Naruto In Marvel Universe Chapter 19: The Power Of Human Sacrifice

Doctor Helen Cho walked briskly through the hallways of Avengers Tower's 33rd floor, or more specifically the Medical Bay, her heels clicking against the tiled floor aggressively as she hurried into Room 3B. Sliding the clear door open, she walked into the room to find her patient on his feet, staring out the window into the lit-up city skyline. Helen quickly forced herself to look away from the man's nude backside, his a.s.s hanging out from the partially open seam of his hospital gown.

"Ahem." Doctor Cho coughed out loudly to get the blonde's attention.

Looking over his shoulder, Naruto gave the woman a once over. At first confused as to why the doctor was averting eye contact with him, he then felt a slight draft from behind. Looking down, a blush decorated his face as he quickly closed the seam with his hand, turning his back away from her as he did, "I am so sorry."

Cho, relieved that the blonde had turned to face her, said, "That's alright, Mr. Uzumaki. It happens a lot more often than you'd think."

Forcing down his embarra.s.sment, Naruto asked, "Where am I exactly? I know I'm in Manhattan, but did SHIELD set up a new base while I was gone or something?"

"I'm afraid that SHIELD has been disbanded by the government." Helen informed, "This is Avengers Tower. I came here when I saw that the weighted alarm to your bed went off when you got up." The doctor then gave Naruto a once over of her own, "You shouldn't be moving around right now. At all."

Naruto managed to hide his shock at the fact that SHIELD had been disbanded, only giving a slight widening of the eyes, before saying, "Yeah well, a few scratches and sc.r.a.pes can't keep me down for long."

"Three broken ribs, with your left lung punctured, a fractured jaw, nose broken in three places, major brain damage, and one twisted ankle." Helen listed off, "That's what you came in here with. In three hours however, your ribs, jaw, nose, and ankle had all mended back into place. In four, your lung had healed itself. And in five, the ma.s.sive amount of brain damage you'd attained was gone as though it had never been there. Like I said, you shouldn't be moving. You should be dead."

"Like I said, scratches and sc.r.a.pes." Naruto said, though in the back of his mind he thought, "Thanks, Kurama."

"That woman isn't overexaggerating brat. If it weren't for me, you'd be dead. Again." Kurama scolded.

"I said thanks Kurama, what do you want fro-"

"What I want is for you to ignore that other voice in your head. The one that's gonna tell you to go do something stupid like train or fight someone even stronger than the guy you just fought. What I want, is for you to once in your life relax."

Naruto felt an argument brewing, but at the last second stopped himself. Giving a mental sigh, Naruto thought, "Fine."

Helen, her face twisted in confusion with a raised eyebrow, watched as the blonde in front of her seemed to have a conversation with himself, saying to herself, "Maybe I was wrong about the brain damage."

Hearing the woman's comment under her breath, Naruto said sheepishly, "Sorry about that…" Looking to her nametag he continued, "Helen. Just a little weird being back here after so long."

Nodding, Helen said, "Well, allow me to inform Mr. Stark that you're awake. I'm sure they'd all like to see you."

"Yeah." Looking down, a thought came to him, "Hey could you get me some clothes?"

-x-

Naruto looked down at the bundle of clothes Helen had given him, a look of slight trepidation on his face as asked, "Where did you get these, exactly?"

"These belong to Captain Rogers, Mr. Stark said he wouldn't mind you borrowing them." Helen said as she handed them to him.

"Mr. Stark said huh." Naruto said as he took the clothes and shoes. Setting them to the side, Naruto looked to Dr. Cho when she didn't leave the room, "Do you still need something?"

"A quick physical examination actually." Cho answered.

"Okay well…can I get some privacy first?"

Quickly realizing her mistake, Helen meekly said, "Oh, of course! My apologies." Turning her back to him, Cho waited patiently for the man to change into the clothes she'd given him.

"Aren't you going to leave the room?"

"I was told to stay with you to make sure you don't try and run off." Cho admitted.

Naruto sighed, "Whoever told you that clearly forgot I can teleport." Taking off the gown, Naruto quickly put on the pair of brown dress pants, quickly noting they were a size too big.

"You can teleport?" Cho asked, a tinge of curiosity in her voice.

"Yep." Naruto answered, slipping on the matching leather loafers.

"Interesting. I'd seen the footage from when you fought in the Incident, but I never would've expected you could teleport as well."

"The Incident?" Naruto asked as he put on the white wife beater, the loose shirt hanging down his torso.

The doctor nodded, "That's what the government and media call the attack on New York. Supposedly, they feel it makes it easier for the public to swallow the fact that we'd been invaded by an army of aliens through a portal in the sky."

b.u.t.toning up the plaid shirt, Naruto thought out loud, "I gotta get caught up on what I missed. I hate being out of the loop like this."

"Well I can help you with that."

Looking over to the doorway, Naruto grinned when he saw who had spoken up, "Tony!" He greeted with a smile on his face.

"How's it going kid?" Tony asked as he walked into the room, hands in his pockets as he strolled over to the blonde, "I didn't think you'd be walking around so soon."

Naruto gave a small chuckle as he rubbed the back of his head, "So people keep telling me."

Looking to Cho, Tony asked, "How's he doing, really?"

"I was about to start my physical examination." Helen answered, "But, at the moment, he seems to be doing well."

Tony gave an excited clap, "You hear that kid? The doctor says you're fine." Wrapping an arm around the ninja's shoulder, he began to drag him out of the room.

"Uh, excuse me!" Cho said, following after the two in bewilderment, "Excuse me Mr. Stark, but I haven't given my exam yet! And even then, he shouldn't be walking around. He needs rest."

"Don't worry doctor, I'll take it easy on him." Stark said, not bothering to look back as he dragged the blonde down the hall and into the elevator. Taking his arm off the man, Tony pressed the b.u.t.ton with an A on it. With a hum and slight jerk, the elevator began to lift up. Walking to the other side of the small compartment, he looked to Naruto, "So how long's it been kid, three years?"

"What's the date?" Naruto asked.

"March 23rd, 2015." Stark answered.

Naruto gave a quick chuckle, "Heh, yeah almost."

"What were you doing all this time?" Tony asked, looking Naruto up and down, "You look…different."

The ninja smiled, "Thanks." Giving Tony a look of his own, his smile grew, "You don't."

Tony gave an offended look, "I'm hurt you haven't noticed yet kid."

"Noticed what? The extra set of wrinkles on your forehead? 'Cause I was trying to be polite and not bring it up."

"What? No…no!" Tapping his chest, he irritably said, "Look! What's missing?"

The wheels in Naruto's head turned for several seconds as he tried to piece it together. Finally, realization hit him, "Holy s.h.i.t, you got rid of that lightbulb in your chest?"

"Thank you!" Stark said, motioning his hand towards Naruto in appreciation.

"When did that happen?" Naruto asked.

"About two years ago." Tony answered, "I got rid of the Reactor and all of my armor when I retired."

"Retired?" Naruto questioned, "But I saw you all suited up fighting Desak."

"Well, after SHIELD fell I had to step back into the suit for a bit. At least until Cap and Natasha get everything under control."

"And how exactly did SHIELD fall?" Naruto asked.

Tony's answer was interrupted by the sound of a ding indicating they'd reached their destination, the elevator doors swinging open to reveal Maria Colson on the other side, "Naruto." She greeted with a nod of the head.

"Agent Hill." Naruto said back.

Stepping aside to allow the two pa.s.sed, Maria said, "I'm not an agent anymore, just Hill."

"Right." Naruto said slowly.

"Follow me, the others are waiting for us in the debriefing room." Maria said, leading the two through the hallway as she did.

"So, who's all here?" Naruto asked.

"Captain Rogers, Clint, Natasha, and Banner."

"What about Fury?" Naruto asked, "I get Thor not being here with all his duties, but I figured Fury would be all over this."

It was Tony that answered, though from his facial expression he didn't really know how to go about it, "…The thing is." He started, trying to form the right words together, "You remember when I told you SHIELD was disbanded?"

"Yeah?"

"Well, part of it is because Fury was, well…a.s.sa.s.sinated." Tony waited for a response from Naruto, looking at him expectantly. After several seconds of no response, the man asked worriedly, "You okay there kid?"

But little did Tony know that Naruto was busy trying to see if the man in front of him was lying. Finally, to his shock, he concluded that Tony was telling the truth. Eying Maria, he said lowly, "I'm sorry for your loss."

Maria kept her eyes forward as she said, "Thank you. It's weird but, a lot of the time it feels like he's still with us. Like it never happened."

Naruto raised an eyebrow at the woman, but never the less said, "Still, I know how close you two were."

