Disclaimer - I do not own any of the characters in Naruto, Masashi Kishimoto does, I am merely using them whilst Masashi is locked in my cupboard. :D

Warnings - This is KakaIru, which means hentai (boy love), so if you don't like, then read at your own risk. There will possibly *Cough*probably*Cough* be blood and gore, and use of bad language. You have been warned.

On with the story!

Iruka POV

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I can't remember the last time I let myself loose - the last time I completely surrendered myself to any of my desires. I thought that was a good thing, that I had finally gotten control of myself, that I was finally strong enough to ignore the urges brought about by the moon.

They say you never truly know what you have until you lose it.

I lost everything that night.

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The wind passing through the side window was a blessed relief from the summer heat of Tokyo, and I opened the window next to me slightly in the hopes of catching more of that cooling breeze as I left the city. The roadside passed in a blur as the sun rained down on the tarmac, reflecting off the ground to glare into my squinting eyes.

I didn't let the light deter me from my driving, and reached across the car for the glove box, promptly opening it and retrieving my sunglasses. I slipped them on with little hesitation, and settled my shaded eyes on the road before me once again, wishing for clouds to block the sun.

I had been waiting weeks for my boss to give some freeway and allow me the holiday I had previously requested. Sarutobi was not the hardest employer, in fact he was one of the kindest I'd had the pleasure of working for, but old age had caught up to him and I suppose he was worried that he would be lonely if my son and I were to leave. Sarutobi had really only had his grandchild's company, but Konohamaru had started school that year and was hardly around when the old man was home. I would sometimes take my son Naruto to work with me, and we'd visit Sarutobi in his office during lunch breaks to offer him our company.

When I had first requested a month long holiday, my employer had been astounded. In all my four years of working at Hokage Industries, I had never once taken leave unless it was the result of severe illness and Sarutobi had banned me from work. He asked me what had brought this sudden urge to relax on, and I told him it was that Naruto had been facing troubles at school and required some time off to let things settle. Originally Sarutobi had urged me to take a week at most, but I had insisted on a month and pointed out that all the holidays I missed resulted in a month long time period in which I was allowed a holiday.

Eventually he had agreed, and now Naruto and I were heading to the mountains for a long camping trip. I looked over to Naruto in the passenger seat beside me and smiled fondly at the sight of my 12 year old son sleeping with his mouth gaping open and drool running down his chin to the car door he was leaning on.

I had half a mind to wake him up - if only to save myself from having to clean my car door later - but thought against it. Naruto must have been exhausted, as he had refused to sleep all night due to his excitement at going to the mountains. He had jumped up and down on the bed for hours, chanting in his low, scratchy voice "we're going camp-ing, we're going camp-ing!" I smiled again at the memory of jerking his leg out from under him and sitting on him after he landed on the bed, refusing to get up until he had calmed down and would try sleeping.

A loud snore snatched me from my thoughts as Naruto continued on in dreamland, and I turned up the volume on the radio in order to drown out the noise. I loved my son, but I wasn't particularly keen on listening to him snore.

I could barely see Tokyo in my rear view mirror any more, and turned off the radio in favour of listening to the sounds of the trees rustling in the wind. It still amazed me how no matter how many trees there were in Tokyo, they rarely rustled to any breeze at all, due to the tall surrounding buildings blocking the wind. It wouldn't be long now before we ran out of flat land, but I was fine with living in a shelter in the mountains. I had done that for a large portion of my life, anyway.

In fact, I had found Naruto on one of my hiking trips five years ago, and once I had taken him to the police to find that there were no records of him, I offered to adopt the blonde ball of energy. I can't remember happier – or more frustrating and tiring – days in my entire life. I wouldn't change what happened that day for the world.

I continued along the road, until the mountains could easily be seen in the distance, and figured it must have been hours since we left Tokyo. I pulled over into a garage sitting pleasantly by the road, before turning off the engine and leaning over to wake Naruto up.

"Naruto?" I shook him gently, cautious of the strong punches he threw if he woke too quickly. "Naruto, wake up. We'll be at the mountains in about three hours, so this is your last chance for a toilet break." At the mention of toilet breaks, his eyes flew open, and he straightened in his seat and yelled "it wasn't me!"

I raised my eyebrows at him, and he seemed to realise where he was. "Oh, right. Ohayo, Iruka-sensei!"

