Disclaimer: I do not own either Naruto or Huntik. So you lawyers and what-not can just Bugger off!

Now, for those who may not have figured it out yet…

"Human talking"

'Human thinking'

"Titan talking in Spirit Form"

"Titan talking in Summoned Form"

"Summoning Titans/Casting Spells"

Chapter 12: Oh, Come On!

Naruto groaned as he woke up from what might very well have been the second-worst sleep of his life. Blinking back tears of pain from the uncomfortable stone… floor… ah, shit. Stone floor? This was so not his bed in Konoha. So that meant…

A few moments of looking around in the semi-darkness he saw a crumpled form in a very uncomfortable position. A slow roll-over and just as slow crawl over to the other body, then another slow roll-over of the unconscious person revealed one of his Kumo liaisons, Samui.

A quick check for a pulse revealed she was still alive, which brought about a sigh of relief. Positioning her into a more comfortable prone state, Naruto settled himself into a cross-legged pose and decided to take stock of what he could remember.

X-Flashback-X

Naruto stood across from his adoptive mother in her office. His face could not show just how surprised he was.

"You want to send me where?"

Senju Tsunade calmly drank from a cup of tea her assistant had left for her. "I could have sworn I was perfectly clear, Naruto. Kumo has come to us for help to understand recent troubles occurring in their country. So I'm sending you, and your new team that I've set up for you, to investigate. You are, after all, our best at understanding the strange things happening lately."

Naruto ran a nervous hand through his hair, when something she said got through to him. "Wait a moment, Tsunade-Kaa-chan, what do you mean 'new team'?"

Tsunade glowed for a moment at being called "kaa-chan". She'd always wanted a child, and now, even if he wasn't hers by blood, she had one hell of a son to be proud of. "I mean that I have reorganized Teams Eight and Seven. You are now part of the new Team Eight, consisting of you, Hyuuga Hinata, and Yuki Haku who has consented to joining Konoha's Shinobi Corps in this past week. Your team sensei is, of course, Yuhi Kurenai. Team Seven will now consist of Haruno Sakura, Aburame Shino, and Inuzuka Kiba under Hatake Kakashi."

Naruto blinked repeatedly. "Do any of the others know about this?"

"Of course, I informed Kurenai and Kakashi yesterday." She said, in a tone that clearly told him it should have been obvious. "Honestly Kakashi is infinitely more suited to teaching a tracking squad due to his personal Summons. While Kurenai isn't bad at it, her skills lead her to a more intellectual type of squad. Naturally I can't just give her all the smart kids, so I had to give her you, too."

He grinned at her joke, and mimed a hit to the heart. "Ouch, Tsunade-Kaa-chan. That almost hurt."

Tsunade snorted, "alright, let's get back to the original topic. Kumo sent two of their ninjas, so I'm sending your team in response. I realize you have things you want to do, or feel you must do, and I'll see what I can do to get some kind of leeway for you to complete at least some of it, but I think you'll have to hold off on emptying that library you found at Uzushio for the time being."

Naruto nodded. It was true. If he was needed in Kaminari no Kuni, he really didn't have much time to be wasting. Besides, he doubted he'd ever let Kumo shinobi set foot on Uzushio. He still remembered the history of the fall of his clan. Kumo, Kiri, and a few smaller villages banded together to get rid of them. Iwa had reportedly been tempted to assist, but found the idea of a weakened Konoha without Uzumaki support to be too good of a target to pass up.

Straightening his shoulders, Naruto assumed a parade rest stance. "Very well. Chunin Uzumaki Naruto, reporting for duty, Hokage-sama."

Tsunade nodded, a suspicious mist growing in her vision. "We await both your team, Chunin, and the messengers from Kumogakure."

The looked at each other seriously for a minute, before breaking down into laughter. They just couldn't hold on to the pretense of formality. It simply would not work.

Shizune chose that moment to enter, followed closely by the two Kumo-nin. "Yo-yo-yo! Laughter's all well and fine, but at least tell Killer Bee the line!"

