2/2

Anko grimaced as she managed to grab Kabuto's right arm with her left hand, preventing him from landing a blow. But she could feel her arm trembling, the muscles screaming in protest. She suddenly yanked him closer, slashing his arm with her ulak in her right hand, making him yelp in surprise and pain, only for her to cry out as he slashed her side with the kunai, hot pain lancing through her as blood flowed from the wound. She stumbled back, struggling to hold her wound, panting for air. She looked up, seeing Kabuto holding his right arm, before he glared at her. He advanced on her, as she bit her lip, readying for one last ditch attempt to end this fight. As he drew closer she launched a quick punch with her left hand, which he dodged, only for her right arm to strike out with the hidden blade extending. She gained a triumphant look as her blade pierced his flesh, only to grimace as she realized she had missed his heart or other vital points. He let out a yell of pain, grabbing her arm and yanking himself off her blade before striking with his right arm, the chakra scalpel cutting the muscles and causing her to scream in agony. He kicked her in the chest, knocking her on her back and away from him and driving the air from her lungs.

The purple haired Assassin could only groan and whimper in pain, barely able to breathe or think as her eyes, blurry with tears, managed to make out Kabuto holding the chest wound and slowly healing it with a medical technique. With the wound healed, he shot her a sadistic grin, one that promised pain and suffering as he advanced on her. She whimpered, struggling to scoot back, only for there to be what sounded like a roar of thunder from behind Kabuto. Something burst through his throat, spurting out blood, flesh and bone as he went rigid, his eyes wide with shock and confusion as his body ceased answering his commands. He fell forward, revealing that behind him were two Raphaels. One was grimacing in pain, his right arm extended with a small cloud of smoke dispersing from around his hidden blade bracer, while the other one was using his own right hand to fire the hidden pistol on Raphael's bracer. The second one dispersed, revealing it had been a shadow clone while Raphael, exhausted and in pain, slowly got up and advanced on the downed Kabuto, kicking him over onto his back. The life was mostly gone from his eyes, but there were still flickers there, indicating some part of him refusing to die.

Raphael just glared down at him, grimacing in pain as he extended the hidden blade on his right arm. "Quemate en el infierno, hijo de puta," he spat out in Spanish before stabbing down, driving the blade straight into Kabuto's head and ending him. (1)

Drawing his blade from the corpse of Kabuto, he dropped to one knee, panting heavily as he did his best to move to Anko. "Are you alright?" He asked her, trying to check her wounds.

"I'll be…alright…if we can get to…a medic," she panted out in agony, grimacing as she did her best to try and staunch the bleeding on her right side. Raphael moved to tear a piece of his robe, to make a makeshift bandage, when a yell alerted them to a charging Oto shinobi coming at them. Raphael frantically looked for anything he could use to fight back with when there was a flash of light and the headless corpse of the shinobi fell at their feet. Standing a couple feet away was the form of Ryoushi, wielding a ninjato he had taken from the corpse of a shinobi, the blade now freshly stained with blood. He flicked the blade, cleaning the majority of the blood off it before turning to Raphael and Anko.

"It seems you two need a hand," he said calmly, moving to Anko's side and quickly applying the makeshift bandage Raphael was going to use to her, before standing up and offering Rpahael his hand. The Assassin blinked at him, slowly taking the offered hand and grunting as he was pulled up.

"How did…who are you?" He asked.

The hunter shook his head. "We can talk about that later. For now, we need to get you two out of here," he said. Raphael slowly nodded, before he and Ryoushi slowly lifted Anko up, the trio moving away from the fighting to try and find the nearest medic.

On the roof of the arena, Sarutobi was on one knee, panting heavily as he used Enma to hold himself up. His body was at its limits now, as he had pushed it as far as he could. But old age had robbed him of the strength he once had. Even in his prime though, he doubted he could have taken on all three of his opponents. But he knew that if he didn't defeat them, they would run amok amongst his shinobi, and he doubted there was anyone who could stop them, especially the two undead Hokage. All the damage they had sustained had amounted to nothing, as their wounds simply regenerated, leaving them as strong and as powerful as before.