"Naruto, you do know I am not your teacher, right? Or do you think you're still dreaming about me being a devil teacher?"

A surprised look covered his face. "How do you know about that?!"

"You talk in your sleep. Now, go to the toilet here if you need to, and just remember that it'll be a while before we get to the mountains."

"Okay!" And with that, he was gone. I sighed in fake frustration, and climbed out of the car myself, heading to the shop tucked snugly under the canopy roof of the garage. The door slid open with a smooth hissing sound as I entered the shop, my attention drawn immediately to the refrigerated area holding the drinks. After selecting two bottles of spring water, I confronted the cashier and paid the money stated on the machine.

"So what's a young man like you doing all the way out here in the mountains? It's a bit early in the year to be going hiking. The heat will melt you to the side of the stone", the cashier stated. His old, wrinkled face split into a smile as he mentioned melting, and I couldn't help but to smile back. His long, spiky white hair contrasted with his deep red jacket, an intriguing old fashioned outfit clothing the rest of his broad frame.

"I'm going camping with my son. He used to live in the mountains, and since he moved with me to Tokyo he hasn't gone back. I thought it would be nice for him to have a break." I smiled again as I put the two cold bottles in the bag, and waited for the man's reply.

"Ah. I wouldn't have thought that you'd have a son already. So, which mountain are you camping on?"

"Mount Hotakadake." The man went still. His eyes narrowed and his lips drew tightly into his face, and the charming-if-slightly-strange old man demeanour had disappeared. "Oh" he said. "Now, that is a dangerous place to be for two travellers such as yourselves. You had best be careful. In fact, you had best go elsewhere, but something tells me you won't. Well then, good luck. There are some strange . . . things up in that mountain, and if you need me, I'll be here. Or near where you are, at least. Let's hope it doesn't come to that, though."

With that, he stepped aside to meddle with packs of alcohol behind the till, a not-so-subtle hint to finish the conversation. "Um, t-thank you, uh, sir, for your concern, but I'm sure we'll be alright."

The man looked over again. "My name is Jiraiya" he started, "and yes" he looked me straight in the eye, as if he knew about me, "I dare say you will be." And with that, he presented me his back again, and I was left to leave the shop in a state of paranoia induced panic.

'No', I thought, 'he can't know about Naruto and me. This is our first time going out during the full moon for seven years!' I hastily jumped into my car and slammed the door behind me, startling Naruto who had finished his trip to the toilet moments ago. "Um, Iruka-sensei" he bravely ignored the tick above my right eye at that, "is something wrong?"

I looked over to him, the best thing to happen to me (if not the craziest) in all my life, and smiled, schooling the worry out of my features and forcing the tension out of my shoulders. This holiday was, after all, for Naruto. "No, Naruto. There's nothing wrong. In fact, I'm just excited to be out, is all. I can't imagine what it must be like outside of that old basement. Anyway, it beats staying home and working, now doesn't it?"

"Yep!" And as I suspected, he launched into a rant about the intensity of his homework and the stupidity of his teachers, completely forgetting his earlier question. Now all that had to be done was for me to relax and stop freaking out about one pervert old man giving me a look. It could have meant anything, so I should just focus on the camping trip.

As fate would have it, I had read that man's face correctly, and had forgotten a very important part of that conversation. I would later beat myself up over it, when Naruto and I encounter the strange 'things' living on the mountain.

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"Naruto! Stop messing about and help me set up this tent!" I called as I lifted the folded material from the boot of the car. As soon as we had arrived at Mount Hotakadake, Naruto had been out of the vehicle and running around the camp site just a few miles down the dirt track road. The site was nestled at the bottom of the mountain, providing perfect cover from strong winds.

"Alright Iruka-sensei!" He ran over to me, not the least bit out of breath, and helped me carry the tent and place it on the ground. "Hey, Iruka-sensei?" I looked up at Naruto when he had asked this, and replied with a faint "hmm?"

"Is it like you remember it?" His voice had gone quiet, and he was looking up at the mountain with old, tired eyes. "The mountain?" Although the question seemed random, I understood his train of thought. After meeting Naruto here, everything had changed so much for both of us, so much so that sometimes he – like myself – would feel lost, and wonder if anything ever stayed the same.