Samui sighed, and was about to clarify what her superior said, but she was cut off by the blonde young man in front of them. "Hey-hey-hey! The line's long done, but rest assured, it was a fine one! But I've been remiss, I swear I didn't mean to diss! The name to know is Uzumaki Naruto, and with your names and my team I'll be good to go!"

The women just stared at Naruto like he'd grown two more heads while Bee gained a grin that nearly split his face. "Word, brother! Good to see the style ain't dead yet!"

Naruto made a small face, "not yet, and I doubt it will ever truly die. If only because it's a great way to annoy the hell out of people."

Bee nodded, stroking his chin as if he had a beard. "True dat." He seemed to shake himself from his thoughts, "Well then, here by design and request, I'm a man whose rhymes don't rest! Killer Bee you can call me, Jonin of Kumo and Guardian of Kaminari!"

It was Naruto's turn to nod, and he switched his gaze to the busty, short-haired blonde woman, "and you would be...?"

"Samui. Also a Jonin of Kumo." She said stoically.

"Ah, Samui-san, and Bee-san," Naruto nodded again, as though to confirm their names in his mind. "As I said, once my team arrives I'll be good to go."

Samui blinked, multiple times. He had stopped rapping? Thank Kami for little mercies! "That's fine, it's all cool. Just don't do any more of that rapping."

Naruto chuckled, "I'll try to restrain myself."

"Thank Kami!" The woman muttered to herself, unknowingly echoing the sentiments of the other two women present.

It wasn't long until they were joined by Naruto's new team after that, Hinata coming to stand at his left, Haku to his right, and Kurenai behind him.

'I'm trapped!' He thought to himself comically.

"Team Uzumaki, present and accounted for, Hokage-sama." Kurenai said in a professional tone, choosing to ignore Naruto's and Tsunade's half-hidden snorts of mirth. She didn't want to know what they found funny about the statement. It was safer for her mental health that way, and she would gladly advise anyone else of the same!

Getting control of herself, Tsunade said, "alright, Team Uzumaki, we have had a request for a joint investigation of some kind of underground ruins within Kaminari no Kuni. You will be working in conjunction with Killer Bee-san and Samui-sana here, as well as some other Kumogakure Genin teams. There is no time limit, so do a thorough job. Are there any questions?"

"Are we on Konoha's book, or mine?" Naruto asked.

"Mixed. I'll trust you four to not get us into trouble… as bad an idea as that sounds," giving Naruto a gimlet stare.

"Hey! It's not like it's my fault all my missions go to hell!" He protested.

"… I feel very unsure about this," Samui remarked to no one in particular.

X-Flashback End!-X

"Okay… so… what am I missing?" Naruto wondered out loud.

"A very great deal, Naruto. Let's start with the fact that Samui-san over there was pledged to you for your aid..."

"WHAT?!"

"-The other girls all agreed to let her marry you, too-"

"HAH?!"

"-Then you got drunk and became sworn brothers with that Killer Bee-"

"Oh, Kami, can this get much worse?"

"-And had your first time in a foursome with him recording the whole thing before sending it to your godfather to put into a new Icha Icha title!"

"..." Naruto's jaw dropped.

"Just kidding~."

"Not funny, Arc!"

"It was hysterical."

"Says who?"

"Says everyone in your head but you. Your mother and Kurama are actually rolling on the floor while laughing."

"It's not fair for you guys to band together against me like that!" He protested, "I can't even argue with all of you!"

"That's not our fault, nor our problem." Arc replied saucily.

"… You have been spending too much time around my mother."

"… There may be some truth to that," Arc muttered thoughtfully. "In my defense, Hoplite, Megladeath, and Lindorm don't really talk much. That leaves me with your mother's spirit and Kurama… which would you prefer I talk with more?"

Naruto blinked at that question, then groaned quietly. "I'm going to assume that was rhetorical, and so save myself the potential argument."

