"A ninja must never reveal his secrets, lest they be used against him, or in this case, her." Kitsune said as he used his gravitational manipulation to send a barrage of rocks flying back at the person who had originally sent them flying at him, said person just barely avoiding getting her body ran through as she jumped, ducked, weaved, and rolled out of the way of the barrage of rocks.
The aforementioned person was a teenage girl of around sixteen years in age, a bit on the short side but with the body of a fully grown woman as she had quite the appealing breasts, buttocks, and thighs for someone her age.
She also had short blonde hair, blue eyes, and had a small number of freckles on her facial features. As for clothing, Naruto couldn't help but notice that she was suspiciously dressed like a HIVE member, except that he knew every single member of HIVE and she definitely was not one of them.
Her outfit was a form fitting black body suit with gold mortifs, and it also had a large T at the center of the chest that was also gold in color. The outfit was sleeveless and she had no weapons in particular, nor did she even have any combat armor on her person, seemingly having a preference for using boulders as shields or using her agility and reflexes to get out of the way.
"Terra, I think you should stay back for now. Quite honestly I don't think you're going to be of much use in this fight my rock loving friend. This man clearly has an affinity for controlling rocks as well, and it seems to be stronger than your geokinesis." Another teenage girl, also with blonde hair and blue eyes, said with a British accent, telling the rock user, now identified as Terra, that she was basically a liability in this battle.
"Shut the fuck up Windfall! What are you going to do? Blow him away? You whore!" Terra replied testily, Windfall shaking her head in dismay as she wondered how on earth a person of royalty could have such a foul mouth on her, behaving like someone who came straight out of the gutters.
She, as previously mentioned, has blonde hair and blue eyes, except her eyes were a brighter blue than Terra's and also she had much longer hair as her hair reached all the way to her shoulders. She was also wearing a similar HIVE-like uniform to the one Terra was wearing, except hers, unlike Terra's, was not sleeveless but had full length sleeves, and hers also had a golden W at the center of the chest instead of a T like the one Terra was wearing.
"No, I'm going to slice him into minced meat!" Windfall said as she summoned a mini tornado from the atmosphere itself and sent it flying at Kitsune, who of course she expected to try and dodge the attack, and fail spectacularly as that particular technique had a suction effect, making it extremely difficult to evade.
However, in complete defiance of her expectations, without so much as moving a single muscle, Kitsune was able to completely diffuse her technique, some sort of invisible force being expelled from Kitsune's body that seemingly had the ability to nullify all creation.
"W-what? No way! How did he…?" Windfall trailed off in shock, Terra also shocked to the core as, despite her previous insults, she knew just how powerful Windfall's wind manipulation could be.
"Shit! I think we're in trouble here. Everyone, fly away as far as you can! I'm going to burry this bastard so far deep underground that his very bones will get crushed into dust by the pressure! It's time for me to use my ultimate landscaping technique." Terra said with determination and resolve shining in her eyes.
"A fact you didn't consider is whether I have the ability to fly or not, or, since I used your own attack against you earlier, whether I couldn't just nullify the technique you plan to use or even worse, turn it against you again." Kitsune said sagely, causing Terra and her teammates to involuntarily open their eyes in surprise as they really hadn't thought of that, especially Terra, who was supposed to be the expert on all things geokinesis.
"Screw this! I'm going to take this guy down myself!" Livewire, another sixteen year old, said very arrogantly Kitsune thought.
She has light blue skin, dark blue hair styled in an undercut, and electric blue eyes. Like Terra, has a body that is quite voluptuous for someone her age, and is also wearing a black and gold combat body suit except hers is strapless and has a golden L at the center of the chest. She also has gloves that function as arm warmers as they reach all the way to above her elbows.
"The ability to handle your business on your own is admirable, and necessary, but teamwork is just as important, especially when you are outmatched by your opponent." Kitsune retorted.
"Shut up! And stop lecturing me! You're not my teacher!" Livewire said as she fired a large bolt of lightning from her palms, so large that it dwarfed Kitsune so badly that nothing could be seen beyond the bolt of lightning.
However, concern immediately settled in to the minds of the team of teenage girls when the bolt met its target as the large explosion that was expected did not come, in fact, the technique seemed to be getting smaller and smaller until it disappeared into a translucent barrier that was surrounding Kitsune's body, his left hand held out and facing forward as it appeared to be the origin of the technique.
"It should have been obvious by now, but projectiles and energy techniques will not work on me. I can send your projectiles back at you and I can diffuse or absorb your energy techniques. So what will you do now?" Kitsune asked calmly.
"I don't fucking believe it! How is this possible? That was my most devastating attack! I've injured even Supergirl with that technique." Livewire said in surprise.
"Then perhaps I am a more formidable opponent than Supergirl. Retreat seems to be the best option for people of your current level." Kitsune retorted.
"He's toying with us. He hasn't even attacked yet, nor has he tried to stop any of our attacks from being launched. He genuinely doesn't see us as a threat." Terra said angrily, but also analytically.
"Heh! Well then I guess it's a good thing we have an ace up our sleeve!" Windfall said confidently.
"Do you now? Why don't you ask your invisible friend why she hasn't succeeded in attacking me yet?" Naruto said tauntingly, once again shocking the trio of girls to the core.
And, in that exact moment, another girl materialized literally out of thin air, a short, olive skinned teenage girl with hazel eyes and a slim physique. She sports a bob cut of silver-blond hair and a piercing on her left nostril and is also wearing a form fitting combat body suit that has HIVE colours with a Golden M at the center of the chest.
"Mist! What the fuck! You were supposed to be our trump card! The point is not to reveal yourself until it's too late for the enemy you idiot!" Terra exclaimed angrily.
