Pairing: Naruto/X-23/Captain-Marvel/Angela/Valkyrie/Kelda?/Phoenix

Rating: M

Summary: During X-23 and Hellions mission to save Mercury from the Facility that had made Laura into what she was, Wolverine's clone stumbles across a ninja from another universe in cryo-stasis and rescues him. However no one could have hoped to have foreseen the sheer consequence of this decision and how irrevocably it would change the world. Strong/Smart Naruto, Naru/Harem. AU

Disclaimer: I do not own any themes, characters or locations from either the Naruto franchise or Marvel comics. I don't own anything period, aside from the inspiration and creativity behind this awesome story.

A/N: So I just wanted to take a moment and apologies for the delay in my next update of Archer of the Fifth. My life's been quite busy lately and by that I mean I was bedridden for a while due to being sick as shit thanks to some weird virus and then when I got better my laptop broke and then I unsuccessfully went looking for a job and then my aunt died and now I am sick. You get the picture.

However I couldn't stand to keep you guys waiting without at least something to keep you busy so I pulled this story that was collecting dust from an old hard-drive and tidied it up. That said I will get back to Chapter 3 of Archer of the Fifth and i'll upload it as soon as I am done with writing it. For now please enjoy An Unorthodox Hero.

Oh and be aware this Naruto is different. How? I won't say too much but don't hold any expectations of him behaving or making the same choices as canon Naruto. This Naruto is far more ruthless when he needs to be and smarter.

Chapter 1:

"I hate magic. It makes no sense to me so it utterly irritates me but I also love it cause of the wonder and mystery revolving around it. That said, if I was to pick between magic and chakra I would choose chakra every time cause once you understand it their really isn't anything you can't do."

— Naruto Uzumaki

oOo

Waking up from cryogenic stasis was a bitch, Naruto Uzumaki would soon conclude. Especially when you had a regenerative healing factor and a body that actively fought the whole process going in. His captors had even claimed that they were deliberately freezing him at a far lower temperature than was normal just to combat his regeneration and spite him for his troublesome-ness (Was that even a word?). In the end, the whole process did not do good things for his body's cells.

Which was why Naruto's eyes were currently stinging like a bitch along with the rest of his body as he thawed. Keeping them shut due to the pain took away one of his senses but then he already couldn't taste, smell or feel anything either. Those senses where all completely numb.

However his ears despite throbbing fiercely could at least make out something resembling sounds from his surrounding. Nothing truly distinct and if he was to use a comparison it was like listening to already muffled sound under water but it was still distinctly sound. Which meant one of his regular sense's was working even if not properly.

Despite his poor condition, Naruto Uzumaki was just happy he was finally free of that kami forsaken prison for however long he would retain that freedom this time. It was not the first time he had been brought out of cryo by these evil scientist that would have been best pals with Orochimaru and it likely wouldn't be the last. However Naruto fully intended to make sure he didn't go back into that hellish contraption willingly. Not that he ever did go in there willingly to begin with but he intended to put up more of a fight this time.

Curled in a fetal position on the floor where he had fallen after being released, Naruto was garbed in nothing more than some skintight sports boxers to preserve his modesty. As he slowly regenerated in that state he was far from being capable of even moving, let alone doing anything else at a hundred percent functionality.

However the scientist at this facility had done something to him and somehow accelerated his healing ability. Naruto could literally feel it and it scared him. Cells which had exploded due to being frozen at temperatures far below zero degrees Celsius thawed due to his higher than normal body temperature, repairing themselves and putting his body back together. Which meant in a few minutes he would be physically at a hundred percent and those that had done this to him would all be in a lot of pain if they hadn't drugged him to high hell by then.

Still his captors weren't idiots and new better than to release him from his cage without safeguards. They were still rebuilding several labs from the first and last time they had been careless with him and he'd gone on a rampage as he attempted to escape. Which was why Naruto wondered to himself. 'What was going on here? Surely they can't be this stupid.'

"-ey, are you alright?"

'Ah!' He thought, it seemed his hearing had finally kicked in enough so that he could not only differentiate words being spoken from white noise but understand what was actually being said and that the voice speaking to him was that of a female. Grunting in a failed attempt at a response due to his vocal cords still thawing, only earned him a concerned. "Easy, easy. You just came out of cryo, its disorienting and painful but I promise I will help you get out of here."

'Why?' Naruto wondered to himself as he lay their regenerating. It had been weeks since he was first brought to the facility from what he could gather each time they brought him out of cryo, seven weeks to be exact. Yet in that whole time he had been held captive and frequently experimented on, not once had he met a single individual in this facility who was willing to show him even an inkling of compassion and human decency.

In stead they had cut him open with wide grins as they plundered the secrets of his body and mind in hopes of replicating them to improve upon their Weapon X program, whatever the hell that was. It was the highest physical violation a shinobi can endure and the reason Hunter-nin squads existed in the Elemental Nations. Hell Konoha ANBU who were too badly injured to complete the mission willingly immolated themselves to preserve the secrets of their bodies. As for Naruto he felt very violated and someone would pay for that.

So it naturally begged the questions. Why was someone suddenly claiming they would help get him out of this hellhole? Why was this person showing kindness towards him and he could feel that it was genuine kindness through his negative sensing ability when for the past five weeks all he had known was pain, humiliation and indignity from his captors?

In the end he concluded that the only way to get the answers he wanted was to open his eyes and look for himself into the eyes of the woman who claimed she would help him. So risking the pain that would come from the brightness of the room as he opened his eyes that had yet to fully regenerate from being frozen, he laid his gaze on his would be savior and his mind went blank. Apparently his eyes were a lot more healed than he thought.

'Kami she's gorgeous.'

The stray thought had sprung to the forefront of his mind of its own will and yet he couldn't find it in himself to deny its truth. He had seen plenty of great beauty's in his homeland, Mei, Tsunade, Yugao, Yugito, Hinata, Karin, Ino, Anko, Mabui, Ryuzetsu and many many more. Even his own mother and Sasuke's for that matter could be described as babes, not that he entertained such thoughts of his mother but it was still an undeniable fact.

Yet this girl was different. Her breast size was not even as large as half the above mentioned women and yet it suited her physique perfectly and enhanced her. She wasn't very tall at 5'1"ft but her lithe figure had the type of musculature that one could only get through intensive workout on a nearly daily basis and proportions that were simply perfect for her.

