Wayward Winds

When anyone failed to respond, Kakashi merely took it in stride and took a seat at the table, pulling out his water canteen and downed a few mouthful's of water. He was parched, and it made him wonder just how long he'd been out. And for Naruto to walk out on him like that... how long since the blonde had slept?

"How long was I out?"

"Almost two days." The clone answered dutifully.

"Hm. I expected it to be longer." Kakashi commented idly, taking another swig, quickly calculating how many hours that meant Naruto had been up without sleep.

"I gave you some of my chakra." Ah, that explained that then. If Naruto had given him some of his and the Kyuubi's mixed chakra, that would have helped speed up his recovery, but he would feel it for quite some time. A fair trade-off if you asked Kakashi, who was more familiar with chakra-exhaustion than most shinobi ever would have a chance to get.

While he thought, Kakashi took out a storage scroll and produced a spare shirt, which he quickly pulled on.

"So, where are we?"

The clone deflated a little and sat down opposite from him. "In another dimension." It sounded vaguely sullen to Kakashi. "These people's leader told me, and I summoned Kosuke to check if it was true and he confirmed."

"I see." Kakashi was lost in thought for a while, considering the consequences of this and the actions they could take to return to their own dimension again.

"Wait... you accept it just like that?" The girl who had screamed earlier asked incredulously, looking between Kakashi, Naruto's clone and back again in rapid succession.

Kakashi blinked at her, taking a moment to study her bushy hair and facial features. "Yes." Was it so hard to believe? He could open a window to another dimension with his eye, so why not? He suppressed a groan at the thought and barely refrained from slamming his head against the table.

"What is it?" The clone asked, zeroing in on his altered body language immediately.

"I think this might be my fault." Kakashi explained, mentioning towards his left eye with a hand, not needing to explain further.

"Ah. I guess that would do it." The clone nodded his agreement and then sighed. "These people have promised to help us home in any way they can. In return, I offered my assistance until we can leave."

"You what?" Kakashi straightened, blinking at his ex-student, suddenly fully alert and focused. Or, as fully alert one can get after a two day long, exhaustion-induced coma, fully trained or not.

"We are relying on them while we're here, Dog. Think of it as a mission-fee." The blasted clone said.

Kakashi's still-muddled mind took a moment to consider it and then slowly nodded. "I suppose that is reasonable; nothing in this world is free." He muttered. He continued in a more normal tone. "I take it they are in need of our particular set of skills, then?"

"They are." The clone confirmed. "As far as I understood it, they're at war here. It flared up not long ago and is still not fought in the open, but is brewing under the surface." He turned his face towards the people at the table slightly, and several people nodded to confirm that he had understood it correctly.

"Wonderful. Right up our alley, then." Kakashi said wryly. "Another war to be fought. Are you trying to get me killed, Fox? Is that it?"

"Well... you are getting old." The clone retorted innocently. "Can't really have you go peacefully in your sleep due to old age. Imagine the disgrace; your reputation would never recover."

Kakashi huffed. "Where in the world did my cute little Genin go?" He demanded to know.

"He grew up." The Naruto clone chuckled, reassured by the familiar banter that his sensei was truly alright and would fully recover.

"Er... I have a question." Both shinobi turned to the redheaded girl, who looked slightly unnerved under their combined focus. "Didn't you go up to bed? And how are there two of you?" She stared at Naruto, as if looking at him long enough would allow her to figure it all out.

"The original did go to bed. He's been awake for more than seventy two ours now, so he was at his limit. I am just a clone."

A glass toppled over and spilled juice all over the table before someone waved a wand to spell it away. Kakashi took note of the action with some interest.

"A clone?" Hermione repeated faintly, hands still poised over the toppled glass, as if she hadn't registered that it was no longer in her hands.

"Yes, I am a copy of the original, down to every memory. I even have the injury Dog-sensei gave him." He raised a hand towards his shoulder.

"Have you told them about chakra?" Kakashi asked curiously, watching the varied reactions around the room at the revelation.

"A little. It's difficult to explain." The clone grimaced under his mask; Naruto had never been good with theory to begin with, and trying to teach someone else... "But they have their own version of chakra here, it seems. They call it magic, but it works differently from what I can tell."

