The newly named Naruto sighed, he could feel the grass beneath his feet as the sun warming his skin as he breathed in the fresh air. Despite this however he could already feel the clouds forming around the island blocking some of the sun's heat. Opening his eyes he pulled himself to his feet, and out of the lotus position. The signature drowsy feeling common after a long meditation session clawed it's way from his throat in the form of a yawn.

Stretching his now stiff muscles, the blond enjoyed the momentary silence that enveloped the clearing. Only disturbed by the sound of the wind brushing through the trees, and the chirping of the bird songs. The young ex-prince sighed before he allowed his mind to wander. His feet making a padding noise, against the stone flooring as his body went on auto pilot.

It had been a few weeks since his talk with Roku, and the boy couldn't help but feel their was more to the equation than what the avatar had mentioned. He couldn't help this nagging feeling in the back of his mind, that Roku's explanation was missing something. But the Library held no answers to his question, and it seemed he would have to wait until he met with the past avatar at the fire temple.

Of course the solstice was a way off, and the young blond had other questions that needed answering. 'What the hell is going with the fire nation?' being at the top of the list followed closely by 'What the hell was that pulse back at the village?' But once again he couldn't answer either of his questions at the moment. Well he could when it came to the latter question, but for now he'd decided to take the path of least resistance.

Otherwise known as the path that didn't involve copious amount of pain.

His hands idly grabbing things-from poker chips, to dice, and even a model ostrich horse-as he walked, through the corridors of the Great Floating Library.

Other than the time it'd taken him to to come up with that plan, most of his time had been spent training his lightning bending. He'd found out that as long he kept hold of the lightning he was using, the lightning didn't act naturally.

In hindsight that was rather obvious, as lighting bending usually just consists of the bender pointing the lighting in one direction and waiting for it to fry everything the way. Until you think about the fact that lighting usually goes to the largest quantity of metal in the area. Meaning that the lighting should always veer of course and hit the nearest blob of metal-which usually consisted of fire nation soldiers...

Considering that the Fire Nation was winning this war, (or at least the closest thing possible to winning in a war…) That obviously didn't happen… or at least not often (it would explain why very few soldiers ever used any traditional lightning bending.) Stopping that train of though he returned to his previous thoughts. As it turned out Lightning bending was capable of a lot!

But that was a subject for another time.

So far he'd figured out, that he could basically control any metal, a long as he'd either touched it, or it was within a six feet of him. Not that big considering he'd been able to Pseudo-Earthbend a rock from almost twenty feet away with some(a lot) of effort. It was the fact he did this with practically no effort that changed things up.

The only reason he was able to bend the Island was because, the entire Island was basically a gigantic floating magnet on crack… whatever that was. But even that took quite a lot of energy out of the exiled prince. But bending metal was practically effortless, he could-no he had done it all day and barely felt like he'd had a work out. It was probably the result of breaking the barrier, as he remembered magnetizing metal to be a lot more tiring.

He'd also been practicing his so called "High five" attack that he'd used to distract the speaker. The results being that he could hold the electrical arm for a whole minute before it would dissipate on it's own. Meaning that as long as he didn't smack the ground he could basically use the arm like an extension of his own body… It make moving large objects easier at least. Naruto had also experimented with the Trailium deposits on the island.

He had been quite shocked to find out the metal seemed to store, electricity… now that he thought about it was probably why the island had been able to hold such large amounts of electricity. At one point in time he'd shifted the metal in the shape of a large spike, a stuffed so much electricity inside it began to glow blue. He'd also been stunned to find that whenever Amala entered the room it would send copious amount of lighting at her, completely ignoring everything else in the room.

Eventually he just put a cage of iron around the pike so that Amala could enter the room safely. The blond had learned-after he'd jumped in front Amala-that lightning, couldn't harm him, as his body just absorbed it.

He'd also noticed that he seemed to have a better... Understanding?-yes that fit-of lightning. It was hard to explain, but he seemed to share a similar personality, to the element… But that wasn't all that important…

Yes he had other things to do…

Like removing Amala's slave brand. Most would think, removing such a thing would be trivial, for a fire-bender. After all couldn't they just burn the mark away? Sure it would leave a hand-print on her shoulder but it would get rid of the brand right? The answer was quite plainly no!