"It's pointless. I tried to enter his body but I couldn't. It's like there is an invisible barrier around him that only allows certain particles to enter his body." Mist replied dejectedly, feeling sad for not being able to help her friends.
"W-what? N-no way! Is he Invincible?" Windfall asked incredulously.
"Perhaps, and perhaps not. Who knows? You girls, impressive as you are, certainly have not exhausted every possible attack option to have already come to that conclusion. For example, you have not tried to use hand to hand combat, nor have you tried to use any melee weapons on me." Kitsune replied.
"What the fuck kind of villain are you? Why are you lecturing and giving advice to us?" Windfall asked incredulously.
"Because I asked him to." The girls heard an all too familiar voice as none other than Deathstroke, in his full combat uniform and all his glory, manifested himself seemingly from thin air, all the four of the girls completely shocked as they had no idea that he could do that.
"You have invisibility powers?" Livewire exclaimed with an accusing finger pointed at her leader and mentor.
"It's cloaking technology, from my nth metal body amour that Kitsune, my son, made for me." Deathstroke explained, again, all four girls involuntarily widening their eyes in surprise.
"He's your son? No shit! I can't believe I didn't realize this sooner. His armor, and even his mannerisms do resemble you quite a bit!" Terra said with a face palm.
"I have another son, and a daughter, both of which you will meet in due time." Deathstroke retorted, leaving the girls in awe as, despite the fact that he took them in, they just couldn't imagine Deathstroke as a father.
"So uh…this was a test? D-did we fail?" Windfall stuttered, worried that she might possibly lose her new found family.
"You have not. This was merely an evaluation. Kitsune is a master of tactics and strategy, but even more impressively, he is a master of technique creation and development. If anyone can help you to fulfill your true potential, it is him." Deathstroke retorted, causing emotions of both relief and excitement to be strongly felt by his students.
"So you were ex-communicated by the League of Shadows and decided to form your own organization? Interesting…" Naruto said thoughtfully.
"Not my own organization, my own team. I wanted you to evaluate them and judge them for yourself, as a petition for me….for us, to join the HIVE." Deathstroke said much to Kitsune's surprise, and not a lot of things could actually manage to surprised him.
"I must be dreaming. Out of all the possible actions you would take after being ex-communicated by the league, this was not one that I even dared to consider." Kitsune replied earnestly.
"It was both a life changing and an eye opening experience. My inability…or rather, refusal to work with others has proven to be a liability. How can I lead if I do not know how to follow, how can I run an organization where teamwork and co-operation is a requirement when I refuse to co-operate with others, when I cannot even co-operate with my own family." Deathstroke retorted.
"I see…." Naruto said thoughtfully.
"….."
"You understand that you will have to submit to my authority, and that to leave the organization, you either have to die or have your memories wiped clean? You also understand that betrayal is not tolerated in the HIVE, death is the only punishment for betrayal." Kitsune asked with a grave undertone.
"I do, and I accept, fully." Deathstroke deadpanned.
"What about your students?"
"Don't you mean our students?" Deathstroke asked rhetorically.
"We will go to hell itself for our mentor! Deathstroke is a precious and important person to us." Terra said with conviction and resolve, the other girls nodding their heads in the affirmative as they all showed the same conviction and resolve in their eyes.
"Interesting. Well, I'll have to discuss this with The Hive Queen and Jericho, but I provisionally accept your application. Welcome to the HIVE, father." Kitsune said pleasantly, extending his right hand in order to shake hands on the deal.
"Thank you, son." Deathstroke said as father and son shook hands for the first time in a very long time.
"Now, as for your team…"
"Defiance, the name of the team is Defiance." Deathstroke said firmly.
"As for team Defiance, they are all incredibly talented, and very skilled too. However, they have only harnessed a mere fraction of their potential. For instance, could Terra not possibly be able to manipulate diamond with her geokinesis? And if she could, could she not use the diamond as body armor? That would make her nigh indestructible, would significantly boost her hand to hand combat ability too." Kitsune explained much to everyone's surprise as they hadn't even considered such an idea, especially Terra and Deathstroke.
"A similar concept is applicable for Livewire, and I am proof of that." Naruto said as he activated his lightning style: lightning armor, his entire body becoming illuminated by an incredibly powerful amount of lightning as he began zipping around the mountain side at incredible speeds, smashing boulders and destroying mountains as he demonstrated his speed and strength, leaving everyone's jaw on the ground as they couldn't believe what they were seeing, except for Deathstroke of course as he already knew how powerful his son was.
"I can also do the diamond skin technique, but for you Terra, I think you would need actual diamonds to manipulate and attach to yourself unlike me, as I can simply turn my skin into diamond using a variation of my earth style techniques." Kitsune explained.
"What are you? S-some kind of God?" Windfall asked in awe, unaware of the irony of that question as she was in fact talking to a God, Naruto merely looking at his father as if to ask whether it was time to let them know or not.
"Listen, I'm going to say this once, and only once. I won't answer any questions about it, I'll just say it and we'll move on. Alright?" Deathstroke said, his students all nodding their heads in the affirmative.
"He is a God. His mother was a New God from a higher dimensional plane known as the Fourth World." Deathstroke replied, and thus, chaos insured as the girls asked him what must have been at least three dozen questions, Kitsune shaking his head the whole time as he wondered if his father actually thought he could tell people something like that and expect no questions to be asked of him.
In all honesty Kitsune was surprised, and impressed, that the girls were even able to eventually go back to the main topic, as he expected that revelation to have them be distracted for the rest of the day. He supposed his dad's training must have contributed to that, combined with the prospect of getting to learn new techniques and abilities.
"What about me? Do you have something cool for me to learn?" Windfall asked excitedly.
