The Protector - Chapter 3 (Patreon)

Please leave me lots and lots of NICE reviews.

Disclaimer: I don't own Naruto, Bleach, or any other anime I use in this story. They belong to their respective owners Kishimoto and Kubo.

4/19/25

Chapter 3-

Despite what most people believed, ninjas didn't always parade around in their uniforms.

It was a common mistake, as many of those who had seen ninjas had seen them in their uniforms were their clients, witnesses, or in the worst-case scenarios, their targets. They only saw them dressed in their shinobi flak jackets with limited modifications that set them apart, so many would be led to believe they were always dressed in them.

But of course, that wasn't the case.

They were shinobi—deceivers. Of course, they wouldn't be in their shinobi gear all the time; thatwas just plain stupid reasoning.

Most of their jobs involved espionage and collecting information, and what they did with that information depended on the job. Most people weren't willing to talk to shinobi, even if they did believe in the practice. Something about having a ninja right in front of you always set you on edge, which was normal. Shinobi were trained killers, soldiers—most of the time without morals or codes of their own—of course, you would feel unease just by being in their presence, that was ordinary. As such, they adapted, of course, the most capable shinobi learned how to blend in, to be one with the populace.

An aspect of ninja-hood he, as a child, hadn't been interested in.

Yet, it was something Jiraiya had taught him at the beginning of his journey on his training trip. The first step was reigning in his hyperactivity, something he only barely managed to rein in in his youth. Of course, this made him angry, he wanted to learn more jutsu, the destructive kind that would allow him to vanquish his enemies and bring Sasuke back to their village. But now, being older, he could stand to appreciate what Jiraya had taught him.

Espionage was a subtle art, even for famous shinobi. Sure, you could use a transformation technique to completely change your appearance, but usually, that wasn't needed. Usually, it was those types of techniques that got you killed. If someone were to disturb you, a blow accidentally placed in the wrong spot, or a lone rock throw in the crossfire, your entire disguise would be destroyed. The transformation technique was good but fragile, best used in haste and not overly relied upon.

That's why good shinobi relied on the primitive stuff. Make-up, and clothing, it had the added benefits of not being detectable through the use of chakra if he were to ever come across a sensor ninja that his target had employed.

So here he was now, walking the unfamiliar streets with nothing but a jacket and a pair of long baggy pants, a bag along his back that held pointless nothings. A blue beanie was atop his head, which mostly covered his blonde hair short for a few strands that came out near his ears. There was no orange upon his figure, that color being too recognizable. Additionally, he wore a bit of makeup on his face, the purpose of which was only to hide his whisker marks across his cheeks. And to top it all off, a set of wire glasses that held no prescription to not impair his vision, not that others could know that.

That was all that was required to become unassuming, or at least hide his identity well enough. He wasn't required to hide his appearance fully, that wasn't at all necessary. Most of the time, people didn't bother to pay attention to who he was or what he was doing to recognize him. And those who did pay attention didn't bother to look past what they saw. Even shinobi—who were trained to look underneath the underneath— had a hard time recognizing someone unless they were truly looking for them.

Sure, most people had heard of his name: Naruto Uzumaki, but the great majority didn't have a face to place the name under, and those that did likely didn't know him well enough to spot him in a crowd of people.

That was the easiest part of hiding one's identity, the fact that most people only cared about their own lives to pay attention to his.

That was good, he used that to his advantage.

Iwatashi Sato, his target for his mission. He was a man that no small amount of people had heard of.

He was a man who amassed a fortune in his life, he was born in fire country, although his father was from snow country, fleeing from the country in the midst of one of its political conflicts. He was an inventor and innovator. His father amassed a good deal of money using the knowledge he had procured in the far north. It was that same knowledge that he passed down to his son, who not only had a mind for technology but also business, coming up with a wide variety of advances and selling them off across the world.

He was a revolutionary, as far as the world of technological advances was concerned.

