The throne room of Tamaran shimmered with radiant sunlight filtering through crystal windows, reflecting off the gold-and-purple banners that fluttered in the gentle breeze of climate-controlled air. Guards lined the great hall, standing tall in ceremonial armor, spears gleaming, and eyes alert. All attention was focused at the far end of the hall—on the throne where Queen Komand'r, also known as Blackfire, sat with regal poise.
She was armored in light ceremonial plating, sleek and dark, inlaid with glowing violet streaks that pulsed with Tamaranean energy. A crown rested lightly on her brow, more symbol than ornament. There was strength in her posture—strength born from hardship and survival. But beneath that, sharp eyes watched with awareness, filled with curiosity and caution as Naruto Uzumaki—the Leader of Golden Dawn—stepped through the grand doors with his companions in tow.
"Welcome, Representative of Earth, Leader of Golden Dawn. I have been waiting for you." Her voice rang clear across the throne room, a perfect blend of hospitality and formality. Her mood was steady, poised—even upbeat—but her fingers drummed lightly on the armrest, betraying a subtle tension.
She had been in communication with Naruto for over a month. They had exchanged formal transmissions, strategic details, and political assurances. But none of that could prepare her for his presence in person.
Now that she was facing him directly, Blackfire understood why the world whispered his name with reverence and fear. His smile was warm—gentle, even—but behind it radiated a terrifying depth, like standing before the ocean and realizing it had no bottom.
Had it not been for her sister, for Starfire, and the journey they had walked together this past year, Komand'r suspected she would not have survived this encounter.
"Thank you for receiving me, Blackfire. I have also been looking forward to meeting you." Naruto's smile was respectful, but not submissive. His golden aura, though subdued, rolled like distant thunder beneath calm skies. Power pulsed within him, leashed but unmistakable.
Komand'r—once a woman who would have demanded titles, obeisance, and respect at swordpoint—felt the hairs on her neck rise. She didn't correct him when he addressed her by name. She didn't ask for "Majesty." One wrong word, one show of arrogance… and she might have lost her head before her guards could even blink.
Her instincts screamed it.
He was a savior. And an executioner.
If her sister hadn't turned her from the edge—if she hadn't fought beside her, forgiven her, and taught her how to lead—this very moment might have ended in fire and blood.
Komand'r's life had been nothing but tragedy from the start. Born the first princess in over a century, her arrival had coincided with the Citadel Empire's assault, and the massacre of three thousand Tamaraneans. That dark day became a stain she could never wash away. To make matters worse, her illness robbed her of the Tamaranean gift of flight. She was a broken icon, blamed and scorned by her own people.
All the honors meant for her were handed to her younger sister, Koriand'r. The adoration. The destiny. The crown.
Bitterness festered.
Her jealousy curdled into cruelty. She had betrayed her own kind. She had sold Starfire into slavery. Allowed her to be violated and used—even tortured her with her own hands. The weight of those sins had once made her irredeemable.
And yet…
Starfire had come back. Fought beside her. Bled with her. Forgave her.
It had changed everything.
It had given Komand'r the throne… and a new path. One she now shared with the man who had proven himself in battle and earned her heart.
Now, she ruled with Starfire at her side—not as a rival, but as a guiding light.
The sunlight through the crystal glass bathed the throne room in a divine glow, highlighting the ornate carvings and polished floors of Tamaran's royal palace. The golden banners of the royal family fluttered softly from high beams, a quiet testament to the power and pride of a people long misunderstood. At the heart of it all, seated on her throne like a queen of fire and shadow, Komand'r, known throughout the galaxy as Blackfire, watched the Earth delegation with amusement sparkling in her violet eyes.
With a graceful flick of her wrist, she gestured toward the ornate seating meant for honored guests and high-ranking ministers. Her smile was mischievous, her voice laced with pride and playful provocation.
"It's my honor. Take a seat and explain to me your reason for coming here other than to lay eyes on my beautiful form."
Her tone earned a few raised brows from the Earth delegation, but not from the man she addressed directly. Naruto Uzumaki, the Leader of Golden Dawn, simply smiled in return—warm, charismatic, and full of honest appreciation. He made no move to play coy or deflect her ego. Instead, he met it head-on with sincerity.
"I have come here for an important reason, though I would have still visited to catch sight of your beauty. You have such a unique and charming appearance that you have certainly caught my eye."
His words were deliberate and genuine. He had expected arrogance or deceit when it came to Blackfire, but what he found instead was a woman who had been tempered by hardship, forged anew by a bond with her sister. Starfire's efforts had not been in vain. Blackfire had changed. And Naruto had chosen diplomacy over domination—for now.
He could have destroyed her.
He could have seized Tamaran in moments, subjugated its people, and ruled with absolute control. Since absorbing the strength of Hercules, his body had begun to evolve. The power was maddeningly vast, and yet under his precise command.
But he did not come to conquer.
He came to prepare.
As he took his seat, the others followed. Raven sat beside him, cloaked in quiet calm. Kara remained composed and observant. Nightwing and Barbara kept to the rear, allowing the conversation to flow as Naruto led with purpose.
Blackfire tilted her head, intrigued not just by his power but by his manners. His aura alone made her pulse quicken—raw, ancient, unwavering. She had ruled armies and destroyed lives, yet before him, she felt like a blade of grass facing a coming storm.
"Hehe. I would love to show you more after this meeting, if you want," she said with a teasing lilt, her fingers gently trailing along the armrest. "So, what is this important reason?"
Naruto leaned forward slightly, resting his forearms on his knees as he looked up at her, not with superiority, but with the burden of knowledge.
