Alright, so, KotS is not on Hiatus or anything, but since I've been reading a lot of younger Naruto fics, I decided I'd give my own go at something. It may quickly go to older ninja status, but we'll have to see.

Now, for you enjoyment, Byakko!

Byakko: White/Spiritual fox

Disclaimer: Yes, Kami hates me, so I don't own Naruto.

Byakko
Prelude
The Hand that Heals

Fear surrounded it like a living thing.

The small red creature cowered in the corner as the two brutish hounds stalked down the alley towards it, followed by two laughing men. It tried to curl up, but the wound on it's side pulled painfully, causing it to whimper and lay flat, awaiting it's doom. This was the way of the world it knew, those who had no strength ha to rely on cunning and luck, and it had just run out of both.

Konohagakure was probably one of the most dangerous places for a fox to live, considering the fact that anything that slightly resembled the Kyuubi was hunted down and killed. This particular specimen had been living under the foundation of a small apartment, not two blocks away. The fox had tried to escape, but the two dogs had smelled him, and he was unwilling to lead them back to his den.

So here he was, trapped, waiting for death to come with swift, steely jaws and cruel hands. His pelt would probably be made into a decoration for someone's lady, or perhaps some gloves. He slumped at the thought of his beautiful coat being savaged by those beasts, then turned into something that would be used by the barbaric humans that hunted him.

The dogs howled and charged, bearing down on the small creature, before a whistle stopped them. They skidded to a stop just in front of the fox, waiting for their master to give the command. The larger of the men turned to his companion, confused.

"Why don't you let them kill the beast?" he asked, confused.

"Are you kidding? Do you know what a fox's pelt is worth these days? If I let those dogs tear it up, we would be out of a decent sum of money." The other replied, pulling a knife, "But if we get it intact, we could earn a great deal more."

"I see your point... Why don't you break it's neck?"

"That's the plan baka."

"Hey!"

The two men started bickering, and the hounds began to lose interest in the fox, knowing that their master wasn't going to allow them to eat it right now. They settled down a few feet away, turning to watch their master argue with the 'big guy,' as they thought of him.

On the rooftop above a boy in an orange 'kill me' jumpsuit looked down with disgust, and fear, at the two men who were planning to kill the fox. Naruto hated pain, seeing as how he received a constant dose of it every day, whether it be mental or physical, and he was barely holding himself back from jumping down there and trying to attack the two men. Of course, such an act would be foolish. Naruto was only ten years old, and although smart for his age, spent most of his time pranking, which wasn't a very muscle building activity, unless you count speed. In that case, he was a number one candidate for ninja of the year.

Naruto pulled a length of ninja wire which he always carried with him out of his pocket. He attached it to a cracked tile on the roof and dropped it down. Pulling on a pair of black gloves, he shimmied down the rope, silent and unseen. There was little to no wind in the alley, and the refuse which was piled within it was enough to blunt the dogs sense of smell and prevent them from noticing Naruto while they watched to two men fight.

Naruto let go with his hands, gripping his legs tightly to the wire, then lowered himself upside down next to the fox. The fox bared it's teeth at him, but kept silent, somehow sensing something was going on. The boy smelled of fox, something that he had never heard of in a human. And not just any fox, probably a den leader of some sort.

Naruto put a shushing finger to his mouth and grabbed the fox around the waist, trying carefully not to further damage the creature's side. Of course, the fingers of a ten year old are very dextrous, but nowhere near the precision of an experienced medic nin. Shortly after he began to lift up the fox, it let loose a pained yowl, blood seeping through Naruto's hands.

The two men and dogs turned, seeing Uzumaki Naruto hanging upside down from a rope, attempting to steal their prey. The dogs snarled, and their owner gave a sharp whistle. The two dogs charged.

Naruto swept the fox into his hands, then drew upon his abundant chakra reserves to pull himself up. Naruto had learned the trick of focusing chakra into parts of your body to strengthen them ever since he had been able to walk. Mostly to get away from abusive villagers, and sometimes, vengeful gennin. Naruto tried his best not to harass the older ninjas, at least not until he was nine, at which point he could run and hide better than most chuunin.

Naruto's hands clamped down on the roof, just as one of the dogs snatched his leg. Naruto yelled in pain, kicking with his other foot, trying not to let his child's muscles give way under the strain of the hundred pound dog hanging from his leg. A lucky shot to the nose caused the dog to fall away, taking some flesh and blood with it. Naruto winced, but pain was nothing new to him, he had run with worse, and gotten away too.

Of course, he hadn't been running from dogs before, mostly drunkards.

Naruto pulled himself up and dashed over the rooftops, unconciously pulled his ninja wire after him and heading for the relative safety of his apartment. He leaped from roof to roof, silently thanking Iruka for the all his physical development training. Of course, during such grueling exercises, Naruto could often be heard cursing the man's very existence.

Naruto leaped from a roof into a small pond, still holding a now yowling fox. The fox was very young, probably about a year in age, and was easily overpowered by Naruto, who continued to hold it. He surfaced immediately and climbed out, soaking wet, but safe in the fact that the dogs wouldn't be able to follow his scent now. He was never able to do so after someone went for a swim, so he assumed that dogs would be similarly affected.

He charged forward, only to run smack into the back of a large burly man. The man turned, regarding Naruto with disgust. He gave the boy a solid kick, and was about to turn away when he spotted the fox. His eyes widened for a second, before he narrowed them, kicking Naruto again.

"Whatcha got there gaki?" He asked, his voice deep and angry, "Been playing with the foxes?"