"As a matter of fact I do. Watch this." Naruto said as he was suddenly enveloped by powerful whirling winds, so much so that it almost looked like the wind spinning around his body had taken on a physical form, the wind looking like it was simultaneously under his complete control and totally out of control.
"This technique is called Shunko, or in your language, it would translate to something like Flash War Cry . It gives the user a boost in both speed and destructive power. Check it out." Kitsune said as again he disappeared from view, moving at well over mach speed as he zipped all around the mountain side, once again smashing hills and boulders to smithereens with the power of his technique, except this time it was a wind based technique as opposed to a lightning/electricity based technique.
"Wow! That is super awesome!" Windfall said with a thick British accent, unrestrained awe and excitement rolling off of her in waves.
"So you're saying I'm going to be able to do that too? You can actually teach me that?" Windfall asked excitedly.
"Not exactly. See, my powers are different to yours, even if they may appear to be the same. But I can help you to develop something that will give you a similar advantage. The point here is that you can all use your powers to physical enhance yourselves. It takes a lot of studying and training, but it is achievable, and also desirable. You need to be able to defend yourself if the enemy is able to draw you into close quarters, or if they are simply able to bypass your long range techniques. There is no substitute for speed, power, and durability." Kitsune explained.
"That actually makes a lot of sense. But what about Mist? I really don't see how her powers can give her a power advantage whatsoever." Terra asked with concern.
"She can actually get both a power and a speed advantage. Water is one of the strongest elements in the world. It is not inferior to wind, earth, fire, or electricity. The majority of the human body is made up of water, and with Mist's powers, she can eventually get to a point where she can not only turn her body into water vapor, but into water itself." Naruto explained, taking a momentary pause in order to let the girls digest the information before continuing where he left off.
"Now when she gets to that point, I will be able to teach her how to use water retention to enhance, harden, and enlarge her muscles and organs, giving her a significant boost in speed, power and durability. Eventually she will be able to interchangeably switch between use of her sublimation her water enhancement technique. That is when she will truly become dangerous." Kitsune explained patiently.
"Wow? You're a genius man! Deathstroke is so lucky to have a son like you." Livewire said dreamily.
"Indeed he is." Kitsune said matter of factly, shrugging his shoulders when his father gave him an incredulous look.
"…"
"So, I take it this means you will help me to train them?" Deathstroke asked warily.
"Yes I will. You can all stay at the main HIVE base for the next six months, but after that I intend to move you to your own location. I think that, in order to be more effective, we need to have around six or seven teams such as this, with their own base of operations, their own henchmen, and their own directives. Taking over the world is no easy business, and we cannot all be bunched up in one place if we are going to succeed." Kitsune explained.
"Taking over the world? Wow, you're even cooler than I thought! So we really are going to take over the world?" Livewire said excitedly.
"Yes, but for now that is a top secret that is not to be mentioned under any conditions. By the time we reveal ourselves to the world, we must already be fully integrated into every major society in the world. The world must already depend on us for its continued existence and function, and of course….for its protection." Kitsune replied.
"But….the Justice League…I mean, the world already has protectors. They have defeated every single known threat to planet earth and mankind as a whole. Taking their spot seems impossible. The only way would be if we joined them or if they joined us, the latter being highly unlikely." Windfall argued.
"The Justice League is neither our enemy nor our friend right now. They are more or less a neutral party. That actually plays to our advantage. Think about it, the Justice League's philosophy is not to get involved in politics or economics. In other words, we can use both the private and public sector to gain power and influence, and once we have that, we can shape the laws to our own benefit, and the Justice League will not be able to do anything about it due to their own policies. Until then, we, The Hive, will operate in the shadows." Kitsune explained.
"A covert world take over? That has to be the most ambitious goal I have ever heard of. Is such a thing even possible?" Mist asked incredulously.
"Nothing is impossible. You will learn that soon enough…." Naruto trailed off with a mischievous undertone, going on to explain to the new recruits their exact role in the organization and also breaching the issue of their rival organization, namely, The Light, explaining to them everything he had learned about that organization so that they wouldn't be caught off guard should the Light ever decide to attack The Hive, or should they for one reason or another run into a Light member in one of their missions.
Later: Hidden Base in the Himalaiyans
"My team is new, and there are a lot of people looking for me. They still need more training. Is it really okay to leave them in the hands of a mere shadow clone?" Slade asked warily, having unmasked himself now that he and his son were alone.
"If that is how you truly feel then you will be disappointed to know that I too am a mere shadow clone." Naruto replied casually.
"W-what the actual fuck Nathaniel! So what, do I not have your respect anymore? Is that all I'm worth now to you? A mere shadow clone?" Slade asked, incensed.
"I'm off world, father. I'm in a place far out of reach, on the furthest, darkest corner of the universe. I'm in the middle of a war, but I will tell you all about that later. For now, just trust that we shadow clones are more than capable of handling the task of training and developing Team Defiance." Nathaniel replied as he continued walking, his father following behind him and doing extremely well to not show just how utterly amazed and mind boggled he was by the technology in Naruto's secret base, and doing even better to contain his curiosity enough not to ask about the so called intergalactic war that his son was fighting, as he wanted to focus on the issues that were closer to home for now.
"….."
"You said you had something to show me….." Slade trailed off as they finally reached their destination, a place where there were three containment pods and two force field generator prison cells, prison cells that didn't even have people in them but just one small item in each, that being a ring in one, and what appeared to be a gauntlet of some kind on the other.
"What is this? Who are these….beings, and what are those things? Why would you trap a ring and a guantlet in a force field?" Slade asked curiously.
"Well, if you must know, two of these people are aliens, that being the male on the left Pod, Mon El of Daxam, and the female on the right hand pod, Koriandr' aka Starfire from planet Tamaran. Daxam is a sister planet to Krypton, and consequently, this young man has similar powers to Superman. He doesn't however have a weakness to Kryptonite but has a weakness to lead." Naruto explained.
