Yes, I'm aware that I'm the scum of the earth for leaving this sitting for so long.
I wrote the first chapter of this largely because I was stuck in Philadelphia with only my laptop, and merely stepping outside the hotel could make me uncomfortable. The best way to describe it would be to say that I'm sensitive to negative energy, and Philadelphia was overflowing with it.
Since then, I've never had to deal with that, so it was never pushing me towards this story that had brought me some relief from that. Another thing is that I really had no idea what I was going to do when I started this, and I spent a long time struggling to even finish the first scene.
Ironically, recent manga developments, despite smacking this story over the head in several ways, has helped to inspire me on what I want to do with this a bit more. Especially the latest chapter with all the tailed beasts.
So, without further ado, I present you with the finally released second chapter of Tale of the Kitsune.
Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto or any of the associated characters. I own the OCs, who are all based on some form of Japanese mythology; the mythology part also applies to the Naruto of this story.
There were currently almost a dozen different occupants of Konoha's jōnin lounge, including Kurenai, the legendary Copy Nin Hatake Kakashi, and Sarutobi Asuma, the son of the Sandaime Hokage. There was also Kakashi's self-proclaimed 'Eternal Rival', Maito Gai, who was acting reasonably serious in a situation that itself wasn't particular serious, a relief for all present.
"You don't think any of them will make it through the first test?" questioned Kakashi, eyeing Asuma lazily as the chain-smoker flicked some ash from his cigarette.
"The proctor of the first exam is Morino Ibiki," he said simply.
"That sadist?" Kakashi was caught off-guard; he hadn't expected that when he'd nominated his students for this.
"Sadist?" questioned Kurenai, glancing between them.
"You're still a rookie jōnin," commented Asuma. "It's not a surprise you wouldn't have heard yet."
Gai nodded, leaning against the wall, arms crossed.
"I'm not worried about my own students," he said. "Ibiki won't go far enough for them in this situation, but he's going to break a lot of others."
"Oh?" interjected a new voice suddenly, drawing the attention of the four jōnin to a young woman. Kurenai was surprised, immediately recognizing her as the jōnin from Hakumei—Miyuki, if she remembered right. "If I might ask, what do you mean?"
Kakashi, Gai and Asuma shared an uncertain look between them before the chain-smoker voiced their thoughts.
"Why are you here?" he asked curiously. "You're one of the foreign jōnin, right?"
"Yes," she replied. "My name is Kazahana Miyuki. My students are here representing Hakumeigakure."
"Ah, the twilight village," said Kakashi softly.
"Well," said Asuma, deciding there was no harm in sharing with her, "Ibiki is the head of interrogations; he's a master of psychological warfare. He'll find your buttons, press them, hold them, and he won't give up until his target's a broken mess. And it won't take him long, either."
"Psychological warfare, huh?" Miyuki's left eyebrow rose in a lazy motion that would've made Kakashi proud if he'd actually cared. "Then I guess I don't have to worry about my girls."
Asuma chuckled.
"Don't be so certain of that," he said coolly. "Ibiki heads interrogation for a reason."
"And that would worry me… if he were administering the tests individually and treating this with full seriousness," said Miyuki. "Somehow, I doubt he'd be allowed to go anywhere near far enough to be dangerous."
The genin all took their seats after the proctor for the first exam, Morino Ibiki, explained to them exactly how this test would work. Attitudes ranged from nervous to cocky, but the cool confidence of three particular teams really stuck out.
Those were Team Gai from Konoha, Team Baki from Suna and Team Miyuki from Hakumei. Ibiki had to admire their confidence, but a good chunk of his attention was focused on Uzumaki Naruto in particular.
The Hokage had briefed all of the exam proctors on the Hakumei ninja; he trusted Kushina, of course, but the safety of Konoha came first. It only made sense to be weary of a primordial beast centuries older than any existing nation, even if it was sealed into human form. Jinchūriki could be dangerous enough—but Naruto was something entirely different, something it was only common sense to be weary of.