"Aww, you're no fun."

Deciding that he was fighting a losing battle for the last word, Naruto just shut up and started taking deep breathes while taking mental stock of his situation… only to notice Samui awake and staring at him.

He raised an eyebrow. "What? Do the voices in my head bother you?"

The woman answered without missing a beat, "if they're helpful, then no."

Naruto blinked, then started laughing, followed swiftly by groaning in pain as his abused ribs made themselves known. Actually, now that he was finally focused upon it, his entire body felt like one massive bruise.

His breathed hissed in pain, "okay, laughing was a bad idea."

Samui just stared at him from her prone position. "I had assumed you were being honest."

"I was."

"Then why laugh?"

Naruto waved around to their predicament. "Why not? And otherwise, I'm pretty certain that someone talking to other voices in their head was usually seen as a bad thing."

"...I was trained by Kirabi, who raps constantly, and talks out loud with his Bijuu."

He gave in, "… You win. Now, I don't suppose you recall what happened? My memory is proving a little fuzzy."

Samui hissed in pain as she brought herself into a sitting position along a nearby wall. "We were exploring the mine when the floor caved under us. Obviously you and I have been separated from the others, who may likewise have been separated into smaller groups."

Naruto sighed, "that much I had guessed already. I meant as to why the floor collapsed. Did someone step on something? A hidden trap, maybe? Or was the floor just that bad?"

Samui shrugged, "I don't know. I didn't hear any clicking or anything, if that makes any difference."

Naruto nodded as he added that to his list of thoughts, "that certainly helps some, it means that it was most likely just the floor being too weak to support so many people." Glancing around at the chamber they were in he noticed it was more like an actual room, as opposed to a cavern, but in the dim light he couldn't make much out.

"Samui-san, does this look more like a room to you?" He asked out loud, "as opposed to a natural-formed cavern?"

The woman took a while to answer as she looked around, finally taking in her surroundings. She noted that the walls were stones, slotted together tightly enough that she doubted she could fit a thin blade between them. The floor seemed to be likewise crafted from what she could see, though the gloom wasn't helping matters very much. And there, in the wall to her left, was the only exit she could see.

"It does appear that way," she admitted. "But the lack of light makes a definitive answer a little difficult."

"Hm," Naruto hummed his response. Lifting one hand into the air, palm up, he brought a Boltflare into existence. "Let there be light."

Samui stared at him stonily. He returned the stare for a few moments.

"Sorry, couldn't resist."

"I have two questions for you, Uzumaki-san," Samui said quietly. "First, what is that? And Second, are you really of the Uzumaki?"

Naruto raised and eyebrow. "Okay, the first one I saw coming, not so much the second. Though, in hindsight, the lack of red hair on my part is probably gonna get me asked that question a lot." The eyebrow returned to its normal position as he shrugged. "Yes, I really am Uzumaki, and this," he pointed to the ball of energy floating beside him, "is part of an ancient group of secrets that my clan has guarded since sometime before the Rikudo Sennin."

The woman blinked heavily, "Since before the Rikudo Sennin?"

Naruto shrugged again and gave her a lopsided grin, "what can I say? My clan is old! Our founder was a man by the name of Casterwill, and he did a lot of insane things. Unfortunately, I haven't managed to get to the point in our history texts where we went from Casterwill to Uzumaki." He paused a moment in thought, then said, "though, if I were to make a bet, I'd say it'd probably be around the point of chakra being discovered."

Samui blinked again, a bit more rapidly this time. It was official, either this young man was fruitier than a fruit cake without the cake, or he really was Uzumaki. And honestly she didn't know which one worried her more. There were reasons that so many nations banded together to destroy that clan, and while Samui would admit that history wasn't her strongest subject, she was sure it wasn't just the fear of their fuinjutsu. She'd heard of the Uzumaki as something akin to boogeymen growing up, and to think that there might very well be a real one in front of her just made her spine tingle in an unpleasant fashion.

