Chapter 3: Fox

Xyrenia could not believe the fact that her new son's mind was fashioned after a sewer. She was almost knee-deep in water and surrounded by dilapidated black brick. It was dark and dank and didn't match her child at all. She glanced at the child at her side and raised a brow.

"We will be changing this as soon as possible."

She didn't wait to see his reaction, just kept moving forward toward the mass of red energy at the end of this particular pipe. There were other pipes that she could see along the wall on both sides, the right side had red pipes that were obviously straining with how much energy was trying to get through too-small pipes; the other side had beautiful jewel blue pipes that fairly glowed with the sapphire blue energy that defined her little boy. It truly was a beautiful sight and she could see a third set of thin pipes on the ceiling. These were the child's mage abilities and they were far inferior to his energy abilities, but she could easily get him up to at least violet level, maybe even aqua. She would make him strong in mind, body and soul and no one would ever be able to break her son no matter what they tried. She led the child to the end of the pipe and there before them was a large cage.

"Dire-beast, are you there?"

"Where else would I be mage?"

The creature behind the cage shifted and Naruto's eyes widened in awe as the Kyuubi walked into the dim light. The fox was huge, much larger than any book could make him, and his tails waved behind him like nine shadows. All in all the creature frightened the small child, but he 

was not known for letting anything keep him down for long and Xyrenia watched in amusement as her son straightened his spine and glared at the dire-beast.

"So, you are the beast that has been…sealed…in my son?"

"Your son? This child is not the child of a mage; he is the child of a ninja."

"Ninja? Whatever, since the moment he woke in my world he has been my son and I will treat him as such. Now, perhaps we can come up with an agreement."

"No need mage. I am no happier with the kit's treatment than you are. I will happily aide in the kit's training."

Xyrenia nodded and smiled down at the child, who looked like he wanted to say something.

"Do you have something to add Bach Cadno?"

The Kyuubi looked down at the little human that contained him and grinned a foxy grin that matched Naruto's. Naruto looked up at the creature and cocked his head, looking more like a fox kit than normal.

"Do you like it there? I don't see how you can…you want me to change some stuff?"

The fox looked more surprised than anyone Xyrenia had ever seen, and she had seen quite a few surprised looks.

"You would…change things? For me?" Naruto nodded, his childish smile breaking a bit more of the ice that had gathered on the Kyuubi's heart.

"Yeah. I mean, you didn't want to be sealed in me, though I would like to know why you attacked Konoha, but…well we're both victims of circ…cir…um…"

"Circumstance, little one?"

"Yeah!"

The Kyuubi shook its great head, wondering about his little vessel, and grinned.



"I will tell you why I attacked the Leaf village before I allow you to change the landscape. Is that satisfactory to the two of you?"

Xyrenia nodded and Naruto, seeing his new mother was happy with the arrangement, also nodded.

"Very well. Four years ago my mate Irica was with kit. She was always rather fragile, so when she became with kit she had to stay in the den, which meant that she couldn't hunt for herself. I was only too happy to hunt for her and was on one of these hunting trips when eight ninja came into our den and killed her. I got back to the den just as they were ready to leave and all of them bore the sharingan eye, the eye that I had gifted the Uchiha clan long ago. I was furious at such a slight, that they would use my own gift against my mate…I…I lost control. I…Irica was my…my soul mate. Losing her was like…like…"

"Like someone tore out your heart and lungs and replaced them with razor wire?"

"Precisely. It was the most painful thing that had ever happened to me. So I went after the nins, I chased them through Hi no Kuni until they went through the gates of Konoha and the other ninja started attacking me. The rest, as they say, is history."

Xyrenia and Kyuubi both waited ad watched Naruto, wondering what his reaction would be.

They needn't have worried.

"Those two-faced, jutsu stealing bastards!"

Both the Kyuubi and Xyrenia were shocked at the vehement reaction, but Xyrenia was proud that her son could see that sometimes the blame of certain actions wasn't with the perpetrator of those actions.



"Don't worry about it Bach Cadno. We'll deal with that later, but for now we need to get this thing between the two of you settled."