"What the hell is happening?!" Kioku muttered as he opened up the curtains from his window, only to reveal the pure anarchy that was taking place in his village. 

Buildings were on fire, the blazing orange lighting up the night sky as smoke flew up into the air. People were running around frantically, whether to escape the fires or to put them out, he didn't know. He could hear faint screams coming from the window and his eyes opened as he fully understood what was happening. 

"Konoha and Mist," He whispered breathlessly. He immediately shut the curtains and ran into Ellie's room shaking her awake. 

"What? What's going on?" She asked him, the roar of a fire rippling through the air. Kioku smoothed her hair down, it being everywhere from the static of her pillow.

"We're under attack. I want you to go in the bathroom and lock the door." He went through his kunai pouch and handed her a kunai. "If anyone besides Kurotsuchi, gramps, or me come through that door, stab them and run." Ellie nodded, but couldn't contain her fear as she was shaking slightly. 

"I'm scared," She whispered, tears threatening to spill out of her eyes. Kioku smiled softly at the girl. 

"I am too. But we'll get through this alright. I have to go defend the village, be safe okay?" She nodded as she stood up from her bed, stretching a little. 

"Are you coming back?" She asked quietly, causing Kioku to freeze. Was he? There was a big chance that'd he die here. If Fugaku found out he escaped, then he would no doubt try to kill him this time with no restraint. He looked at her worried eyes and gave her a big fake smile. 

"Of course I will. I mean, who's going to take you out to eat hm?" She held out her pinky. 

"Pinky promise?" He smiled at her, but on the inside, he was weeping. He accepted that he was going to die, but Ellie was making it agonizing to lie to her. But he would. It would make her stronger in the end. He looped his pinky with hers and kissed her forehead, his lips lingering in the end as he pulled off. 

"Pinky promise." He whispered in a hushed tone before Ellie nodded and ran to the bathroom. He walked out the door and closed it behind him, the sound of battle coming out of the apartment building and he took one last look at the door, a single tear rolling down his eye before he ran to join the fray of battle. 

The first thing he saw was the blurs of ninja fighting ferociously, fire jutsu's practically being spammed as rock jutsu's collided with them. The explosion was from the center of the village and Kioku immediately saw the building that was now up in flames. It was the orphanage Ellie came from. 

"Those sicks bastards," He said with uncontained rage as his one eye shifted from normal grey to his Sharingan, it spinning wildly. 

"What are you doing just standing there? Fight!" He heard some shout. Turning his head, he saw a pair of Uchiha running towards him. They saw his Sharingan and must've assumed that he was one of them. 

Wrong. 

He quickly took out his sword and dispatched the efficiently, a glare of pure hatred still in his eye. "You dare attack my village and think you can get away with it? Think again you arrogant bastards." 

Kioku wiped the blood off his blade as he charged towards the Tsuchikage Office Building, no doubt Fugaku was there to try and kill gramps and weaken his nation as he did with Kumo. 

He jumped across the building but was suddenly hit by a blunt object, sent tumbling down below and hitting the ground causing a small crater to appear. Then a man jumped down off the building, and the moonlight revealed a man with green hair and a mask covering half of his face, revealing a single purple eye and sharp teeth, a large Uchiha fan on his 

"Sorry brat, can't let ya pass through here. Mizukage's orders." Kioku glared at him. 

"Why is the Mist conspiring with the Leaf? What can you possibly gain?" The man shrugged, a smirk on his face. 

"I don't make the plans I just follow them when they're given." The man said as he pulled out the fan off his back, blue chakra surrounding the contents of the fan. "Hey, you like kinda familiar. Have we fought before?" Kioku narrowed his eyes. Perhaps another person from his past? 

"Haku, Naruto, find your own dreams." Kioku looked at him curiously. That voice didn't belong to anyone else her knew, so where did that come from? 

"Kazuma," A voice rang out in a neutral tone. "What are you doing? I thought we agreed that you won't play with your victims." Another man appeared, just a tad shorter than the man he stood next to, but obviously the more powerful of the two by the way he held himself. He had on a mask that covered the upper half of his face, only revealing his lips which were spread in a thin line with brown hair on the top of his head and a thin sword on his hip. Both were dressed like Anbu from Mist. 

"I wasn't playing around Komihoro. Look at him, doesn't he look familiar? Remove the scar, put an eye, and make his hair grey and make him shorter, who does he look like?" Kioku didn't see any eyeholes in the mask, but he felt as if someone was staring deep into his soul. 