"Interesting." Kakashi pulled out a rations bar from his pack and managed to eat it without revealing anything of his face by using a very simple genjutsu. "And you use those sticks for your magic, don't you?" He eyed one of the tools speculatively.

"Yes."

Kakashi nodded slowly, thoughtfully. "Well, I don't have any more questions that can't wait until Fox wakes up. You can dispel." The clone nodded and disappeared in a puff of smoke. Now that he no longer needed his hands free for their silent -additional- discussion and status report, Kakashi took out his Icha Icha and relaxed as he let his eye follow the familiar lines. The rest of the room's occupants seemed to take this as a sign that he wanted to be left alone, and returned to their own conversations.

Kakashi listened closely to what was said, but felt relatively relaxed in the warm, friendly atmosphere.

. o . O . o .

Harry, Ron and Hermione sat together at the kitchen table the next morning, quietly discussing the strangers' behaviour while eating their breakfast.

"So what do you guys think?" Harry asked.

"It's difficult to say. I mean; we can't even see their faces." Hermione began in a matter-of-fact voice. "But there's something dangerous and forbidding over them, occasionally."

"Yeah, but have you seen the muscle on them?" Ron managed to get out around a mouthful of food. Hermione gave him a disapproving glance, but was so used to it that she didn't bother mention his poor eating habits anymore. Most of the time.

"But can we trust them?" Harry wanted to know.

"Professor Dumbledore did look through his mind, so it should be alright." Hermione said, but she didn't sound as certain as Harry would have liked. And this entire concept of mind-reading was so new, to at least two of them, that the consequences were still making their heads reel.

"There's a lot they're not telling us." Harry murmured. His words made Ron and Hermione exchange nervous looks. Despite everything that had happened the last couple of days, they hadn't forgotten Harry's emotional explosion when he had arrived at Grimauld Place.

"Secrecy is one of the cornerstones of Shinobi life." A monotone voice stated behind them, making all three teens jump with fright.

"Bloody hell! Don't do that!" Ron managed to hiss, massaging his chest over his heart as he glared up at Fox, who tilted his head curiously to the side. He looked like a creepy owl when he did that, Harry thought, eyeing the white porcelain mask carefully.

"Language, Ron." Mrs Weasley snapped absently as she deposited a plate of bacon on the table. The woman seemed to have decided to ignore most of the things in connection to the two shinobi men who were suddenly in their midst, preferring to leave them be as much as possible. She probably found it easier to handle that way.

"Sorry, Mum." Ron muttered sullenly, but quickly forgot everything else as he reached for the still sizzling bacon.

"What do you mean by that?" Harry asked, watching as Fox sat down opposite them and hesitantly reached for a plate.

"Our entire profession is centred around the idea of secrecy. Performing things that need to be done, but no one wants to do or even think about. We sometimes guard people who don't want other people to know, or it's the target that's not supposed to know we're guarding him or her." Fox shrugged. "We spy on other nations, dig out any information that is or isn't useful to protect our own, all without being discovered." It really was a mystery as to how he managed to eat without removing his mask, Harry thought. "We even live in Hidden villages."

"How does that work?" Hermione asked, ever eager to learn new things.

Fox tilted his head to the side. "Well, they're not really hidden in a literal sense, but there's nothing obvious about them either."

"What is it that makes them Hidden, then?" Ron questioned, a puzzled look etched on his face.

"They're not marked out on any maps, for starters, making it more difficult for enemies to locate and infiltrate," but not impossible, and information like that couldn't be recovered once attained. Something several wars had made perfectly clear. "And the Shinobi base could've been located in the Capital, but it's not. Instead, we live in a smaller village so as to be able to go on missions more easily and get away from the power-play around the Daimyo." Or so he had been told. Repeatedly.

"Daimyo?"

"Our country's leader." Fox explained.

"I thought your leader was someone else...?" Harry frowned, trying to remember the foreign title.

"We regularly take missions from the Daimyo -he's one of our main employers- but our leader is the Hokage. It means fire shadow." Fox said. "She's our military leader, and pretty much holds all the power where shinobi are concerned."

