This story is the continuation of 'Foxed' by the Lost Ninjas and I also do not own Naruto.
FIRST IMPRESSIONS
Kankurou had decided, after throwing away his siblings cooked goods, to work some more on his favourite puppet Karasu. So after bringing said puppet into the living room he sat down cross legged with all his tools to tinker some more at the intricate mechanisms that lay hidden inside his puppet, just working on it for a couple of minutes, or hours. But when he would be going over routine workings his mind would wonder on anything and everything.
This poison needs to be replaced. I'll need to go see the Council and request some herbs to make some more. I wonder how long the Council will go before choosing a Kazekage. It is good that they are actually waiting for someone good or we really will be dead. Gaara is going for Kazekage… hope he does get it, or even just get into the ANBU and learn some social skills. Now that would be nice. But he is being forced to pick an animal right now with Temari. God that woman is scary when she wants to be. I wonder if Gaara will even agree to pick a pet. Probably not… But… What if he did?
The puppeteer stopped his actions at that thought
Would anything change?
He stopped thinking suddenly when he felt a presence watching him. He quickly tensed up, casting out his senses to try and identify the source of said disturbance.
He scanned the various windows slowly for anything out of the normal when a flash of something silver caught his attention from the corner of his eye.
Click.
Kankurou jumped up onto his feet and faced the front door. He watched the knob turn slowly towards the right. Being the awesome ninja Kankurou was he looked for a weapon. His eyes lay on his dismantled puppet and silently swearing under his breath he whipped out a kunai from his weapons holster and walked towards the door slowly.
The knob stopped turning and it was evident as pressure was applied lightly to the door.
A body appeared through the door and he was about to slash it in two until he stopped himself when he recognised the mass of red hair that entered through the doorway.
"G-Gaara"
"… Tadaima" and Gaara said nothing more on the matter but instead walked up the stairs to his room, his haven, to take a closer look at his new 'companion.'
Kankurou stood in the lounge a bit shocked and noticed Temari walking in through the front door with much the same expression on her face.
Both of them gave a nervous laugh and went their separate ways to continue with their mourning routines.
IN GAARA'S ROOM
Gaara shut the door to his room quietly and sat cross-legged on the floor in front of his sand coffin that held a very unconscious fox. He leaned closer and noted the changes of his ward.
Carefully the teen ran fingers over the now golden face with fur softer then anything he had felt before. He let his index finger stroke the fur behind the fox's ear some more and watched as it visibly relaxed.
NARUTO'S POV
The blonde ninja ran through the darkness that surrounded him blindly. Though whether he was running to something or away from something was a mystery, for it seemed he was doing both. An unknown water source met his feet, but he kept running, running too fast to be concerned of running of top of it, he had to keep running. Run!
Deep malicious laughter came from all around him and the water dragged on his progress until he was going slow motion, and then he found he couldn't run at all, he couldn't move. The laughter grew around him and he could vaguely distinguish multiple voices.
Then out of the darkness materialized a man with spiked black-blue hair and eyes as dark as night itself.
"S-Sasuke.." stuttered Naruto in shock.
The Uchiha lifted a hand and caressed his blonde's cheek, and Naruto visibly relaxed to the touch even though he couldn't move his body.
"dobe" he said as a smirk graced his pale features.
Then letting his hand fall to his side he turned around and walked away into the darkness, not once looking back.
Naruto tried to run after him but he still couldn't move and he was slowly sinking further into the water that surrounded him. Movement returned to Naruto abruptly and he desperately struggled to free himself from the water that inched up his body in its deadly grip.
The blonde thrashed around in the water and looked to the retreating back of his lover.
"Sasuke!" he called out onto deaf ears, until the figure disappeared altogether.
"SASUKE!!!" he screamed with new vigour as tears of blood streamed from eyes and down his face.
The blood ran off his face and lightly dripped into the water that would not release him. Three drops fell and the red expanded swiftly and turned the water so that it was blood red and staining his orange clothes till they were red. The face of the mighty Kyuubi phased in the reflection of the water, its mouth stretched in a maniacal grin at the trapped blonde, its deep laughter resonating from all around in sadistic humour as the blood red crept further upwards.
Naruto tried to get away, run away, anything, as the water swallowed him whole.
"Sasuke… why?" echoed Naruto's last words into the darkness as he sank deeper and deeper into the darkness.
Naruto's blue eyes snapped open and he swung his eyes around the room in fear, but his eyes met only met with red hair instead.
Naruto's eyes drooped and a single tear escaped his right eye as he remembered the pain.
Sasuke
Gaara watched the golden fox that lay on the floor and gazed in wonder as bright sapphire eyes met his. He noted
the familiarity of deep sadness, loneliness, loss, fear and betrayal that was portrayed in those eyes. But just as soon as they opened they drooped suddenly and a liquid leaked from the kitsune's face.
Wait… Is this fox... Crying? Can foxes even cry?
