Azarath Metrion Zinthos
"M-mother! N-no! I….I can heal you! I can save you!" Rachel Roth cried as she approached her dying mother.
Rachel possesses black hair and blue eyes, and also has pale skin. She has a slim but also quite curvy, womanly body, especially for her age and does not appear to carry any special weapons on her body or clothing.
Her mother had a rather large pillar sticking out of her torso, causing Rachel to wonder just how the hell she was still alive in the first place, although ultimately she didn't care as all that mattered was that her mom was in fact alive, and that she could heal her mother and they could be together.
The same however couldn't be said for the rest of population of the pocket dimension known as Azarath, as Raven's father, Trigon, had killed every single person except for Rachel and her mother.
"N-no! Y-you mustn't heal me, you must let me die because I am linked to your father. The ritual that was performed to summon him, and to make me his bride, and my pregnancy and birth of you has formed a very strong connection between Trigon and I. I-if…if you save me, he may use that connection to break the seal of his prison, or to outright bypass it. I h-have to die for the whole world to be safe from him." Arella, Rachel's mother, said in a great show of strength and resilience, for her to be able to say all of that despite the fact that, well, she should have been dead already.
"No! No I can't accept that! If I let you die, it will mean that I am the cause for not only all of Azarath's destruction, but for my own mother's death. I cannot live like that! I don't want to live in a world without you!" Rachel cried hysterically.
"You don't have to. You can summon a saviour, a hero, a protector. Use the same spell that summoned Trigon, but use it wisely." Arella advised.
"What? How could you ask that of me? You know what that spell does? It was written by demons, it must have been. It was a way to trick humans into summoning Trigon." Rachel protested.
"Listen to me. The spell, like all spells, is dependent on the wording you choose, and it can be altered or modified by a powerful and experienced magician." Arella said cryptically.
"I…I don't understand. What are you saying exactly?" Rachel asked warily.
"When we summoned Trigon, we asked for a strong male figure, someone who was the equivalent of a God and someone who had the potential to rule and protect the Universe. However, the wording is flawed in itself as you can imagine. Trigon has the potential to rule and protect the universe yes, but that doesn't mean he wants to protect the universe now does it? He is the equivalent of a God, but he is in fact an Interdimensional Demon Lord" Arella explained, Raven's eyes widening as realization dawned on her.
"You're saying that if I modify the spell and make it that it leaves little room for interpretation, I can summon someone worthy, someone who can be my partner and help me with my destiny? Someone who can be my mentor and…and my friend?" Rachel asked with hope shining in her eyes.
"That is exactly what I am saying. Modify the spell, make it your own, and succeed where I failed. Summon a true saviour and protector. You can do it, I believe in you, my little Raven…." Arella said, her last words before her soul finally managed to detach itself from her body.
One would have expected Rachel to cry even more than before, but instead, she stopped crying as soon as her mother's heart stopped, recognizing the urgency with which she had to act and wanting to honour her mother's dying wish.
Besides, her mother said that she believed in her. Well, if her mother had faith in her, then Rachel had no intention of disappointing her mother. She was going to live up to that potential no matter what it took, starting with the performance of that summoning spell that her mother told her about.
"Haha! A saviour? A true protector? Foolish little girl with her foolish little human fantasies! There is no messiah! There is no protector and no liberator. There is only Trigon!" Rachel's father exclaimed inside his daughter's head, the seal she used causing Rachel and her inter dimensional demon conqueror of a father to share a communication link.
"The girl who made you her bitch and sealed you away inside of her mind, rendering you powerless. Is that the foolish little girl you are referring to?" Rachel asked as she used her magic to transform her clothing, from the pure white of the people of Azarath to a black form fitting outfit that covered her from the soles of her feet to her neck, the outfit being sleeveless but also having a hooded cloak that was an even darker shade of black.
"Yes, the foolish little girl that believes that some fairy god father will magically appear out of nowhere and save her." Trigon retorted.
"You seem awfully hell bent on preventing this summoning spell, father, for someone who doesn't believe in fairy god messiahs that is." Rachel retorted.
"I only wish for my foolish, incompetent daughter to grow up already and stop believing these childish fantasies that her mother has filled her head with. That way, she can realize that her place is at my side, helping me to conquer all of interdimensional space." Trigon said with an almost fatherly tone.
"The little girl has already grown up. She is no longer scared little Rachel Roth. No, she has evolved, from Rachel Roth…to Raven." Raven said theatrically, however not giving her father a chance to retort this time as she immediately adopted a meditative position and began chanting the summoning spell.
"Holy and Noble Spirits of Azarath, I beseech you, bring forth a worthy vessel, a vessel with the wisdom and knowledge of a wise sage, a vessel with the power and intellect of the God of Abraham, a vessel with the love, righteousness, and loyalty of the Messiah of Nazareth, A vessel with the courage and warrior spirit of King David, and the strength and combat acumen of Samson. Spirits of Azarath, bring forth a vessel with the cunning and guile of a fox and a vessel whose word is his bond. Azarath Metrion Zinthos!" Raven said as she focussed all of her magical energy into the spell.
As soon as she completed the incantation, a rather large black hole appeared in front of her, Raven waiting with both anticipation and trepidation for her saviour to come through the portal, only for her eyes to widen in horror as instead she was the one who was violently pulled into the portal by an invisible force, an invisible force so strong that not even her telekinesis and magic were of any use in terms of halting her trajectory, the last thing on her mind just before she was forcefully pulled through the portal being her father's words of "I told you so, foolish foolish little girl!"
Earlier: Sector 374
"So, you delivered after all? I must say, even though you are known as one of the best bounty hunters in the universe, I did not expect you to be able to capture Nathaniel Wilson, not after everything his mother told us about him." Scot Free said with a hint of disappointment.
Typically of a New God, Scot is tall and has the body of, well, a God, spotting lean carbon fibre like muscles in every conceivable part of the body, although of course not as fit and muscular as say, Nathaniel Wilson. He is wearing a red and gold suit that covers his entire body, from the soles of his feet to the top of his head, the suit gold in colour where his face should be and red all around the back of the head, the sides of the face, and the top of his head.
The suit is made entirely of Apokoliptan tech, in other words, it is bullet proof and invulnerable to almost all the known weapons technology in the universe, and it also has a green cape that is nigh indestructible and can even morph its shape and properties into almost anything Scot can think of. The suit also has a countless number of compartments that house countless other New God Technological weapons, after all, Scot Free aka Mister Miracle the God of Escape is a certified scientific genius.
"Karee? If ye didn't expect the main man to deliver then why did ye hire the main man to begin with?" Lobo asked incredulously.
"Because he knew that Nathaniel would end up right here, right now, irrespective of whether you brought him or he came of his own volition, although given the information we received from his mother about his powers and abilities, we were expecting it to be the latter." Big Barda, Scot's lover replied. She is a tall, muscular and yet sexually appealing and curvaceous woman with black hair and brown eyes, and also appears to have on red lipstick.
She is wearing a dark blue Apokoliptan full body suit with gold armour covering her torso, her shins, lower arms, shoulders, and her buttocks and pelvic area in the shape of what can only be described as a short armoured skirt. On her head she also has a protective amour in the form of a tiara-like helmet with two horn like protrusions. There are also some red highlights on her armour, particularly on her amour skirt, her protective helmet, and the neckline of her body armour.
For a weapon she is carrying both a mega rod and a mega staff, both retractable and therefore easily holstered on her weapons compartment found around her waist. She also has a motherbox in her possession, situated on her weapons compartment.
"Karee…? Is kizzy femme Apokoliptan underestimating the main man? Perhaps the main man will accept a bounty on you one day, then we'll see who the superior being is, you kizzy femme bastich!" Lobo said irritably.
"Pardon the miscommunication, Great Bounty Hunter Lobo. My wife does not mean to say you are weak, but rather that she expected much more from Nathaniel. You are no doubt strong, hence the decision to hire you in the first place." Scot replied in an attempt to pacify the renowned Bounty Hunter, Lobo's only response however being nothing more or less than a low, disapproving growl.