Her skin was a darker tone that indicated a lot of exposure to the sun and Naruto did a double take when his gaze swept over her hips and ass which were undeniable sexy as hell. She did not look like some ethereal goddess like so many of the woman he had known in his homeland but perhaps that was what made her so much more fetching to his eye. That and the fact she had just saved him from his personal frozen hell.

He couldn't resist noting how her form hugging black top, pants and heeled boots did nothing but enhance how sexy she looked. And yes, he was a bit of a pervert but the world needed to be praising the Log that he wasn't worse considering Jiraiya of the Sannin had been his master. However he still had the presence of mind to note her straight raven hair and jade eyes. Eyes so full pain, regret and hope mixed together. Eyes that reminded himself of every time he looked in the mirror when he was younger. They were beautiful

"Beautiful."

Naruto most certainly did not mean to say that out loud seeing as his vocal cords were supposed to still be repairing themselves so when she blushed and looked to the side, he had no idea to how resolve the awkward atmosphere he had just created. Or at least do it properly, but then again this was Uzumaki Naruto we were talking about so he decided to bull his way through the awkwardness and simply change the subject.

"Um, I am Naruto Uzumaki. Nice to meet you." He said extending his right hand only to realize with no small amount of surprise that he actually had a right hand. 'Huh, I thought Kaguya chopped that off below the elbow. It certainly wasn't their last time these asshole brought me out of cryo.'

The girl eyed his extended arm for a second as if it was a snake threatening to bite her before taking the hand in her own and shaking it as she calmly replied. "X-23, we need to move. We are not safe here."

Caught off guard by her name he couldn't help but blurt out. "X-23! The hell kind of name is that?" Let it not be said that Naruto was not his mother's son. Quick to speak and impulsive to a fault. He'd improved over the years as he took on various responsibilities but he was still very much an Uzumaki at his core.

"The people who captured you and have been experimenting on you, created me years ago and designated me X-23. The 23rd experimental clone to replicate the abilities of my father, the original Weapon X." She explained without a care in the world.

Naruto paused in surprise at her blunt revelation before saying. "Yeah, I gathered my captors were a bunch of dicks but that...that's just not right. Don't you have another name I can call you?"

It was the girl's turn to pause in surprise, more so at the fact that Naruto still had some sense of morality than anything else after being the Facility's plaything for a while. Still she replied. "My mother named me Laura Kinney."

"Perfect." Naruto said with a wide grin showing his sparkling teeth as he memorized the strange name. It was a strange world he'd found himself in so strange names came with the territory. "Its nice to meet you Laura, now lets get out of here. I think i've healed enough to move."

Again Laura, seemed to get caught off guard by his comment as he rose to his feet, eventually asking. "You can regenerate? Are you another clone?"

For a moment Naruto thought of the thousands of clones he once could make using the Shadow clone jutsu he was famous for but dismissed it, already knowing that the way she used the word was very different from the way he and his people did. "No, i've always been able to heal quickly but I think they enhanced that or something. I am healing faster than normal and my right hand seems to have regrown...somehow."

She looked at his hand in curiosity before asking. "Did they cut it off."

Naruto merely chuckled as he recalled exactly how he lost his right arm before replying. "Nope, I lost that in a fight with some stupid goddess." With that he headed for the door heedless of the incredulous look his savior was giving him as she followed and soon the duo were out of the lab he had been held in.

VvV

Julian Keller aka Hellion knew he'd fucked it up with Laura. He knew it the minute that she begged him to kill Kimura and he'd said no. Whatever mutual attraction the two had been feeling for each over the past few weeks since he'd saved her from Nimrod was suddenly replaced by betrayal. She felt as if his actions by choosing to let the psychotic woman live had betrayed her in some deep profound way. Unfortunately he could not understand why this was and perhaps he did not want to.

It had been a long night already and his eyes had been opened to a side of Laura that he had never seen before. The side that reminded you that she was every bit the clone of Wolverine she claimed to be and a killer to boot. His teammate Cessily Kincaid aka Mercury had been kidnapped by the an evil organization that X-23 referred to simply as 'The Facility'. These people where the same ones that had created Laura to be a living weapon and apparently they had been the ones to experiment on Wolverine too, years ago and bond his skeleton with adamantium.

In short these people intended to do bad things to his teammate Mercury so Hellion and X-23 were in a race against time to save her. Which was why they had struck at the hideouts of numerous little gangs with connections to the Facility or connections to someone who was in turn connected to the Facility in some way. It didn't even matter how remote the connection was, the duo had visited every single one of those individuals for information.

Unfortunately each and every time while Julian tried to kick the bad guys teeth in to get the information out of them. Laura on the other hand had absolutely no qualms with straight up gutting these people for answers. In short she was more than willing to kill or dismember quite a number of bad guys for the information she wanted. As far as she was concerned when it came to these people, it was kill or be killed, pure and simple.

Over and over Julian had repeated to Laura like a mantra that the X-men did not kill and she would listen for a moment and seemingly consider his words. However when they got to the next locations she would ignore his words and do something that could potential kill one or all of the people they were shaking down for information. Often times Hellion was the very one saving the lives of the bad guys from X-23 as she took playing the bad cop to a whole new level. One thug that she had thrown out of a 12th story building window came to mind after he had failed to give her answers. Lucky for the thug Julian was telekinetic.

Hell Julian had even watched her shoot a man in the head in cold blood that very night, right after the man had truthfully given them all the information he had on the Facility. Not that it was much. Still after witnessing all that, Hellion just couldn't look at her the same and it all came to a head when they had been ambushed by Kimura and he had successfully countered that ambushed and pinned Kimura to a wall with his telekinesis.

Laura had then begged him to end Kimura's life with tears in her eyes and he had said no. In that moment Julian had watched something inside of her...some kind of faith in him snuff out. It was heart breaking for him but he already knew he would make the same decision again if it was thrust on him.

However this also meant that whatever the two of them had had together these past weeks since the Nimrod incident was now over. After tonight, nothing between them would ever be the same and it was killing him. He just wasn't a killer, while X-23 very much was and in his mind you couldn't be a killer and good person at the same time. Yet Hellion still found her so attractive.

