Chapter 1: The clans of the heavens

Naruto stared up into the clear and calm night sky. He was the only one awake at the moment, Sakura and Sasuke asleep and Kakashi probably out doing some sort of training that Naruto didn't know about. They were all currently out on a little assignment. Basically they were supposed to meet 4 ninjas from a newly formed clan to attempt and create an alliance with any village they could. What puzzled Naruto so much was why they had been told that it wouldn't take more than a day for their guests to arrive, even with fog thanks to the map that the village had lent them, and yet they were now a day late. Kakashi seemed apathetic at best, but then again, when was he ever anything but, especially during assignments such as these. Sakura told him he was just being stupid and Sasuke usually just told him to leave him alone and stop worrying.

Naruto suddenly sat up and looked at a nearby hillside. There, silhouetted against the pale white moon was a human-like figure. Naruto, instantly assuming the worst, put his fingers in his mouth and whistled, long and loud. Sasuke was the first to respond, walking out from around a tree and rubbing his eyes. He was still in his daytime clothes, and that made Naruto wonder whether or not Sasuke prepared for this kind of thing.

"What do you want now you blockhead?" Sasuke grumbled in his usual 'I'll kill you if this is a false alarm' kind of tone. Naruto simply pointed at the figure on the hill, hen whistled again to try and get Kakashi or Sakura to come and assist.

"It's someone! Someone who probably killed the guys we were waiting for and now wants to kill us!" Sasuke looked at Naruto then the figure, then back to Naruto and sighed.

"It's nothing, probably a hunter from another village. But with your screaming they must already know we're not animals. I'll see you in the morning blockhead." With that, Sasuke slowly walked off into the forest again. Naruto looked at him, wide eyed and fearing for his life, when he noticed the figure was now gone again.

Off in the forest, Sasuke slowly trudged past Sakura, who had been rudely awakened by Naruto's whistling.

"What did he want now?"

"Thought he saw someone threatening, most likely just a hunter. Kakashi-san probably took care of it already." He stepped back up into the tree he had been sleeping in and quickly getting comfy again.

Off in the distance, the figure Naruto had caught a glimpse of, moved back to the spot where a fire crackled brightly. Three others were around it, one lying on a log, another one perched on a jagged rock that was jutting from the ground and the third simply sitting down on the grass. Tearing a small strip of parchment off his forehead and tossing it into the fire, he sat down next to the one on the log

"The seal was useless…" Figure #2 sat up quickly and looked at him.

"You mean it doesn't control-"

"No, no, it controls…'it' just fine. It was just useless because their sensei wasn't there." The group mumbled and then stared at the fire. #3 was the next to speak up.

"What do we do if he doesn't come to the site tomorrow?" #4 laughed slightly and lay down on his back.

"Then we go and find him. And if the kids get in the way…" #3 jumped off his rock and while he spun in midair, kicked clean through it like a hot knife through butter. They all chuckled to themselves, knowing full well that they could easily take on those kids, especially if they got the first strike. #2 sighed and closed his eyes.

"Well, if he isn't there, and don't hold me too this, I think I may have to use a forbidden scroll." The others looked at him and cocked their eyebrows. He usually never did that unless he was really angry, or in dire straights. But, that wasn't their problem really. All four of them laid back on various surfaces and slowly found themselves all asleep for the night.

Morning came with little to no troubles, save for finding a place to take a bath, and Kakashi finally showed up again. After numerous questions from Naruto, and a mild inquisition from Sasuke and Sakura, he explained what he had been doing.

"Well, it's really all quite simple." He quickly reached into one pocket and removed a little scroll. "For starters, I had to reserve the newest copy of Flirting Paradise." All three of his students shook their heads, disappointed at their teacher's obsession over that book. Kakashi then slipped the scroll around, showing more writing. "I was also taking notes on our friends that were supposed to be here by now." Naruto snatched the little scroll and read it over, then passed it to Sasuke, then to Sakura.

