Namikaze of Lightning: Rise of the Storm

Wow! Glad to see mostly everyone liked the first chapter! Some of you pointed out a mistake I made about me writing the Daimyo was in charge of Konohagakure instead of Hi no Kuni so I fixed that. Also, I would like to thank everyone who reviewed and favorited the story! I'm very impressed with the amount I've gotten with just the first chapter! You guys are great and I hope to keep you around with this chapter. Enjoy!

Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto in any way. I just use the characters to make stories for mine, and maybe my readers, enjoyment.

Chapter Two: Encounter

Naruto was walking along the long dirt road that seemed to go on for miles while looking at his map of the Nation. It was always a good idea to bring a map in case you had no idea of how to get to a certain country. When he went on missions with Team Seven that had them go outside of Konoha, they didn't really need to use a map because Kakashi-sensei would always know how to get to their destination. Now, he would have to rely on his own navigational skills since he was going to be alone for this trip.

According to the map, in order to get to Kumo, he had to go through two countries, Yu no Kuni (Land of Hot Water), and Shimo no Kuni (Land of Frost). He wasn't going to be heading to the first country just yet, though. The young blonde had another destination in mind right now as soon as he saw how close it was to Konoha. That destination being the homeland of his mother: Uzushiogakure no Sato. How could he not want to see it? It was where his mother's clan resided so it was only natural of him to want to go there. Besides, Shimo was right next to it so there wouldn't be much time added to the length of the trek to Kumogakure.

The path that he was currently on wouldn't take him directly to the Uzumaki's native land, so he would eventually have to stop and then start going through the trees. There was a perpendicular, dotted line on the map that stretched from the road and led straight through the dense forestation of Konoha all the way to Uzu. Naruto surmised that it was an old path that Konoha must've used to get to Uzu before it had been destroyed. They probably left it on the map for the more nostalgic shinobi to go and pay their respects to their old allies, seeing as how a civilian wouldn't be able to traverse this path without the use of chakra.

And given that he'd been travelling for a few hours now, he should be seeing that path coming up any time now. Naruto looked up from the map and grinned when he saw what he was looking for. He knew it was the right one because there was a sign in front of a very clear opening in the trees on his right side. He put the map back into his backpack as he got closer to it, the words written on the sign becoming much easier to read.

To Uzushiogakure no Sato- the land of one of Konoha's greatest allies. May their souls be restful even though their lives were taken at a time of war.

Approximately one day of travel.

At least he knew he was on the right track so far. Naruto pivoted his feet so that he was facing the path and began focusing chakra into his legs. With one single leap, he landed on one of the wide branches of the trees. From there, he noticed that the branches ahead of him formed a path similar to that of the dirt road he was previously walking on except the surface was wood.

With a grin, Naruto said, "Well, I won't be getting anywhere if I keep standing around." The young blonde then began jumping from branch to branch as he went further along the path.

He had no idea that he was being trailed at the moment, had been ever since he left the village. Two people wearing blank ceramic masks, each one depicting a different animal, were following Naruto along the trees, not even making a sound every time they landed. They were Root ninja that had been given an order by their leader, Danzou-sama, to eliminate the Kyuubi jinchuuriki. The warhawk knew that it would be useless to try and capture the blonde and convert him to being the perfect weapon that Konoha needed, since he knew of Naruto's incredible willpower and plus he was too old to be emotionally conditioned.

So the only other option would be to have him killed. Danzou would never allow some other village to take advantage of Naruto's banishment and try to take him in. If Konoha could not have its weapon, then no one else would either. The two ninja were merely waiting for the perfect moment to kill their target. They mentally agreed that it would be best to do the deed in Uzu. Then they could toss the body into the sea and make sure it would never be found.

And join the same fate as the rest of his clan…

(Nearly One Day Later)

Naruto had been going at a steady, fast pace most of the way to Uzu. His very impressive stamina and the focusing of his enormous chakra reserves allowed him to keep running for hours on end. He had to take a couple of breaks but those didn't last long since he would recover in a few minutes and then he would go straight to jumping along the tree branch path. Suffice to say, he was making really good time.

