FSE

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Chapter 1

With a battle cry the Shinigami ran at the hollow, his Zanpactou raised above his head as he attempted to slay the beast. The Hollow batted him away with little effort, sending him flying several feet through the air and crashing into a wall, the breath being knocked out of him as he slumped to the ground, his Zanpactou clattering against the ground as he lost his grip on it. Looking up at the beast approaching him he scowled and spat at it.

"Fucking monster! I hope you choke on my reiatsu!"

The hollow let out a high pitched shriek and lunged at the man and he clenched his eyes shut tight and waited for the killing blow. After a few seconds he opened his eyes and watched as the hollow dispersed into particles of reiatsu as it died. Once it had disappeared entirely he saw another Shinigami standing in front of him his huge Zanpactou, a Broad Sword rather than and Katana, resting on his shoulder as he effortlessly carried the massive sword in one hand. The Shinigami wore the standard black Kimono that all Shinigami's wore his blond hair sticking up as it usually did, the mans eyes locked with the other Shinigami's brilliant blue eyes which glowed, piercing the darkness of the night.

"Vice-Captain!"

"You need to be more careful Kisuke, there is a reason we assign you to teams, if I hadn't come along when I did..."

"Arrigato!" Scrambling to his knees he bowed in thanks to the Blond Shinigami. "Arrigato Vice-Captain!"

"Pick up your Zanpactou and go and meet up with the others, this training exercise is over. We will need to go over your training again." His Zanpactou returning to its Katana form the Blond Shinigami slid it into the sheath on his hip and the began to make his way towards the rendezvous with the others, the other Shinigami picked up his Zanpactou and began to follow his Vice-Captain with his head slumped in shame.

XXXXXXXXX

Approaching the group of a dozen Shinigami that had gathered at the docks The Blond Shinigami and the trainee he had saved approached the group, one of them spotting them and smiled and walked towards them. The Shinigami also had blond hair but it was left untended and tended to be a mess but somehow the blond seemed to pull it off. The Shinigami wore an orange coat, much like a captains coat except for the colour, on top of his standard Kimono.

"Ah Cloud, took you long enough!" The Blond grinned. "Found your little lost lamb?" He asked getting right in the face of the rescued Shinigami.

"Naruto, I don't think he appreciates you getting in his face like that." Cloud said calmly not looking back as he continued walking.

"Tsk...fine...you're such a spoil sport Cloud!" Naruto huffs, following Cloud with his arms crossed and an annoyed expression on his face.

"And you're such a child. You're a Vice-Captain, act like it for a change." Cloud was unaware of the face Naruto was pulling at him as they walked towards the group. Cloud looked over the group and did a quick head count before turning to Naruto. "Everyone's here, lets go home. Naruto would you do the honours?"

"Sure!" Naruto grinned pulling out his Zanpactou and sliding it carefully into mid air and turning it like a key. After doing so a wooden gate appeared and slid open revealing a near blinding white light. Black butterflies emerged from the gate and fluttered over to a Shinigami, one per Shinigami and then fluttered back towards the gate the Shinigami they had gone to following them in one by one.

XXXXXXXXXXXX

The following day, back in the Soul Society Cloud was busy training the Shinigami in his squad, each of them paired off against each other and practising their Kendo skills, everyone that is but the three Shinigami from the squad that had participated in yesterdays training exercise. Kisuke Watari, Shinzo Yakamara and Tatsuki Arisawa.

"You three are the newest to this squad and as such I chose you to participate in the training exercise yesterday so you could build up some experience. I had expected you three to do well but as it turned out you scored the lowest out of all the teams there and Kisuke nearly got himself killed!" Cloud scolded them.

"But Sensei, Kisuke ran off by himself. We were a person short compared to the other teams after he did so we were at a disadvantage!" Tatsuki pleaded. "We tried to make him see sense but he wouldn't listen."

"True, Kisuke did run off on his own accord but you could have followed him." Cloud replied before turning to Kisuke. "And Kisuke, what reason did you have for running off on your own?"

"Well...I wanted to win so I thought by splitting up we could cover more ground and beat everyone else. We were only hunting the robotic hollows that Squad 12 created so I didn't think..."

"No Kisuke, you didn't think! You were warned at the beginning of the exercise that unlike in the academy exercise that there was no barrier put in place and a real hollow could turn up. We had you in teams not only to help you build teamwork but to protect each other. Your attitude nearly cost you your life. You were surprised by the Hollow and charged it head on! What were you thinking? We may be Shinigami's BUT we are not invincible. Many Shinigami's fall prey to Hollows while on patrol in the real world, that is why it is up to myself and the Captain to choose who goes on patrol."