Sighing as he made his way through the secret facility's many labs ripping doors open and taking down guards wherever he encountered them he headed for the location X-23 had pointed out Cessily was located at. Saving his teammate was the mission after all and it took precedence over everything he was dealing with emotionally.

VvV

"Naruto why did you stop."

Naruto looked at his pretty rescuer when she called his name. His attention had been drawn momentarily to the spike in negative emotions he sensed in various places in the facility and he had unknowingly stopped the quick jog through the facility. Replying honestly he said. "Your friend is in great pain up ahead. I can feel it and its kind of distracting. However I can also sense more lifeforms in that room."

With his explanation given Laura frowned for a moment before nodding as she said. "One of them is probably Hellion. I sent him ahead to rescue Mercury, while I investigated the lab you were in. I am positive he got to her by now and he's strong enough to handle almost anything the Facility could throw at him."

The explanation was simple but from Naruto's frown Laura could tell that the ninja knew their was more to it than that. It didn't take a genius to figure out that while in the midst of rescue mission, one doesn't just veer of course and investigate a random lab when their friend is in danger without their being some kind of story behind it. Either Laura had the utmost confidence in this Hellion's abilities or she had other reasons for doing so.

Laura however was just grateful that Naruto didn't press the issue, choosing instead to say. "Your friend Hellion might be in there but he is not alone. I can sense four other life-signs in there and three of them don't feel completely human. I think both of your friends might be in danger."

Worry finally made its way into Laura facial expression as she said. "Then I better hurry in case they need me. Do you want to wait here? I can double back for you after I take care of the threat."

Naruto felt touched that this girl was concerned about his well being. Enough that she was giving him the option of staying out of any ensuing fight but that only made him all the more determined to fight at her side even if he was as weak as shit at the moment. "No, I think I've regained enough strength for some combat. Let's keep moving."

"You seem experienced in combat. Aside from your regeneration do you have any other abilities or skills. I need to know what you are capable to better coordinate with you in the coming fight." Startled Naruto looked at Laura in surprise as she eyed him up and down. He was pretty positive that she was very experienced in combat and she had the eyes of a killer. However he didn't expect her to be able to tell the same about him so easily nor did he expect her to be tactician.

"A strategist eh. Brilliant." Naruto mirthfully responded before explaining. "I am a ninja skilled in ninjutsu, taijutsu, shurikenjutsu and fuinjutsu."

Laura scrunched her face up in confusion at the terms and asked."Can you clarify what you mean with those words? I am not a ninja." Still she knew enough to know that if he was really a ninja then he was a force to be reckoned with, provided he had any skill in these arts he was listing of course.

"Sorry, ninjutsu is...well civilians always called it ninja magic, I know many different types of technique's in this field, though I don't have access to most of them right now. Taijutsu is just physical combat but more so hand to hand combat. Shurikenjutsu is the art of hitting targets with thrown weapons like shuriken, kunai or senbon for example, which are ninja throwing stars, ninja knives and ninja throwing needles respectively but there is more to it. Fuinjutsu or the sealing arts is a bit harder to explain, its kind of like ninjutsu except you write symbols that command reality for various effects. And all this is powered by an energy we call chakra." Naruto quickly explained before making a rasengan in his left hand showing it to her saying. "This is chakra."

Laura's surprise was palpable as she beheld the spiraling ball of blue energy known as the Rasengan in Naruto hand. It felt powerful and dangerous to her instincts, like something she should avoid getting hit by at any cost unless she wanted to be in a world of pain. 'Naruto's apparently more powerful than he seemingly appears.' She thought to herself as she said. "Ah, I see. I can tell just by looking that that technique is quite dangerous but I am more surprised that you even told me as much as much as you have about what you can do."

Looking her straight in the eyes Naruto simply replied with a calm and confidence that was simultaneously unnerving and inspiring. "I trust you."

"You don't know anything about me." Laura rebutted with a frown on her face. 'How could he say that about her, they'd only just met a few minutes ago.'

Naruto merely looked up at the ceiling with a whimsical smile, as if seeing something that she could not fathom and replied. "I know enough."

"I am a killer." Why she said that Laura had no idea. She found Naruto interesting and his company pleasant, she also felt giddy at the prospect that she was trusted by him even though they barely knew each other. She'd been seeking the trust of her fellow mutants ever since Logan had dragged her back to the X-mansion and slowly she had earned that trust. However it had been an uphill battle all the way, and yet this guy was so willing to just trust her after knowing her for less than 30 minutes.

Common sense said that Naruto had an agenda and he should not be trusted at all. Her feelings had been betrayed so many times in the past by people claiming they trusted her and asking for her trust in turn that she found herself desperate to test and see whether his words were genuine. Laura was not just any mutant but Wolverine's clone and one of the powers they shared in common was the ability to detect lies.

And yet Naruto was not lying. He really believed what he was saying from what she could tell with her heightened senses. He really trusted her. It was such a pure and innocent action that she couldn't help but try and dissuade him from doing so without at least knowing a little about her. She could practically feel a sort of kinship with him radiating of the redhead as he looked at her and in that moment she understood.

Where the insight came from Laura would never know but in that moment as she stared into his single unblinking amethyst eye could see it as plain as day. Naruto was the same as her, a living weapon used by others for their own ends, some of those people were noble and others malicious but in the end they had all used them.

So when he calmly replied. "I know that too. But you are also a good person or at least you are trying to be a good person. That has to count for something" Laura new it was the truth.

They were the words his surrogate big brother and former sensei Hatake Kakashi had told him after he found out what was being done to him and how he was being used by ROOT. Those words, a whole lot of training, some Yamanaka counseling sessions and a lot of unconditional love are what had saved him from the hell of his old life. And just like they had left him stunned back then and prepared to reevaluate his whole life, the same words did so once more as Laura replied.. "How can you tell?"

His answer was to spread his hands out and indicate his surrounding while saying. "Are we not rushing to save your friends right now? It's not exactly the kind of thing a bad person would do, nor was releasing me from my confinement Laura." Naruto then turned to look Laura straight in the eye and said with words borrowed from Kakashi himself. "Besides, I am a killer too but I was first taught how to be a good person. A lesson I don't doubt that you can learn with ease."

"T-thank you." Laura stuttered showing a bit more vulnerability than she was accustomed to.

To which Naruto merely beamed at her and said. "No problem, now let's go save your friends."