"Lead? Are you fucking kidding me? The whole point of having Superman's powers is to be invulnerable, what's the point of any of that power if even a random thug with a gun can kill you?" Slade asked incredulously.
"Well, he does have super speed and super senses, so it would still be very difficult for a mere thug on the street to shoot him, but nevertheless your point has some merit. That is why I have taken it upon myself to develop a cure for his lead condition." Naruto retorted.
"Is that why he is in a pod? So that you can study him and develop a cure?" Slade asked curiously.
"I've already developed the cure, I just haven't administered it yet. For some time now I have been running psychic simulations on the heads of my uh….friends over here. The simulations are designed to give them an understanding of our way of thinking and to understand why we make the decisions we make. So far so good because both Mon El and Starfire have accepted and in fact embraced our philosophy." Naruto retorted.
"Where the hell did you even get these aliens?" Slade asked incredulously.
"Do you know how many aliens reside on planet earth, their existence amongst mankind unknown neither by the citizens of earth or earth's governments?" Naruto asked rhetorically.
"What the hell does that have to do with my question?" Slade asked impatiently.
"Five hundred million. There are five hundred million alien species residing on earth, unbeknownst to humankind. In light of this revelation, I have been monitoring both earth space and the entire milky way just to make sure that I can anticipate any oncoming threats to the planet, and in doing so I am happy to say that instead of enemies, I have found two potential allies instead, ones who have the potential to be game changers." Naruto retorted.
"You found them?" Slade asked with a raised eyebrow.
"I intercepted their space crafts and brought them here. Earth technology has improved greatly in the last five years, but it is still a far cry from my technology or even the technology of Daxam and Tamaran. Their ships were undetectable to human tech but not to mine." Naruto said, not needing to explain any further as he figured his father could put two and two together.
"I see. And the kid over here? What's up with him? Why is he on fire?" Slade asked curiously.
"His name Ronald Raymond aka Ronnie Raymond. His code name is Firestorm. I got the information about the Firestorm Project from Amanda Waller when Enchantress and I ransacked her mind. I then proceeded to sabotage the project, causing the test subjects to de materialize, which in turn caused the responsible government division to write the project off as a failure. Once that was done, I created the tech to speed up the re-materialization of the test subjects and ended up with this guy." Kitsune explained.
"That sounds like one convoluted plan. Why didn't you just kill everyone involved and steal the research? You could do that in a matter of seconds with your shadow clone technique or even just your super speed and teleportation." Slade asked.
"Not every problem can or should be solved by killing, especially when good people are involved." Naruto retorted, Slade in complete disagreement with Nathaniel on that one but choosing to keep his thoughts to himself…for now.
"…"
"So….what does this guy do?" Slade asked curiously, looking at the kid whose head seemed to be on fire.
"This guy is pyrokinetic, but not only that, he actually has advanced transmutation abilities, super durability and super strength, and can fly at super sonic speeds. He is practically invulnerable to any form of heat energy or radiation and could actually live forever if he stayed in this form. In other words, he is basically a man made God." Kitsune explained.
"Two super aliens and a man made God? Okay, I guess this is just another Tuesday for you." Slade said sarcastically.
"It is isn't it?" Naruto said thoughtfully.
"…"
"So…the force field imprisoned ring?" Slade asked impatiently, a little miffed by the fact that he had to even ask as he felt like Naruto should have just told him everything without him having to dig the answers out of him, especially since Naruto was the one who invited him over in the first place.
"A gift for you." Naruto explained.
"What?" Slade asked incredulously, wondering what the hell he was supposed to do with a ring.
"The ring contains a literal genie inside of it, her name is Djinn. Think of the ring as a magic lamp. For as long as you wear the ring, the powerful, immortal girl and all of her magical powers will be yours to do with as you please, although I do hope that you will not treat her as a weapon but as a comrade and a protégé, as I have seen you do with the other members of Team Defiance." Naruto said as he used his flying thunder god technique to teleport the ring out of the force field and into his right hand before handing over the ring to his father.
"This is….why? Not that I do not appreciate it but it all just seems…I don't know…."
"You have never received a gift from me before, so its understandable that you obviously would be feeling awkward right now. In fact, I pretty much expected this kind of reaction." Naruto retorted before his father could finish stuttering.
"In any case, this is not a random occurrence, it's a tactical assignment." Naruto explained much to his father's confusion.
"A tactical assignment?" Slade asked curiously. Of course, he knew exactly what a tactical assignment was, he just didn't know exactly what was the tactic involved in this particular decision.
"A magic user for each team. Enchantress is going to be the magic user in my team, Raven in Rose's team, and Incubus in Joseph's team, hence, Djinn being assigned to your team." Naruto explained simply.
"Who the hell are Raven and Incubus?" Slade asked incredulously.
"You'll meet them soon enough. Right now they are helping me in that inter galactic war I was telling you about earlier." Naruto replied dismissively, not seeing it as something too important at that particular moment in time.
"And the other three? Is there a one alien per team rule?" Slade asked greedily.
"Unfortunately not. Firestorm, Starfire, and Powerman are all going to be on Wonder Woman's team, with her as team leader and of course, as the magic user of the team." Naruto retorted.
"Are you insane? Wonder Woman? You think you can get Wonder Woman to turn on the Justice League and lead a Hive team? That's….preposterous. I've never heard of anything crazier, ever!" Slade said incredulously.
"You're wrong. Wonder Woman and I have a strong bond, and she is fighting side by side with me in the war. She is already on the verge of converting. I just need one more push and she will be mine….forever." Naruto said with conviction.