"Sorry...Vice-Captain..." Kisuke mumbled looking dejectedly at his feet making Cloud sigh. "You're strong Kisuke, but your attitude..." There was a silence among the four of them. "For the rest of the day I want you guys doing drills!" This order was met by a series of moans from the three younger Shinigami's.

"Vice-Captain, isn't that a little unfair? Kisuke was the one who broke the rules, why do we have to punished as well?"

"Because, a team is only as strong as its weakest member. You win as a team, you lose as a team and you get punished as a team. Now get to work, if you're lucky I'll let you stop drills long enough to have some lunch." Cloud turned and walked away, after walking a few steps he looked over his shoulder and glared at the three who immediately drew their Zanpactou's and began to run drills. Cloud smirked and walked into the barracks.

"Little harsh don't you think Cloud?" Came the familiar voice of Cloud Superior officer, Captain of squad 5, Sephiroth. Sephiroth was wearing the white cloak that all squad captains wear, on the back the number of the squad written on the back, over his standard black Kimono that all Shinigami's wore.

"Kisuke nearly got himself killed! I think its a fair punishment."

"We all make mistakes Cloud, even you" Sephiroth stated calmly as every, the only emotion he ever portray in his voice was one of smugness. The tone did get Cloud riled up from time to time but Cloud respected Sephiroth's strength greatly and strove be as strong as he was.

"What do you mean by that?"

"Hmm...you're not infallible Cloud, none of us are. Even you have moments where you do something foolish and foolhardy just to prove your strength."

"Yes but the difference is I can handle myself in a fight, Kisuke is fresh out of the Academy."

"There are moments that define everyone Cloud, moments where an act of what most people would call stupid or dangerous even insane, these moments are the times that be the difference from some one being your normal everyday person to someone who is renowned as great and called a hero or even possibly a villain."

"Or end up dead." Cloud replied with seriousness making Sephiroth smirk. "I know what you're getting at but Kisuke is not you Sephiroth. You may have survived all those encounters with Hollows but most people wouldn't have. You are the man who single handedly took out a thousand Hollows."

"Cloud, one day you'll understand. There are things that we all need to do, no matter how dangerous they maybe, because Cloud our goals in life make us what we are and what we do to attain those goals are what make us what we will become.

Remember that Cloud, because sooner or later you will be forced to make a choice, and that choice will not only determine what kind of man you will become but also how strong you will become and whether or not you will live or die." Sephiroth pushed off the wall he was leaning against and walked away from Cloud. Looking back at the three running drills outside Cloud sighed and promised that he'd let them finish the punishment at lunch time and let the join the rest of the squad in training.

XXXXXXXXX

"So how was the training exercise Naruto?" Asked Captain of Squad 8, Jiraiya as he was looking dejectedly at the pile of paperwork on his desk.

"It went pretty well. Other than one of Clouds newbies going off by himself and nearly getting killed by a Hollow it went smoothly Pervy-Sage."

"HOW MANY TIMES DO I HAVE TO TELL YOU NOT TO CALL ME THAT!?!" Jiraiya yelled at his Vice-Captain.

"Huh? Call you what?" Naruto asked innocently, blinking several times at his Captain with a confused look on his face. "Never mind...stupid, blond headed twit, why I made him my Vice-Captain I'll never know...go get me some Sake will ya? I'm parched." Jiraiya grumbled.

"You've just had breakfast and you're wanting Sake already? You've been spending too much time with Granny Tsunade. Why don't you just go and spy at the women hot springs and get beat up like you usually do?"

"Because, one I have a major hangover because I was up drinking with Tsunade last night and need the sake to help take the edge off. Two because I need to get this paper work done before I can go do any peep...err...research, and three...well there is no reason to tell you three because reasons one and two were so good." Jiraiya laughed from behind his desk and Naruto sweat dropped. "But all that aside I have a job for you Naruto."

"What is it this time? You want me to hire you a prostitute? You want me to cover for you while you go peeping?"

"Don't be so insolent!" Jiraiya warned Naruto who simply crossed his arms in a huff and Glared at his Captain.

"Well it wouldn't be the first time you've asked me to do that would it?"

"Naruto, I want you to investigate a series of unusual activities." Jiraiya continued pretending not to hear Narutos last accusation. "On their own they don't appear to be sinister and each event is not linked to another but I have a gut feeling about this. I think this is a lead up to something big."

"Fine I'll look into it for you but are you not the big shot with all the contacts? Wouldn't you have a better chance of working this out?"