Those keeping watch out for cheaters were taking down notes constantly—but they were only chūnin, and Ibiki's angle also helped. He spotted cheaters that slipped the watchers by, and those who were caught but managed to keep it below the level that would disqualify them.
His first surprise came when several of the actual genin finished their paper without any sign of cheating that he could catch. Haruno Sakura, Nara Shikamaru and Uzumaki Naruto. Then, as soon as Naruto finished, her teammates started on their papers. Ibiki's eyes narrowed, only a small part of his brain noting the way Yamanaka Ino seemed to collapse on her desk and Haruno shifting slightly before picking up and looking at her paper very closely.
Ibiki knew Team Miyuki was cheating somehow; intuition and observation allowed him to discern that much. What he couldn't figure out was how they were doing it.
Of course, then Naruto caught his eye. She was looking at him with a mischievous, fox-like grin, and he suddenly realized it wasn't fair that there was a fox several centuries old in the exams. But really, how was he supposed to call the girl out on what she was?
It was, more or less, as Ibiki had guessed, though. Naruto had used her Kogen no Jutsu to project an illusion of her own exam paper in front of her teammates. Her illusion was only visible to her teammates though, so it was impossible to discern just what it was they were reading.
Naruto herself, of course, was possessed of a fox's cunning and wisdom. Also, incentive: there were dogs nearby. She did not like dogs. She wanted to get through this, and hoped the dogs would be too stupid to continue; she didn't have a high opinion of their intelligence.
Left with little to do for the remaining forty or so minutes until the time for the tenth question, Naruto casually glanced around, assessing what some of the other genin were doing.
It didn't take her long to spot several particular standouts. There were a few obvious Uchiha here and there, one of whom she thought was kind of cute. Most were using their Sharingan to get the answers, not all that different from the Hyūga in the crowd with their Byakugan. At least one of those with dogs was getting the answers from his pet, who was sitting on his head. She saw that rosette girl from the village gates the other day set down her paper before slumping a bit, then shaking her head, as if warding off drowsiness, and wondered what happened to the girl.
She also spotted other things, like a rather obvious mirror, and… she paused, sniffing slightly. Now that was paying more attention and filtering things out more, she smelled snake, and… tanuki. That… was a surprise. She looked about, trying to find the source, and her eyes soon fell upon a red-haired boy several rows in front of her, and about a dozen seats to the left. Spotting him through the sea of heads would've been difficult if she weren't what she was. But that didn't change things. As she stared at him, the redhead shifted slightly, head turning and his eyes meeting hers.
In that instant, what little doubt she had was wiped away. It was him… her 'brother', Shukaku. This was a surprise, and a little troubling at the same time. She needed to warn Miyako and Yoshimi about him when the current exam finished, and then tell her mom and Miyuki as soon as she saw them again.
Looking away from the Ichibi-Jichūriki, Naruto glanced at the clock and let out a small sigh, deciding to wait with whatever patience she had.
Several centuries of life and all the wisdom that entailed. You'd think she'd have a bit more patience, and she probably did as a Bijū, but she was also human now, and she'd picked up a lot of her mother's personality in the process.
As the minutes passed, more and more of those who hadn't been able to answer the questions or cheated themselves the answers in the first few minutes were beginning to sweat, get desperate, and slip up. One by one, team after team was disqualified by the chūnin keeping an eye out for cheating. Soon, but not quite soon enough for Naruto, the first forty-five minutes were up, and it was time for question number ten.
Ibiki smirked, looking the room over. He'd started with fifty-two teams, a hundred and fifty-six genin total. There were now thirty-three teams, ninety-nine genin. A strong batch after all; he was particularly surprised to see that all the rookies from Konoha were still in the running; he'd have to check how many times they were caught cheating later.
"So… it seems the weak of mind have already been weeded out," said Ibiki casually. "But I'm not quite satisfied with these numbers, so I think we'll go ahead and move on to the tenth question."
Finally! thought Naruto.
