The Journey — (Naruto x Solo Leveling Fanfiction)

I don't own solo leveling or Naruto

Going through the mounds of forensics and photos within his own personal office, Chief Jin Chul couldn't help but rub the temples of his head. He'd stuck them up on the board and to help better understand what happened from start to finish.

'It's worrying though…' the orange-haired agent thought morbidly, flashing his mind back to the recent development at the crime scene. A gate had formed at that abandoned warehouse factory merely six hours after they'd left the scene. The world still doesn't know what forms a gate, but it was an undeniable possibility that the potent mana he'd felt could have swarmed and swirled enough to weave open a crack in space-time. Or it was merely a coincidence that one formed at that area specifically, because no one knows really how or why gates form, just that they do.

He snapped his attention when he heard a knock on the door, "Enter." he uttered his one-word command, turning back to examine the board. "What is it?" he asked, which translated to spit out everything to him right now. "This new case sure has got you wound up tight, Chief." Tae Shik commented with his usual nonchalant cadence. He languidly strided over to a chair and sat down with a sigh.

Jin Chul huffed, "You're telling me?" he sighed tiredly and turned around, crossing his arms, "So what is it Tae Shik? Come hand your monitoring report from yesterday?"

The assassin had a laugh, "I already did. I'm just here because of a recent development on Instagram," Jin Chul raised a brow, incredulously, "Insta? Are you joking?"

"No way! I promise it'll be worth your time. Just check." Tae Shik insisted, but his cheshire grin made it hard to believe he wasn't messing around.

Jin Chul scoffed but still pulled out his phone anyway and when he read through the first post that pulled through on his feed he felt the urge to crush his phone to bits. Tae Shik immediately sensed the shift in his demeanour, "It seems that Choi Jong-In has made a very public appearance with Sasuke Uchiha now. You know what this could possibly mean, don't you?"

"Yeah…" the chief murmured, silently mulling over the picture of a smiling Choi Jong-In next to a less than disgruntled Sasuke Uchiha. The assassin continued, "My sources tell me that the place the photo was taken was the storage facility for his many magic armours, weapons, and items."

Tae Shik crossed his legs together and leaned back in his seat, "His intention is very clear to me, sir. He plans to have the Uchiha brat join Hunters." he said with certainty.

'I'll have to check in on the chairman and find out how soon he can get back from his visit to Japan. Choi Jong-In may be able to deny my attempts at an interview with the Uchiha but that'll be impossible with the chairman,' Jin Chul contemplated internally.

He looked up and scrutinised his subordinates' languid posture, "Tell me something Tae Shik," the assassin perked from his seat, "You've met the boy. Is he worth all this trouble?"

Tae Shik scratched at his spiky purple hair, searching for the right words, "I'll say that Cha Hae-In was a missed opportunity for you guys. He's B-rank but there's something strange about him. He's different…" Tae Shik fell silent, the look on his face clearly showing that he was thinking back to something. What it was, Jin Chul had no clue but it was definitely telling if he was comparing a teenager to one of the country's finest like Hunter Cha Hae-In.

Jin Chul sighed tiredly once again, "Thanks for that, agent Tae Shik but…" he started calmly before exploding furiously, "When you come into my office sit up straight! How many times must I tell you this!" The chief's presence nearly took the assassin's breath away causing him to sweat nervously with a wry smile as his orange eyes glowed furiously.

"Yes, sir! Won't happen again, sir!" Tae Shik yelped as he dashed out the room, quick as a flash. Jin Chul just huffed, shaking his head disappointingly, "That guy… Absolutely no discipline!"

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Dr. Kyo Min-Jae swept away at his table, crashing papers and experimental glass instruments onto the floor. He let out a blood curdling scream of agony as the bones in his body shifted at awkward angles and punchering his liver and other internal organs.

'Those bastards… what's their problem!' The doctor managed to grind out in massive amounts of pain. 'Don't they realise their stifling human evolution!' he screamed internally as his body stopped squirming, leaving him heaving and drooling from his mouth.

The doctor was thinking back on how he had to carry himself to his house, within the slums of the city, covered in his sewage covered pants and ripped up lab coat. He'd suffered a lot these past few days but it would all be worth it if he could refine his new serum. The results a few nights ago were very promising.

Min-Jae tensed when he heard slow clapping from a dark corner of the room, followed by loud footsteps creaking the wooden floorboards of his house. "I must say doctor… This might be your best work yet!" The mysterious figure revealed himself to the doctor. He had fair skin with a scar on his chin, loose white hair, charming grey eyes, and two glistening red earrings. The man looked down on the doctor with a sardonic smile and kneeled down to his level.

"You know the cops in this city that I have on my payroll? It was only a matter of time until I heard about that shredded up factory, Doctor." the red dressed man started. Min-Jae growled in pain as he glared daggers at the elegantly dressed figure.

"Oh don't look at me like that~" he sang. "I thought we were partners, doc? Or was I wrong in my assessment?" he quickly turned serious.

A stab of fear entered Min-Jae's chest as he thought about just how much he didn't know about this man. As a scientist the unknown should excite him and learning about it was always fun and invigorating, but towards this man, he was very much afraid.