Reaching the end of the hallway, Maria pushed the door open, holding it to allow the two men inside. Naruto was barely inside the room when he felt someone wrap their arm around him in a tight, almost painful, hug, "It's good to see you man!" He heard Clint shout into his ear, releasing his bearhug the man stepped back, "Welcome back!"

Naruto grinned, "It's good to be back."

Sitting down in one of several chairs surrounding the table in the middle of the room, Captain Steve Rogers asked, "Are those my clothes?"

Looking down at himself and then to Rogers, Naruto was about to answer when Tony interrupted him, "Oh, yeah uh, Doctor Cho took those. I tried to stop her but she wouldn't listen."

"What're you talking about Tony, I saw you take those out of Steve's room." Bruce said from Roger's left, oblivious to Tony warning looks.

"Really?" Tony asked as he avoided Roger's annoyed gaze, "Seven PHD's and none of them helped you navigate this situation?"

Banner looked at Tony in bewilderment, "What?" He asked naively.

Naruto ignored the banter between the three, his attention solely on one aspect of the room. Sitting there, in the corner of the room, was Natasha, uncharacteristically withdrawn into herself, avoiding his gaze all the while.

Realizing that the room had become quiet, the man looked around to see that everyone in the room was looking at him warily, clearly waiting for his next move. Eyeing Natasha one last time, Naruto silently sat down, looking to Tony and Steve who were now both in front of the projector screen.

Stark, wishing to shift the subject quickly, said, "Well uh, let's get started then." He said with a firm clap of his hands before reaching a hand into his pocket to pull out his phone. After a couple seconds of tapping on the screen, the projector turned on, starting the slide show.

"And what are we getting started on, exactly?" Bruce asked from his seat, turning his attention to the two leaders of the group.

Tony gave a wishy-washy gesture, "A debriefing more or less."

Steve stepped up, "Naruto's been gone a while, so Tony and I felt it would be beneficial for everyone if we gave him a quick overview of the past three years."

"No, I understand that. I just don't understand why we're all here for this. At least on my part. This is only the second time the two of us have meet in three years. Ignoring what I was told about him by all of you, I don't know the man." Bruce said, looking to Natasha for a split second before he continued, "And I'm sure there are some of us who have things we need to do that are a little more important than a simple debriefing."

Tony, along with everyone else in the room, realized what Bruce was trying to get at, "Okay, if anyone feels they're not needed, you're free to leave."

Bruce nodded a few times before awkwardly getting up, nodding to Naruto as he headed for the exit. In the doorway, the man looked to Natasha expectantly.

The woman met Banner's gaze for a moment, before turning her eyes to Tony, "I'm staying." She said with surprising firmness.

Looking back and forth from Naruto, to Bruce, to Natasha, Steve finally spoke, "Let's get started then. Dr. Banner, if you wouldn't mind closing the door?"

-x-

BEEP BEEP BEEP BEE-

Creaking his eyes open, Jason slapped his hand on the alarm, groaning as he did. Getting up, the man made his way to the bathroom, walking over towards the mirror to inspect his bedhead. Sighing at the sight of his disheveled blonde hair, the man turned on the sink, cupped the descending water into his hands, and then splashed the liquid onto his scalp. Running a comb through his thick hair, the man silently brushed it into a more acceptable look. Grabbing his toothbrush, he placed the small cleaning utensil underneath the still running sink. Squirting a small dollop of toothpaste onto the head of the brush, the man stuck it into his mouth.

Feeling a pair of hands run up his chest, Jason smiled as he turned to see his wife looking up at him, her appearance as unkempt as his had been.

"Morning." She said, her voice as smooth as crystal.

Rotating so he was facing her, Jason asked, "The kids awake?"

Nodding, she answered, "Ashley's making breakfast now." Giving him a quick peck, she finished, "Eggs and toast."

Hitting back with a peck of his own, he said, "Did I ever thank you for hiring that woman?"

"Five times."

"Well make it six."

Walking pa.s.sed her husband, she reached for her own toothbrush, "Go on downstairs, before the kids leave for the bus."

"Right, right." Walking out of the bathroom, Jason snagged his robe as he crossed his bedroom, his bare feet padding against the wooden floor. Exiting the room, the blonde-haired man crossed the extensive hallway before heading down the spiraling staircase that connected the first two floors of his estate. Calmly walking into the back of the manor, Jason found himself in the vast kitchen, his recently hired maid standing in front of the oven, a skillet in hand as she cooked a fresh batch of eggs.

"Ashley." Jason greeted.

Ashley, a raven-haired woman in her late twenties, turned to her boss with a kind smile, "h.e.l.lo Mr. Cartwright."

Looking around the kitchen, Jason asked, "Where's Julia and Dominic?"

"They left for the bus."

"Already?" Jason asked.

The maid nodded, "Must've come early today sir." She said dismissively. Walking over to the cupboard, the woman took out a pair of plates, setting them down next to the stove, "How many scoops?"

"Two will be fine Ashley, thank you." Jason answered. Smiling gratefully as the woman set the plate full of eggs down on the table, he spoke again as she began to b.u.t.ter the toast, "I can do that, why don't you go make sure the kids got on the bus?"

Handing the toast and b.u.t.tering knife to the man, Ashley nodded, "Of course sir."

The sound of metal grating against toasted bread filled the kitchen for a moment before Jason set the utensil to the side. Stabbing his fork into the eggs, the blonde quickly took a bite. After a quick set of testing chews, Jason's eyes rolled up as he moaned.

"Good?"

Turning to see his wife entering the kitchen with her usual business suit on, Jason answered, "Seven. I'm gonna have to thank you seven times Gloria."

Gloria smirked, "So, what's the plan for today?"

"You know, I actually don't kno-"

Jason's was interrupted by the sound of the home phone going off. Though it wasn't the brash ringing that brought an unusual kind of silence into the room. It was the number displayed on the handset. Getting up from his seat, the head of the household picked up the phone as he pressed the answer b.u.t.ton, bringing the device to his ear as he spoke, his voice nearly cracking, "Yes?"

At first, all Jason heard was another person's breathing. Finally, a familiar voice came through, "Brooklyn. 242 Dekalb Avenue. A bar called Alibi. Two hours."

"Alright." Jason replied. Hearing the click that signified the man on the other end had hung up, he sat the phone down on its dock.

"Was that-"

"Work. Yeah."

Gloria knew better than to go any further, she brushed off her husband's shift in att.i.tude, "I have to go." Kissing her husband on the crown of his head, the woman whispered, "Be safe."

"You don't have to worry about me." Jason whispered back.

-x-

Naruto, resting in the conference room chair, looked back and forth between the four others in the room, "I…honestly don't know what to say to all that. In nearly three years, Tony retired from the 'business' only to come back a year later, Thor saved the planet from a guy who's name I don't remember, SHIELD has been disbanded, Loki's Scepter has been taken by Hydra, and Director Fury has been killed in action." Eying Steve, who had a look of guilt on his face, he continued, "Something I have a hard time believing, due to my history with the man. No offense." The last bit he said to Maria.

"So, you think we're lying?" She asked.

The blonde shook his head, "No, I'm just saying that I wouldn't put it pa.s.sed the greatest spy on the planet to put one over us like this, that's all. Am I the only one?"

Tony raised his hand, "I'd like to add that Bruce and I are on the same boat, as far as Fury possibly still 007in' somewhere."

Maria pinched the bridge of her nose in agitation, "Can we move on please, there's still the other half of the debriefing."

"Other half?" Naruto asked, a confused look on his face.

Tony's face matched his, "Well uh, yeah? We thought you'd tell us what you've been up to the past few years. t.i.t for tat."

Naruto sighed, "Well, what do you want to know?"

"Where did you go, when you left?"

The blonde turned over to his shoulder to look at the one that spoke, eyeing Natasha as he said, "My home planet."

That shut everyone up.

"You…you went back to your planet?" Natasha asked.

Naruto nodded.

"Well?" Maria half asked, half demanded.

Closing his eyes, Naruto released a long breath before calmly replying, "After the invasion, I used the Tesseract to get to my home planet."

When the blonde paused for a second, Tony began to say, "Wh"

"I guess the easiest way to say it is that I'm the last of my kind."

Once again, the room grew silent. That silence lasted barely a minute before it was ended by the screeching of a chair's legs rubbing roughly against the floor. Opening his eyes, Naruto watched as Natasha practically rushed out of the room.

Getting up from his chair, Naruto scratched the back of his head, "After that, abridged version, I met some s.p.a.ce pirates, helped a criminal wanted by a galactic empire, ended a war that had lasted for a thousand years between two rival empires, a.s.sisted in the a.s.sembly of a motley crew of s.p.a.ce Avengers, and saved a planet." Walking towards the door, he said, "Anything else? No? Great."

"Hey, Naruto! Where're you going?" Tony asked.