"However, I think it only fair to warn you: there will be a… special rule regarding this question. I call it a 'hopeless' rule."
There were a few soft murmurs from the genin, but nothing particularly distinct.
"First…" said Ibiki, "you are all going to choose if you want to take this question or not.
"Choose?!" exclaimed Temari, a Suna genin, from near the back row. "Then what will happen if we refuse?"
"If you refuse?" said Ibiki, smirking sadistically. "I would think that obvious. Your points will be reduced to zero—in other words, you fail, and you take your teammates along with you."
"What the hell? Why even give us a choice? Obviously we're going to take the question!" cried someone from the left side of the room.
"Because of the special rule I mentioned earlier," said Ibiki. "If you choose to take the question and get it wrong… then you will be barred from participating in the Chūnin Exams ever again."
Ibiki's voice was calm, perfectly deadpan, and ruthlessly serious. Nearly half of those still there started shaking or froze up in fright.
"What kind of crazy rule is that?!" cried Inuzuka Kiba, standing to his feet and pointing an accusing finger at Ibiki. "There are people here who have taken the exam in the past!" The puppy sitting on Kiba's head, Akamaru, barked in agreement. Ibiki chuckled in response.
"You were… a rather unlucky group," said Ibiki coldly. "This year, I am the rule. There are different proctors each year, and you were the unfortunate ones to get me. But look on the bright side: I'm giving you the option of quitting now and preserving your chances for when you're more confident and better prepared. Next year, or the year after that." Ibiki chuckled again.
The genin… they were almost all starting to sweat, even some of the more experienced ones. Those who had been here before looked especially scared; they'd tried and failed so many times, yet this failure would mean they'd never get the chance again. There were still a few who stood out with their clear confidence, but they were few and far between.
"So… let us begin," said Ibiki. "Those who wish to opt out of taking the tenth question, raise your hand. Once we've tallied your numbers and you've left, we'll continue to the final question for those who remain. You have till there are only ten minutes remaining to make your choice… oh, look, we've been debating so long that there are only two minutes left to make your decision. I guess you'd better think fast."
Ibiki successfully wiped the smirk off his face. It only took about fifteen seconds before the first genin quit, apologizing to his teammates. Soon after, another five genin quit, taking their teams with them.
He was now down to twenty-seven teams. He wondered how long it would take till they broke. Then, he noticed something odd.
Uzumaki Naruto was shaking.
Oh crap! thought Miyako as she noticed Naruto's condition. Oh crap, oh crap, oh crap! I hope Naruto-chan doesn't piss him off…
Yes! Come on Naru-chan, bite his head off! thought Yoshimi—though she would never admit to that internal side of her that so sharply contrasted her more friendly but quiet demeanor.
Another twenty seconds passed as Naruto's trembling increased, drawing everyone else's attention. Then, the blonde snapped.
"You mean to say that I spent the last forty minutes of my life sitting around bored so you could try to scare me off with that pathetic excuse of a 'hopeless rule'?!" she practically screamed. The genin next to her all covered their ears. Miyako sighed while Yoshimi cackled internally. Ibiki stared at the blonde in complete surprise.
"Let me tell you something right now mister big bad scarface!" shouted Naruto. "I've spent the last two months hunting down sociopathic rogue nin from villages too pathetic to clean up their own messes! I've seen terrors that would break the minds of mere mortals! I've spat the Shinigami in the face and shoved fire down his throat to try and burn off that bad breath of his! I have watched monsters your puny brain could barely comprehend come to life and run wild in the world! For the love of the Rikudō Sennin! My mother was nicknamed the Whirlpool of Bloody Death and I've been taught by a woman who can destroy mountains by looking at them funny! If you want to make this wait worth my time and actually scare me, then bring on an eldritch abomination that would make the Kyūbi no Yōko tremble! If you've got none of that, then stop wasting my time!"
Naruto panted. Miyako buried her face in her hands. Yoshimi smirked.