"In any case, your payment, as agreed upon, will be wired to you with immediate effect, with a one hundred percent bonus. Think of it as a gesture of good will." Scot said as he projected a hologram screen from a device that seemed to be a part of his suit on the back of his left hand, typing in the figures, selecting Lobo's business account, and wiring the units to the main man, Lobo also receiving a beep on a device that was on his utility belt and checking it quickly just to confirm the transaction and of course, the actual amount.
"Wow okay consider the main man impressed and most importantly….satisfied!" Lobo said excitedly, immediately turning around and walking towards his battleship as he wanted to get the hell out of there as soon as possible now that his business was concluded.
"Where do you think you're going?" Barda asked, incensed by the lack of respect and formality of Lobo's departure.
"I'm sick of this New God bull frag! If I see another New God anytime soon, it will be too fraggin soon! I expect you to open a fraggin boom tube as soon as I start up my ship!" Lobo exclaimed without even turning around to look back at Scot's wife.
"How dare you show me your back you…you mindless savage! You will die for your insolence!" Barda said angrily, retrieving her mega staff from her weapons compartment and the staff immediately expanding and taking combat form as she loaded up a rather large and powerful energy blast from the tip of the staff.
"No Barda! Do not burn any bridges that we might need to cross in the future. Let him go. His lack of formality and etiquette notwithstanding, he has delivered on his promise, he has brought Nathaniel Wilson to us." Scot said as he pushed his wife's mega staff down, stopping her from killing their business partner, or rather, former business partner, as their business was now completed.
"Fine, but only because you said so, and because I love and respect you." Barda said as she deactivated the mega beam and retracted her staff.
It only took a few minutes for Lobo to start up his ship, and an instant for Mister Miracle to open a boom tube for him to fly into and then just like that, the main man was gone, back to the main universe and away from the horrors and tragedies of frontier space, and with Lobo gone, Scot, and Barda, could finally give their full attention to Nathaniel, and of course, his beautiful colleague.
"Okay, Lobo's gone now. You can stop the charade, Nathaniel." Scot deadpanned, everyone, including his own wife, looking at him with utter confusion on their facial expressions, although Naruto's couldn't be seen behind his mask.
"Your armour and clothing are in perfect condition, you yourself are in perfect physical condition. Clearly Lobo didn't defeat you, otherwise you wouldn't be in such clean and pristine condition. Also, I happen to know that the technology in those power inhibitors is nowhere near advanced enough to suppress neither celestial magic or celestial cosmic energy. It was a nice trick, but I am the God of Tricks and Escapism as you no doubt know." Scot said flatly, his wife's eyes widening as realization dawned on her.
"Impressive, God of Escapism Scot Free, aka, Mister Miracle. Words alone cannot describe how impressed I am." Naruto said as he broke himself out of his restraints, Diana doing the same as there was no longer a need to keep up the façade.
"You tricked Lobo into thinking he defeated and captured you, but you should have known better than to think that would work on me." Scot retorted.
"On the contrary I did not trick him, he was in on it. He had no choice though, he knew he couldn't defeat me, so he took the deal seeing as it allowed him to deliver on his promise to bring me to you." Naruto replied.
"I see, and Wonder Woman? Why would Lobo agree to bring her with? Bringing her to me was not part of the deal." Scot asked suspiciously.
"I hired him to abduct her and bring her to you." Naruto replied mischievously.
"I see. So you thought she could take care of Barda while you take care of me? Quite the devious planner aren't we?" Scot replied, trying to analyse and understand just what kind of person Nathaniel was, and honestly it looked like he was quite the impressive guy thus far.
"Actually I initially intended to come alone, but she wasn't having any of that." Naruto said as he mentally activated the Flying Thunder God Technique, instantly teleporting both his and Diana's weapons back to their holsters, much to both Scot's and Barda's surprise as to them, it looked like their weapons were not there one moment, and then were all of a sudden there.
"Honey, did you…?"
"Yes my love, I saw it." Scot said before Barda could finish asking if he saw the weapons appear out of nowhere.
"Before we decide what to do with you, tell me, how is my mother? What is her current status?" Naruto asked with a grave undertone.
"Your mother is fine. She had the opportunity to alert the other furies and stop us from escaping Apokolips, but she chose not to. Instead, she told us about you, told us to find you. She said you would help us to blend in on earth, and that you were building an army to oppose my adoptive father, Lord Darkseid. She said that you were the most talented New God that has ever been born, the most powerful. More powerful than Highfather, more powerful than Darkseid, more powerful than Orion…more poweful than me." Scot explained.
"And did she say she wanted you to join me? To become my partners?" Naruto asked warily.
"To become your generals, with you as our supreme commander." Barda replied.
"It seems unlikely that you would simply submit to him without at least verifying his power. How do you know he really is as strong as his mother said he was, how do you know that he is indeed the real deal? And by the way, how do you even know about me?" Diana asked confusedly, as far as she was aware not having any connections whatsoever to Apokolips.
"You are an inspiration to me. It is through watching you and your heroics, that I have managed to see the truth of what Darkseid truly is and for which side I should really be fighting for. Well, through you and my husband that is to say." Barda replied, leaving Diana speechless as she had no idea that her heroics had inspired someone from literally an entirely different dimensional space.
"And as for why we would follow Nathaniel, it is because I do not need to fight him. The Alpha Effect, the source of my power, allows me to sense cosmic and magical energies, in fact, all forms of life energy. The power coming from Nathaniel is the real deal, even if he is suppressing and hiding it. Besides, the fact that Wonder Woman herself is by his side tells me all I need to know about him. And by the way, your power is quite impressive too, Wonder Woman." Scot replied.
"I see. Uh…so, did you detect anything?" Diana asked, directing her question at Nathaniel.
"He is telling the truth, both of them are. There are only positive emotions coming from them." Naruto said, having been using his negative emotion sensing from the beginning of the conversation.
"Well, that's good news. If they are as powerful and skilled as you say they are….as they seem to be, and if they are just as honourable in their intentions, then the Justice League will welcome them with open arms. Their addition will make earth a much safer place." Diana said with a charming smile, a smile that did not have the intended effect as her words only elicited confusion not just from the New God couple but from Naruto as well.
"The Justice League is the army that you are building? I wasn't aware that you were their Supreme Leader." Barda said in surprise.
"That is because I am not." Naruto deadpanned.
"Then who is it? Superman? Are you Superman's subordinate? How are we supposed to follow you if you are a mere subordinate yourself?" Barda asked incredulously.
"I am not Superman's subordinate, nor am I a member of the Justice League. I also have no intention of joining the Justice League." Naruto said with a look that Diana could feel behind the blonde Uzumaki's mask, her eyes widening in surprise and realization.
"I…I'm sorry. I just assumed because…because you know…" Diana stuttered incoherently, Naruto's eyes softening a bit when he realized that malice and deception were not the issue here, but rather, it was sheer naivety and innocence.
"Look, Diana, I really do like you very much, and I would very much like to continue to enjoy your company and companionship. However, in the same way that I didn't suddenly join the DEO when I was with Kara, nor will I suddenly join the Justice League just because we are…..compatible." Naruto tried to explain.
"But why not? I mean, you need an army to defeat Darkseid if he ever goes back to earth again don't you? There is no army better than the Justice League in the Universe. Besides, you're a good, decent, kind, and loving person. You value life and you care about others and seek to help them even when there is no tangible or even intangible benefit to you. You have all the qualities of a member of the Justice League." Diana said passionately.
"Except, I am a Bounty Hunter, a mercenary who has killed and will continue to kill when I deem it necessary. I have no desire to be tied down by the Justice League's narrow minded set of morals, or its noble yet unrealistic sentiments. I do what is necessary, when I deem it necessary. One could say that I am a necessary evil." Naruto retorted.