How right that term seemed. You see, Iwatashi had always been in silent favor of denouncing the village system, even before the allied shinobi nations had been formed. But when the five nations joined together it was then that he truly feared what might happen, as did alot of people. The great powers who had been at war had joined together, who was to be their newest enemy was a question on alot of people's minds.

Not that they openly voiced these opinions.

This led Iwatashi to be desperate and to be inspired.

The last enemy of the shinobi nations was a group of S-rank shinobi that could stand toe to toe with the kages, and if their information was right, that was what the technology mogul desired. Perhaps it was for protection, perhaps it was to form a fighting force to somehow weaken the state of the nations, they were not sure.

What they did know, was that Iwatashi needed to be silenced, permanently. He had started far too many discussions they didn't desire.

They were not a judicial system, they were not a court of law that required a jury and a gavel to decide whether one was guilty or not. As far as they were concerned, the crime had already been done, and they didn't have the time to wait for it. It was as if martial law was in effect, and what Konoha decided was in effect.

Iwatashi Sato had to die.

So here he was, in a village known as Komegashima, a city in east fire country that had grown in the ways of advances. It was a place much like Tazuku-gai, which he visited in his early years, where the main attraction in the city was the vast tourist locations and the abundance of gambling and relaxation areas that made the village profits beyond belief.

It was also the location where they suspected Iwatashi to be organizing some sort of event, a secret underground where he aimed to amass a fortune to topple the shinobi system. He did this by obtaining fellow benefactors, and investors in the same circle and with a similar mindset to him that also did not see the point in ninja any longer.

So he had to die…

For the betterment of the nations, the betterment of the common people, and the shinobi villages in general.

Of course, he couldn't die in a way that was tracked back to any of the shinobi villages, lest the population lose faith in the shinobi system as a whole. That would force the daimyo's hands, decreasing all of their funding and overall throwing a wrench of problems he didn't want to go into.

That was why they had to be covert about it, finding out where Iwatashi was and assassinating him discretely.

This was why he was dressed as a civilian, having adopted the fake identity of a news reporter looking to do research for a particular news outlet Konoha had silent ties to. The bag along his back filled with pointless nothings that weren't all that needed for his mission, just stuff that would get him past the village security and their small internal police force. Anything he actually did need—like his equipment and uniform for example— was stored in storage seals that had been painted along his person.

Getting into the village was easy, it was a gambling town after all, it encouraged people to enter, not so much leave. And it was staying in the village that was the problem, making it so Naruto had to be discrete. Being suspicious would only give him away, and make it so his target would flee without a trace.

The problem was, that he suddenly found a snag in his intelligence gathering. The reason being, that despite this being a gambling town of perpetual voyeurism, the citizens and visitors were rather tight-lipped when it came to things of importance, and he couldn't exactly ask where the man was outright.

He introduced himself as a journalist after all, taking the position of a scholar researching the human mind in the persistent presence of gambling and debauchery. All a load of crap, he had seen enough people gamble to know it was one of the big three vices a man could have around his heart.

So he had to prod around, beat around the bush, and subtly guide the conversation towards where it would be useful. Interesting people coming around. Unusual happenstances around some of the guests. Maybe they had seen a shinobi or multiple enter the village. Excluding him, of course. But the people seemed especially quiet, even if he offered them a considerable reward for such information.

All of which led him to naught, unfortunately.

Which put him on edge, something wasn't right in this city, but he couldn't quite tell what.

He needed to know where his target was, lest he leave before he could come after him.

But he didn't want to do something rash, now wasn't the time. So he spent the majority of the day walking around the busy city, one with an abundance of long alleyways and street corners you could get lost in. He didn't want to get lost, being unfamiliar with your surroundings was a rookie mistake, and rookie mistakes got you killed.

He had spent the better part of his day casing the city, and when he had his fill, he retreated back to an inn he had found at the corner of town, not particularly for sleep—although he was tired, having not slept a wink the previous night traveling. But he also required a place to relax, to sort through all the information in the town.

What he wasn't expecting, was to suddenly jolt up from his meditation, surprise taking his visage…

"What the fuck is that!"