"But…Sensei…why can they only come out at night?" Sakura asked curiously. Kakashi sighed and took back his scroll, then sat down on a tree stump. The three younger ninja's sat in front of him on the grass as he started talking.

"Well, the answer is simple, but also kind of complex when you get into it."

"Just tell us Sensei, it would be a lot better if we knew why we'll have to stay up to greet them." Sakura seemed rather impatient this morning, but then again they had been waiting longer than they had wanted too.

"Well, they are known as the clan of the hidden moon for a reason. Most, if not all of the clan members at this point in time are nocturnal. So until they get used to our way of doing things, we'll have to play on their rules." Naruto stood up, looking angry and crossed his arms.

"Forget it! If they want to come to the village let them do it when they can wake up in the morning like normal people!" With that, he started stomping off, grumbling about how much of a waste of time this was. Sasuke sighed and crossed his arms as well.

"He has a point. Why don't they work on their sleeping habits and then meet up with us?" Kakashi stood up as Sasuke asked about that, then grabbed Naruto by the back of his jacket and pulled him back.

"It's either their way or the highway. And right now, having an alliance with a clan that isn't hindered by the night is really going to a be a greater help than hindrance." Kakashi seemed determined to keep his students there, and they knew better than to disobey their Jounin teacher. Sakura shrugged then looked at Kakashi.

"What should we know about them? Or did they not give you enough information when we were assigned this job?" Kakashi scratched his head for a minute then looked at her and sat Naruto down again.

"Well…I'm pretty sure there will be four of them…each one about your age, a couple may be a little older." The three students looked back and forth at each other as Kakashi continued to attempt and remember what he had been told. "Umm, the oldest ones are 17 and 16, then the others are 15 or so. The two oldest are rather…unorthodox. The others are pretty much what you would expect them to be." Naruto sighed and laughed.

"And to think I was afraid of these guys! Not only are they unorthodox, but they're also kids! This is gonna be a cake walk!" Kakashi looked at him with his same stare that simply told Naruto that he should shut up for the time being.

"I'd suggest you all get as much rest as you can. After you train, sleep. After you eat, sleep. If your eyelids even get remotely heavy, sleep." With that Kakashi promptly pulled out a copy of Flirting Paradise and started to read. Sakura, Sasuke and Naruto sat there and discussed the current situation.

"I don't think I like the sound of this. If they live by night, what's to stop them from ambushing us?" Said Sasuke, looking a little concerned about their position. Sakura shook her head.

"If we follow Sensei's advice, we should be awake enough to fight them if they want to attack us." Sasuke nodded then slowly stood up and walked to a clear patch of grass and stretched out across it.

"I'm going to sleep. If anyone wakes me up, it better be night." He quickly closed his eyes, while Sakura lay down next to him and did like wise. Naruto attempted to get a spot next to her, but was pushed away by Sakura. Naruto looked back at her, disappointed at her reaction to his choice of sleeping spot, and curled up, falling asleep after a minute of silent contemplation.

Night came quickly and Naruto the first one up. It felt weird to be awake and energized when the moon was rising high into the sky. He looked over at Sasuke, seeing him lying straight out on his back made him uncomfortable just thinking about it. Then his eyes traced over to Sakura and he felt his breath catch in his throat. She was lying on her side, her smooth strawberry blonde hair resting about her shoulders and across her neck and face. A small smile was on her face and her eyes were closed gently, obviously having a pleasant dream. The pale silver glow of the moon stopped at her waist, but he could swear her red dress was made of starlight in this kind of clear night sky. Reaching out gently, he moved small strands of hair from her face. She didn't stir even once, and Naruto could feel a smile trace across her face. Even when she was sleeping he couldn't help but see her as an angel. He moved to smooth out her hair, but found his eyes drawn to the horizon. Once again, he could see a figure, only this time it was much closer. Snapping back to reality, he shook Sakura roughly then leapt over her to Sasuke, doing the same.