All the genin, even Kabuto, Gaara and Neji, inched their chairs a bit further away from the insane blonde. The chūnin looked uncertain.
Ibiki… Ibiki laughed.
"Nice kid," he said. "You're even more hot-blooded than your mother. Alright, then let me give everyone an extra… oh, sixty seconds and ask another question: who here has the guts to stick around and continue this exam with Uzumaki-san there? If you'd like to leave, feel free to raise your hands."
No one was surprised when all four of those sitting around Naruto immediately threw their hands into the air. Several more hands rose into the air around the room, disqualifying an additional six teams total.
As they departed, Ibiki gave a quick look over the remaining sixty-three genin. He smirked slightly, realizing no one else was going to leave.
If anything, he thought to himself, those left are more likely to stay because of what she said. For those who weren't frightened away, what she said has told them a lot about what our world is really like.
Ibiki stepped forward a bit.
"Nice determination everyone," he said evenly. "You might want to exaggerate less in the future, Uzumaki-san; that bit about the Shinigami may've been overkill, but if that doesn't intimidate you, then I can't think of anything that will. Now, for the first exam, the sixty-three genin remaining in this room… pass."
"Huh?"
Ibiki had to suppress a laugh at the dumbstruck expressions he was getting. Then, Haruno shot to her feet.
"Wait, what's the meaning of that?!" she demanded. "We pass already? What about the tenth question?"
Ibiki laughed slightly.
"There was no such thing to begin with," he said, "or if you prefer, you can call the two-choice question the tenth question."
"What?"
"Wait a minute!" said Temari. "Then what were those previous nine questions?! It was a waste of time!"
"No, it's not," said Ibiki dismissively. "The nine questions served their purpose already: to test each individual or team's abilities to gather or relay information unnoticed."
"Gather or relay information?"
"First, this test's purpose lies in the first rule," said Ibiki. "Your pass-fail decision is based on your three-person teams. By doing so, we placed an enormous amount of pressure on each of you to not be a burden to your team. At the same time, the questions on this test could not be answered by ordinary genin; to put it simply, you had to cheat to get the right answers. To help facilitate this, we snuck two chūnin in amongst you to be targets of that cheating."
As he said this, two of the genin raised their hands, indicating themselves as the chūnin in question.
"As long as you weren't caught cheating too many times, you would be okay. Of course, some of you pulled it off without cheating… and others pulled it off without getting caught at all. Take the kunoichi of Hakumei: it was pretty obvious to me that they were cheating somehow… yet I couldn't figure out how." He glanced at the chūnin, who all shook their heads, indicating the same.
"Neither could anyone else it seems," said Ibiki, refocusing on the genin. "Our situation meant it was clear to us what they were doing. Since they weren't caught though, in a situation where you needed to gather or relay information faced with enemies, the enemies in question would be unaware." He chuckled. "I admit though, I'm curious: how did you three do it?"
"Sorry," said Naruto with a mischievous wink, "that's for us to know and for you to die of curiosity about."
Ibiki chuckled and decided to move on, taking off his bandana, revealing the damage to his head, to the disgust of many of the genin.
"On the field of war and battle, information is a valuable currency that can buy the lives of your teammates and your village and even purchase victory over the enemy," said Ibiki. "But if your information is wrong, then it could cost you, your team, your friends, your family and your village dearly. Those who foolishly couldn't gather information without getting caught and, in a combat situation, risking misleading information, were thrown out. Weeding out such people was the purpose of those nine questions."
"And the tenth?" asked Temari.
"The most essential question," said Ibiki. "In place of that choice—take a chance and potentially never advance, or wait till next year—let me present you with a choice an actual chūnin would have: there is a mission to capture a secret document. Your enemies are ninja from other villages, but their numbers and strengths are unknown to you. Furthermore, there is a chance that they have traps waiting for you. The lives of yourself and your team are on the line; do you accept and risk those lives, or refuse and wait for a safer mission?"
Everyone stared at Ibiki in surprise.