"I've already tried but I got nothing. I'm hoping that you'll be able to see something I missed or pick up a new lead." Jiraiya explained handing a folder to Naruto for to him to read. Naruto opened the folder and looked at the files inside.

"These are weird...you sure that their all linked? Sudden disappearances, strange bursts of spiritual energy in random locations, mindless destruction in rural areas...these don't even take place anywhere near each other or in any kind of pattern."

"I know...but there is something about the each scene that doesn't add up."

"Fine...I'll do it. Just promise me you won't go peeping while I'm out busting my ass you pervert."

"NARUTO! How many times do I have to tell you? I'm not 'a' pervert! I'm 'a big one'!" Jiraiya declared his hands fondling the air in front of him. Naruto sweat dropped in despair.

XXXXXXXXX

Naruto was leaving the Barracks of Squad 8 when he heard someone behind him shout his name. Turning to see who was calling him he saw Konahamaru running towards him, his friends Mogi and Udon following him.

"Ah, Konahamaru!" Naruto grinned. "What's up?"

"Where do you think you're going Naruto!? You promised to fight me today! Running away scared are ya?" Konahamaru yelled pointing at Naruto.

"Konahamaru..have a little respect!" Mogi pleaded. "He is our Vice Captain!"

"Kah! He'll earn my respect when he has beaten me in fight!" Konahamaru scoffed. "So, how about it Naruto? You gonna fight me or are you going to run away?"

"Well...Pervy-Sage did ask me to do something......but I guess it can wait 2 minutes till I beat you" Naruto grinned.

"Oh yeah? We'll see about that!" Konahamaru smirked and gripped the hilt of his Zanpactou. "Lets do this!" Konahamaru and Naruto walked to the court yard of the Squad 8 Barracks and stood opposite each other both of them smirking and staring at each other with fierce determination.

"What's going on?" A random Shinigami asked when seeing the pair. "Looks like Konahamaru is challenging Naruto again." Another said. Various mumbling could be heard as well as people talking about how the fight would go as a crowd gathering to watch the pair. "Good luck Konahamaru!" Mogi yelled over the other Shinigami cheering on her friend and crush.

"You ready Konahamaru? Because I ain't going to hold back." Naruto asked.

"I wouldn't want it any other way!" Konahamaru replied and drew his Zanpactou. "Prepare to be defeated! FOOL THEM, GENKI!" Konahamaru's Zanpactou changed form slightly the Blade warping and taking on a wave like shape and moved like a monkeys tail and the guard became covered in brown fur. Konahamaru rushed at Naruto leaping into the air his sword held over his head to bring it crashing down onto Narutos head. Naruto remained still not drawing his sword as Konahamaru was in mid-air and easily sidestepped the attack Konahamaru's blade hitting off the ground. Konahamaru growled in annoyance and managed to bring his Zanpactou up in time to block Narutos and jump back a couple of times to create distance.

"Damn you Naruto! I though you were going to take this seriously!" Konahamaru growled angrily at Naruto.

"I am." Naruto replied but the voice came from behind Konahamaru not from the Naruto standing in front of him but from behind him. Konahamaru somehow managed to clumsily roll away before Naruto could cut him - which is how the fight between them normally ends, a cut to the torso from the others Zanpactou or until one of them was unable to fight - and jumped back up onto his feet and faced the Naruto that had attacked him from behind.

"You're good. I didn't even see or hear you cast the Bakudo, that is why your my greatest rival but I won't go down so easily"! Konahamaru barked before charging at the Naruto. Raising his sword to block Konahamaru's swing, Konahamaru doubled his effort as he swung his Zanpactou at the blond Shinigami in an attempt to knock him off balance but as his Zanpactou should have made contact with Narutos his blade passed through Narutos and he disappeared as the Bakudo was broken. Realising his mistake Konahamaru tried to correct his balance, which was off since he had put so much effort into hitting something that hadn't actually been there, and turn to face the other Naruto who was already standing next to him when he turned his head and was mid swing. Narutos Zanpactou clashed with Konahamaru's, the force of the blow sending Konahamaru's Zanpactou spinning through the air till it ended up stuck tip first in the ground several yards away and Konahamaru ending up on his back on the ground and the tip of Narutos Zanpactou hovering a few inches away from his face.

"I win Konahamaru!" Naruto grinned before sheathing his Zanpactou and offering Konahamaru a hand up who grudgingly took it and began to dust himself off.

"I hate those Clones! I can never tell which is the real you!" Konahamaru moaned. "You gotta teach me it sometime!"

"Sure!"

"Really?" Konahamaru asked excitedly.

