130 Title at the End

General POV

Naruto expected a lot, but not this kind of outcome. Not only did he meet his dark part, but also some kind of crazy loved one. And on top of that, they were trying to kill him!

"Give up, 'Naruto'," Hikari casually said, producing 5 Shadows Clones as did Yami.

"I will never give up. I am Naruto Uzumaki." He produced 10 to counter theirs.

What happened next was a battle that could be summarized in one word. Equal.

Naruto lost count of how long the battle was going on. No matter what ninjutsu he threw at them, no matter what Taijutsu style he used, despite their distinct personalities, they fought as if they had worked together for a long time.

Shadow Clones, Rasengan, Wind Style, and even Sage Mode. Whatever he used was just copied by them. As the battle was going on, Naruto knew he was at the losing end. His stamina didn't drop, but the attacks that connected hurt. If this continued, he'd die. He had to find a way to stop this, and fast.

'Think, Naruto, think. What would you do in a situation where your opponent is as strong as you and knows your attacks? Those two accepted Ishizu, but why?'

"Because we love him no matter what he does," answered Yami with a grin.

Naruto paled when he realized they could hear his thoughts. No wonder they mimicked his every move. They knew what he was thinking and acted accordingly.

"He was the one who protected us."

"He was the one who showed us what love is," replied Hiraki.

"Without him, we would have a twisted form of love and hatred buried underneath everything. Not that he is perfect. Ishizu-sensei is just like everyone else, a human."

'That's it!'

An idea formed in Naruto's head, causing him to stop dodging the attacks. As he closed his eyes to concentrate, the other two raised an eyebrow, looked at each other, and Yami shrugged.

Hey, if your opponent stays still, who are you to not take this opportunity? Hikari stayed behind and watched curiously what Naruto was up to and his thoughts made her put on a smile.

Just before Yami could reach Naruto, he froze as a sequence of memories of Ishizu projected themselves in the air.

Child years.

Genin days.

The Valley of the End.

Rescuing Gaara.

The Sanbi.

Then came the moment of his betrayal, followed by Jiraiya's fake death, which was fenestrated by Ishizu.

One more picture appeared. It was that of the picture Naruto has drawn of Ishizu's wife. Naruto went over all those memories he had with Ishizu to realize something he already knew.

"He is doing it for love," Naruto muttered.

"No shit, Sherlock. He wants for everyone to be happy but he also has a dream," spoke Yami as he got close to Naruto and grabbed him by his clothes.

Naruto felt guilty and didn't fight back. Maybe he should have tried to speak with Ishizu. Yes, he had to speak to him to understand his sensei better.

That's when Hikari placed her hand on Yami's shoulder, stopping him from punching Naruto. Yami looked directly into Naruto's eyes as if looking for something before scoffing and letting Naruto go.

"Guess he is still Naruto."

Hikari then turned to Naruto.

"A human had to hold both darkness and light inside him. Both in equilibrium. We see you calmed down. Don't forget that like you, Ishizu has both light in dark inside him. We accept you."

Both disappeared and left Naruto alone.

As everyone congratulated Naruto when he came back from the waterfall and Fu took his place, one large panda woke up from his slumber. A huge smile formed across his face before he ordered the other pandas to get the Sage to him.

Sometime later

Dumpling Dynasty

*You wanted to see me?* asked Ishizu, curious why Po wanted to talk. There wasn't much nowadays the old panda wanted from him, so whatever it was should be addressed now.

*I think I must have forgotten what you want to do during the time before the war starts. Could you make me remember again?* Po asked with a smile on his face.

Now Ishizu wouldn't have survived for such a long time if he wasn't careful about things, and his paranoia kicked in when he saw Po's evil smile. That panda was planning something and whatever it was, was involving Ishizu and it wasn't good.

*Well, Tsunade and the rest have to hear about Zetsu's camouflage ability, and when Konan wakes up, I would bring her to the others where she can explain Obito's abilities. Makes everything easier. Why? What do you want?* Ishizu narrowed his eyes at the panda.

*Hmm, you see, recently I have gotten some grave news from a few friends that they need my help. Now, since you are the new Panda Sage, it is in your interest to help,* began Po and Ishizu's fingers twitched.

*You do know that I have to finish my plan and can't just go somewhere to help your 'friends'. Whoever they are,* Ishizu spoke while trying to find a reason to escape responsibility.

The smile on Po's face promised nothing good.

*Oh, don't worry. I am sure you can help them before the 4th Shinobi Ninja War starts. So, will you accept?*

*I refuse!* Ishizu shouted through his lungs and used the secret technique of the Jojo family.

Po only shook his head, knowing Ishizu would say that. He expected this to happen, but where was the fun in just doing as he said? Life was so much more fun if people had different opinions and voiced them out. Plus, a little hide and seek would be funny to watch. His family needed the workout.

Giving a loud whistle so that everyone could hear it, Po stretched himself and began to walk toward Ishizu while humming a song about dumplings.