"You're not evil. I know you're not. But…in hindsight, I do understand why you wouldn't want to join the Justice League. The League's principles are difficult to uphold even when you believe in them, how much more when you do not even believe in those ideals. I also understand that you never once claimed to be a hero, I just….I just wanted to have you by my side, to be by your side." Diana said dejectedly.
"I too wish I could ask you to leave the Justice League and join my organization, but that would be selfish of me. It would only serve me and would require you to sacrifice membership to the Justice League and forsake some of their ways. That being said, my arms are always open for you. If you should decide you want to be by my side, I will accept you with warm and open arms." Naruto said lovingly.
"So wait, does that mean you're breaking up with her?" Barda asked incredulously.
"No! I mean…technically we're not even together. I don't have a problem with her remaining in the Justice League while I continue to do what I am doing in the shadows. However, she must understand that as long as she is in the League, I cannot share anything with her about my dealings, nor should she share any critical information about the League with me." Naruto retorted.
"I see. So you will continue to live completely separate lives, with completely different motives and ambitions, and somehow continue to love each other and be together as a couple?" Barda asked with both confusion and curiosity.
"Well, technically we are not a couple, we've actually only just recently gotten to know each other. In the short time that we have known each other, we have been through much together, and have developed a strong liking, respect, attraction, and appreciation for each other. We shall wait and see whether that is enough to spark a relationship or not." Naruto explained.
"I see. And, the army meant to taken on Darkseid. It exists, in the form of an organization?" Barda asked curiously.
"The organization has many goals, but yes, defending earth from Darkseid is one of them." Naruto replied.
"What is its name?" Barda asked.
"The name of the organization, and its members, is a top secret. I cannot disclose those details here, not with a member of the Justice League present." Naruto said much to Diana's surprise and chagrin.
"You do not trust me? I had hoped you knew me better than that. How could you think that I would betray you?" Diana asked with a broken heart.
"I do trust you, which is why I am not telling you anything." Naruto retorted.
"That….that doesn't make any sense whatsoever." Diana deadpanned.
"He means to say that being loyal to him could mean being disloyal to the Justice League, and vice versa. He doesn't want to put you in a position where you are forced to betray either one of them. There may be times, or it may just simply be that way period, where being loyal to him, means betraying your comrades in the Justice League. Put simply, he doesn't want you to have to pick sides." Scot explained for Diana's benefit, and just as well as Diana's eyes widened in realization.
"I see." Diana said as she thought long and hard about her predicament, but coming to a resolution in a relatively quick amount of time.
"I understand that this means that you are operating in the grey area, perhaps even in the dark." Diana began as she thought about everything about Nathaniel, including his relationship with an entity as shrouded in darkness as the Enchantress.
"However, I know your heart, and it is pure, good, and noble. I know who you are at your core and what you stand for, I…feel it deep within my being. You and I are true kindred spirits. I trust you wholeheartedly, Nathaniel, and that is enough for me. I will not dig into your affairs nor will I interfere in your dealings. I will recuse myself of anything concerned with you when it comes to the Justice League." Diana said with love and devotion.
"That is…very mature of you." Naruto said, surprised by the monumental difference in approach between Kara and Diana, as he half expected Diana to explode on him and call him a villain.
"However I feel like you still have not thought this through. What happens if the Justice League begins planning an attack on me in order to take me down, either permanently, or to imprison me. Will you participate in the attack, will you warn me of what's coming, will you keep quiet and say nothing, will you allow me to be taken down or imprisoned? What would you do in such a scenario?" Naruto pressed, wanting to make sure that he did not leave the hard questions unasked.
"I…I….I didn't really think about it that far. This…this is quite the predicament. Essentially, without meaning to, I could end up becoming a double agent." Diana said, startled.
"It seems like you have no choice but to resign from the Justice League in order to be with your man. I sympathise with you, because I too was in a similar predicament. When I realized that I had become a traitor and a double agent due to my feelings for Scot, I made a decision. I made the decision to resign as Captain of the Furies and General of Darkseid's armies and leave Apokolips with my husband." Barda said to Diana, speaking as someone with similar experience and trying to give advice accordingly.
"That isn't to say that you wouldn't or will not regret it, because not all similar cases are exactly the same. However, the only way to truly be with Nathaniel, is either for him to forsake his goals and ambitions, to change his ways and align them to the Justice League, and to actually join the Justice League, or for you to leave the Justice League and join Nathaniel, changing your ways to match his own ways. Because if you do not change your way of thinking, you will find yourself opposing him and end up becoming his enemy." Barda explained with kindness and wisdom.
However, as soon as she finished giving advice to Diana, a powerful, black hole came out of nowhere, manifesting around Naruto and trying to suck him, and only him into it, Diana quickly jumping away as she tried to analyse what on earth was happening.
However, Naruto quickly stopped himself from getting sucked in at the last possible moment, using his gravity manipulation to negate the properties of the Black Hole and to keep himself in place while he tried to look into the hole and see exactly what was causing it and more importantly, to find out who was on the other side of this black portal.
"Nathaniel! I'm going to throw my lasso at you and use it to pull you out!" Diana exclaimed.
"Do not bother, he seems to have everything under control. Quite honestly, I have never seen gravity being manipulated to this extent. It is absolutely fascinating. And he is doing this with his own power, without the aid of any technology or a cosmic or magical artefact?" Scot asked curiously.
"Yes, because drooling over his power is so helpful right now." Diana said incredulously.
"This is some kind of summoning technique, a summoning spell to be more precise. Who would dare try to summon me, who would even know how to summon me? And most importantly, who would have access to such power?" Naruto thought, airing his thoughts for the benefit of Diana and the two latest additions to his team.
"A summoning spell? Aren't those common on earth? Homo magi summon demons all the time. They have been doing it since the emergence of the first Homo Magi." Diana replied.
"Demons, yes, but not Gods. Demons actually want to be summoned to the mortal plane so that they can feed on souls and cause chaos and havoc. As a result, they find ways to freely give information to mortals about how to summon them, but Gods do not do this, because Gods want mortals to worship and pray to them from a distance. It wouldn't be very Godly to be summoned by a mortal and have to do its bidding when it is the mortals that are supposed to do a God's bidding." Naruto explained.
"I see. So, what now?" Diana asked warily, wondering if one day some homo magi would try to summon her, and what she would do about it if it ever happened.
"Now we find out who is on the other side of this portal." Naruto said as he extended his right hand forward.
"Bansho Tenin." Naruto said softly, using the technique known as divine attraction of all creation' in order to pull the castor of the spell from their realm, through the portal, and to this realm, the powerful force of the technique more than enough to successfully pull the castor despite trying to use her telekinesis to resist the pull, Naruto catching her by the throat before using his space time ninjutsu to seal the portal that was meant to summon him away.
"Just a mere little girl you are? Around sixteen years of age, half human, half….interdimensional demon, a powerful one at that. A demon trying to summon a God? Has such an absurdity ever occurred before I wonder?" Naruto said as golden chains grew out of the grip he had around her throat and spread all over the girl's body before he threw her down on the ground.
"Those chains are supressing your magic. You will tell me how and why you summoned me or I will rip the information from your mind and send your soul to the underworld." Naruto deadpanned.
"I…I mean you no harm, I swear! My mother was a human, my father is an interdimensional demon sealed inside of this diamond on my forehead. If you continue to seal my power he will break free. I have to continuously feed the diamond with my power in order to keep him imprisoned." The girl quickly explained.
"Then say no more. I will get all the information I need from your mind so that we can save some time." Naruto said as he walked closer to the girl and put his right hand on her head, and just like that, in an instant, he was able to see her entire life experience, from the day she was born until that very moment, the blonde Uzumaki immediately dispelling his chains when he realized the gravity of the situation, so that the girl he now knew to be Raven could keep her father at bay.
"Put your weapons down. This is good people." Naruto deadpanned.
"What? Are you insane? You just said, and she too just said, that she is a demon!" Barda said incredulously.