"Okay, clearly there is a lot more going on there than what meets the eye, especially if you are actually fighting side by side with her in some inter galactic war. I guess the rumors are true then." Slade retorted.
"What rumors?" Naruto asked curiously.
"Wonder Woman hasn't been seen for two months, Doctor Fate has been filling in for her and the Justice League has been on edge. Rumors have spread that she might actually be dead or has defected from the Justice League. I recently heard that Batman, Manhunter, and Superman have been discreetly investigating all of Wonder Woman's nemesis's. It feels like everything is on a knife's edge, the League has been more brutal and aggressive, and it coincides with her disappearance. They claim that she is on a secret mission when asked, but nobody truly believes that story." Slade explained.
"That….is disconcerting. If the Justice League is unravelling, then it means that it is only a matter of time before they approach or even attack me." Naruto thought with a small frown.
"You? Why would they attack you?" Slade asked incredulously.
"The League knows about me. Supergirl revealed my secret. Not intentionally, well, sort of intentionally but not entirely."
"How does someone sort of intentionally do something? It's either intentional or its not." Slade said irritably.
"She revealed it to her friend, Barbara Gordon aka Batgirl, who in turn was and is being spied on by Batman 24/7. As you can imagine, Batman took that info to Superman and the League." Naruto replied.
"How much exactly do they know about you?" Slade asked with narrowed eyes.
"They know I'm a New God. They know that I took out Amanda Waller and that I am in League with Enchantress. They do not know about Hive though." Naruto explained.
"Supergirl told them I presume? But the real question is how did Supergirl know in the first place? Did you throw away everything that I, Minato, and Kushina taught you?" Slade asked angrily.
"Of course not. I had no choice, Lobo was about to kill Supergirl, and he was going to try and kill me right after. I had to stop him, it was the logical thing to do." Naruto retorted.
"The logical thing to do was to let him kill her, and only then fight him. That way you can both save yourself and keep your secret." Slade counter argued.
"If it were Adeline, or Rose's mother, or my mother, would you have done that?" Naruto asked, Slade's eyes widening in surprise as his mouth opened and closed without any words coming out.
"Fine, point taken." Slade said grumpily.
"…"
"Anyway, I do not think those aliens should be in Wonder Woman's team. They belong with me. My team is strong and versatile, but we need a serious heavy hitter to deal with the likes of Superman, Aquaman, Captain Marvel, Captain Atom, the Green Lanterns, Martian Manhunter, and so forth. I know you are working on increasing their speed, strength and durability, but I'm not sure its going to be enough." Slade argued.
"It will be enough, but even if you do not believe that to be true, it will not matter because there is going to be a heavy hitter in your team."
"Who?" Slade asked curiously.
"You." Naruto replied cryptically.
"Me?" Slade asked confusedly.
"Your second gift, the Spider Gauntlet, will ensure that. I personally designed it, for you. It will only work for you or someone of your bloodline. It is made from Element X, a metal with special properties that is used in Apokolips and New Genesis as you already know. This weapon is special, it has the ability to collect and convert sage energies. You can use it to augment your speed, strength, and durability, to open portals and teleport yourself, other people, or even teleport attacks that are launched at you. You can transform it into any weapon of your imagination, or to project energy weapons. It can even shape-shift into a full body armor. With this, you are officially the heavy hitter in your team." Naruto replied as he teleported the gauntlet to himself just as he did earlier with the genie ring, and then proceeded to hand the weapon over to his dad.
"This is….a little too much. Honestly, I feel unworthy, after everything I have done to you." Slade said, insure about whether he should accept these gifts or not.
"If you are unworthy, then become worthy. Do everything within your power, your mind, your body, your spirit, and heart, to prove yourself worthy. Do it for yourself, do it for me, for Rose, and for Joseph." Naruto retorted.
"You're right. I'll do it, I'll do it properly. I won't fail you son. And….thank you." Slade said with determination and conviction.
Meanwhile: Amazon Jungle
"Oh my God this is unbelievable! I'm…I'm a giant, I'm as tall as the tallest tree in the world. What an amazing gift you have bestowed upon me! I can't believe how powerful I feel, how powerful I am!" Pamela aka Poison Ivy said elatedly.
The reason for her joy and excitement? Well, that was because she was finally able to become one with nature. Yes, some might argue that she already was, seeing as she could communicate with and control plants, but she would tell you that her powers had been a far cry from being one with nature, as she had seen first hand the benefits of being actually one with nature when she ran into Swamp Thing in the past.
Now however, after Naruto taught her how not only to make contact with the force of nature known as The Green, but to harness and control its power for herself, she could honestly say that she had never felt more powerful before, nor did she even think it was possible to be this powerful.
"Well, it looks like we're going to have to get you a shape shifting suit because giant or not, you're gonna get too much unwanted attention walking around naked like that." Naruto said as he floated around and underneath Pamela's pelvic area.
"Y-you pervert! What the….! Why the hell are you flying around that area!" Pamela exclaimed indignantly, a pink hue appearing on her otherwise green cheeks from the embarrassment.
"Relax, I'm just checking you out to see what you've got under the hood. Fear not though, you have nothing to worry about, you have a wonderful pussy." Naruto said with a thumbs up, Pamela shifting emotions between anger, confusion, and bemusement as she contemplated her boss's casual but insane behavior.
"G-get away from there!" Pamela exclaimed as she tried to swat her boss away, but he was way too fast as he evaded every single one of her attempted slaps.
"Impressive. Your speed has not improved, but it hasn't decreased either. Despite your enormous size, you're still just as fast as you were in your normal human form. This is an unexpected but positive turn of events." Naruto expressed his observations as he continued to evade Pamela's strikes.