Sarutobi slowly shook his head, as he came to a final conclusion. There was only one way this battle could end. He felt sadness as he knew it would end with his death, and that he would not see his grandson again, or watch Naruto grow into the fine man he knew the boy could be. But he knew he had to do this, for Konoha.

He slowly stood, gently releasing his grip on Enma's staff form. "Enma…thank you for your help," he said, as he quietly began to run through hand signs. Enma poofed into his monkey form, frowning as he looked at Sarutobi.

"What are you planning?" He asked, even as Orochimaru and the two undead Hokage advanced on him. Sarutobi just gave him a tired smile.

"I'm doing what I must, old friend," he said, taking a breath as he prepared to activate the first step of his final play.

Outside the seal, Jiraiya finished crafting a seal. "Hold on sensei," he muttered as he prepared to slap it onto the barrier, to negate the seal.

However, both Jiraiya and Sarutobi were interrupted by the roof seemingly trembling and shaking, before a burst of lightning blew open a hole in the middle of the roof from below. There were three blurs, and suddenly the Raikage stood on the field, aided by Kirabi and Darui, both of whom had blades drawn, while A was surrounded by lightning.

Orochimaru snarled angrily at that, while Sarutobi could only blink in surprise. "A-san, what are you doing here?"

A just gave a confident grin to Sarutobi. "I realized that it would be quite nice to collect on the bounty Konoha has out on Orochimaru's head," he said, before pointing to the two undead Hokage. "Darui, Kirabi, keep them distracted, will you? I want to have a nice chat with the snake."

Orochimaru was about to open his mouth when A seemingly disappeared, reappearing with his fist already buried in Orochimaru's stomach. The pale skinned leader of Oto was nearly bent in half by the blow, his mouth wide as spit flew out, his eyes going blank, before the force of the blow sent him flying, smashing through one of the thick trees Hashirama had created before slamming into another. A just grinned as he advanced, while Kirabi immediately leapt into the fray against Tobirama, leaving Darui to face Hashirama. Sarutobi just stared in surprise, while the Sound Four looked nervously at each other, still keeping the barrier up but now worried about the safety of their leader.

Jiraiya, seeing this, quickly used his seal and watched as a hole in the barrier formed. "ANBU, with me!" He shouted, entering the barrier with the ANBU quickly following. The ANBU darted towards their leader while Jiraiya moved towards the undead Hokage, to try and help remove them from play, focusing on Hashirama and Darui first.

A stopped near where Orochimaru had landed, the rogue sannin imbedded into a tree, seemingly unconscious or dead. That is until his mouth opened, his jaw unhinging as something started to crawl out. A sneered in disgust as he watched another Orochimaru crawl out, landing on the ground as the original withered and dried up, like an empty husk.

Orochimaru slowly stood, panting and glaring at A. "Damn you…why are you interfering?!" He demanded angrily. "You owe nothing to Konoha, why are you helping them?!"

A just smiled at him, cracking his knuckles as he got ready to fight. "Simple. I find the idea of a fellow kage being killed by a treacherous backstabbing coward to be disgusting. Even if I have no love for Konoha. And I could use the workout," he added.

Orochimaru growled, attempting to will the two kage to him to defend him. Tobirama soon appeared, but Hashirama did not appear. That is until Jiraiya, Kirabi, and Darui joined A, the toad sannin carrying a paralyzed Hashirama on his shoulder due to a seal he had applied to him. He dropped the paralyzed Edo Tensei on the ground, smirking at Orochimaru.

Orochimaru glared at him, only to find himself then surrounded by his four guards who all moved into defensive stances. They had dropped the barrier, as there was no reason to keep it up anymore. Now they stood ready to protect their master.

The others readied their own stances, preparing to fight as well, but Orochimaru knew he couldn't let this turn into a fight. Utilizing the technique that healed the damage from A's fist had taken a lot of chakra, and what chakra he had left was slowly being drained as he kept the Edo Tensei technique going. He growled in anger, realizing the entire plan had failed. He'd never kill Sarutobi, and the attack on Konoha was also failing. He had no choice now but to retreat, to try and exact his revenge later. He turned to the six armed member of his elite guard. "Kidomaru…a distraction," he said.