That was the only thing he could say. The only thing he could think of, as he rose from his bed— his concentration having been utterly broken. He looked out his window, peering out, yet he couldn't quite see anything, but he knew it was there. His sensory abilities were going haywire, something was out there. Something big. He wasn't quite sure what it was, but he knew it was dangerous.

A summon? No, the thing couldn't be a summon, he just knew it.

This thing was something unknown, something unexpected.

And despite his mission and desire to be covert, he just knew he had to see what it was…

With a sigh, he bit along his thumb, reaching under his shirt through his collar, he rubbed the anbu tattoo, unsealing what was inside. And the next second, he was gone within a shunshin.

XXX

Naruto had been expecting alot of things, the first being that this was some sort of trick by the shinobi his target hired to lure him out. But then he realized he probably wasn't that lucky, because even if they were setting a trap he knew that would be something he could handle. The next was that it would be some sort of rogue experiment of some sort, like something Orochimaru would have conducted. But then again he knew that most of the nation's mad scientists were apprehended and locked up shortly after the war, so that couldn't be it.

But what he hadn't been expecting, was this…

"What the hell!"

Standing in the forests outside of the village of Komegashima, the tall trees were being dwarfed by an unimaginable figure, so much so, that he had to check his vision at least once to make sure he was seeing things correctly. There was no way this was a summon, not unless his eyes were deceiving him and there was another clam summoner about.

Standing at around 150 meters, half the size of a full-powered Kurama, was a tall shadow. A mountainous figure that appeared to be humanoid—if he could call it that— its body was like a cloak, wafting down its figure. It resembled a tall tower, steep in size, like a giant. Immediately his eyes were drawn to its two distinct features, the first being its face, white as snow. Resembling that of an anbu mask, its face was the color of bone, its teeth exposed, and its eyes glowing red in the darkness. He could also make out a pronounced nose, like a beak on a bird.

But the second thing that took his notice, was the large, inhuman hole that appeared to be in its stomach. Going completely through its body like it had taken a fully formed Chidori to its heart, the being could only be pronounced dead. It reminded him of the stories of the corpse-made monster that Shikamaru had fought in the forests when they were sent to retrieve Sasuke from Orochimaru's grasp. Only this thing, he realized, was much taller.

No, this couldn't be a summon, not any that he had known.

This had to be something else…

Instantly he realized the danger of this creature, not necessarily towards himself, but the people around the village. They would not be able to stand up to this thing, he knew, not the village police force, not the civilians in the city.

The only people who would be able to stand up to this thing would be a shinobi, which he knew the village was short on supply, sans the strong shinobi they only expected Iwatashi to have hired. Rogue shinobi, not people he would expect to go out of their way to defeat whatever creature this was. To them that was risking getting caught by hunter nin, something any rogue nin wanted to avoid

So Naruto was in a bit of a pickle, he could take down this creature by himself, and risk blowing his identity—something he was already doing by allowing himself to be out in the open, even at night, in his ANBU uniform. Or he could keep his cover, and risk untold destruction within the village on the outskirts of the land of fire.

Yeah… he supposed there wasn't really any other option….

Instantly, Naruto looked up at the monster, pumping chakra into his legs, he pushed forward, as he leaped into the air, right towards the ghost-like figure with a white mask. He needed to end this quickly, lest someone inside the village spot him.

And that's what he did, mid-flight, he reared his hand back, as a spiraling yellow ball of chakra formed in his palm. "Rasenshuriken!" he yelled. A toned-down version of his first S-rank jutsu, yet still deadly in its own right, able to be thrown from a distance, yet still holding the deadly power of his father's most famous technique.

He threw it, the technique spinning through the air in hundreds of directions, yet it only had one target, and that was the giant shadow standing before him. Before the creature could react, it struck it right in its head.

The being could only let out a single roar, a wail of agony as it was struck. "RAHHHHHHHHHH!!"