VvV

Perhaps it was the fact that Laura had gone her own way that made Hellion so cautious when he first entered the lab holding Mercury. Nevertheless he was grateful that he had put up a telekinetic dome around himself and the device imprisoning his teammate. If he hadn't done so, he would definitely have been chow for one of the canine-like monstrosities currently attacking him, if not for all three.

Even now it was taking everything Julian had to keep them out as the silvery skinned beasts battered themselves against the TK dome he put up. They looked like dogs, really really big dogs with lots of muscle towards the front of their torso's. Even on all fours they were larger than the average man and their teeth looked like they could sheer through bone with relative ease. However what made them so terrifying to him, what struck fear into the rebel heart of the young man called Hellion was not their roars, their size, their speed or their strength but rather their skin.

Hellion knew that skin anywhere seeing as it belonged to his teammate and dear friend Mercury. Julian Keller honestly found himself terrified at the prospect of learning exactly what had been done to Cessily Kincaid to create these nightmare creatures. When Laura called these people in the Facility monsters and described their experimentation and torturous procedures, it hadn't registered with him.

It wasn't until he'd seen it for himself that Julian Keller understood exactly what they were up against. That he understood what it was the Facility did to mutants like him. That he could understand that Mercury who had been their captive for a day had been so brutally tortured that she could barely keep herself in a coherent shape and would have nightmares of her time here for the rest of her life. Yet X-23 had been the plaything of these monsters for years. It made Julian's blood boil as he was forced to acknowledge and understand another piece of the puzzle that was Laura Kinney.

Just as he felt he was at his limits holding back the silvery predators trying to eat him, one of the door to the lab they were in blew open and in stepped a welcome sight, along with a very confusing one. X-23 who was the welcome sight stood in the door way with all four of the claws in her arms extended and ready for combat while besides her stood a bewildered and mostly naked redhead save for a pair of Sports boxer's to preserving his modesty.

If anyone asked, Julian would deny it to hell and back but he couldn't help in that moment feeling irrationally jealous of how close the half-naked teen was standing next to X-23. Especially since the bastard was so goddamn good looking, even with barely any clothing on. Now Julian wasn't gay or anything, he just couldn't deny that the boy simply knew how to pull off the gravity defying spiky scarlet hair look like a professional model and make the hair work for him.

A few locks of his scarlet hair covered the teens left eye like an eye patch keeping it from view but his right eye was a vibrant amethyst that seemed to glow in the low light conditions of the lab. Then their was his ridiculously ripped six pack, hell all his muscles while not big and bulky looked so well defined that they could've been made out of some kind of living marble rather than flesh and blood for all the difference it would have made.

The only blemish he could see on the other boy's healthy peach skin if one could even consider it a blemish were the three whisker-like marking on each of his cheek that gave him a fox-ish appearance for some reason. Whether they were tattoos or birthmarks, Julian couldn't tell?

Speaking of tattoo's there was a strange flame-like red tattoo on his left shoulder and some tribal like pattern around the wrist of that same arm. This boy also didn't seem to give two shits about the temperature (Which was pretty chilly that evening) or the monsters that had been attacking Julian until he and X-23 busted in. If anything he seemed more bewildered by Laura's extended claws seeing as he was hanging uncomfortably close to her and closely scrutinizing them.

Suppressing the pang of jealousy Julian felt at this he simply called out to his teammate asking. "Laura, who is this?"

"Naruto Uzumaki!" Before she could even reply the redhead introduced himself with a weak grin as he turned his attention to Julian and Mercury before looking to the three creatures that were in turn giving him their entire focus. Honestly the stare off between the redhead and these monsters felt like two different predators had suddenly met and were sizing each other up.

Laura who was also keeping a keen eye on the creatures chipped in. "They were experimenting on him so I freed him." That was a surprise. Of course he knew that she had originally left his side because she was pissed at him for not killing Kimura and needed something to do. Still...

"How do you know you can trust him?" It was a legitimate question even if it was one born of slight jealousy towards Naruto Uzumaki and his sheer masculinity.

"We can discuss that later Hellion, just know that I do trust him for the now." Laura's comment seemed to surprise the redhead who grinned widely at her before turning his attention back on the predator's. "That said, what's important right now is saving Mercury and dealing with these things."

"More guards are coming from the North and the West. ETA 1 minute 52 seconds." The strange redhead finally deigned to speak again, the whole time never taking his eyes of the silver dog creatures.

VvV

The former Section Commander of ANBU black ops team's Ro, Ran, Han and Ko kept his eyes fixed on the silver canine-like creatures before him. Naruto had blasted them with a mild amount of killing intent from the moment he first spotted them, strong enough to appear a threat and force the silver hounds to keep their attention solely on him but weak enough, that they didn't panic and scatter.

In his opinion those beasts needed to die. Now that he was up close with them he could sense how wrong their life-force felt to his chakra senses, a result of the fact that they were artificially engineered. They were nothing but rabid monsters to him and through his negative emotion sensing ability he could feel their bloodlust and endless desire to kill. It was also a desire they would act on the minute he looked away and displayed a moment of (presumed) weakness. Rabid monsters though they were, these silver hounds were still clever predators. They were weak predators compared to some of the beings he had tangoed with in the past but predators nonetheless.

"Do you know how many?" Laura asked in response to his earlier declaration about enemy reinforcements.

Naruto did not turn his gaze away from the silver predators to check or to respond to Laura but then he didn't have to when his left eye hidden behind his scarlet bangs could see through walls and spot every thing around him for kilometers around. Yes, Naruto had the Byakugan, an eye he had been gifted by his late lover Hyuga Hinata after she'd been impaled through the heart by Uchiha Madara as the Jinchuuriki of the Ten Tails.

He still couldn't control its power very well, especially since it wasn't even a remotely normal Byakugan to begin with. Still Naruto had always been pretty talented at getting around those kinds of handicaps. So instead of using the Byakugan's full omni-directional vision for 1 kilometer of localized near omniscience, Naruto merely focused in a single direction with the telescopic vision aspect of the Byakugan.

With the assistance of his chakra and emotion sensing abilities to detect what directions enemies might be coming from it allowed him to focus solely one what he wanted to focus on rather than on simply seeing everything around him. Even with all his experience assimilating the memories and knowledge of thousands of clones at a time, the sheer amount of information the Byakugan granted when active was daunting. This would have to do until he could learn to properly control the powerful eye.