Ishizu POV

Panic and paranoia were old friends of mine which I associated with the elemental nations. Normally, the Dumpling Dynasty looked peaceful, with pandas eating their bamboo and enjoying the sun shining on their fur.

It was a place where I could relax and work without interruptions from pesky humans who wanted something from me.

One whistle.

It took one stupid whistle from that old crazy panda and I saw something I didn't think would happen.

In front of my eyes, the peaceful area grew a shade darker with smoke coming from out of nowhere. Red shining eyes appeared around me, watching me from the tall grass before various pandas bounced out and attacked me.

The friendly-looking pandas that wouldn't hurt a fly transformed into killing machines, ready to drag me back to their chief.

I dodged and parried each panda carefully to avoid major damage, but was surprised when Denku sprung out of the tall grass and engaged me in Taijutsu.

"Piss off, Denku! Go back to drinking your shitty wine. I have no time for you!" I Shinra Tensei'ed him away, but the small panda had enough fights with Rinnegan users and gracefully landed on the ground.

"Don't be so rude, Sage Ishizu. Accept your fate and don't run."

"The hell I will!"

My instincts I honed for decades kicked in and I rolled to the side as a barrier surrounded my previous position. I put a hand over my mouth and nose when I felt something off about the smell.

"Dammit. Our seduction barrier, lanced with aphrodisiac, got evaded," Yin Yin snapped her fingers.

'Get away from those crazy two!' my instinct screamed when I saw that even the sisters wanted to catch me.

"Got you!"

I produced a chakra receiver and blocked the incoming strike from Denku with it, but then there was a blur and I got body-slammed by Long. Mid-air, I collected myself, but just as I was touching the ground, I saw Tau pressing his foot on the ground.

With a hard stomp, a barrier surrounded me. My eyes immediately roamed around, searching for any weakness actively, but I had to frown when I saw what it was.

A barrier powered by nature energy. It was akin to Tamara's gem prison, but I was familiar with Sage Mode and I had to use brute force to destroy it.

*Don't waste your strength. You won't have time to break this barrier,* I heard Po's voice, and I saw him walking toward me. He was holding some kind of staff that had a ☯️ symbol at the end.

Something felt off about the staff the panda was carrying. An unknown energy surrounded the staff. Black and White. Push and Pull. Yin and Yang. Po must have seen my eyes wandering over his staff.

*Cool thing, right? I have one smaller. Was a gift from Oogway way back, but since I grew so big I made my own, bigger, and cooler version,* Po casually explained to Ishizu.

*Fine, do what you must, but at least go and give me the things from the small box,* I grumbled my answer out hoping Po would give me at least a bit of help.

Po shrugged and, in not even a minute, he held a dark shiny box in his hands.

*Don't worry, Ishizu-kun. There won't be any problems when you return.*

'Return from where?!' I screamed internally. Where did this delusional panda want to send me, of all places?

*You see, I received a letter from my old comrades where they asked for my help with some problems they are facing. Unfortunately, the more people are crossing over, the more energy it takes, so instead of sending a bunch of pandas, I came up with the idea to throw you to them. See it as a test. Maybe you'll learn something new? One never stops learning. I should know as should you.*

My mind was racing through the hazy memories I had from the movies. Then that scene from Kung Fu Panda 3 came to my mind where that turtle gave Po some staff. It looked almost identical to this one, and he said he got one from Oogway.

Then it clicked.

*Judging by your expression I guess you figured it you where I will send you.*

*You have to be kidding, Po. Do you even think about what you are going to do?! You are sending a human into the Spirit Realm!*

The Spirit Real or Spirit World was the equivalent of the afterlife for kung fu masters in Kung Fu Panda. I was being forced to enter the afterlife! Of another dimension!

*Then congratulations! You will be the 'first human' to visit it. Be grateful as it is considered a privilege,* laughed Po as the staff began to glow.

*This won't hurt at all. I could have used the Wuxi Finger Hold if you were being extra hard to fight.*

The area around the barrier glowed. I just closed my eyes and waited for whatever to happen. I had a lot of crazy encounters throughout my life, so instead of crying and throwing a temper tantrum, I just let it come at me.

*When I come back, I will find Naruto and other pranksters. You will take my revenge, Po!!*

A dome of golden light engulfed Ishizu, and he was swallowed.

*Do you think he will survive?* asked Tau, concerned.

*Oh, 100%. He wouldn't be our Human Sage if he couldn't. The question, however, is how will this experience shape him? In the Elemental Nations, he could be considered... what was the young generation calling people like him? ... Ah, yes. OP.

Somebody overpowered. Somebody who could fight his enemies with no problem whatsoever.

We all know Ishizu-kun is very careful, paranoid even, but he must feel the difference in strength. It is better if he feels the strength difference while fighting comrades and not enemies. They give you a chance to stand up,* explained Po.

Tau sighed and looked at the place where Ishizu once was. He once met the masters Po was talking about. Each was unique. And also ridiculously strong.

"Come back safely."

Title: Off to another World