"I'll be around Tony, call me!" His disembodied voice called out from the hall.

Maria sighed, "Does he even have a phone?"

"I don't think so."

"Of course."

In the seal, Kurama rolled his eyes as he felt his container try and follow the red headed woman, "What are you doing Naruto? Just let her go."

"No."

"Don't be stubborn brat. She's not worth the effo-"

"There's nothing you can say that'll change my mind Kurama. So don't bother."

Naruto could feel the scoff coming off the beast, "Just don't do anything stupid."

"I'm not going to hurt her."

"That's not what I'm saying."

As he entered the elevator, Naruto closed his eyes as he allowed Nature Chakra to enter his system. Taking much longer than necessary to gather the required amount due to the lack of nature around him, Naruto was finally able to stretch out his senses enough to pick up on the woman. Hitting the b.u.t.ton that would send him two floors below, Naruto waited patiently as the box began to descend.

"So, what's the game plan?" After a second Kurama continued, "After your talk with the red wench."

Naruto shrugged, "There's someone I need to see, after that I guess I'll see where the wind takes me. Maybe look into all that SHIELD information that got leaked. See if there's anything I can find about the second Stone, that and Loki's Scepter."

"Why the stick?"

"If you didn't take such long naps you'd have been present when Gamora told us that the Big Purple gave Loki the scepter to a.s.sist him in his invasion of Earth."

"And?"

"And, the scepter had a little gem in it." Naruto hinted.

After a few seconds of thought, Kurama's voice echoed through Naruto's head, "Ooohhh."

"Exactly. The little s.h.i.t was carrying around an Infinity Stone and didn't even know it."

"What an a.s.shole."

Naruto chuckled, "I know, right? Thank the Sage he's dead."

"How do you know he didn't just trick the thunder man? He's been p.r.o.ne to do it before apparently."

"Time will tell my friend, time will tell." Naruto grumbled out loud, walking out of the elevator as it came to a stop. His walk, at first firm and brisk, began to slow ever so surely as he closed in on his destination. Reaching the door acted as a barrier between him and the woman he once claimed to love, the blonde took an almost shaky breath in as he knocked on the door. When no answer came, he knocked again, harder this time. Again, no answer. As he was about to tap on the door a third time, a voice halted the action in mid-swing.

"What?" Natasha's m.u.f.fled voice called through the door.

Even with a door between them, the blonde could hear the irritability in her voice, "It's me…Nat."

The blonde waited several seconds for the woman to respond. Rubbing his face in antic.i.p.ation, Naruto was about to speak again when the sound of a lock unlatching echoed through the barrier between them. Slowly, the door creaked open, Natasha's face peeking through, almost as though to confirm it was in fact the blonde standing in front of her.

"Can I come in?"

The blonde could see the trepidation on her face, "Naru-"

"Please." He insisted.

The red head looked into the man's eyes for a moment, an internal argument taking place as she did. Finally, the door swung open completely, signifying for the blonde to enter as she trekked back in. Walking forward, he followed the woman as she made her way into her living room. Watching her, Naruto raised an eyebrow as she neglected to take a seat, instead burrowing herself into the corner of the room, almost as though to get as far away from him as possible, grabbing the gla.s.s of wine that was on the coffee stand as she did.

Feeling that sitting down would only make things even more awkward, Naruto decided to stand as well. Roaming his eyes over Natasha's form, the shin.o.bi finally took stock of her appearance. Her hair was relatively the same, maybe a bit shorter, and she was wearing clothes that seemed a little too unfamiliar for the usually uniform donning a.s.sa.s.sin, consisting of a loose tan cotton plaid shirt that went pa.s.sed her hips, tight black leggings, and grey high-top shoes. But the most prominent part of her appearance, to Naruto, were her eyes.

They were red.

"Why are you here, Naruto?" She asked. The man held back a sigh as he watched her put up her mental defenses, her coy mask exactly what it was. A mask.

"We need to talk, about what happened."

The woman took a sip of her wine, the blonde recognizing it as a technique to give her time to think. Removing the gla.s.s from her lips, she answered, "If that's why you're here, then we both know where this is going to go. So, just get it over with." Putting the gla.s.s down with a bit too much force, the red liquid spilling out over the lip of the cup, she continued, "I deserve everything you're going to say. Don't bother holding back."

Naruto's chuckle lacked any real humor, "Is that really what you think I'm here for? To yell at you?"

"Why wouldn't you?" She asked, her voice almost pleading, "I told you, I deserve it."

The warrior shrugged, "Probably."

The woman waited before demanding, "Well?"

"What do you want me to say, Nat?"

Anger seeped onto her face, "Don't call me that."

"Why?" He asked.

"How many time do I have to tell you to get it over with?"

"If you tell me what you want me to say, I'll say it."

"Why are you acting this way? After everything I've done?!" She screamed.

Naruto kept calm, "You know why, Nat."

"Don't call me that!" She repeated, her voice ringing through the room.

"Why not?!" Naruto screamed back, his own mask finally cracking.

"Because I don't deserve it!" She cried, "That name was back then. Back when you loved me! Back when I didn't feel this way! That name was back when I hadn't hurt you." She finished, whispering the last sentence. Tears had begun to build, shocking the blonde as he realized he'd never seen her cry in all the time he'd spent with her.

Forcing his mask back into place, Naruto asked again, "What do you want me to say?"

It was then that the dam finally broken, "I want you to say you hate me. I…I want you to say it was my fault. That it was my fault that everyone you love is dead. That I broke your trust...that I broke your heart. I want you to tell me I'm a witch, a wh.o.r.e, a piece of human garbage! I want you to hit me. I want you to return the pain I put onto you, onto me." As she went on, she broke down more and more, her cries turning into sobs, her tears streaming down her face unabated, her hand covering her mouth as she tried to collect herself enough to finish, "I want…I want you to forgive me. I want things to go back to the way they were. I want you to love me." By now, her eyes were closed, trying with all her might to restrain the liquid from leaking any further.

She jumped violently as she felt a pair of arms begin to wrap around her. Looking up, she saw that Naruto was looking down at her, his eyes full of pain as he held her tight. Suddenly, she began to fight against him, trying to pry him off of her. But he held tight, keeping her in his arms as the woman tried to break from his grasp out of instinct. That instinct quickly melted away however as the feeling of his warm body holding her once again only seemed to break her down even further, forcing the man to practically catch her as she nearly collapsed in his arms, the two of them gradually sitting on the floor simultaneously, her head resting on his chest as she cried for the first time in decades.

Gently, Naruto began to run his hands through her hair, ignoring the wet puddle that had begun to form on his chest as he said softly, "It wasn't your fault." Feeling her sobs begin to slow after hearing those words, he continued, "When Sasuke saved me, he used a portal that uses the aspects of both time and s.p.a.ce. In his rush to save me, he used a technique he had practically no control over. The portal didn't just connect my world with a random aspect of s.p.a.ce, but a random aspect of time as well. He sent me to Earth…76 years into the future."

"That doesn't ch"

"It doesn't change the fact that you used and betrayed me. It doesn't change how much you hurt me. It doesn't change the fact that I can't forgive you for it. It doesn't change the fact that you were the first woman I ever loved." Naruto said, his voice hollow, "But you're not the reason that my people are gone. That I'll never get to see the people I love ever again. That I'll never get to say the things I wanted to say after the war. That I'll never get to have the reunion with my team that I wanted. All that went out the window the second I entered this planet's atmosphere. I could've gone back as soon as I left, and it wouldn't have made a difference." Pausing, Naruto closed his eyes as he released a shaky breath, "I failed. It's no one's fault but my own."

With that, the two sat there, not saying a word as they stewed in their own misery, their only comfort being the other's presence.

-x-

"Right on time, Mr. Cartwright."

Jason, having just been given a pat down by one of the two men stationed outside the closed dive bar, walked into the establishment to see that the only people in the building were himself and the man sitting down in the middle table. The man was what anyone would think of if they were asked to imagine a stereotypical businessman. Wrapped in an excessively expensive dark blue two-piece wool business suit, his hair trimmed and styled to look messy yet with a purpose, and a c.o.c.ky smirk plastered on his handsome face, the man looked very out of place in the rank dive bar they were currently occupying.

Walking over to the table, James pulled out the chair directly across from the man before sitting down, "I know how you and Mr. F-"

"Mr. Cartwright." The man interrupted, "I'm afraid I'll have to remind you not to use the name of our employer. You understand, I'm sure."

Jason withheld the need to sigh in annoyance, "I know how you and our employer," He continued, "are about punctuality."

Leaning back in his chair, the man looked around the bar, "Quite the quant little place we find ourselves in, don't you think? That, and I simply couldn't resist the word play. 'The Alibi.'" He said with a chuckle.