"About 43, ten from the North, the rest form the West." Explained referring to the other two of the three entrances to this particular lab.

Laura nodded in understanding before humming to herself in thought and saying. "Then we need to deal with these creatures quick. I presume you are the one keeping them in check?"

"Yes." Naruto quietly responded before adding. "Those three bitches will attack as soon as I look away or one of us makes an aggressive move. I will strike first and attempt to capture them, follow behind me and decapitate them with your claws once i've captured them."

Laura looked at him in surprise for a second before replying."Acknowledged."

"E.T.A 50 seconds." Naruto said deliberately breaking his gaze with the silver predators, something they took as a sign to attack. However before they could even make it one meter forward Naruto seemingly faded from where he was standing next to Laura and materialized next to the middle Predator of the three which he kicked...hard.

It was like a canon had gone off as his foot crashed into the beast's mercury covered chest and launched it away from him at speeds one could only describe as super-sonic. Unfortunately Naruto just happened to punt the over-sized dog through one of the few windows in the Facility leading to the outside.

'Oh shit! That was not supposed to happened!' Naruto thought in shock as he looked at his leg in wonder. His chakra levels were barely above minimum capacity and his reserves were not refilling as fast as he would like and yet he'd just moved far faster than he had ever done without the aid of chakra, whether sage, tailed beast or six paths chakra. Hell he'd kicked the predator he'd attacked with the kind of force he'd normally expect had augmented himself with his chakra and sent it flying. This had not been his intent...somehow he was stronger and faster.

Everyone in the room was frozen in shock at the sheer outrageous speed with which Naruto had attacked the one predator. Everyone but the remaining two predators who were already behind him and took the chance to spin around and attack Naruto from the back. Unfortunately for them, Naruto through his various sensory abilities was pretty much omniscient in a localized area.

Realizing his earlier mistake with how hard he had kicked the other predator creature, Naruto used a technique better suited to capturing enemies, a technique that was distinctly one belonging to those of his bloodline. The Uzumaki Chakra Chains, sometimes known as the Adamantine Sealing Chains.

From his back sprang forth golden chains of energy that immediately sped towards the two remaining predators. They attempted to dodge and retreat from the golden chains but the chakra chains pursued them like they had a mind of their own and wrapped around the predators necks like a noose before lifting them into the air.

It honestly looked like he was trying to hang them with the way his chakra chains suspended them in the air as they struggled but he had a very different reason for doing this, one that involved Laura. Their deaths were not meant to come at his hands but at the hands of his companion whose claws were far better suited to cutting through the Predator's metallic skins. Something she proved not even a second later.

With grace and elegance that would have left the world's greatest ballerinas and gymnasts in awe Laura performed a series of complex acrobatic maneuvers towards the predators suspended 3 meters in the air and decapitated both with her foot claws. The duo thumps of their bodies hitting the ground as blood gushed from their severed necks brought home the realization for Julian and Cessily that these nightmare creatures were gone for good...well, at least for two of the three thanks to Naruto's little error.

With that done Naruto raised his hand and started gathering chakra. This was not the Rasengan but rather a cousin of the Fourth Hokage's infamous technique and the inspiration from which the Rasengan was first created, albeit a weaker version of that original technique. It was technique that every Tailed Beast and Jinchuuriki with control over their Tailed Beast understood how to perform almost instinctively.

The Tailed beast ball or in this case the Menacing Ball which was just a vastly weaker version of the tailed beast ball quickly formed in his outstretched hand. Blue and red energy from the world gathered around his outstretched hand in a ball the size of soccer ball before turning a dark murky purple. Satisfied with his creation Naruto began concentrating the power, compacting and shrinking it down till it was the size of tennis ball and turning it a menacing black from which it got its name.

Moving towards Mercury and Hellion while dragging the corpses of the dog monsters he'd killed Naruto turned to Laura and said. "Get behind me Laura."

"What is that?" Laura asked curiously as she obeyed Naruto's instructions.

Naruto simply replied. "A bomb."

"Then why are you bringing it here dumbass." Hellion protested as much Naruto's amusement. They weren't in any harm as long he didn't release concentrated chakra.

Still he needed them behind him so replied in a tone that brokered no argument. "Their is no time to explain. I need you all behind me so I can shield you from the blast."

"Tch. Tell us that shit before you go making bombs." Julian complained but obeyed. "What about the guards? Won't it kill them? Cause we are X-men, not killers."

Naruto smiled and replied. "Its a small bomb. It will scare them and shake them up as long as they don't set foot in this room."

"We are in the room idiot!" Hellion whined.

"Like I said, I will shield you from the blast." With those words Naruto's Chakra chains deposited the remains of the predators on the floor behind him before they shot into the floor, spreading out around the four of them and forming a dome like matrix followed by a transparent barrier popping into existence.

It didn't look like much but it was one of the most powerful barrier in existence and one Naruto's own mother had one used to overpower the Kyuubi itself and keep even a Kage from entering it. Hell it was the reason she was kidnapped as child by Hidden Cloud ninja's forcing her father to save her and kick off their love life.

"A barrier." Laura spoke up startled as she pressed her hand against the glowing field of golden energy surrounding them before she noted that the menacing ball Naruto had created was no longer in his hands and asked. "Where is the bomb?"

Pointing outside the barrier to where Naruto had left ball of energy that was already beginning to destabilize as it began to glow a brilliant white he casually replied. "Over there. Close your eyes and brace yourself.

"Huh? Oh fuc-"

BOOOOOOOMM!

Hellion's voice was drowned out as the explosion turned their room into a miniature sun, vaporizing everything in the lab as it sent a powerful shockwave outwards that simply toppled all the surrounding walls and shattered every glass object in the Facility. Even within the dome where its occupants were protected from both the explosion and the deafening thunderclap that was its shockwave the ground shook violently enough to throw everyone save Naruto off their feet. The benefits of using chakra to keep yourself standing.

All visibility of the world outside the dome was gone due to dust and smoke floating through the air. The only light available to them for seeing each other was the light generated from Naruto whose left had was suddenly covered in golden energy and glowing vibrantly. While it was a waste of chakra and Naruto was already dangerously close to sending himself into a chakra coma, he did it for the benefit of the other two, it would at least keep them from panicking. Laura was a highly trained assassin so he had no doubt that she was fine with darkness and explosions...he hoped.