"Wake up! One of them is here!" Sakura and Sasuke sat up and looked at the figure. With little time to act, all three were on their feet, shuriken and kunai ready and their hands twitching in anticipation of a ninjitsu ability. Sasuke's eyes were already in Sharingan mode as he stepped forward, watching the figure as it started a slow walk towards them.

"Who are you?" Sasuke's voice was firm, yet loud enough to create an echo in the vast expanse of trees and hills. The figure though, just continued to walk. Sasuke asked his name again, but still the figure just continued its walk. There was a third time asking but still…silence rang in the hills and trees. Not wasting a second, Sasuke threw a kunai at his advancing mystery man. There was a jerk in his head and he slowly came into focus, the moon dancing across his features. In his mouth, he carried the kunai that would have punctured his throat had it kept going. A wind swept across his face, ruffling his short black hair and the tattered remains of a black jacket. His steps were short but even and his eyes…even in the moon, no light escaped from them. Naruto and Sakura could feel chills run down their spines, and Sasuke was already looking worried. Another gust of wind showed the group a small little piece of parchment clinging to his forehead. Though it was hard to read, the group could tell it was a seal of some sort. The figure, now about two thirds of the way to the groups position spat out the kunai in its mouth, showing sharpened canine teeth, meant to resemble a vampire almost. Naruto quickly dashed from where he was standing, holding his kunai threateningly.

"Naruto, stop!"

"You blockhead, what do you think you're doing!?" Sasuke and Sakura shouted at him, but in his pig headed foolishness, he ignored them and continued his full on charge for the demon-like boy. He never made it halfway before he felt a sharp stinging in his ribs and saw a large medical needle protruding from his chest. His arms suddenly felt like they were tied to the ground, and his legs wobbled as he collapsed backwards, unable to hold himself up. Sasuke was now off like a flash, attempting to help his team member. Another silhouette was now there and with a leap, his fist connected with Sasuke's gut. Sasuke was unable to do anything but fall to his knees, panting for breath and coughing wildly. Sakura stared at the scene before her. Her two friends were now down on the ground and the demon boy was near enough that he could easily lunge at her and grab her by the neck. He continued to walk closer to her, then slowly grasped her chin with cold hands. A twisted and deranged smile spread across his face as his tongue slipped across his lips.

"My, my…you seem like a tasty little morsel." He chuckled and looked into her green eyes with his own. Suddenly, everything seemed so…dreary to Sakura. Everything was dull, pointless and bland. She didn't feel a reason to be here. The boy quickly opened his mouth and drew towards her neck as Naruto and Sasuke looked at what was happening behind them.

"Amuka! That's enough!" A second seal was thrown onto the demon boy's mouth, closing it quickly and making him drop Sakura. She fell backwards, suddenly in her normal state of mind and very terrified as she scooted away, bumping into a pair of legs. Looking up she saw only an open red jacket, probably of a fine quality material, and a stern face. Amuka looked at the other man and growled, prying the seal off his mouth. Before he could speak though, the other boy held up a finger. "Before you complain, let me remind you that we are here to negotiate, and I don't think we can do that if you drain one of our guides dry for one of your damn forbidden transformation spells." Amuka snarled and swatted the boy's hand away.

"What do you think you are Kaine, my keeper or something?!" Amuka was absolutely trembling with rage that was emanating from every pore in his body. Kaine sighed and shook his head.

"No, I am not your keeper. I am your friend, and I am the only one that can keep that seal on your head active." He pointed at the little parchment that hung from Amuka's head then smirked, having won this argument. The figure that had attacked Sasuke leapt to the others and sighed.

"May we please just find this Kakashi guy and get this over with? You seem to forget we still have to start waking up in the morning now." Kaine sighed again and ran a hand through his long dark brown hair. His hazel colored eyes caught the moon just right and showed off the tiny hint of red in them and he reached into a pocket on his black pants, pulling out a picture of Sakura and comparing it to her. Finding it satisfactory, he smiled for the first time in the night and gently helped her up.

