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Caterpillar by grumpywolf

 Naruto & Justice League Xover Rated: M, English, Adventure & Romance, [Naruto U., Diana of Themyscira/Wonder Woman] Kyuubi/Kurama, Words: 202k+, Favs: 5k+, Follows: 5k+, Published: Oct 7, 2020 Updated: Apr 15  3,216Chapter 42 - Godhood

AN: new chapter up, enjoy!

Chapter 42 - Godhood

"Will you follow me to Olympus today?" Athena asked.

Naruto glanced at the slumbering fox on his shoulder and then at the bloodied appearance of Wonder Woman.

"No. We need some rest. We can't start a war now. Not when we are not at our best."

Planting Hiraishin markers on his spaceship and on satellites outside of every planet he visited, using shadow clones to investigate his enemies before attacking, keeping an eye on his chakra consumption, trying to think of strategies when fighting against powerful foes instead of just throwing flashy techniques around, carrying nutritional pills in case he remained stranded in space, refusing to accept the bounty of assassinating Darkseid in his own homeworld and so on - these were just a few examples that spoke of his cautious nature. Nearly a century of adventuring in a world different from his own was enough to smarten up even a blockhead like his teenage self. He would never be considered academically smart or a genius but a lifetime of experiences had made him a wiser person. That said, he was definitely not going to fight against the alleged king of the Olympian gods unless he, Kurama, and Diana were at their 100%.

"Understandable." the goddess acknowledged. A peculiar pendant appeared in her hand. It was made of stone, circular, and it depicted the head of a screaming woman with snakes for hair. It looked like Medusa's head. Handing it to the Amazon princess, she said: "Take your time and recover. When you are ready, you can use this relic to summon me."

A blue light shone from the goddess's palm and a human-sized oval portal appeared. Naruto secretly glanced at her with a calculative look in his eyes.

'Hades is supposed to be a major god according to Diana, he's the God of the Underworld. He can't make portals to escape from this realm... but Athena can. She also took one of my tailed beast bombs and survived. I better not take her lightly if we crossed paths again in the future.' he mused.

⁂

"I'm so tired. And filthy." Wonder Woman grumbled.

After more than 24 hours of sweating in the pits of Tartarus, slaying demons, and cutting a goddess in half, her appearance was a far cry from usual. It was only after stepping out of the portal and setting foot on Themyscira that she became aware of her deplorable state. Dried blood, ash, dirt, and sweat covered her from head to toes. It made her long black hair itchy and scruffy and her skin clammy. She did not remember if she had ever been so dirty.

"Ah, my cloak is ruined." she bemoaned when she looked at her previously white cloak. It had more than one hole in it and its colour was unrecognizable with all the stains and dirt on it.

Her white and golden breastplate, her greaves, her pauldrons, her bracelets, and her tiara were of a magical nature. It was an armour set crafted for her by the God of Fire, Hephaestus. It would be very easy to clean. However, her ear-wing ornaments and her white cloak could not be salvaged. They were ordinary objects that she wore just to make herself look more fashionable. A warrior she may have been but she was a woman at the same time too. She liked to kick ass but she wanted to look good while doing it too.

"Why are even wearing that cloak? Doesn't it get in the way? You'd be lying if you told me nobody tried to grab you by the cloak and slam you around." he said snidely and sniggered.

She threw a mean look at him. "The pot calling the kettle black. You're wearing a cloak too!"

He grinned at her and said: "Well then, be my guest. Try to grab me by my cloak."

She huffed at him and quickly grabbed the edge of his fur-collared black cloak. But, to her surprise, the buttons holding it together around his neck snapped and she pulled the cloak directly off him. When she threw it to the side, her eyes widened as she found herself with the blade of a dagger pointed at her neck.

"Bet you didn't expect that." he said smugly. "It always takes my opponents by surprise when they try to grab me by my cloak. Not only that they never expect it to come off so easily and it makes them becomes still for a moment, but the cloak also hides my hands from their view, allowing me to mount a sneak attack. So my cloak looks cool AND it's useful too."

"Show off." she pouted.

Not minding his presence, she started taking off her clothes and armour and threw them on the floor. Now completely naked, she threw a sultry look at him as she headed towards the bathroom.

"Care to join me?"

He had never taken off his combat suit and clothes any faster before.

⁂

He let out a silent yawn and a groan of comfort. He could not recall ever sleeping better than the previous night. Washing each other's bodies, making love, and then falling asleep in each other's arms, exhausted both from their trial in Tartarus and from their intimate activities - he slept like a baby.

'Mmm, boobies.' he thought and buried his face deeper into her chest.

He felt her arms slightly tighten around his head and pulling him deeper into her and her leg that was draped over his waist rubbed along his side for a moment.

'This has to be heaven. Heaven on earth, no doubt about it.'

The feel of her softness and her sweet scent were like a drug for him. Although he was fully rested, the comfort of sleeping in Diana's arms and with his face buried in the valley of her breasts was just too comfortable. He fell asleep again.

But his blissful lethargy was not meant to last. All of a sudden, a loud yell deafened him of one ear and a particular set of paws started shaking his shoulder roughly.

"NARUTO! NARUTO! WAKE UP!"

His annoyance was threatening to blow up.

"Damnit, Kurama, whatchu want this early in the morning?" he snapped in a loud whisper at the hyperactive fox.

But when he raised his head from Diana's embrace and opened his eyes to look at the fox, he became speechless.

"The hell-?!" he sputtered in surprise.

The fox cub standing on his chest was almost...sparkling. He still looked like a fox cub but his crimson-red fur had become completely golden.

"I am a god! I even got 10 tails! Wahahaha!" Kyuubi threw his head back and laughed out loud.

Naruto's eyes were drawn by the fox's words to his tails to count them.

"Ten tails. Wow." he said in pure admiration. Sitting up to take a better look at the golden ten-tailed fox he asked in curiosity: "Anything else that has changed at you?"

The Fox God raised his snout proudly in the air. He revelled in the attention and admiration he was receiving from the blond.

"Watch." Kyuubi said smugly.

All of a sudden, goosebumps appeared on Naruto's forearms and his spine chilled. A feeling of oppression like he rarely ever got to experience washed over him. He felt tiny, insignificant. It was reminding him of how he felt the first time he sensed the Rabbit Goddess's chakra when she resurrected. But Kyuubi's aura was levels above that.

The fox reigned in his divinity. Then, he hopped into Naruto arms and snuggled with his head into his chest. His tails were wagging around crazily, like a helicopter. He was acting like an overexcited dog that could not contain its enthusiasm. Kurama had resolved himself that from the moment he became a god he would start acting in a dignified fashion but he could not keep up a proud and smug appearance in the present at all. He had spent several months thinking that he was going insane, with a constant buzz of voices in his head. But now, he was finally free and more powerful than ever.

Naruto laughed in delight too at the fox's contagious happiness. How could he not be happy for him? Kurama was his lifelong best friend, like a brother. His success and happiness were his own as well.

"I don't need you to feed me chakra anymore either." Kyuubi said and then repeated himself: "And I have 10 tails!"

It looked like having 10 tails was the ultimate proof for the fox that he was a god now. He kept repeating that he had 10 tails.

The ruckus that Kurama and Naruto were causing naturally startled Wonder Woman awake from her sleep as well. They were so loud and rambunctious that they would wake up even the dead.

Diana raised her arms above her head and her body shivered pleasantly for a few seconds as she stretched. Despite how loud the man and the fox were, she could not bring herself to be annoyed. Her mood was simply too great.

'Last night was...'

She almost let out a moan just at the memory of the previous night. During their first time, so many years of bottled up physical and emotional needs burst at once and they went at each other wildly, filled with lust. The previous night, however, was completely different. For hours, they made love to each other, worshipping each other's body and pouring all their feelings and heart into it. Closing her eyes, she bit her lower lip and shivered. It had been perfect.

However, after a few moments, she became aware of the silence that had instilled in the room as Naruto and Kyuubi abruptly shut up.

"Diana?" Naruto asked tentatively. He swallowed a node in his neck. "Are you okay?"

She opened her eyes but when she was about to reply, she was momentarily stunned.

"Kurama! Your fur is-" she began to say.

"Yes, I am a god!" the fox said with a grin. But he asked a bit worried: "But I'm not the only one who changed... look at yourself."

