Naruto (Reader x Various)

Chapter 35: His True Self

You our weren't sure what you expected to appear out of the blinding light, but it definitely wasn't what you saw now. Standing, or rather flying before you, was... The only word that could possibly describe it was monster. A horrible presence was radiating off of it, making your stomach feel like wanting to empty its contents. You weren't sure what happened to Pein, but at least he was gone.

"How stupid are you?" Inner demonic you practically shouts. 'What?' You ask back, confused. "You realize you just made your situation one-thousand times worse. That sword of yours vanquishes any evil it comes into contact with, does it not?" Your voice continues spouting out stuff, but the monster in front of you is keeping you occupied.

'Shut up for once!' You yell at the annoying voice. It stays quiet.

Finally able to concentrate, you quickly dodge the demonic monster. You had no idea how that thing was staying up in the air so effortlessly. Although it did have HUGE wings, probably almost a thirty feet span.

Which was was probably one of the only advantages you have. 'Since the monster is so big, it's reaction time should be delayed. It's probably struggling to keep up in the air, so it's attacks are going to be slower than Peins were.'

If only you had known how wrong that assumption was, you wouldn't be in the situation you would soon be in.

~ 3rd Person POV ~

Naruto leads the three elite ninja to the alley where Jiraiya and Pein had been fighting. Although when they arrive, there was only one person left. They quickly make their way over to where Jiraiya lay. Kakashi checks his pulse, shaking his head indicating it was too late. Jiraiya was dead.

Naruto to blinks back tears. Even though he hadn't known Jiraiya long, he'd formed a strong bond with his teacher. Now there was no one to teach him. "But where's (Y/n)?" Kakashi mutters, looking around.

"Up there!" Kurenai points up, almost directly above. (Y/n) appeared to be struggling through an intense battle, and it didn't look like she was on the winning side. "There's nothing we can do for her from down here. We can only watch and wait," Kakashi says, his normal lazy black eyes full of worry. No one knew how this would end, they could only hope for the best.

~ Your POV ~

"Would you actually listen to what I'm trying to tell you?" If your voice had a physical form, you would imagine it throwing it's hands up in exasperation. 'I'm sort of busy at the moment," you respond back, annoyance evident in your voice. "I'm telling you anyway. That sword attack you used only wiped away Pein's shell. It left the worst part of him left. There was too much evil for even your sword to wipe away. This demon is his true self. Well, actually, you were never fighting Pein in the first place." The voice explains. 'Does that mean Pein isn't actually my brother?' You ask hopefully, dodging another attack. "No. What that Pein said was all true. He still wants you to join the Akasuki." Your voice tells you.

A sudden jolt in your chest causes you to yelp in pain. You struggle to stay airborn; a long stinger-like thing was sticking out of your chest. You pull it out, hoping it hasn't poisoned you. 'Since when were you on my side anyway? You took over my body before, how do I know you won't do it again?' You ask suspiciously.

"I was never against you. I was being controlled. And I don't think I'm strong enough to take over you now. I'm still recovering from the last time I was let out." You voice says simply.

Then another pierce.

Your left wing goes limp, causing you to spiral downwards. You glance at another stinger thing sticking out of your left wings. That was going to hurt pulling out later.

'This is going to be one unpleasant crash landing..' You grimace, closing your eyes and waiting for the impact.

"You realize my offer is still up?" Your voice asks, sounding completely unconcerned that you were falling to your death. 'And what's in it for me?' You groan from the pain in your wing and chest. The ground was spinning closer and closer with each passing second. "Well for one thing, you won't die just yet. We can combine our powers and kill this demon," the voice explains.

'But what's the price?' You ask. It sounded to good to be true. "That's the thing... There's a steep price. I wouldn't blame you if you chose death over it.."

What could possibly be worse than death itself?