Feeling his eyebrow twitch in irritation, Jason asked, "You called me for a job, sir?"

"Sir?" The man asked, "I'm not my employer, Mr. Cartwright. You can say my name as freely as you like."

Feeling the burning of impatience running through his chest, Jason said, "The job, Mr. Wesley?"

His smile still in place, Wesley folded his left leg over his right, resting his elbow on the table as he said calmly, "Victor Vasquez II, 39 years old. Harlem, 58 West 120th Street. Family of four. Wife, María Vasquez, 37 years old. Daughter, Juana Vasquez, 15 years old. Son, Victor Vasquez III, 9 years old." After a pause he asked, "How's your Spanish?"

"Good."

"Good as in you can have a conversation if need be?"

"Yes."

Nodding, Wesley said, "Good, that may be needed."

"The job?"

"Interrogation and extermination. Mr. Vasquez is one of our employer's many…retainers." Leaning forward Wesley said, "After making a name for himself in Central America, he thought he'd spread his reach over into the States. Allying himself with our employer, Victor was put in charge of importing drugs from across the border, splitting the profits with the overall organization."

"I'm going to a.s.sume, that after moving to the States, he started making a series of bad decisions?" Jason asked.

Wesley nodded, "As men of his position are p.r.o.ne to do. Some of our accountants had found several inconsistencies while going over his numbers, and by several, I mean 2,034,588. Skimming the books isn't that offendable of a transgression, we all do it from time to time, our employer was more than understanding when he confronted Mr. Vasquez. Mr. Vasquez, not so much." Jason watched as barely restrained anger seeped onto Wesley's features, "Three men broke into our employer's home, and killed two of our men before they were forced to flee. Two were killed in their escape. We need to find the third. We need to do it fast. We need to set an example. Understood?"

"Understood."

-x-

"Where are we going, exactly?" Kurama grumbled, "You've been wandering around for hours now."

"I'm not wandering around, I know exactly where I'm going." Naruto thought. The blonde was currently walking through northern Manhattan, more specifically Washington Heights, hands in his pockets as he continued his trek.

"And that is?" The fox asked impatiently.

"Do you remember what we were doing before we got pulled into the invasion?"

Kurama nodded, "Taking out a handful of dips.h.i.ts selling guns. They were selling them to kids I think."

Naruto gave a mental nod to his partner, "I was so wrapped up in everything that was going on that I never actually made sure they got arrested. For all I know they're still roaming the streets. I just wanna check real quick."

"And then after that?" Kurama asked.

The ninja shrugged, "I'll do what you want me to do. Take a break. Get myself settled."

"What about the woman, brat? Natasha."

Naruto sighed for what felt like the hundredth time that day, "We talked, and that's about all I can handle Kurama. That's why I left after she calmed down. If I'd have stayed, I know where things would've gone. And I just couldn't do it." Seeing the building he was looking for was half a block away, Naruto said aloud, "Here we go."

Kurama grumbled, "I know this place…why do I know this place?"

Walking up the stoop, Naruto looked through the names on the buzzer before saying, "This is the apartment of Camila Rosario. Her son, Mateo, was accidentally shot by one of his friends after he bought a gun from a local gang. She found me, told me the police had arrested the friend but couldn't find the people that sold him the gun. I told her I'd take care of it. That enough exposition for you?"

"You're such an a.s.shole."

Pressing the buzzer, Naruto waited as he thought, "I've told you like ten times now, if you didn't take so many naps this wouldn't be a problem."

"And I've told you just as many times, watching your daily routine really isn't as interesting as you think it is. Naps preserve my sanity brat." The Biju argued, "Whatever's left of it anyway."

"h.e.l.lo?"

The two's argument was cut off by a woman's thick Dominican voice blasting through the speaker. Pressing the b.u.t.ton, Naruto said, "Mrs. Rosario, it's Naruto."

The box was silent for a moment, the blonde left wondering if he got through before her curt voice said, "Go away."

"Look, Mrs. Rosario, I just wanted to check up on you. Maybe ask you a few questions." Naruto said.

"It's three years too late to check up on me cabron. It's obvious you don't give a mierda about me or what happened to my son. Now leave before I call the cops, I mean it cabron."

Naruto shook his head, "I can't do that Mrs. Rosario. I know I let you down. I just want to make it up to you. If those guys are still out there, tell me where they are, and I swear to G.o.d you'll never hear from them again."

"...Are you going to kill them?"

"Is that what you want?"

There was a pause again, this one much longer than before, "No. No, it's not."

"If you know where they're at Mrs. Rosario, tell me. I'll call the police, make sure they get arrested, whatever you want."

There was a pause.

"…I don't know where they are." She said, causing Naruto to huff in disappointment, "But…I know who might be able to help you."

"What's his name Mrs. Rosario?"

"Not he. Her name is Jessica Jones. She's a private detective. My sister hired her a month ago, said she's really good."

Suddenly, the sound of thunder rolled across the area, causing the blonde to sigh as he thought, "Of course." Sighing, he pressed the buzzer once again to ask, "What's her address?" After a moment of thought he finished, "And the nearest ATM?"

-x-

"So, how's the apartment?"

"The word s.h.i.thole comes to mind."

"Oh come on Jessica, it's not that bad."

Jessica rolled her eyes at the blonde standing across from her, the beautiful woman wearing a dark blue business suit over a turquoise blouse. Pulling out the flask she had stored in her recently bought office desk, she said, "The smell of festering meth heads says otherwise."

"Really?" The woman asked, "It's barely two in the afternoon."

"Starting late today."

The blonde decided to change the conversation, "How's business then?"

Jessica shrugged as she took a swig of her flask, "Fine."

"Any clients?"

"Not currently." She drawled.

"Jessic" The blonde began to scold.

Said woman leaned back in her seat, "Will you get off my a.s.s for just one second. You're acting like my parole officer or something." Taking a sip of her drink, she finished, "And I'll have you know I closed two cases this week. Rent for the next two months b.i.t.c.h."

Trish huffed, "Please don't call me that-"

"Sorry."

"-you know how I feel about being called that."

"I said I was sorry." Jessica replied, trying to defend herself.

"Yeah, by interrupting me."

"It's still an apology." She said through a loud sip of her flask.

"A rude one."

Jessica gave a long, overdramatic sigh, "Fine. Trish, I'm very, very sorry for calling you a b.i.t.c.h. Better?"

Trish rolled her eyes, "So much."

Their conversation was cut off by the sound of someone's knuckles rapping on the door. The two stood there, both momentarily surprised by the impersonal intrusion. Their hesitation to respond forced the one on the other side of the door to knock again, a male's voice coming through, "Are you guys open?" After what was probably a moment of thought he asked, "This is Alias Investigations, right?"

Trish sighed as she looked to Jessica, "You really need to get a sign or something."

"It's open!" Jessica shouted, ignoring her friend's comment as she stashed away her booze. For the moment.

The door creaked open, revealing a tall man that looked to be in his mid-twenties, his short messy hair sticking to his scalp from the weight of the water dripping down his person. Hanging from his body was a plaid shirt that was a little too big on him, a fact that wasn't helped by the rain water that now soaked it. His wetness wasn't what caused Jessica to raise an eyebrow however.

"So, where'd you go, Amsterdam?"

Naruto blinked at the pretty raven-haired woman, "I'm sorry?"

"Are you deaf?"

"No."

"Then you know what I asked."

Naruto found himself speechless for a second, blinking before he answered, "No, no I've never been."

"So, what's your excuse then?"

"What?"

Jessica scoffed as she leaned forward into her seat, "I thought you said you weren't deaf." She observed.

"I'm not, I just don't understand what you're asking." Naruto argued, eyes narrowing at the woman, "Is this Alias Inve-"

"I'm just trying to figure out how you could get tattoos like that without some kind of excuse. Something like, 'I got super high while visiting Amsterdam,' or maybe, 'I was the first to fall asleep at a slumber party and my girlfriends decided to ink my face.' Otherwise I don't know what to think." She said, a small amused smile on her face as she looked at the man's whisker marks.

"Jessica." Trish whisper shouted, her eyes wide as she looked at her friend in shock.

Naruto, turned his attention away from Jessica, pointing it over to Trish as he asked again, "Is this Alias Investigations?"

"No-"

"Yes" Trish interrupted Jessica's answer, stepping in between the two as she extended her hand out for a handshake, "Yes, it is. Hi, I'm Trish."

"Naruto." The man greeted with a smile. Pointing over to the still seated woman, he asked, "Jessica Jones?"

Trish nodded, "Yeah, uh, I'm sorry about earlier. She didn't mean it."

Naruto smiled, "Yeah she did." Looking over Trish's shoulder to Jessica, he said, "And they're birthmarks."

The woman raised an indignant eyebrow, "Pretty strange birthmarks."