It was then that Wonder Woman finally caught the sight of her long hair. Her previously raven-black hair was a pure silvery-white colour now. She was so startled that she unconsciously released her aura too. It was the aura of a goddess.

Naruto looked at her in awe.

He had always found the Amazon Princess attractive, even before falling in love with her. As he had said under the coercion of the Lasso of Truth, he saw her as divine, perfection given human form. But now, she somehow became even more enchanting if that was possible. When he first noticed that her hair had turned white he was afraid something bad happened to her. But once she released her divinity and his worries disappeared, only astonishment remained.

⁂

Two days later, Naruto and Diana said their goodbyes to Hippolyta and the Amazons and returned to her apartment in New York.

Now, a golden fox cub was flying around in the living room like a shuttle. Despite his great power, Kurama had never been able to fly before. But now that he was a god and that he could fly effortlessly, he was milling around, stirring winds in his passing.

"By the void, cut it out already!" Naruto yelled at him incensed from his seat on the sofa. He couldn't pay any attention to the large tv in front of him because of the fox. He was as obnoxious as a bee incessantly buzzing around inside a room.

As if to spite him, Kyuubi flew in front of Naruto, between and him and the tv. He floated in mid-air and sat like a human in a crossed-legged position and unfurled his 10 golden fluffy tails like a peacock, blocking his sight completely.

The blond reached the end of his patience. A shadow clone came from the office room of the apartment and handed the original Naruto a paper slip. Enough was enough.

Kurama did not realize what was going to happen until he felt someone slapping his back. When the paper slip was stuck on his back, the fox cried out in surprise when his powers were all of a sudden cancelled and he dropped down on the floor with a thud. Before he could make out the situation, Naruto grabbed the little golden fox by the scruff of his neck and dragged him to the kitchen.

"You wanted to fly, didn't you? Then fly!" the blond yelled in a mean voice and threw the fox through the open window. They were on the top floor of a skyscraper with over 70 floors.

"Narutooo! Fuck you!" Kurama hollered as he plunged towards the ground.

Hearing the vague sound of a car getting smashed to bits and several alarms starting to blare, Naruto smiled in satisfaction. It was almost like music to his ears.

"Seriously you two! You're like Tom and Jerry! Not a day passes without one trying to drive the other nuts." Diana admonished lightly when he returned to the living room.

He chuckled lightly in spite of himself and plopped down on the sofa next to her. But what was on his mind was left unsaid however when the anchors started talking about a particular news report. A title written in bold and uppercase letters occupied the bottom centre of the screen:

WONDER WOMAN EXPELLED FROM THE JUSTICE LEAGUE

The anchor proceeded to say:

"Here is what the spokesperson of the Justice League, Martian Manhunter, had to say at the press conference held earlier this morning:"

The image changed and a different footage started playing. Still wearing nothing except for his purple cloak and briefs, the green-skinned alien spoke in front of two dozens of microphones belonging to media outlets from all over the Globe.

"Maxwell Lord IV killed the Blue Beetle, one of our members 4 days ago. However, he should have answered for his crimes in front of the court, according to the Law. The Justice League does not condone Wonder Woman's actions. Our purpose has never been to take the law into our hands but to keep people safe. As a result of her deeds, with a heavy heart, we hereby announce that Wonder Woman has been officially removed from the ranks of the Justice League. Wonder Woman has been one of the founding members of the Justice League and she has worked together with us to protect the Earth for years...nevertheless, nobody is above the reach of the law. We all have to be held accountable for our deeds."

Martian Manhunter's words were met with chaos as tens of reporters started yelling questions at the same time. One of the reporters with stronger lungs managed to scream his question loud enough to cover everyone else:

"WHAT IS THE JUSTICE LEAGUE DOING TO APPREHEND HER?!"

The ruckus quickly died down. Everyone wanted to hear the answer to that question. The way that Martian Manhunter's previously stoic face grimaced made the reporters start panting like a pack of starved wolves at the smell of blood.

"We have strongly suggested Wonder Woman to turn herself in to the authorities. She is a person of character and we believe that she will-" Martian Manhunter started to say only for the same reporter to cut him off and yell:

"What if she refuses to do so? Surely you do not think that regular police officers will be able to overpower her, do you? Have you not seen the devastation that her battle against Superman created in the Andes Mountains? The two of them reshaped the land! Geographers are now working to redraw the map of the levelled portion of the mountainside in Chile. For god's sake, she almost KILLED Superman!"

At his words, the other reports all started yelling their agreements and bombard Martian Manhunter with another wave of questions.

The screen of the tv went black as Naruto used the remote control to turn it off. He looked at Diana with a troubled look in his eyes. But, to his surprise, she appeared to be completely calm. He had expected her to show a pained look or some frustration but there was none of that. Her expression was the epitome of serenity.

"You don't need to worry about me." Diana said with a small smile. "I don't regret what I did. If I had to go back and be faced with that situation once more I would make the same choice every time. It was the life of a criminal for the sake of thousands of innocents or more. I don't blame the Justice League anymore either. Thinking about it, when the other dimension Superman lobotomized that alien creature in Metropolis a few months ago I did not react well to his actions either. I can't be too harsh on others now, can I? Furthermore, I think that that incident with the Justice Lords where it was revealed that they had taken over the planet in their dimension has made everyone very sensitive to such matters. I understand why they do not want to accept the fact that Maxwell had to be killed. It's because they are scared. They are afraid of falling into the footsteps of our counterparts from the other dimension. They do not want to become tyrants too."

She took his hand in hers and interlocked their fingers as her blue eyes peered lovingly into his.

"It doesn't matter what they think about me anymore. Your love and support are all I need. My mother is proud of me too. Nothing else matters."

Naruto brought their interlocked hands up and kissed her hand tenderly.

"Good. For a moment there, I thought you'd actually go along with this farce. I'd never let them parade you around on meaningless trials. I won't let anyone disrespect you like that."

She leaned into his chest and he embraced her dearly with an arm and caressed her silky white hair with the other hand.

"How does it feel to be a goddess now?" he asked after a while.

"Not that different I guess? I mean I noticed the big difference between before and after my mother unsealed my powers as a demigoddess a few months ago. But now the difference isn't that big. I guess I feel calmer and a bit less emotional?" she said rhetorically.

"Did you become the goddess of something? Like, do you have a domain of sorts or something you preside over? Did you become the goddess of marriage and childbirth like Hera?"

Diana giggled at his words.

"Of course not, you silly goose! How would I be the goddess of something like that when I'm not married and have never given birth?"

He chuckled too. "Well then? Don't keep me in suspense."

"I don't have a domain. Most of the Olympian gods were not born with a domain, it was the faith of the people that gave them attributes. Take goddess Athena for example: people praised her for her wisdom, skill in battle, and talent in handicrafts. In time, she became the patron goddess of Wisdom, War, and Handicrafts. When she started showing favouritism towards heroes and supported them in their trials, she became the Goddess of Heroes too."

"Ooh! I was wondering why I didn't get any special power besides flying and being able to regenerate my chakra!" Kurama exclaimed, popping up seemingly out of nowhere.

"You came back for more?" Naruto asked belligerently. "God or not, I'll still kick your furry ass to Sunday and back if you don't settle down."

The fox snickered unrepentantly. Completely ignoring his question, he asked one of his own:

"Well then, when are we going to the Vega System?"

The wagging of his 10 tails betrayed his excitement. He could not wait to get there. He was swooning at the image of thousands of people bowing or kneeling in front of him, worshipping his glorious self.

"Sheesh, get a grip already, you're drooling."

While the three of them were chatting merrily and poking fun at each other, a glowing relic flew from the bedroom into the living room and stopped in mid-air in front of the sofa where they were sitting. It was the stone pendant with the snake-haired woman that Athena had given Diana before they left Tartarus.

The clear voice of Athena rang:

"Zeus left Olympus two days ago. I thought that he had gotten wind of Hera and Typhon's deaths and that he went to check the situation himself. But he is nowhere to be found and my sources tell me that he never went to Tartarus. After further consideration it became clear to me: Zeus had run away."

When the voice stopped, the stone pendant lost its glow and landed softly on the coffee table.

Naruto and Diana looked at each other wide-eyed.

"Oi, oi, why would he run away? Didn't Athena say that Zeus was so confident in his power that he disregarded even Darkseid?"