"For a chūnin, the correct answer is to accept the mission," said Ibiki. "As ninja, you cannot avoid those dangerous situations where you are gambling not only your own life but those of others. Lacking confidence, allowing yourself to say 'there will always be next time'… people like that are unfit to become chūnin. That is my belief. But those here have demonstrated a readiness to take those chances, confront those risks… and so, all of you pass. The first stage of this Chūnin Selection Exam has ended. I wish you all the best of luck on the remaining exams… you're gonna need it. Compared to what you've got coming, I was downright friendly."
Several genin gulped slightly. However, before anything else could be said, a cloth ball broke through the window.
"It really is good to hear that Uzu has recovered on some level," said Minato as he ate in his office with Kushina. "But Naruto… I honestly wouldn't believe something like that was possible."
"Uzushiogakure was home to a great many powerful clans," said Kushina softly. "The Tenmachi were one of the most unique of those."
"Mmm… so… my break isn't gonna last much longer. Tell me more about Naruto and her teammates."
"Okay… how about 'we have unleashed the most powerful genin imaginable upon your village'? How's that sound?"
"Um…"
"Oh, alright," said Kushina with a dramatic sigh. "Naruto is a mass of living chakra inside; nothing can be done to change that. She has a literally infinite supply of chakra to draw upon, and a natural mastery over it. She had better chakra control than you could ever hope for when she was a baby. She also has illusions powerful enough that not even the Sharingan can pierce them normally, and a double chakra affinity, fire and lightning."
Minato whistled slightly.
"As for the others… well, Yoshimi possesses a powerful kekkei genkai, called Mononoke, which grants her access to some… unique abilities, and the power to summon some unique allies for a wide variety of purposes. Miyako is the heir of the Tsukino Clan, said to be the descendants of Kaguya-hime, and possesses a number of jutsu tied into purification and light; they're pretty handy, but I'll let the exams show you what she can really do."
"Finally, Miyuki is from a clan of sleeping dragons, and I mean that almost literally. Really slow to anger, which is good because they are dangerous angry, and Miyuki is the ideal. She's pretty handy with ninjutsu and genjutsu and she's perfected her all she knows about swordsmanship to an art form. And she was chosen by Yawarakai-te; do you know the stories behind it?"
"Not really," admitted Minato.
"Well, the sword is a powerful artifact, pre-dating the rise of the ninja; pre-dating the samurai even… no one's really sure how old it is. It's said that it was forged by a legendary swordsmith to meet a challenge by an apprentice of his. The apprentice's sword was a powerful force of destruction, capable of slicing a river merely by being placed in it, cutting leaves and fish as they passed by. The master's sword, though, healed all that passed by it of the damage caused by the first sword. That was Yawarakai-te, and it can only be wielded by those it deems worthy. To try and force it to obey you otherwise is to be the recipient of a terrible curse."
"So, you can imagine my delight when Miyuki was chosen by the sword; first person to wield it since the foundation of the hidden villages. She's a really good teacher too, even if she won't admit to it, and Naruto, Yoshimi and Miyako are wonderful girls, always eager to learn."
Minato stared at Kushina, surprised. She spoke of the other kunoichi as if they were all her daughters, not just Naruto. And perhaps that was understandable, given all that had happened to their families.
"Great timing Anko," said Ibiki, stepping around the canvas hung up in front of him by kunai. "You've just ruined the atmosphere and made yourself look silly."
The woman who'd busted through the window wrapped in the canvas now hanging up behind her, Mitarashi Anko, glared at Ibiki.
"You were supposed to have been finished soon enough that that wouldn't be a problem!" she growled.
"There are some strange ones here," said Ibiki with a slight shrug. Anko sighed, glancing back at the confused genin and doing a quick count while the two chūnin hidden among them joined those off to the side.
"Wait, sixty-three genin? You let twenty-one teams pass?! Bah! You've gone soft Ibiki!" said Anko.
"In addition to a strange group, there are many extraordinary ones present this year," replied Ibiki coolly.