"If you're going to join my organization, then understand this one thing. We do not judge people by what they are, but by who they are. No one is to harm this girl, ever." Naruto said as he offered his hand to Raven, Raven hesitating only briefly before smiling and grabbing the hand that was offered to her as Naruto pulled her back up to her feat before pulling her into a strong and warm hug, Raven widening her eyes in shock, but again, only briefly before melding into Nathaniel's chest and returning the hug full force.
"I'm glad you tried to summon me. You've been through so much, you deserve to have someone to look out for you and to be there for you. From this day moving forward, I would like for you to think of me as your mentor, your protector, and your big brother, if of course, that is something you would like." Naruto said as he continued to hold Raven in his arms.
"I…I w-would l-love that." Raven sniffled, trying to hold back the tears but failing miserably as she cried and wailed on the blonde Uzumaki's chest, Naruto patting her on the back as he told her that it was okay to let it all out and that she would feel better afterwards, and promising her that he would take care of her from now on.
It felt like forever, but the warm embrace only lasted for about five minutes before Raven finally stopped crying, and another two minutes before she was comfortable enough to detach herself from her protector, Naruto waiting for her to wipe the tears from her eyes and make herself presentable again before addressing Raven and his comrades.
"This girl…no, this woman, is to be treated as if she were my family. As of today, I am adopting her as my little sister, and I expect all of you to treat her as such." Naruto said firmly and unequivocally, Barda, Scot, and Diana all wondering what exactly Nathaniel had seen in her head to cause him to make such drastic decisions, but not having to wonder for long as Naruto blasted them with a psychic vision of Raven's entire life and history, although this one was more of a summary compared to what Naruto had seen, which was literally everything that ever transpired in Raven's life, including her thoughts and memories.
"Great Hera, such hardships and trauma for one so young, and yet, such courage, strength, and power." Diana thought out loud.
"Her potential is limitless, but she requires training and guidance. I think I can also help with the little problem of having to allocate some of her power to the diamond. I am a master of the sealing arts, containing Trigon, especially when he is already in a sealed state, won't be a problem at all." Naruto said, causing Raven's head to snap up at him, eyes wide with both surprise and hope.
"Yes Raven, that is something I can do for you. It won't even take that long, but first, give me the opportunity to finish my conversation with Mister Miracle and Big Barda." Naruto said as he blasted Raven with a psychic blast, sending her all the information and images about what transpired from the moment he met Lobo up until this very moment.
"Seems like your concerns are not too different from mine. I spent my entire life worried about my father finding me in Azarath and destroying Azarath. I also spent all that time worried about what he could do to my mother if he ever found me." Raven said, taking a momentary pause before continuing.
"You are in a similar situation. If Darkseid finds you, not only will he kill your mother, but he will come to earth looking for you, and destroy earth in the process. You and I, we are almost like mirror images of each other, kindred spirits if you will. But do not worry, I will not allow Darkseid to succeed with you like Trigon did with me. I will protect you and all of those that you cherish." Raven said with conviction.
"I'm pretty sure that, as your big brother, that is my line to you. But since you have such a strong resolve, then let us protect each other and look out for one another, okay? Naruto said with a kind smile that could be felt but not seen under his mask, putting his right hand up for a fist bump that Raven eagerly reciprocated.
"Then look out for each other we shall, now, and forever." Raven said with joy and excitement, happy that finally, she had found a place where she could truly belong, happy that she had followed her mother's advice and summoned a saviour.
"There is nothing more to be discussed, at least, not as far as our partnership is concerned. We will go back to earth with you, you will teach us how to seamlessly blend into earth culture, and we will serve you under you, loyally." Scot said with conviction, not needing to see anymore after he got a raw taste of both Naruto's power and his personality in a relatively short space of time thanks to the mysterious girl Raven.
"Why do I sense a 'but' coming?" Naruto asked curiously.
"….."
"We need you to help us to take down the Manhunters. We were thinking of forming an alliance with Atrocitus. We could end the war ourselves with our own power, but it could take a while given the numbers of the Manhunters. Forming a mutually beneficial alliance with Atrocitus would be the quickest route to victory." Scot replied.
"Atrocitus the Mad God who destroys and blows up planets just because they refuse to ally with him? The mad despot who allows innocent people to be killed by Manhunters so that he can cultivate hate and rage for his recruitment mission? That Atrocitus?" Diana asked incredulously.
"It actually makes sense, Diana, if you really think about it. If Atrocitus allies with us, he will no longer need to cultivate more rage, he will have the sufficient muscle to fully oppose and destroy the Manhunters. The only issue is what happens after the Manhunters are destroyed, what will he do then?" Naruto pondered out loud.
"What do you mean?" Diana asked curiously.
"Well, up until now, The Manhunters and the Red Lanterns have been keeping each other in check, but if one side is defeated, the other will have free reign to do whatever it wants. Atrocitus is obviously the lesser evil, the Manhunters simply cannot be allowed to eradicate all life in this part of the universe, but still, what will Atrocitus do after the Manhunters are no longer a threat, and more importantly, what do WE do about the barrier separating the forgotten zone and guardian space? Do we leave them separated, or do we dissolve the barrier, at the risk of sparking an inter-universal war between the Green Lanterns and the Red Lanterns?" Naruto asked all of the hard questions.
"I wish I could ask you why you have to make things so complicated, but honestly, those are some valid concerns. However, there does seem to be a simple solution to the problem as far as I am concerned, and as far as you should be concerned too. You simply have to fill the empty vacuum." Barda replied as if it was the most simple and obvious thing in the world.
"What does she mean by 'fill the vacuum'?" Raven asked curiously.
"She means for Nathaniel to conquer and rule the Forgotten Zone as Supreme Ruler and Leader. Of course, we know that the forgotten zone would be a much better place with Nathaniel in charge, probably, but does the rest of the Forgotten Zone know that? Becoming Supreme Leader, or rather attempting to be, will lead you down a path of bloodshed. I have never heard of a Supreme Ruler who never had to shed blood, innocent or otherwise." Scot replied.
"Why would he have to shed the blood of the innocent to become Supreme Leader?" Raven asked somewhat naively, probably indicative of the sheltered life that she lived in Azarath.
"Because the people of the different planets might not want to submit to my authority, even if it is what is best for them. Therefore, I would have to take it by force, which would inevitably require me to demonstrate my power, and possibly, to stage public executions and so on and so forth." Naruto explained for Raven's sake.
"I see. You demonstrate power so that they can see the futility of their efforts, and also so that they can see that you actually do have the power to protect them. You then use public executions because every being, or at least, most sentient beings, fear death, and fear is a very efficient deterrent against rebellion." Raven said analytically.
"You're a quick study." Naruto said with approval, causing Raven to smile warmly at her adopted brother.
"There is another way to lead. You can lead with love instead of fear. If the people see and witness your power, your love, and your selflessness and benevolence, they might rally behind you of their own volition. In other words, you can earn and win the throne instead of taking it by force." Diana replied, Naruto looking at her with a little surprise, not having expected her to agree to such an idea, despite the fact that she herself came from a society that practices the ways of monarchy.
"…."
"What? When you're with the Amazons, you do as the Amazons do, when you're with the Justice League, you do as the Justice League does, and when you're in the presence of Gods, you do as the Gods do, just, in a less savage and bloody way if possible." Diana said with a mischievous smile.
"And now you're thinking that there is more to her than you realized. You shouldn't underestimate me Nathaniel, there is more than one side of me. There is Diana the Amazon Warrior Princess, Diana the Godess of Thunder, Diana the Justice League member, and Diana the woman." Diana said with a loving smile.
"Noted. I will not underestimate you again. Speaking of filling the vacuum, I do agree that it needs to be taken, and I know of a way to do it without any bloodshed. But there is a lot to do before any of that. I have to train Raven, and I have to develop a new seal to contain Trigon, one that allows her to fight at her full potential. More urgently, you have to tell me what exactly is the deal with this planet." Naruto said, directing his enquiry at both Scot and Barda.