"It's a woman?" Hermione sounded surprised by this fact.

"Yes. Hokage-sama is the first female Hokage we've had, though."

"And is that common? A female in power, I mean." Hermione wanted to know, a look of interest dominating her features.

Fox thought about it. "Well, there's a majority of men, but the Mizukage is female, too."

"Speaking of the Mizukage, did she send you any more letters?" Dog was suddenly sitting next to Fox, making the three teenagers jump again.

"Shut up, Dog."

"Uhm...?" Ron looked from one to the other curiously, even as he was rubbing a hand over his chest to try and calm his racing heart. Again. He suspected this was something he might have to get used to if he was to spend any length of time with the two shinobi.

"She's got something of a crush on Fox here."

"She does not." Fox groused tersely, the emotion overcoming the monotone tone of voice they were all still getting used to for just a moment.

Dog gave him an amused, knowing look and then turned to the three inquisitive teenagers. "So is this some sort of interrogation?" He asked lightly, running his gaze over each of them in turn.

Hermione blushed. "We're just curious."

"Ah, but information can be dangerous." Dog told them, reaching for a cup. Silence rang for a few blissful minutes before the redhead decided to speak up.

"So, why are you called Dog?" Ron asked. "I mean, isn't that kind of offensive?"

Hermione looked like she wanted to smack him, but was interested enough to hear the answer that she let the rude remark slide.

"Why is it offensive? Dogs are the most loyal of creatures, and they're great to have at hand in a fight." The skin in the corner of Kakashi's eyes crinkled in amusement, thinking of what Pakkun would say to a comment like that being spoken in his vicinity.

"Hear, hear!" Sirius grinned. "I knew I liked you blokes for a reason!"

Fox tilted his head with a considering air. "You do smell like dog, you know."

"Sirius is as dog." Remus smiled as he took a seat next to Hermione and began to fill a plate with fried eggs and bacon, having followed Sirius into the room. He expertly ignored said friend's cheerful exclamation of 'Breakfast!'.

"Wait, you can smell him?" Hermione asked, eyebrows raised at the revelation.

"Yes. Both Dog and I can, actually. Dog, because he has a summoning contract with dogs. And I... well, there are certain circumstances." Fox chuckled humourlessly.

Hermione frowned and opened her mouth to say something, but Sirius beat her to it, averting the question before it could be asked.

"Like your frog, you mean?"

"Not a frog!" Fox straightened, sounding faintly agitated. "They're Toads!" He hissed.

Dog chuckled amusedly. "Still sensitive about that?"

Fox bristled. "They're toads, Dog. Not frogs, and definitely not lizards!" He growled.

"I sense a story here." Remus mused, leaning back in his seat and cradled a tea cup in his hands tiredly. The full moon was just a week away and it showed, if you knew what to look for. He sure as hell felt it.

"It's quite funny, actually." Dog began, ignoring Fox's indignant exclamation that it certainly wasn't funny! "We fought an enemy a few months back who decided that Fox's summons were... harmless-looking and weak, and decided to mock them with every blow." Dog shrugged; that nin had been a complete and utter idiot, if not weak. "It's been a touchy subject since then." He smirked underneath his masks.

"Until I summoned Gamahiro on his ass. He wasn't laughing then." Fox smirked with vindictive glee at that part of the memory.

"Mmm, more like screaming in terror." Dog agreed calmly, sounding more as if he was commenting on the weather than on a fight to the death.

"...because of a fr- toad?" Harry asked carefully, catching his slip at the last second, not wanting to attract Fox's ire.

"Well, look at it like this." Dog began as he took out the same orange book from the day before. He flipped it open and began to read unconcernedly. "You'd scream in terror too, if you suddenly had to face a toad the size of a small mountain wielding swords."

Sirius leaned back and gave an appreciative whistle. "Sounds impressive. Gives some perspective on the one you," He hesitated slightly over the word, "summoned the other day. I thought that was rather big for a toad."

"Kosuke is one of the smallest toads I know." Fox said, reaching for a piece of toast. "Except for Pa and Ma." He added as an afterthought, thinking of the old couple that had all but adopted him.