"Anyone ever tell you that you have s.h.i.tty bedside manner?"

"Anyone ever tell you that you have a s.h.i.tty face?"

Naruto kept his smile as he looked at the woman across from him. Stepping around Trish, he said, "I'd like to hire you."

"To find the guy that did that to your face?"

"No, I w"

"Because I'll do that free of charge just so I can shake his hand."

Taking a deep breath, he calmed himself before saying, "No. I'm here because someone recommended you to help me find someone."

Breathing a thoughtful breath through her nose, Jessica looked him up and down for a second before saying, "Fine." Opening the drawer above her liquor stash, she pulled out a notepad and pen as she asked, "What's their name?"

"I'll I've got is a nickname." He answered.

"That's fine."

"People call him T."

"Description." Jessica demanded.

"Average height, overweight. Always wears a t-shirt that's too big."

"Race?"

"Black dude."

"Age, occupation?"

"I don't know how old he is, probably in his twenties or early thirties. And he's a drug dealer."

The sound of Jessica's pen scratching against her notepad came to a sudden halt, the woman looking up in slight astonishment, "What?"

"Are you deaf?" Naruto drawled.

"I'm not kidding." Jessica practically growled.

The man smiled, "Neither am I."

"Why are you looking for a drug dealer?"

"He's an arms dealer too."

Jessica's eyebrow began to twitch in agitation as she growled out, "That doesn't answer my question."

Naruto shrugged, "The person wanting me to find them recommended you. Can you do it?"

"It's not a matter of can. It's a matter of if." Jessica shot back.

Trish stepped forward, both literally and figuratively stepping into the conversation, "Why don't you just go to the police?"

Naruto raised a brow, "Do you really think they'd tell me if they knew?"

"Probably not." Jessica answered for him, "For all they would know you're looking to kill this guy." Her eyes darting to Naruto she asked, "Are you?"

"No." He placated, "The person that I'm doing this for told me not to kill him. They want him to rot in some s.h.i.thole cell somewhere. I'm just the insurance."

"And who is this person?"

"Camila Rosario."

"Why do I know that name?" Trish asked.

Naruto shrugged, "Ms. Jones helped her sister apparently. Said you do good work."

"No, no I know that name." She said in thought, suddenly a lightbulb went off as she said, "Oh my G.o.d, the Rodriguez Case! I covered that story almost three years ago." Looking to the confused Jessica she explained, "Camila Rosario is the mother of Mateo Rosario. He and his friend, Hector Rodriguez, bought a gun from a local arms dealer for protection, only for Hector to accidently kill Mateo. Hector was arrested for manslaughter and illegal possession of a firearm, but none of the dealers got charged. That case opened some serious talks about gun control here in New York." Looking to Naruto, she looked him up and down as she asked, "Are you looking for the dealers that sold them that gun?"

Naruto nodded, "I found them three years ago, but I was interrupted by the Incident. Two of them died in the chaos. The other, T, is still working around town."

"So why has it taken so long for you to find him again?" Trish asked, Jessica eyeing the blonde as she waited for an answer as well.

"Ever hear of a sabbatical?" Naruto answered, his face as hard as stone to show his answer wasn't up for discussion, "So, can you find him?"

Jessica stared at Naruto, the wheels in her head turning as she said, "I have a few ideas. Do you know where he operates? His usual dealing location?"

Naruto nodded, "Harlem, last I checked."

"And when was that?"

"Three years ago, just about."

Jones nodded, "Well, I doubt he's moved around too much. There are a couple places I know he might be."

The ninja clapped his hands in antic.i.p.ation as he said, "Awesome! Let's get going."

"Excuse me?" The private eye asked.

"What? I don't know where anything is in this town. It'd be a lot easier if you just came with me."

"Don't you have a phone?" She questioned, "It's called Google Maps."

"Nope."

A sigh escaped her lips, "Fine." Opening up her liquor drawer, she pulled out her flask as she asked, "Cash or check?"

"Cash."

-x-

"…Auugh."

Pain. That was the first thing Victor could comprehend when consciousness returned to him. His head was throbbing, pulsing violently as he blinked away the grogginess. As his awareness began to return, he felt something wet running down the side of his head. Looking down to where he was sure the liquid was dripping to, Victor could see a large blotch of red on his silk pajama top. His sense of smell came next, the stench of urine soaked cotton causing his nose to curl up in disgust. Next came his hearing, the sound of his sobbing wife and daughter bringing an extreme sense of dread into his being.

His head shooting up, Victor eyed his entire family strapped to chairs sitting around him, his daughter to his right, his wife across from him, and his son to his wife's left, the four of them forming a half circle. His eyes landing on his son last, he could see from the puddle sitting under his chair that he was the source of the smell. Looking around them, he realized they were being held in their bas.e.m.e.nt, the furniture taken out with the hardwood floor covered in a thick plastic sheet.

After seeing each of his family had their mouths covered in duct tape, Victor whispered to his frantic wife, "Ssh, María, por favor cálmate mi amor. Esto terminará p.r.o.nto, lo prometo. Solo déjame manejarlo." He said in his native tongue. After giving a few more sobs, María nodded slowly. Looking to his children, he said to them, "Eso va para ti también, entendido?"

As the two nodded, the sound of a door opening cut off any sound the four of them were going to make. Hearing multiple pairs of feet begin to descend down the stairs into the bas.e.m.e.nt the four found themselves in, Victor looked back to his family giving each of them as brave of a smile as he could muster. The set of feet came down the stairs far too quickly for the man's liking, with two of the three men coming up to stand behind him and his family, their hands at their backs as they waited with a strange patience.

The third man, unlike the other two, didn't bother to wear a ski mask over his face, allowing Victor to see he was a handsome man in his late thirties with blonde hair and blue eyes. He was wearing all black, leaving no bare skin pa.s.sed his chin. Over his hands and feet were plastic gloves and booties, keeping the man from leaving any hand or shoe prints while doing his business. And resting, firmly in his hand, was a Beretta handgun.

"Hola, Mr. Vasquez." Pulling the clip out of the gun, the man continued, "Cuántas viñetas hay en el clip?"

Swallowing the lump after doing what the man asked, Victor spoke in English, "What…what's your name?"

The man's answer came surprisingly quick, "Jason."

Victor tried to blink away the sweat that had begun to acc.u.mulate around his eyes, "Jason, can…" Pausing, he fought for the right words to say, "Please. Can we please speak in English?" His eyes leaving Jason for a second to lay on his children, Victor finished, "I don't want them to hear this. Please."

Jason nodded, "I can. Now answer the question."

"Four. There's four bullets in the clip." He practically whispered.

Jason nodded again, "Good. Now, I'm sure you know it's not an accident that I have no more or no less than four…don't you?" The man asked as he placed the clip back in its place.

"Yes. Yes, I do."

"Good." Giving the gun a quick c.o.c.k, Jason calmly pointed it at María, the muzzle pressing up against the side of her forehead, "You sent three men to kill Wilson Fisk two days ago. Two were killed. I need the name of the third." Pulling back the hammer, he slipped his finger over the trigger.

"No-now wait just a seco-"

BANG!

Victor blinked for two reasons. First, the sound of the gun going off so close to his person. Second, the blood, bone, and brain that pelted his face with surprising velocity, staining him with his wife's gore.

Blinking rapidly, the world around Victor began to slow down as he watched his wife's head jerk back from the force of the bullet shooting through her skull before falling forward limply. Lifelessly.

The sound of Juana's screaming broke Victor from his trance.

His eyes on Juana, the girl thrashed against her bindings as she screamed through her taped mouth, tears streaking down her eyes like twin waterfalls. Junior was no better, even through the tape he could hear his son screaming for his mother to wake up. His attention eventually went to Jason, his gun no longer pointed at María.

"NO! No, por favor no a mi hijo, no a mis hijos! Te lo ruego!" He screamed.

Jason kept his eyes on Victor III, "I thought we were speaking English, Mr. Vasquez?" He asked, his mocking tone unmistakable, fueling Victor's growing hatred for the man even further, "I don't want to bargain. I don't want to ask again. I don't want to have to kill your son, Victor. Understand?"

"You're a dead man. You understand me? Huh?! You understand me cabron?!"

BANG!

"AAAYYE!" Juana screamed as her brother slumped forward in his chair, blood pouring out of the newly made hole in his forehead.

"NO!" Victor screamed as he watched the life escape his son in an instant, "No! No, no! I'll tell you, I'll tell you!" He pleaded as he saw the gun shift to his daughter's direction, "Michael Reigns! That's his name! I swear, just please don't hurt her!"

"Contact info."

Knowing any hesitation would get his daughter killed, he quickly answered, "It's on my phone! On my nightstand! His name on my contacts is Pantera."

"What's the pa.s.sword. For the phone."