I stared at him for a second, then smiled. "Yes, Naruto. It's just like I remember it." He looks at me, and for a moment there was real happiness in his eyes, and I had just a second to prepare myself before he lunged across the laid out tent and wrapped his arms around my waist. I could practically feel his grin through my shirt as I wove my arms around him, and I simply allowed myself to give comfort to the person I loved most.

The sun was setting then, and the pink hues in the sky reminded me of the need to use the last few minutes of sunlight. "Come on, kid" I said affectionately as I ruffled his blonde, spiky hair. "Let's get this tent up."

"Okay!" He jumped up, and ran around the tent to grab a side. Eventually, after minimum hassle (like I said, I'm used to living outdoors), the tent was up, and the sun had disappeared behind the mountain, though the last of the blue sky still lingered over the top. Naruto and I laid side by side, breathing deeply through anticipation for what was to come.

"It's almost time. Are you excited?" I turned to look at him, and saw his bright blue eyes widen and his lips curved in a smile. "Yeah" he replied, "I can't wait."

At that, he jumped up and raced off to the edge of the camp, ducking behind a bush to await the Change. I laughed at his enthusiasm, and called, "just don't forget where you leave your clothes!" Following his example, I stood and walked to another bush, where I stripped off my clothing and also prepared for the Change.

Going through the Change is difficult to describe. It sends tingles and jolts through every part of your body, igniting muscles and cells from head to toe as it resets your bones and releases the creature held inside you. Despite this, it never hurts, never makes you feel as if your entire body is writhing and mutating, even though it is. I have never seen the Change happen; either I am alone or too busy experiencing it to look, as I am now.

Naruto never lets me near him during the Change. Not even when we both hide and lock ourselves in the basement on the full moon. He would transform in the farthest corner, and yell at me when I tried to go near him. When I asked him why, he said it's because it's the most vulnerable time for him, as during the Change your body doesn't respond to your command, doesn't move as you want it to.

The Change slammed into me that night so fast I was caught unaware, and gasped in surprise. I curled in on myself, an instinct in order to protect my vulnerable body, and let the shakes and jolts roll through me, unable to do anything else. Despite this helplessness, the Change always brings a strange thrill, a desire to run and howl and allow your desires to take over, just for the night.

The thrill echoed through me as the Change completed its final stages, the feeling of adrenaline heightened more than usual due to the fact that I was out, actually out, during the full moon. A ripple ran through me as the Change completed itself, and I lifted my body from the ground and stood on all four of my legs. I shuffled forwards a bit, becoming used to my new shape and body, before running to camp and searching for Naruto.

I followed the scent of wolf, and came upon Naruto sitting in wolf form, waiting for me. He jumped to his paws upon seeing me, and wagged his tail before barking and running away. I felt the desire to chase, and so I did, running through the forest at the base of the mountain with twice the speed I would've had as a human. Naruto, though smaller than me (as, like in human form, his head only reached my shoulders), was faster, and catching him would require skill and tact.

Slowing my pace a bit, I let Naruto cover more ground so that he couldn't see me, before I dropped to the ground and howled pitifully. Naruto stopped running immediately and bounded back to my side, his tail between his legs in concern and his head drooping. I spent a second admiring how adorable he was as he drew closer. He was covered completely in golden fur, and stood about 4 foot. His eyes had not changed, and looked down at me in bright blue confusion and concern as he drew within pouncing distance.

In one quick movement, I jumped to my feet and barrelled into Naruto, pushing his smaller form over easily. He squirmed beneath me as I sat atop him, smugly looking down at him, declaring myself the winner of that little game. He whined pitifully, and looked up at me with a true puppy-dog face, but I merely grunted at him in amusement before getting off of him, allowing him to stand.

He growled in annoyance at his defeat, and tried to bait me into playing again by snapping at my ears and tugging on my tail. I had planned on ignoring him, but then he tugged really hard on my tail, and I growled, and the chase was on once again.

He wouldn't fall for the same trick twice, so that game went on far longer than the first, with me repeatedly trying to trap him and trick him, and him always getting away just in time and running further away. We had run perhaps a mile or two from our camp when I first heard the howls.

I skidded to a stop with my heart pounding, unable to believe what I had just heard. I had only heard that noise come from Naruto and myself; the sound of a large, unknown animal. I shook my furry head, trying to convince myself that I was imagining things, and after a few moments of silence, succeeded. I was about to set off after Naruto again when I heard it once more, the sound of howling, but that time from more than one location.