Naruto, not paying attention to his current company, decided to take a closer look around at the revealed walls. Running one hand over the surface, he muttered to himself, "Hm, dry, hard, but smooth instead of rough, so clay bricks as opposed to mud and straw… what's this now?"

He knelt down at the base of the far wall, and ran his fingers through some of the collected dust and debris. His questing digits finding thin trails and holes, big holes, but not from any mole. "Huh, this is… interesting. Holes… insects, from the size, but damn big ones."

He glanced over his shoulder at his blonde liaison, "I don't suppose you feel up to moving, do you? I could carry you, but we may need to move fast."

Samui stared at him, obvious conflict written upon her face for a moment, then levered herself to her feet using the wall as support. If he had been going to kill her, he could have done it with ease before now. Might as well trust him at least a little longer. "I can move, but I don't know how fast. Why?"

"'Cause of bugs, big ones the size of Kirabi's fist."

Samui shuddered for a moment, "if you'll lend me a shoulder, I'll do my best to keep up."

Naruto nodded and moved to support her. They really did need to get moving.

'Of all the times to likely need Fire and not know a single frickin' jutsu for it! Boltflare's good, but not against multiple targets...'

As the two moved slowly through the exit neither noticed a pair of eyes in the darkness behind them.

XxXxXxXx- Meanwhile…

Hinata had been the first of her group to awaken after the fall from the collapsing floor. A quick stock of her surroundings and she could already tell that he fledgling skills as a Seeker wouldn't be enough to get her out of there, but combined with her skills as a kunoichi? It might just be enough. Why, one might ask?

Because Hinata found herself alone with one of Samui's old teammates, a vicarious redhead by the name of Karui, at the bottom of what seemed to be a very dry well some hundred or more feet deep. The red haired woman had been in charge on the surface at the mine entrance, and had insisted on accompanying them down into the shaft. Now, Hinata and this other woman, who simply did not seem to have any mode other than angry, were stuck down here unless they cooperated or help arrived.

Well, she could Invoke Tao to carry them up and out, but that would be exhausting, and she had no idea if up there was worse than down here.

Yup, looks like she was going to have to apply what little medical knowledge she had to the situation and hope for the best.

With a sigh, Hinata moved over to her fellow kunoichi even as she brought a Boltflare into existence for light, and, shifting her into a supine(1) position, began checking her for injuries. Running her hands gently along Karui's body, starting at the head, revealed no head wound. Neck was fine. Shoulders were good. The ribs brought about a sharp intake of breath, indicating bruising at the least, a quick application of pressure relieved Hinata as no other reaction was given. So at least there were no cracked or broken ribs. Moving down, Karui's hips were bruised as well, but her legs seemed to be just fine.

It was when Hinata came to Karui's feet that she encountered a problem. Namely that one of them seemed to be missing, along with both sandals. Then she noticed, that rather than missing, the left foot was simply twisted so badly that it had almost reversed itself.

Hinata frowned, 'That's going to be difficult to deal with. I'm not really the best at setting limbs or bones. Despite what people think about the Byakugan, we don't see bones or organs, just the chakra network underlying an outline of the physical body.'

She debated for a minute, then decided. 'Might as well do something while she's still out cold. Less chance for her to scream my head off while I'm working.'

With that in mind, she gently applied a pulling pressure to the foot and slowly turned it back into a proper setting. Easing off the pressure, Hinata reached into her supply pouch and brought out a roll of medical gauze. Working swiftly, she bound the foot into place gently but firmly using the gauze. Once done, she pulled out a clip and made sure the gauze wouldn't unravel on her, and then put the foot down.

Tension leaving her body suddenly, Hinata collapsed heavily against the far side of what she assumed was a well. Nothing for her to do now, but to wait for her partner in trouble to awaken.

XxXxXxXx- At the Same Time

Haku and Kurenai woke to a rough, large hand shaking them. They both looked up through a gloom into the worried face of Kirabi.