All the wizards and witches in the room hesitated. Finally, it seemed to fall on Mrs Weasley to ask the obvious question on everyone's mind.

"Your parents," She paused, "are toads, dear?" Her voice was careful and hesitant. Even in another world, that couldn't be common, could it? Or even possible?

"My what?" Fox stared blankly at the woman, not having expected the question.

"Your parent's, Fox." Dog repeated, voice as dead and emotionless as a piece of rock. In their profession, people generally didn't speak of parents, or family at large. Mainly because of the high death-toll, but also because it was sensitive information best not divulged to just anyone. Besides, if someone noteworthy died, you'd hear about it from another source and know to stay clear of the subject.

"No, no, I don't have parents." Fox was quick to explain, and Kakashi could imagine him waving his hands almost frantically, had he been out of the mask. "Ma and Pa are toad elders who have taught me. They're considered family, though."

"Oh." Mrs Weasley said softly. "I'm very sorry to hear that." And she returned to her cooking.

"You don't have parents?" Ron asked, glancing at Harry before turning his full attention back to the shinobi.

Fox nodded, having caught the interaction between the two and focused mainly on Harry when he answered. "They died the day I was born." Unconsciously, his hand came to a rest on his stomach, over the seal painted on his skin.

"Orphans are unfortunately very common in our profession." Dog added calmly. It was a fact of life, unfortunately.

"Yeah. I mean, out of my entire Genin team, there was just one member who still had parents. Or a family at all, really." Fox said spreading jam over another slice of toast. Harry absently wondered how he had missed the first one being devoured as he absorbed that information.

The room digested that a moment before Remus caught on to an unknown word, and being the scholar he was, he had to ask.

"What's Genin?"

"It's one of our ranks." Dog explained after a brief -almost nonexistent- pause, seemingly not taking his attention away from his book.

"Would you mind explaining?" Remus asked hesitantly, putting his cup down to fully focus on the man.

"Not at all." Dog waved a hand dismissively. It might actually help them in the future if these wizards knew more about their skill-level. Especially if they were to work for them. "First there's Academy students; not yet shinobi, but no longer just civilians. Once they graduate, they become Genin. Genin usually operate in teams of three, overseen by a Jounin sensei; their teacher. Once they're experienced enough and have improved under their sensei, they're nominated to the Chuunin exam, where they're given a chance at promotion." Dog explained briskly, keeping an eye on them to make sure they understood; he'd rather not repeat this too many times. "If they survive the exam, as well as clear all the tasks and prove themselves worthy, they're promoted to Chuunin and are given more difficult missions. Some Chuunin stay in the team formations they had when they were Genin, but can just as easily be paired up with other Chuunin or, from time to time, with Jounin." He could see some were curious about what Jounin were and quickly continued before they could ask. "Jounin are the top rank, officially. Chuunin can take the Jounin test once they feel they're ready. A test that looks into their leadership abilities, skills and overall strength. Sometimes they're promoted to tokubetsu Jounin, which means special Jounin. These are shinobi who're very skilled in a certain field, such as genjutsu or the use of a particular weapon." Silence filled the room while the wizards and witches tried to digest the complex explanation.

"What are you?" Harry asked curiously, gaze darting back and forth between the two.

"Jounin." Both of them stated simply.

"Wait, you said you were something else the other night." Remus frowned, thinking back. "Anub, or something."

"ANBU." Fox corrected softly.

Dog sent him a look, but didn't comment. "ANBU are special forces. They are... the darker side of the shinobi profession, if you like. ANBU take care of the extremely dangerous missions, or the missions that are harmful to a person's wellbeing. No one but ANBU know exactly what it is ANBU does, and all the civilians know is that ANBU are the best of the best. The elite of the elite." And, of course, stating it like that made sure he revealed nothing.

"What do you mean 'harmful to a person's wellbeing?" Hermione scowled, latching on to that term. She didn't like the sounds of it at all.

"Some say all ANBU are bat-shit insane." Fox chuckled amusedly. Of course, they said the same thing about Jounin... Yet another occupational hazard, Fox mused, absently wondering what that made the two of them, being both. The dead silence in the room was heavy and slightly worrying.