"Yeah! Once I finish the task Pervy-Sage gave me, the first thing I'll do is teach you it. It can be a bit tricky to get it right as it uses a fair amount of Spiritual power to do but I'm sure you'll learn it in no time. Right I've got to get going, I'll catch you later Konahamaru!" Naruto yelled as he walked away waving over his shoulder.

"See ya later Naruto!" Konahamaru waved back.

XXXXXXXXX

Leaping through the tree tops Naruto was heading to one of his contacts in the Rukongai district about the strange occurrences that his captain Jiraiya had asked him to investigate after visiting several of the sites himself and finding nothing out of the ordinary that was not already stated in the file that Jiraiya had handed him. He was about half way through the forest when he felt a strange spiritual pressure and then heard the familiar shriek of a hollow in the distance. Stopping dead in his tracks he quickly changes direction toward the Hollow. After about a minute Naruto spotted a group of six of the beasts chasing down two children who were terrified and running for their lives.

One of the children slipped and cried out as one of the Hollows moved to pounce on her and consume her spirit. The Beast never got to have its prey as Naruto used Shun-po to appear between between the girl and the Hollow and sliced the Hollows head in half with his Zanpactou, the Hollow let out a dying shriek before collapsing to the ground and its body began to slowly start disintegrating.

The other Hollows stopped to look upon the new arrival. Naruto had thought something was a little off about the Hollows when he approached but hadn't had the time to stop and work it out before rushing to the little girls defence. The remaining Hollows and the one he had just slain didn't have fully formed holes in their chest, instead there was a semi circle as if the transformation process to a Hollow was incomplete. Looking back at the children the other child, a boy had come to the others aid and they stood there looking in amazement at Naruto.

"You okay?" Naruto asked and was simply responded by a nod of the head. "Good. Now you guys stand back while I deal with these freaks!" Naruto took several steps towards the Hollows who eyed him warily. "Picking on little kids huh? Well why don't you try someone your own size!" Naruto yelled at the Hollows despite them being twice as tall as he was.

"Come forth Warriors of the Shadow Realm, Take form and do battle! Bakudo #67 Kage Bushin (Shadow Clone)." A large cloud of smoke burst from nowhere engulfing Naruto dispersing a couple of seconds later revealing three identical Narutos standing before the Hollows before crying out and attacking the Hollows. The first three Hollows died quickly making the other two Hollows run away. Dispelling his Clones Naruto watched as the Hollows tried to make it for the tree line.

"I don't think so. _ Ravage the Land, Kyuubi! _" Naruto's Zanpactou released a bubbling red energy field around its blade after Naruto called its name. Swinging his Zanpactou towards the escaping Hollows two blood red tendrils of bubbling energy shot out from the blade towards the Hollows quickly wrapping themselves round the escaping hollows and ensnaring them.

The Hollows struggled against their bonds futility until their bodies began to burn and decay where the tendrils of energy touched their bodies until they had completely disintegrating into nothing more than a few spirit particles. Once all the Hollows were defeated Naruto resealed his sword and sheathed it before turning to the two children.

"You're safe now. What were you guys doing all the way out here?" Naruto asked with a kind smile.

"We were travelling with a few adults to a set up a new home in the next town when we were attacked by the monsters." The girl explained.

"We managed to get away but everyone else...turned into those...things." The boy said. "Tenzo...he was the leader, he collapsed in pain along with two of the other adults and soon after turned into those monsters and they attacked everyone else."

"Wait, they turned into a Hollows? They weren't eaten by one but just turned into one on the spot?" Naruto asked and both kids nodded their heads. "Strange...anyway I'd better get you guys somewhere safe. I'm heading to the next town and I'm meeting someone I'm sure would be happy to help you find a new home."

"Really?"

"Yeah! Now come here and climb on my back." Naruto said kneeling and turning round so that he could carry the pair. Once they climbed on and Naruto was sure he wouldn't drop them he turned towards the next town and used Shun-po, disappearing instantly to the naked eye.

XXXXXXXXX

Naruto arrived at the outskirts of the town about an 30 minutes later, what would have taken anyone who didn't know Shun-po at least a day to travel. Letting the children down so they could stand on their own they got off and giggled.

"That was awesome!" The boy said.

"Yeah! I wish I could move that fast!" The girl added.

"Haha, yeah!" Naruto grinned. "Now then, we should go and meet my friend and see if we can find someone to let you live with them...I've just realised something. We don't know each others names do we?"

"I'm Kaede!" The little girl said. "And this is Onigumo."