Using his senses Naruto could feel that the guards who had been sent to apprehend/kill them where still alive but they were not in good condition due to burst eardrums, the ceiling coming down on top of them and various other side effects of being too close to an explosion. Still they were alive which meant Hellion couldn't pull another hissy fit.

That didn't stop the half-deaf telekinetic from opening his mouth again and screaming. "The hell was that?!"

Giving him a blank look Naruto responded "I did say bomb, didn't I?"

"Holy crap, these scientist freaks where trying to make a weapon and succeeded." Hellion cursed as he turned to Laura and Mercury who had just managed to reform into a human shape again. She was...strange. It reminded him of the Houzoki clan.

Still Hellion's assumption were way off and needed correcting. "Incorrect. I had those powers long before these people captured me. Their goal was to harness me as a weapon or at the very least my DNA to build a new type of living weapon. A new Weapon X as they called it."

Everyone in the room shuddered at the idea especially since three fourths of the people in the room had been experimented on directly by the Facility. Finally Hellion said in a teasing manner. "Then its a good thing Laura saved your ass, even if its lame someone as powerful as you needed saving in the first place."

"You're really immature." Naruto coldly responded before turning to Mercury and saying. "You must be Mercury. I apologies if it seems tactless but are you capable of retrieving your stolen genetic material from these monsters?"

"Dude! That is totally tactless." Hellion exclaimed. It probably was but they needed to get moving before more guards showed up and made things difficult. Naruto did not have much chakra left to spend and would likely have to resort to taijutsu and shurikenjutsu if any came looking. He was banking on the fact that if anyone was watching through the numerous camera's in the facility his little display would intimidate them. That and even if they did come his way, the dust and smoke would cause a lot of confusion with which he, Laura and her friends could sneak out.

"As I said, I apologize for that but from what I can sense she is still connected to the silver skin on those monsters. They carry her life signature and that skin is still alive so I believe it possible that she can reabsorb that skin into her self and in doing so simultaneously regain her strength and deny our enemy a resource to make more of these abominations." Naruto finished gesturing to the creatures they had killed.

Hellion however did not like his wording and grabbed him by the neck before yelling into Naruto's face. "She is not a resource. Call her that one more time and I'll-."

Whatever threat he was about to level at Naruto never made it past Julian's lips for a vice-like clamp in the form of Naruto's hand wrapped itself around his wrist which was still around Naruto's neck and wretched it away. Pain shot through Hellions hand as he felt wrist being crushed but before he could even think of screaming he was jerked off balance and Naruto's leg swept behind Julian's feet sending him crashing to the ground in surprise.

His back hit the ground before he had time to regain his balance and all the breath left in his lungs after his little rant was forced out of him. The whole sequence of events had been timed for just that perfect moment before he took another breath and so Hellion suddenly found himself powerless to say another word as Naruto stood over him and finally spoke up.

"You seem as quick to misunderstand the situation as you are at hurling baseless accusations Hellion. I know she is person, not an object and I sympathize with her. However I also know that in this room you are the only one who has no idea what kind of hell she's just been through so forgive me if I don't give two shits about your righteous indignation cause the fact is. To the people who created this place, we are all nothing more than resources. So think about that as you catch your breath, meanwhile Mercury can try and reabsorb her genetic material. Me and Laura on the other hand will see about tracking that last monster." Naruto finished with a glare at the troublesome teen.

"We came her for Mercury. We got her, we need to get back to the X-mansion." Hellion said as he finally caught his breath and to Naruto's surprise Laura agreed with him.

Naruto paused for a moment and considered what was being said before replying. "You have a point, unfortunately that creature, the one that is still wearing Mercury's skin is 700 meters due west of our position and hauling ass. I can only track it for a few more minutes before its in the wind and make no mistake Hellion if it escapes we will all regret it so we need decide now. Deal with that thing or help Mercury?"

"Mercury!" Both Laura and Hellion insisted in unison.

Nodding his head in understanding Naruto deactivated his Byakugan to conserve his currently limited reserves chakra and motioned to Mercury saying. "Then its decided. Now bring her here."

"Why? What are you planning?" Hellion asked suspiciously, the kids jealousy and stubbornness was beginning to grate on the shinobi's nerves.

Still Naruto calmly replied. "I'll give her back some of her lost strength. Hopefully she will be able to heal what's missing now that the other creature is gone." And with that Naruto used as little healing chakra as he could safely manage to begin healing Mercury even as she reabsorbed her metallic skin from the two dead predators.

VvV

Emma Frost, former White Queen of the Hellfire club and current deputy Headmistress of the Xavier's Institute for Higher Learning was cursing up a storm. She and the X-men were following the trail left by Hellion and X-23 as they attempted to rescue their kidnapped teammate Mercury in the Blackbird SR-79 hyper-sonic stealth jet in order to back up the two mutant teens. They were already in the air space of the two mutant's last known location and Emma had been scouring the countryside in hopes of picking up their mental signature when suddenly their were reports of a small explosion in an old factory on local police scanner.

It was at that moment that whatever had been blocking Cerebra and her telepathy from reading the minds of anyone in the area was suddenly gone and like a new star being born a powerful and overwhelming presence suddenly filled that void. Back at the Xavier's institute she could feel her girls, the Stepford cuckoos, a trio of telepaths who were currently mind-linked and using Cerebra to scan the nation recoil in pain as they felt the backlash of the same awe-inspiring presence appear before them metaphorically speaking.

He and their was no doubt it was a he, was huge with a complex, not-entirely human mind that left sections visible to her telepathy and others invisible. Reaching out to take a peak at this being Emma brushed against his mind. She did not expect him to immediately recoil in surprise as he felt her invading presence in his mind much less physically turn his head in her direction.

Their was a pulse of some kind of energy and Emma Frost became very aware of the fact that even from miles away this being was looking straight at her and he was not amused. Thinking fast as she felt his hostility quickly rising she mentally said. 'My name is Emma Frost and I mean you know harm. I was curios about the massive psychic presence that had just appeared in range from nowhere.'

[Their is nothing wrong with curiosity but I would ask you respect the privacy of another persons thoughts mind-walker.] A thunderous voice sent back that would have been incredibly intimidating if not for the fact that Emma could sense his anger at the intrusion rapidly draining through their mental link.