"Ah, he is the one who promised to kill us since we took away Zabuza's life." He unsheathed his sword. "I thought he was a Leaf Ninja, how unfortunate that he is of the Stone now. We've been given orders to take out any ninja and civilians that we come across, young man, this is not personal I assure you." Kioku held his sword carefully in the air, ready to fight. 

It was a 2 vs. 1 matchup, not very fair in his opinion, especially by how powerful these two looked. But he would fight, for his village, for his life, and for Ellie. Everything depended on him so that his people could stay happy. If he defeated these two, then he could rush to aide the Tsuchikage and then he'd take down Fugaku once and for all. 

For a split second, everything was silent. Not a cricket could be heard, not an explosion, scream, or even the sound of a house crashing down. Nothing. Then, once that moment past, the two men and the teen disappeared almost instantaneously, only reappearing in the air as Kioku blocked the fan with his sword, and the man's sword with a kunai, grunting as he was pushed back by the sheer force of their teamwork. 

They landed on the ground, sliding a bit as their momentum carried them across the dirt. 

"He's gotten stronger, eh Komihoro?" The man could only nod, his lips not even twitching in the slightest. 

"Indeed he has. Though, I sense a hidden strength. Can you feel it as well, Kazuma?" The green haired man nodded, his teeth sparkling in the moonlight as he grinned. 

"I can! It's getting me all pumped up! I wanna bring it out!" He rushed forward blindly, waving his battle fan as water suddenly burst through the air, hitting Kioku straight in the chest as if he had been punched as he flew through a house, landing on someone's couch as he heard somebody scream. 

He looked over to the side and saw a family, not shinobi, but civilians, huddled up in a corner, the father sheltering the mother and his to children, a little boy, and a little girl, most likely twins. They were all scared. 

"Ah, more people hm?" He heard Kazuma say in a gleeful voice as he looked at the family of four, a wide grin of his face. "Good, the fan hasn't had blood it about five minutes." Kioku immediately jumped in front of the family, separating them from Kazuma. 

"You stay away from them," He snarled, his regular Sharingan slowly shifting into its Mangekyou state. "You're fight, is with me!" 

"Our orders are to exterminate everyone we see. I cannot disobey my Kage's orders." A voice came from behind Kioku, along with one quick slash and the thumps of bodies hitting the floor. Kioku's eyes widened in horror as he slowly turned around, only to see the family that was once looking at him with fearful yet hopeful eyes, dead on the ground in front of Komihoro, who was cleaning his sword. 

"I'll kill you." 

"Is that a threat?" Kazuma asked, his fan ready to attack.

"A threat?" The grey-haired boy asked. "No, it's a promise. You killed Zabuza, and you hurt Haku-chan, I'll kill you. I'll kill you both. Not today, not tomorrow, shit, probably not even in a year, but it'll happen. I will kill you." Kazuma smirked. 

"They were children. . ." Kioku whispered, defeat rising in his throat as tears began to threaten to slip out, falling to his knees. Komihoro had gotten behind him so quickly, without him even noticing and murdered them! "It's my fault. . ." He whispered again. They died because he was weak. They died because of him! 

"Children or not, orders are orders kid." Kazuma said, raising his fan as it glowed blue with chakra once again. "And now you'll die as well." He swung down his fan, ready to use the chakra enhanced weapon to slice off Kioku's head clean off, but a large purple chakra exploded from Kioku, knocking back both Kazuma and Komihoro, the latter studying him intensely as black marks went across his face. 

"You killed them, without even blinking, without even a second thought. I'll kill you, I'll kill you both." Kazuma laughed a little. 

"What is this, a sequel? You've already told us this." He readied his fan as Komihoro readied his sword, but this time, Kazuma had his guard down and Komihoro had his up. "But the fact of the matter at hand is that you're too weak to even lay a hand on either of us, let alone kill us and avenge those meat bags that you call villa-" Kazuma would've kept talking, but he was suddenly flung out of the house as a hard right kick met his stomach. 

"I feel amazing," Kioku muttered, only having experienced this type of power once when he broke out of the prison he was held in Konoha. "But, tainted as well. I feel darker," He looked at Kazuma, who was trying to pry himself off of the wall, a scowl on his face, a crack on his mask. "It'll be enough to deal with you." 

"What about with me?" He heard Komihoro say before a sword protruded from his stomach. 