Then the unexpected happened, instead of it being send down, falling onto is back and onto the ground, it did something unexpected. As soon as his rasenshuriken collided with the beast, a small explosion from the impact happening right before his very eyes as its face had been struck, the being… disappeared.

Or it was more accurate to say it dissolved.

Vanishing into a cloud of light, the shadow just vanished into nothingness, its last cry being a scream of agony as it disappeared. Leaving Naruto confused, in the forest. Inwardly, he tested himself for any enemy genjustu, though he knew himself to be under none, then what had he just witnessed just then? It wasn't like this was a summon returning to its homeland, that would be something he could understand. It just vanished, as he was utterly baffled.

"Huh?"

Although he didn't have time to reflect on the event's strangeness, something equally strange had happened.

"RAHHHHHHHHHH!" "RAHHHHHHHHHH!"

"Oh, you have got to be kidding me," as if on cue, as he turned around, Naruto was left to witness another strange event probably even stranger than the weird shadow-ghost creature vanishing into nothing. Another one seemed to be appearing from thin air. No, that wasn't it, it seemed. It was more like, the creature was tearing itself into the world, almost like Obito's Kamui technique in some aspects. A crack in the world appeared, and from it, small as it was, seemed to be the large shadowy creature's face peaking out of it. A long white hand appeared as it ripped the hole open wider, so wide, in fact, that it could fit through with a little effort. And there was not just one, but two more of these shadows appearing from two more of these rips in space.

Now, any normal person would have shit themselves crazy, as even he could feel the power these two beings were emitting, but for him, this was child's play. A jonin could probably take these things on, as despite their size, they seemed rather slow, and manageable if you knew how to take them down.

He needed to get this done fast, he had already spent too much effort to blow his cover now.

With a single hand seal, he crossed his fingers, and in an instant, another copy of himself appeared next to him courtesy of his Shadow clone technique. They both rushed in sinc, charging a one-handed Rasengan in hand as they both struck each of their targets and they jumped at their faces.

A roar of death followed by an explosion, as he killed them before they could even retaliate.

"Well that was easy," Naruto had to admit to himself, as he landed back down to the dirt, his shadow clone already dispersing itself. This might not be a total failure after all, the creatures he fought seemed to all disappear, leaving no trace they were even there short the trees they broke down in their presence—which could be chalked up to bad weather. The only problem would be a skilled sensor, if there was one nearby he was screwed, but he counted on his good luck to help him in that aspect.

Now there was only one thing…

"Oh?" he wondered aloud, as Naruto noticed something. There, right in the distance, was a shadow. Not just any shadow, it was a dark spot, a dark spot in the middle of the air, a rift he couldn't help but pay attention to.

He had to get closer.

As he approached it, getting further and further, he noticed a few things. The first being, that he felt an unearthly chill run along the back of his neck, through his spine. That wasn't normal, but nothing to be at all too worried about. Though, once again, he felt a familiarity with such a hole, it seemed to remind him of Kaguya's transportation technique that allowed her to travel between dimensions. Though not entirely, he did recognize that this was dangerous.

It was like a hole in the sky, small, barely the size of his palm, yet these could apparently grow to the size of a building somehow.

As Naruto then reached out to touch it, bandaged arm and all, it was as if he could hold this lapse in space and time in his hand. His fingers were right about to graze the object until he paused…

Immediately, he jumped back, his instincts screaming.

Not a moment later the hole grew in size, not to the size of the larger shadows he had encountered. No, this portal was smaller, more compact, but he felt whatever would emerge from it would be far more dangerous.

It was then that something emerged from the darkness, this time not a figure dressed in all black. The new figure being all white, to the bone. That was it, it was as if this creature was covered in bone. It retained a humanoid appearance, but not entirely so as it stood hunched over, not quite on all fours like a dog would be. He saw five appendages, two arms, two legs, and a long, winding tail that had a pointed tip to it. Its muscles were large, resembling that of a human with strong biceps and pectoral muscles. Its face was pronounced like that of a primate. Though it still resembled that of a mask like the other creatures he had seen, only more detailed, like a skull. A large hole ran through where its stomach should be, like the other creatures he had seen.