"Good, you're both awake," he said seriously, no attempt at a rap anywhere.

That fact sobered both women at once, shocking them into full alertness. They'd only known the large man for a short while, but they already realized that if he wasn't rapping, then there was a lot of trouble to be had.

As they sat up, both of them looked around. Haku would be the first to recognize that dark sight wasn't really her forte, but even she couldn't help but notice the water on the floor. Water that was quickly rising.

Kurenai, her eyes a little better adjusted toward making use of what little light there was (2), took note that they seemed to be in a natural cavern, and that the water was pouring in through a number of cracks higher on the wall. There was a large hole in the ceiling, presumably where they fell through initially, though that was a good sixty feet up or so.

"That's not good," Kurenai remarked as she pointed out the cracks. "Wonder how weak these walls are."

Kirabi shrugged, "weak enough that I doubt we could walk them without causing more damage, and more problems for us in the process."

Haku and Kurenai grimaced at that. They really hadn't wanted to hear that. The two women shared a look and Haku immediately moved to the wall, a look of concentration on her face.

Kirabi frowned, "and what are you doing?"

Kurenai replied for the younger woman, "hopefully she's buying us some time."

The big man raised an eye at this. "And how's that?"

As the walls started to be encased in ice, Kurenai answered, "Haku's the last known member of the Yuki clan. If it's water, she can freeze it. Hopefully the ice won't weaken the wall more, and buy us some thinking space."

"Ah," he looked at the slight girl with a new appreciation. "A Yuki, huh? Father never did think of trying to save some of Kiri's dying bloodline clans. Bro did, but by then we were reasonably sure that they were either dead or fighting in the Resistance. Good to see we were at least partially wrong."

Kurenai sent an interested look his way. "Did you manage to save any bloodlines?"

Kirabi gave her a wary look from behind his ever-present sunglasses. "A few. A couple people here and there, never any large numbers, but we did manage to get our hands on a few interesting ones. No Yuki, though, if you were wondering."

The woman nodded in acceptance. He didn't want to explain his village's policy or success with an outsider. She could understand, even admired it. A true shinobi.

Haku finally stepped away from the wall, "Okay, that should hold, for a little bit at least."

"How long?" Kurenai asked.

Haku shrugged, "at most I'd give it an hour. Maybe as many as three."

"That's an hour or three more than we had," Kirabi nodded in respect. "Thanks to you, young lady. Now we need to figure out how to get out of here."

"Unfortunately," Haku continued, "The ice will have made the rock walls unstable. Once melted enough, the water pressure will likely cause this entire cavern to collapse. I hope we can come up with something in that time."

Kirabi nodded his head, "Yes, but that still gives us time we didn't have. Now to make the most use of it."

"Yes," Kurenai affirmed. "But most of our shinobi skills will likely be useless. And while we could, theoretically, just allow the water to carry us up, there's no guarantee that it will take us as far as we'd need to go. Nor do we know the solidarity of the rock above us, so we would be blindly hoping for our exit up there. On top of that, I don't know about you two, but I'd rather not court hypothermia by exposing myself to being submerged in water for a prolonged period just to find out that we are still stuck here."

The others agreed. That would just be stupid. The water they already had was up to their knees, no need to court disaster.

"Unfortunately, ladies, I'm afraid this is a little out of my depth," Kirabi said with a small grin, "Pun intended. If I were alone, I'd just let Hachi do his thing, but I'm not."

Haku blinked, "Hachi.. oh! The Hachibi! Of course, I'd forgotten you were noted as the vessel for that one."

"'That one?' 'Vessel?'" He gave her a hard to read look. The sunglasses he wore helped him in that regard. "Most refer to him as an 'it.' Why don't you?"

"Naruto-sama's the vessel for Kyuubi. Why would I look at you and the Hachibi any differently than I do them?" Haku said as if this was simply common sense.