His eyes brightened and he grinned excitedly when he saw a light appear, signifying that he had finally reached his destination. He was almost there! The whiskered blonde jumped toward it with a sudden burst of speed, breaking through the trees and landing on the ground that was at a lower elevation than exit of the path. After bouncing on his feet a couple of times, Naruto steadied himself and stared at the massive entrance to the ruins of Uzushiogakure no Sato.

All of his excitement quickly dissipated at the sight of it, his facial features softening as he stared at the depressing scenery in front of him. There was a very large bridge that stood prominently, defying time as there didn't seem to be any sort of wear on it. The walkway of the bridge made three consecutive arches, each one separated by a massive stone pillar that rose out of the body of water surrounding most of the area. The bridge's condition was in complete contrast to what it led to, which was a huge, round island that was riddled with the decaying buildings that used to be the homes and businesses of the Uzumaki Clan.

He had been so excited to see where his mother used to live before she came to Konoha, but after seeing it like this… he felt more lugubrious than anything else. Naruto was able to recompose himself after shaking his head. He had been told that the village was destroyed so he was already prepared to see this. He began making his way over to the bridge so that he could get to the island, eager to explore the ruins.

As soon as he took one step onto the bridge, though, his eyes widened and his senses started screaming in alert. He quickly jumped backwards, dodging a small spray of shuriken that became imbedded into the walkway, having been thrown from somewhere near the pathway he just exited. He turned around and readied himself for combat, cursing mildly since he wasn't able to sense anyone around him. Naruto made a mental note to work on that.

"Who's there?!" Naruto yelled out to the woods but received nothing but silence. His eyes were darting around the area frantically, trying to notice any sign of movement.

The whiskered blonde finally got an answer a moment later, but not in the way he was expecting. Four stone slabs that easily towered over him popped right out of the ground on every side of him. Not wanting to find out what they were for, he rapidly focused his chakra into his legs and jumped upward, easily getting over the height of the slabs. It was a good thing he did too, because that was when they all rammed right into each other with such incredible power that he would've been crushed if he had stayed there. Rapid regeneration or not, if he took too much damage at once he was done for.

A sudden and intense heat began to creep onto his skin and the sound of crackling fire invaded his ears. Looking upward, he saw a massive fireball heading straight towards him. Naruto widened his eyes in fear because he wouldn't be able to dodge it while he was in the air. Thinking fast, he made the hand seal of his signature technique.

"Kage Bunshin no Jutsu (Shadow Replication Technique)!" The blonde shouted and a copy of him appeared in the air alongside him. It grabbed the original Naruto's arm and then threw him down to the ground just in the nick of time, having been destroyed not even a second after by the fireball.

Naruto landed next to the pile of rubble, taking out a kunai from his pouch while still trying to locate whoever it was that seemed to be trying to do him in. I should've known something like this would happen, He thought to himself. But who the hell is after me? Choosing to take action instead of contemplating on this any longer, he formed the hand seal for the Kage Bunshin no Jutsu once more, increasing the amount of chakra in order to summon a lot more copies of himself than he did previously.

As he did this, the two Root ninja observed how their attacks missed Naruto from their position on one of the large tree branches in the forest. The subordinate of the two, who wore a sparrow mask, was the first one to speak. "His speed and reaction time is better than I thought," He said.

The wolf masked leader gave a nod in reply. "Indeed." He then noticed what Naruto was doing. This was when an army of clones appeared in a plume of smoke, quickly surrounding the area in front of the entrance to Uzu. He was impressed with how many clones there were of the blonde. "Danzou-sama mentioned his penchant for Kage Bunshin but I was unaware of how many he could summon at one time."

"It won't matter," Sparrow said while using his hands to form the snake seal. "They're all bunched together so it shouldn't be hard to trap him. Doton: Tsuchi Kairō (Earth Release: Earth Corridor)!"

Naruto was able to sense a fluctuation of chakra coming from a minute spot in the forest. Before he could have his clones head over to it, the ground rumbled around them. Not even a second later did it rise into the air, surrounding him and a large group of his clones with its wide circumference. They were now imprisoned inside a cavern, the walls being maybe one or two stories tall and loomed over them in an intimidating fashion. There happened to be an opening at the top that looked just big enough for a person to fit through.

However, before he could even think of using his chakra to run up the walls and escape, he heard the familiar sound of his clones being destroyed on the outside of the cavern. A shadow appeared at the opening after this, causing the whiskered blonde to look up at it. He saw a person that was garbed in ANBU-like gear and wearing a wolf mask over his face, his hands going through a quick series of seals before stopping on tiger.