"On the other hand, your physical strength, power, and durability have been significantly enhanced." Naruto said as he watched Pamela decimate a number of enormous trees with her palm strikes alone, the force of her movements also generating strong winds and shockwaves Naruto noticed.
"Damn it! You bastard! Look what you made me do? I killed all of those poor trees!" Pamela said in distress.
"Good, because now we can find out how well you can heal plants, how much you can morph, augment, and enhance them, and whether you can return to life the ones that are already dead. Remember, a weapons master must become one with their weapon of choice, your Wood Style: Sage Mode enables you to weaponize plants and trees, to weaponize nature itself. To do that, you must become one with it without losing control. Involuntarily transforming into a giant means that you cannot control it yet." Naruto replied sagely.
"Did you transform into a giant when you learned your various sage modes?" Pamela asked curiously.
"No, I was able to instinctively, and instantly control sage energy. Do not worry, once you learn how, you will be even more powerful than you are now, and of course, you will be able to seamlessly switch between your normal size and your giant form, or be able to take on different sizes instead of just the two that you have taken on thus far." Naruto replied.
"I see. You know…..ever since I started training with you on the sage arts, I have been able to think a lot more clearly. I think….I think it's time I broke ties with Harley and the gang. I must…I want to be a member of the Hive, I want to serve you, to serve your will and your purpose, not only because I trust you and because I lo…uh, like you, but also because I think I now understand that I can realize my goals without killing every single human on the planet…..if I work with you, I mean, for you. If I work for you." Pamela managed to express her pure and sincere intentions, expressing her true emotions being something she had struggled to do in the past especially if it didn't involve mass genocide.
"I see. Well, that's a good thing, because if you didn't join I might have been forced to either wipe your memories or kill you. Not everyone can learn to control sage energy, in fact, apart from you, only Swamp Thing and maybe The Floronic man could possibly learn the things that I have and are about to teach you. It is important Pamela that you guard these techniques and the knowledge I am sharing with you with your life." Naruto explained.
"I will, I promise. But, I do have a question. Since I am learning sage mode, does that mean that I will be able to tap into all sorts of nature energy like how you told me you were able to tap into the spectrum energy of the various lantern corps?" Pamela asked.
"No. You will be able to sense and detect the presence or rather the use of other forms of nature energy, but you will not be able to tap into anything other than the Green. I am an exception, there is no one else like me in the universe. It is the reason my mother chose to leave me behind and asked that I be kept hidden until I came of age. She knew just how special I was." Naruto explained.
"Okay, I get that. Anyway I was just asking for knowledge's sake, which brings me to my next question. Theoretically, does your ability mean that you could tap into the speed force, like The Flash?" Pamela asked curiously.
"Indeed it does. I haven't attempted it yet, but yes, I could learn how to do it. The reason I haven't yet is because, well, one must try to avoid becoming a jack of all trades yet a master of none. That's not to say I won't learn to tap into the speed force though, in fact, you know what, that's a pretty good idea. I think it will be good for us to both be learning something new and to grow together. It will strengthen our bond and it will make things more interesting. Thanks for the idea Pamela, you're a genius." Naruto said excitedly.
'That was totally your idea. All I did was ask a simple question.' Pamela thought with a sweat drop, wondering just how in the hell her boss can be a wise sage in one moment and a total idiot in the next.
'She's coming along nicely, better and faster than I expected. With Poison Ivy, Wonder Woman, Powerman, Firestorm, and Starfire as members of The Covenant of The HIVE, that will officially make it five teams for the HIVE. Five nigh unbeatable teams. I just hope Pamela will not be too angry to learn that she will be working directly under Wonder Woman instead of me.' Naruto thought as he tried to think of a way to ease Pamela into the idea.
Of course, he wasn't going to disclose that to her yet, not because he didn't trust her, or because he was trying to deceive her, but rather because he hadn't convinced Wonder Woman to join the HIVE yet. Wonder Woman was kind of in the same position as Pamela was currently being that she was still a work in progress, in fact, the entire team was still a work in progress, so there really was no need to disclose that information just yet.
Meanwhile: At the Forgotten Zone
"Lord Atrocitus! It brings me great pain to say that we have been unable to locate the interlopers that uh…stopped our advance on colony 12. Green Lantern Shyir Rev, along with his entire home planet appear to have been moved to a different location that we have yet to find. The only thing we were able to find at the spot are the remnants of the Liberators we sent to Colony 12." Zelius said warily, doing extremely well to hide the sheer amount of terror that he felt right at that moment, as he knew too well the horrors that awaited those who failed Lord Atrocitus.
"Fear not Zelius, Razer, Veon. Everything that the liberators see, so do I also see. I saw my Liberators fight and lose to a magnificent but troublesome entity, a creature demonic in its origins and power. The demon witch known as The Enchantress singlehandedly defeated three Liberators, three planet destroyers. If she, seemingly a mere lackey to the New God Kitsune, possesses that kind of power, then none of you would have stood a chance against this Kitsune that you went up against, nor the Godess of Thunder that stands by his side." Atrocitus replied.
Atrocitus is an extremely tall and muscular individual, far bigger than the biggest human one could find on planet earth, standing at eleven feet tall and possessing a body that looks like it is entirely made of carbon fiber. He is wearing the traditional black and red form fitting uniform of the red lanterns with the red lantern insignia on his chest, and his skin is also red in color. He has razor sharp teeth like those of a predator, which further enhances his intimidation factor, and he also has red armor over his uniform and around his head, armor that is made from redium, a special metal alloy that he personally designed using a combination of blood sacrificial magic and red spectrum energy.
"S-so, does this mean that you will not kill us, my lord?" Veon asked anxiously, Zelius resisting the urge to smack his head against his palm as he wondered what on earth possessed Veon to make him think that it was a wise idea to even bring up the idea of killing them to Lord Atrocitus.