Dog sighed. "There's a saying that's common in our world." He began. "The stronger the shinobi, the crazier the person." When no one said anything, he added; "You can't really survive as a shinobi without any ramifications, or side-effects." He shrugged, well used to the fact.

"You mean mental problems...?" Hermione looked concerned and a little fearful, gaze flicking from Dog to Fox and back again, repeatedly.

"Yeah, but don't worry. We've both been cleared by our Psych department, so we're fit to work." Fox told them cheerfully.

Hermione was more worried by the fact that there was a need for a Psych department to begin with. And what, exactly, were they doing that made them mentally unstable?

"I'll fit in nicely with you guys then." Sirius smirked playfully, nudging Remus with his elbow, as if to include him in a private joke. Fox tilted his head curiously, but didn't say anything. He had seen certain signs. "I've been accused of being an insane murderer, and am currently hiding from our government." He explained with a casual wave of a hand, as if it wasn't particularly important.

"Who'd you kill?" Fox asked, not even a hint of fear or accusation in his voice. There was just curiosity.

"No one." Sirius shrugged. He had to admit the response was refreshing. "I was framed."

"Must suck royally." Fox said sympathetically.

"It's not exactly been fun." Sirius agreed sardonically. "But at least I'm not stuck in prison anymore."

Remus elaborated when Naruto tilted his head curiously. "It's been a hectic couple of years."

"Yeah." Harry huffed darkly, agreeing wholeheartedly with that conclusion.

It was silent for a minute, the sounds of Mrs Weasley working at the kitchen counter the only source of noise. "I sense a story." Naruto said slowly, copying the expression Remus had used earlier, correctly assuming it was a safe, polite way to inquire further without coming across as a complete bastard.

"I-" Harry began, but hesitated, not really knowing what to say. How did one explain their life?

"Harry, here, is the ultimate trouble-magnet." One of the twins said cheerfully -cutting in before the silence could become awkward- and slung an arm over the boy's shoulders.

The other twin nodded enthusiastically. "He's kind of famous." He stated grandly, peering down the length of his nose at them all, giving them a nice view of a perfect expression of superior arrogance. They had been mostly silent up to now -having kept to themselves and held quiet, hushed conversations while listening to the general discussion around them. Both Fox and Dog had kept a careful eye on them ever since entering the room.

From the looks of things, Harry wasn't exactly happy with his fame, either, no matter the wry amusement twitching his lips while watching the twins.

"For what reason?" Kakashi asked. This seemed to be significant information, and something worth learning more about.

"He survived the killing curse when he was little, which resulted in the... kind-of-death of Lord Voldemort, who's a very evil wizard." Hermione explained briskly, sparing the others from trying. Kakashi nodded to show he understood and then returned to his book, saving any questions he had for later. They sat in silence for a few minutes, until Kakashi had deemed Naruto had eaten enough. He stood to his feet with a slow stretch, evaluating his condition.

"Come on, Fox. We have things to do."

"Coming." Naruto said, taking his plate and setting it down in the sink, more out of habit than necessity -magic was weird like that, he had found out.

"Where are you going?" Sirius asked curiously. He had nothing to do, and anything was better than utter boredom. Or cleaning. Not that the two weren't synonymous.

"Upstairs, to that big room." Naruto said.

"Doing what?" The twins asked in unison, an expectant, mischievous sparkle in their eyes, waiting for any kind of reaction to their combined speech. Naruto disappointed them, though, ploughing on as if he hadn't noticed anything out of the ordinary.

"We have to contact our Hokage, to let her know where we are and that we're alive. On top of that, we have important information for her." Naruto said as he walked around the kitchen table, seemingly missing the long look the twins shared.

"Can we come?" The redheaded girl asked, perking up at the prospect of doing something other than helping her mum clean yet another part of this dreadful house. The fact that they might learn something more about the two shinobi didn't hurt either.

Naruto exchanged a look with Kakashi before nodding. "Sure. Just keep to the wall, to make sure you're not trampled." He smirked.

In the end, all the kids, plus Sirius and Remus followed the two shinobi up the stairs and into the salon. Remus offered his assistance by moving all the furniture to the side with a single swish of his wand.