On the area of his mask where his mouth was supposed to be, a small section slid to the side and created a gap so that his mouth was visible. No sooner had Naruto seen that did the masked man open his mouth wide after he yelled out his technique. "Katon: Gōkakyū no Jutsu (Fire Release: Great Fireball Technique)!"

A massive orb of fire shot out from his mouth and headed straight towards Naruto and his clones, the walls of earth becoming enveloped by the jutsu and making the cavern simulate an oven, any clones that were near the flames being instantly destroyed. Panic raced through him as he tried to find a way out. If he didn't… then he was going to be burned alive.

(Konoha- Elder Council Meeting Chambers)

Danzou looked out of the window in the room, staring down to see the many villagers that were in jubilant rejoice. Ever since they had found out that the Kyuubi container was now completely out of the village, they had been celebrating as if it was some sort of holiday. Having seen their long time hatred for the boy, he knew that they had been waiting forever for this day to happen.

He turned around to meet the eyes of the other two people in the room, Koharu and Homura. They had all known each other for years, having gone on many missions together during their shinobi days. His trust in them was limited, but it was enough for him to ask for their assistance in his plan. For years, he'd held disdain for the way the village had been run. He had hoped that it would've changed somewhat after Hiruzen died during the Chunin Exams but it looks like Tsunade, who was once his student, was going to be the same type of leader.

That was why he planned on disposing of her, just like he tried to do with Hiruzen so many years ago. This time, however, he would not be caught. Hiruzen had foolishly spared him instead of executing him for treason, as he should have done. Once he was the Hokage, he would not be so lenient. And it looked like his goal of attaining that title would be accomplished very soon.

After all, the first stage of the plan, which involved getting rid of the Kyuubi container, had gone swimmingly. He only had to use the Sharingan he had transplanted into his right eye to make the Daimyo easier to sway about the issue. With its former wielder being Uchiha Shisui, who was acclaimed to be the most advanced Genjutsu user of his clan, it was like child's play for him to accomplish this. Now, they should be able to proceed without the Kyuubi container causing any problems.

"What is to be done next, Danzou?" The spectacled Homura asked.

"We won't be moving on to the next stage until I get a confirmation of the Jinchuuriki's death," The warhawk replied.

A frown appeared on the wrinkled face of the only female in the room. "Are you sure that we had to get rid of him?" Koharu asked. "He may not be a very talented shinobi but the powers given to him by the Kyuubi makes him a most valuable asset to the village."

On that, Danzou agreed, but he had a reason for getting rid of Naruto. "The boy has shown himself to be very tenacious and would only cause problems for us in the long run." He answered. "By the time the Kyuubi reforms after he dies, I'll make sure we have a proper candidate to be its container. Konoha will then have the weapon it was always supposed to have and no other village will be able to contest our power."

"What exactly is the next stage of the plan?" Homura questioned with a furrowed brow. "You haven't explained the entirety of it to us even though we've agreed wholeheartedly to follow you."

The bandaged warhawk nodded, acknowledging this. "That you have," He said. "But I will only be divulging the plan stage by stage. We are committing treason against the current Hokage's dictatorship. The possibility of it being compromised is lessened greatly if I keep it this way." Koharu and Homura thought on this for a few moments before they nodded.

Homura went over to one of the couches in the room and sat down to make himself comfortable. "Then I suppose we will just have to wait for now," He said before he frowned at Danzou. "Are you sure it will so easy to have Uzumaki killed? His tenaciousness happens to be the very key to the many of his victories. Like with Hyuuga Neji and the Jinchuuriki from Suna, Gaara."

Danzou just waved a dismissive hand, doubting that the boy would be among the living for much longer. "The ninja I sent are very capable. With his skills, he won't stand a chance against them. Of this, I can assure you…"

(Uzushiogakure Entrance)

Wolf watched the flames of his jutsu shoot out of the opening of the earth cavern like a geyser, the small section of his mask that had opened so he could use his technique sliding back closed as he did. He was reminded of a volcano that was erupting, except it wasn't lava that was spouting from a crater. It was a constant stream of fire that was created by one of his jutsu. And even though that stream was inches away from him, he wasn't bothered by the heat since he'd grown used to such temperatures. He'd been using Katon jutsu for years after all.