"Well then, nice to meet you Kaede, Onigumo. My names Naruto"

"Thanks for everything Naruto!" The two children said in unison.

"You're welcome. Now come, lets go and find my friend." Walking towards the town the kids in tow Naruto made his way to his contacts house getting a few looks along the way. Some of the residents recognised him from his younger years and smiled happily at him while others who were jealous of him glared.

"Where are we Naruto?" Kaede asked.

"This is where I grew up before I became a Shinigami. Rukongai District 27, known to the locals as Konohana. I have a lot of friends who grew up here that are Shinigami's, and its a fact that there are more Shinigami's from this district in the Gotie 13 than any other district of the Rukongai."

"Wow..."

"Yeah, don't know if it's coincidence or what but...oh hey there it is! Naruto said as he saw the house he was looking for. Outside the wooden house that served as the standard house in the area a dozen children of various ages played with each other and a man sat outside on a bench keeping an eye on the kids as they played. "IRUKA!" Naruto yelled getting the attention of the man who upon seeing Naruto got up and smiled at the blond.

"Naruto! It's so good to see you!" Iruka grinned giving the blond a hug who returned it. "Its been a while."

"Sure has! Sorry I haven't visited more often."

"It's all right, I'm sure you're kept very busy with your duties as a vice-captain." Iruka smiled as several of the kids nearby notice Naruto and come running over to see him. After being swarmed with kids Naruto fell over and the kids crawled over him. Iruka can't help but laugh at the sight. "All right now kids let Naruto up." Iruka ordered with a smile. A collective 'aww' was heard as the kids got up off Naruto.

"But we wanna play with Naruto!" One of the kids moaned all the others agreeing with him.

"Sorry guys I need to talk to Iruka for a bit, maybe later." Naruto said.

"AWW!! Pwease Naawuto?" A little girl pleaded tugging on Narutos clothes.

"Hmm...I know!" Naruto exclaimed "All right everyone stand back!" Waiting a moment for everyone to move away enough Naruto began. "Come forth Warriors of the Shadow Realm, Take form and do battle! Bakudo #67 Kage Bushin (Shadow Clone)." A Cloud of smoke appeared and once dispersed two Narutos could be seen standing side by side. Everyone let out a collective awe of surprise and wonder. "My clone can play with you while I talk to Iruka. Kaede, Onigumo you two stay here and have fun while I talk to my friend okay?"

"Kay!" The two of them said in unison before running off with Narutos clone and the other kids.

"Come in side Naruto and I'll make us some tea." Iruka said turning towards the hut. After making the tea Naruto and Iruka sat at the table opposite each other taking a drink before speaking. "So Naruto, what is it you want to talk about, and what was with those kids you brought with you? Don't tell me you've decided to adopt them have you?"

"Pervy-Sage asked me to investigate a series of incidents so I was going to ask you a few questions to see if you'd heard anything about them. On the way here I rescued Kaede and Onigumo from a group of unusual Hollows."

"Unusual? How so?"

"They only had a Semi Circle in their chest not a full one, also Kaede and Onigumo said that the group they were travelling with all turned into these things, and there was no other Hollows involved. They just turned into Hollows one the spot."

"My god!"

"Yeah. I was wondering if you know anything about them?"

"Well we were attacked by a group of Hollows like the ones you described just yesterday."

"You were attacked!? Why didn't I hear about this?"

"Well it was never reported because there were no casualties. They were defeated before they could hurt anyone."

"Who defeated them?"

"Well I was going to contact you to come meet him but you came here by yourself so I'll take you to meet him shortly. He was found in the forest about a week ago quite badly hurt. He has no memories from before we found him and he has a Zanpactou."

"He's a Shinigami?"

"Well...he's not so much a 'he' as he is an 'it'." Iruka explained a little awkwardly.

"Eh?"

"Well you see he isn't a human spirit nor is he an animal but more like a mix of the two. From what I can tell he appears to be a dragon."

"A dragon? Come on Iruka don't mess with me here, dragons don't exist out side of myths, legends and being the physical representation of some peoples Zanpactou spirits."

"Well then lets go an meet him and you can see for your self." Iruka said getting up.

"Okay then." Naruto replied getting up and following Iruka outside. They walked down the street and out of the edge of town towards the nearby tree line of the forest. As they approached the tree line Naruto saw a figure sitting in the shade under a tree, Naruto couldn't see how the person looked as they were wearing a black cloak and hood. Iruka and Naruto stopped a few feet away.

"Naruto this is Malakye, the one I was telling you about. Malakye this is Naruto, he is a Vice-Captain of one of the squads on the Gotie 13." Naruto leaned forwards trying to get a look at the mans face but couldn't because of the lack of light.