"I'm not sure I follow you?" Barda asked, confused.
"He is referring to the fact that this planet has a substantially higher amount of life force than any other planet in the forgotten zone, probably more than any other in the entire third world. It has so much life everywhere, and yet there are only a few sentient beings in the planet, personally I have counted three." Scot replied.
"Four, there is another one, in fact he is watching us from afar as we speak, and he is very good at concealing his aura apparently. However, more than having an extremely high amount of life force, this planet is actually sentient. All planets are alive, but their lives are more like trees, utterly devoid of sentience. However, this one, it has a mind. Why did you choose this planet for our meet up, Scot?" Naruto asked curiously.
"Because of the positive life force it radiates. I figured it would be a very calming and peaceful place to meet." Scot replied.
"It is, a calming and peaceful place to meet that is. I shall communicate with this…being, to find out if it is okay with our presence here." Naruto said as he gently removed Raven from his left arm, as she was still holding on to him as if he would disappear in a poof of smoke if she let go.
"You should take notes, Raven. You are an empath and a telepath too are you not?" Naruto asked rhetorically, Raven nodding her head in the affirmative.
"Good, then use your powers to link up with me, so that you can experience what I experience." Naruto ordered, Raven doing as instructed as she linked her mind to Naruto's, Naruto putting his hand on the surface as he attempted to establish a link with the planet sized creature.
"I am Nathaniel Wilson, also known as New God Kitsune, or The Sage God. My friends and I mean you no harm, but only wish for your blessing so that we can stay on your uh…body for while, and who knows, maybe we can even become friends. If you are interested in something like that, or even if you are not, I would kindly ask that you please tell me your name?" Naruto asked politely.
"My name is Mogo, Mogo the Living Planet. And yes, I am interested in becoming friends with you, or at the very least exploring the possibility. But right now, I am in need of your help. Will you help me, Nathaniel Wilson?" The planet, now identified as Mogo, replied with a deep and booming voice.
"Tell me everything…"
Back on Earth:
Bang bang bang bang!
Click…
"Hello, Mr…." Naruto trailed off, pretending to be surprised to see the person standing on his door step even though he had already used the xray vision of his rinnegan to see right through the door before opening.
"Vandal Savage, pleased to meet you, Naruto Uzumaki, or is it Nathaniel Wilson?" The big man, now identified as Vandal Savage, replied with a masculine voice, deep and course in the way it sounded, and yet there was a sophistication about the man, a deep well of intellect even, at least that was the impression Naruto was getting.
"You know, there is an intercom and a door bell, I made sure to have both. You didn't have to use your fists to bang on my door." Naruto deadpanned, still wearing his shirt and tie but without the blazer as he had customarily taken it off as soon as he entered his abode.
"Despite appearances, I am quite the old fashioned individual. Not afraid of evolution, yet not unable to see the value of the old ways." Vandal retorted, Naruto's only response being, well nothing, except to stare at the two ladies that were standing next to Vandal.
"Please forgive my rudeness, these are my beloved and esteemed daughters, Scandal Savage, and Cassandra Savage." Vandal replied to the unasked question.
Cassandra is a young woman with a strong build and strong facial features. She has long brown hair and eyes of the same colour. She is wearing a similar attire to that of her father and sister, but whereas her sister has on a waist length, brown, unzipped jacket over her outfit, and her father has on a long lapelless dark-blue coat with a red stripe on the edges, Cassandra is not wearing anything over her combat outfit. She also has a larger and stronger looking build compared to her sister, who not only had a shorter and smaller physical stature to Cassandra, but also had short hair, unlike Cassandra, who had significantly longer hair.
"It is a pleasure to meet you Mr Savage, and your beautiful daughters. I am however confused about your presence at my door step as I do not recall having an appointment of any sort with you, and even if we did have one, it would certainly not happen at my penthouse." Naruto retorted.
"I prefer that my potential allies…or enemies, not see me coming." Savage deadpanned, internally wondering why this guy was not more concerned about how exactly Savage found his abode or how he and his daughters got past his security.
"Potential enemies…?" Naruto trailed off with narrowed eyes.
"Nathaniel…I can call you that can I not, since it is your actual name after all?" Vandal asked rhetorically, not giving Naruto a chance to respond as he continued on with his explanation.
"I know who you are, I know Minato Namikaze and Kushina Uzumaki raised you in the Uzumaki Ninja Clan, and I know that despite your resemblance to Minato Namikaze, your blonde hair and blue eyes are not a genetic trait you inherited from him, seeing as Slade Wilson is your actual biological father. I know that you were and are the mercenary known as Kitsune and I know that you have meta powers, even if I do not know what they are exactly…" Savage trailed off, giving Naruto a chance to digest the information before proceeding with his explanation.
"I know you are the leader of the secret organization known as Hive, along with your brother, Jericho. And I know…."
"Okay, enough!" Naruto said, cutting off the mysterious man before he could finish talking, eliciting a scowl and death stare from Scandal and Cassandra respectively for the blatant disrespect shown toward their father, who quickly held his hands up in order to stop his daughters from taking any irrational actions.
"I already know what you're building up to. You're going to make some grand proposal that you promise is going to be worth my while. I probably won't accept your offer, and you'll start to see me as an enemy that needs to be brought to heel or eliminated. Honestly I find it quite tedious, boring, and predictable. But…." Naruto trailed off dramatically.
"I will listen to you nonetheless, and I will give you serious and respectful consideration. e in, make yourselves at home." Naruto said as he opened the door wide and moved out of the way so that his unexpected guests could come in, Vandal and his daughters looking at the blonde Uzumaki with more than a little suspicion but then eventually relenting as there was no other option, after all, they didn't come all this way just to grow cold feet at the very last moment.
One Hour Later:
"Well, Mr Savage, I am grateful that you took so much of your presumably valuable time to come and explain to me everything about your organization. To be honest, I was aware of the existence of a major coalition in the underworld, but I had no idea that you were the master mind behind it all, nor that you were operating on such a large scale. Your offer of partnership and mentorship is very compelling, but I am afraid that right now, I can only give to you my oath of secrecy and a vow to stay out of your business so long as it does not directly interfere with mine." Naruto said respectfully, but firmly, once again eliciting negative facial reactions from the man's daughters, who apparently were not used to their father being rejected.
"If I may be so bold as to ask, why? What about the Light's goals and plans displeases you?" Savage asked curiously.
"I am a person who operates both in the dark and the light, and the Light, despite its name, appears to operate strictly in the dark. I find it difficult to believe that such an organization can lead the people of earth into the light without first drenching it into complete darkness. I also worry about whether you can actually bring it back into the light when you have snuffed out the light completely from it." Naruto replied in earnest, confusing the hell out of both Scandal and Cassandra as his words seemed to be nothing but a stupid attempt at sounding clever, whereas on the other hand, their father, thanks to his unmatched experience and high intellect, was able to discern exactly what Naruto meant, or at least, that's what he thought.
"You believe we should be more like the Justice League?" Vandal almost spat with disgust.
"Of course not. Balance is essential Vandal, in all things in life. Balance is the most important state of existence that one can ever hope to achieve. The Justice League has too much light, to the point of absurdity, and The Light has too much darkness, to the point of sociopathy and outright villainy and evil. The person to advance earth and take it to the very pinnacle of evolution, is someone who is able to perfectly balance the pendulum." Naruto replied sagely.
"And that person would be you, presumably?" Vandal asked with a raised eyebrow.
"I do not, unfortunately, have the power to see into the future. I could probably develop a time travelling machine, or even a time travelling ability, but life would be too boring and predictable if I did, and it would take the choice away from me with regard to decision making. So no, I do not know if I am that person, but my brother and I have the power and the resources to try, and the will to see it through to the end." Naruto said with conviction, deciding not to mention his sister seeing as Vandal apparently did not know about her.