If that was true fire-benders could simply burn the mark away, and as such escape without a problem. No the brand was special, in a way that it would always stand out against the skin, no matter if it was burned, or even flayed the skin off the mark would remain. He had no idea how it was made, or even how it was possible to do something like that, but it had been done.

His eye's lit up as he walked into a spare room, somewhere around the bottom of the island. It was a simple empty room, fresh candles lighting the windowless area. Several knickknacks laid about-statues of men shaking hands, books about how to have a good business, a scroll talking about how to make loophole free contracts, and other such things. In the corner stood a somewhat jittery Amala, her hands showing just how nervous she truly was.

"Amala." He said in greeting, The cinnamon hair girl shot so high that he would have chuckled, had he not been just as nervous as she was. "Naruto!... S-sorry I didn't see you come in." she said shyly her head down as if she expected him to punish her. He just shook his head, and rubbed her hair like he'd, pictured doing to his little sister when he was younger.

It seemed to have been the right move as Her brown eyes glowed with a slight bit of happiness, red sparks twinkling in her eyes, as she shoved his hand of her head. Her red cheeks expressing a small amount of embarrassment, as tried to hide it by turning her head away. The tense atmosphere broken he chuckled slightly.

Amala seemingly didn't hear his chuckle, or simply ignored it as she spoke hesitantly. "Are you sure you can't just burn it off?" Her voice shy, as she avoided his gaze. Sighing he let his shoulders sag a bit, he was absolutely sure he that burning it off wouldn't work-even it it would he wouldn't done that, he wouldn't cause her any pain. Not even if she asked him to.

A solemn nod was her answer. With the way they were acting most people would think they were making a deal with the so called devil! Ignoring the fact that they wouldn't have been to far off, he gestured for them to begin.

With the help of Amala, he moved every knickknack in the room into the shape of the intersecting circles. Taking a scroll out of a pocket in his coat he set it gently in the center of the circles, were they all intersected, while Amala quickly retreated as far away from the circle as possible without leaving the room.

Exiting the circle Naruto turned around before holding his right hand over the strange symbol, in a way that looked as if he was about to shake someone's hand. Taking a second to take a deep calming breath before he spoke the blonde's eyes glittered with determination.

"I call for a deal." he said his voice deathly calm yet holding all the determination of a man screaming, for war. "So come and let us bargain, Come and let us have a pact I Call you."

"Locatum"

Little did Naruto know, but this meeting would solidify A suspicion he already held, from his short meeting with Roku. That simple fact being that he hated Spirits and their Meaningless riddles!

Five years prior

Toph Beifong was a rebellious child.

She didn't understand why she wasn't allowed outside the walls like her sister, so she would always do her best to leave them, she didn't understand why her mother wanted her to act so… stuck up? Was that the word? She wasn't really sure. But anyway she didn't understand why her family acted like every accomplishment she made in her earth-bending was, an insult.

Sure she was blind, but that didn't mean she couldn't bend!

She didn't understand why her mother seemed to like her sister so much more! Don't get her wrong she loved her little sister, Tsuna with all of her tiny little six year old heart. That and the fact she got to spend more time with daddy, than Tsuna! But she still wanted to know why her mother's heart skipped a beat in a similar manner to that of when someone was lying, when she called her daughter.

So after a few month of being taught by the badgermoles, she finally decided that she didn't really care that they told her not to leave the walls of the estate. She might not have told them she could see through her feet, but they should have more faith in her ability to keep herself safe.

So it with that that she decided to sneak out.

The first time she did it, she was almost caught by one of the guards, when she bended a piece of the wall away in order to make her exit., in the end she ended up hiding in a big mud puddle when the guard looked her way. So it was an extremely dirty, and completely un-nobleish Toph that met the street orphan Macky.

It was also the first time Toph ever had fun. She had fun running away from guards when they moved a mean old farmers livestock onto his roof, she had fun gambling rocks with some of the, other dirty smelly children. She had fun running around town giggling madly as they accidentally smash a merchant's cabbages.

And she kept doing for weeks before, Macky dragged her off to meet a man he called old man Ki. A balding old man with only to teeth in his, and a speech impairment that caused him to have a really creepy voice. An old man that told the best stories the second you got him around a campfire, and a warm smile always plastered on his face, and old man who was always sucking on some hard rock candy. He would even give you some if you asked nicely!