"022301."

Jason looked to the two men standing at the other side of the room, watching as one pulled out Victor's phone from his pocket. Turning it on, the man put in the pa.s.sword, unlocking the phone in one try. Scrolling through his contacts, he clicked on Pantera to make sure the number was legitimate.

Getting a nod in return, Jason looked to Victor with a twistedly pleasant smile, "Thank you, Mr. Vasquez."

BANG!

BANG!

-x-

The sound of sprawling traffic blasted through Naruto and Jessica's shared taxicab. Speeding through the bustling city at what felt like a slow crawl, the duo sat in an uncomfortable silence as they waited to reach their destination. Giving a few random side glances to the woman sitting next to him, Naruto mulled over possible topics of conversation to pa.s.s the time, only to fail miserably in his endeavor.

"Where do I know you from?"

Looking at Jessica in surprise, Naruto muttered, "Repeat that?"

"I asked where I know you from." Her deep brown eyes roaming over his form, she asked, "Are you a celebrity or something? Athlete maybe? You have the build."

Naruto barked out a laugh, "Oh really? You've been paying attention huh?"

Jessica rolled her eyes, "You wish." Brushing some hair pa.s.sed her shoulder, she continued, "Seriously, where do I know you from?"

"You're a PI, right? Where's the fun in me telling you?"

"a.s.shole."

"b.i.t.c.h." Naruto shot back.

Jessica's retort was cut off by the driver, "Hey, look uh, I don't wanna get in your business buddy…but do you really think you should be talkin' to yo' girl like that?" Naruto could see through the rearview mirror that the older gentleman was looking straight at him pointedly, "Just sayin'."

It was Jessica's turn to bark out a laugh, "Yeah, right." Leaning forward, her voice entered a threatening timbre, "Mind your G.o.dd.a.m.n business and drive the f.u.c.king cab a.s.shole."

The man's face flickered from surprise to anger, "You're a piece of work lady."

"Do you really think I give a s.h.i.t?" She asked rhetorically, "Just do your job, and shut the f.u.c.k up before I show how much of a piece of work I really am. Understand?"

The driver scoffed, but didn't bother with a retort, instead bringing his attention back to the road as the traffic light went green.

Naruto raised a brow, "You really don't take any bulls.h.i.t do you?"

"Why would I?" Jessica asked with slight aggression.

"Not what I'm saying-"

"Well what exactly are you saying?"

"It was just an observation, I guess." Naruto said with a placating gesture.

Jessica eyed him up and down, her eyebrows knitted together in thought. Giving a quick shake of her head, she turned away, looking out the window.

The car remained silent for the rest of the drive.

-x-

Pulling up on the curb, Naruto leaned forward to look up at the building in front of them, "This the place?"

Jessica nodded, "Yup. This stash house belongs to Harlem's Paradise."

"I'll pretend to know what that is long enough to ask why that's relevant."

"Let's just say they run Harlem, and that T worked for anyone it'd be them. If he's anywhere, it's here or across town."

Naruto nodded, "Alright." Looking over, he spotted a pay phone on the corner of the block, "That phone work?" He asked, looking over to the taxi driver.

"That phone? Yeah man, I guess."

"You guess?" Naruto sighed, "Yeah that'll work." Leaning over to the driver, he pulled out a wad of cash from his back pocket, "Six hundred bucks to stay on the curb, cool?"

The man was too busy counting the bills to look at Naruto as he answered, "Yeah man, yeah." He stopped counting, looking over his shoulder with a wry smirk on his face, "Four hundred more to keep quiet?"

Naruto snorted, "You're lucky to get six."

"Fair I guess."

"Hey, wait!" Jessica yelled, "Where you going? You're not seriously going in there are you?"

"Yup."

The woman's face was full of bewildered frustration before finally landing on acceptance, "Fine. Do whatever you want." Leaning back, she watched as the man practically strolled up the stoop of apartment complex. "The f.u.c.k is he doing?" She asked to herself, shocked as the man had the gull to knock on the front door. That was where his decorum ended. As the door opened barely an inch off the frame, the blonde kicked it in with so much force the door split open into a cl.u.s.ter of splinters. Losing sight of him, she had to rely on her sense of hearing to follow him. Which proved too easy considering the trail of screaming, shattering gla.s.s, and broken furniture that could be heard.

The driver and Jessica jumped at the crack of gun fire.

Shots began to ring out from the building, flashes of light through the various windows showing that they were on the third floor, "The f.u.c.k?!" The driver demanded. Reaching for the ignition, he said, "Nah man. f.u.c.k this."

"Hey!" Jessica yelled, "You took his money, you stay here!"

"I'm not dyin' tonight over six hun-"

"You're not gonna die." Jumping again at the sound of gun fire, she sighed in aggravation, "Look, what's your name?"

"Name?"

"Yes, your name."

"…Roman. Roman Kuznetsov."

"Kuznetsov…is that Russian?" She asked, watching as the gun fire eventually made its way up to the fifth and final floor, "You don't sound it."

"I'm a New Yorker, born an' raised." The man said, slight indignation in his voice, "My old man came here in the 40's, before the war."

"Well, Roman, you're not gonna die." Seeing his disbelief, she gave a sigh of consternation, "I promise."

She barely finished her sentence when the sound of breaking gla.s.s and a pained scream was heard. Looking up, she watched as a man plummeted from the fifth floor onto the pavement, the man smacking against the concrete hard enough she could hear his body break from inside the car. She could only look on as Naruto walked back out of the front door, not a scratch on him as he strolled up to the p.r.o.ne man on the pavement. The blonde began to speak, his voice m.u.f.fled as he conversed with the barely conscious man underneath him. Seemingly getting what he wanted, he stepped over him, and then walked to the payphone, his finger tapping the dial pad three times.

Speaking into the phone for a moment, he then calmly hung it up before walking back into the car, "1432 83rd Street. Brooklyn." The blonde said as he strapped on his seat belt. After realizing the car wasn't moving, he looked around the cab, "What the matter?" Blinking he continued, "Was it a bit much? Sorry, I had some pent-up s.h.i.t I had to get off my chest." He said, rubbing the back of his head in clear embarra.s.sment.

"What's the matte-" Roman began to say in indignation.

"If you honestly think we're going anywhere after that bulls.h.i.t just now, you're f.u.c.king crazy." Jessica growled out, her eyes narrowed to maximum capacity.

Naruto sighed as he pulled out another wad of cash, "Look, here's four hundred more. Just drive us to where we need to go, and then drop me off." He said, reaching over to give the driver the money, only to feel a shockingly firm grip on his wrist keeping him in place. Looking over with a raised eyebrow, he looked Jessica up and down, an appraising look in his eye, "That's quite the grip you got there."

The woman scoffed, "Keep this up and I break your arm."

"If you were anyone else brat, I'm sure your wrist would be paste right now." Kurama observed with interest, "Leave it to Uzumaki luck that you'd run into another super freak."

The blonde ignored the beast, instead saying to the ravenette, "What do you want?"

"I want to know who you are!" Jessica demanded, "n.o.body can do what you just did and walk out like it never happened. You'd have to be-"

"A superhero?"

Jessica gawked at the blonde, for once at loss for words. Letting go of Naruto, the detective leaned back into her seat as she pulled the flask out from her jacket, taking a mighty swig before muttering, "Drive."

Roman looked back at her, "What?"

"Drive." She repeated, "Drive so we can get this over with."

The driver looked between the two a couple times before sighing, taking the money from Naruto.

The blonde nodded, though not before looking to Jessica, "Vodka, really?"

Jessica simply flashed him a middle finger, taking another drink as she did.

-x-

"Michael Reigns huh."

Sitting in his car, Jason spoke over the phone as he sifted through a bag of fast food, making sure they got his order correctly. Looking up, he gave a nod of thanks to the woman on the other side of the window as he said, "If you haven't heard of him don't worry. He's relatively new to the game. Fairly small fry. From what I've heard though, he's good. Gets the job down. Reasonably professional. And above all, cheap. Which, explains why the late Victor Vasquez would hire someone so green for something so heavy. He could afford him." Jason finished by shoving a small handful of fries down his throat.

"Hm. Well, he won't be an issue for much longer. Half a million alive, a quarter dead. You're more than welcome to try for it yourself, of course." Wesley said over the phone.

Finishing his mouthful, Jason said, "The one and a half million you paid me is more than enough. Thanks though."

"Which you can expect in the next few days."

"Fantastic." Jason said, feeling a tinge of glee enter his voice.

"Expect a call soon, Mr. Cartwright. You've made our employer a very happy man today. I'm sure he'd like to meet the man who's done him such a service."

The click of the phone disconnecting told Jason the call was over. Shaking his head, Jason said in mocking voice, "'I'm sure he'd like to meet the man who's done him such a service.'" Unwrapping the burger, he said, "What a douche."

