Title: The Instrument

Author: Keg369

Disclaimer: I don't own Naruto or Joan.

Gear: AU Crossover

Pairings: None at this time.

Shibi was having a pleasant night as his mission in water country had gone very well. But working with Hizashi-san was always nice, as unnecessary things never distracted him. It had taken the two so little time to complete the mission they were going home eariler than exspected.

Shibi himself was very pleased his son Shino was going through a slightly rough time with his partners at the moment and Shibi would very much like to be at home to set with his son. He almost chuckled remembering the four year old looking up at him, big black eyes distressed. "I am itchy father."

Shino had no other children his age to play with in the clan and the ones closest to his age were ten years old. The three children were so busy training they had no interest in Shino. And everyone else in the clan really didn't no how to act around him. In the Aburame clan births were strictly regulated and children were always born around the same time as the others in the village tended to not favor their company.

And Shino had been unexpected… He sighed it couldn't be helped he only wished Shino didn't have to pay for his… mistake wasn't the correct word.

Unexpectedly his partners started to hum. He stopped dead on the roof of the building he was running across. Looking down he saw a distressing sight a woman was being attacked.

He jumped down into the alley. His partners swarmed the man making him cry out. He paid little attention but he held off killing the man until he understood the situation.

" 'oan!" a small boy younger than Shino was crawling towards the young woman her face was a mess blood gushing out leaving a small puddle on the ground. She lay there as if sleeping suddenly for a brief moment with the blood covering her face. He thought she was, Kayo, Shino's mother. He walked toward her in a daze brushing the hair away from her face. Her features were very different from Kayo's. He cursed himself for losing his composure for a moment.

" 'oan. P'ease wake up. Naruto's good." The boy was crying sobbing really Shibi blinked in surprise. The marks on the cheeks, blue eyes, and blond hair… Kyuubi's container.

"Kill her! She's the fox's servant! Tried to fool me! He did! Kill Her!" Shibi took in the man he had mostly ignored. The man was obviously in a drunken rant. But he had broke Hokage-sama's law. His partner's killed without any hesitation.

"P'ease he'p 'oan. Don't be mad at me." He took in the container's state he was most certainly injured. A little blood was dribbling down his chin. But what struck him the most was how tiny the boy was. He was about to be four there was no way he should be this small… there was not time for this.

The young woman and the container required medical attention. He quickly gathered the young woman in his arms. And too his surprise she melted into them easily as if made to fit there. Heedless of the blood that stained his white coat he looked down at the container's hazy blue eyes.

"Uzamaki-san I will now lift you with my partners you must not struggle to make the trip easier. But do not fear they will not harm you." The little boy to his surprise gave a shaky nod. With the boy situated Shibi took off quickly into the night.

Sarutobi was doing his best not to kill the Medic-nin in front of him Naruto was fine. In fact the Medic-nin was saying he should go back to the orphanage now. Forty minutes after getting his stomach smashed in by a thirty-five year old ex-ninja, internal bleeding that had barely been stopped, and eight broken ribs. And the four year old was fine to leave the hospital. Ridiculous.

He cut off the babbling Medic-nin before he killed the woman." What of the girl?"

The Midic-nin's lips thinned and her face gained a sympathetic look "The girl is stable however the wounds were too deep on her face and will scar there is simply nothing we can do for that. There was a stab wound on her chest we can only assume he was aiming for her heart luckily he missed. His kunai only nicked the left side that scar too will remain." The woman looked thoughtful and whispered "right over her heart." Sarutobi nodded turned around leaving the Midic-nin behind him wishing for the millionth time that week Tsunade was still in the village.

"Hokage-sama?" he stopped turning back to the Medic-nin arching an eyebrow at the woman "I was just wondering why? Why did she try to help him? What I mean to say is she didn't know him why would someone risk…"

She stopped looking fearful Sarutobi sighed, "Because he is a little boy and anyone human would do anything they could to help." the woman at lest had the decency to look ashamed.

As he walked down the hall surprised to find, a bloody, Shibi Aburame lingering by the door to Naruto and the girl's room.

"Aburame-sama." The tall man turned his head slightly nodding in acknowledgement

"Hokage-sama. I thought it best to stay until you assigned a guard." Hokage walked to the open door the lights where out the moonlight shining. Naruto had snuck out of his bed somehow and was curled up in the girl's arms. As for the girl someone had braided her hair. His eyes traced the bandages on her face. She looked very peaceful as if dead or some kind of statue.

"Aburame-sama?"

"Yes Hokage-sama."

"There are three young men I would like you to get for me. I will take over guard duty for now."

"Of course Hokage-sama."

Kakashi blinked at the charka flare warning him of the person's arrival. He meet who ever it was on his roof maybe it was a messenger of some sort. He raised an eyebrow at the white coat that landed next to him on the roof. Shibi Aburame, 26-year-old heir to the Aburame clan, what the hell? The blood splatter on his chest surprised Kakashi, you never saw an Aburame anything less than immaculately clean.

Well that blew him being a messenger out of the water. The heirs to clans do not deliver messages. The only question now was what did such a prestigious person want with him?

" Hatake-san. You are needed at once at the central hospital floor six room 109."