Kyuubi let out a confident chuckle and flexed his paw.

"Isn't that obvious? He noticed my power. He sensed my divinity. Ahahah!"

Naruto and Diana rolled their eyes, having become accustomed to the fox's bragging and boasting a long time ago. They knew that now that Kurama was an actual god, his pride and ego would get much, much bigger than before.

Little did they know, however, that Kurama's boastful words were not empty. When Kyuubi released his aura two days ago for Naruto to see it, it struck horror into Zeus's heart. After Athena 'coincidentally' informed him of Hera's and Typhon's deaths too, the so-called King of Gods became certain of his next course of action: escape!

⁂

One week after Maxwell Lord IV's death, Green Arrow was patrolling his hometown, Star City, when he received a peculiar phone call.

"Hello? Who is this?"

"It's me, Diana."

Green Arrow looked around carefully and brought a hand up to mask his mouth as if to stop potential eavesdroppers from reading the words on his lips.

"Are you out of your mind? Why did you call me of all people? The whole world is out to get you now and the Justice League is watching me carefully too since I was the only one to speak in your defence. They will find you in a matter of seconds!" he almost shouted but in a whisper.

"I wanted to thank you for standing up for me." Wonder Woman said. "I wish I could have conveyed my gratitude face to face but, as you said it yourself, that is not really an option for me right now."

"No need to thank me." Green Arrow said and shook his head. "I only did what I thought was right. Everyone is harping about you being a 'murderer' but they're conveniently forgetting how you prevented probably tens of thousands of innocents from being harmed. They forgot how many people were killed by Superman in Metropolis a few years ago when Darkseid brainwashed him. They seem to have forgotten how deadly a Kryptonian with no morals can be. It's easier for them to paint you in a bad light and use you as a scapegoat."

A soft sigh came from the other side of the transmission.

"It is what it is. With that said, I won't come back again. The Justice League has grown large and powerful so it doesn't need my strength anymore...and it certainly doesn't deserve my time anymore either. I'm going to leave the Earth."

Green Arrow was stunned by her words.

"Leave? And go where?"

"The Universe is a large place. I can go anywhere. Besides, I get to be together with the man I love. If I'm being honest, I've always wished to go with him but in the past, I could not just ignore my responsibilities as a member of the Justice League and leave. But now, there is nothing to stop me any longer."

Not only that the Justice League was out to arrest her and hand her over to the authorities to be trialled by the International Court of Justice, but her mother and the rest of the Amazons were going to leave the Earth soon too. There was really nothing holding her back anymore.

"So you and that alien mercenary are serious about your relationship?"

"Do you know me as a frivolous woman? We've been serious about it from the beginning."

Green Arrow winced at the sharpness in her words.

"Not at all. Well, as long as you're happy, I wish you all the best."

"Thank you again, Oliver." Diana said in a softer tone and used his real name. "It meant a lot for me that you tried to defend me. I will not forget your support."

"As I told you, I only did what I thought was right."

"I understand. But I still appreciate it. Listen to me, I have solid reasons to believe that Darkseid will attack the Earth again sometime in the future."

Even with the mask that he was wearing it was easy to see the sceptical look on Green Arrow's face at her words.

"Darkseid is dead. I was there when he died, together with another nearly 100 members of the Justice League."

"He is far more powerful than the JL gives him credit for. Apparently, it's not the first time he got killed. Darkseid will be back, and he will be back with a vengeance. He will never give up on Earth."

"And how do you know all this?" Green Arrow asked, now starting to become nervous.

"It was Goddess Athena that informed me of it. To understand how serious it is, Goddess Athena and the rest of the Olympian Gods are preparing for an Exodus. They are going to leave this dimension together with the Amazons very soon."

The bow-wielding vigilante exhaled loudly.

"My God, you dropped one hell of a bomb on my lap now."

"Would you have rather not known?"

"No..." he admitted. "...It's better that you told me. What should I tell the Justice League?"

"It's not a secret. I told you this so you could inform everyone. Although I will no longer be on Earth at that time, I don't wish to see this planet destroyed. There are millions of people on this planet that did nothing wrong. They do not deserve to die. Besides, I'm pretty sure Batman or Cyborg are listening on our call as we speak."

"I don't think so, princess." Green Arrow retorted. "This is a secure line."

"No technology is secure anymore ever since Batman created that artificial intelligence named Brother." Diana said and Green Arrow got the impression that she shrugged her shoulders. "Anyway, that's all I had to say. I'm going to leave Earth's atmosphere in about a minute so I can't talk much longer. Thank you again. And if you ever find yourself in dire need of help, go to Doctor Fate and ask him to contact us. Naruto gave him a device that he can use to call us regardless of how many galaxies away we might be. I will return your favour when you need it the most."

Green Arrow let out a sigh.

"Alright. Thank you for calling me and for warning us about Darkseid. I will let the Justice League know what you said. You take care of yourself, princess."

"You too, Oliver. Bye."

AN: You can google "Wonder Woman white hair" to see her new appearance.

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Caterpillar by grumpywolf

 Naruto & Justice League Xover Rated: M, English, Adventure & Romance, [Naruto U., Diana of Themyscira/Wonder Woman] Kyuubi/Kurama, Words: 202k+, Favs: 5k+, Follows: 5k+, Published: Oct 7, 2020 Updated: Apr 15  3,216Chapter 43 - A new beginning (I)

AN: Enjoy!

Chapter 43 - A new beginning (I)

Seconds after Wonder Woman finished her telephonic conversation with Green Arrow, the spaceship exited the planet's atmosphere. Standing alone in the quarterdeck of the spaceship, she gazed at the blue planet in the distance through the large window at the back of the ship. The image of Earth from space was not a new sight to her. During her tenure as a member of the Justice League, she had gazed at the planet from the Watchtower countless times. However, now it was different. She was leaving the Earth behind for good. Mixed feelings clouded her heart.

She was a bit startled when two arms wrapped around her from behind. It was Naruto. Shinobi habits ingrained in him for a lifetime have made him stealthy without him consciously trying to be. She had not sensed him coming.

"Penny for your thoughts?" he asked and rested his chin on her shoulder as he hugged her.

Diana leaned back into his embrace and sighed.

"I don't know what I would have done without you by my side." she said.

"Maybe you wouldn't have killed Maxwell Lord if you hadn't met me before? I mean, since you met me, you've always had the option to leave the Earth. But if you hadn't had anywhere else to go maybe you would have been reticent to snap his neck like that?" Sensing her disagreement, he added with a shrug: "I don't know, I'm just saying..."

The princess shook her head and said categorically, in a tone that left no doubts about her stance on the matter:

"No. I would have killed him regardless. That's exactly why I'm wondering what I would have done if you hadn't been by my side, because I know myself: I couldn't let someone that had complete control over Superman's mind live. I was still on Themyscira when Darkseid invaded the Earth and brainwashed Superman a few years ago but I've seen reports and footages from back then. Thousands of casualties and a large part of Metropolis left in ruins... An evil Kryptonian would be too destructive, too dangerous. Maxwell had to die for what he did. It was either him or the lives of many innocents."

The tone of her voice changed, becoming melancholic: "With the entire Justice League trying to arrest me and the people of Earth actively protesting against me and demanding for me to be thrown in prison... Alone and abandoned by my friends, I would have probably returned to Themyscira and lived together with my mother and my Amazon sisters, never to leave the island again."

She turned around in his embrace and buried her face into the crook of his neck.

"Thank you for standing by my side, Naruto...thank you for not abandoning me like the rest. Thank you for loving me."

She was speaking quietly, her words muffled by her proximity to his neck, but he heard the subtle trembling in her voice.

"I have your mother's blessing. I ain't going anywhere. Now you're stuck with me for the rest of your life." he joked, trying to lighten up her mood.

Though he could not see her face he felt her smile. He ran his hand through her hair and caressed her scalp gently.

"It's not like you're leaving the Earth forever. We can return for visits anytime you want."

She blew air through her nose.

"And have the Justice League gang up on me to arrest me the moment I enter the Watchtower's detection range?"

He chuckled at her retort. "We can always do a few bounties and buy a new ship, capable of cloaking itself, like the one I had before. I can shapeshift myself easily and nobody knows how you look now either. If you put some civilian clothes on, nobody will recognize you with your white hair."