"Is that right? Oh well; I'm gonna make more than half of them fail the next exam anyway…" said Anko, trailing off a bit as she licked a kunai that had suddenly appeared in her hand. Ah… that shuddering of terror… that was exactly what she'd really been looking for.
"More than half?" whispered Sakura in shock.
"We'll discuss the details tomorrow," said Anko. "Ask your jōnin senseis about the rally point and time. That is all. Dismissed."
That night, after the genin had gone to bed, Kushina and Miyuki met to discuss the information Naruto had given them.
"Shukaku," murmured Miyuki. "The rumor was that the Ichibi had been sealed into the Kazekage's son. Still, that they'd send him here is… troubling."
"Naruto should be able to handle it though," said Kushina. "Shukaku hates her guts, but even he knows better than to seriously cross Kurama."
"And if 'Yōko' gets loose?" questioned Miyuki. "You won't have a problem handling it, right?"
"Have a little faith in Naruto."
"I do… its Yōko I don't have faith in. It's been getting better over the years, but there's no denying that a part of Naruto is still the primordial beast from before. Speaking of which, have you warned the Hokage about that?"
"No," admitted Kushina. "If something goes wrong and Yōko gets loose, it'll be our responsibility to clean it up."
"Understood," said Miyuki. "Once the second exam is done, will you be heading home to check up on things?"
"Yes, the archive is the highest priority, and you can't just walk away during that time. I'll handle things back home."
When Naruto slept, she dreamt like every ordinary person. But at the same time, she could do so much more.
She was special; there really wasn't any denying that. She knew more about the world than any living individual, with only her brethren possessing the knowledge she did. Not only that, but she possessed incredible power, power that even all eight of her brothers together could only dream of.
The others had called Kurama arrogant, and not without reason. He had been arrogant, but he had also been right: his power far surpassed the others, and each additional tail bestowed even more power than the last. The difference in power between Kurama and Gyūki was greater than the gap between Gyūki and Chōmei, and enormously greater than the gap between Matatabi and Shukaku.
And it wasn't just raw power; of all the Bijū, Kurama was closest not only to their progenitor, but also to their 'father'. Consciously or not, the Old Man had given Kurama a portion of his power as well, and although Naruto had access to only a fraction of her power as Kurama right now, things were gradually changing, and she could still communicate with the others through her dreams.
She'd mostly avoided that in the past, though. Shukaku loathed her, Matatabi was always on Shukaku's side against her, Son and Kokūo would've been furious to see her as she was now, Isobu was out of contact for some reason, and she'd once called Saiken a violent maniac and that guy could hold one hell of a grudge.
So, in her dreams, when she did decide to see the others, it was only ever with Gyūki and Chōmei, the ones she'd respected the most in her previous life. She'd been surprised to learn that Gyūki actually got along well with his current host, and Chōmei, after some initial amusement at Naruto's current condition, had confided to her how badly Chōmei's host, Fū, was treated by the village.
Naruto tried to get Chōmei to talk Fū into coming to Hakumei somehow, but the Nanabi had refused; it seemed that he was hoping Fū would snap and let him loose. Naruto had pretty much cut off contact at that point, only talking to Gyūki afterwards, and only rarely as he was often busy working with Killer Bee.
Now, however, Naruto was trying to contact Shukaku. It was probably overdo anyways.
"Shukaku?" she called uncertainly. It was always difficult, trying to actually find the others beneath the seals. But she'd done it in the past, so she was sure she could do it again. "Come on, I know you're here somewhere, stop hiding from me."
She felt the attack coming before she actually heard anything, spinning about just in time to see Shukaku's hand slam into her, pressing her to the ground.
"WHO ARE YOU?" he screeched at her, making her wince.
"Really, Shukaku?" she said. "What, have the years with humans made you lose the concept of an indoor voice? No need to shout." Shukaku pressed her down further, drawing another wince.
"How did you get in here?" he growled out.