Overall, the creature appeared to be like that of a monkey, only this seemed far more dangerous than any ordinary primate.

"Woah, this is new. Who would have expected the Garganta to send me here" the monkey spoke, as he stepped out into the world as if he were experiencing a new sensation. "This human world seems to be different, stronger even, and brimming with energy. I like it!"

It was at that moment that he noticed Naruto, who was already standing in a defensive stance, a kunai in hand, ready to strike. Sensing that whoever this person was, he was strong.

"Oh? And who are you? I don't take you for a shinigami, eh?" the monkey spoke, already recognizing that this person could see him.

"Yeah, well I was about to ask you for the same thing, there aren't any zoos nearby for you to have escaped from," Naruto commented, trying to understand what sort of thing was in front of him. "You wouldn't happen to know any Sarutobi, would you?"

The monkey's face somehow morphed into confusion, "No. Can't say that I do."

Ah, well that put that theory out of the way, although he already had his doubts. This monkey seemed powerful, not at all unlike the Monkey clan members who were connected to the summoning contract of the Sarutobi clan. Not that he expected this monkey to up and transform into a staff like the Monkey King Enma could do.

"Yeah, so… I'm gonna eat your soul now! Hahaha!" The monkey laughed, as within an instant, a bone-like staff appeared in his arms, not unlike a Sarutobi's, as he rushed towards Naruto.

The blonde recognizing this, was able to react in time, blocking the large staff that was aimed high with his kunai. However, it seemed the monkey noticed this and counter-attacked by using the other end of his staff to attack at his feet, forcing Naruto to step back for a second as his opponent pushed for the advantage. Aiming quickly with his staff once again Naruto was forced to block, expecting another attack from his lower guard. The monkey twirling fast, used his other appendage to slash at Naruto with his tail as he ducked. Forcing him to be pushed back again as a wide-sweeping attack was on its way as the monkey made its rounds.

Naruto, realizing he was outmatched when it came to arms retrieved another kunai from his pouch, this time using it within a reverse grip to increase his defense. As he then went on the offensive, the monkey used his staff to aim at his chest, and he would have struck, had Naruto not stepped to the side.

Now, the bow staff was a powerful weapon, it was strong, durable, and defensive. It was the weapon that The Professor, Saruto Hiruzen, the Third Hokage had used to gain his moniker as the most dangerous shinobi of his time. The name that had elevated him so high among most moral shinobi that they could not even compare. Being called a God of Shinobi. This beast was skilled as well, but there was a single weakness of his weapon, one that he knew to exploit. You see, the bow staff, while having a considerable reach to strike an enemy at range, could be taken advantage of. If one were to get so close that their longer range would be a detriment, then it would be the end. Hiruzen could recognize this fact in an instant and go on the offensive with some jutsu, but he didn't think this monkey could do the same.

And he did just that, dodging the bow to the side as he got in close, channeling his wind chakra into his kunai like a razor blade, as he swiped it up against his opponent's chest. Naruto realized how durable the creature was, because if he had struck a normal creature, well, they would be bisected right down the middle straight through. A horrid sigh, but not something that he was unfamiliar with in battle. But it seemed this creature's skin was not normal, as the blow that should have gone straight through him, merely created a large gash in his bone-like armor.

Nevertheless, the Monkey did seem to realize this, as he got back, actually feeling the pain as if it were his skin, which like, it was.

"Ah! Well damn, didn't think you would actually get past my Hierro. Not like those pesky black coats in Soul Society could do," the monkey spoke. "Just who the hell are you?"

Naruto didn't give him a response, only looking at the monkey through the holes in his ANBU mask. Thinking of what this creature could also do, and predicting how their battle might take place.

When the monkey realized he wouldn't get a response, he could only laugh, "Name's Wukong, the next Monkey King of Hueco Mundo!"