"Fortunately for you, no. Despite what you may think, Veon, I am capable of being reasonable, irrespective of the magnitude of my rage." Atrocitus replied.
"Thank you once again for your righteousness and benevolence, my lord. We promise to never disappoint you again." Zelius said submissively.
"Do not make promises that you cannot keep, Zelius." Atrocitus said, and just as he finished saying that, a dark, sinister power washed all over him and his subordinates as a portal appeared in the air, the throne room becoming illuminated by the all too familiar red spectrum energy of the red lanterns, except that no one knew who the hell was emitting so much red spectrum energy or how they were even able to create a portal because only Lord Atrocitus himself had ever displayed such a highly advanced aptitude for red spectrum energy manipulation.
"Behold, the newest member of the Red Lantern Corps, Nathaniel Wilson." Naruto said as he slowly flew out of the portal, hovering in the air only briefly before he flew downwards until he was standing on the same floor as his new comrades.
"Who the hell are you?" Dex-Starr asked suspiciously, and warily, because the mere presence of this individual made his fur stand on edge.
Dex-Starr is the right hand man, or rather the right hand cat of Atrocitus, spotting blue fur, sharp claws and fangs, and well, he looked like a typical housecat really, apart from the fact that he could talk and was wearing the red lantern ring and uniform.
"I just told you who I am dufus, and what the hell are you doing talking anyway, you're just a housecat." Naruto said much to Dex-Starr's chagrin, the cat warrior completely loosing his mind to rage, his fear a thing of the past as he came flying at the blonde Uzumaki at mach 4 speed.
"Dex-Starr no stop!" Atrocitus exclaimed in horror, having already sensed by the magnitude of his red spectrum aura alone that this interloper was far beyond Dex-Starr's ability.
However, his words fell on deaf ears, and it was too late anyway as Dex-Starr had already reached his target by the time his master's words echoed, and subsequently got literally swatted away like a fly as Naruto gave him a casual but insanely powerful backhanded slap, sending the housecat warrior crashing head first into the throne room's armored walls, shockwaves washing all over the room as everyone watched on in in shock, no one ever having seen Dex-Starr lose a battle before period, never mind being swatted away like a mere fly.
"Oh…I think that's a partially shattered cranium. He might actually die if he doesn't get medical treatment soon. Oh, and uh…..yes, I totally meant to do that." Naruto said disrespectfully.
"You dare mock Lord Atrocitus! You dare mock the Red Lantern Corps! You'll pay for your insolence!" Skallox exclaimed angrily, using his powerful legs to propel himself towards the enigmatic New God, head facing forward as he prepared to run the interloper through with his impossibly hard head.
Skallox is basically a humanoid goat, spotting a very muscular build, golden yellow skin, and two long black horns on his head. He is also wearing the standard red lantern uniform and often spots a serious facial expression, although currently it was one full of rage and malice.
Similar to Dex-Starr, it didn't take long for Skallox to reach his target, the goat man connecting with one of his trademark super powered head butts directly on the interloper's chest, the impact so loud and devastating that some of the lesser lanterns were forced to close their ears, although unable to maintain said posture as a powerful and violent shockwave washed over the throne room, sending some of the red lanterns flying and spiraling away.
It didn't take long for Atrocitus and his lanterns to realize that something was wrong, as the interloper could clearly be seen standing exactly where he had been standing before, not having moved even an inch from his position, a feat that only Lord Atrocitus was capable of after taking a direct hit like that from Skallox.
As if that wasn't a bad enough omen, the sight of Skallox's shaking knees and him struggling to maintain his equilibrium was even more disconcerting, as it became clear that he was suffering some kind of concussion, something previously thought of as impossible for him to suffer from due to his head being so hard that he actually used it as his primary weapon.
"Just a moderate concussion and no significant damage on the cranium even after running straight into me at mach 4? Impressive, truly impressive." Naruto said as he grabbed Skallox by the horns, a sickening sound reverberating around the throne room as Naruto pulled his horns right out of his head, Skallox finally falling flat on the floor as he wailed and rolled around in pain.
"B-by the G-gods! S-someome…s-someone do something!" Zelius exclaimed, the fear and horror in his eyes so clear and visible that it was almost tangible.
"Who's next? How are you going to defeat the Man Hunters if you cannot even overcome one Red Lantern, never mind the Guardians and the Green Lantern Corps?" Naruto asked condescendingly.
"Y-you bitch! Don't you dare mock…!" Bleez trailed off in shock as, before she could even finish speaking, Naruto was already behind her, having moved so fast that she hadn't even realized that he moved at all until he had already grabbed her at the juncture of her wings exactly where her wings connected to her back.
Bleez is a very beautiful and voluptuous woman, spotting light blue skin, black eyes, and black lipstick. She also has a form fitting black helmet on her head that covers the top half of her head and the helmet also has bat like wings on both the left and ride side of her head. She is dressed in a red lantern uniform, form fitting in its design and therefore accentuating her curves even further. She also has wings, which are entirely made of bones as there was no skin and no feathers on her wings.
"Stop screeching, wench! Your insolence is not appreciated, therefore….it shall be punished." Naruto said darkly, tightened his grip considerably in the process.
"N-no! W-wait! Not my wings…aaaaaah!" Bleez cried in agony, unable to do anything but cry and wail on the floor in incomprehensible pain as her wings were ripped out of her back in a horrific display of brutality, Naruto carrying on his brutish actions by kicking her away like a soccer ball and then burning her wings to smithereens as he vomited a burning plasma from his mouth directly onto the wings.