Now Kakashi's interest was really perked. Maximum-security floor? The Aburame was gone before Kakashi could question him further. Oh well the best place to find out what was going on was the source. He dived off his roof daring gravity to bring him down.

Gai put down his turtle mask wiping the blood from it. The charka that lingered outside his window was not familiar but it was not threatening he opened his window. A tall man in a white blood stained coat looked back at him back at him or at lest Gai thought so it was really hard to tell with the glasses. "Gai-san. You are needed at once at the central hospital floor six room 109." With that the white coat was gone.

Ebisu was asleep dreaming about a certain dark haired girl when the charka flare hit him. He was awake and at his window in under two seconds "Ebisu-san. You are needed at once at the central hospital floor six room 109." Ebisu gave a shaky nod as the man vanished into the night.

Sarutobi wrinkled his brow at the strange langue coming from the young woman's mouth. He had been happy when she had started to talk in her sleep but it did little good if he couldn't understand a word she said. What was this girl?

"Hokage-sama." Sarutobi blinked at the dark haired ANUB member in the doorway. The face was clear just a white mask. "The ones you requested are here Hokage-sama. And this was found at the scene." Sarutobi was startled to see a shopping bag from the Aburame family's store in the ANUB's hand Sarutobi walked forward quickly taking the bag from the ANUB.

"Stand guard I will be right outside." He walked out into the hall and for some reason didn't notice he'd never seen that ANBU before.

"Joan. You have to wake up." Joan groaned as she came out of her semi-coma she had just enough time to be irritated before the pain hit her.

"Oh God!" she hurt all over.

"You called." She opened her eye to see the plain white mask. He was leaning up against the wall beside her bed. Blinked this wasn't her bed she didn't have a bed, not anymore. She had a large almost cocoon like pillow futon thing. She started when she felt weight on her chest. Naruto was sleeping peaceful on her chest the little boy was drooling on her but that hardly mattered he was fine.

"Beautiful isn't he." He removed his mask and was a tan skinned teenager with black lipstick and eyeliner. He walked forward setting on the side of her bed he stroked the blond hair with all the care and love as a father would. "Like you I spent a little more time making this little one. He was made to do great things."

She bit her lip; "He's why you sent me here."

He looked at her and gave a small smile, "He's part of the reason yes. But as you know ripples keep going." She nodded understanding drop a rock in a pond the ripples go out. It was the way the whole world worked.

"I am going to ask you to do three things." She gave him her undivided attention so much had changed sense the first time he came to her. He smiled down at her, "The first is to just be a mother."

To say she was shocked was an understatement. She was only seventeen she hadn't been able to keep her pet fish alive for more than three days. How could she take care of another human? But it was not as if she could really say no. This little bowl of sunshine needed her.

She looked down at the sleeping boy in her arms. She was to be his mother. "The plan I had for him will not come to pass it would have worked fine but a trusted loved one he will have. Could make a wrong choice…." He trailed off frowning in away that she had come to associate with him thinking of the different ways life could turn out. He saw all the roads after all. "That is why I brought you here. He bares a great burden and gift that could one day make him turn from the light. But he knows what it is like to hurt. And will remember the hurt for the rest off his life. He is meant to change this world to stop mindless killing." His eyes looked so sad now "But enough of that. Naruto has something inside of him something not good and not evil. Though there are those who would tell you other wise."

She tilted her head, "Not good or evil?"

He nodded, "Is a fox evil because it kills and eats a rabbit?"

She shook her head, "No the fox is just trying to survive."

"The fox inside Naruto was trying to do that and more. But he lost. And his story is not to be told just yet. All you need to know is there is a kitsune inside Naruto more specifically his stomach."

"Kyuubi the fox demon they're having the festival for?"

"The very same." He nodded knowingly, "But he wasn't killed. He was sealed into the little one here." She blinks curiously down at Naruto it was hard to image a huge fox in his stomach.

"Why?"

He stared down at Naruto for a moment then looked her in the eye, "Why? Why does anything happen. Because I had a plan and it didn't work out this time. But I'm doing what I can to fix it."

She nodded, "You said I had three tasks and that's only one." She hugged Naruto a bit tighter as He smiled at her.

"There is a man outside with the Hokage and three others. No matter what he asks you, no matter how strange the question may be. If it's a yes or no question, you must always say yes. "

"I understand." It was a very strange task to say yes, to one man all the time it would be hard but… if she had to do it.

"His name is Shibi Aburame. And remember no matter what."

"I get it. I get it." She rolled her eyes, "and the third?"

He frowned at her then, "This one will be the hardest learn everything you can about seals."

"Seals? As in the hand things Ebisu and Gai do when their…"

"No. Written seals. You will not be learning the shinobi arts. Your hands were not made to spill blood. Besides you're too old to learn them anyway. You will learn about the seals like the one on Naruto and others."

She nodded understanding she had some books on the subject back at the shop.

"These are your tasks and.." his face hardened uncharacteristically, "I won't be seeing you for a while." She blinked at him opening her mouth to protest but he cut her off, " Just do your best and everything will be fine." He gave her a reassuring smile that she returned. "Now I need to tell you what to tell the Hokage to let you adopt Naruto."

Joan began to stroke Naruto's hair, "Ok God."

AN: I have only one thing to say... Please review! I will love you forever.