Naruto was once again silent, but his mind was racing for any locations he knew to have referenced a place called Hueco Mundo. He got nothing.

"Just what are you?" Naruto asked aloud, almost mirroring the question he had been given earlier.

As Naruto's mask stared at the monkey, the slash across his chest buried deep, but he seemed unfazed. The monkey merely grinned, showing his teeth and gums in their entirety. "Haha! I'm what's known as an Adjuchas, a hollow, and not like those damned Arancar that went to that bastard Aizen either! I'm pure! And I'm taking Hueco Mundo back with me as its ruler!" He said, disdain evident for whoever this Aizen was. "Hey, you seem pretty strong! I bet consuming your soul might even promote me to a Vasto Lorde!"

Naruto didn't have time to think of what the creature had said, a hollow, or so he had called himself, whatever that was, as the monkey readied himself for another attack.

"I'll show you the true power of the stronger Adjuchas! My Cero! Nobody has ever come out alive against this attack!" He roared, as a strong cerulean light began to form around the creature's staff, building at the tip as it gained in power.

Inwardly, Naruto was reminded of a Bijuu bomb, not necessarily in destructive output, but in sheer wind up. He knew whatever attack this was would be dangerous.

Ah, Shit. Naruto thought to himself as he readied for defense, crouching down, as he shouted. "Earth style: Mud wall!"

"Cero!" instantly, the blue light began to be thrust towards him, as the ground rose in front of Naruto, who was not sure his defense would be durable enough to block this blow. A long blue and white beam flew in his direction, eliminating all in his path, a powerful concussive force. Now, Naruto had faced quite a few attacks like it, Madara's storm release techniques for example, but he hadn't expected this man to be able to shoot a large laser beam towards him.

The beam hit his wall, as Naruto reinforced it with chakra. Unfortunately, he knew Earth-release wasn't his strong suit, being a natural wind user after all, and he did have a partial affinity for fire and a bit of water. But that wasn't to say he couldn't use earth release like he was now. After the war having used his shadow clones to learn all five of the nature elements and how to cast them. However, he would never be as good as someone with an affinity who had truly mastered it, not like Yamato had been with his earth and water techniques.

So, it wasn't a surprise to see his earth wall cracking under the pressure.

A large explosion occurred as it did, the wall collapsing.

On the other side, you could only see the monkey laughing in response, thinking he had defeated his opponent. The stone structure was blasted away, and with it, no sign of Naruto, who had been overtaken by his Cero in its entirety.

"Hahaha! Looks like you weren't so tough after all!"

"I wouldn't count on it!" a voice said, as instantly, a pair of arms rose from the ground. Naruto having used his Earth-style: hiding like a mole technique, much like how Kakashi had used in their early years. Having swapped himself with a clone to take the blast and catch his opponent off guard.

But that wasn't the only surprise about his strategy…

"Try to pay attention to your surroundings next time…" Another Naruto said from behind him, the Naruto at his feet also a clone to catch his enemy in a lock.

Not being able to move, the monkey used his extra appendage to try and form another cero, a blue beam being sent out into the forest. But Naruto was too fast, being able to dodge out of his blast as he moved to the side.

It was then that Wukong realized the second Naruto behind him as well, as Naruto held his hand out, the clone doing the same. Immediately, a Rasengan began to form, though this wasn't the normal ball of blue spiraling energy. No, with the added help of the clone, Rasengan's power output was increased with his added fire nature.

This Rasengan began to turn black, forming a menacing red aura around it, almost like that of a sun. Blinding, as it was born into his hand. "I doubt a normal Rasengan would pierce your skin, let's see you take this! Fire-release: Great Flame Rasengan!" Naruto shouted, as in that instant, he thrust his technique forward into his opponent's open guard.

Hitting his chest, the intense flames were enough to melt through the monkey's bone-like armored skin. Instantly cauterizing and boiling through its flesh it turned yellow, red, and finally, white once more.