"A Vice-Captain eh? Then you must be pretty strong." Malakye said in deep raspy voice.

"You bet I am! Just you wait, in a few centuries you'll be hearing my name when I become Head Commander!" Naruto boasted forgetting his interest in seeing what the man looks like to big himself up."

"Oh really? Then you won't mind a little spar then so I can see what you're made of will you?"

"Ha! I'd love to!"

"Naruto, Malakye there's really no need for this!" Iruka pleaded acting the part as peace keeper.

"Iruka, you're such a party pooper." Naruto groaned giving Iruka a pout.

"Come now Iruka, what's the harm in a little friendly spar?" Malakye asked standing up, his hood still hiding his face. Naruto spotted the Zanpactou he held in his hand.

"YEAH! Now that's the spirit. Lets do this thing!" Naruto yelled jumping back a few feet creating space between them. "So Iruka said some interesting things about you, are they true?" Naruto asked placing his hand on the hilt of his Zanpactou.

"Hehe, why don't you come and find out?" Malakye answered drawing his Zanpactou from it's scabbard which he continued to hold in his left hand while holding the Zanpactou in his right. "Don't hold back, come at me with everything you got!"

"It'll be my pleasure!" Naruto grinned and used shun-po to speed towards Malakye. Naruto swung at Malakye as he exited shun-po but missed as Malakye leapt into the air dodging the attack and came crashing down towards Naruto as he landed, Naruto managing to just roll out of the way. Naruto however was quick to recover and went on the offensive. Naruto and Malakyes Zanpactou clashed against one another as the pair clashed until they locked swords and attempted to overpower the other by pushing them back but were locked in a stalemate.

"Not bad, you're better than I thought you'd be!" Naruto grinned as he tried to push Malakye back using both his arms to try and overpower his cloaked opponent.

"Is this all a Vice-Captain has? I thought you'd be stronger than this." Malakye said calmly, easily holding Naruto back with one arm. "Lets just see what you can really do." Malakye broke the stalemate by using his brute strength pushing Naruto stumbling back several steps and used Shun-po to appear behind the blond.

"Shit!" Naruto cursed as he narrowly ducked under Malakyes attack and spun round attempting to sweep his legs out from under him but Malakye easily dodged it by jumping back. Climbing to his feet quickly Naruto noticed just in time that Malakye was casting a spell.

" Had? #4. Byakurai (??, Pale Lightning)." A bolt of lighting shot out of Malakyes finger straight at Naruto striking the ground as Naruto leapt away in time to avoid the attack.

"Right now you've pissed me off!" Naruto growled. " Bakud? # 21. Sekienton (???, Red Smoke Escape)" A huge cloud of red smoke flooded the area blocking the sight of Malakye, Naruto and Iruka who was watching the fight nervously. Malakye closed his eyes and attempted to listen for any signs of Naruto while the smoke was active. "_ Ravage the Land, Kyuubi! _" Malakyes eyes shot open with the realisation that Naruto had just released his Zanpactou and leapt into the air out of the smoke. As he jumped he saw two red tentacles strike the ground where he had been standing a mere second before. Looking down at the cloud of smoke he saw the two tentacles of bubbling red energy come shooting towards him from out of the smoke.

" Bakud? # 4. Hainawa (??, Crawling Rope)" Malakye shouted as a rope of crackling yellow energy shot from his hand and wrapped itself round the two tentacles before using shun-po to get to a nearby tree and tie the other end of the rope to it and then using shun-po once more to get to another tree on the other side of the tentacles and casting the same spell once again and then tying it to that tree as well immobilising the two tentacles of bubbling red energy. By this point the smoke had dispersed enough for Malakye to see Naruto standing where he had been when he had been smiling at him, his sword connected to the tentacles of energy as its blade bubbled with the same red energy.

"Impressive!" Naruto said. "But rather futile don't you think?"

"What do you mean?" Malakye asked just as another Naruto appeared behind him and swung his Zanpactou at him. Malakye managed to dodge but not quickly enough as Narutos blade sliced through the hood of Malakyes cloak making it fall revealing Malakyes face.

Malakye had the head of a dragon and was covered in black scales. He had two horns that jutted out from the top of either side of his head and had wavy dark brown hair that carried all the way down his long neck. He had green eyes, one of which had a scar running across it from a previous fight.

"Well...I guess Iruka wasn't kidding, you really are a dragon!"

"Not bad, but I did expect more from a Vice-Captain." Malakye stated with a grin.