"Yes Orochimaru-sama," Kidomaru stated, suddenly drawing in a breath of air before spewing what seemed to be a giant spider web at the gathered shinobi. At the same time, Tobirama quickly prepared to launch another water jutsu, while the Oto shinobi quickly retreated.

The gathered Kumo and Konoha shinobi dodged the spider web and A surged forward, utilizing his Raiton no Yoroi (Lightning Release Armor) to appear in front of Tobirama, grabbing his arms and ripping them off. The undead Hokage stumbled back, only for Jiraiya to move behind him, placing another seal on him and paralyzing him.

As Tobirama fell to the ground, both he and Hashirama suddenly turned grey, their bodies seemingly melting away, becoming ash and revealing the horrified lifeless faces of the other two Oto genin, Kin and Zaku. Jiraiya just snarled angrily at that, seeing his former friend and comrade sacrificing his own so callously.

Sarutobi arrived with the ANBU, taking in the two copses before shaking his head sadly. "I knew he had fallen, but this," he murmured quietly, before looking up to the Raikage. "A-san…I thank you, for your assistance."

A just nodded, arms crossed. "Just remember this, Sarutobi-san. I won't be so generous next time," he said, before signaling to Kirabi and Darui, the trio of Kumo shinobi heading off.

Sarutobi let out a breath, slumping and nearly falling over as exhaustion washed over him. Jiraiya quickly caught his sensei, supporting him as he signaled to the ANBU. "I need a sit-rep on the situation in the village! Go now, and report back to the Tower!" He said, before creating a shadow clone that nodded and rushed towards the hospital. He turned to Sarutobi. "Let's get you to the tower where you can rest, sensei," he said quietly.

"The battle…I need to…" Sarutobi said, only to groan and sag a bit more.

"You're in no condition to fight. We'll handle the village," Jiraiya said, as he shunshined away with Sarutobi towards the Tower.

Outskirts of Konoha

Naruto grunted, slamming into a tree as he attempted to dodge another one of Gaara's attack, as the crazed, half transformed jinchuuriki shot past him, his claws raking the trees. Naruto let out a cry as his right arm, sporting a few light lacerations, hit the trunk, sending pain shooting through the cuts. He heard Gaara land, followed by the sounds of metal striking sand, causing him to peek out.

Sasuke had launched a trio of kunai, each with an explosive tag. They struck in Gaara's raised arm and the tags ignited, engulfing the jinchuuriki in a large explosion. Yet when the smoke and fire cleared, they saw it had little effect on Gaara, his sand arm taking the majority of the explosion and some of it being dispersed, before reforming into place. Gaara let out a roar of anger, pain and bloodlust, turning and sweeping his arm, launching a series of sand projectiles towards Sasuke who quickly dodged out of the way behind a tree. Naruto grimaced as he raised his crossbow, firing one of the few remaining bolts he had. The bolt, enhanced by wind chakra, shot towards Gaara and pierced his shoulder, burying itself deeply into the sand but not going deep enough to cause any damage. Gaara whirled, his arm shooting out and the sand extending as it smashed through the tree and sent Naruto flying.

Sasuke quickly caught Naruto before he could hit anything else, grunting at the impact and quickly moving into cover. The Uchiha was panting, blood seeping from a small cut on his forehead and another on his right leg. The fight had not been going well for the duo. It seemed like everything they hit him with simply was defeated by his sand. And he was growing more enraged, more dangerous with each passing moment, and each attack.

Naruto winced, looking down as the wounds on his arm were healing up. "We need a way to do some serious damage to him," he said, glancing around the tree slightly to try and find Gaara. "Can you use that lightning ball jutsu of yours?"

"Chidori, and yeah, I've got one more in me. But that's it, and I'm not sure I can hit him somewhere vital enough. Not without a distraction," Sasuke said, looking to Naruto. "What about you?"

Naruto ran through his list of jutsu and abilities, before speaking. "I've…got one jutsu that can maybe help. I just don't have it down quite yet," he said. "So I wouldn't count on it."

Sasuke nodded quietly at that. "Alright then. Can you give me a distraction long enough for me to get a hit in there?"