She went to what was apparently a monthly gathering of orphans and other children who lived by and just listened as he spilled story after story. Some of them funny, others sad, while others still told of just how bright the world could be if you looked at it that way.

As he spouted cheap jokes, and wisecracks that would simply have you laughing till the sun came up.

That was the first time Toph ever felt like she was apart of something… Real. The first time Toph Beifong laughed herself to sleep, a warm feeling that could only be called family wrapped around her heart.

And that was the reason she kept coming back.

Every single gathering, she went to would hold a place in her heart for the rest of her life… Even the one that caused her to realize just what was wrong with her life.

FlashBack

She was sitting in a crowd of, children-Both orphaned, and not- as the fire flickered to life. The other children speaking to her, throwing mud and not at all concerned that she was blind. An orange glow flickering over them, only fueling the groups nervous energy.

Giggles breaking over the crowd as old man Ki stumbled up to the fire, falling on his bum with an over exaggerated plopping sound. "Now now chiildren!" he putting emphasis on the i, "Lets calm down so I can tell you all a story." He paused to pull out a piece of rock candy in his mouth, "Now you all know how this works!" his hand pointing out over the crowd of kids, "What kinda story ya' want tonight?" He paused to make sure everyone heard him. "How bout a funny one?" a small amount of kids cheered, "Or maybe nice friendly one?" again the children cheered albeit a bit louder. "Oh I get you want a scary one?" Only few children cheered this time before Ki gave the last option, "So a sad story is it?" a large amount of the children cheered, Toph joining in on the pandemonium. " Alright calm down, Calm down! Let me think of one." Old man Ki said happily

For a minute he just sat there tapping his chin mumbling to himself, "Aha!" He yelled "I got one here it goes, Ahem."

Standing up Ki cleared his throat, Clapping hi hands together, before rubbing them together. "There once was man," he said mysteriously "This man was strong, and handsome, and said have created our very village with the power of his earth-bending." He said his voice commanding the crowds attention. "He was young and handsome, and in love. The girl he loved so was a simple woman. But a beautiful one, her face was was beautiful men were said to fall in love with a glance, her skin an ever entrancing mocha, her eyes glistening emeralds with hypnotic stare to lure in a man's heart." Ki said his hand gesturing in ways that made it seem like he was painting the woman's picture with his words. "Her figure, was said to make men salivate before they even saw her, and her hair as black as the night itself." Ki said in a voice of longing.

"The man- Maru was nothing before her voice as he tried to win her heart, it would not be long before they were wed, and she- Aneris was wrapped around his finger. It was no surprise when their a child was born not a ten months later." Ki's eyes glowed in way, that said he thought of nothing more pure than a child, "And they lived ever so happy, their love an expanding lotus. They talked of things, her love of the north cold winds, of his wish to once see the sky from above… but it was not to last." he said his voice choking slightly.

"For the daughter, was beautiful just like her mother, and unbelievably smart… she wasn't however an Earth-bender…" Some of the older children gasped in understanding, Toph merely furrowing a brow as she listened to the story. "It was seen as a disgrace for a man of such power, and stature to be unable to sire a child of equal power. He was distraught, and for a time he sought comfort in a bottle, and his wife… but it wasn't long before his eyes wandered."

"For a time Aneris was happy, and ignorant, of her husband's wandering eyes. But it wouldn't be long before He strayed further from her embrace." Ki said forlornly, his voice holding the audience's attention like a cat, with a ball of yarn.

"An stray further he did, seeking to have a child with another woman. In hopes to have a child that held his power, and it would be the very day of the new child's birth, he would remove both Aneris, and her daughter from his life." Old man Ki stopped, through another chunk of rock candy in his mouth as he seemed to be struggling not to cry. "Thrown onto the streets they were, in the middle of winter. It would be a months time, before a storm struck the village." He said in a choked voice, "But this would be no normal storm, this would be a blizzard. A Storm so strong it was said to have whipped roofs off of houses-to have frozen anyone who yet to light a fire… Aneris, was as some would say lucky, as she managed to hide with her daughter inside the caves with the badger moles."