Naruto shook his head, holding the fox tighter. Another man, this one very skinny, appeared behind Naruto.

"I think Naruto's fox wants to play Morai... what do you think?" he asked, looking at the burly man.

The man smiled, yanking the fox out of Naruto's hands. Naruto cried out and leaped at the man, his small fists slamming into the man's torso. Naruto's chakra aided strength did nothing to the man, he merely laughed and kneed Naruto in the face. A loud crack was heard and Naruto fell back, tears sprining to his eyes as blood began to drip from his nose.

The man grinned evilly and tossed the fox to the ground, where it lay, whimpering in pain. The skinny man walked over, raised his sandal up, and stomped on the creature's body. Snapping sounds filled the area as the little fox's bones broke in several places, leaving it staring glaze eyed into the distance. Not quite dead, but not fully alive anymore.

Naruto cried out, pulling a small knife from his pocket. The man laughed again and back handed the boy, sending him stumbling to the ground, the knife clattering to the nearby sidewalk.

"Don't let us catch you playing with your little friends again Gaki, we know what you're up to, and we won't see our village hurt again." The man said, grabbing his skinny friend and leaving.

They two laughed and chatted about their heroic act as they left Naruto with the fox, both bleeding and in pain.

A couple minutes later, Naruto got up the strength to crawl over to the fox. He placed a hand on it, feeling shallow breathing. He cried now, not for his pain, but for the pain of something innocent. He cried for his anger and his hate at the narrow mindedness of the villagers who would rather kill a living thing than let Naruto have a friend. Naruto wept, and with his tears, something changed.

Deep within the seal, something stirred. A pair of crimson eyes opened, hearing the sobbing of a boy who was his jailor. The prisoner growled slightly, stretching his body within the confines of his cage, then rested his muzzle to the floor, contemplating.

Naruto cried as the fox began to fade, it's life held by no more than a single thread. He tried to pour some ointment on the wounds, but it did nothing but cause the fox to wince. He had no skill as a vet, and was fairly sure that even then, the animal stood no chance of living.

Naruto saw something flicker around the fox. He blinked. What was that?

He saw another flicker, a bluish light surrounded the fox, then faded. Naruto's eyes itched horribly. He rubbed them, then looked at the fox again. a faint, pulsing light surrounded the fox. A pure blue light swirled around it, fading and growing as the fox struggled to hold onto life.

Naruto felt something within his belly growl, and realized that it wasn't his stomach, but something deeper.

'Do you want to save it?' Came a voice.

Naruto nodded, then realized that whoever said that wouldn't have seen it. It seemed to work anyway.

'Then place your hands upon it, and focus the chakra within your body to your hands'

Naruto stared, he had moved a leaf around his forehead with chakra, but this seemed strange, what help would that do? He had no ability with healing techniques, especially with the green chakra that seemed to have that power.

'Just do it!'

Naruto obeyed, placing his hands on the fox's body. The fox whimpered, but Naruto kept his hands in place. He looked deep inside himself, feeling the flow of chakra through his body, the strength of life within. Iruka had once told him that chakra dwelt in all things, and it was what kept us alive.

Now, for some reason, Naruto could feel that power of life acutely. It raged and sang through his blood. He focused his chakra to his hands.

White wisps of energy swirled along his fingers, and Naruto pulled away, before realizing that the light around the fox had grown stronger. He tried again, and this time, the wisps slowly grew to a steady glow, encompassing the small creature.

Naruto stared in awe as the fox's breath stabilized, then gazed in wonder as the bones began to knit before his very eyes. The gash on the creature's side closed, leaving no scar, and the missing patched of fur returned, strong and healthy.

The fox turned it's gaze upon Naruto, then did something very strange. It bowed.

Naruto looked strangely at the fox, then noticed his hands were still glowing. He quickly stopped the flow of chakra to his hands, wondering at what he had just done.

Then the fox opened it's mouth, and nearly made Naruto faint.

"Thank you Byakko. I am forever in your debt." The fox said.

Naruto fell over backwards.

"Wh... what did you say?" He asked.

"I thanked you o' White one."

"How... How can I understand you?" Naruto asked, his voice wavering.

The fox gave him... well, a foxy grin, "You are a Byakko, you can understand all foxes."

Naruto stared, then grinned, "That's awesome!"

The fox smiled, "I see you are new to the mantle. If you should need any help, just talk to a fox and show it those eyes, they will help you. But for now, I must return to my mate."

Naruto stared after the fox as it dashed away.

"Hah, to think, a Byakko in a place such as this. What luck!" Naruto heard it as it ran away.

Naruto stared after the fox. This was going to be interesting. He contemplated telling the old man, but then realized that it would be much funnier if he surprised him. Yes, much more interesting.

Naruto got up, wincing in pain at his wounds. He glance down at them and noticed that they were already healing. In fact, his face no longer hurt.

Incredible!

Naruto whistled a happy tune, ignoring the looks the villagers gave him as he returned to his apartment. There was nothing that could ruin his mood now. He was awesome!

As Naruto drifted off to sleep that night, he thought about that voice, the fox, and most of all, his new ability. From what Iruka had said, medical techniques were the very hardest to learn, and required a nin with very precise chakra control, not to mention large enough reserves to be able to perform multiple healings.

From that moment forward, Naruto made a pact with himself. Using this new power, he would become stronger, and show everyone that he was the greatest. In fact, he would show them that he would become...

The Hokage!

Okay, so it's kinda slow right now. Bear with me. Rar