"Interesting. You are quite a tad bit, no, actually, you are incredibly wise for someone of your age, inhumanly so one might add. Which is why surely you must realize that as you expand your own plans and objectives for earth, so will the Light and I be expanding our plans and mission objectives. Eventually, there will not be enough space for both the Light and Hive to occupy planet earth, eventually, one of us will have to bow down to the other, and if neither one will submit, then it will lead to…"
"War." Naruto said, already knowing where Savage was taking this conversation.
"So you already know? And yet, you would make the decision that you have made so quickly, irrespective of the potential ramifications?" Savage asked with both curiosity and confusion.
"Yes I would, because it is possible that our interests might align in the future, just as much as it is possible that our interests might conflict with one another. When and if either of those scenarios occur, then I will deal with it accordingly. Until then, I would very much like it if you stayed out of my business." Naruto said calmly.
"And if The Light decides that you are a loose end that must be dealt with?" Savage asked with a grave undertone, his daughters taking it as a sign from their father that it was time to eliminate the young billionaire as they reached for their weapons.
However, in the blink of an eye, Naruto had already jumped up from his couch, made his way across the lounging room, dispossessed both Cassandra and Scandal of all of their weapons, and returned to his previous sitting position, all of this happening in the matter of less than a split second, much to the utter shock and disbelief of the Savage family, although Vandal did very well not to give anything away.
"Tell me, Mr Savage, can you survive complete molecular destruction? In other words, does your immortality mean that you can come back from absolute nothingness? Has that theory been tested….?" Naruto asked calmly, as if he hadn't just displayed a Godlike ability just a few seconds ago, as if he had been sitting on the couch the whole time.
"F-father I…I didn't know he was a speedster…." Scandal involuntarily stuttered.
"How dare you compare me to a mere speedster?" Naruto said with mock indignity, his eyes turning metalic grey and concentric rings forming around his pupils as he stretched his right hand out, using his gravitational manipulation to unexpectedly pull Scandal into a vice-like chokehold, Scandal struggling to free herself as she kicked, punched, and wriggled but to no avail as she might as well have been trying to punch through a mega ton steel wall.
"I have to wonder Vandal, does your immortality get passed on to your children too?" Naruto asked mockingly.
"That's enough Nathaniel. You've made your point. Your powers are vast and diverse, and you somehow know exactly who I am despite my best efforts to remain anonymous." Vandal said calmly, even though deep down he really wanted to know how exactly Nathaniel Wilson knew about his immortality as that was a part that he had left out entirely in his story.
"The point, Mr Savage, is to show you what could happen to you and your people if you get in mine and my family's way. What Jericho and the Royal Flush Unit did to your Kobra goons is a mere drop in an ocean compared to what can happen to you if you continue to antagonize me." Naruto said with a grave undertone.
"She hasn't inherited my immortality. I tested all of my children throughout the generations as soon as they were born. I killed them and then resuscitated them." Vandal replied when he saw that Scandal was about to pass on to the afterlife, Naruto, as a result, throwing her hard across the room and into the wall near the door, causing her to hit the back of the head against the wall and pass out.
'There was absolutely no effort whatsoever from him, not when he was choking her, and not when he was throwing her. Her attacks on him also had no visible or invisible effect whatsoever, that much is easy to see. Its pretty clear that apart from telekinesis and super speed, he also has invulnerability and super strength. This guy is dangerous.' Cassandra thought warily, mistaking Naruto's gravity manipulation for telekinesis in her analysis.
"There, your daughter is safe and alive….for now." Naruto said gravely.
"…"
"You're soft, unlike your father. If it were him, and he had your kind of power, he would have killed us already. In fact, even with his current set of powers, he would have taken us down and started working on a way to permanently get rid of me. You won't go very far with such a soft and tender heart." Vandal said in a way that it didn't sound like he was taunting or insulting the blonde Uzumaki, but rather that he was just making an observation or giving out some advice.
"Well, there is the matter that I hope you didn't fail to consider of the Justice League, or more specifically, Batman putting surveillance in the area around my penthouse. If three people come into my penthouse and nobody comes out, it won't be a good look for me now will it?" Naruto asked rhetorically.
"You need not worry about Batman's impressive but inferior equipment. My people have taken care of it in a way that he won't even realize that someone has tempered with his equipment, at least not unless something happens that causes him to be suspicious." Vandal retorted.
"I see." Was all the response Naruto could master, not really impressed as he too had far superior technology to Batman but had simply chosen not to use it because, well, because he didn't feel like he needed to.
"…"
"I suppose my daughters and I will be on our way." Vandal said as he got up on his feet, followed by Cassandra who immediately went to her sister, putting something on her hand and making her sister smell it, which caused her to awaken from her slumber.
"Your neutrality is appreciated. But your relationship with Supergirl is disconcerting. The Justice League are enemies of the Light, and Supergirl has close ties to the Justice League and could become a member of theirs in the near future. I'm concerned about what you would do if Supergirl is inevitably caught in the crossfire or is even killed by a member of the Light." Vandal said warily.
"That, with all due respect, is for you to worry about, and for me not to care about whatsoever. Just stay in your lane and I will stay in mine. When our interests align, we will talk, when they don't….we will see…" Naruto said with finality
"Why not just get rid of me, why not destroy the Light? I do not know the true extent of your power, but the little of it that I have glimpsed gives me cause to believe that you and your Hive could potentially take on our might, certainly your confidence seems to suggest as much." Vandal pressed, trying to dig up as much information about the blonde Uzumaki as she could.
"I value peace Mr Savage, but I am also not afraid of war. I am perfectly balanced. If peace is a possibility, then I will explore that possibility, but if it is not, then I will sharpen my blade and arm my nukes without hesitation. The ball is in your court Mr Savage, you decide what happens next." Naruto said, Vandal taking both the meaning on the surface and the meaning beneath Naruto's words, the latter being that this was actually a dare, in other words, Naruto was essentially telling Vandal and the Light to cross him and find out what happens.
"Then peace you shall have. One word of advice though, stay away from Supergirl. If you really wish for peace and anonymity, then you really ought not to fornicate with such….people." Vandal said, his distaste for The Justice League and by extension, the super hero community as a whole, palpable in his tone when referring to Supergirl.
"I know what you mean. She is the reason that the Justice League is on my case after all. However, I cannot grow if I cannot make my own mistakes, and I cannot lead this great planet, if I only value certain members of its community. It is essential that I understand everyone in it so that I can determine their function and purpose in the collective Hive." Naruto retorted, finally getting up himself so that he can walk Vandal to the door.
"I…don't entirely agree with you, but nor do I entirely disagree. That, despite myself, intrigues me to no end. I think I shall take time every once in a while to pay you a visit, at least, while there is neutrality between us. I am interested in seeing your growth and development. Your father is an interesting man, a great man, but you, I suspect, are his better." Savage said honestly.
"That is a compliment of the highest order, especially coming from someone like you. I am humbled, and grateful." Naruto said with respect and humility.
"Until we meet again." Vandal said with his hand extended for a handshake.
"Until we meet again." Naruto said as he returned the handshake of his elder by thousands of years.
One Month and a half Later: Planet Mogo
"Supreme Commander Nathaniel Wilson, One month and a half has passed since I started my training, one month and a half since Raven started her training, one month and a half since Saint Walker started his spectrum energy training, and one month and half since you yourself have begun spectrum energy training. We have all grown by leaps and bounds, is it not yet time for us to take down the Manhunters? Do we even need Atrocitus and his red lanterns to achieve our goal?" Mogo asked with a deep and booming voice that caused minor vibrations all around the planet.
A lot had changed since Naruto first stepped foot on the planet, and he could honestly say that he was pleased with all of the changes that fate had made for him, and that he had made for himself.
For starters, he managed to reform Raven's seal into what he called a jinchuuriki seal, in other words, power of the human sacrifice. The seal allowed her to siphon some of Trigon's power and use it for herself if she found her own power to be insufficient, and it also continuously siphoned and purified some of Trigon's magical energy and transferred it to her, causing her magic to grow more powerful as time goes by.