The blonde jinchuuriki nodded as he quickly created several shadow clones, all of which quickly shot out towards Gaara, attacking him from different directions with kunai, shuriken, crossbow bolts, and sword attacks. Gaara growled in anger as they attacked him like wolves on a bear, moving quickly to keep him from being able to attack them.

Sasuke ran through the hand signs for his technique, gripping his arm. "I'll need you to keep him from seeing me coming, or he'll just swat me away," he said, getting himself ready. Naruto gave a nod as he stood up, signaling his clones. As one, they all grouped together, launching themselves at Gaara. With a vicious snarl he slashed through them, dispersing them all in a massive cloud of smoke. He roared out in victory, only to turn rapidly as he heard the sound of screeching birds, and saw Sasuke charging towards him with the screeching lightning technique. He tried to lash out at Sasuke, but the Uchiha was able to see and avoid the arm thanks to his Sharingan, letting out a yell as he drove the Chidori forward.

Unfortunately, he missed his mark. Gaara had been able to turn at the last moment, causing Sasuke's attack to miss his chest and instead struck his side, driving through the sand and grazing his skin underneath. Gaara let out a cry of pain as Sasuke shot past him, skidding on the ground.

Temari and Kankuro, both recovered from being blasted by their own sibling, were now cowering in the tree tops, having moved a fair distance away but still able to see everything. Now they both trembled, gawking at the fight and what they had witnessed. "N-No way…h-how can they keep up with Gaara? How can they actually be…challenging him?" Temari asked, fear and shock in her voice.

"I don't know…b-but at this rate, you know what's going to happen. He'll let IT out…we can't be here if that happens," Kankuro said fearfully, watching his younger brother.

Gaara growled, the sand already regenerating at his side, sealing the 'wound' as he faced Sasuke. "You want my blood Uchiha?! YOU CAN'T HAVE IT! BUT I'LL GIVE MOTHER YOURS!" He shouted, shooting both arms towards Sasuke. The Uchiha dodged them both, only for Gaara to whirl, sand shooting out like a tail from his rear and smashing into Sasuke. He let out a cry as he was slammed into a tree trunk, where the sand solidified, holding him in place, while Gaara cackled excitedly as he looked around. "UZUMAKI! COME OUT! COME OUT AND FACE ME, OR WATCH YOUR FRIEND DIE!" He shouted in a maniacal tone.

Naruto trembled as he heard Gaara, rapidly thinking on what he could do. He had a few wind and fire jutsu, but they were next to useless against his opponent in this state as were his weapons and his assassin techniques. The only things left were the Rasengan and summoning, and he doubted his summons would be of any help against Gaara, leaving the jutsu of the Yondaime. But he hadn't finished it yet. He couldn't maintain the control and the power necessary to finalize the technique. It always either died out or exploded on him when he tried to. He knew it required focus, and he had been working hard on it, but there was no way he could obtain that kind of focus right now, not in this fight.

And that was when inspiration struck him. His eyes widened before he quickly formed the hand sign for the shadow clones, creating five of them. Four of them rushed out to confront Gaara, as the other stayed with him, nodding in understanding. The two of them quickly set to work.

Gaara grinned as he fired sand projectiles at the four charging clones, destroying one of them easily. Two of the others both struck with wind laced swords, going for his arms. He easily swatted them aside, dispersing them, but that left him open for the last one, who leapt into the air and slashed downwards with his sword, leaving a long gash from snout tip down to his lower torso. The sword, even with wind, still didn't manage to cut down through all the sand though, and the clone was dispersed with a contemptuous backhand. As the smoke cleared though, that's when Gaara saw it.

Two Naruto's standing side by side, one holding out his right hand as chakra formed in it, the other using his hands to rapidly control it, turning the chakra into a spinning compressed ball. There was a roaring sound as the sphere of chakra formed, becoming a stable ball of compressed energy in Naruto's hand. He grinned as the clone rushed forward, intending on giving him a distraction, with him right behind it. Gaara snarled as he shot both limbs out to catch them, but the clone got in the way, grabbing onto both arms as Naruto ducked under, charging forward. Throwing his hand forward, he let out a mighty roar of "RASENGAN" as he drove the technique into Gaara's midsection.