"My humblest apologies Miss Sakura. Amuka here can be rather imposing at times, but he means well. My name is Kaine." He bowed politely and then gestured over to the third boy, who seemed older than Amuka, yet younger than Kaine. He looked at Sakura with a hint of apology in his eyes. And that's when she noticed something extremely odd about him. His left eye was closed, but his right eye was anything but normal. It looked like someone had removed his human eye and replaced it with a wolf's. On his back was a gigantic sword wrapped in bandages and three katana's were strapped onto his left side. His silvery white hair was ruffled by a gust of wind and he smiled warmly at Sakura.

"I am the leader of this little group. My name, is Shinzou Kitsune. The fourth member of our team, Vayle, will join us shortly." Sure enough, as those words were said, a boy who looked to be Kaine's age came bounding through the trees. At his waist was a belt full of bottles, vials, needles and other medical extremities. Kaine smiled and pat Vayle's shoulder then ran a hand through his hair again, gesturing to Sakura with his free hand.

"This is Miss Sakura, she's the lucky one that you and Kitsune didn't knock out. Though Amuka did come close to draining her blood for a spell." Amuka chuckled and looked at her.

"Sorry 'bout that. Lost it for a minute." Sakura looked at all four of them, then at Naruto, still laying out there.

"Umm…w-wh-what did you…do to Naruto?" She asked, stumbling over her words a little. Kaine looked at Kitsune, who looked at Amuka who looked at Vayle. Vayle sighed and scratched his head of short dirty blonde hair a little before pulling out a tiny glass jar of yellow liquid from his belt.

"New formula Ether. Potent when breathed, unbelievably strong with injected. You friend will be right as rain soon enough, but he'll still be numb for a few hours." He nodded and smiled. "I am a genius." Kaine smacked Vayle on the back of his head.

"Don't toot your own horn there buddy. You still have a lot of perfection on that formula to do." Sakura looked at them then suddenly looked around worried.

"Kakashi Sensei! Shouldn't he be here by now?!" The four glanced at her briefly then at each other and mumbled in agreement.

"Who's to say I'm not here?" Kakashi's voice was suddenly echoing from every direction, as if he was everywhere at once. Kaine, Amuka, Vayle and Kitsune stood in a circle and looked around for the source of the voice. There was a gentle swish of air and Kaine was suddenly awash in shredded pieces of paper, which seemed to be his scrolls and seals. Another swish and Amuka's seal was cut from his head. He looked at the others, worried as he skin grew even paler and his body started shifting. Vayle quickly grabbed a needle and jammed it into Amuka's neck, causing him to fall face first onto the ground, unconscious. Kakashi was suddenly heard again by the remaining two. "You attacked my two students…That can't go unpunished!" A third swish of air, then seconds after it, there was a yelp as Vayle had one of his own needle's jammed into his leg, numbing his limbs into atrophy. Kitsune looked around worried, unaware of where Kakashi was. Sakura looked around for her sensei and soon saw where he was. He was crouching behind Kitsune…very close behind him…with his fingers in the sign of the tiger…Sakura's eyes widened then she shook her head.

"Sensei, not that!" Kitsune looked at her, confused, then glanced down to where she was staring. Kakashi smirked then brought his hands back.

"Hidden Leaf Ancient Taijutsu Supreme Technique: A Thousand Years of Pain!"

There was a moment of silence as all of Kitsune's nerve endings registered the situation. Head…ok. Torso…ok. Rectum…not ok.

"HOOOOOOOOLY SHIIIIIIIIT!" Kitsune flew off of Kakashi's fingers and straight up into the air in and world of pain. What the hell kind of jutsu was that, was the only question he could think of before landing face first on the ground and blacking out.

It was early morning before Kitsune awoke again. He found himself laying face up and looking into the faces of Kakashi and Sasuke. Looking over, he saw Vayle treating Naruto's wound from his needle, as well as his own. Sakura and Kaine were remaking the destroyed seals and scrolls while Amuka rested on a rock lazily. Blinking to adjust his eyes to the bright sunlight, he slowly sat up.