"Thanks." Naruto gave him an appreciative nod, before walking to the centre of the room. Kakashi waited by the rest of them, having tucked away his book for a change.

Naruto took out a kunai, cut into the pad on his thumb and then flashed through the more than familiar hand seals. He slapped his hand on the floor and a couple of seconds later, a large puff of smoke announced the arrival of Gamakichi.

"Oh, he's much bigger than the other one." Sirius breathed, utterly fascinated by this new form of magic. Not to mention the enormous, orange toad sitting in the middle of his ancestors' salon. He briefly entertained the thought of what his parents' reaction to this would be, but decided to save that gem for later contemplation.

"Yo, Fox!" Gamakichi greeted. "Where the hell are you? Do you have any idea how much trouble it was getting here?" He complained good-naturedly. "Dog." He nodded towards Kakashi when he spotted him, and then paused. "What the hell are the two of ya doin' with all these civilians?"

Naruto chuckled, relaxing slightly in the company of his long-time friend. "Long story, Gamakichi."

"I guess that's why ya summoned me, huh." Gamakichi studied his old friend intently, not really surprised. "You alright?" He fingered the hilt to the impressive dagger strapped to his middle; a gift from his pops.

"Yes, I'm fine." Naruto said, reassuring his friend, and then snapped into full ANBU mode. "I have several scrolls for Tsunade-sama, collected on our mission." He pushed down his left glove, exposing the seal Kakashi had painted there for him almost a year ago. He pressed his bloody thumb against it, sent a pulse of chakra through his finger and then felt the seal empty its contents. "Here, take these. They're to be delivered to Tsunade herself, understood?"

"Yeah, yeah." Gamakichi wrapped his tongue around the three scrolls and then seemingly swallowed them. Information for the Hokage's eyes only, he got it. "Anything else?"

"Yes." Kakashi took a step forward. "I've written a report on how we ended up here, and explained our situation." He threw the scroll at the toad, who caught it easily and tucked it away together with the rest of them.

"Gamakichi." Naruto said before the toad could return to his own dimension, and consequently, Konoha. "Make sure you tell them that it's dangerous for humans to travel from this dimension with you. I summoned Kosuke earlier, and he told me."

"Good thinkin'." Gamakichi snorted. "I imagine there're a few frantic shinobi in Konoha by now." And with that, he left.

Naruto was silent and still for all of a second, staring at the puff of smoke Gamakichi had left behind, before groaning and covering his mask with his hands.

"What is it?" Hermione asked worriedly, thinking he might be in pain after the impressive display of their unique magic.

"Wolf and Raven are going to be unbearable when we get back." The man muttered, causing his friend to chuckle softly. He didn't even want to think about Sakura.

"At least they'll know we're alive." He clapped his hand on Naruto's shoulder comfortingly. "Rather this than MIA." He considered his words. "Or KIA." He added, more like an afterthought. But the former was still far worse than the latter, because at least with KIA you knew, and sometimes, that made all the difference.

"MIA?" Ron repeated, puzzled.

"Missing In Action and Killed In Action, respectively." Kakashi explained and then stretched carefully. "Maa, Fox, I think you should take a look at my back."

That snapped Naruto out of whatever thoughts he'd been lost in. "Why? What's wrong with it?" He asked, voice sharp.

Kakashi shrugged -the motion still careful and a little stiff, but not painful. "Feels like it's time to take out the stitches." He answered simply.

"Oh." Naruto relaxed. "Sure, let's go back to the kitchen. There's better light there... and it's cleaner." He added, glancing at the thick layer of dust and grime covering most of the room.

"Yeah, we haven't gotten to cleaning this room yet." Sirius said, giving the room a disinterested, resentful look. They trudged back out to the stairs.

"I might as well help you with that while we wait for Gamakichi to return with an answer, or the next Order meeting." Naruto said. He had been told there'd be one soon, and that he and Kakashi would be introduced to the rest of the members, as well as properly briefed.

"That's very kind of you." Remus smiled, knowing his best friend's thoughts and feelings on the subject. It couldn't hurt to have another set of helping hands.