The ball of chakra, striking right where the sand had been weakened and was still regenerating from the sword cut, ripped into the sand, the chaotic maelstrom of chakra blowing it everywhere as the force of the technique sent Gaara flying. The jinchuuriki smashed through several trees, finally stopping in one with a massive crater revealing the human torso underneath the sand covering. Gaara's eyes were almost blank in shock and pain, hovering on the edge of unconsciousness from the damage he had just received. His head slumped forward as he panted, rapidly trying to draw in air from the hammer blow that had driven all the air from his lungs.

Temari and Kankuro both were gaping in horror, as they witnessed yet again something they had never expected to see. Before this day, no shinobi had ever successfully hit Gaara, let alone wound him. And certainly no opponent had ever dealt so much damage to Gaara in one blow. They both gazed at Naruto fearfully as the blonde jinchuuriki stood there, panting with his arm still stretched out.

Seeing Gaara was out of commission for the moment, Naruto turned to Sasuke and moved to him, frantically trying to pry the sand off of him. The Uchiha had been struggling this whole time, feeling the sand wrapped tightly around him, keeping him trapped. He growled angrily as he couldn't move his limbs enough to try and dig his way out, or create a hand sign.

Naruto was just starting to claw at the sand, to try and scrape it away, when a dark chuckle caused him to freeze, his veins feeling like they were suddenly filled with ice. He slowly turned his head to see Gaara chuckling, even as sand slowly started to fill back in over his chest. The chuckles turned to laughter, one that grew into full blown maniacal hysterics as Gaara threw his head back, even as the ground erupted around him and formed into more sand that surrounded him.

"YES! YES I KNEW IT! THAT YOU WOULD PROVE MY EXISTENCE! COME UZUMAKI, COME AND LET US FINISH THIS!" He shouted, as suddenly the sand shot upwards, forming into a massive, mountain sized tanuki covered in the same tattoos that Gaara had in his partially transformed state.

In the village, those who could see the forests stopped and stared in horror as they saw this monstrosity appear suddenly on the outskirts of the village. The Suna shinobi who were still in the village, as well as those outside the village, all knew what it was and terror gripped their hearts as they immediately began to flee. If Gaara had fallen into that state, it meant that they would not be safe inside this village. They had to escape, or die. The Konoha shinobi also felt terror as memories of the Kyuubi attack washed over them. The Oto shinobi were the least affected, though many still felt terror at the sight of the jinchuuriki.

Temari and Kankuro, much like their comrades, wanted to flee as well. And yet the sheer terror of being so close to the monster overwhelmed them, preventing them from fleeing. They could only stare at what in their minds was death incarnate.

Naruto stared up at Gaara in horror, blue eyes wide as he stared at the monstrosity created engulfing the red haired jinchuuriki. His gaze became locked on the center of the creature's forehead when he saw Gaara slowly emerge from there, his entire upper body seemingly growing from the creature. Gaara stared back down at him, mad glee on his face. "Now Uzumaki, you shall feed mother with your blood!" He shouted as he finished a single hand sign. "Tanuki Neiri no jutsu! (Feigning Sleep Technique!)"

And suddenly Gaara slumped forward, seemingly unconscious, while the eyes of the monstrous creature lit up. "HAH! THE LITTLE BRAT FINALLY LET ME OUT TO PLAY! NOW I CAN REALLY HAVE SOME FUN!" The creature, Shukaku the Ichibi Biju shouted ecstatically. He turned, eagerly looking around, his eyes locking on Konoha. "AND THERE'S MY NEW PLAYGROUND! HERE I COME YOU BASTARDS!" Shukaku shouted, starting to make his way towards the village.

Naruto trembled as he watched the behemoth start to head towards the village. He couldn't let it reach Konoha. He didn't know if anyone could stop it. He had to do something, but he didn't know what he could do to stop that thing. He had only one trick left, and he didn't know if even that could help him pull out a win here. But he knew he had to try. 'Kyuubi?'

Inside of Naruto's mindscape, the Kyuubi smirked. "What do you want, ape? I'm enjoying watching my sibling about to go on a rampage," he taunted.

