Danzo managed to use his position on the council to prevent Jiraiya from caring for his godson. Because of this, the sennin used every information gathering skill he had to find someone suitable for looking after young Naruto in his absence. On the fifth anniversary of his birth and the fall of the Kyuubi, Naruto Uzumaki found that he would never be alone again.

Disclaimer: I don't own anything, even the OC's name is another's.

Chapter 1 Of Fox and Wolf

A memorable, if not horrific October day a great man sacrificed himself and his child to protect his village. The Yondaime Hokage used his genius at sealing and his great chakra capacities to seal the Nine-Tailed Fox into the only child in the village capable of housing the beast. Minato had plotted this last resort for at least a month before the attack actually happened, but his foil Danzo planned even further. The bastard of a man had made it certain that laws prohibited ANYONE to give away the information of the child's parentage, and even Minato who was the power of the village at the time didn't know to overturn the ruling. He even prevented the boy's godfather from taking care of his godson.

Jiraiya however expected foul play from Danzo, who was already known to want the power of the Nine-Tailed Fox's power for his own. That thought alone was more then enough fuel for the protective godfather to find someone who could protect the boy in his steed. He spoke with the head of the Toad Summons to inquire on the different types and the information necessary for a lifelong partnership from birth. Shima and Fukasaka quickly explained that even though most all summons were fiercely loyal to their summoners, they usually did not protect human children. It was a decision all of the Great Summoned Beings made to prevent robbing the child of his own identity. Both elders knew of Jiraiya's predicament so after it was realized that they could not be of much help both elders sighed and apologized, hoping that something would eventually be discovered.

The Toad Sage would not be deterred so easily though, as he used his unique ways of transportation to gather as much information as possible. He planned to present his godson with someone who would protect him from the worse of the plans that Danzo had. Jiraiya himself had resigned himself to be hated by his godson as long as the young man in question would grow up with a semi-decent childhood. He found himself lost within a forest he could not place. This fact alone was a red flag in itself, as the man had traveled most every speck of land between the great nations. Even the Toads were unaware of the place they were.

Jiraiya cautiously journeyed forward, feeling no ill intent in the area but not willing to risk his life on the miniscule chance he could be wrong. He wandered aimlessly to find his way out until he happened upon a pure white figure, beckoning him to follow. Watching the maneurisms of the creature and its pleading way of asking him to follow, Jiraiya made the decision to follow. The being, running on all four of its legs, led the Sannin deeper into the forests while allowing the man to get closer and closer as they apparently grew closer to their destination. Once the two had reached a clearing, Jiraiya noticed three important things. One, he had been led to this clearing by a pure white wolf that stood at half his own height. Two, he did not detect any of the hundreds of similar wolves at all before seeing them. Three, they wolves surrounded a mother who was having apparent trouble with her birthing.

The wolf that led him there spoke up, "Human known as Gama Sennin Jiraiya, our honorable mother is dying! We needed someone of your high chakra capacity to keep her alive..." With that statement alone, Jiraiya was willing to help, as he had just recently felt the pain of loss. The wolf spoke on, "We would not ask a free favor of you, especially not of this magnitude. We shall do what is necessary to repay such a great service." Jiraiya started to pour his life energy into the pained mother, knowing that injecting his chakra would no doubt kill the mothering wolf. The human aligned himself with the wolves in order to save the life of the mother, and created a comradery with a species who rarely showed themselves to the ninja world. The process was long and strenuous, leaving Jiraiya as a barely conscious heap beside the now lively wolf sitting beside him. Between ragged breaths, Jiraiya spoke up, "Honorable mother, I have a favor to ask..."

Naruto, Age 5.

Naruto had been used to the villagers hating him for some unknown reason, but he never let it effect him. The young man grew to become a prankster, but still remained harmless toward the people of the village that sheltered from the horrors of living alone. At the age of five years old, villagers had grown more empowered, by saying that he was a demon child who was not loved as he was lived without any positive human emotion. The only one to show that they cared about the young boy was the Sandaime Hokage, and even he had to do so within boundaries. His work on rebuilding Konoha's strength took up most of his time and he still needed time to fight the laws stated that no one could care for the Nine-Tailed Host. Even so, Jiraiya decided to exploit the only loophole that he could see within the laws that the Kohona Council had created. He searched for a companion who could protect the boy Naruto from the evils of Danzo and the greed of the council as he grew older.