Relieved that this god-like being had calmed down so quickly, Emma curiosity took over and she asked. 'How is it you can see me from so far away? You are dozens of kilometers at the very least.'

[In the same way that you can read thoughts and wander through the minds of other individuals, it is a gift. You seem to be searching for something.] The last part wasn't a question but an observation made in a tone equal parts cold detachment and amusement.

'Not something.' Emma corrected before following her instincts that said this being she was communicating with was trustworthy and taking a leap of faith as she added. 'I lost contact a couple of hours ago with two mutant teenagers who were headed in this direction. My last contact with them placed them over this area and until just now their was a psychic black out in this area but now its gone and in its place is you. Your massive psychic presence is shielding them from my mind.'

[These two teens wouldn't happen to have the codenames X-23 and Hellion would they? And their purpose here wouldn't happen to be saving their teammate Mercury?] It asked with a hint of curiosity.

'Yes. Have you seen them?' The Hope and excitement in Emma's projected thoughts was practically audible as she asked this.

[One moment.] He replied

One moment however took nearly a full minute to which Emma finally asked rather awkwardly. 'Hello? You there?'

:I'm still here mind-walker.: Came the reply but his voice was a young and gentle human sounding voice this time, rather than the thunderous booming of a god-like entity. Even his psychic presence had practically diminished at this point.

'Is that you? I can barely sense you now.' He was practically invisible now and only the fact that she was specifically looking for him allowed her to even sense him but more importantly she could finally sense the other students besides him.

:I've raised mental barriers so that my presence isn't so greatly felt. Their is only enough to receive your thoughts. As for Hellion, Mercury and Laura Kinney, they are here with me.: The being confirmed although it was unnecessary.

What was more shocking was the fact that he knew Laura's name at all, something Emma expressed. 'You know X-23's real name?'

:She told me her name when she saved my life. I owe her. I will keep them out of trouble until you arrive Emma Frost.: He replied.

'Miss Frost is fine Mr.' Emma began pausing as hint for this young man/divine or alien entity to drop his name.

The being chuckled and replied. :Naruto Uzumaki. Well just call me Naruto.:

'Well then Naruto, who are you?' Emma asked curious about this new comer.

:To put in your terms. I am ninja from another universe stranded on this one. I apologize if not everything translates properly. With all the experimentation that was done on me, I didn't have time to learn the subtleties and nuances of your culture or language Miss Frost but the gist of my story is that the people of this Facility tried to turn me into one of their weapons or at the very least use my unique biology to make a new one.: Naruto explained quickly.

That was surprising and it led Emma to voice her next question even as she psychically guided Scot to the location of this facility. 'So you are a mutant?'

There was a pause for a few seconds before Naruto responded in an unsure tone with. :I don't fully understand the concept. What qualifies as a mutant on this world?:

Emma was surprised by the admission, though it gave more credit to Naruto's story of not being from this universe. On the other hand he must have been from a very different and distant universe if mutants were a strange thing to him. She personally knew half a dozen people that had gone hoping around the multiverse and they had all encountered mutants wherever they went. Still they could just be going under a different name. 'I am sending you the information directly to your mind.'

:Receiving.: Naruto replied as she sent him all the relevant information on what mutants also known also known as Homo Superior was. After mere seconds of him digesting this information, and she could literally feel how quickly his mind assimilated the information, Naruto simply replied. :I am the next step.:

Now that was cryptic. Naturally it elicited the question. 'The next step to what?'

:In Human evolution miss Frost, just as mutants are a step above Homo Sapiens, I am merely what comes next. In a way I suppose you could call me a mutant if you use the term loosely and squint sideways. The mutations that the X-gene gives from what you've shown me can be described as random at best, my powers and the powers of my people are more organized. Lets just say the X-gene stopped behaving like that around 800 years ago on my world.: Naruto replied in a mix of excitement and amusement.

'Organized how?' This was both alarming and exciting news to her. Naruto claimed to be from another universe. Was that universe set a bit further in the future than this one if mutants as she understood them where the norm 800 years prior?

:Organized enough that mutations are not called mutations but rather bloodline limits. If the parents had a particular power then the children will most certainly have the same power so long as they share blood. It's resulted in those with similar "mutations" gathering together and inter-marrying to form a clan of people with very specific powers. These clans then grouped with other clans boasting their own unique powers to form communities and eventually even small cities called Hidden Village's.: Naruto explained.

'Interesting. We should talk more once the Blackbird has landed and we get you all sorted out. We are literally 30 seconds out.' Emma said ready to cut the mental link as they approached the top secret facility which had an entire collapsed section belching flames and smoking like chimney. A shudder quickly ran up her spine but she dared not voice her thoughts until she cut the link.

:Indeed, I look forward to it. The first five weeks of my life on this world have been hell but since meeting you mutants, i've found myself looking forward to the future.: He sounded pleased for some unknown reason.

VvV

Naruto frowned as he the leaders of the mutant superhero team, the X-men bickered with officers of a military organization known as the Office of National Emergencies aka ONE in deciding his fate. Apparently ONE thought he was too dangerous after Hellion explained how he blew up part of the Facility and accidentally took out the psi-jammers blocking Miss Frost's telepathy.

Naruto already knew that Julian Keller, as he had learned Hellion's real name, did not like him one bit and it had something to do with Laura. So it was no surprise that even though the facts in the story were accurate, he made it sound ever so slightly like Naruto was a maniac fueling ONE officer Colonel Reyes' paranoia against the shinobi. The fact that none of them could simply penetrate his mind and take whatever information they wanted (nor was he willing to let them into his mind) did not help this lack of trust.

Also to the giant hundred feet tall autonomous blue, silver and purple puppets bristling with weaponry that the locals called Sentinel's, he apparently appeared to be both a mutant and not one so ONE was hesitant to remand him into the custody of the X-men. On the other hand and much to the surprise of everyone present his earlier conversation with miss Emma Frost was a blessing in disguise and she was the top person championing his cause. Well she and Laura, something that seemed to freak out all the other X-men seeing as apparently the two never got along.

All of this however was a secondary concern to Naruto at the moment, for what held his full attention was the throbbing pain in his newly regrown right forearm. A pain that had been steadily increasing for the last hour and been diligently ignored until now. Flaring his Byakugan to life so as to take a closer look at what was causing this pain, what Naruto found surprised him so much so that he yelped. "What in Kami's name?"