She hummed noncommittedly. Then, she broke their hug and said:

"You haven't told me."

"Tell you what?"

Taking a step back, she twirled her finger around a strand of her long white hair.

"Well, what do you think? About my white hair. Do you...still like it?"

He involuntarily started to smile.

"Diana, you're the last woman that should act unsure of her appearance, you know that, right?"

His words made her lips curl into a traitorous smile. But she quickly steeled her expression and pressed on:

"You're avoiding the question~"

He started laughing at her petulant behaviour.

"You often jeered at me for being shameless for perving on you but look at you now, blatantly fishing for compliments with a straight face. You're no less shameless than I am!"

Being called out like that made her face quickly become an interesting shade of pink. It looked especially striking in contrast with her silvery-white hair. She lunged at him in a tackle but he intercepted her hands with his. Their hands locked together, they were temporarily stuck in a contest of strength.

"You're so cute when you're embarrassed." he cooed at her, all the while sporting a shit-eating grin on his face.

His words made her embarrassment spike anew and, with a burst of strength, she overpowered him and tackled him into the wall. The entire spaceship trembled from the impact.

A sudden voice came from the speakers installed in every room of the spaceship:

"Oi, are you trying to throw the whole ship off its course?! Quit horsing around you idiot couple!" Kurama screamed in the microphone.

For a moment, Naruto and Diana froze up like statues. Then, they burst into laughter.

When he finally shook off his mirth, he took her hand in his and kissed it.

"This isn't the end of everything, Diana. It's just the end of a chapter in your life. Ahead of us, there is a new beginning."

As his words ended, Earth could no longer be seen through the large window of the quarterdeck. Now, there was only a spectacle of grey and white lights resembling a tunnel. A wormhole. Kyuubi had initiated the space wrap.

⁂

After the annihilation of the Psions, the Vega System fell into chaos. Whereas before the system had been ruled with an iron fist by the alliance between the Citadel, the Gordanians, and the Psion Monarchy, the current situation was vastly different. The Psions and their planet had been exterminated and their closest allies, the Gordanians, abandoned their homeworld in a panic, leaving the beautiful planet Karna free of their tyranny.

The unexpected fall of the Psion Monarchy greatly affected the Citadel Empire. The Gordanians also became unable to spare any force in assisting them due to the increasingly vicious war between them and the Thanagarians. Because of that, the Citadel was left without any support and the vigilante group of metahumans from the Vega System, Omega Men, was extremely quick to take advantage of its moment of weakness, launching many attacks against the empire over the past half a year. A new planet was being freed from the Citadel's dominion every month.

If that was not enough of a cesspool, the Green Lantern Corps no longer adhered to the pact of non-aggression that they had signed with the Psion Monarchy after its fall. The Vega System was introduced in the 3600 sectors of the Universe policed by the Corps and a team of Green Lanterns was assigned to patrol the system - an act which led to the rising conflict between the Green Lanterns and the Orange Lantern Corps.

"So, to make a long story short, the Vega System is an absolute shithole." Naruto summarized the intelligence report he had bought from a Milky Way Galaxy information broker.

"You have your work cut out for you, Kurama." Wonder Woman said.

The fox in question was not worried in the least.

"I knew the rough situation from the prayers of the people calling out for me." he said. "After becoming a god, their voices aren't unintelligible anymore. They aren't driving me crazy. I can hear them perfectly, every single voice."

Naruto and Diana listened to the fox's confession in curiosity.

"It's strange really. I can talk to you normally but my mind is also perfectly focused on the ones calling my name. Even now, as we speak, I hear millions of souls praying to me. They're asking me to save them. They're asking me for retribution against the ones that are oppressing them, begging me to kill their enemies and give them freedom."

The two of them did not know what to say. The fox was usually acting either like a lazy bum or like a glutton and more often than not he took great delight in fucking up with people and trolling them - like he did with the other dimension Superman or with Cerberus, in Tartarus, or how he often annoyed the hell out of Naruto. It was very rare to see Kyuubi act that serious.

"I need you to do one thing for me. Please." the fox said.

"You're being weird. You don't need to plead with me to do something, when have I ever shied away from helping you with anything?" Naruto said and looked at him strangely.

Kurama hesitated as if he was trying to find the right words. "I want you to not get involved with the Vega System. I want you to leave."

Naruto became silent. The golden fox was silent too for a while, his attention seemingly focused on steering the ship towards the green planet ahead of them. It was Karna, the Gordanians' homeworld.

"I am a new god. People's faith in me is still not very strong. They're praying to me out of desperation rather than faith. This is my chance to capture their heart and elevate my status in their eyes."

"Elevate my status - when did you start learning new words?" the blond tried to poke fun at him.

"I'm not joking this time...why can't you be serious for a moment?" Kyuubi said in annoyance.

"Alright, alright, don't get your panties in a bunch, sheesh." Naruto raised his hands and said to placate him. "Why do you need me to leave anyway? Afraid I'll steal your glory or something?"

"Pretty much, yeah." Kyuubi said with a straight face.

Naruto was thrown off guard by his straightforward answer.

"You're kidding, aren't you."

"Nope, I'm dead serious. Omega Men and the Citadel Empire are in the midst of a bitter war, the remnant forces of the Gordanians that had not fled the system are wreaking havoc everywhere, and the Green Lantern Corps are having skirmishes against the Orange Lantern Corps too. Who are the ones that suffer the most? Who are the ones that die when powerful forces clash? Ordinary people."

If Naruto and Diana were surprised before, now they were looking at him as if he had grown two heads. As rude as it sounded, Naruto asked bluntly:

"Since when did you start caring about the weak?"

Kyuubi had never cared about others except for Naruto and, as of late, Diana. The rest had been irrelevant. His attitude had been very clear - the weak died, the strong survived. Outside of the bounties that he completed together with Naruto, he didn't bother with saving or caring about other people. It was only a week ago that the fox had shrugged off the Amazons' potential death as if he couldn't have cared less.

"I became a god because of ordinary and weak people. I can't live selfishly just for myself anymore. And in this desperate situation, people would be willing to believe in any god as long as they are saved. If I save them now, the psychic energy from their faith will empower me. This is my opportunity both to save them and to cement my position in their hearts as their god. You being here would not help me and the power of faith won't do you any good. You're not a god. You'll only end up suffering like a schizophrenic, as I did."

Making a small pause, the fox added: "You can stay with me if you want, Diana. You are a goddess. But I'll be honest with you and say that I'd rather be alone this time."

For the first time since they left Tartarus, Naruto was hit by reality: Kyuubi and Wonder Woman were gods. He may be just as powerful as them and he may not die of old age due to his near-death encounter with the Supermassive Black Hole...but he was not a god. There was a distinct difference between them.

"Look at the good part: you can have all the time you want with Diana, without me getting in your way." Kyuubi said with a grin, only to be met with two vehement shouts:

"You're not a bother!" the couple shouted at the same time.

Kyuubi sighed. "You're making this harder than it has to be... Just think of it as a holiday of sorts. Don't humans spend some time alone after they marry? Go on a honeymoon or something!"

"We're not married yet." Naruto muttered half-heartedly. When he looked at Diana, they flushed slightly.

By now, their ship entered the planet's troposphere. Below them, planet Karna appeared in all of its glory. It was a lush planet with an atmosphere rich in Oxygen and a perfect environment for sustaining organic life. It was a beautiful planet, with even more green than the Earth. Through his Sage senses, Naruto could feel that the state of nature was better than on Earth.

Kyuubi stood up from the pilot's seat and levitated himself in front of Naruto, at the same eye level as him. When he spoke, his deep voice sounded gentle, not like usual.

"We've been together since the day you were born. I hated you for being imprisoned inside your body and you disliked me for the suffering I brought in your life. But we depended on each other to survive. In time, we became more than just unwilling partners. We became comrades. After over a century, I, Kurama, a god, can say with pride that you are my brother. Nothing will ever change that."

At the fox's heartfelt words, Naruto became emotional.

"But after so many years, it's time for you to move on too. I can't babysit you for eternity now, can I?" Kyuubi said with a grin and the blond smiled too in spite of himself. "I can't travel the universe like a vagabond anymore. I am a god now. Millions of people depend on me and I- ...I feel responsible for them. But I can't make you stay with me here either. And you shouldn't. Our friendship should not chain you down."