'That's why I'm contacting you. Please, I need your help," Naruto thought frantically to him.

"You need my help, or you just need my chakra? Be truthful now," Kyuubi sneered at him. Despite the conditions they had worked out, Kyuubi still antagonized Naruto at every turn, partly to test Naruto's commitment to the conditions he set, and partly because of his own anger and bitterness.

'I need your help Kyuubi. Not just your chakra. I don't know how I can defeat him, even with the power of your chakra. I need your help. Please Kyuubi…please help me,' Naruto begged the biju.

The Kyuubi frowned slightly at Naruto's words, hearing the truth and desperation in them. He could feel that the blonde brat really meant it when he said he needed his help. Letting out a sigh, he began to push what little of his chakra he could safely push through the seal. "Your opponent had to render himself unconscious to unleash Ichibi's full power. If you wake him up, it should destroy the construct and force my fellow biju into his seal. You'll need to hit the kid in order to wake him up and end this fight, or maybe even kill him. I'll give you what chakra I can, and hopefully that'll be enough to get up there to him."

'I understand. And…thank you, Kyuubi,' Naruto thought, before retreating from the link, as Kyuubi growled softly.

"Damn annoying brat. You might make me respect you at this rate," he snapped to himself.

The Hero by Jam Project (2)

Naruto merely opened his eyes, even as he felt Kyuubi's chakra start to flow through his body. The sudden rush of power gave him a boost in confidence as he grinned, his eyes turning red and his whisker marks deepening, all while a red aura of chakra formed around him. Crouching down, he suddenly leapt into the air, actually leaving a crater behind as he did so.

The sudden presence of a second source of biju chakra caused Shukaku to stop and turn, his eyes locking on the small red cloaked figure moved towards him. "HAH HAH, BIG BROTHER KURAMA'S CHAKRA! SO THAT'S WHO YOU WERE HIDING, LITTLE BRAT! FINE, I GUESS I CAN PLAY WITH YOU A LITTLE BIT!" He shouted, firing a massive bullet of air from his mouth towards Naruto.

Naruto quickly leapt from tree top to tree top to avoid the bullet, all while charging towards the sand biju. He kept moving quickly, never presenting a clear target as Shukaku raised one giant arm, slamming it down towards Naruto. He flipped through the air to avoid it, bounding off of another tree top as he rapidly approached Shukaku's legs, leaping onto one and using his chakra to stick as he began to run up the side of the giant sand tanuki.

Shukaku snarled as he attempted to swat Naruto off of himself, but the blonde kept avoiding his attacks. Focusing inwards, he attempted to loosen the sand ahead of Naruto, to create a sand trap.

Naruto, seeing the shifting sand, barely managed to leap away in time, only to find more sand shifting as tendrils began to form, lashing out at him. He dodged and swiped at them, the red chakra of Kyuubi easily burning through the sand tendrils, but the amount was overwhelming. Naruto, more on instinct then any actual knowledge, leapt off of Shukaku, throwing out one arm and forming a massive grapple like arm of chakra that latched onto the biju's arm, allowing him to swing through the air. He used the swing and momentum to hurl himself up further on Shukaku, landing somewhere on his upper torso and charging upwards again, creating several shadow clones who began to act as a screen, destroying tendrils of sand and giving him forewarning of other traps.

Shukaku quickly reached up with one arm, attempting to sweep the swarm of Naruto's off, but a trio of them all grouped together, letting out a massive yell as they punched at the same time, releasing a large amount of chakra as they did so and managing to blast a hole through Shukaku's arm as it shot towards them, allowing the real Naruto to pass through unaffected. He grimaced though, already starting to feel the slight aches that would start while he used the Kyuubi's chakra. His tolerance had grown over the course of his training but he still only had a few minutes at best. Knowing he had to make the most of it he surged forward with the remaining clones.

Shukaku, growling angrily but also in worry, now created a wave of sand that rippled down from his head towards the Naruto's. The clones however quickly grabbed the real one, hurling him over the wave even as they were flung off by it. Naruto landed, nearing his destination as he could see the unconscious red head ahead of him. Growling he shot forward, even as he saw sand slowly start to rise to form a wall near Gaara to protect him. But Naruto wasn't going to let that stop him. Cocking his fist back, he poured as much chakra as he could into it as he leapt forward.