Gaara noted that apparently they could as the fox whimpered and drew itself into a tiny golden ball of fluff, as if in immense sadness. Gaara remembered that he cried in moments of sadness when he was younger as well.
Gaara sat there, clueless of what to do.
I really am bad at this sort of thing.
Gaara edged slowly closer to the animal and reached out slowly to stroke it behind the ears. His index finger stroked behind the fox's ear slowly, cautiously.
Naruto felt a soothing touch behind his ear but tensed up abruptly and his head whipped out at lightning speed to snap at the retreating hand and snarl threatingly.
Unknown anger once again coursed through his veins and he felt the changes take over his body in waves of blind fury.
Gaara leapt back ninja style and watched as the small, sad fox's golden fur darkened and bristled up and blood red run into his cerulean eyes. In an instant sad fox was once again the red killer from before, the image of pissed.
Gaara, being an intelligent ninja, turned tail and ran out of his room and slammed the door after him. A massive thud was heard on the other side of his door and the sand ninja put massive sand defences on his side of the wooden door so it wouldn't break under the force it was being put under.
Naruto, in his fury, took it out on everything he could find inside the room. He smashed and destroyed everything. Ripping books, blowing up furniture, smashing fragile items and anything he could tangibly touch.
Gaara was leaning against his door when Temari came up the stairs. She stopped and the two siblings stared at each other while listening to the ongoing destruction inside Gaara's room. The male broke the stare first and inhaled a deep breathe before looking back at his sibling.
'What do I do?' Gaara wanted to ask. But it was so hard to get the words out of his mouth to his sister and before he could his sister spoke.
"Is everything okay in there?" Temari stated from her big sister senses telling her something was going wrong.
CRASH!
"Yes" was Gaara automated answer. The male mentally kicked himself at his response that wasn't what he had wanted to say, though his expression was schooled into an emotionless mask the whole time.
"Okay… But don't forget to feed it." She went to continue on her way but stopped and looked back, "Also, Kankurou and I have to attend a meeting soon, and we will be gone the rest of the day," she then continued walking up the stairs.
"Take care," Gaara whispered to himself, standing against the door. He let the sand barriers slip to the ground and his body sink to the ground in front of his door for the remainder of the day, silently listening to the sounds of his room being ripped apart. It wasn't like he cared. It was just a material object that had no sentimental value to him. There were more rooms in the complex he lived in.
Naruto's claws raked against the walls, leaving marks in the wood and plaster. He landed agilely on the torn remains of the carpet and his eyes swung around for something else he could destroy. His eyes landed on a box inside the closet he had missed and he sprinted towards it. His fangs sank easily into the side of the cardboard before he swung his head around and sent it and its contents flying across the room. Books flew onto the floor with their pages open. The fox ran to the closest book and just as his claws were about to tear the book into shreds he stopped himself. Looking at the contents of said book. It was not a journal but what was inside seemed so much more personal.
The black book was a sketch book, and inside it were detailed, elaborate sketches of people. But the one which caught his attention was a large picture of himself. Naruto, the blonde, Knuckle head ninja of surprise was staring forward with a big grin plastered over his face and giving a victory sign. It was so detailed it was almost photographic but the touch of the artist allowed spirit to be freely shown in this.
Naruto placed his paw on the picture and turned the page to look through the rest of the book.
Gaara lifted his head when he heard something… Nothing. Absolute silence met his ears.
So it finally stopped its rampage. What should I do now?... Temari said I should feed it… So… What do fox's eat?
At these thoughts Gaara stood up and walked down the stairs to get into the kitchen. He opened the pantry to look through the contents but seeing as the specific food items didn't jump his attention and say 'FOXES EAT ME!' he closed the door and went to go look into the fridge but something on the bench caught his attention before he could do so.
There on the bench, as innocent as sunlight, was a hot, steaming bowl of Ramen.
Temari can cook Ramen? Can foxes eat Ramen? Well it doesn't have any toxins and shouldn't be harmful to the body…
Gaara's thoughts went along that line while he just stood and glared at the noodles for 10 minutes before deciding to bring it to his ward.
Gaara opened the door quietly with one hand and stepped into the wreck that was his room. His eyes scanned over the damage and finally lay themselves on the golden fox that was eying him cautiously and then the bowl on Ramen in his hands whilst standing on top of an unscathed black book.
The red head looked at the black book and was surprised/relieved to see his sketch book. It was one of the few things that held any sentimental value to the stoic teen.
Gaara sat down cross legged in front of the standing fox and placed the bowl of noodles in front of it. The golden one stood still where he was and continued to survey the sitting ninja suspiciously.
What do I do now?! … I am so bad at this sort of thing. Why does making friends have to be so complicated?!
Gaara blinked suddenly as his mind flashed red and it seemed as if a thought had been implanted into his mind.
Introduce yourself.
Gaara opened his mouth slowly and shoving all of his discomfort into the pit of his stomach he forced his mouth to speak.