Naruto had also been training her in the use of her powers, and was also teaching her hand to hand combat fighting techniques together with how to continuously and subconsciously strengthen and fortify her physical body using her magical energy.
Enchantress, who had successfully and singlehandedly defeated two Liberators and saved Colony 12, had also returned and participated in Raven's mentorship, and had actually grown very fond of Raven, even thinking of her and referring to her as her little sister.
Naruto himself had grown, or rather, one could say that he now had access to a different form of power, that being spectrum energy manipulation. He didn't have a power ring, but was able to sense and gather spectrum energy because in reality, spectrum energy was a form of sage energy, as it was energy that was siphoned from the universe itself.
The first time Naruto was able to get a sense of this was in his battle with the honour guard, but after helping Mogo to wear the ring that had been stuck on his surface for years, unable to be dawned by Mogo because it needed to be taken to his core, Naruto had finally been able to sense enough of the green spectrum of will to be able to learn how to gather it and use it, as Mogo, being planet sized, was able to gather an exponentially higher amount of this energy than any other green lantern out there.
Being an expert sage energy user, Naruto took just a full day to be able to master the green power of will. In a week, he, with Mogo's assistance, created the first Blue Lantern, Saint Walker, the resident that was so good at stealth that for a time, had managed to hide himself from Mr Miracle's alpha effect senses.
Naruto even managed to create a power battery for the Blue Lantern core, and of course, mastered the Blue Lantern energy of hope himself. The red spectrum energy of rage came after the blue, as Naruto remembered how it felt from his encounter with the Red Lanterns. It was a little harder to master without a present red lantern, but thanks to his perfect memory, he was able to recreate the effects.
Love followed rage, because he remembered that Shyir Rev had mentioned that there was a unit of Lanterns that used love as a power source in the forgotten zone, and that they were known as the Star Sapphires. He also remembered that Diana had said that he could use love instead of fear to ascend to Supreme Ruler of the Forgotten Zone, and that had motivated him as he tried to channel all of his love into pink spectrum energy.
Once he had love down, compassion followed as it was related to love the same way will was closely related to hope. The hardest energy to master, was fear. Mainly because, Naruto could scarcely remember the last time he felt fear as he really didn't fear anything anymore. It also made it harder to master because after harnessing it, he was immediately able to sense Parallax, and immediately able to tell that apart from the imprisoned parallax, he was the only existing yellow spectrum user.
Nevertheless, after exploring and mastering all of the spectrum sage energies, Naruto discovered that he could actually combine them and become a new kind of lantern, a white lantern, and it took him just a single month to get to that point.
Still, Naruto wasn't sure what use all this spectrum energy training was going to be for him, as he already had access to power greater than this. However, as a ninja, and because of who he was, he never wasted the opportunity to attain more knowledge and more power for himself. That was just who he was.
Besides, this training had helped him establish what was going to be the Blue Lantern Core. Perhaps he could get the Blue Lanterns, when their numbers increase, to police the Forgotten Zone, perhaps they could be The Supreme Ruler's army.
That left the issue of the Red Lanterns, the issue that Mogo had so brazenly brought up. Did they need the Red Lanterns to destroy the Manhunters?
The answer was no. Naruto knew that between himself, Enchantress, Diana, Raven, Scot, Barda, Mogo, Incubus, and Saint Walker, they had the power to take out the entire Manhunter Armada. However, the question was at what cost?
He wasn't afraid that any of his comrades would die, he knew they wouldn't. They were too strong and too skilled, and he was also confident in his war strategy planning capabilities. What did however concern him was the possibility of some of the Manhunters escaping and rebuilding. He was concerned about how long it would take to wipe them out given their numbers, and how many innocents would be caught in the crossfire.
Besides that, bringing in the Red Lanterns had its merits, as he had a plan for them. The problem was that his plan for the Red Lanterns was downright sinister, so much so that he in fact did not want to disclose any of it to any of his comrades, not even Diana, or rather, especially Diana.
However, he knew that this was an opportunity to not only save the forgotten zone, but to get the red lanterns to co operate with the future Blue Lanterns, all under his command. This was an opportunity to attain for himself the greatest army in the universe, an army that would decimate even Darkseid's armies.
"We need numbers. The battle with the manhunters must not drag out. We must destroy them in one fell sweep. Their army must not be able to scatter, we must corner them and eliminate every single one of them." Naruto said charismatically, no longer wearing his mask as he had grown to trust every single one of his comrades with his true identity.
"Atrocitus doesn't seem like a trustworthy being. How sure are you that he won't just stab us in the back when the opportunity arises?" Incubus asked warily.
His form is about five metres tall. He has no hair as he is completely bald and his skin is like an inferno because beneath his gold plated naturally formed armour is nothing but burning plasma energy. His skin, if one can get close enough, also appears to be entirely covered in a rune like design and he has a horn-like crown on his head that is actually a part of his body along with a glowing green orb of magical energy floating in between the crown like protrusions on his head.
Incubus is of course Enchantress's brother, who had been part of the original deal between Enchantress and Naruto. Naruto had promised to find where her brother was sealed and release him, and in exchange, she would betray Waller and join his cause, along with her brother.
Naruto's shadow clones on earth had been searching for her brother the whole time that he and Wonder Woman had been travelling through space, and Naruto had actually found and released him 25 days ago. One can imagine the surprise of Enchantress when she returned to Naruto after her mission only to find him casually hanging out with her brother on a living and talking planet.
"That is why I will go in undercover. I can summon the red spectrum energy now, I can easily blend in. Atrocitus has recently sent out six power rings to find new recruits. I will be one of those recruits." Naruto said diabolically.
"You'll be all alone on enemy territory, are you sure that is a good idea, My Lord?" Saint Walker asked the co-founder and leader of the Blue Lantern Corps.
Saint Walker is a light blue alien with a slim but athletic body, pitch black eyes, and a long tail-like appendage that extends from his head. He is dressed in the customary black and blue colours of the Blue Lantern Corps and has the insignia for the corps on his chest area.
"I thought it had not yet been established whether it was enemy territory or not." Naruto retorted.
"Without any intention to disrespect you, my Lord, but do you really think Atrocitus is someone that can be trusted, after everything we have heard and know about him?" Saint Walker asked sceptically.
"That is all the more reason for me to infiltrate the Red Lantern Corps. Do not worry, Saint Walker, I was born and bred for this kind of thing. I am ninja after all." Naruto said as he lifted his right hand in the air, gathering a large amount of red spectrum energy as he pulled the nearest red lantern ring towards himself.
It didn't take that long for the ring to appear as it was only two sectors away when Naruto called to it, the ring flying straight into his right index finger as a glowing red light enveloped him, transforming his clothes from his Kitsune combat suit to the typical black and red Red Lantern uniform, form fitting in its make as it showed all of his rippling muscles and his Godly physique.
Naruto also had an eye mask on in order to not completely reveal his true identity. Sure, he didn't think anyone in the forgotten zone knew who he really was, but that didn't mean that he should completely disregard his shinobi teachings, because a ninja must always hope for the best but more importantly, plan for the worst.
"How do I look?" Naruto asked as he looked himself over.
"You look like the ultimate being, My Lord. The Red Lantern Corps will bow down to you and sing your name, of that I have not a shadow of doubt." Enchantress said with absolute conviction.
"She's right, brother. You look amazing, like you could conquer the world." Raven retorted.
"You do look like a model Red Lantern. If I didn't already know better, I'd think that you really were true Red Lantern. The blood red animalistic eyes are a nice touch, so are the elongated canines. It makes you look ferocious." Diana replied, finally understanding the Kitsune moniker that Naruto had adopted now that she had seen him looking like this, whisker marks, elongated canine teeth, and blood red fox eyes and all.
"Yes, I really did pull off the look didn't I? Soon, I'll have the Red Lantern Corps eating out of the palm of my hand." Naruto thought out loud, revelling in the fact that he was going to be going on a space ninja mission.