While Kirabi flounder for a moment looking for an answer as she had caught him off-guard with that statement, Kurenai spoke up. "Kirabi-san, we are pledged, in one form or another, to a young man who has earned our respect a dozen or more times over. Out of that same respect, we extend a certain amount to others who either recognize him or share his fate. With this in mind, is it more understandable that we not only refuse to call the Hachibi 'it', but refer to both him and his container as people?"

The Kumo-nin blinked, and rubbed his jaw with one hand. "Yes, I suppose it is." He admitted. "My apologies, ladies. Even though in Kumo I am publicly declared a hero and a Guardian of Kaminari no Kuni, I still find myself bracing for rejection from my fellow man at times."

"Perfectly understandable," Haku noted with a small smile. "Now, let us put that behind us. Kurenai-san, I don't suppose you can see a way out above us?"

Kurenai looked up, allowing her eyes to do the work they were born to do. The cavern they were in was roughly rectangular, but not overly large. The ceiling was only about twenty feet up, and there was a hole there, but it was blocked off with rubble from what she could see. Looking around again, Kurenai could see the irregular walls, obviously carved by time. There were no holes she could see easily, but even with eyes better suited to low-light conditions, she knew she could easily be missing something.

"Even my eyes aren't well suited to this low amount of light," the woman muttered softly. With a sigh, she lifted one hand. "Looks like we have little choice. Boltflare."

The familiar orb of lightning burst into life in her upturned palm, illuminating the space they were in. With another look around, Kurenai released a sigh of frustration.

"Well, no previously hidden openings, either of you see anything?" Haku said from her search of the wall opposite Kurenai.

"Nothing here," Kirabi grunted. "Gotta tell ya, ladies, it's been a while since I've gone without rapping this long. Not sure if I like this serious mode of mine."

"Unfortunately for you, Kirabi-san," Kurenai replied with a rueful tone, "we rather prefer it."

Kirabi just laughed. "I'm not surprised in the least," he admitted. "I'll even admit that I originally started it just to annoy the hell out of my father for all the stupid stunts he pulled. Making me a Jinchuuriki, attempting to abduct Uzumaki Kushina, and the Hyuuga Debacle, just to name a few."

Kurenai and Haku exchanged amused glances. Then Kurenai spoke from her section of wall searching, "nothing here either. Looks like our only way out is back up the way we came."

All three of them shared unreadable expressions, before together releasing heavy sighs.

This was just not their day.

"Mistress," Araknos piped up. "Could not the spell of Hyperstride be of use to you and your fellow servant here?"

'Yes, Araknos,' Kurenai responded silently, 'But we would be forced to leave Kirabi-san behind. We do not wish to do that.'

"Then perhaps you should try the amulet in the water at your feet, Mistress." Araknos stated calmly, as if if it was the most obvious thing.

'At my feet?' She looked down, and there was indeed a glimmer of something in the water. Quickly reaching down for it, she pulled out an amulet with a large blue stone. 'How did we all miss this?'

She swore she felt Araknos shrug. Not that it was truly important right then.

Kurenai frowned as she looked over the proposal from all angles, and failed to see any fault with it. Granted new Titans generally took a greater toll than later, but over all it should be negligible. But, Haku was with her, and would still have Behemoth and the rest of her Titans in reserve in case they was needed.

Kurenai nodded, 'Very well, Araknos. We will probably go with your idea… just as soon as I've figured out what's in here.'

"If you really need to, just summon me, Mistress. I can scale those walls with ease, and my threads are strong enough to climb."

'Yeah, that'll be Plan B.'

Making certain that she wasn't being watched, Kurenai held the amulet tightly in her hand and felt for the spirit within, hoping for an easy bond.

And she got one.

"My new Mistress, I answer to the name Enfluxion. Call upon me, and the Waters will be yours to command." The voice was much as she might expect the waves to sound, calm and smooth and so very quiet, yet also distinctly feminine.

'Well, that was much easier than I expected.'