"Chk," Kioku grunted, blood seeping from his mouth as he fell to the ground, the markings receding back to the mark on his neck. Kazuma walked up to the fallen Kioku, his mouth no longer smirking, but frowning. 

"Damn, I wanted to kill the little shit for kicking me." Kioku felt his wound slowly heal as he tried to get up, his limbs slowly losing strength as all his energy was poured into healing the wound that would've meant the death for anyone else. 

"I w-won't l-lose!" He snarled as he slowly stood up, his sword still grasped in his hand as he glared at Komihoro, who watched impassively as the Stone Ninja struggled to walk. "I have to win! I have to protect, t-the village! I-I have to p-protect her!" 

"T-T-Today bitch!" Kazuma spat out, mocking Kioku before slamming him with the side of his fan, knocking the teen to the ground. "Shut the hell up and die with pride. It's over, everyone you love is probably already dead." 

Ellie. She wasn't dead. She couldn't be dead. She was safe, locked in the bathroom and he was the only one who knew where she was at. That was good. As long as she didn't come out, everything was fine. 

He was fine with dying. 

That alone surprised him. He was fine with dying, at least he was dying protecting the things he loved. 

But. . .

How could he continue protecting those he loved if he was dead? 

"No, no I won't!" Kioku shouted as the sword wound began healing at extraordinary rates. "I won't die!" Red chakra slowly surrounded his body as his teeth grew a little, a single red chakra tail coming from his tail bone as his fingernails grew, his grey eye switching from his Mangeykou to blood red with a single line of black going straight down the middle, making him look more animalistic than human. 

"No fucking way!" Kazuma explained, jumping back a little. "He's a god damn Jinchuuriki!" 

"I can not die!" He screamed as the air around him rippled as the dirt came off the ground, knocking both Kazuma and Komihoro back at least ten feet away from him as he stood on all fours, the second tail of chakra slowly forming. "I'll make you pay for what you did! You won't get away with any of this!" He dashed forward at well, inhumane speed as he slashed at Komihoro, but only met the thin air as the man disappeared. 

"No need to worry, Kazuma. As you can see, in this form, he cannot think as rationally and get good enough attacks on us. He even loses the ability to perform any jutsu that could possibly be of consequence to us. All he has now is brute strength, something we can easily overcome." 

The two rushed Kioku, their moves in full synchronization with each other. Komihoro sliced at the Kyuubified Kioku in the stomach, causing blood to fly in the air as Kazuma instantly swung the fan in the air, making a cold breeze that froze the blood mid-air into tiny needles that were enhanced by Komihoro's chakra and were sent straight into Kioku's chest, causing him to slump to the ground. 

"Heh, easy as you said," Kazuma said, putting the fan back on his back as he looked at Kioku's down form, the Kyuubi's chakra now gone. 

"Indeed." Komihoro commented. 

Two people landed next to the two, looking at the body of Kioku. 

"Was he really the main target of this operation Shisui-senpai?" A teen asked, probably around Kioku's age, in a Chunin's attire. 

"Yes, Sasuke. He threatens our plans too much to be able to live. We cannot have peace under one rule if he is alive." Sasuke shrugged, looking at the boy that was lying on the ground like a dead animal. 

"He doesn't seem to be all that powerful to me." He poked Kioku's back with the sheathe of his sword, a few blood stains on it. "How could one like this be a problem with the path to peace?" Shisui shook his head at the younger Uchiha's words. 

"Even the most venomous snake looks just like an ordinary garden snake." He looked down at Kioku, a look of pity and an unrecognized emotion, perhaps, longing, in his eyes. 

"Ah, you're the commander of this operation eh, what Shisui of the Flash Step isn't it? What do you want us to do with him? He's still breathing." Shisui didn't say anything, he only bent down, resting his elbows on his knees before he grabbed Kioku's raven hair, lifting it up to see the closed eyes of Kioku, blood seeping from his mouth. 

"Wake him up." He said as he dropped Kioku's head and standing up, folding his arms as Komihoro propped up the teen before Kazuma punched him in the stomach, causing Kioku to begin coughing, now fully awake. 

"Who are you?" Shisui asked Kioku, who glared at him. 

"Kioku of Stone." Shisui glanced at Kazuma. 

"Hit him again." Kioku grunted as Kazuma's large fist impacted his stomach. "Who. Are. You." He asked again. Kioku spit out some blood, his teeth stained red. 