Time seemed to slow as his fist hit the sand wall, which resisted for only a second before being blown apart by his fist. The blow continued to travel forward, smashing into Gaara's jaw with enough force to rip him from Shukaku's forehead and send him flying. Shukaku roared in pain and anger as his eyes dimmed, before the entire sand tanuki froze and crumbled away, leaving Naruto and Gaara falling as the redhead's eyes opened, teal orbs wide in shock and pain. He could only stare at Naruto as the two of them fell, confusion, astonishment, and fear evident in his look.

The two of them smashed into the treetops, Naruto smashing through a few branches before he managed to catch himself and slow his fall, though he still hit the ground hard enough to break his left arm, causing him to cry out in pain. Gaara, too exhausted and stupefied, was unable to catch himself, but he was saved by sand forming beneath him and preventing him from hitting the ground too hard. Several moments passed before the two combatants, both exhausted, in pain, slowly turned to look at each other, panting for air. Then slowly, Naruto pushed himself up with his right arm. His Assassin robe and clothes were torn, and blood trickled from numerous cuts and scratches from the fall. His left arm hung limply at his side, but none of this stopped him from slowly advancing on Gaara, his hidden blade on his right arm extended. The Suna jinchuuriki could only stare up at him in fear and terror.

Nearby, Temari and Kankuro, both stunned beyond disbelief that the Ichibi had been defeated, had managed to reach the crash site, and now both of them could only watch in fear and horror as Naruto advanced on Gaara. A part of them was screaming at them to flee, to get away from this monster that had defeated their brother, to save themselves. And yet another part, small but still present, was yelling at them to go out and defend him. That despite everything he was still their brother.

Gaara trembled, trying to order his body to move, to flee from the advancing blonde, but he couldn't. He shook his head, terror in his eyes. "S-stay away from me! G-get away from me!" He screamed in terror, eyes locking on that extended blade.

Naruto soon stood over him, looking down at him, before slowly dropping into a seated position next to Gaara, leaning against back against a tree while his blade retracted. He sat there for a few minutes, before speaking. "There's a part of me that wants to kill you…you threatened the people I care about…you threatened me…you're my enemy here…by all rights, I should kill you. But then another part of me reminds me that…I could have been you…you know?" He said quietly. "That thought has always been in the back of my mind, ever since I understood you were a jinchuuriki. That I could have ended up like you. Alone…unwanted…filled with nothing but anger and hatred and violence."

Gaara looked up at Naruto, eyes widening, as the blonde continued to speak. "It could have been so easy…if Anko-sensei hadn't defended me…if Raphael-sensei decided not to teach me…if Hinata-chan decided she didn't want to be my friend….if I had grown up like you, with no friends, no loved ones, no one to protect," he said softly, looking at Gaara. "I could have been just like you…but the funny thing is…you could have been like me."

There was stunned silence for several moments, before the red head spoke. "W-what do you mean?" Gaara finally whispered, eyes locked on Naruto, who merely gave him a tired, pained smile.

"I mean…if someone in your village had befriended you, the way my precious people befriended me…you could have been like me growing up. It's really sad…you had family, and yet…you had no one. I can't imagine what that's like, to have a brother and sister who are afraid of you, instead of loving you," Naruto said, completely unaware of the people nearby listening to them, and the effect his words were having.

Gaara slowly looked up at the sky, staring at it as he pondered Naruto's words. "...would that have made me stronger?" He asked Naruto quietly. "Would having others…have made me stronger?"

"I like to think so," Naruto told him. "There will always be someone stronger out there then you, but…when you've got someone who's worth fighting and dying for…I like to think that'll give you all the strength you'll ever need. Because they'll do the same for you."

Gaara just nodded quietly as he stared up at the sky. "…I don't know if I can ever have that…I don't think anyone is willing to see me as someone worth fighting for. My uncle…tried to kill me when I was younger…because he thought I was a monster, and blamed me for my mother's death…how can I be anything but a monster?"