"My name is Sabaku no Gaara," he stated quickly and uncomfortably.
Naruto's eyes narrowed as this is entirely the opposite of what he expected from Gaara.
Had he really changed to the stage he would be introducing himself freely? Without making human mush out of people to whatever excuse he could think? Naruto thought.
Gaara realised solemnly that he was talking to an animal and that it couldn't talk back, but at least this one was intelligent, could understand what he was saying (he thought) and didn't run away at the sight of him like most animals.
Naruto glared at the Ramen that was in front of him. Wasn't this so much like THAT time he had with Kakashi. Oh the Irony of it all.
Oh Ramen how much I loathe you right now.
Naruto stared at his reflection in the Ramen and in spite of the fox face he saw looking at him he kicked the Ramen bowl strongly and sent it smashing to pieces against the wall and its contents run down to meet the bowl shards on the ground.
Gaara showed not a reaction to this apart from the slight look of sadness in his eyes.
The red haired ninja stood up and made his way to the door quickly.
"It was nice to meet you. The kitchen is downstairs if you get hungry." Gaara then left the doorway to set up his back-up room for the remainder of his stay at this house.
Naruto lay back down on the ground and continued to absorb himself in his thoughts and Gaara's sketches.
TIME SKIP TO THAT NIGHT
It was long past the time that Kankurou and Temari had come home exhausted, said their good nights and gone to sleep. Gaara seemed to have disappeared somewhere and could not be immediately sensed. But the golden fox was awake in the room he had torn to shreds, with his stomach tearing itself to shreds in hunger.
GROWL
Shut up you!!
Mentally thought Naruto to his stomach as it rebelliously gave an even louder holler for food. Finally giving into his need for food the small fox silently padded out of the room and to the stairs. Looking over the edge of the railing first and at the huge amount of distance he was to the ground.
Wow, Gaara's house is huge.
Continuing on his journey he silently padded down the stairs to the bottom level and then following his nose after the promising scent of food towards the tiled room that was the kitchen. He padded into the kitchen, looking left and right at the various appliances and such in the spacious room.
"I thought you would get hungry about now" Naruto froze at the voice and snapped his head in the direction while bristling slightly. Gaara sat cross-legged on the tile floor slightly in the shadows.
"So I made a bowl of Ramen," he said whilst pushing a bowl towards the fox with his right hand and saying nothing more while he patiently waited for a reaction.
The fox sniffed the air and the mouth watering scent of his favourite food met his sensitive nostrils as his stomach gave a tremendous growl in response. The fox was suspicious but he would not go starving himself, it was against his nature. So creeping forward slowly he looked down into the bowl and at the reflection that looked back at him. The fox's face.
Well if I am going to be a fox I might as well make the most of it until this pill wears off. Hopefully I won't have any more bloody curses put on me... I just want things to be back to normal… This is for you Sasuke.
And with that final thought Naruto indulged himself in the bowl of food presented to him and practically inhaled the food in record timing. Afterwards licking the bowl completely clean and grinning that no noodles were stuck to his face.
For when this ordeal is over I WILL find you… Sasuke.
Gaara inched closer to the completely silent fox and ran his index finger behind its ear cautiously. Naruto looked into Gaara's hopeful face and snorted before walking away to the stair case and back to the destroyed room where he would sleep the night away until mourning.
Gaara is only a thing for food in this waiting time. Nothing more.
The red head sat on the floor, in the dark and thought about his resent confrontation with his 'companion.' There only seemed to be so much to this fox then its temper. But Gaara was patient and in his heart he knew this was an improvement. Did he want he want improvement though.
This fox is only a way to get Temari off my back for a while. Nothing more.
Just 4 days till he would be joining the ANBU forces.
All things are linked together through cause and effect. There is no such thing as an accident- Swami Prajnanpad
Me: Yay another chapter! Now presenting this weeks lovely prize
Naruto: A week long trip to Hawaii all expenses paid.
Gaara: Isn't Hawaii covered in consistently erupting volcanoes, terrorists and vampires
Naruto: Vampires?...
Gaara: Yeeaa. Tons of them
Me: Oh well that sounds dangerous. Well then Gaara we will send you to Hawaii to make a photo album to give the reviewers instead. Make sure to take lots of your smexy manflesh and those vampires.
Gaara: 00 n-no really its quite okay. DON'T SENDME TO HAWAII!! My pale skin can't handle it!
Me: nonsense, you are the vampire slayer in over 50 fics, you'll be fine. –shoves Gaara onto a plane-
Naruto: Itarashai! (sry I cant spell)
Gaara: -in Hawaii and surrounded by lava, terrorists, vampires and vampire terrorists on fire- ….. Shimatta
REVIEW or I will import vampire terrorists from Hawaii to go to your house in the night and pour lava over your eyebrows, till they're not there! Muahahahaha
Ja ne
Kyuubi-kun XD