Eventually, the flames stopped so he took the chance to peer inside the cavern and see what became of his target. There was a lot of smoke inside of it, most likely made from the destruction of all of Naruto's clones and the fireball he had sent at the blonde. The smoke shrouded the cavern like a hazy vapor that hindered his visibility somewhat. He focused some chakra into his eyes to slightly enhance his eyesight and continued his search.

The wolf masked ninja was only able to see the charred, blackened walls of earth that helped form the cavern. His target was nowhere in sight. After searching a bit more, he saw a very wide hole in the wall on the opposite side of the forest pathway. He was perplexed when he saw this, wondering how Naruto had been able to make it in the first place. There was no time to think on this since he had to immediately lower his level to dodge a vicious kick being aimed at his head. He waited as the leg of the blonde passed over his head before he acted. Once it was, he pivoted his body while staying in the crouched position he was now in and then reached a hand out, grabbing onto Naruto's ankle with a tight grip.

Prepared for this possibility, Naruto attempted to get out by taking the kunai he was wielding and used it to slash at the hand that the masked shinobi had on his ankle. The sharp edge of the kunai wasn't able to hit its mark, having been stopped when Wolf caught him by the wrist with his free hand, the strength of the grip causing the blonde to wince slightly.

"Got you," Wolf said to him. "I don't know how you escaped but you're much too slow to be able to execute a proper sneak attack on me."

"We'll see about that!" Naruto grinned widely just before he vanished in a plume of smoke, revealing that he was a clone.

Wolf didn't move a single inch when Naruto and another clone appeared in the air on his left and right, each one with a Rasengan in their hands and were set on a collision course in order to hit their enemy from both sides with their technique. With a loud battle cry, they extended their arms forward to close the distance even faster. Still, the wolf masked man didn't move or even try to counter the two blondes. That was because he didn't need to…

Naruto's eyes widened when he saw his clone get destroyed so quickly he didn't have time to process this because this was when Sparrow materialized above his head, the masked subordinate's leg stretching upward as it prepared to hammer down on the Kyuubi container. Naruto was barely able to turn his head and see another ninja trying to kill him before he cried out in pain as a foot made contact with the side of his face, the strength behind the kick so great that it sent him flying downward.

His body bounced off of the outside wall of the earth jutsu and hit the ground hard when he landed on his back. Having the air knocked out him, Naruto was unable to react in time to the next attack from his enemies. All he felt was just a searing pain emanating from his chest. Looking downward, he gasped when he saw the blade of what seemed to be a tanto stabbed into him. The blade happened to be long enough and had apparently had enough force behind it to pierce straight through his body and into the ground he was lying on, effectively pinning him to the earth. Naruto was then able to see the wolf masked ninja's hands were still resting on it to keep a firm pressure and make sure that his tanto stayed right where it was.

"You've lasted much longer than I first estimated," Wolf stated while staring down at the blonde through his mask. "Though, I do commend you for being able to break out of my partner's earth jutsu. Most likely with that sphere-like technique you tried to hit me with just now, correct?" He shook his head. "The mistake you made that shall now cost you your life was that you attempted to attack me yourself, probably because the damage output of that jutsu is increased when it's done by you and not the clone."

Naruto grit his teeth and coughed, a small speckle of blood falling onto his jacket. "W-who are you…?" He questioned with a raspy voice.

"None of your concern," Sparrow answered. "It wouldn't matter even if we did tell you since you'll no longer be alive in the next few minutes." He formed the bird seal with his hands before shouting the incantation to his jutsu. "Doton: Doryūsō (Earth Release: Earth Flow Spears)!" Naruto's bloodcurdling scream echoed into the air as his body was perforated by multiple spikes of earth that rose up from the ground beneath him.

Absolutely agonizing pain was all he felt at the moment. There was a spike going through each of his limbs, damaging the major areas of movement. Blood began to pool around his body from the injuries, staining both the ground and his jumpsuit at the same time. As it did, he idly wondered why they hadn't just killed him with the technique. They were more than capable of doing it at any time and he wouldn't be able to stop them now. He guessed that maybe they were trying to make him suffer by experiencing the immense pain of having his arms and legs become useless. Even if he were able to get these spikes out, he wouldn't be able to move for who knows how long since his healing factor could only work so fast.