Naruto shrugged. "I've never been very good at sitting still, and this place isn't exactly suited for training." He looked around with a mournful air. After just under three days, Naruto was already itching for something to do -preferably a heavy workout or spar. Hopefully both.

"Can't you train us?" Fred asked eagerly, taking advantage of the fact that his mother wasn't present to hear. This was the fourth time he had brought the subject up and wasn't planning to stop anytime soon.

"We'll see." Naruto answered after a short pause, considering the teen carefully.

"On what?" Ron gave him a suspicious look that was so obvious it almost made the two shinobi wince.

"On what the Order wants to use us for; our assignments." Kakashi cut in.

"You always talk like that." Ginny said abruptly, a small frown pulling at her eyebrows. "I don't like it."

"Like what?" Naruto glanced back at her. She was young, but seemed to pick up certain things quicker than the rest of them. It was rather interesting, and Naruto couldn't help but think about what it suggested.

"Talking about the Order 'using' you... You make it sound as if you're not even human." The grimace of distaste on her face was enough to tell them what she thought about that.

"We're weapons to be wielded. That's what shinobi are." Kakashi said, voice perfectly blank.

In truth, to the wizards, their voices always sounded blank -except the few times Naruto had slipped up a little- and it was no doubt eerie to them; the way they joked and interacted in perfectly monotone voices.

"But it's impossible to be like that. Everyone feels, and dream and... " Harry didn't quite know what he wanted to say and ended up staring beseechingly up at Fox' mask with a slight frown, willing him to understand. Desperately wanting there to be a normal face behind that bone-white mask, and thinking he might just catch a glimpse of it if he stared long and hard enough.

"We have something called the shinobi rules. It's a list of things that all shinobi should live after and strive to follow." Naruto tried to explain. He might not be much older than these people, but he couldn't think of them as anything other than children. The difference between them was just too great; staggering, really, if he stopped and thought about it.

"Rules?" Hermione didn't quite know what to think. A few years ago -before Harry and Ron had corrupted her- she would've been thrilled to learn about something like that. But now, no longer quite so naive, she felt mainly apprehensive, if interested.

"Rule number 4," Kakashi began in a monotone. "A shinobi must always put the mission first." They were silent as they filed passed the covered portrait of Mrs Black, and Kakashi didn't continue until they had entered the kitchen. "Rule number 5; A shinobi must follow their commander's instructions. Number 9; A shinobi must never show any weakness."

"Rule number 25," Naruto added his own two ryo. "A shinobi must never show his tears." He had always wondered how and why that one had been added. Either way, it had stuck with him, never mind that he didn't agree with it in the least.

"That's inhumane!" Hermione exclaimed in a muted voice, sounding outraged and horrified on their behalf, even before the consequences of such rules had had a chance to sink in. "You- You're people like everyone else!"

"That's where you're mistaken, little miss." Kakashi said calmly, sinking languidly into a chair, nose already buried in his Icha Icha, which was held before his masked face like shield. "We are killers. Murderers. We are our country's attack dogs, and what we consider honour, others see as despicable acts of cowardice." He took a brief pause to turn to the next page. "We live, bleed and die in the shadows of society." He finally turned his face towards them, giving the group a clear view of the painted dog face on his mask, the dark blue lines looking almost black in the dim light.

"And dogs are useless if they don't follow orders, or are properly controlled." He intoned lifelessly, adding the last nail to the coffin.

"That's how you view yourselves?" Sirius asked, a dark, indefinable emotion colouring his voice. Dog's words kept repeating over and over in his head, echoing slightly, and he found them increasingly disturbing.

Naruto let out a silent breath. "You don't understand." He said, feeling tired and wondering if he really wanted them to.

"Damn right I don't." Sirius scowled, eyes the colour of clouds in a winter storm.

"There is too much blood on our hands." Naruto murmured softly, wearily. As if to emphasize his point, he bent his neck to stare on his own hands, not really seeing them. "But we don't like killing -at least not most of us." He added, thinking of the exceptions to that rule he had met through the years.

"I thought you said you were protectors?" Harry cut in tersely. He didn't know what to feel or think now. He had thought he had begun to get to know Fox, but apparently, there was more the man was hiding than just his face. And what did he mean 'most of us'?