"One of my teammates is from the future. He's given us a warning—of an attack, a cosmic threat—that can happen at any time within the next few years. This isn't just an Earth problem. If we fail, the entire universe is at risk… especially Earth and Tamaran."
He didn't embellish. Didn't grandstand. The name Superboy Prime was kept unspoken, but the implications were clear. A monster that could shatter galaxies. A being of fury and contradiction.
Blackfire frowned, leaning back as her fingers tapped against her lips. She could tell he wasn't lying. But he wasn't telling her everything either.
"You want my help in contending against this enemy. But what exactly are you asking for?"
"I want to help you and Starfire grow stronger," Naruto explained. "The rest of Tamaran isn't ready for something of this scale. With my abilities—and Raven's—we can help you reach your full potential. Strengthen your bodies, evolve your energy, and break your limits. At minimum, you'll double your current power."
A deep silence filled the room at those words. To the untrained ear, it sounded like a boast. But to those present, it was a promise.
"Hmm… It's an interesting proposal," Blackfire mused, crossing one leg over the other. "Not something you see every day. But… I want to add one condition."
She paused, letting the anticipation build.
Then she smiled—sharp, alluring, hungry.
"Let's make this alliance official. Become my consort, and I agree."
The room tensed.
Starfire, who had remained quiet out of respect for the diplomatic process, finally stepped forward.
"Sister—!"
"Hush, Star," Blackfire said without even turning. "I want someone powerful as the King and partner. It's not like I'm doing something wrong… or asking for too much."
The younger sister fell silent, biting her lip. She couldn't deny that Naruto fit the role perfectly—and she also couldn't deny that Komand'r had a right to negotiate her terms. Their agreement hadn't forbidden this.
Naruto, for his part, didn't flinch. He studied Blackfire's expression, searching for deceit. But there was none. She wasn't manipulating him. She genuinely wanted him—for power, yes, but also for companionship.
She was offering herself. Her world. Her future.
And it was up to him whether he'd accept.
Raven's eyes flicked toward Naruto with silent concern, though she said nothing. She trusted his judgment.
In the vast scheme of unifying worlds under a single banner of peace and power, Naruto Uzumaki had long accepted the political reality of forming alliances through personal bonds—marriages, consortships, and pacts sealed not just by words, but by bodies, blood, and loyalty.
This wasn't the first time.
He remembered Nadeshiko Village, a land of proud kunoichi where strength defined worth. A marriage to their future leader would've granted him control over the village—but he'd walked away. And then there was Shion, the priestess of the Land of Demons, who had offered him a child—a future sealed in bloodline. He had refused then, uncertain, still clinging to the hope of peace without compromise.
But those days were gone.
The threat looming on the edge of the cosmos, the rise of Superboy Prime, had reminded him that the path to survival and unity would not always be clean. A loyal base, one that stood with him without doubt or hesitation, had to be built not just with ideals—but with power, flesh, and commitment.
So Naruto stood.
And in the blink of an eye, he was in front of Blackfire, his hands resting gently but firmly on her shoulders. His eyes, golden and deep like the sun's core, looked directly into hers—not as a man seeking love, but as a king sealing a pact.
"I will accept," he said softly, "but you won't be part of the family until there are mutual emotions involved. You are just one of many, and you will never see another. If you are fine with those points, then I am fine as well."
His words were velvet over steel. The atmosphere thickened with their weight. It was not a request—it was a decree.
And Blackfire loved it.
She didn't want sweet nothings or promises of eternal love. She wanted a powerful partner who took what he needed, one whose presence overwhelmed the world around him. The mix of Naruto's natural charisma and the immortally power of Hercules radiated from him like heat from a star. She wasn't in love, and that suited her just fine.
Love was a vulnerability.
She preferred pleasure, legacy, power. Naruto gave her all three with this agreement. And she respected that he demanded her exclusivity—if he hadn't, she would have been disappointed. A man of his stature needed to command, not negotiate.
"Then we have a deal," she replied, looping her arms around his neck with a smirk that belied her simmering excitement.
Starfire gasped audibly, her eyes wide with disbelief. She had tried so hard to reform her sister, to teach her the values of honor and trust, not just strength and ambition. And now, Naruto—whom she deeply respected—was sealing a deal like this?
Yet she stayed quiet.
So did Raven and Kara, though their eyes revealed the storm of thoughts beneath. But in the end, they trusted Naruto. Even if the deal was uncomfortable, they knew he had his reasons. And if Blackfire had dared to try anything, she would've been nothing more than a smear on the palace wall.
"Deal," Naruto echoed, his voice low—and then he kissed her.
It was not tender. It was a claim.
A command.
A message burned into her soul: You are mine.
The kiss was rougher than what most would expect of a diplomat—but not unexpected for someone of Naruto's position. His chakra, now refined beyond normal comprehension, danced along her nerves like fire and lightning. Pleasure surged through her like never before.
Blackfire shivered, breathing heavily when he pulled away. In that moment, she understood: no other man could give her what he just did. There was no going back.
"Get things settled. I will summon both of you in the morning for training," he said calmly, the authority in his voice echoing across the throne room.
Then he was gone.
Just like that.
His team followed him in silence, stepping through the dimensional fold as they left Tamaran behind.
He had other missions. Other flames to tend.
Foremost in his mind was his child, somewhere across the stars, waiting to be found. And amidst the chaos of interstellar politics and warnings from the future, he realized something else—he had forgotten to ask how to return to Gaea. The shock of the time-traveler's prophecy had thrown him off course.
But it didn't matter.
He would get the answer—soon, when he asked about the transformation that still burned inside him like a whisper from the immortals.
And when he did, the next phase of his destiny would begin.