With the situation as it was right now, he was going to have to tap into the Kyuubi's chakra. It was his last chance. He hoped he would be able to stay in control of himself like he did when he fought against Sasuke and not when he gave into his rage while battling Haku, where he became hell-bent on killing the Hyoton (Ice Release) user.

Sadly, the two Root ninja knew who they were dealing with and that he'd yet to try and summon the chakra of the demon fox. So, before Naruto could try to use it, Wolf took his tanto out. Not even a second after he did that, another sharp earth spike burst through the whiskered blonde's chest. Naruto wasn't even able to scream as blood poured out of his mouth, his consciousness waning from the massive amount of damage and pain he was going through.

No… He thought while his eyelids slowly began to close. Not like this. I… have… to… He was unable to finish his mental sentence when he fell unconscious.

Seeing his body slacken, Sparrow stopped the flow of chakra he was putting into his jutsu. The spikes retracted back into the ground, leaving gaping holes in Naruto's body in the areas they had struck him. He went over to the blonde and knelt down on his knee, putting his index and middle finger on his neck. "He's still alive. Impressive…"

"Pick him up," Wolf ordered and turned towards the bridge leading to Uzu. "We were going to throw his body in the water anyway. The whirlpools in this area will save us both time and energy disposing of him."

The subordinate did as he was told and they walked along the bridge until they were in the middle of it. Without wasting another moment, Sparrow threw Naruto over the edge and into the sea. He was soon caught in one of the powerful currents of the raging whirlpools in the water, pulling his limp, seemingly lifeless body towards it. Naruto slowly followed the rotation of the deadly, spiraling vortex until he finally reached the middle and was dragged beneath the surface.

"There's no way he would be able to survive that," Sparrow said to his commander. "The whirlpools of Uzu no Kuni were notorious for stopping any sort of naval attack on their country due to how deadly and fierce they are."

"No time for history lessons," Wolf replied back. "We have to get back to Danzou-sama and tell him of the boy's fate." The two of them made a half-tiger seal and started to focus their chakra to Shunshin (Body Flicker) out of the area.

Before they were able to initiate the jutsu, they were stopped by a red and white blur that crashed into them, hard. The two Root shinobi were sent flying backward, the force and speed of their bodies making it impossible for them to try and recover themselves in the air. They then crashed onto the middle platform that was created by one of the stone pillars connecting the arches of the bridge, their bodies lying right next to each other.

Whoever had gotten the drop on the two Root ninja didn't give them a single inch, placing a kunai right up against their necks so that they wouldn't be able to escape. Once they had regained their sense of awareness, Wolf and Sparrow saw the person that had attacked them, causing their eyes to widen behind their masks.

Jiraiya glared down at them with an intimidating presence. "Where. Is. Naruto?" He asked in a tone that had no room for nonsense and trickery. They wouldn't like it if he wasn't given a good answer.

Not speaking a single word, Wolf and Sparrow shared a glance at each other through the holes in their masks. They then returned to looking straight up at the Sannin, a grave yet resolved expression adorning their faces, although no one would be able to tell this for obvious reasons. Jiraiya was unable to stop the two as they lifted their hands above their chest and formed the ram seal. As soon as the seal was made, Wolf and Sparrow combusted into flames, killing themselves instantly.

"Shit!" Jiraiya cursed while jumping back to a safe distance. He should've known that they'd have some sort of suicide technique handy in case they were caught. Though, he'd never seen one quite like this before. It didn't really matter, however. He was now frustrated that he wasn't able to get any answers out of them.

The Toad Sannin had a bad feeling about leaving Naruto to travel alone. So a few hours after he and Tsunade told him about his exile, he went to the blonde's apartment so that he could go with him. He would at least be able to make sure that he'd gotten to Kumo safely that way. Unfortunately, when he got to Naruto's apartment, he discovered that the blonde was already gone. Worriedly, he immediately headed out of the village to try and catch up with his student.

He had almost passed by the path to Uzu but he noticed a set of footprints on the ground in front of the sign. They had been indented into the earth pretty deeply, which told him that someone must've used chakra to enhance a jump. Instantly, he knew that they belonged to Naruto because he was one of the few who understood how the kid thought. He must've wanted to see the birthplace of Kushina as soon as he saw the path. Jiraiya went as fast as he could in order to get to Naruto and make sure he was okay.