As he was about to take a bite, a knocking on his window startled him from doing so. Before he could turn to see who it was, his gla.s.s was shattered open, sending shards of gla.s.s into his face, slicing open his skin. But he couldn't even register the fact that someone had broken in his window, to busy getting his face smashed in by someone else's fist.

Dazed, bleeding, and bruised, Jason could only watch as someone reached into his car to open the door before brutally throwing him out onto the concrete floor. Feeling his survival instincts kick in, Jason reached for the Beretta strapped to his lower back, only to be kicked in the side. Heaving as he felt one of his ribs crack open, he rolled over onto his back from the pain. Looking up, blinking through the pain, Jason watched as four people hovered over his p.r.o.ne person, and could only continue to watch as the one closest to his head raise up his foot before stumping on his skull.

-x-

Getting out of the cab, Naruto leaned into the window, looking to Jessica as he asked, "You coming?"

"And why would I?"

The ninja shrugged, "Because you're curious."

Jessica raised an annoyed brow, "About what?"

"Me." Naruto answered, a c.o.c.ky smirk on his face.

The woman rolled her eyes, looking away in defiance. Shrugging again, Naruto straightened up and began to walk away. Jessica followed him as he walked down the street, barely paying attention as Roman asked, "Where to miss?"

After a clear mental struggle, Jessica sighed in clear aggravation, "Thanks for the ride Roman." She didn't bother listening to his reply, getting out of the cab before following after the blonde.

Spotting her in the corner of his eye, the blonde smiled, "Told ya." Naruto said, acknowledging her as she walked up to his side.

Jessica, for what felt like the hundredth time that day, rolled her eyes, "I'm sure you've come to the same conclusion I have."

"And what's that?"

"We're the same." Jessica answered a bit of hesitation, clearly not comfortable with the topic of conversation.

"I'm pretty sure I'm not a drun-"

"Do you ever take anything seriously?!" She practically yelled in frustration. After a calming breath, she harshly whispered, "Don't act like you didn't notice. I should've broke your wrist earlier. But you acted like it was nothing. You're cursed, just like me."

Naruto's face went from relaxed to surprisingly serious, "Your 'curse' is nothing like mine. Trust me."

Once again, Jessica was left speechless.

Realizing they were where they needed to be, Naruto looked around to see if he could spot another pay phone. Failing in his mission, he told the ravenette, "I'll be back."

"What're you going to do?"

Walking up the steps to the building, he came up to the door as he answered, "I'm gonna go get a phone."

Naruto didn't bother knocking this time. Spartan kicking the door open, he came face to face with several shocked faces. Not wanting to give them a chance to gather themselves, he threw a quick jab into the closest man's face, dropping him with one punch. Seeing that guns were being drawn from the corner of his eye, he raced forward to his next target, shoving his fist into the dealer's stomach hard enough to lift him up off the ground. Drawing his hand back, Naruto performed a tornado kick into his neck, sending him into the gentleman positioned behind him. Summoning two kunai from the seal on his wrist, he palmed them long enough to take aim at the two men in the back of the room. Applying wind chakra to the blades, he flung them harshly into their direction. Because their untrained eyes were unable to keep up with the multipurpose weapons, they were surprised to find them embedded in their shoulders, the force of the blow driving the two into the walls behind them, the tips of the blades sticking out of their backs into the drywall, pinning them in place.

The warrior ignored their screams of pain, his focus on the last man in the room, too busy ducking down to avoid the bullet from splitting open his skull. Pointing his hand out in the shape of a gun, he locked onto the shooter's abdomen. Wind quickly acc.u.mulated at the tip of his finger, building up before being released in the shape of a bullet.

Phwew!

"AAUGH!" The shooter screamed, dropping the gun as he reached to grab his wound out of instinct. That instinct was all the distraction Naruto needed, the blonde flying in the air to deliver a Dynamic Entry into his temple.

The room now clear, Naruto slowly began to tread up the stairs, kunai in hand as he tiptoed up each and every step, doing his best to not make a sound. It wasn't until he reached the second to last one that his foot hit a loose floor board, the resounding creak bringing him to a stern stop.

THACK THACK THACK!

Performing the Subst.i.tution Technique, Naruto disappeared in a puff of smoke, a nearby vase taking his place as the wall and plastic container were quickly obliterated by the barrage of gun fire.

In the room adjacent, T cursed as he began to reload the AR-15 in his hands, the man crouched behind a bed that looked to have been preemptively tossed on its side to act as a barricade. Looking up as he slammed the clip into place, he shouted out, "Do you f.u.c.kers have any clue who the f.u.c.k you're dealing with? Huh?! You know who owns this house?" Hitting the bolt release, he continued, "You gonna f.u.c.kin' die tonight, ya here?!" Raising the gun up to his shoulder, he took aim for the door.

"Boil Release: Erupting Propulsion Fist!"

BOOM!

T's surprised shout was eclipsed by the sound of the wall to his left being blown out, pieces of wood and drywall sharply pelting his body as he was thrown off his feet. Slowly, the man got over the ringing in his ear long enough to shake off the dust that now covered him like sheet, coughing as most of it still hung in the air. His vision now coming back to him, he began to look around the room, only to find a fist cutting into his temple. It didn't seem to end there, the man feeling someone get on top of him before a downpour of punches began to rain down on his face.

Naruto payed T's pained whimpers no mind, too busy trying to break his skull open to notice. Each time he brought his hand back to charge up for another jab, more and more blood began to cake his fist, it finally getting to the point that the thick liquid was slowly dripping from his knuckles and closed fingers onto the dusty floor.

It wasn't until he realized the man underneath him was unconscious that he stopped.

Dragging his breath in slowly, Naruto calmly collected himself as he stood up, dusting himself before checking his bloodied left hand. Sighing at the state of it, he resisted the urge to wipe it off on Steve's shirt. Taking a second to revel in the now quiet house, the blonde quickly realized there was another presence in the house. Sighing, Naruto slowly stepped out of the room into the hall, pinpointing the person to be in the bathroom a few rooms over. His pace at a slow crawl, Naruto listened as their breathing got louder and louder, clearly in a panic over their situation. Reaching the door, he slowly extended his hand out for the doork.n.o.b, grasping it before creaking the handle open as carefully as he could so he could push it open with a loud creak.

A troubled frown made its way to his face as he looked down at the boy in front of him. He looked around eleven or twelve, with skin matching his African decent and short curly brown hair to go with it. Wearing clothes that were more than likely hand-me-downs considering they were a few sizes too big for him, Naruto could still see that he was shaking in fear as he took several steps back away from the blonde. The sound of a metallic clicking brought Naruto's full attention to the handgun that was practically vibrating in the boy's adolescent hands.

Taking a step forward, he halted when the kid held his gun up a bit firmer than before, "Get away!" He yelled.

Naruto ignored his warning, taking another step forward, though his hands were raised as he said, "I'm not-"

"I said get away!" The boy yelled, "I'll kill you! I will!"

He took another step forward, the gun nearly pressing into his chest, "Do it then." He firm voice not reflecting the softness in his eyes as he looked down at the child.

"I'm not f.u.c.king playing!"

"Neither am I." Naruto shot back, his hands shooting up to grab the gun, pulling so the muzzle was now pressing up against his chest.

Silence broke between them, the only noise in the room being the clicking of the shaking gun.

Jamming his eyes closed, his body language the definition of defeat, the boy let go of the gun, his hands dropping to his sides.

Looking over the gun in his hand, Naruto looked down at the boy, "What's your name kid?"

The boy shrugged.

Naruto sighed. Applying some fire chakra to his hands, the blonde used the heat to help him bend the gun into a ninety degree angle before tossing it into the bathroom's sink. Looking down at the kid, he asked, "You gotta phone kid?"

Jessica found herself tapping her foot impatiently, the sound of gunfire having abated a few minutes ago, forcing the woman to wonder how long it would take the police to show up, "If that a.s.shole gets me arrested I'm gonna kill him." She growled out. Having long since finished off her flask only seemed to increase her annoyance, now unable to waste time with the joys of alcohol, "I need a drink." She quietly said to herself.

Hearing someone stepping over the splinters that had once been a door, she looked up to see Naruto walking down the stoop, his hands in his pockets he said, "You ready?"

"I've been ready." She said testily, "There's no telling when the cops will show up a.s.shole, and the last thing I need is to spend the night in a cell."

"Probably pretty soon, considering I called them." Naruto said lightly, the man walking down the street as he looked out for a taxi.

Jessica followed after him, "And why in G.o.d's name would you do that?"

Naruto shrugged, "How else are they gonna get arrested?"

"Was that really what was going on here? Some kind of vigilante bulls.h.i.t?"

