Twin Devils of Konoha

Chapter 2 – Assassin vs. Swordsman

Naruto's breathing was heavy, his body screaming in pain, but his spirit refused to break. 

Menma's icy gaze locked onto Illumi, his grip tightening around the hilt of his sword. 

"So… you're the one who tried to kill my brother." His voice was calm but carried an undercurrent of anger. 

Illumi tilted his head slightly, his blank, unreadable expression unwavering. "Tried?" He glanced at Naruto's battered form. "I'd say I did a pretty good job." 

Naruto let out a strained chuckle. "Yeah… well… I'm still kicking, you creepy bastard…" 

Menma took a step forward. "You said you were hired to kill us. Who sent you?" 

Illumi blinked lazily. "Hmm… I don't think that's relevant. You'll be dead soon anyway." 

Menma exhaled through his nose. "Then let's get this over with." 

Without warning, he vanished from sight. 

A clang rang through the air as Menma's sword met Illumi's extended nails, which had sharpened like daggers. Sparks flew as they clashed, Menma pressing forward with a flurry of slashes. Illumi evaded and parried each attack with inhuman grace, his movements eerily smooth and efficient. 

Menma swung diagonally, Illumi ducked. A horizontal slash, Illumi tilted his head just enough for the blade to pass over him. A thrust, Illumi twisted his body and countered with a swipe of his clawed fingers. 

Menma barely avoided the attack, flipping backward to create distance. He landed in a crouch, his sword raised defensively. 

"You're fast," Illumi commented, inspecting his nails. "And skilled for your age. But…" His fingers twitched. "You lack experience." 

In an instant, Illumi closed the distance, his movements near-invisible. Menma's eyes widened as he barely brought up his sword in time to block an overhead strike. The force of the impact sent vibrations through his arms. 

Illumi twisted mid-air and delivered a spinning kick to Menma's ribs. The impact sent the boy skidding across the dirt, his back slamming against a tree. 

"Menma!" Naruto shouted, struggling against the needles embedded in his body. His fingers twitched, trying to form a seal, but his chakra control was completely disrupted. "Damn it… Come on, bro, get up!" 

Menma coughed but quickly pushed himself to his feet, eyes narrowing. He's not just fast… he's precise.

Menma dashed forward, sword glowing as he infused it with chakra. He swung at Illumi's legs, forcing the assassin to jump. Anticipating this, Menma twisted his blade upward in an attempt to cut through his airborne opponent. 

But Illumi's reflexes were unnatural. He bent backward mid-air, dodging by mere inches, then twisted his body and threw a handful of needles toward Menma. 

Shit!

Menma deflected most of them, but two managed to graze his arm and thigh. Immediately, he felt his muscles tighten, his movements becoming sluggish. 

"Those needles are infused with my chakra," Illumi said casually. "They interfere with the nervous system. Your body will resist movement, and your chakra flow will become unstable." 

Menma scowled. Tch…

Still, he wasn't about to stop. He ignored the pain and lunged again, his blade a blur of silver. 

This time, he aimed for Illumi's blind spots, feinting with his sword before spinning into a roundhouse kick. Illumi sidestepped but was forced to block as Menma transitioned into a downward slash. Their weapons clashed again, but Menma followed up with a quick stab toward Illumi's shoulder. 

A direct hit. 

Or so he thought. 

Illumi shifted at the last second, allowing the blade to graze his arm instead of piercing through. He didn't even flinch. 

Then, with speed that Menma couldn't react to, Illumi slammed a palm into his chest. 

Menma's breath left his lungs as he was launched backward, rolling across the dirt before coming to a stop. 

Naruto's eyes widened in panic. "Menma! Get up, dammit!" 

Menma groaned and forced himself to his knees, gripping his sword for support. His body was sore, and his breathing was ragged. 

Illumi approached, completely unscathed. "It's over," he stated. "You fought well for a child, but you were never going to win." 

Menma gritted his teeth. He hated this feeling,this powerlessness. But more than that… he hated that Naruto was watching him lose. 

He forced himself to stand. His hands trembled, but he steadied them. "You talk too much," he muttered. "I'm not done." 

Illumi sighed. "You really are like your brother. Stubborn." 

He flicked his wrist, and a dozen needles shot toward Menma. 

Menma raised his sword and spun, using the momentum to deflect most of them. But one struck his shoulder, another embedded in his leg. The pain was instant, his muscles stiffened, and his vision blurred slightly. 

Still, he took a step forward. 

Naruto, despite his pain, grinned. "That's it, bro! Don't let this freak take you down!" 

Illumi tilted his head. "Fascinating." 

For the first time in the fight, Menma smirked. "What's wrong?" He raised his sword. "Afraid I might actually land a real hit?" 

Illumi's expression didn't change, but something shifted in his stance. 

Then, he moved. 

Menma swung, Illumi vanished.

Before he could react, a sharp pain erupted in his back. A knee strike sent him stumbling forward. Another hit, a powerful kick to his ribs, sent him flying. 

Before he could hit the ground, Illumi appeared behind him and drove a needle into the back of his neck.

Menma's body froze.

His limbs wouldn't respond. His vision blurred. He could still think, still breathe, but his body was no longer his to control. 

Illumi walked in front of him, placing a hand under his chin. "Stand proud Menma, for you are strong." He let go, and Menma crumpled to the ground, unable to move. 

Naruto's heart pounded. "MENMA!" He struggled against the needles in his own body, but his muscles refused to cooperate. "Damn it… DAMN IT!" 