"Agh!" the monkey roared, taking the brunt of the S-rank attack towards his back before he even knew what hit him. But it didn't stay like that for long, as in the spot he hit him he started to turn gray, the color of ash. His insides had already been boiled internally.

Much like the others of its kind, it began to dissolve away, but this time the hollow began to turn into as, starting at its chest, then down to its legs and arms, and finally until it was but a head.

"Well damn, guess… it's not my time to be king yet, hahaha!" The monkey could only laugh, having fought someone strong in his final moments, all he could have really wanted. His grand delusions all but gone. Though he had expected it to be a soul reaper to have taken him out, or maybe even another hollow. What he hadn't expected, was to be defeated by a…

The monkey's head dissolved into ashes, leaving Naruto alone in the clearing, the forest echoing in the distance, the leaves falling, still shaken by the apparent destruction their fight had caused. Those strong laster beams having blasted several meters off into the distance, the rumble from his mud walls and holes being dug. Even the temperature of the area was affected, it once being a cold night that would give chills to anyone. Now, with the heat of his Rasengan, which resembled that of a miniature sun or the flames of Amaterasu, it had heated the area considerably. With the amount of changes in the atmosphere of the area, he couldn't only expect that it might rain soon, like the activation of a certain Kirin technique his friend had used in the past.

Overall, not good.

A sigh had escaped his lips, this wasn't exactly how he expected his night to turn out. He only hoped he hadn't blown his cover, that could have been bad. His target might now be onto him, which would make his job a whole lot harder. A good ninja would be able to tell that a fight happened in a one-thousand-meter radius, a better ninja would be able to tell that in ten-thousand. Even if you weren't a sensor, you learned to pick up on a few things. The changes in the atmosphere, seismic sensations in the ground, and the chakra residue in the air that drifted over the course of time. It was always something, because in their line of work, if they didn't know where a potential enemy might have been, they would pay with their life for it.

Overall, he might be a little screwed. Inwardly, though, he realized there was nothing he could do, whatever those things were, hollows, as his last opponent said they were called, they were strong. That last one could contend with even elite Jonin, much like Kakashi and Zabuza had been on his first mission outside of the village, and they may be even stronger. The town nearby wouldn't have been able to stop them, even the large creatures were powerful in their own right. The town would be toast, and then the land of fire might have a real problem on its hands, a village disappearing and all.

He knew he did the right thing, even if he was trying to reassure himself.

Just as Naruto was so engrossed in the thought of what had happened, he paused, his senses screaming out at him.

He didn't have much time to think about it, Naruto reacted on pure instinct. As hundreds of feet above him another of those portals appeared in that forest that night. A potentially new danger had appeared, small as it was, a blur of motion, like it was falling, which it seemed to be…

Right over of his head, as it rushed down through the darkness.

"Not this again…"

Naruto did the only thing he could think of at the moment, he caught whatever the small object was, preparing to throw it away should he have to quickly and it was only then he got a good look at it.

It was then he realized that it wasn't an object in his hands, not an explosive, or a weapon potentially dangerous.

Confused, he was left staring at what he realized to be a child…

One with turquoise green hair on its head.

End Chapter.

An: Alright, that's the end of the chapter. This one is a bit shorter, though there is a bit of important stuff in here to set up alot I have planned, some parts with the small arc I have planned to deal with Naruto's current mission (his target more or less being an OC). The rest was to deal with actually introducing some of the bleach elements.

There was alot less character development in this chapter, with this being more focused on action. Naruto fighting a hollow that somehow ended up in the Naruto-verse, how that happened will be left in the air.

As for the ending... who's to say.

I suppose that's the end, I'm tired atm.

Let me know what you guys think, and your theories in the reviews or PM's.

I also ended up posting a chapter for a new story with Naruto/To-Love ru/Monster Musume, which I'll update next week.

And I got a number of other fics to check out as well.

I wanted to update this yesterday, but the site was down on my phone. Unfortunate.

I want to see you guys hit 100 follows on this story, it would really help my motivation with posting.

Please leave me lots and lots of NICE reviews.