Meanwhile: Back on Earth
"Only you could demand a meeting between the six of us on your first day back from the lowest pits of insanity." General Swanwick said in dismay.
The six people he was talking about where himself as the Head of the DEO, Head of Argus Steve Trevor, Head of Project HELL General Lane, Head of the ASA Agent Percy Ordell, Head of Cadmus General Wade Eiling, and of course, the person who called for the meeting in the first place, Amanda Waller as Founder of the Suicide Squad and Warden of Belle Reeve.
"If this is another plan to control Naruto Uzumaki then I think I don't want myself or Argus to have anything to do with any part of your plan, not after what happened last time." Steve Trevor retorted.
"Fortunately my plan only requires your vote, nothing more, nothing less." Amanda retorted.
"You really do not know how to let bygones be bygones do you?" General Swanwick asked incredulously.
"Let bygones be bygones? You must be even crazier than I was for the last two months. Gentlemen, a 20 year old billionaire has a meta human army of origins unknown, has a promethium weave suit that gives him enhanced physical powers and other kinds of powers whose limits we do not know, has stolen all the national security intelligence of the country, and has a powerful demonic meta human homo magi immortal witch under his thrall, and you're talking about letting bygones be bygones? Quite frankly I cannot believe that you buffoons have been sitting on your asses this whole time that I was out of commission. Why hasn't that brat been taken care of?" Amanda asked angrily.
"…."
"Well, quite frankly Amanda, we did not want to inadvertently hand over to him another potentially world ending weapon." General Lane said much to Amanda's surprise as her eyes widened slightly in shock.
"Yes Amanda, I have a very good idea what you're thinking. You're wondering why we didn't use HELL's project Wraith, Cadmus's Project Doomsday, or Argus's Project Damage aren't you? Well, the answer is simple, because if Naruto Uzumaki has all the intel in your mind, then it means he already knows about those projects. Think about it, he knows about those projects, and hasn't gone into hiding or high tailed out of earth. Why do you think that is?" General Lane asked rhetorically, leaving Amanda speechless as she hadn't really thought about the situation from that angle as she had been more focussed on putting Naruto in his place with a strong show of power.
"I'll tell you what I think, or rather, what we think. We think that Naruto Uzumaki is more than he is letting on. We think, that his power might be even greater than what he showed against you, why else would someone like Enchantress bow down to him so easily?" General Lane asked.
"We also know that Superman lives in Metropolis and that Supergirl and recently, Wonder Woman have become close to Naruto Uzumaki. This means that should we release Damage, Doomsday, or Wraith anywhere near Naruto Uzumaki, one or even all three of those heroes will arrive shortly to fight and stop our secret weapons, Naruto Uzumaki might not even have to lift a finger. And even if our weapons somehow got passed those three supes in particular, Naruto Uzumaki still has his promethium weave suit whose upper limits we do not know about, his army of meta humans, and the Enchantress herself with which he can ward off or even defeat our weapons. So tell me Waller, do you still think whatever plan that you have conjured is a good idea?" General Lane asked rhetorically, silence ensuring as neither Amanda nor anyone could come up with sustainable solutions to the potential pitfalls that General Lane listed.
"…"
"….."
"There….might be another way. What if I sent someone to infiltrate Naruto's circle? Former ASA and former Argus Agent Emilia Harcourt. She has never failed us before. She has a one hundred percent success rate, and even infiltrated Doctor Psycho's organization before and helped us to take him and his organization down." Amanda suggested.
"You intend for her to use her telepathy warding technology to prevent Naruto or his psychics from reading her mind?" General Swanwick asked rhetorically.
"Can Doctor Psycho's telepathy be compared to the Enchantress though? She is a meta human who has demonic and homo magi powers. Can a device that wards meta human telepathy also ward against magical telepathy?" General Wade Eiling asked warily.
"Telepathy is telepathy, General Wade. Her tech will work. Even if it didn't, which it will, she has underwent extensive telepathy subversion training. Her mind is a fortress, in fact, she has been teaching me some of her techniques since my return." Waller retorted.
"If you and her were both telepaths and underwent such training then I would be a little more confident. As things stand, I find it extremely hard to believe that a normal human can resist a meta human psychic ability. They are called super powers for a reason." Agent Ordell argued.
"Well, at this point there really is no harm in trying so long as Harcourt knows what she is getting herself into." Steve Trevor said with a shrug.
"It does seem like a far less harmful attempt than setting loose world ending threats like Wraith, Doomsday, and Damage." General Swanwick said in agreement to Steve Trevor.
"Then we have a majority vote because I too support the more subtle approach of using agent Emilia Harcourt, at least for now." General Lane said, ruling it a majority vote because with him, Steve Trevor, General Swanwick, and Amanda Waller being on the same page, it made it that it didn't matter what the last two members of the committee thought because the majority vote was already achieved.
"Thank you for your co-operation gentlemen. For our next monthly meeting, I would ask that each of you think of a way to lure Uzumaki Naruto out of Metropolis. If we can lure him to an isolated area, we may be able to use either Damage, Wraith, or Doomsday to bring him to heel. We cannot, I repeat, we cannot allow any single individual or organization to think themselves above the US Government. The state only superficially exists to serve the US Citizens, but in reality, the citizens exist to serve their country. No one is exempt, not even Naruto Uzumaki." Amanda said uncompromisingly.
"Well, we can certainly come up with some ideas between the five of us in due time. I also think another question is whether those three can work together, or whether they can work with a unit of our own choosing as back up. Say for instance, the Suicide Squad?" Agent Ordell asked with concern.
"I believe that both Wraith and Doomsday are capable of single handedly defeating Superman, I think Damage might potentially defeat him too, maybe. More importantly, unlike Superman, none of those three are held back by any sense of morality. They fight to kill without prejudice. So with that said, we can and should have back up, but we probably will not need it." Wade Eiling replied.
"I think we are all forgetting about the Enchantress and the meta human army factor. Not so long ago Enchantress was one of those four, now three weapons that we possess. Meaning, she is just as capable as those other three creatures. She alone could stalemate or even defeat one of our weapons." Steve Trevor retorted.
"We are arguing in circles. When or if we end up having to take down Naruto Uzumaki, we can simply send all of our resources in waves if need be. It's basic war strategy 101, attack in intervals to wear down your enemy and use numbers to ove run them." General Lane replied irritably.
"Luring Naruto into a trap will not work. With the cards that we know he has on the table, and the cards that we have on the table, it seems impossible that such a battle could be contained. These beings that we are talking about are world ending threats. The whole earth could be destroyed by this senseless violence. And for what? For power and control? There will be no power or control if the entire world is destroyed, we'll all be dead." General Swanwick argued.
"And yet we cannot allow this rogue billionaire to do as he pleases. So you better come up with a better idea General Swanwick, or, for lack of a better term, shut your trap!" Amanda said venomously.
"I know Naruto Uzumaki humiliated you…"
"This has nothing to do with my personal feelings, General Swanwick! And I take offense to you insinuating that I would put the world in danger over a personal feud. If you want to let Naruto Uzumaki do as he pleases, build his own private meta human army, take over the entire economy of the US and the world, and answer to no president and no government, then you are a fool who should not even be on this council!" Amanda said angrily.
"…"
"Once again let it be said that we are arguing in circles. A vote has already been cast, by majority rule we have sided with Amanda Waller's idea to send agent Emilia Harcourt to infiltrate Naruto Uzumaki's organization. In a month when we have our next meeting, Harcourt will eithet have more information with which we can use to plan our next move, or she will be dead or just have nothing at all to show for her efforts. Either way, whatever she brings, or doesn't bring to the table, will help us to decide our next step." General Lane said with exasperation.
"Then I move to adjourn the meeting. If its anything to any of you, I'd like to get a hold of Harcourt as soon as possible and begin debriefing her." Waller said hastily, everyone raising their hands as a collective "aye" was given by each of the government heads.