"I'm just getting warmed up!" Narutos clone grinned and charged Malakye who blocked, parried, dodged and counter attacked with Narutos clone, going blow for blow with him. The real Naruto remained where he was watching Malakye fight his clone.

As Malakye attempted and over head slash Naruto used shun-po to appear behind Malakye and attack but Malakye used shun-po himself to escape and using the same move Naruto did by appearing behind the blond who manage to spin round in time to block Malakyes sword with his own where the pair locked swords again in a battle for dominance.

"You can't over power me!" Malakye growled pushing harder into Naruto casting a quick glance over to the original who still hadn't moved or made any attempt to free the two tentacles of energy that was still restrained by his crawling rope. 'Why hasn't he moved or returned his Zanpactou to normal? He can't attack while they are restrained.' Malakye thought to himself.

"Ha! I don't need to! Ravage the Land, Kyuubi!" Narutos clone Zanpactou became covered with the same bubbling red energy that the originals had and instantly two tentacles wrapped themselves round Malakye before he could escape. "Now I've got you! Give up or do I need to drain you of your spiritual energy?"

"I don't think so runt!" Malakye roars " Strike them down, Raikiri!" A huge burst of dark energy surged from Malakye, the blast destroying Narutos clone leaving Malakye free from the tendrils of energy that had once confined him. The air around Malakye crackled with black electricity and in his hand was a halberd of pure black dark energy crackling along its length. Gripping it firmly Malakye lowered his stance bending his knees so he was low to the ground and held the halberd at head height the blade pointed at Naruto.

"Good move!" Naruto grinned. "Do you know how to use that thing?" Naruto taunted referring to Malakyes new weapon, to which Malakye replied with a flashy display of twirling the halberd at high speed around his body switching hands while keeping it spinning constantly before ending it back in the position he was originally in. "I guess you can!" Naruto smirked.

"Now do you give up or do I need to strike you down? You're sword is still trapped by my Bakud? spells."

"Huh? Oh, you mean these? Nah, I was just waiting to see if you could actually beat my clones before I got serious on you."

At that moment the tentacles of bubbling red energy broke free from their bindings and went shooting towards Malakye who leapt into the air as they smashed into the ground he had been standing on.

"Please, this is a little dangerous for a friendly fight! Please stop this both of you!" Iruka pleaded from the sidelines but his pleas fell on deaf ears as neither of the pair heard him as they were so focused on the fight.

As Malakye reached the height of his jump he swung his weapon and shot an arc of black energy at high speed at Naruto who just stood there wide eyed at the speed of the attack as it hit him. Lightning crackled from the spot the attack struck and large dust cloud hid Naruto from view. Malakye landed back on the ground and noticed that the tentacles of energy were gone.

"Did I get him?" He asked aloud as he tried to peer through the dust cloud. As the dust began to settle Malakye saw a figure standing in it but it wasn't human, it stood like a human and had large ears and two tails waving through the air behind it. As the dust settled more he could finally see Naruto but he was now covered in the bubbling red energy, the ears and tails were made of the energy as well, his eyes had become slitted and his finger nails now were longer and pointed like claws and his teeth seemed longer as they seemed to be unable to remain in his mouth even with his mouth closed, he looked more animal in nature now than human.

"Hehe, just as well I was able to get my Demon Fox Cloak up in time before your attack hit me or I'd be in a world of trouble!" Naruto smirked. "Now then, lets see what you're really made of!"

In a blur Naruto disappeared and reappeared behind Malakye and swung his sword which was still covered in the same energy that now covered Narutos body. Malakye spun round in time to block Narutos sword with the long handle of his halberd, the two energies of the weapons clashing sending out large bursts of spiritual energy, the ground beneath Malakyes feet cracking from the force before they were forced apart from the clashing energy sliding to a stop a few yards away from were they had been.

Naruto then shot his right hand in Malakyes direction and the energy coating his arm extended and shot towards Malakye at speed the energy taking the form of a large clawed hand. Malakye spun his glaive and deflected the attack before spinning full circle and slicing the arm in half along its length, the arm retracted slightly and waved in the air for a few moments before the two parts reconnected with each other and retracted back to Naruto.

"Not bad, not bad at all!" Naruto grinned. "So lets say we wrap this thing up?"

"Yes, lets!"

The pair shot forward at the same moment and clashed head on their energies clashing once more, black lightning arced from Malakye striking the ground and trees several feet away, Iruka narrowly escaped as the lightning struck the tree next to him before he ran further away, the pair continued to clash until there was an explosion from the opposing energies, both of them were sent sprawling through the air.