The ten-tailed fox closed the distance between the two of them and raised his fist. They bumped their fists against each other. In that moment, they could understand each other perfectly. That's why Naruto did not try to put up a fight and insist more on staying together. He understood Kurama's feelings and intention. He also understood that it was for his own and Wonder Woman's good as well.

"Like you told Diana when we left the Earth - it's not like we won't see each other ever again. You can always come to visit me. I won't leave this place. Now, the Vega System is my home. Just give me 1 or 2 years to end all the wars in this system. You can come after that."

"To not steal your glory, right?" Naruto attempted to joke and smiled weakly.

"Damn straight." Kyuubi laughed.

Diana did not intervene between the two of them. She left the control room of the ship, choosing to give the man and the fox some alone time just like she had been given with her mother, Hippolyta before they left. Absent-mindedly, she thought:

'Life moves on, doesn't it?'

It felt strange to her. A month ago, she returned to Earth with Naruto and Kurama, thinking that they were going to spend Christmas and the New Year together, celebrating happily and making great memories. She had hoped that she would manage to convince them to stay on Earth with her and join the Justice League. She had dreamt of fighting against crime together with them. However, one problem after another followed, as if the whole world was out to get her.

'Who would have thought I'd be the one to end up leaving the Earth with him instead? Or that the gods would take the Amazons with them and leave this dimension? Or that Kurama would part ways with us?'

She had had to part ways with her mother and Naruto was going to part ways with his lifelong friend too. It was not necessarily a bad thing because they could always visit each other in the future. On one hand, she was happy to finally be able to live with Naruto. But on the other hand, she felt pained at the thought of leaving her mother behind. She was going to miss Kurama as well because she had grown to care about the assholish fox a lot too.

'It's...bittersweet.'

Nevertheless, as Naruto had put it, it was not the end of everything. It was just the end of a chapter in their lives. As life moved on, ahead of them there was a new beginning.

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Caterpillar by grumpywolf

 Naruto & Justice League Xover Rated: M, English, Adventure & Romance, [Naruto U., Diana of Themyscira/Wonder Woman] Kyuubi/Kurama, Words: 202k+, Favs: 5k+, Follows: 5k+, Published: Oct 7, 2020 Updated: Apr 15  3,216Chapter 44 - A new beginning (II)

AN: I heard rumours today about this website shutting down. Have you guys heard anything about that?

A new chapter is up, one that is twice as long as usual. Enjoy!

Chapter 44 - A new beginning (II)

His heart was filled with content and with happiness whenever he looked at his wife and daughter. Furthermore, he could live his days in peace together with his parents, his grandfather-figure, Sarutobi Hiruzen, his auntie Tsunade, his perverted mentor, Jiraiya, and his best friends, Gaara and Sasuke. Diana was happier too, no longer stressed and tormented by responsibilities and she could live together with her mother, away from the oppression of the Olympian gods. What more could he ask from life?

'This is paradise.' he thought as he watched everyone around him having a good time.

Sasuke and Gaara were playing a game of shogi, Jiraiya was trying to flirt with Tsunade, Sakura and Diana were chatting together with Hippolyta and the three genins were having a mock fight against a bear-sized nine-tailed fox while Naruto, his parents, and Sandaime were having a drink.

[...]

"No! This can't be happening!" he shouted, his face livid.

A massive rip in the space appeared above the courtyard.

A pale-white woman with horns on her head and long white hair stepped out of the rift. Her pupilless white eyes stared at the people below with hatred. She raised her hands and said:

"All-Killing Ash Bones."

Time seemed to slow down to a crawl but despite his heightened senses and superhuman powers, Naruto found himself unable to react. Under his horrified eyes, he watched how bone spikes were shot from the Rabbit Goddess' arms, impaling everyone below.

⁂

Softly-murmured words woke her up. She was a light sleeper, sometimes even a whisper could be enough to wake her up.

"Kurama... no... not Thea... no..."

Next to her, in bed, Naruto was talking in his sleep. It was not a peaceful sleep. There was a sheen of sweat on his forehead. He was not loud, nor was he trashing in his sleep but his quiet sleep-talking gave away the fact that he was having a nightmare. His eyes were rolling furiously under his closed eyelids and he was murmuring names in a pained voice.

She shook his shoulders (not vigorously as to not scare him) and said:

"Naruto. Baby, wake up."

He opened his eyes wide, startled. For a second, she saw a haunted look in his eyes. But once he took in her appearance, he quickly calmed down and his eyes were filled with warmth.

"Sorry. I woke you up again." he said and winced.

She laid in bed again and rolled on her side to look at him. She brought a hand to his face and her thumb caressed his scarred cheek with a tenderness that almost brought him to tears. However, he did not shed any. A small smile appeared on his face and he closed his eyes, melting from her affection.

"Bad dreams happen, it's not up to you. Just remember I'm here, ok? I'm always here." she whispered and pressed her lips on his forehead.

Two months passed since Naruto parted ways with Kurama and Diana with her mother. Maybe due to the increased control that she had gained over her emotions after becoming a goddess, Diana was handling it rather well but Naruto was hit hard by it. He and the fox had shared the same body for over 4 decades and they had been together for over 110 years. He had never been truly alone. Being suddenly split away from his lifelong friend had affected him greatly.

Naruto had never forgotten the illusion shown to him by Black Mercy on planet Debstam. Whereas before, he had managed to push it away from his thoughts thanks to Kurama's and Diana's presence in his life, after the fox left, his subconscious fear of loneliness brought that nightmare back into his life. It did not happen very often - about once a week or so - but every time he dreamt about the death of everyone he loved was no less painful.

Nevertheless, Naruto understood Kyuubi's reasons for splitting up when they bumped their fists together. He wanted Naruto to grow up, to evolve. He wanted the blond to stop relying on him like a crutch. The fox wanted him to start a life of his own.

While Naruto understood Kurama's reasons and agreed with them, the change was not easy. Fortunately, he was not alone. Even if Kurama left, Diana was still by his side. Never once had she complained that his nightmares were ruining her sleep. Never once had she tried to shoo him away or to sleep in another bed. Instead, every time he had a nightmare, she embraced him to her chest and comforted him without a word of reproach.

He hugged her closer to his body and she brought his face in her bosom. There was nothing sexual about it. With her fingers caressing the back of his head and his face resting in her softness he let out a sigh of comfort.

"Love you, Di." he said, his voice muffled by her breasts.

She placed a kiss on the top of his head at his words and continued her gentle and comforting caresses.

"Love you too, baby. Now sleep."

Under her tender ministrations, it was not long after that he fell back asleep.

⁂

Diana woke up with a groan as the impossibly bright light of the morning peeked through the curtains, right on her face. They were on a planet with 2 suns. Mornings were twice as hard for her than on Earth. She hid her head under the blanket.

"You'll never be a morning person, will you?"

"Go away." she whined grumpily, only for him to chuckle.

"Then, I guess I'll go eat breakfast alone. A shame really. I ordered room service for both of us but since you're sleepy, it can't be helped..."

As on cue, she kicked her blanket away and looked at him pointedly.

"Sometimes I wonder who's older and who's younger between the two of us." he said with a chuckle and came closer to her bed.

"Oh shut it!"

Wearing only white panties and a tank top, and even with a bleary face and messy white hair standing in all directions, he thought that she was the most beautiful person in the world.

"Come on, or the food will get cold." he said and pulled on her hand.

"Nooo. Bring the food here. Or better yet, carry me!"

It was only to him that she ever showed that spoiled attitude. A strong warrior woman acting like a spoiled little girl was so cute that it made him feel warm and fuzzy every time he looked at her.

"Who are you and where's the warrior princess that I used to know." he muttered but Diana giggled. He was not fooling her. She knew all too well that despite his complaints, he secretly loved it. He loved it a lot because he could never resist any of her demands when she acted like that.

He brought one of his hands under her legs and the other behind her back and Wonder Woman smiled pleased with herself, thinking that he was going to take her in a princess carry. But then-

"Eeek!" she squawked when he lifted her up and threw her onto his shoulder like a sack of potatoes. "Naruto, put me down!" she half-yelled, her voice high-pitched from surprise.

"Nope!" he said and playfully swatted her bare asscheek, making a crisp sound. She squealed and kicked with her legs but when another smack landed on her other buttcheek, she froze up and became completely silent, obedient.