"I am bored."

'Ah...' Kurenai couldn't help a sweatdrop sensation.

Then she turned to the man in the room. "Kirabi-san, I am about to call out someone to help us. However," she frowned heavily at him, "I would prefer it if this particular assistant is never mentioned to your Raikage."

Kirabi narrowed his eyes and asked, "what about my brother?"

"Can he separate the two identities?"

The large man grunted, that was a fair question. Many leaders couldn't separate their personal lives from their work lives. "Yes."

"Then your brother may be allowable."

He looked at her for a long while, trying to read into her thoughts through her expression. He found himself blocked by a face as expressionless as a sheer cliff.

Finally he gave in. "Very well."

Kurenai nodded her acceptance of his word, and took a step back, raising her right hand above her head. "Move The Waters, Enfluxion!"

A decidedly female form rose from the waters around them, yet still made entirely of water. There was nothing physical about her, yet her outline was most certainly that of a beautiful woman.

The woman made of water bowed to Kurenai. "What would you have of me, Mistress?"

"Enfluxion, use the water to raise us all back up to a higher area where we can get out of here."(3)

Thus began a rather uncomfortable ride up to the hole in the ceiling. Enfluxion caused the full collapse of the cavern they were in when she called the water to do her bidding, then used that same wild water to grasp the three humans and raise them up to the hole.

"… I'm sorry ladies, I have to say it."

Kurenai and Haku looked eachother with worry.

"Now I know what a backed up toilet feels like."

Groans resounded from the two women who suddenly wished they had left him down there.

They reached the hole in the ceiling fairly quickly, only to discover that it was a long, winding shaft going on up. With soft sighs, Kurenai, Haku, and Kirabi all resigned themselves to a wet ride up.

XxXxXxXx

The first splash of water was Hinata's only warning before a deluge came streaming in. Having little other choice, she reached out with her right hand.

"Move the Skies, Legendary Titan, Tao!"

From within the ring on her hand came a figure all in blue. Wispy clouds for legs, but an oddly water-like appearance to its otherwise male torso and arms, with a distinctly ovular shape to the head. Tao.. was so alien it just seemed to suit him.

"Tao, I have no more time," Hinata cried, "I need you to carry Karui-san and myself back to the surface, quickly!"

Tao just nodded, quickly sweeping the two women into his arms and rising swiftly back up the shaft of the previously dry well.

XxXxXxXx

The rumbling noise was the first warning Naruto and Samui received that something was wrong. The second was that the upward-sloping path they were following was starting to see water trickle down toward them. The third…

Well, the third was a red-skinned woman in a white kimono with a flame theme screeching and latching onto Naruto's free arm, tugging him to try and move him to go faster. A few moments after she made her appearance, she vanished in a burst of light and Naruto felt something settle in a hidden pocket of his sleeve. (5)

He turned his attention to his companion. "I hope you don't mind being carried. With that just now I think we need to move faster."

Samui looked at him. She didn't think he was weak, but could he really move faster carrying her? It only took her a moment to make her decision.

"No, leave me here and get out," she said. "You will move faster without me."

"Oh for crying out loud," Naruto muttered. He stared hard into her eyes, "I am not leaving you here to possibly drown. Now, can you stand to be carried?"

Samui hesitated for a minute, then nodded. In one smooth movement, Naruto swept his free arm under her knees and Samui found herself in being carried like a princess or a bride on her wedding day.

"Hyperstride!" (4) Naruto called out, his legs gaining a blue glow. With that he shot off up the passage way, Samui's weight, unfortunately, not negligable.

He ran up for a few minutes, until his Hyperstride wore out. Carefully, he placed Samui on her feet, and breathed hard for a few moments.

"This isn't working, I'm going to call in some help..." He paused for a moment and looked at her, "I'd appreciate if this didn't go any further than your team at most, Samui-san."

Confused, Samui just cocked her head as she leaned against a wall to take pressure off her legs."If what doesn't go further?"