Naruto landed on his back but was able to roll to his feet and skid to a stop but Malakye was sent flying into a nearby tree with great force the impact knocking him out. Seeing Malakye unconscious Naruto returned his Zanpactou to normal the demonic energy that had surrounded him sealing itself back within his Zanpactou and wiped a cut on his cheek Naruto looked at the blood on his fingers.

"He managed to cut me through my Demon fox cloak..." Naruto was about to walk over to Malakye when he heard a burst of cheering from behind him, looking back he saw a large group of people cheering him on, and a few looking a bit disappointed as they handed over what ever they had lost though a bet to the winners.

Naruto waved back at them before walking across the broken ground to Malakye and sat him up so he was leaning against the tree and gave him a few light slaps to bring him round. "Hey, you all right? Wakey, wakey!" Soon Malakyes eyes opened up and were a bit unfocused for a few moments before he was able to see properly. "You all right?"

"Urgh...what happened?" Malakye asked groggily clutching his head.

"You don't remember?"

"I remember...I lost didn't I?"

"Yeah!" Naruto chuckled. "But it was a good fight! You're pretty strong, if you want I can hook you up with a squad in Gotie 13. You can probably make 3rd seat if not Vice Captain easily enough."

"Vice......Captain...." Malakye winced in pain as memories flashed through his mind, to quickly and painfully for him to make them out clearly.

He remembers water, green water all around him....he's in a container...someone there looking at him...he can't see or hear the person but there are saying something and then a different memory flashes and he is now sitting onto of a hill surrounded by flowers, the bright blue sky and the sun shining down on him and he's with someone...he can't see their face but he sees them talking to him but all he could make out was 'Vice-Captain.'

"Hey! Are you all right!? Come on! It's all right, it's all right! Naruto spoke a bit panicked at the Dragons sudden behaviour but he calmed down and tears of pain and unknown emotion flowed down his muzzle. "You okay?" Naruto asked handing him an orange handkerchief.

"Yeah...[Sniffs as he blows his nose after wiping away his tears with the handkerchief.]...sorry...I don't know..."

"Don't worry about it. If your okay now then that's all I need to know. But if you want to talk just know that I'm willing to listen."

"Arriga..." Malakye began but stopped mid sentence as Naruto yelped in pain. Looking past Naruto he saw Iruka with an angry look on his face, he had only known the man a few days but he had never expected to see the man angry.

"Iruka! What the hell!?" Naruto whined rubbing the back of his head.

"You two nearly got me killed with your fighting! A sparring match!? More like a full on brawl!"

"Aww come on Iruka...it's not..."

"I'LL TELL YOU WHAT IT'S NOT!!! LOOK AT THIS PLACE, IT'S WRECKED! WHY DO YOU ALWAYS HAVE TO GET SO CARRIED AWAY!?!" Iruka yelled as he scolded the blond Shinigami.

"Uhh..."

"YOU'RE A VICE CAPTAIN FOR GODS SAKE AND YOU STILL ACT LIKE A CHILD!"

"Yeah well you see...it's like this Iruka..." Naruto stuttered as Iruka glared at him obviously waiting for Narutos explanation. "...hehehe..." Naruto laughed nervously as he scratched the back of his head and struggled to come up with a reason to pacify the angry Iruka.

"I'm waiting."

"Well..."

"It's my fault Iruka." Came a voice from behind Naruto. Both Naruto and Iruka looked to see Malakye struggling to sit up. "I challenged Naruto to a fight, he simply responded. As a Vice-captain his pride would not let him lose so easily."

"Yeah...YEAH! That's it Iruka it's all Malakyes fault! It's...OUCH!!" Naruto shut up and began to rub his head where Iruka had hit him to shut the blond up.

"It's kind of you to take the blame Malakye and while you are partly to blame Naruto is just as much if not more so."

"WHAT!? Why do I get more of the blame?" Naruto whined.

"Because as a Vice-captain you need to learn to not get carried away, not cause unnecessary damage and learn some self control!"

"But..."

"I'm not interested in your excuses Naruto. Now help me carry Malakye back to the hut so I can treat the injuries 'you' gave him."

"Tch...fine. Come on then Malakye, lets get you patched up!" Naruto grinned reaching to help the dragon to his feet, happy that the conversation was now over and he wouldn't be getting any more lectures from Iruka today.

"And after I treat Malakyes injuries I'll be giving you a long lecture on the values of self control Naruto." Iruka said calmly as he walked back towards the village. Narutos left eye began to twitch wildly as he restrained himself from cursing in front of Iruka in case it ended in yet another lecture.