When he put her down on the sofa in the living room of their suite, Naruto was amazed to see that Diana's face was boiling red, up to the tips of her ears.

"Don't tell me..."

"Not a word!" she growled threateningly.

"...you're turned on from having your ass spanked?"

A butterknife wooshed through the air, missing him by only half an inch.

"Shut up! Pervert!" she barked at him, her face mortified with embarrassment.

Naruto's grin was so wide that it stretched from one ear to another.

"To think that you were into that sort of thing, princess. How audacious of you. How shameless!"

When he also said "I can't wait for tonight!" she jumped up to her feet and made a beeline to the bathroom. A slam and a resounding click were heard as she furiously shut the door closed behind her and locked it too.

⁂

Taking Kyuubi's advice, Naruto had actually taken Wonder Woman on a honeymoon. They weren't married yet but the two of them had been very open with each other about their intentions from the very beginning; after receiving Hippolyta's blessing, they were for all intents and purposes married. It was only the formal ceremony that they were missing. That said, there was no doubt in their minds that they would be together forever. And for two immortals, forever was a very, very long time. They did not age.

Passionately in love with each other and with nothing holding them down, no urgent matters to attend, the two immortals lost track of time. The honeymoon that was supposed to last one month turned into two and soon, two months turned into three.

Now, they were on a particular planet in a dwarf galaxy adjacent to Andromeda. Named in the language of the natives as 'the Sea', the planet they were on currently was very famous in the galaxy for its summer tourism. Wealthy and powerful VIPs from all over the galaxy spent large sums of money to spend their holidays there. With 2 suns illuminating the planet, 85% of the surface covered by oceans, and the land consisting mostly of islands, 'the Sea' was a planet perfect for facilitating littoral tourism.

Currently on the beach, the two of them were sitting in the shade provided by the white canopy of a king-sized beach bed. Diana was sitting with her back resting on the headboard, entertaining herself with Naruto's device, browsing the intergalactic web. Her white hair was tied up in a messy bun revealing her beautiful neck, and her red bikini swimsuit left little to imagination. Her large breasts, her athletic waist, her abs and her butt made even the aliens that were of humanoid races ogle at her in amazement. However, hanged from one of the bedposts was a light blue long beach cardigan. Apart from when she went out for a swim, she usually wore it on top of her swimsuit.

"Seriously, am I the only goddess who cares about getting a tan?!" Diana huffed in exasperation. "How is there no cream or some sort of substance for it!?"

She had spent entire days under the sun, trying to get herself a nice tan but her skin was still a milky white, unblemished. Ever since she had become a goddess, it looked like her regeneration factor had increased to the point where her skin could not get burnt by the rays of the sun. She could not get a tan anymore! Now, she was searching for products and items that could help her get a tan but there were no such things on the market. At least not the type that worked on gods.

She put the tablet on the mattress with a long sigh and looked down at Naruto who was lying down with his head resting on her thighs.

"Comfortable much?" she asked with a teasing smile.

"You have no idea." he said and turned his head to place a quick peck on her tummy.

She giggled at his fascination with her abs, momentarily forgetting her annoyance at not being able to get a tan. She started playing with his hair, her fingers massaging his scalp so gently that one would find it impossible to believe that she had wielded swords and spears her entire life with those hands.

"I thought that that one week on Genesis Stadium had been the best of my life but these three months..." Diana said and trailed off wistfully.

"It's been 3 months already, huh?" Naruto said and then groaned. "Gimme the tablet for a bit."

A few taps and swipes later, he groaned again.

"This is our last week here. I'm out of credits."

'The Sea' was a very expensive planet. For that galaxy, it was like what Dubai was for Earth. It was a luxury location. Furthermore, it was already the 5th planet that they were visiting. After 3 months spent lavishly in various luxurious locations, Naruto had run out of money and goods that he could convert into currency.

"So we're going to do bounties?" Diana asked. The tone of her voice betrayed her excitement. She truly thought that the past 3 months had been the best time of her life but as of late, she was beginning to grow antsy. She was a warrior at heart. She wanted to fight against someone. She craved action.

He grinned at her reaction. "Let's see what I've got."

When he checked his inbox, he had over 200 undread messages and lost calls. During his honeymoon with Diana, he had set the device on the DND mode to ignore any calls or messages aside from the lightwave number owned by Doctor Fate on Earth and the lightwave number owned by his main information brokers.

"Sit up, I wanna see too." she urged him.

Now leaning with his back against the headboard too next to her, the two of them scrolled together through the job offers he had received.

"Robbing the Central Bank Headquarters of Hydrus Galaxy... eh, not worth the trouble or the mess in the aftermath... Searching for the missing Queen of Almerac... I don't care..."

Suddenly, Diana interrupted his mutterings: "Wait, Queen of Almerac? Isn't she the one that tried to make you her husband by force?"

"Yeah," Naruto laughed awkwardly. "A spitfire that one. A stubborn and violent woman that won't take no for an answer. I don't like violent women. Can you believe she sent her interstellar fleet after me to capture me? Chick's crazy."

"It looks like she went missing." she pointed out.

Naruto shrugged his shoulders uncaringly.

"I see this bounty all the time. She goes missing every year, it's almost like a ritual at this point. She runs to whichever planet she heard rumours of a strong male specimen to fight them. She's trying to find someone stronger than her to marry and make kids with strong genes. And every time she goes on her little trips, her homeworld is left in a ditch. You know, Almerac is a unified planet, with just 1 government, not like Earth. She is the Queen, the absolute ruler; by the void, I don't understand what's going through her mind. Isn't she afraid her people will get fed up with her irresponsibility and stage a coup?"

"Maybe she's confident nobody on Almerac can defeat her. How strong is she? And how does she look like?"

Naruto glanced at her curiously. It was unlike Wonder Woman to show that much interest in someone else.

"I won't lie, she is good looking and decently strong. But we're out of her league, by far. And she's nowhere near as beautiful as you either." he said and kissed her on the cheek. The smile that appeared on her face was radiant. She also stopped asking questions about Maxima.

They scrolled through the bounties for nearly half an hour before selecting several jobs.

"Sooo, we have 3 bounties:

1. An espionage mission in a private robotics research lab in the Draco Galaxy. A very easy mission with my jutsu but it will be boring for you as you won't be able o participate.

("You really have to teach me your spells soon, you promised." Diana muttered while he was speaking)

2. Capturing alive the Captain of the pirates from Zarus System of Milky Way Galaxy and handing him over to the Monarchy ruling that system.

3. Intercepting the galleon-class ship of a slave trader company and saving the captured people on board. If there are no slaves, kill the entire crew. The ship is travelling on a fixed route between 2 systems in Andromeda."

⁂

"A galleon-class starship is generally at least half a mile long."

Wonder Woman raised her eyebrows in surprise. "That's enormous."

"By Earth's standards, they're very large, true. A ship of such size also has extremely durable outer plating, a strong energy shield, and very powerful artillery. Its only downsides are its cruising speed and that it's impossible to travel through wormholes with it." Naruto explained.

"So that's why is 'our' slave-trader travelling on a fixed route instead of doing space wraps!"

"Yep. Besides the New Gods from Apokolips and New Genesis, as far as I know, the rest of the Universe doesn't have the technology to create wormholes big enough for galleon-class ships with just a portable reactor. They can only open such wormholes by using reactors built on a planet but if they do that, they risk the space gate destroying the entire planet."

Diana looked at him impressed. "There's so much stuff I don't know. It's good I have a dedicated teacher."

"I've had decades to learn all this stuff. Trust me, it took me a very long time. I'm not exactly book smart." he said and rubbed the back of his head shyly at her praise. He felt that he did not deserve it because he knew that he was not smart that way. After he told her a few more specific details about galleon-class ships, he asked her: "How would you complete this mission?"

She thought for a moment before answering:

"The easiest way would be if you could somehow bypass their energy shield and teleport inside the ship. The other way would be to get in their range and let ourselves be captured."

While they were chatting about possible ways to complete their selected bounties, a blue-skinned half-man half-snake waiter came with a tray in his hands, serving them a smoothie. He was one of the natives of this planet, a species of sentient beings that lived mostly underwater but they could survive on land too for a limited amount of time.