"Ki-o-ku." He whispered, venom in his voice as he looked at Shisui in his eye, his one grey eye peering into Shisui's coal colored black eyes. 

"Again, this time, make it chakra enhanced," Kazuma smirked at his fist glowed blue before he punched Kioku hard in the stomach once again, this time, he coughed out blood. "Answer my question and actually put some thought into it, cause next time it'll be a nice through your hand," Shisui said as he grabbed Kioku by his hair, yanking it as his Sharingan activated. "Who are you?!"

"I don't knooooowwwww!" Kioku shouted as tears of frustration flowed down his eye. "I, I don't know anymore." Shisui sighed as he let go of Kioku and ran a hand through his hair. 

"I did not want to have to do this, Kioku." A loud explosion was heard in the distance as a building went up in flames, followed with screams. He snapped his fingers and two Uchiha appeared next to Shisui, one holding a tiny girl over his shoulder that was kicking in screaming. 

Kioku's one eye widened as he recognized the girl. 

It was Ellie. 

"No, no, please, I'm begging you, please, don't!" The two Uchiha dropped Ellie on the ground, tape around her mouth as tears flowed down her rosy cheeks as fear was evident in her eyes. 

"We did our research about you, Kioku. We found out that you had a daughter, an adopted one at that but a daughter nonetheless. I wonder, what exactly would happen if she was harmed?" Kioku gave Shisui a pleading look. 

"Please, I'll do anything. Don't hurt her, please." Sasuke looked equally alarmed at this, looking at Shisui with shock. 

"Shisui-senpai, a little girl?" Shisui didn't even bother looking at Sasuke to give him an answer. 

"Shut up Sasuke, don't forget where you stand." Sasuke was taken aback by the answer but watched silently anyways. 

"Take the tape off her mouth." The Uchiha nodded as he took the tape off Ellie's mouth with one quick swipe, making her wince in pain. 

"Kioku-san!" She shouted. "I'm scared!" 

"It's okay Ellie, everything is going to be okay!" He whispered. He looked at Shisui once again. "Please, spare her. Kill me, just please don't hurt her." He pleaded, his eye filled with a pleading look. 

"Can you tell me who you are yet?" Shisui asked, causing Kioku's eye to widen. 

"No, you, please don't," He begged. 

"If you can't answer," He took a sword and put it against Ellie's neck. "Then she dies!" He declared. Kioku began crying. 

"Stop! I don't know who I am! I'm Kioku! I'm Naruto! I'm anybody who you want me to be! Please just let her live! Don't touch her!" Shisui took the sword away from her neck and Kioku felt sudden relief come from his stomach. His Ellie was safe. Shisui's face was neutral. 

Flashback

"You want me to adopt a kid?" Onoki nodded as he slipped the sixteen-year-old a file.

"Yes, Ellie Oshie to be exact. Her parents died when she was young and she's been having trouble in the orphanage as of recently. I want you to adopt her, and on and off type of thing." He explained. "I believe it'll help you as well with your. . . condition." Kioku grimaced at that but stayed silent as he read over her file.

"I guess I'll do this temporary adoption thing. I'ma have to give her a room correct?" Onoki nodded.

"Yep, she'll have to live with you for half the week of course and the other week at the orphanage unless you wish to do a full adoption. But before you make that decision, go meet her. I've already set up an appointment." Kioku chuckled a little.

"You knew I'd say yes didn't you gramps?" Onoki laughed and nodded.

"You're too kind-hearted to say no."

"Are you Ellie?" Kioku asked the little girl who was sitting on a bench, eating a peanut butter sandwich, her shiny black hair blowing in the wind. She looked at him with her green eyes curiously.

"And you are?"

"I'm Kioku, your new parent. Call me whatcha want, but we're in this together now so yeah." He said lamely. Ellie rose her eyebrow as she munched on the sandwich.

"Oh yeah. Whatever, I don't care to be honest. Let's just go do whatever people do when people get adopted." Kioku laughed rubbing her hair, messing it up as she scowled at him.

"I have a feeling we're gonna get along just fine."

Flashback End 

"Wrong answer." And in one quick motion, he slit Ellie's throat and the girl fell on her back as blood seeped from her throat. 

"NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!" He screamed as he rushed forward, breaking out of Komihoro's grip as he clutched Ellie's body, cradling her as he cried freely. 