"…"
The silence was deafening, every red lantern, except Atrocitus himself of course, flinching and back pedaling as soon as Naruto's animal like eyes made contact with them, the blonde haired red lantern slowly and deliberately walking towards them asthey all quickly moved out of the way, allowing him to walk towards Atrocitus unencumbered.
"Lord Atrocitus….The Mad God of Rage. I can sense your immense power, both your blood magic and your red spectrum energy, and of course, your control over them. Your power is no joke, you really do live up to your moniker as the Mad God of Rage." Naruto said as he walked towards the gigantic despot.
"But?" Atrocitus asked with narrowed eyes, finally deeming it necessary to get up from his throne as he walked down the steps, preparing to meet the interloper midway because he knew, without a shadow of doubt, that he couldn't afford to be caught sleeping, not against this guy.
"But you are a mental midget. You have intentionally shirked your responsibility of training your army properly because you are afraid that eventually, someone will become strong enough to dethrone you. That is a character flaw that no true leader should have. You should have a little more faith in yourself, and besides, intentionally weakening your army is counter productive. You'll never achieve your goals operating like that." Naruto said as he and Atrocitus finally met in the middle, the two of them standing so close to each other that there was no longer any space to move, heck, it would be difficult to even throw a punch at each other at that distance.
'Damn! This guy really is huge! I never thought I would ever feel short.' Naruto thought in dismay.
"So let me guess, I should step down from my throne and allow you to lead the Red Lanterns? How predictable and obvious your intentions are. Do you honestly think you are the first person to try to take my rightful throne? Do you honestly think that a mere ant like you can defeat me? Do you think you can kill me?" Atrocitus asked incredulously, and angrily.
"It would not be easy, but yes, I could take you. However that is not what I want to do, at least not right now. Right now, I want you to make me your general. Allow me to train your army and prepare it for the trials and tribulations that lie ahead. Destroying the manhunters is an audacious enough task, but dethroning the entire green lantern corps and the guardians is an even greater task. We would not be the first who have tried, but we would be the first to succeed. You'll need a proper army to do that, a properly trained army that is to say." Naruto offered.
"You expect me to believe that you have come all the way here, and made all that ruckus, just to serve beneath my heel? What is your true intention, ant?" Atrocitus asked suspiciously.
"We both know I'm no ant. However, I understand that you have trust issues, and that you obsessively guard your power. So then let me remove the sheep skin and reveal the wolf to you. I believe us fighting and killing each other would be a waste, because whoever dies between us is a loss to the other. So here is the first truth….." Naruto said as he took five steps back and performed hand seals for the summoning jutsu, a giant red cloud of smoke appearing behind him, the red cloud soon clearing away to reveal something that shocked Atrocitus to the core.
"Summoning Technique: The Butcher." Naruto said, confirming what Atrocitus's mind was trying to valiantly deny, which was that the two story large red bull behind the interloper was the entity that embodied the red spectrum energy of the red lanterns.
"Judging by the look on your face, I'd say you know exactly what this is. So here are your options. I can either seal away the Butcher, denying you and the entire red lantern core of red spectrum energy, and therefore destroying the red lantern corps, or…I can seal it inside of you, granting you all of its power and full control of the red spectrum and the red lantern corps." Naruto offered.
"And what would you want in return for this service?" Atrocitus asked contemplatively, thinking about all the possibilities that would open up to him if he had the full power of the butcher coursing within him.
"You need only kiss the ring. Swear your loyalty and fealty to me. With the Butcher at your disposal, you will not have to worry about any subordinates surpassing you. You can now train them to their full potential, thereby strengthening your army considerably. Your own power will be nigh immeasurable, and exponentially greater than your already great power. You will truly become a God." Naruto replied.
"You're not all that you appear to be are you? The only way any of this is possible, is if you yourself were a God. You wouldn't give me the Butcher if you needed its power, certainly not if you needed that ring on your finger. This is all possible because you are not Nathaniel Wilson, this is all possible because you are New God Kitsune." Atrocitus discerned intelligently.
"And thus the second truth has been revealed. I knew you would figure it out. You do not disappoint me, Lord Atrocitus." Naruto said with a mischievous smirk.
"The offer to control and harness the full power of the Butcher is too great to resist. However, if it hinders my goals and ambitions then it will be pointless to have that power. I need to know that my plans to destroy the Manhunters and to get my revenge on the guardians will not be hindered by your plans for me and my lanterns. If you can promise that, then I will swear my fealty and loyalty to you, and it goes without saying that my fealty and loyalty is also that of the red lantern corps." Atrocitus replied.
"I promise to help you destroy the Manhunters, and I promise to help you get revenge on the Guardians, if you swear your fealty and loyalty to me." Naruto categorically stated.
"Then mine and the red lantern corps' fealty and loyalty are all yours, Lord Kitsune." Atrocitus said as he, much to the surprise of his subordinates, went down on one knee and bowed his head, Naruto turning his head to look at the rest of the corps, causing them unbridled fear as they all immediately followed in their leader's example and prostrated themselves before their New God.
"Good. First I will seal the Butcher inside of you, and then I will heal and modify your injured comrades. This is a great union, because we will do great things together, Mad God Atrocitus…." Naruto trailed off darkly.
End of Chapter
Poison Ivy:
I took inspiration from the Harley Quinn animated series where Ivy drank a plant toxin that made her gigantic in size, except in this case, it is sage energy of The Green that makes her body grow just like it grows plants.
Sage Energy:
Also, its revealed that not only spectrum energy and The Green are a form of sage energy, but also the power of The Speed Force. If you think about it, it makes perfect sense. Speedsters outsource power from the speed force in order to enhance themselves and gain other abilities, which is exactly how sage mode works.
Obviously this means that the Red will also be a form of sage energy use. Users of the Red are people like Beast Boy, Animal Man, and Vixen.