"Thanks for quieting down," she said. "As for how I got here… I'm a Bijū, little brother, of course I can get in here."
"Lies," growled Shukaku. "You're a human. I saw you through the boy earlier today; a remarkably malevolent human despite appearances, but a human nonetheless."
Naruto sighed, closing her eyes. Chains shot up from the ground, gripping Shukaku and yanking him onto his back, swiftly tightening to hold him to the ground as Naruto stood up and brushed herself off before leaping over to the struggling tanuki.
"Okay, I concede that I'm also a human now, yeesh," she said, walking up to his head. "But give me a little credit, would you? I know most of you wouldn't pull your tails through that, but I'm not so easily subdued."
Shukaku's eyes widened.
"KURAMA!" he roared, realizing who she was. Naruto instinctively readied herself for a fight, but then realized that he was… laughing?
"Oh, that's rich!" he cackled. "How the mighty have fallen! Where are your precious tails that signify your power now, Kurama? It looks like they weren't enough! Why, I'm the 'weakest' of us all and even I'm still my true self! Look at you, some pathetic human girl now. Tell me, have the others expressed my sentiments? Do they think you no longer deserve the name given to you by the Sennin?"
"Watch it Shukaku," growled Naruto, the chains tightening, her eyes burning with rage as her pupils turned to fox slits and her irises began to glow dark red. "I may not have access to my full power right now, but I'm still powerful enough to crush you here and now. Besides, before my run-in with the leftovers of Uzu, none of has had ever had to tangle with a Tenmachi!"
That shut the tanuki up.
"Tenmachi?" he echoed.
"Yes, Tenmachi," said Naruto. "You know, that group the Old Man left behind in case we ever got rowdy or too much like our progenitor? Yeah, I got to see first-hand just how the fuck they were planning on handling us and look what happened to me."
The chains suddenly tightened further, drawing a grunt of pain from the giant tanuki.
"Also: never," growled Naruto, "even insinuate that I should have my name taken from me. No matter what else happens, that name is the one given to me by the Old Man and it's mine. I know you hate me Shukaku, but that's going too far."
Shukaku said nothing.
"Now… why are you here?" asked Naruto. "Why would the Kazekage send your host here?"
"Why should I tell you?"
"Because I don't want to kill you or the boy," said Naruto. Shukaku's eyes widened in surprise. "I know you'll recover eventually from that sort of death, but it's the most painful thing in the world isn't it? Listen, I'm not gonna take back what I said about our tails being a measure of our power. You guys don't have my perspective on it, and I know I was an arrogant prick, but I never meant it as an insult to you." Naruto's expression softened. "You're still strong. You're still one of my little brothers. Now that I'm more in touch with who I was, I still want to look out for you."
"You think a mere apology will be enough for my forgiveness?"
"No," admitted Naruto. "Listen, if you really hate me that much, I'll leave you alone. Just please don't force me to kill you."
With that, Naruto turned and walked away, releasing Shukaku from the chains. The tanuki watched her disappear into the shadows of this dark mindscape, confusion in his eyes.
Just what had happened to that bastard he'd hated so much?
Author's Note: Initially, I'd planned to get to the second exam, but wound up stalled after the scene with Kushina and Miyuki. Then, I got inspired to do the final scene like, an hour ago, sat down to write it, and there it was.
I really liked the final scene; it's a little surreal, and strangely tear jerking for me. Here we have Naruto trying to apologize for being a complete asshole in her past life and Shukaku gives her the cold shoulder. I know what it's like to have family angry at you, so Naruto's situation with Shukaku hits me pretty hard.
Anyways, I really don't have much to say. I haven't lately, maybe just because I've been so exhausted. With a little luck, maybe I can continue this story to its conclusion, but it's going to be shorter than my usual fare; if possible, I'm gonna try and keep it under 100,000 words, because just trying to bring one Naruto fic (Bloodlines) through the full story is difficult and time consuming enough.
Please leave reviews, even if it's just to give me the third degree for never updating! I'm sorry for all of that! V_V