"So, why don't you tell me what really happened in that factory?" His eyes glowed a pale blue as the words left his mouth. "As your sponsor don't you think I deserve that curtsy?"

He gulped fearfully and then nodded. He stared aimlessly at the ground trying to recall the events that lead him to this moment. He took a breath, "It was a routine supply exchange…"

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—Flashback—

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Kyo Min-Jae, wearing a brown overcoat, crossed the street towards the factory. He constantly looked over his shoulder, scanning for anyone that might be following him. He slipped past the gates of the factory and headed around the corner to the back entrance of the massive building. It was on the way there he encountered two men dressed in all black trench coats standing next to a fire.

They turned to acknowledge the doctor and motioned him to follow them as they entered the factory. It was within the pseudo comforts of the walls that he was able to relax for a moment.

"So, Doctor… " one of the men began. "This is the third set of supplies you've requested in the past month. I feel that I shouldn't have to remind you that this stuff doesn't come cheap, right?" he said, pulling out a briefcase from his person.

"Ahrm, yes of course, Handler," Min-Jae agreed easily. "I realise this, but the project I'm working on requires these instruments and unfortunately they fall apart very easily. It's all in the process of…" he looked to be searching for the proper term to use. "Experimentation, let's say."

The Handler laughed, "Well… show me how far this 'Experimentation' has come," he replied, with mocking cadence. The doctor looked taken aback, "Um, excuse me?" he stammered.

"You heard me. I wanna see where all this money's been going. It's been about a year or two in the making, hasn't it?" he leaned in close causing the doctor to shrink back.

The doctor took a breath, his eyes showing trepidation to the men shrouded in black clothing. He had been carrying a sample with him today because he wanted to use some of the factory equipment to produce more containers for his serum.

"Ah, this is merely a sample but it's far too unrefined to be of use." he pulled out a mini box that contained an orange vial of bubbly liquid. Handler snatched it from his hand and inspected the vial. "It don't look like much." the doctor looked aghast at Handler's actions and exploded in a passionate triad, "That's a volatile chemical, you brute! Do you have any idea what it is you're dealing with?! This is the future of mankind and you should treat it with a little more respect!"

The other man just laughed and the handler said, "You getting a little too aggressive there doc. I know what I'm dealing with and it's a super steroid for us to rule this city!" he shook the contents of the vial and watched the bubbles sparkle up like carbonated water. "It's still a volatile element so be careful, I'd say." the doctor mumbled, reaching out to grab the vial from the man's hands but his hand was smacked away.

"I ain't done yet!" he said flatly, "So, tell me more about this magic steroid you concocted, doc. Is it really going to be as potent as you claim it'll be?"

Min-Jae fought the urge to glower at the man, "Yes! Better in fact. If my calculations are correct, and they always are, then I predict it'll be a 5-10x increase to a hunter's combat ability. As you know only the rarest of magic artefacts can increase a user's power by 20 to 30% and usually in one aspect of that hunter. My serum is different in the sense that it amplifies all the hunters attributes regardless of class. Meaning a C-rank archer can become as fast or durable as tank and assassin of the same rank while boosting existing attributes to a whole other level!" he explained long windedly and excitedly.

"Oh, doc, you're making me shiver in excitement!" Handler said, childish giddiness to his demeanour. "Is this the only sample you got, doc or is there more?" he asked. Min-Jae barely managed to suppress a scoff, keeping his thoughts hidden for the most part, "I would not be a very good scientist if I didn't have multiple versions of my serum. This is my most successful strain of the formula and I'll be glad for you to be able to tell Mr. Dal that his efforts aren't wasted on me."

Handler laughed, "I'll be sure to let him know, doc. This is some good wor-" he was interrupted by a loud clanging in the backrooms of the factory. It put all of them on guard and alert wondering what that sound was and where it came from.

Min-Jae quickly became alarmed when he saw both the Handler and his companion pull out handguns from their sides. This told him that they were not leaving anything to chance. He accepted, with shaky hands, the vial back from Handler. His hands grew clammy with sweat and throat became dry as his trepidation increased with every passing second.

He heard the clicking of both guns as the noises of clanging factory equipment grew louder and louder before coming to a halt. Handler broke the silence with his commanding voice, "Hey! Whoever you are, come out now or I'll shoot!"

A few lights blinked out in front of them and then a steel pipe came clanging and rolling to their feet. "Yo! I wonder whatcha y'all doing 'round 'ere!" a jovial voice echoed out from the darkness. "Y'all, better what out, cuz you're in big trouble, yeah!" the voice continued.

The voice laughed when Handler fired off a few rounds into the darkness hoping to tag the mysterious figure, "Ya almost got me… Nah, I'm lyin', you weren't even close. Hehe!" the voice continued. "So, tell me what's big ol' Dal been up to, yeah?" the voice asked.