"This," Naruto reached down to his belt where his amulets glinted, and grabbed his newest. "Albion, I need your assistance!"

A blank-faced man in light armor appeared from within the depths of the amulet, a wide double-edged sword in hand, and knelt in submission to Naruto. The young man quickly waved the Titan to his feet. "Albion, I need you to carry this woman as we run up."

Albion nodded while attaching his sword to his back, and turned to pick the woman up in his arms. He didn't need to know why this was important, his Master had asked it of him so he would comply. He was simply that loyal. (6)

"Alright, Double Spell: Hyperstride!"

Twin blue lights lit up Albion and Naruto's legs, and together they hauled ass up the way. Albion, being naturally stronger than Naruto, had no problem carrying Samui. Naruto, unburdened, had little problem in keeping up.

Only a few minutes later, and they made it to the top of the winding path only to see Tao setting Hinata and Karui down on the other side of what appeared to be a large underground lake that was splashing and overflowing back down the way Naruto just came from. In the center was Kurenai, Kirabi, and Haku standing with a woman made of water.

Naruto couldn't stop himself. He simply stared at the tableau before him and asked in a rather jaunty tone, "So, what did I miss?"

XxXxXxXx- Ending Notes

Now, I recall someone making the comment that I'm giving out Naruto's new power out willy-nilly, and that since it's not just his or his group's power, the story might as well be given up for dead. This person is undoubtedly one who has never seen Huntik. Anyone can bond with a Titan. The Bonding is just made easier if the new human is of similar mindset, morals, and personality to the previous user. As an example, Demigorgon's previous master was a man that thought nothing of killing and betraying people if it meant succeeding in his goals, much like Danzo. Whereas in this story Lindorm's last master was a person of morals and ethics and a desire to protect, thus the easy bonding with Naruto who also has those same qualities.

For Zabuza… it was simply Zabuza's bad luck that he never found one that resonated with his "lie to himself" mindset.

Otherwise the only active Titan's were the singular ones belonging to any particular Clan, one to a Clan. Whether or not this Titan remained active was entirely up to whether or not it bonded to the next generation, who was typically taught to basically think and react the same as previous generations.

(1) Supine: otherwise known as lying flat on one's back, with the head and neck straight. This is the position that paramedics use the most on site to assess damage to people who have been injured.

(2) Kurenai's eyes: I'm only partially making this up. Red eyes are a form of albinism, frequently caused when the melanin (the chemical responsible for eye color and how much our eyes are protected from light) is so low that blood vessels are easily seen in the eye. As a result, red eyes collect much more light than anyone else, which makes them better suited for night work than others. On the flip side, light hurts them much more and tends to make them irritable, so… yeah.

(3) Enfluxion's only noted skill is "Water Manipulation". I'm taking a few liberties here, but I honestly don't care.

(4) Hyperstride: increases your legs in both speed and strength for a duration.

(5) Kerosan: Who will be her new Seeker? How was she still active? Good questions. Find out later!

(6) Albion: this Titan is literally known for his fierce loyalty toward his summoner/Seeker. It is, in point of fact, his Special Ability, which helps him shrug off things like mind-control effects such as Araknos possesses.

Current List of Titans (New Titan)

Naruto: Arc, Kunoichi, Hoplite, Megladeath, Lindorm, Albion

Hinata: Tao, Shinobi, Hoplite, Undine, Kilthane

Haku: Behemoth, Myrmidon, Hoplite, Triton, Kilthane

Kurenai: Araknos, Medea, Hoplite, Kilthane, Enfluxion

Tsunade: Freelancer

Shikamaru: Springer

Chouji: Undergolem

Kakashi: Bulregard

Inuzuka Clan (somewhere): Fenris

Unbonded (But in Naruto's possession at this time): Demigorgon, Kerosan

Unbonded (at home): Kilthane (x1), Albion (x1), Plus 12 Unknown from the Cavern in Wave.