All arguments came to stop as everyone turned to Naruto who was simply staring at his hand as if it had grown a mouth, ears and a pair of eyes and then started up a conversation. Before anyone could even ask what was wrong their was a very distinct "snikt" sound that echoed across the room. Every X-man and mutant who had ever been around Logan or Laura new that sound intimately, the sound of the feral mutants extending their claws. However that sound did not come from Wolverine who wasn't even present nor his clone this time. It came from Naruto's right arm.

For their extending from between his ring finger and pointer finger as well as his pointer finger and index fingers were two 12 inch claws just like Laura's. Now he understood how the facility had enhanced his natural healing abilities. They had some how grafted Laura's DNA into his own and this was just a side effect.

Turning to the gathered government officials and the X-men Naruto spoke up for the first time saying. "It seems they used Laura's DNA to enhance my own regeneration powers."

With his new claws clearly on display the woman in charge of the ONE people gave an audible groan while glaring at a rather smug looking Emma Frost and said. "We will leave him in the X-men's care for now but we will keep a close eye on him."

Colonel Reyes, the military man in the green uniform with medals and pinned to his chest and a funny hat immediately began to protest. "Director Cooper you can't-"

Unfortunately it seemed this Director Cooper wasn't in the mood to take shit from any of her subordinates and immediately cut him of with a final. "That will be all Colonel."

The Colonel bit back a sigh of frustration before replying. "Yes ma'am. Let's pack it up people." With that done, he marched off and began giving orders to the other ONE personnel. Meanwhile Scot Summer codenamed Cyclops who was not only leader of the X-men but alongside Emma Frost were the Headmaster and Headmistress of the Xavier Institute for Higher Learning walked up to him to speak of his future no doubt.

VvV

Scott Summers leader of the X-men, representative of mutantkind and headmaster of the Xavier's Institute for Higher Learning walked up the boy who was now officially a ward of the X-men. To say that he found this Naruto Uzumaki fascinating was an understatement.

For one, the more his lover Emma Frost learned about the kid the more excited she seemed to get and Scott did not need telepathy to tell that Emma wanted Naruto enrolled in their school. For another X-23 seemed just as fascinated with this boy who from what information Emma had pulled out of Laura and Julian's minds and then shared with him was due to him hinting at having a past much like Laura's and turning out a lot more human.

Then their was the fact that he was from another universe where his people were similar to mutants but supposedly a bit more advanced which made even him curious. If this boy was the next step in mutant evolution perhaps in his genetic code their was an answer or a miracle of some kind that could bring hope to mutantkind and prevent its extinction. He would have Beast look into it.

Scott was also interested in seeing how skilled the kid was in a fight. He'd already seen with Emma's help the plethora of skills he'd displayed in front of Laura, Cessily and Hellion. If the kid was half and as skilled as he believed him to be then he would be a badly needed resource in the dark days to come. Which was why Scott was most determined to recruit the kid.

"Naruto was it." upon receiving a nod from the boy in question Scott declared. "Well its nice to finally meet you. Laura and Emma have both said some nice things about you in front of a lot of important people and I wanted to meet the man himself and get my own measure."

The young man merely cocked his head sideways and asked. "Are you Emma's lover?"

"Uh...yeah, I suppose it's no secret that we are in a relationship. Why do you ask?" The question had caught Cyclops flatfooted with how it came out of nowhere but his reply made Emma beam who was not so secretly listening in from where she was in a very different conversation with Laura and Cessily. Being in a relationship with a telepath meant sharing head-space with one.

"Curiosity. Her eyes soften every time she looks at you and she smiles a bit more when she looks or talks to you than with just about everyone here. Your tells on the other hand are a bit more obvious." Naruto replied in an almost clinical tone as he spouted his observations. Though he declined to elaborate on Scott's tells as he called them.

Slightly taken aback by the ninja from another universe Scott quickly tried to get things back on track. "Oh, um...okay. How about we discuss my love life another time and instead we talk about you for a moment."

Naruto seemed to pause for a moment in thought before saying. "I apologize for making you uncomfortable Mr Summers. Please go ahead with your questions."

"I'm not uncomfortable with the question itself, just where it was leading to and it was getting way off track. My interests today on the other hand is in you Naruto Uzumaki. I want to know who you are and I want to know what you plan on doing next? Then once you've answered those questions, I have an offer to make." Scott explained.

Naruto merely smiled in amusement at this and replied. "My name is Naruto Uzumaki. I'm 19 years old and a ninja from another universe. As for why I am on your world? It's not by choice and nor is it really important save for the fact that for the time being I am stranded here. So to answer your question on what I plan on doing next...well that's simple enough.

"First things first, I will secure shelter, clothing and nourishment. Something I can accomplish in 24 hours one way or another, then with the basics secured I will begin gathering information on this world. Its Math, Sciences, Technology, Religions, Economics, Social studies and whatever else is necessary to blend in. Once that is done I will look up any information you have about trans-universal travel and any other related topics so I can figure out where my home is and how to get back inevitably. Does that satisfy your curiosity?"

"It's impressive that you got it all so figured out already but what if I can offer you my assistance with all that? What if I can give you that shelter, food, clothing and all the information you could dream of. Would you take my offer to join me and the X-men back at our Head Quarters for the time being? Cause I think we can benefit from your presence as much as you can benefit from ours." Scott said. It really was impressive that that this 18 or 19 year old kid seemed to have his goals figured out already and was so confident he could achieve them when not even 3 hours ago he was a prisoner of this "Facility". But then he was a ninja from another universe so who knew what kind of training he had.

"Laura seems to trust you so yeah, I guess we have a deal then Mr. Summers." Naruto simply replied extending his hand.

Taken aback by how quickly the negotiations ended Cyclops shook the extended hand while saying. "Oh, great! I must confess that I really thought I would have to do a bit more to convince you on my proposition."

Naruto merely smiled at him before looking meaningfully in Laura direction and replying. "Like I said, I will secure shelter, clothing and nourishment in 24 hours one way or another. This way just allows me to keep a promise while I am at it."

TBC...

Please read and review! Your opinions mean a lot to me so long as you are not flamers! Constructive criticism is welcome. To repeat myself from earlier, I will be getting back to chapter 3 of Archer of the Fifth. I have not given up on that story and will update as soon as I can.