, a disguised All Might, the parents of the ear jack girl, Present Mic, Inko, and Rumi. "Wow, Cotton Tail, you really came?"

Rumi smirked at her friend and said, "Why wouldn't I? I got family here!"

"Naruto and Himiko really are as special to you two, as they are to me, right?" Kaina replied with a knowing smile. Happy with their found family.

"Heh, I love helping out the next-gen fill themselves with ways to help themselves and others! It is why I am now a teacher! I can't wait to be a good teacher to them in the future." Nemuri sang.

"I still can't believe Nezu let you be a high school teacher." Rumi deadpanned before smiling. "Yeah, the kid has grown on me. I might not have much blood family left, but I consider him a member of my family as well."

"You had a bunch of guys after you in high school though," Kaina commented while Inko looked on in interest, but snickered at Rumi's uninterested look.

"My rough exterior scared them off and nowadays, most guys want to be crushed between my thighs. It makes me uncomfortable." Rumi admitted while Mic coughed to the side.

"Ah, I get it." Nemuri replied seriously, "You just want someone who can keep up with your madness."

"In a way, yeah. It has just left me in the dark about what to do." Rumi admitted before the lights went dark.

"You have excellent timing, Rumi." Kaina deadpanned while the others chuckled a bit.

Then Midnight's phone went off, causing the woman to look in shock that Erasurehead was calling. She quickly answered and put him on speakerphone. "Are you alright, Aizawa?"

"Yeah, just ran into a pop-up villain, I told you something was going to happen tonight and my gut feeling was right. No need to worry, I took him down, but I know who this is." Aizawa said on his line.

"Oh? Who?" Present Mic asked curiously.

"That eel boy that was suddenly made a pop-up villain some time ago. I caught him wandering the streets and when he heard the music, he started rampaging, looking for that Pop Idol or whatever. The thing is, the kid is heavy…changed."

"Changed how?" Kaina asked as she gave All Might a look to keep him from jumping away, revealing himself.

"He looks more monstrous and I can tell it is recent because he was moving like he was not used to his own body. I think the situation with these pop-up villains is evolving." Aizawa groaned out as they heard police sirens in the distance. "So this is where I will be. Enjoy the concert for me."

"Oh, we will." Present Mic replied cheekily before his voice was serious, "Just be careful, Aizawa."

The line went dead, signifying the logical hobo hero decided that was enough social interaction for him for the night, making the adults snicker to themselves, especially his old school friends. They knew him better than anyone.

However, one of them was thinking hard about how to remedy the situation. Makoto saw Naruto walk up to her with two of his male friends. A green-haired boy and a blond with a lightning streak. "I have an idea, boss."

"Oh and what is that, Naruto?"

"While Flyboy goes and gets the replacement generators, why not put the quirks of my friends to use." Naruto also turned to his mom and the other heroes watching with interest. "If you would allow it that is." Permission to use powers just to help people still annoyed the crap out of him.

"I can vouch for you," Kaina replied with Rumi smirking and giving a thumbs up. Kaina knew Izuku was a lightning user so the blond much be too. Soon, most of the heroes in attendance gave their approval. Just in time too because the Crawler 'appeared' on the scene to give Pop Step her special microphone. Seeing this, Izuku was naturally geeking out at the fact even more heroes were on the scene, and further in the crowd, Mei was eyeing the special microphone in interest as Kazuho used it to calm the crowd down.

"Hey there, concertgoers! Can I have your attention? I have got a message from the event staff." Pop Step called, still nervous in front of the crowd even though she had performed in front of large crowds on the streets before. This felt different for some reason but she could get through this! She had support from her fellow performers, Makoto, and most importantly, Naruto and Koichi! Was it weird that she wanted that old fart to be here as well? Probably. "The blackout is because of a recent villain attack nearby, but not to worry!" She had to say that last part quickly to cut off the crowd's panic. "A hero has already taken care of the situation. That being said, we are working hard to get the power back ASAP! You can thank Captain Celebrity for that later. We will have emergency lighting in the meantime, provided by a couple of electricity users."

As if on cue a few lights did appear, making the crowd feel slightly better…even if they flickered a lot. "We can thank those kids later for helping us out, they are a bit busy. By the way, I am the freelance Idol of Naruhata, Pop Step. I can usually be found singing outside the station or in local parks. Some of you might have caught a performance of mine?"

This caused part of the crowd to erupt into loud cheers, causing others to give chuckles at the enthusiasm.

"But since my guerilla shows normally end kind of abruptly and I do help the crowds away from the recent rash of pop-up villains as the more underground type of heroes takes care of them…this is my first chance to have a real face-to-face with an audience! As you can imagine, I'm so nervous I could pop! I have got half a mind to run off to the bathroom even!" Pop announced with a nervous pun.

This got Midnight to snicker as she watched the girl smoothly transition into actually helping those in the crowd who need to use the facilities and emergency exits. This included having her more boisterous fans form glow stick lines to them as the lights continued to flicker. "Way to go girl. You are doing great!" Midnight replied fondly. She wished this girl was one of her students at UA but it seemed that time had passed…maybe. Still, Midnight wanted to help this girl…but she had a teacher's job. Thankfully, Midnight still had her connection in the Hero world. What she would eventually do for Himiko she would do for Pop and get Uwabami to talk to the girl. That should set her career straight. Pop Stop was more of a Rescue Idol Hero from what she gathered.

XXX

With a few original songs from Pop Step to pass the time, the lights finally were restored, allowing Izuku and Denki to rest their quirks as they went back to their friend group. While Tenya commended their bravery to do something as dangerous as electrical work, Kyoka had a smile on her face and she chatted with Naruto a bit and accidentally revealed more of her snark to him. Naruto just snorted at her horrified reaction before challenging her with his own, getting the group to laugh. They had truly gained another for their group.

With the lights finally illuminating the dark rooftop, they were finally ready for their final performance. Present Mic was jovial in his announcement of the final act. "The first song of the evening program comes from Narufest's special ensemble, Featherhats! They will be performing a remix of the Marukane Department Store jingle! YEAH!"

"Won'tcha try!" Naruto sang in center stage as the spotlight hit him. He wore a heavily modified version of his old orange jumpsuit with a red and black top hat on his head. It was very eye-catching, to say the least.

"Come on! Come on!" The Feather twins sang on either side of him as the musical began to play from the band.

"Won'tcha buy" Pop Step as she leaped down behind Naruto and leaned on him a bit to give a cute wink to the crowd. That was before the entire light show, band members, and dance crew all exploded onto the scene.

"Come on down to everyone's favorite Maru-ket!"

It was a silly dance number for a department store and the crowd still went wild for it. In the excitement, Naruto glanced at all the happy faces, including Makoto's happy face that this whole event went off well, the Heroes having fun for once, and then his friends. They all had smiles on their faces, including the tired Denki and Izuku.

And isn't what this world was all about? Putting a smile on someone's face?

A/N: Please Support Me On patreon.com/The_Alchemyst