"Ugh…it feels like I was violated by a tree branch." He said as he rubbed his sore ass. Kakashi chuckled and shrugged and Sasuke sighed, obviously not impressed. Kaine laughed and rolled another scroll up.

"Yeah, Vayle say's it'll be a miracle if you can eat anything today. But, I'm sure you'll get over the pain sooner or later." He went back to creating another scroll as Amuka looked over at him, no seal on his head at the moment. Kitsune raised an eyebrow.

"Umm…Amuka…how is it you aren't going totally berserk right now?" Amuka shrugged and rubbed his forehead.

"I guess I can control my demon in the day time. Interesting ain't it?" He chuckled and hopped off the rock then joined Kitsune at the spot he was sitting. Kitsune smiled and punched him softly in the arm. The two started to chuckle then eventually broke out laughing from their situation. Sasuke and Naruto looked at the two and tapped their fingers on the rock Amuka had been sitting on. Naruto suddenly cleared his throat and looked at each of them. He crossed his arms and adjusted his headband.

"Ok, we've been patient! Now I think you owe us at least your names! Or else we'll kick your asses like we did last night!" Naruto shouted, trying to sound threatening. The group of four looked at him. Kitsune was the one who stood, looking down at him, hair bristling on the back of his neck and his golden fox eye peering into Naruto's face, almost into his soul.

"As I recall…I was the one who easily beat you into the ground last night. So you're in no place to make threats." Kitsune's normally calm and vaguely soft voice was threateningly low and menacing, almost like a growl. The two of them stared each other, trying to get the other to blink. Sasuke noticed Naruto's eyes shift into their fox form and stepped up to the two.

"If you think your fancy footwork can defeat someone with Sharingan eyes, go ahead and try." Kitsune looked up from staring at Naruto and took a step back from Sasuke as he noticed the mirror wheel designs in Sasuke's blood red eyes. Kaine was up like a flash and quickly twirled Sasuke away from his leader. His pitch black eyes met with Sasuke's and there was almost a jolt as the power of Sasuke's Sharingan collided with some other unseen force. Sakura looked at Sasuke and Kaine, both of their faces stern and unmoving, both of them looking so much alike. The two stood there, ready to attack to kill with even the slightest provocation. But, Kakashi stepped forward and pulled the four boys away. He glanced at Sakura then at Kaine.

"Sakura, I want you to escort Kaine and Amuka back to the village. Sasuke and Naruto, you bring back Vayle. I want a word with Kitsune here." As he said that, his pupils could hear a note of urgency in his voice. Sakura stared at him blankly a few seconds then came to her senses and nodded, quickly taking off into the forest. Amuka followed quickly, but Kaine lingered a time, still staring at Sasuke, their eyes fighting for supremacy. It wasn't until Sakura came back and grasped his wrist gently that he looked away and almost vanished into the woods. Naruto looked at Sasuke concerned and raised an eyebrow.

"Why didn't the Sharingan seem to work?" Naruto inquired. Sasuke closed his eyes and looked at the ground.

"I don't know why it didn't. It was like there was some kind of loop going on. I could see his eyes…but he couldn't see mine." Sasuke muttered in a deadpan voice, as if this were no big deal. But to him, it was a big deal. The Sharingan was a power that carried great undertones of respect among ninja. If the scroll ninja could look him in the face and never once fall prey to the mirror wheel eye, then that was nothing less than an insult to Sasuke and his entire heritage. Naruto on the other hand, couldn't understand what it was about Kitsune, but that eye of his seemed to start fully awakening his fox demon, something he never wanted to happen. He smoothed out a few hairs that were upright on the back of his neck and took a deep breath before Vayle stepped between them, fully packed and smiling.

"Well, I'm ready. Shall we depart?" Was all he said in a bright smiling tone that left Sasuke and Naruto a little less angry. They looked at each other then nodded and took off, followed closely by Vayle.