"Like I'll tell you! And who the heck do you think you are to speak of him so casually!" Handler shouted back angrily. "Aw, man! Ya don't recognise my voice? Why don't ya let him know ol' buddy?" The jovial voice turned very sinister and Min-Jae saw Handler's companion pull a gun to him without a single moment of hesitation. "Jin-sae? What's the meaning of this?!" Handler questioned with barely contained fury.

"I'm simply making my allegiances clear. Dal is not the only one that wants to control this city." Jin-sae explained, keeping the cold steel of the gun pressed against Handler's temple. All the while, the voice laughing maniacally in the background. Min-Jae saw the lights blink back to life to reveal the voice being a scrawny man of similar stature to the doctor himself, he had a golden toothy grin on his face with his black hair sprawled out like he just woke up from bed.

"You…!" Handler murmured.

"Jin-sae, blow his brains out. We'll be takin' liberty of the doctor." the gold toothed gangster ordered. Jin-sae obliged and swiftly pulled the trigger and spread the Handler's brain matter all over the floor with a bit landing on the doctor's clothing.

"Wha-What's, what's going on? Wha-What's happening?" Min-Jae spluttered, shrinking back in fear. He wanted to faint just from the stress of the situation alone, with the blood of Handler all over his brown coat and the wretched rusted iron smell of blood permuting the air and filling his lungs.

"Yo, doc, calm down. Ya' lookin' a lil lightheaded, yeah?" the gold-toothed gangster inspected Min-Jae with a modicum of concern.

"Who are you people?"

"You can call me, Sook. I'm ya liberter, doc!" Sook answered, patting the terrified doctor on the head. "You're already familiar with Jin-sae over here, yeah! So, let's just say we wanna take down Dal's whole op and be the top one's in town, yeah. Wit, your little steroid that's all possible. So, whaddya say, doc? Wanna join The Blue Dawn?" Sook questioned with a grin, his teeth seemingly glowing a brighter by the second.

Min-Jae weighed his options heavily at that moment. On the one hand bowing down to these lunatics demands would definitely get him out of this situation alive and kicking but for how long? Dal didn't take kindly to his people betraying him and he'd even seen him execute one of his, at the time, best friends in a meeting with everyone watching. If Dal was able to do that to a perceived best friend then who knew what would happen to him. 'I probably wouldn't die, but he'd definitely torture me for days on end!'

But, if he refused these guys they might just outright kill him even if their target was him. And this Sook guy seemed to be the leader of this 'Blue Dawn' group so he could definitely make a call like that. He had to be careful dealing with these guys!

"So, what's the call, doc? Are you with us or not?" Jin-sae pressed for an answer. Min-Jae took a deep breath, fiddling with the vial in his back pocket. He would never ever consider using it, but in a situation like this he had very few options. This was his most successful strain of the serum, but there were too many unknowns like how the formula would react to a non-awakened person like himself. Would it just fail or corrode his body from the inside out with a volatile energy such as mana or would act like a poison to a being such as himself knowing he didn't possess mana himself.

"If I say no?"

Sook's expression turned to a pout, "That'll be disappointing, but slowin down Dal's op is my main goal ere', yeah." he responded and Min-Jae widened his eyes knowing he received the answer he'd been dreading. They were fine with him alive or dead.

"Jin-sae, dispose!" Sook ordered deathly calm and the two timing bastard looked frustrated at having to go through with the order. He pulled out his pistol and aimed at his head, but Min-Jae managed to pop open the cap to the vial in his pocket and brought it to his mouth before the trigger was pulled.

Jin-sae pulled the trigger and everything went black for the doctor.

—Flashback—

"So, that's what went down, huh?" Dal, the leader, said after Dr. Min-Jae was done relaying the information from days ago.

They were sitting across from each other separated by the coffee table in the living room. Dal with his two bulky guards standing behind him and Min-Jae sitting hunched on the chair covered by a huge deep blue blanket. Dal laid down the coffee he'd been drinking and snapped his fingers causing one of the guards to produce a file that was handed to him.

"So, you say this 'Sook' guy had gold teeth right?" Min-Jae nodded, "Interesting… So, you don't remember anything from the point you drank the serum and the point its effects wore off, correct?" and Min-Jae nodded once again. "A recent autopsy report on the body parts they could recover made no mention of a gold-toothed individual, at least from what they recovered." Dal explained, dropping the file on the table.

Min-Jae looked surprised, "So, you mean he's still out there? Any idea on who it could be?" he questioned. The gang leader shook his head, "Not a clue. He must be new. I don't like how easily he's infected my organisation, Jin-sae was a high ranking member as you know and it's only a wonder on who else he's gotten to."

"What are you going to do, sir?" Min-Jae asked, but Dal dismissed his question. He walked over to the door intending to leave, "Don't worry about all of that. I want you working on that serum, no matter how powerful a beast is. If I can't control it, what's the point? However, these were good results doctor." And left his home without another word meaning that after all these past few days, Doctor Kyo Min-Jae could relax once again.

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Yo! Guys sry for the long wait. I've just finished my exams and I couldn't really focus on writing chapters. I just wanted to let you know that I have not given up on this story and still 100% love doing it.

This chapter was a little difficult to finish for me, but I hope you enjoyed it honestly.