Illumi looked down at his fallen opponent. "Don't feel too bad. Most people don't last this long against me." 

He turned his gaze to Naruto. "Now then… let's finish this." 

Menma's fingers twitched. He could feel his chakra flickering inside him. Kurama's chakra. 

He hated relying on that power. But right now, he was out of options. 

As Illumi approached Naruto, Menma clenched his teeth, trying to break free of the paralysis. 

He refused to let Naruto die. 

___

Chapter 3 – The Awakening of Ninefold Wrath

Naruto's body refused to move. His muscles screamed, his chakra barely responded, and the sharp sting of the needles embedded in his body sent waves of pain through his nerves. He could barely breathe, let alone fight back. Yet his voice still worked, and he used it for the only thing he could do, calling out to his brother. 

"Menma!" 

Across from him, Menma lay still, his body also paralyzed by Illumi's chakra-infused needles. His fingers twitched, his sword lay just out of reach, and his eyes now crimson, remained locked in an unblinking glare at the assassin standing over them. 

Illumi tilted his head slightly, his expression neutral. "Still breathing? Impressive. But this is just how weak you both are. You were dead the moment I took this job." 

Naruto grit his teeth. His vision blurred. The darkness was creeping in. 

Menma's vision, however, faded into something else entirely. 

--- 

Menma's Mindscape

Menma stood in the familiar sewer, the giant cage before him stretching endlessly into the distance. Behind the bars, Kurama loomed in the shadows, his fiery red eyes locked onto the boy in front of him. 

Menma didn't hesitate. "I'll give you my body." 

Kurama's ears twitched. "Oh?" 

Menma clenched his fists. "Spare Naruto. Do whatever you want to the village. I don't care. But let him live." 

Kurama smirked. A low, rumbling chuckle echoed through the chamber. "That's a deal." 

A flood of crimson chakra burst from behind the bars, surging toward Menma like a living, writhing wave. The sheer pressure alone made his body tremble. 

But just as the chakra was about to engulf him

A presence appeared.

A tall, slender young man stepped into existence. He had pale skin, dark green eyes, and natural white hair that fell in long bangs over one side of his face. He carried a mysterious aura, detached, but oddly familiar. 

With a simple gesture, the stranger halted the raging chakra in its tracks. The room trembled as if the very laws governing it had been disrupted. 

Kurama snarled, baring his fangs. "You!" 

The man ignored the fox, instead turning his attention to Menma. His voice was soft, yet commanding. "A noble sacrifice. Willingly surrendering yourself for your brother. Commendable." 

Menma narrowed his eyes. "Who the hell are you?" 

The man simply smiled faintly. "The side of yourself you hate. The part you've suppressed in your past life." 

Menma scowled. "Past life"

Kurama snarled. "No time for riddles! Your brother is about to die!" 

Menma pushed forward. "Move. Now." 

The man, V, calmly raised a hand. "There's no need to give the fox your body." 

Both Menma and Kurama snapped their heads toward him. 

"...Explain," Menma demanded. 

V extended his hand toward Kurama. "Instead of giving yourself to the beast, you must take from it." 

Menma frowned. "What?" 

V's tone remained steady. "I will help you forge him into a Devil Arm." 

The term meant nothing to Menma, but something deep in his instincts stirred. "The hell is a Devil Arm?" 

V shook his head. "No time for explanations. If we cannot defeat him, we must forcefully bind him to you." 

Before Menma could question it further, V raised his cane, and an unseen force pulsed through the air. 

The mindscape shook.

Kurama let out a feral roar as chains of black energy lashed out from the shadows, coiling around his limbs, dragging him forward against his will. The fox thrashed violently, his massive form struggling against an invisible force. 

"You will regret this!" Kurama bellowed. 

V simply closed his eyes. "I already do." 

A burst of energy surged through the chamber as Kurama's form was forcefully condensed, his monstrous body breaking apart into swirling fragments of chakra and raw power. The world itself cracked under the strain of the transformation. 

Menma clenched his fists, feeling the overwhelming force surge into him. His arms burned. His body trembled. Something within him changed.

Now, you have the power to protect your brother," V said, his voice steady. "But remember, when the time comes, you must be powerful enough to tame Urizen."

--- 

An explosion of pure demonic energy erupted from Menma's body. 

The training ground shook as a massive shockwave blasted outward, kicking up a towering cloud of dust and debris. Trees snapped like twigs, the ground cracked open, and the oppressive force of the awakening sent chills down the spines of everything within range. 

Naruto coughed as dust filled his lungs. His blurred vision struggled to focus on the storm of power raging in front of him. 

Illumi took a single step back, his usually emotionless expression shifting into something resembling curiosity. "...What is this?" 

As the dust began to settle, a figure stood at the epicenter of the destruction. 

Menma had changed. 

His arms were now adorned with blood-red gauntlets, clawed at the fingertips, pulsating with immense demonic energy. Around him, nine ethereal, shifting tails flickered in and out of existence, radiating an aura of raw, untamed power. His red eyes now glowed with an eerie, supernatural light. 

Naruto, still weakened but forcing himself to focus, blinked. "W-What the hell...?" 

Illumi narrowed his eyes. "This wasn't in the mission parameters." 

Menma flexed his fingers, feeling the sheer power coursing through his veins. The presence of Kurama still lingered, but it was different now. He wasn't being consumed. He wasn't being overtaken. 

He had taken the power instead. 

For the first time, a grin crept onto Menma's face. 

He slowly raised his gaze, locking eyes with Illumi. 

"Round two."