⁂

Their last week on 'the Sea' planet eventually came to an end and they had to leave. But they were not sad about it. After 3 months spent lazying around and just having fun, both Naruto and Diana were looking forward to some action. Now, he was teaching her how to activate the space-warp technology of their ship and create a wormhole.

"How does space-warping even work?" she asked in curiosity.

He made a troubled expression. "I'm not quite sure about the details, it sounded too complicated when I looked it up. But from what I learned, it looks like space is not straight but more like it's made of countless layers folded on top of each other. That's why when you open a hole in the space-time continuum you can get to millions of light-years away." He scratched his hair with both of his hands. "Argh, I know, it makes no sense to me either, I get a headache just thinking about it!"

She laughed at his antics. "It actually makes sense to me. But I'll have to research the subject myself, I feel like your explanation is missing something."

He shrugged his shoulders, not offended. "Suit yourself. I'm okay with just knowing how to use it, I don't care about learning why it works."

A few hours later, in the Andromeda Galaxy, a wormhole appeared in space and a small spaceship (less than 100 feet long) came out of it. However, the slave-trading galleon-class ship that they were supposed to intercept was not a stationary target. Getting to the Andromeda Galaxy had been the easy part; it was now that the tedious part of the mission started: locating their target.

They have been flying on the route given to them by their employer for several days already without any luck.

"This isn't as exciting as I thought it would be." Diana said bummed out.

Now, the two of them were sitting in a coffee shop in the space terminal of a planet located on the slave-trading ship's route. It was like an international airport from Earth, but for spaceships, an interstellar spaceport.

"Well, I told you not to start with this bounty first, didn't I? Some bounties can be completed in a few hours - like the espionage mission we selected, missions with a fixed objective and a clear location. But others can take entire days or even more than a week. But this is different. Searching for the ship in space is impossible. All we can do is check the planets and space stations on the route and search their logs. We will find them eventually because galleon-class ships burn through fuel very fast. They will need to make a stop at some point to refill their tank."

It was while they were chatting like that that they noticed the spaceport becoming more alive as troops of robots and attendants armed with blasters flooded the dry dock.

"What's happening?" Diana asked, that being the first time she had seen such a scene. "Is someone attacking the space terminal?"

"Don't think so, there are no alarms. Probably they caught sight of a very big spaceship approaching the planet and they want to be prepared for a conflict just in case. You can never know if they're merchants, or military, or pirates. Nobody advertises what kind of ship they are. If people aren't vigilant, they can very easily get killed by their negligence. Space is not a friendly place."

Saying that, he suddenly became energized. "This could be our ship!"

"What are the chances?" she said sceptically.

"Higher than you think," he replied. "It's very rare to see galleon-class ships that don't belong to an intergalactic empire - and there are none close to this system. Galleon-class ships are also crazy expensive and their maintenance costs are sky high too. Weaker forces and organisations would not be able to afford them. Also, this planet is on the slave-trading ship's route too."

⁂

Sneaking into the control room of the terminal was a piece of cake for Naruto. He did not have to do anything spectacular to get access to the logs of the spaceport either. The registration code of the ship was the same as the one given to them by their employer. Slave trading was frowned upon by the Universe at large. That said, for a slave-trading company to survive, they had to pretend to be something else. Their ships had to have proper documentation too in order to not raise any suspicions. Otherwise, they would not be able to blend in and refuel at any space terminals.

"It's a double-edged sword." Naruto explained to Diana while he was piloting their ship.

They had left the space terminal right after the galleon-class ship and they were now following it from a distance.

"On one hand, it's almost impossible to detect the slave-trading ships when they have no 'merchandise' because nobody will inspect a half a mile long ship for no good reason. It could take days to search the entirety of the ship; neither the military nor the merchants are willing to waste that much time so slave traders take advantage of it. They will never come to a space terminal while having slaves on board. But on the other hand, if someone gets wind of their real identity it's very easy to find them and capture them because of their perfect documentation. My guess is that someone sold them out."

Diana was paying careful attention to his words. She smiled at how earnest he was to explain to her every little thing and she was happy about it too - what he was telling her were things that he had learned from long years of experience as an intergalactic bounty hunter. They were not things that could be learned in a book, nor were they wisdom that could be readily bought up using money.

A while later, the galleon-class ship appeared on their radar. Naturally, it stood to reason that the other side had detected them as well. Nevertheless, a half a mile long ship equipped with powerful artillery and a strong energy shield had nothing to worry about from them. Compared to a galleon-class ship, their 100-feet long ship was as small as a mosquito in front of an elephant.

Five smaller space ships left the dry dock of the galleon-class ship and flew towards them. Their intention was obvious.

"Do we let ourselves get captured?" Diana asked.

Naruto chuckled at her excitement.

"Yeah, we better let them think we're scared. We don't want them to destroy our ship and we don't want to destroy their own ships either."

The interesting aspect of this bounty was that there was no reward for it from the employer. Clearly, the person that put up the bounty had done it out of a grudge. The message was clear: they did not care what happened with the galleon-class ship and the riches found on board as long as they got proof that the slave traders on board had been killed.

What that being said, Naruto wanted to preserve the galleon-class ship in pristine condition. After eliminating the crew, he would be able to sell the enormous spaceship for a very high price.

Right before the 5 smaller spaceships reached them (they were still larger than their own ship), Naruto told Diana:

"I'll make a shadow clone and let it be captured instead of me. As for myself, I'll Henge into a ring that you can wear on your finger. It's to prepare for the case where they have some sort of technology that can cancel out metahuman abilities and/or magic. You can never be too careful when interacting with someone in space. Don't underestimate anyone, even if you are a goddess. For all we know, there could very well exist technology that can subdue the powers of a god. The New Gods of New Genesis or Apokolips are certainly capable of creating something like that."

She nodded in understanding.

"Also, when we get on their ship, try not to kill anyone before we make sure that they're really slave traders. We don't want to kill innocents. We'll use your Lasso of Truth to interrogate them. You can never trust your employer for their words because there are times when you will get bounties to assassinate someone who they will say it's a bad guy simply because they are enemies or because they want to get rid of them. We always have to do our own research first. I don't take assassination bounties for decent people. I never take someone's life lightly."

The respect and admiration Diana felt for Naruto increased at his words. The more time she spent with him, the more she realized just how meticulous and thorough he was and how much he stuck to his own code of morals. He was far from the lawless and unhinged mercenary that the Justice League was making him out to be.

⁂

Letting themselves get captured, Naruto, Diana, and their spaceship were brought aboard the galleon-class ship. However, just moments after landing on the dry dock, the two of them burst into action. Naruto cancelled his Henge and transformed from the ring on Wonder Woman's finger back to his original form. Then, a smoke bomb exploded and impaired their captors' vision.

In a show of brute physical strength, the princess ripped the high tech cuffs around her wrists as if they were made of paper, not reinforced alloy. The arcs of electricity that were released from the cuffs to paralyze her barely counted as a tickle. Her resistance to any sort of attacks had greatly increased after becoming a goddess.

After that, it took only a few seconds to dispatch of everyone. Upon confirming with Diana's lasso that they were indeed slave traders, the dry dock of the galleon-class ship all of a sudden became very crowded as over 300 shadow clones popped into existence. While to other people it would take days to inspect such an enormous ship, with the help of his shadow clones Naruto could scour the entire ship in less than an hour.

A crew of nearly 200 slave traders were sitting on the floor, in the prison section of the spaceship. There were pilots, weaponry handlers, jailers, cooks, cleaning personnel, and mechanics too. Everything needed for such a large ship to function properly.

He took out a small drone camera from his pocket and activated it, making it float in the air, around his eye level. It was to record what was about to happen.

"Are you... are you going to kill them all?" Diana asked.

She was hesitant, showing a conflicting look on her face. The slave traders looked almost identical to humans, the only difference being that they had a red-copper skin. She looked at him but she could not see his facial expression due to the mask that he was wearing.

"They are slave traders." he said curtly. "The worst kind of people in the galaxy. They pillage, kill, rape, and sell other living people like cattle. They're even worse than space pirates because most pirates would at least let you keep your life after robbing you of your valuables. But slave traders...every single one of them deserves to be killed. No, even dying is less than what they deserve."