"I-I opened t-the door. I-I-I'm sor-ry." She whispered as blood filled her lungs. "Was I-I a g-good da-daughter?" Kioku nodded feverishly. 

"The best someone could ask for, the absolute best. It'll be okay, you'll be okay." He ran a hand through her hair as he smoothed out her black locks, her blood staining his hands as it seemed all over him. 

"I-I'm hap-py I m-met y-you," She croaked out.

"Don't say anyting, shhhh, you'll be fine." He whispered, his tears falling off his cheeks and landing on her bloodstained shirt. 

"I-I l-l-love y-you, d-d-daddy," She got out as she cupped his cheek before her hand went limp, smearing her blood on him and her eyes glazed over. 

"No, no, no, no, no, wake up. Wake up, wake up, please don't go, please, please don't go." He cried as he put his forehead against hers. "I'm sorry," And then the world around him shattered like glass, leaving him alone in an abyss of darkness. 

"Are we done?" A voice asked, causing Kioku to look up to reveal Naruto Hatake. "Is it over yet? Are we dead?" 

"You," Kioku whispered venomously as he tackled the younger Naruto Hatake to the ground and began punching him in the face over and over and over and over in the face. "This is your fault! your fault! She's dead because of you! If you didn't exist then she would be alive! This is all your fault!" He lost his will to keep punching Naruto in the face as he just sat on top of the younger boy. "Why. . .?" 

"Are you done yet?" The boy's face was completely clear as if he hadn't just been beaten in the face twenty-five times in a row. 

"Shut up!" Kioku shouted. "It's-" 

"My fault? I'm sorry, who couldn't fight off Shisui Uchiha, Komihoro, or Kazuma and protect her?" Kioku froze mid-sentence. "It's not my fault that you're weak." 

"I'm stronger than you ever were," Kioku spat. Naruto shrugged. 

"That's true, but I knew how to utilize all my tools better." He pushed Kioku off and stood up, dusting himself off before walking away. 

"Stop!" Kioku shouted. "Where are you going?" Naruto turned around, his face blank as ever. 

"We're dead. There's no point in living anymore. She's dead. What now?" Kioku was at a loss for words. He was right, they were as good as dead. His past and present self were dead now and there was no point in currently living. "This dream in the form of Kioku of Stone was nice while it lasted. Naruto Hatake was stressful and way too depressing. But he wouldn't have gotten killed." 

Kioku let out a bitter laugh and sat down, followed by Naruto who also sat down right next to him. 

"We're so fucked up, aren't we? Everything about us." Kioku muttered. Naruto nodded, not even trying to dispute it. 

"Yep. Our life has been doomed to eternal darkness ever since Danzo-sensei found us and told us the truth. We've made horrible choices ever since and now we're reaping what we sowed." 

"I'm done fighting. It's too tiring to continue, I have no reason to keep going, everything I love is lost." Kioku said sadly. 

"We're both done, just in different ways." Kioku began fading as Naruto grew a little bit, making it look as if he were seventeen instead of fourteen. "Are you okay with this? Can you do it?" Kioku nodded. 

"Yes, I can." Naruto smiled at the boy as one of his eyes disappeared and a scar appeared over his right eye and his form turned all bloody. 

"Thank you, for the nice dream I've lived for the past few years." Kioku disappeared completely and Naruto's Mangekyou activated as it spun wildly. "But," 

"I'm done dreaming." 

"Pathetic. Just kill him, we're done here." Shisui said as he turned around, sheathing his sword. 

"Shisui, Uchiha." Naruto muttered as he stood up completely. "Komihoro, Kazuma." The roots of his hair began turning grey as his black hair slowly turned back to grey. 

"Huh, still has some fight in him huh? I'll end that!" Kazuma shouted as he swung his fan down, planning on it to impact his head, but hit empty air and Naruto appeared behind him. 

"I made a promise long ago," He took a kunai and stabbed Kazuma in the bag as he twisted his head to the side, a loud crack sounding from his neck. "And I intend on keeping, along with making a new promise." He ripped the kunai up Kazuma's spine, getting a scream from Kazuma before the man fell to the ground, dead. 

Naruto looked at Shisui, his one eye glaring daggers at the man. 

"I'll kill you too!" 

And done. That was probably the best, most emotional chapter I've probably ever written. I hope I pulled it off. 

Was it good? Bad? Please comment cause I work all night on this bitch. 

Anyways, yeah. Naruto Hatake is back. 

Til next time my lil demons!