Kakashi sat on the rock, crossing his legs while Kitsune sat respectfully on the grass in front of him. Kakashi drummed his fingers against his knees and Kitsune simply rested there like a sentinel, his eyes closed and no muscle in his body even twitching. They sat that way for what must have been a good five minutes before Kakashi cleared his throat and began speaking.

"So…you are the infamous shinobi, Shinzou Kitsune the Eight and a Half tailed fox…what happened to the other half a tail?" Shinzou turned around, showing a drawing of a fox's head on the back of his jacket with 9 tails fanning out around it. But along Kitsune's left shoulder, the ninth tail was sliced in half, a chunk of fabric cut off and a long scar along Kitsune's back present. He sighed and shrugged.

"There's no room for two nine-tailed fox demons in this earth. So when I challenged the second…this was the result." Kakashi whistled and chuckled.

"So you challenged a demon and only got a scratch. Makes me wonder exactly how it was so easy to sneak up on you last night." Shinzou snorted indignantly and turned around again.

"You caught me off guard, that's all. I'll take you on any day you want!" He stood up, almost begging for Kakashi to try something just for revenge against the deed committed against his anus. But, Kakashi simply stood up and took off, leaving just a whisper on the wind of "Follow me."

Amuka, Kaine and Sakura rushed through the trees towards the Hidden village of the leaf, barely making any sound and letting an awkward silence reign. Kaine and Amuka let Sakura get a little further ahead before they started to talk.

"So, she's pretty hot stuff ain't she?" Asked Amuka in a slightly lecherous tone as he nudged Kaine's ribs. Kaine sighed and pinched the bridge of his nose at the comment, as he always did when he found Amuka's actions or words to be a little less than exemplary.

"Yes, she is quite attractive, but I hardly think you should be talking about her that way." Amuka growled and crossed his arms, looking frustrated.

"You say that about everything I have an opinion about. Can't you let me say what I want without making me sound like a little kid for once?" Amuka sounded extremely ticked off which only made Kaine chuckle in bemusement. Sakura looked over her shoulder at them then back at her path, wondering what exactly they were talking about. Kaine and Amuka began to argue back and forth over Sakura's attractiveness as they leapt through the trees, unaware of a danger that had followed them ever since they left the island. As the village came into view through the tree line, Sakura stopped and grabbed Kaine's arm, stopping him and leaving him dangling. Pulling himself up to the branch Sakura was on, he dusted himself off then sighed, looking at her.

"Yes…what is it?" He sounded a little angry but Sakura ignored the feeling and asked him what she wanted to know.

"Kaine…why are you making an alliance with the Village of the Hidden Leaf?" She looked at him and he cleared his throat then drummed his fingers on his knees. Looking up into the canopy of the forest he started talking.

"Well…we come from an island where the sun sets at the same time as the moon rises and visa versa. Kitsune and his brother Damon started a village that worshipped the moon because of all the creatures that came out at night. But there was one man who hated the night, he preferred the day when leaves, vegetables and fruit grew in abundance. Well, naturally there was conflict and that eventually exploded into a war. Our clans clashed again and again and eventually Kitsune, Damon, Amuka, Vayle and myself brought an end to the fighting, slaughtering the village of the setting sun with our greatest skills." He heaved a great sigh and rubbed his arm. "Women, Children, we thought we exterminated them all. But apparently the Kage escaped underground and has been trying to rebuild the shambles of his clan. He has been steadily gaining power for almost a year and now we fear that unless we get a few alliances going we may not be able to stop him without tearing the island in half." Sakura looked at him, finding it hard to imagine the calm and innocent looking teen sitting next to her killing anything, let along children and women. He smiled, although forced and got up again. "Well…best to be on our way." He took off running through the branches again, Sakura taking a second to let it all register before rushing off after him again.

End chapter 1 Disclaimer: I don't own Naruto, but I do own the character concepts for Kaine, Shinzou, Amuka and Vayle. The clan name is owned by my friend Matt.