Naruto tilted his head to the side. "We like to think we are." He smiled sardonically. He had come a world away from the brash Academy student who thought he'd become a hero and protect princesses. "Do you know what 'shinobi' means?" He fired off the seemingly random question into the silent room.

"No." Hermione answered for the lot of them, shaking her head. She knew many things, but not so much when it came to foreign languages. Sure, she knew a little French, some Latin, but whatever language they were speaking where Fox and Dog came from? No.

"It means 'Endure'." It was Kakashi who continued, sending Naruto a discreet, worried glance. "My sensei's sensei liked to say that Shinobi are those who Endure. Our lives are spent protecting our village and country. We do unspeakable things and live through what most others would label nightmares. But we endure. We fight wars, get injured and get up and fight some more." He turned to the next page, eyes automatically scanning the more than familiar words, taking comfort in the steady rhythm and flow of the sentences. "We endure."

Harry supposed he could relate to that, if he thought about it. He had endured quite a bit in his life, too, and had never thought much of people who just gave up. There were things worth fighting for, and then there were things that were even worth dying for, so he supposed he could somewhat understand what it was they were trying to say. To a certain extent, at least.

"So will you train us or not?" George asked casually, looking from Dog to Fox and back again, lighting the atmosphere with his words. It was as if he hadn't heard a word of what had just been said.

Naruto had to smother a snort. "I could give you a few tasks to get you started." He offered graciously after a brief, considering pause. "I doubt you'll like them, but it'll do you all good." He eyed the group intently.

"What is it?" Fred asked eagerly, unconsciously leaning over the table.

Naruto grinned behind his mask. "Exercise."

"What?" The twins blinked dumbly at them, turned to stare at each other and opened their mouths to demand an explanation, but Naruto cut them off before they could start.

"You're all pathetically out of shape." He leaned over the table and poked George in the chest to prove his point. "No muscle-mass to speak of. You'd never be able to keep up with any training either of us have to offer. At the moment."

Several of the teens let out indignant sounds, and one or two even blushed.

"Fox, don't antagonize the children." Kakashi admonished lightly. "They're civilians. And you can help them train off their baby-fat without taunting them." If they had believed Dog would be on their side, they were sorely disappointed. Sirius and Remus snickered quietly to themselves, but couldn't help but agree to the assessment. The two shinobi were nothing but muscle, and it certainly made it clear how out of shape most of the people in the Order -most of the people in the wizarding world, truthfully- really were. Them included.

. o . O . o .

Kakashi eventually reminded Naruto to take a look at his wounds.

"You're right; I'll remove the stitches." Naruto said after having inspected and prodded Kakashi's back thoroughly. They still had quite the crowd, but the two shinobi largely ignored the wizards. Naruto took out a kunai and began to cut the knots he had made, before pulling the thread out of Kakashi's skin with quick, efficient motions. It took a few minutes, but once he was done, he wiped Kakashi's back down and then spread a layer of salve over the fresh marks that would soon settle into scars.

Meanwhile, the wizards and witches in the room couldn't help but stare all the while. Harry watched silently, taking note of the sheer number of scars on Dog's visible skin; what had he done? Fallen through a blender? Although, to be honest, most of the scars were hardly distinguishable -nothing more than faint silver lines crisscrossing his skin- and looked old. Their earlier words rang loudly in his ears as he tried to picture what kind of lives they must have led. Still lived, he realised with a start.

"'We live, bleed and die in the shadows'." Hermione murmured quietly next to him, following a similar line of thought, voice barely audible as she repeated Dog's strange and ominous words, even in the silent room. It seemed a very apt description, now that they had a somewhat clear view of at least some of what they must have been through.

. o . O . o .

Well, this was a bit quicker than I had planned, but heck; I figured I might as well give you what I had already written, no matter that it was a bit shorter than I had imagined. Eh.

I must say there were some very encouraging reviews to the first chapter, and, well, what can I say? I especially liked the one that compared me to a... what was it again? 'first taste is free - addict salesman'. Yup, some reviewers are creative, and it makes me grin like an idiot.

So, hope you've enjoyed the continuation.