I didn't know what was out there, but it went against everything I had come to convince myself to believe, and there was more than one of them.

Panic gripped me, and I wished with all my heart to call Naruto back to me, to take him back to the camp, but I couldn't, knowing that those creatures would hear me.

I crouched onto my stomach and whined softly, as low as I could, hoping that Naruto was close enough to hear me and was not already in danger. My ears flattened to my skull when I received no reply and I whined again, this time more urgently. I was ready to snap and howl for my son when he came out of the brush beside me, and tilted his head to the side at me in confusion.

Relief washed over me, and I jumped up to him and licked his face, the closest I could get to hugging him in that form. When he began squirming, I pulled back and motioned for him to follow me and stay quiet. I could tell that he was about to bark at me in question when the strange howls pierced the air again, and Naruto looked around in shock and fear.

I butted his side gently with my head, urging him forward, and this time he complied. We began creeping through the forest, heading for the camp, being as quiet as we could be. I could hear both of our heartbeats pounding when one howl sounded closer to us than the others, but we kept moving, sneaking through the bushes.

We must have crept for half an hour before the howling started fading, and I could feel the tension leaving my muscles as we sped up towards the camp. Naruto looked back at me, complete confusion on his wolfish face, though I could do nothing but shake my head at him as we ran faster, myself as clueless as he. Were we really not alone? What would that mean? Were we outcasts to these strange creatures like us? If so, we couldn't be caught.

Just as I was beginning to fully relax again, feeling the danger had passed, a strange yet familiar scent caught my nose, and I stopped running to sniff it in curiously. Naruto stopped too, waiting for me to catch up to him, but I was bewitched by the scent. What was it? Something about it made my hairs stand on end, as if I should know what it was. I looked to Naruto to see if he had smelt it too, but his impatience at my stalling proved that he didn't.

I stepped towards the scent, desperate to find out what it was. How could it be so familiar and strange at the same time? And then it hit me. Dread filled my being as the scent got stronger, as if its source was getting closer. I realised it was strange because I had never smelt that particular scent before. And it was familiar because it smelt like Naruto and I . . . it smelt like wolf.

I was preparing to sprint to Naruto and push him to run, the muscles coiling beneath my skin, when the bush before me began rustling, and I knew it was too late. It would be pointless running now. So I placed myself between the bush and Naruto, who had begun backing away. The bush shook again as a wolf stepped out from the leaves. It was taller than me, standing at least a head higher. Its white, shaggy fur reflected the glow of the moon and its large muscles moved visibly as it stalked towards us.

I bared my teeth and growled, warning it to stay away, and stared it in the eye. Its eyes were peculiar. One was dark, and I couldn't decide on an exact colour, even with the full moon lighting the forest we were in. The other one was lighter, maybe slightly red in colour, with a scar starting above the eye and running through it, ending at a curve below it.

The white wolf stepped forward, and I growled louder, preparing to spring. The wolf stopped, though not in fear, and regarded me with those odd eyes. I kept my teeth bared as I shuffled back towards Naruto, who had gone still in terror, never taking my eyes off of the wolves. In canine body language, the first to look away is the loser of any fight.

I was perhaps three metres away from Naruto when the wolf leapt at me, so quickly I could barely see it and only had a second to prepare myself before it hit. It knocked me to the ground, much like I had done to Naruto earlier, and I rolled to unbalance it.

I bit and scratched every part of the wolf I could reach, futilely resisting defeat against this large beast until my body was tired and aching. As if sensing this, the wolf pinned me to the forest floor and drew back its head, before rearing forward, its teeth bared for my throat, and I prepared for pain.

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There you have it! The first chapter of my first fic.

Life is good.

I'm hoping for at the most 2 reviews by the time I get the next chapter out (what can I say, I'm a pessimist) so yeah, R&R!

Kakashi: But when do I get to molest my little Iruka-chan?

Iruka: What?! No! Never!

AwesomeNumber-Fan: But you know you want him to . . .

Iruka: No! I really don't!

AwesomeNumber-Fan: Guess we'll have to do this the hard way . . . Kakashi, take him.

Kakashi: Really? I can molest him and everything?

AwesomeNumber-Fan: . . . yes.

Iruka: Wait a second!

Kakashi: (Gags Iruka and drags him off to his jounin lair) hehehe