Naruto looked at him, eyes widening as he saw tears forming in Gaara's eyes. He studied him for a few moments, before standing up slowly, then reaching out his right hand to Gaara. "Then I'll be the first," he said.

Gaara stared at his hand, before slowly taking it. He grimaced as Naruto pulled him to his feet, then supported him as his legs started to buckle. Only to find himself suddenly supported on the other side by Kankuro, causing his eyes to go wide at that. "K-Kankuro? W-what are-?"

"I'm doing what I should have done years ago," Kankuro said quietly, trying to hide his own tears. "I'm helping my little brother."

"A-and me too," Temari said, moving towards them. She looked to Naruto, who nodded and stepped away, allowing her to take his place supporting Gaara's other side. The two older Suna genin looked down at their brother, who was staring at them in shock. Then slowly he looked to Naruto, as the first glimmers of happiness, real happiness, appeared in those eyes.

"Thank you…Naruto-san," he said, before his siblings took him away.

Naruto watched them go, before letting out a groan as he started to collapse, only to be caught by Sasuke, who grunted as Naruto landed against him. "Easy there. I got you."

Naruto blinked as he looked up at Sasuke. "Hey…glad to see you got free of the sand," he murmured, eyes drooping in exhaustion.

"It dispersed the same time that giant sand monster did," Sasuke said, doing his best to support Naruto. "Now, let's get you home."

"Yeah…that sounds good," Naruto said, leaning against him as the two slowly made their way back home to Konoha, not knowing that the defeat of Shukaku was the end of the battle. The invasion of Konoha was over.

LeafRanger; *grimaces as several bullets impact the desk he's now hiding behind.* C'mon guys, can't we talk about this?! Please?! I swear I can explain everything!

Feels Slight Bad for Sasuke LeafRanger: NO! You have to die for abandoning us and for killing Sasuke in your Demon Dragon Rider fanfic! And your Wizard of Kitsune fanfic!

LR: Hey, he deserved it! The canon Sasuke deserves death too! *is forced to duck down as a grenade goes off* WHO THE HELL GAVE YOU GRENADES?!

DNHLR: It's over! Vengeance shall be ours! *is suddenly forced to duck as a crossbow bolt slams into the wall next to him*

Raphael: I'm afraid I cannot let you do that, mi amigos. For if you kill him, how shall he continue our adventures? *Raphael now stands between LR and the other personalities, with Kiseki on one side and another Leaf Ranger personality dressed in Assassin robes on the other*

Kiseki: I agree. I'd much rather he stay alive to complete this fanfic.

Diehard Assassin's Creed Leaf Ranger: I've been waiting a while for this fanfic to come out, and you're not going to ruin this.

Elroth: You can't stop us! *Draws his sword and rushes out to fight them*

Raphael: *turns to LR* You should run, while we hold them off. And…gracias, for bringing Anko into my life. *draws his own sword, as OCs and personalities clash*

LR: Right, I'm out! *Runs away from the battle, to try and regroup*

So, hope you all enjoyed my attempt to recapture the original zaniness that was my before and after author notes. And that you enjoyed my first chapter of the New Year! Sorry for the lateness of this chapter, I got caught up in Assassin's Creed; Odyssey (got it for Christmas) and the fact that we're moving into a new place! That's right, we finally are getting out of this motel and into a new place!

I'll admit, those two factors did distract me a lot, so if the quality of this chapter is less then what you usually expect, I am sorry for that as well.

Thank you for reading, and hope you enjoyed it! And thanks go out to Bill Alain for his work as my beta.

1. First off, the translation is 'Burn in hell, you son of a bitch'. Thank you to May-Princess of Hoenn for the translation. And I know some people will be on my case for killing off Kabuto this early, but honestly, I thought it would be a nice change from canon, and after finishing Shippuden, I REALLY wanted to kill him off. Hate me for it if you want to, but this is what I wanted to do as the author of this fanfic. I hope the rest of you liked it.

2. For those of you who might question this choice of music, I just thought it really fit what is going to happen next. I hope you all enjoyed this song with the scene, but guess we'll see. Also, Jonathan Young and Caleb Hyles did really awesome metal covers of the song, so experiment and find which version you like best for this scene.