She became queasy. She understood that they were terrible criminals - after all, she had been the one to interrogate them with her lasso of truth - but that did not make it easy for her to kill them. It was one thing to kill someone in the heat of the moment, in battle, and a completely different thing to kill nearly 200 of them at once while they were unable to defend themselves. She was a warrior, not an executioner, she could not kill so many people in cold blood, criminals or not.

"Don't worry. I will never ask you to do anything you're not comfortable with." Naruto said calmly, having expected her reaction.

Killing others had never been a pleasure for him. However, it was something that needed to be done. Killing 200 slave traders meant that thousands of other innocents would be spared from a terrible life in the future. Furthermore, he was getting paid for it. He had known what he had signed up for when he took up the bounty and he always completed his mission. His good name and impressive reputation in the 3600 sectors of the Universe had not been built on lies.

Trying to lighten up the mood with a joke, he said: "Usually, Kurama would be more than willing to eat these guys up. He'd never pass on such a good snack. Living things, especially sentient, always gave him much more chakra than regular food or animals."

It was a rather morbid joke. He dressed his voice and then said lightly as 200 clones appeared next to him: "You might want to look away."

Despite his warning, Wonder Woman did not turn her head. She stubbornly looked at how the 200 clones executed every single slave trader with a clean stab of their kunais into the back of the slave traders' heads, into their brains. It was a clean, swift death. Then, Naruto went to the Commander and his 3 adjutants and beheaded them, storing their heads in a sealing scroll. The video of their execution and the four heads were going to serve as proof of his bounty completion.

It was a chilling scene - watching the execution of 200 criminals and the decapitation of 4 bodies.

'Naruto doesn't need a self-righteous warrior at his side. He needs someone that will be with him through thick and thin. Besides, they are criminals, worthy of a death penalty.'

With that thought in mind, Diana forced herself to watch it. It was not going to be easy for her to change her principles in a very short time, she was aware of that. However, she was willing to try. She did not want to become a burden for Naruto or a dead weight that held him back. She wanted to stay by his side and help him and support him in times of need. She wanted him to know that he could rely on her when the time came.

⁂ One year later ⁂

A bit more than one year passed since Naruto and Diana left the Earth and started their lives together as intergalactic bounty hunters. After this much time spent together, she realized that his fame in the Universe at large was much, much bigger than she had thought before. Especially after the stunt he and Kurama had pulled in the Vega System - the annihilation of the Psion race - his name was almost as well-known as the name of the Green Lantern Corps by the significant powers of the Universe. There was no intergalactic empire that had not at least heard of 'Caterpillar' within the 28 galaxies of the known Universe. With that being said, Caterpillar's new partner, a white-haired human female, also became known for her monstrous physical strength.

"Look at this, another 20 new endorsement offers from interstellar merchant companies. Everyone loooves you~ I'll pull one out of Kurama's book and say that you're stealing all my glory!" Naruto said teasingly from behind Wonder Woman while she was checking her own email on a device that looked like a futuristic version of the laptops from Earth.

"Can't help it that I'm so popular. In a few years, I'll take your spot as the no1 bounty hunter, you'll see." she said smugly and flicked her long white hair over her back with a great deal of self-importance.

They both started laughing.

"You sure you're not popular simply because you're a woman and you're hot?"

Women acting as bounty hunters were not many and even fewer were strong enough to be known on an intergalactic scale. Her strength coupled with her almost angelic appearance - long white hair, wearing white and golden armour, wielding a golden shield and a god-slaying sword with a silver blade, she had become extremely popular. There were even some rich corporations or kings of planets that wanted to hire services as a "Bodyguard", obviously, just a pretext just to spend time with her.

"Need I remind you of the video that kick-started my stardom?" she said with a raised eyebrow.

The video that she was speaking of had been recorded during a job where they had been hired by a merchant company to escort a shipment of a crystal-like ore. An unlucky pirate ship tried to rob the merchant fleet, only for the Amazon princess to use her lasso to yoink and hurl the several hundred meters long pirate ship into an asteroid belt. It was not only the merchants that were terrified out of their wits, even Naruto got a little shaken back then. Seeing as it was an interstellar merchant company that had hired them, the footage that recorded her feat immediately became a sensation.

Naruto embraced her from behind and rested his chin on her shoulder. It had become one of their favourite positions while they browsed the intergalactic web - sitting together in bed with her between his legs and him hugging her from behind.

"Anything that catches your interest?" he asked while nuzzling her neck and planting soft kisses on her nape.

She shivered and tried to shy away from his ministrations.

"Not now, Naruto, stop it."

Although over a year had passed since they started living together, it was as if there was no time limit for the passion and lust they felt for each other. It always took only a few kisses to get them started and it often took hours for them to calm down.

His hand rose to her breast and he pinched her nipple gently. She bit her lower lip at his touch. When his teeth sank softly into the lob of her ear and pulled at it, she shuddered. She felt heat pooling in her core and she quickly closed her device and pushed it off the bed.

Diana turned to look at him with a hungry look in her blue eyes. Their very active life as mercenaries - they had completed over 30 bounties over the past year - meant that they very often in the middle of a mission; they did not get to make love every day. And maybe that was also one of the reasons why they were always so ready to start a romp whenever they were free, even after one year of being intimate in their relationship.

Turning around in his arms, she straddled his legs and her thighs pressed tightly on the sides of his waist. She pressed her lips against his hungrily, her tongue meeting his in a sensual embrace. She moaned into his mouth when his hands cupped her big ass and squeezed her toned cheeks greedily. Her core brushed against the bulge in his pants and she started to dry hump him lustfully, their moans and groans muffled by their deep, open-mouthed kiss.

Just when things were starting to get more intense, the particular sound made by his lightwave device started to ring.

"Ignore it!" Diana almost growled before diving back into his mouth and started sucking on his tongue. It always drove him mad with lust when she did that.

But the beeping sound from the lightwave device continued to ring.

It took Naruto every ounce of his will to rip his mouth away from her lustful lip lock. "This could be an emergency." he said between gasps, his voice rough with barely suppressed desire.

"Jerk, you're the one who started it!" she jeered at him but did not insist and let herself fall on her back, on the bed.

Naruto took a few seconds to recollect himself and at least get his breathing under control. Then, he waved his hand over his face and his usual ANBU white fox mask covered his face.

Grabbing the lightwave device from the nightstand next to their bed he said in a surprised voice when he saw the id of the caller:

"Doctor Fate?"

Diana straightened her posture and sat up when she heard what he said.

Answering the call, the hologram of a man wearing a blue suit and golden helmet appeared from the lightwave device.

"Hello, Mr Uzumaki. Is Wonder Woman still with you?" the sorcerer asked without any pleasantries, going straight to the point.

The princess came next to Naruto for Doctor Fate to see her and said: "Yes, we are together. Has something happened on Earth?"

Naruto had given a lightwave device to Doctor Fate the previous year as a token of their friendship and told him to call him whenever he needed his help. Knowing that, it stood to reason that Diana became worried when he called.

"The situation on Earth..." Doctor Fate made a pause to find the right words "...is far from good."

"Tell us what happened."

"Not long after you left the Earth, the Justice League disbanded. The population did not want to believe that you had left the planet. No, not just the population, even among the members of the Justice League, most of them thought that the core, older members, were hiding you, protecting you from the consequences of your deeds."

If it was a year ago, the princess would have burst in indignation at his words. However, a year after the incident, her wounds have healed. She was no longer affected by the past. She loved Naruto, she was happy together with him, and she had fallen in love with their life as bounty hunters as well. She got to do what she had always wanted - to fight to her heart's content and to protect the innocent. Moreover, she did not have to care about mass media or the public opinion or the government or the gods of Olympus and so on. She was free. On top of that, she was even getting paid for her deeds and she also got to visit all kinds of weird and interesting planets and meet all sorts of people. Even if she was given the chance to return back in time and be a member of the Justice League on Earth once again, she would not want to. Wonder Woman loved her new life.

Therefore, she was very calm, borderline indifferent when she spoke:

"Aside from Green Arrow, nobody stood up for me. The rest shunned me and even expelled me from the League. I honestly don't really care what happened with the organisation. Has anything noteworthy taken place?"

Doctor Fate was momentarily silent, not expecting to hear such words from her.

"Yes," he said eventually. "Something terrible has happened."

"Superman is dead."

AN: Cliffhanger. Mwahahaha.

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