But it appears he was too late…

The two shinobi he identified to be Root ninja had gotten to the blonde first. And from the looks of things, it wasn't good. He was sure that he'd sensed Naruto's chakra just a few seconds ago, but then it just disappeared. The silver-haired Sannin walked over to one of the rails so that could get a better view of the sea beneath the bridge. It was entirely possible they threw him into the water. However, his efforts were futile as there was no sign of the whiskered Jinchuuriki.

Jiraiya clenched one of his fists and slammed it down onto the rail. "Damn it!" He cursed loudly before his shoulders slackened, a frown adorning his face. All he could do right now was hope that Naruto was still alive, and make it to Kumo. "Naruto…"

(A few days afterward on the coast of Kumogakure…)

Samui was beginning to get tired of being sent on missions that required her to guard a section of the border. She would much rather be doing any other type of mission but that would mean that she would have to complain to the Raikage. And she was never the kind of person to do that. It was simply not cool to do. Though, there was a first time for everything.

Right now, she was walking along the coastal area of Kumogakure. A nice breeze blew against her skin and made the shoulder length bangs of her short, blonde hair sway along with it. The smell of salt water went into her nose with every inhalation, the source being the expansive and seemingly endless sea in front of her. She wished she could take off her high boots and feel the cold, soft sand on her feet. Sadly, she was on a mission and she wasn't the sort to shirk her duty.

After she made her way down a couple of yards down the sandy shoreline, she smelled something different in the air. It was a smell she was all too familiar with. Blood. Out of her peripheral vision, she then noticed a stream of blood in the water. She got out her tanto and followed the sanguine liquid, just in case it may have been some kind of ruse. The blonde haired kunoichi soon found where the blood was coming from.

Her blue eyes saw the form of a blonde teenager in a torn up orange jumpsuit. She put her tanto away and went over to him. Placing two fingers on his neck, she was astonished when she found a pulse. He was still alive. Samui was surprised at this because his body looked as if it were thrown into a meat grinder. The guy was in really bad shape. Upon closer inspection, her eyes widened slightly when she saw the holes and the rest of his in his body gradually close up, the muscle and tissue in his arms, legs, and torso being regenerated right before her eyes.

That must've been how he had survived this long, seeing as how the blood around him looked to be a couple days old at least from the particularly metallic, dry smell it was giving off.

"I'll have to get you some place safe and get you healed up," Samui spoke to the unconscious blonde on the sand even though she knew he wouldn't respond. "It just wouldn't be cool of me if I left you here."

That wraps it up for chapter two, everyone!

I'm sure you all noticed that the story didn't take a year to be updated, right? Well, that's because I'm really trying to buckle down and produce these chapters for you guys. Speaking of which, I hope that you liked it. I haven't written a fight scene in a while so hopefully it didn't turn out terribly.

Oh, I'm sure all of you noticed how one-sided the fight between Naruto and the Root ninja was. Well, that's because it was supposed to be. I noticed a review in the last Namikaze of Lightning from LD1449, a fellow writer who has quite a few good stories, who said that the Root member was very incompetent. I reread that scene and saw that he was right. So I changed that with this one because I know Danzou would make sure there was no room for error with attempting to kill Naruto off. Their skill level and number advantage were able to overwhelm Naruto pretty fast because it wouldn't be realistic for him to be able to fend them off at his current level.

Now, I'd like to do something I haven't done in a while and respond to some questions you guys put in the reviews for last chapter.

Yes, the pairing is still going to be planned as Naruto/Samui. I'd be remiss if I sent Naruto to Kumo and not have him eventually get into a relationship with her. Also, this isn't an 'official' harem story. I want to make the interactions between the characters as natural as possible so if a girl falls for Naruto it will be because that's how it turned out. So, I wouldn't bother with recommended girls for him to be paired with if I were you.

Lastly, I'd just like to ask you guys to leave me some feedback on what you liked or didn't like on the chapter. I always take suggestions from my readers and I like to hear what you guys think of my writing.

I'll see you all on the next chapter of Namikaze of Lightning: Rise of the Storm! Ja ne!