Pausing to take a breath, Ki continued his story." The badger moles were kind to her, bringing bother food and water for her, and her child. But it was not to be, as she withered away- the betrayal of her love, having taken it's toll on her heart. As she took her last breath, she cursed the man, who had rended her heart in two… and the spirits listened." He announced "They listened and allowed her tormented spirit to test, his descendants." He gestured to the audience, "She would forever appear in front of his descendants, with all the allure and beauty she held in life." old man Ki grimaced, "Should their eyes stray to far… should they chase in her in the way of rabbits in spring… they would find only hardship. For their first child, would hold all the power Maru wished of his child, but the child would be as blind as the badgermoles that protected her before her death." A sad smile made it's way onto his lips, "However she also wished this child luck… wished it to never meet man nor woman who would treat them as Maru treated her."

"It would not be long before Maru's son attempted to appease her spirit, having seen her, tempting him at every turn. In an effort to lessen her wrath he named his first, child Anil Beifong, meaning wind northern, or northern wind. In name of the Cold winds Aneris so adored." It was at that moment Old man Ki turned to look at Toph...

The crowd went silent as for the first time in her life Toph Beifong understood.

Flashback end

It had been a month since then, since she had snuck back onto the estate, tears leaking out of her eyes. Toph wanted to just lay down, and ball her eyes out, but she was dirty. Her once prestinem and regal robes... now covered in mud, and dirt. She knew that If she went to sleep as she was, her father would realize something was up and as such she cleaned herself up. But tonight was the night, that she would no longer hear her mother's false sentiments… tonight was the night Toph Beifong would see Old man Ki for the last time, tonight was the night Toph Beifong would hear him speak in good cheer as he told the tale of an exiled prince.

And tonight? Tonight was the night Toph Beifong disappeared without a trace.

The Present

Naruto, stood resolute as the strange symbol lit up. A mist spewed out of the circle, heavy and thick as it covered the room with ominous feeling. Soon it faded enough to see a figure standing in front of the strange symbol, facing Naruto. Yet he stood unfazed, as the figure shifted constantly, Shifting form the form of tiger in a strange hat, to that of fox with a crown, and finally into the shape of a snake dressed in some sort of clothing that he knew (Somehow) was called a "Suit".

His voice commanding and deep as he spoke, "Take your form Spirit!" the intersecting circles glowed brighter as several of the knickknacks disappeared from the circles. The spirits from shifted once again, but this time it halted on the form of woman.

A beautiful woman, some part of his brain pointed out.

Her Blood red hair, flowing like water down her back, her form covered in a skimpy kimono that somehow looked impossibly regal, on her lithe figure. Manicured nails tapping together idly, as she seemed to notice him. Her bored red eyes, glowed in amusement as she noticed the human before her. The red and black kimono, swaying slightly as she seemed to appear directly in front of the him, the candles in the room, only allowing him a small glimpse of the intricate vines embroidered in black, upon the blood red surface.

"Oh… what's this?" she said her manicured hand cupping his jaw, paying little to no attention to the shaking from of Amala as she watched the scene. "It seems the Exiled has called me…" She seemed to glide backwards, into her original spot, almost as if she hadn't moved at all. "Now what could this lost prince need, of little old me?" a sultry smirk on her face, as her voice voice never left a husky tone.

If he was affected he didn't show it as he spoke in the same, calm and steely tone he had from the beginning. "You Know exactly why I have called you here, Locatum." The spirit rolled her eye playfully, as she disappeared once again, only to phase into existence in front of the frozen Amala. "So the Taboo child wants to me to remove this girl's, slave brand." She said with some manner of surprise, before her face changed into a petulant pout, "How… boring." Before either of them could react, one her arms slinked out and tapped the brand, on Amala's neck. The cinnamon haired girl gasped, as burning sensation broke over the mark, before it gradually faded into her skin.

Blue eyes widened in surprise, eyebrow shooting into his hairline, as he gulped.

That wasn't suppose to happen.

Locatum disappeared, once again before her arms slinked their way around his neck, her breath rubbing against his ear as she spoke in an amused tone. A smirk on her red lips as she whispered into his ear, His blood freezing over as she pressed her bust into his back.

"Now, what are you going to give me in return hm?"