Jiraiya's actions with the wolves, who later informed him of their status as Okami, granted the young orphan his chance at a true friend in the form of one of the newborns. The five years that passed were to ensure that the young Okami would be strong enough to stand beside his contracted companion. And as a man with a long white hair and a toad mask entered the village, the Okami watched the fated union of the two who were now to be brothers.

Naruto sat alone on an abandoned swingset, saddened by the one thing that could visibly shake his normally upbeat facade. He had made a friend out of a quiet young boy, but his parent's snatched him away. That was about thirty minutes ago, but the boy still cried. The man in the Toad mask approached and placed a gentle hand on Naruto's shoulder. Seeing the young boy flinch and cover away from the touch broke his heart, but he continued close while holding his left hand behind his back.

"Hey kid..." Jiraiya said as he tried his hardest not to wrap his godson up in his arms.

"That's a weird mask mister!" Naruto spoke up, a little louder than he intended.

Grinning under the mask, the man spoke, "I'm sure the adults have told you not to take things from strangers, but I heard that it was your birthday..."

"It is?"

Jiraiya's grin shattered. "Yes, it is...You were born October 10, little Naruto."

The five year old's eyes shined with enthusiasm that shocked the Sannin.

"And since its your birthday, I decided to make sure you'd never be alone again." Jiraiya said with a shaky voice as he revealed what was behind his back.

It was a young wolf with pure white fur and ethereally blue eyes. Its small body had tribal lines in its fur of the same blue that swam in his eyes. The young pup himself was half a foot tall, but still retaining a lot of his youthful features. The two immediately clicked as they ran around and played as if it were a daily occurance. It soon would be, and Jiraiya then knew that his decision was for the best. He turned around to walk away, but his godson tugged at his sleeve.

"THANK YOU MISTER! You're even nicer than Jiji!"

Finding it hard to turn away from the young boy, Jiraiya mentally sighed relief that the Hokage was still on his side.

"By the way... What's your name? And how'd you know it's my birthday? And can you come play with me again tomorrow?"

"I'm... just a simple toad, kid... and I know because you're a special little gaki. I can't play with you tomorrow...but I'll make sure that you'll see me again."

"Really?"

"You'd better believe it!" Jiraiya said, removing his deep sadness from his voice as he walked away.

Naruto shed mixed tears, he was sad that the nice mister was gone but elated at the promise of seeing him again and excited about his new companion. The two walked a slow pace through the dark and untraveled parts of Kohona to ensure that no villagers would attempt their "revenge" on the boy. Upon reaching the home, Naruto immediately went toward his bed and fell asleep. During this time, the Okami/companion spent time to observe his surroundings. The apartment was sturdily built but hideously kept. The person who prepared it for the boy must have been drunk and half blind in order to miss so many faults in the overall look. Nothing would be hazardous by law, but it was left in a state unsuitable for renting.

The young wolf also spent time looking at his new "brother" that he was bound to. The whisker marks on his face were comfortable to nuzzle and his personality was instantly likeable. Snuggling up to the snoring young Naruto, the Okami started to finish the last part of the necessary link between companions. He spent the night sleeping against the boy in order to link their minds. The pup had to perform the link first before he could speak to Naruto, and his pride would only allow him to introduce himself first. "Morning kid! My name's Rend Razorjaw, son of Lady Teresa, and you're my new brother!" he thought as he fell asleep and allowed the close proximity to seal the deal.

So Jiraiya cares but is bound by law not to be close, the Hokage is giving his all to fight against said law, and Naruto's "brother" and companion is an Okami! Hopefully the story of two canines coming together in brotherhood moves your HEART! (disregard the unnecessary spike in passion in that sentence) Teresa's last name is not Razorjaw, and the explanation of this fact comes in the next chapter.