"Yup."

"You're an a.s.shole." She said, "I hope you know this is a onetime thing."

"I figured." Naruto said with a nod, "You don't seem like the kind of person, if I'm being honest." The man looked at her with a smile, "I'm kinda envious, actually."

Jessica didn't respond, making the blonde raise a brow.

"Did I say something?" He asked.

If the woman wanted to answer, she couldn't do to the arrival of a wandering taxi cab, "Hey!" She yelled, catching the driver's attention as he pulled over to the curb.

Entering the backseat, the driver looked over his shoulder as he said, "Where to?"

"The nearest bar." Jessica answered. Noticing her companions look, she said, "You can do whatever you want. I'm getting a drink."

Naruto mulled it over for a second before saying, "I guess I could use a drink." Looking to the cabby he asked, "You got the time?"

"10:42."

The blonde smirked at the woman, "Drinking at a reasonable time? I'm proud of you."

She flipped him the bird in response.

The driver turned to face the road, "Alright, there's a place called The Alibi a few blocks away. Sound good?"

"Let's get going." Jessica demanded.

-x-

Pain. That was the first thing Jason could comprehend when consciousness returned to him. His head was throbbing, pulsing violently as he blinked away the grogginess. As his awareness began to return, he felt something wet running down the side of his head. Looking down at where he was sure the liquid was dripping to, Jason could see a large blotch of red on his white cotton dress shirt. His sense of smell came next, the stench of gasoline causing his nose to curl up in disgust. Next came his hearing, the sound of several murmuring men all around causing him look around the dimly lit room.

The room was something he could only describe as a medieval dungeon, the stone tiled walls and floors colored in an orange hue from the flicking embers created by decorative torches scattered throughout the chamber. The men loitering around him, from what he could see, wore matching turtleneck sweaters and dress pants that were all the same color of black. And over their faces, each of them, was a porcelain mask that looked to be of j.a.panese origin. Though he could barely make out what the mask resembled, he had to guess some kind of dog, a fox maybe.

Taking in his own person, Jason could feel that he was on his knees, his wrists strapped in chains to the ground behind his back, his hands in between his calves. Giving a few testing tugs, he came to the inevitable conclusion that he couldn't move.

His attention was moved to the sound squeaking hinges screeching across the room, the iron door in front of him slowly blowing open. Walking from the darkness within the doorway was a man wearing the same porcelain mask as everyone else. His clothes however were strikingly different, wearing a black two-piece suit with a white b.u.t.ton up shirt underneath the blazer. As he walked forward, he began to loosen the blood red neck tie around his neck. Silently, he took the tie off his neck before stuffing it into his jacket pocket. Next came the jacket, sliding it off before folding it neatly and handing it to one of the men to his side. After that was the shirt, calmly unclasping the b.u.t.tons as he kept eye contact with the restrained Jason. As he took off the shirt, Jason could see that the man's torso was decorated with several elaborate tattoos. The piece of clothing now off completely, folded, and handed over to another man next to him, Jason couldn't help but eye the ink. Running along his collar bone were six dots that looked like commas. On each shoulder was a spiral, with a half circle like bar over it. Connected to the bar was another that ran through his upper abdomen, with eight smaller bars running along with a ninth one in the middle running down to his midsection. Just under that was another spiral, with a fang like triangle just under that. Around these were two additional bars that connected back to the area above the spiral.

"Where am I?" Jason demanded.

The man didn't say anything at first, only continuing his walk towards Jason before stopping just a foot in front of him. Kneeling down, the man extended his hand out expectantly. One of the several men surrounding them quickly grabbed one of the torches closest to him. Torch now in hand, the man finally spoke, "You're going to feel pain. That is inevitable. But that pain is necessary. Like it was for so many before you. He has returned to us, because of our great work. Now, it is only a matter of time before he bestows upon us his great power. The power of G.o.dly fire."

"I don't know what you're talking about." Jason spat, "You're messing with a man that works for the most powerful person in New York. Do you understand? I'm the wrong man to-"

"Oh, but you're the perfect man." The man interrupted, "The resemblance between you and our G.o.d is almost uncanny."

The man didn't know how to respond for that, instead trying to get out of the situation, "I have a family." Jason pleaded.

"So did Victor Vasquez."

Jason didn't have an argument for that.

Standing straight, the man said, "Just know that your sacrifice is a catalyst for the new age. An age where we rule with our gifted power. An age with no religion. No war. No borders. Only peace."

He gave no warning. He simply threw the torch in front of Jason as he stepped back, watching as the flames were fed by the puddle of gasoline surrounding the bound man.

"Aaaagh!" Jason began to scream as the fire began to eat away at his legs and hands, "HELP! PLEASE FOR THE LOVE OF G.o.d! HELP ME!" Struggling with all his might, it did nothing but help the fire crawl up his arms and torso, "AAAAGGHH!"

"Praise the G.o.d of fire." The man said.

"Praise the Maelstrom." The others chorused, watching as their human sacrifice was swallowed in fire.

-x-

The sound of keys sliding into its keyhole could be heard through the door, the keys rattling on their chain as the door was jimmied open. Pushing on the door with his shoulder, Naruto grunted in annoyance as the weight on his shoulders tried to shift. Fixing it quickly, he slowly dragged himself into the room doing his best not to wake the inebriated woman draped around him. Looking down, he sighed when he realized she had pa.s.sed out. Dragging her through the apartment, he carefully made his way to her bedroom. Taking her in his arms, he gently laid her down on her bed. Taking one of the pillows, he positioned her on her side before wedging the pillow behind her to keep her from rolling on her back. Straightening up, Naruto rubbed his temples as he tried to sooth his headache.

"I told you not to drink so much, idiot." Kurama said, "I should slow down your healing factor just to teach you a lesson."

The blonde grunted, his headache slowly going away as he thought, "I'm on vacation Kurama. Vacation means getting drunk at some point in time…I think. I've never really had one now that I'm thinking about it."

"What would you call the last three years then?"

"Exploration." Naruto answered, walking over to the adjacent office, pulling up one of blinds to see the that the sun had begun to rise. Looking over at the digital clock on the desk next to him, he sighed when he saw it was nearly seven o'clock in the morning, "No one call's Louis and Clark's trip a vacation."

"I don't know who that is." The fox drawled.

"…Neither do I." Naruto admitted. Leaning on the desk, he continued to rub his forehead, "Sage, I need sleep."

"There's a bed right there."

"Not funny."

"Just saying."

Naruto's retort was cut off by a knock coming from the door followed by a woman's voice, "h.e.l.lo?"

Jessica, even in her drunken slumber, heard the knock. Her voice rang out from the bedroom, "Go away!" She slurred.

"I know it's early." The voice said, "But I need to speak with you! Please, I have money. I'll pay whatever you want."

Naruto waited for Jessica's reply, only to chuckle when he realized she had pa.s.sed out again, "I'm coming." He said loud enough to know she heard. Walking over to the door, he opened it to find a rather pretty woman standing on the other side, her brown hair disheveled and face lacking as much sleep as his, telling him she had been up all night. His once over complete, Naruto said, "Ms. Jones is a little busy at the moment." He said politely, "Maybe come back later toni-"

"I'm sorry, but I can't wait that long." She interrupted, her voice desperate as she said, "Please."

His rejection died in his throat when he saw the woman was on the cusp of crying, "Ahhh…yah. Yeah, alright." He relented, stepping aside to let her in.

"Thank you." She said, walking into the apartment, looking around as she said, "I was recommended to come here last night by a colleague." Her face scrunched up in barely concealed disgust, she said, "From what I heard, I thought I'd be a bit more…professional."

"I figured the same." Naruto admitted with a chuckle. Walking over to the desk, he leaned against it as he said, "And, ignoring the fact she's pa.s.sed out, the woman's got some skill." Folding his arms across his chest he asked, "Look, I don't know how I can help you. She's not in any condition to talk to you, and I'm a client myself."

The woman sighed, a faraway look on her face as she mumbled, "I figured this was a lost cause." She admitted." Taking a shaky breath she continued, "My husband never came home last night. When I went to the police, they said there was nothing they could do, that he was likely at a friend's house or something after a night of drinking." She laughed, "That's nothinglike my husband. He doesn't drink, and he doesn't have friends." Shaking her head, she tried to be subtle as she wiped a stray tear from her eye, "I don't know what I'm going to tell my kids, if I'm being honest." She chuckled again, "I'm sorry for unloading my problems on you. I doubt you care."

"No, no it's fine." Naruto said softly. Walking over to the desk's drawer, he said, "Here, the least I can do is write down your information. I'll make sure she sees it, I promise."

"Thank you." She said, a small but pleasant smile on her tired face.

"What's your name?"

"Gloria. Gloria Cartwright."